Somewhere Weaknesses Are Strength

A knock resounded in the room, forcing Hayley to pull her eyes away from Sebastian's pouting face. It must have been Holly with Sebastian's meal. She was the only one the captain was expecting at that hour.

"Hold on," Hayley called. She looked at Sebastian, who was still pouting, and smiled, "I'll be right back."

Sebastian's pout held firm as she watched the captain climb off the bed and walk across the room. With a tiny wave, Hayley was out of the room. Slowly, her worked up state died down until she was no longer pouting like an enfant but staring at the door with sullen eyes, mouth drawn in a tight line. She sighed, rubbing the palms of her hands over her eyes.

This was absolutely ridiculous. She understood she couldn't keep her body from enjoying what Hayley did to it, but she wished she could control it to some extent. It was nice that it put her mind out of the situation for awhile, but she only returned to being absolutely terrified that Hayley would storm through the door and beat her till she couldn't move once her mood died down. Hayley's promise not to hurt her meant near nothing. Sebastian would still have to get used to the captain again somehow.

Her body reacting like a sex deprived nymphomaniac didn't help.

The door opened, Hayley walking through with a tray in hand. Sebastian sat up straight despite the pain encompassing her and folded her hands in her lap, just as she had been taught to do by her nursemaid years ago. Hayley traveled the expanse of the room and crawled back onto the bed, placing the tray in front of the princess. Sebastian stared at the food but didn't move to eat it.

Hayley could be poisoning her.

On the tray, slices of chicken and vegetables dominated the middle. A roll of bread and a small pastry sat on two small plates on the side of the tray, a bowl of fruits on the opposing side. She couldn't tell if it was poisoned. It looked fine, but Sebastian knew poison hid itself well in food. Not to mention the amount of food was bit a much. Sebastian would go into a food coma before eating all the items on the tray.

"Eat what you can," Hayley said, disrupting Sebastian's thoughts.

She knew Sebastian wouldn't finish it all. She wasn't even sure Sebastian would eat the food now that she was back to her broken state. The princess needed to though. Not eating would only cause her more discomfort than necessary.

Sebastian nodded, picking up a small strip of chicken and nibbling on it. She could feel Hayley's eyes on her, taking in each of her motions. Under the intense gaze, her shoulders hunched slightly, her chin dropping down from its proud post.

Hayley's heart broke seeing Sebastian like that. She wanted so badly to drop her hands between the girl's thighs just to make her look not so upset again. It was the only thing she knew would take away the pain for a little while.

But masking the problem would do no good, and Hayley knew that. She didn't know what else to do though. Out of all her captives, she never felt the need to take the time to nurse them back to proper psychological state. She could make grown men cry, she could burn down villages without remorse, she could navigate her ship with ease, but she couldn't do this. That hurt.

It hurt even more knowing she was the sole cause of her princess' fear.

"How many times do I have to say I'm sorry before you're okay?" Hayley asked.

Sebastian snapped her head to face the captain, eyes wide. She placed the nibbled-on chicken slice back on the plate and folded her hands in her lap, gaze dropping to her fingers.

"I'm sorry," Sebastian mumbled.

Hayley's jaw slacked. How was that a proper response?

"No," Hayley said. Even she could hear the desperation dripping from her voice. "You're not supposed to say that."

"I'm sorry," Sebastian repeated.

"Stop saying sorry," Hayley demanded, "I hurt you, and I feel terrible about it. I'm sorry."

"I deserved it," Sebastian returned.

"No, you didn't. A stern talking to, maybe. But what I did? No. Absolutely not. Do you know how badly you're injured? You'll have a permanent scar where I branded you. I'm not sure how well the cuts on your body are going to heal. They could be infected. Taylor will have to come in to make sure I didn't do any permanent damage on your organs. The only thing I'm sure is going to heal without complications is your shoulder. In no way did you deserve that."

Hayley was sure they had established that Sebastian did not deserve an ounce of pain that she received. Had her previous words not reached the princess' ears? Had Sebastian really not taken it in?

Perhaps she had been too tired to retain anything after a night of crying.

"I like you," Hayley said, "It was completely improper of me to treat you the way I did."

"I still broke a rule," Sebastian stated.

Hayley sighed, defeated, "Eat your food."

Sebastian immediately ducked her head again, grabbing the slice of chicken she had been nibbling on and continuing to nibble on it.

Hayley wasn't sure how to make Sebastian understand. She could see easily that she had gone too far. Sebastian's attempted escape hurt her but she had no right in reacting the way she did. Everything would have been fine had Hayley explained the situation to Sebastian. Beating her and hanging her from the ceiling was hardly the right answer. She didn't know how to help Sebastian see that.

Sebastian finally finished her first slice of chicken. Keeping Hayley in her peripheral vision, she grabbed another poultry slice to nibble on. She was hungry, starving, but she wasn't going to eat quickly. Hayley might get angry at her for eating too much. She finished the second slice as slow as the first. Her stomach begged for more food but Sebastian folded her hands in her lap.

It was best not to eat more and risk getting in trouble.

"Are you done?" Hayley asked, staring at the large amount of food still left on the plate.

Sebastian nodded.

"Are you sure?"

She knew Sebastian didn't eat much, but she had to be hungrier than that. The princess had only eaten two slices of chicken. That wasn't even enough for a child to thrive off of.

Sebastian nodded again.

"Sweetheart, there's no way you're full."

"I am," Sebastian mumbled.

"Don't lie to me. Sebastian, if you don't eat, you'll only feel worse. Please eat. That's all I'm asking."

This was a trap, wasn't it? Sebastian wouldn't fall for it. She wasn't going to end up in the cellar again. There was no way in hell she was going back in there.

"I did eat," Sebastian said.

"Not enough."

"It was enough."

"Sebastian, please."

The strained tone to the captain's voice caused Sebastian to turn her head to face her. She was shocked to see tears coating Hayley's eyes, her mouth set in a somber frown.

"Why are you sad?" Sebastian asked.

"You're not eating."

"You can hit me if it makes you feel better."

"No, I don't want to hit you. I never want to hit you again if it makes you stop acting like this."

"What do you want me to do?"

"I want you to eat until you're full."

Sebastian stared into Hayley's tear-filled eyes. She didn't look like she was trying to trick Sebastian. She looked quite upset by the situation. Really upset. Having her upset wasn't good.

"Okay," Sebastian said, mentally prepared for a hit of some kind.

"Thank you," Hayley said, "I'll start your water while you eat."

She needed get out of the room before she started crying in front of Sebastian.

Nodding, Sebastian grabbed a slice of chicken and ate. Her stomach happily accepted the nourishment and demanded she continue feeding it until it was satisfied. Hayley slipped off the couch and walked across the room, disappearing behind the door Sebastian assumed led to the bathing room. Sebastian continued to eat her food, though she was confused as to why Hayley wanted her to eat. Sebastian was still a captive, regardless of Hayley's feelings. She didn't deserve special treatment.

Unless Sebastian was confused of her position in the house.

Sebastian shook the thought from her head. She wouldn't think about it now. Within minutes her plate was nearly empty and her stomach felt so full it would explode. Content, Sebastian placed the tray on the bedside table.

Hayley returned to the room moments later. She walked to the bed, noting the amount of food Sebastian ate in such a short amount of time.

All that crap about being full was a lie.

"Are you ready for a bath?" Hayley asked.

"Yes, please."

"I'll have someone come up to take this tray later," Hayley said, holding out a hand for Sebastian.

The princess took Hayley's hand, using it to aid in lifting her aching body from the bed, and allowed the captain to lead her to the bathing area through the door Hayley had just used. The bathing area was far more extravagant than the one on the ship. It was similar to the one Sebastian had in the castle with the large claw-foot tub, various cabinets, an assortment of fluffy towels laid out, floral-decorated walls, and tile flooring.

Hayley led Sebastian to the steaming tub and eased her in as she had done numerous times before. Sebastian remained standing in the bathtub, not sure if it was best she sit or not.

"Tell me if I'm too rough on you," Hayley stated, "I don't want to make your wounds worse."

Sebastian didn't say anything. She was fully prepared for Hayley to start touching her again. It seemed keeping her hands to herself was something Hayley had never learned as a child.

Hayley swiftly went through their normal bathing routine, cleaning Sebastian's body first with unscented soap and scented wash. Her hands didn't stray on any body part longer than necessary. Even when she washed Sebastian's hair, she made no moves to blind Sebastian with water and touch her inappropriately. When she helped Sebastian out of the tub, she didn't ogle her body. She had simply washed the princess. Nothing more, nothing less.

It was strange.

The captain grabbed one of the laid out towels and began patting the excess water away from Sebastian's body, "Do you want to wear anything to bed?"

Sebastian replied with a brief shake of her head, droplets of water flying from her hair. Hayley pulled the damp towel away from Sebastian's body and dropped it in the basket designated for used towels. She took the princess' hand in hers again.

"Let's go to bed then," Hayley said.

Without waiting for an answer, Hayley led Sebastian from the bathroom back to the bedroom. She helped Sebastian get on the bed and lay down. Sebastian turned on her side, bad shoulder away from the mattress. Once Sebastian was situated, Hayley pulled her clothing from her body, leaving her in her underwear, and climbed on the bed beside Sebastian. She pulled the comforter over them and pressed herself against Sebastian's back, her arms around the princess' waist, their legs lacing together. It was quiet. Surprisingly content with being in the captain's arms, Sebastian's eyes slipped shut.

As the world of dream conquered her mind, Sebastian could feel liquid dripping into her hair. The captain's body shook, sending light vibrations through Sebastian's near sleeping form. Too tired to comprehend the situation, Sebastian thought nothing of it and let her mind drag deeper into sleep.

"I'm sorry," Hayley choked, holding in sobs that desperately wanted release, "Be okay. Please be okay."