Somewhere Weaknesses Are Strength

The floodgates of Sebastian's eyes opened at Hayley's question, sending tears cascading down her cheeks. Confusion swept over Hayley. Why was Sebastian crying? What had Hayley done now?

"Sweetheart, calm down," Hayley instructed, "Its okay."

Hayley's command did nothing to calm Sebastian's falling tears. They continued streaming down the princess' face, a pink tint covering the tip of her nose.

"No, it's not," Sebastian said through her tears.

She was tired of not understanding why she cared. Hayley had destroyed her country, kept her as a sex slave, and beat her. The captain didn't deserve a single ounce of Sebastian's care.

But Sebastian couldn't keep her heart from aching for Hayley. Emotions were not an appropriate thing to use in any form of warfare. Hayley didn't deserve to be hurt.

Sebastian didn't understand why she cared that much.

"Come here," Hayley said, voice gentle.

There was no reason for her to raise her voice. That would only scare the princess. She was already upset enough, she didn't need something else to be upset over. Any lust or demand had been kept from Hayley's tone to help Sebastian stay comfortable.

Lust had been the hardest to avoid. Sebastian looked so inviting in her skimpy attire. Hayley wanted to throw the girl onto her desk and release the pent-up frustration that had built over the past two weeks.

It had been a rough two weeks.

As commanded, Sebastian walked across the study to Hayley's side. Hayley pushed her chair back slightly and grabbed Sebastian's hand, tugging her into her lap. Her arms slipped around Sebastian's waist. Sebastian buried her head in the crook of Hayley's neck.

"Why are you crying?" Hayley asked.

"I'm frustrated," Sebastian stated, sniffing.

"And why are you frustrated?"

She felt like she was dealing with a child. The short responses that gave no explanation were a trait she had seen in her younger siblings often. She didn't know what brought on the behavior. Not many women she knew cried over frustration. They typically got angry and tried to hide it.

Perhaps Sebastian's youth was shining through. She was young. Only seventeen years of age. And she lost a bit of her childhood to training. She would have moments from time to time.

"Because I don't know anything," Sebastian stated.

"I'm sure you know a great deal."

"Nothing that matters right now."

"Well, what do you need to know that has you frustrated?"

Sebastian looked up at Hayley, dried tear streaks on her face, red blotching her nose and cheeks. "I don't know why I care about you. I feel the need to keep you from getting hurt and I shouldn't. You hurt me, I should be angry and lashing out."

"Give it time, sweetheart. You'll figure it out."

There were a number of explanations for this. Sebastian could not enjoy being disliked. Because Hayley beat her, Sebastian could have been looking for some way to be accepted by her. Or she could be afraid of the possibility of being beaten again. It wasn't something that would happen, but Sebastian hadn't believed Hayley when she promised not to hurt her. Sebastian would be somewhat aware of those two possibilities, though.

There was a slim chance that Sebastian had feelings for Hayley. The princess would need to work through her feelings on her own. Hayley couldn't make that decision for her.

"I want to know now," Sebastian stated.

"Be patient."

Hayley wiped abandoned tear trails from Sebastian's cheeks. She would be fine. Her mind was a tad bit askew. She would need time to get herself together now that she had decided to fix the mental breakdown Hayley's torture had caused.

Hayley's tortures tended to do that to people.

"You don't need to protect me from anything. I'm a big, bad pirate. I can take care of myself," Hayley said.

"You still have a heart. That can get hurt whether you try to protect it or not."

This wasn't a topic that Hayley wanted to dive into, mainly because Sebastian was right.

"What else don't you know?"

It was best to change the subject.

"I don't know where I stand in this house."

"What do you mean?"

"What am I to you? Am I a sex slave still or something else entirely?"

Sebastian needed to know. It was important to her. Her rank in the house would tell her how she should act around Hayley, what precautions she should take, what her duties were, how she was to spend her time. This controlled her life. She couldn't step out of line. The only way to avoid that was to know.

"Of course not. That title had been a failed precaution," Hayley pressed her lips to Sebastian's forehead. "You know you have to stay here. And while you're here, I would like you to act as lady of the house."

"Does this mean I'm not expected to fulfill any sexual duties?"

Hayley hadn't thought about that. She still wanted the sexual relationship they had. Going to a new woman was not an option now that she had Sebastian. The idea of naming her lady of the house was to give her more freedom. Hayley had been hoping to make the princess open up to her, so maybe they could further their relationship.

She was trying to push Sebastian to like her.

"Well, I can't force you to. But I would still like those duties to be filled. It's entirely up to you," Hayley answered.

"Oh."

Sebastian didn't exactly want to end their sexual encounters. Hayley made her feel amazing, made her lose herself in the moment. She wasn't willing to give up that pleasure. Not now, not ever.

But she was glad she wasn't a sex slave anymore. Lady of the house was a far more respectable role.

"Was that all you needed?" Hayley asked.

Sebastian's shoulders rose in a dainty shrug.

"Sweetheart, what else did you need?"

Hayley's time was limited, and getting her work finished was top priority. Trying to pry things out of Sebastian was taking away from the time she needed to finish going through her finances. She was happy Sebastian was capable of being in the same room as her, but the sea of papers needed to be conquered before the next day, preferably before dinner.

She wanted to relax after dinner, not return to her study.

"I just," Sebastian halted.

"You just what?" Hayley asked.

"I just wanted to be near you," Sebastian mumbled, eyes directing to her lap.

She felt the request a silly one. Hayley would likely feel the same way. For two weeks, she almost entirely ignored the captain. The request to see the captain was strange enough. To want to be near her, well, Sebastian was certain Hayley would call an asylum.

"Is that really what you want?" Hayley asked, her tone holding disbelief.

Sebastian nodded, fingers pulling at the fabric of her skirt.

"Why?"

"You weren't there when I woke up this morning," Sebastian said, looking up at Hayley, "I'm used to seeing you every morning."

A strange warmth filled Hayley, her heart melting. The princess missed something as small as seeing her in the morning. It wasn't as if they wouldn't see each other at some point during the day. Most married couples didn't see each other till dinner time, the same time Hayley had laid aside to spend alone with Sebastian. Her princess' lack of patience was absolutely adorable.

She didn't think she could deny the girl's request no matter how much work she had to do.

"Well, if you'd like, you can stay here with me. I'll be going over finance sheets. You might get bored," Hayley said.

A shy smile spread across Sebastian's face, "I'd like that."

"Okay," Hayley pressed her lips to Sebastian's for a brief kiss, "You can sit in my lap till I'm done."

Sebastian didn't answer, instead situating her body comfortably against Hayley's. Hayley smiled, placing a kiss against the top of Sebastian's head before turning back to the sheets in front of her. Sebastian's hazel eyes remained glued to Hayley, taking in the red-head's features and mannerisms as she worked. These were things Sebastian hadn't taken the time to notice. She had been too busy coming up with escape plans and getting ravished to care. It was something she regretted not doing. She might have been more inclined to stay if she had taken into account just how beautiful Hayley was. The mix of feminine and masculine strength was alluring. There was no awkwardness to her, only beauty that attracted Sebastian to her.

And she wanted the attention of this woman.

Without glancing at Hayley's work, Sebastian asked, "What are you doing?"

The concentration on Hayley's face shattered. Confused, she looked down at the girl in her lap. She was sure Sebastian already knew.

"Going over business finances," Hayley replied.

"Why?" Sebastian asked.

"Because I have to."

"Why do you have to?"

"Because I don't particularly like the idea of going bankrupt."

"Why?"

"Because," Hayley returned.

"Why?" Sebastian asked.

The child-like tone of her voice struck a chord in Hayley's mind. It was one Hayley had heard before in her younger siblings, the one they used when they played games with her. Sebastian acting in such a way was something Hayley had never seen before. If she had time, she would have been able to appreciate the girl's fun. But, as the fact remained, she didn't have the time.

Hayley lightly flicked Sebastian's nose, "Shut up."

Pouting, Sebastian crossed her arms over her chest. Having successfully shut the princess up, Hayley smirked and returned to her work. While she worked, her free hand rubbed circles on Sebastian's outer thigh. A small burst of flames spread through Sebastian's body at each stroke. The area between her legs ached with want. Sebastian fidgeted in Hayley's lap, searching for a release or lessening of the pressure.

There had to be some way beyond being touched to get rid of it. Not that Sebastian would mind being touched. On the contraire, that was something she would enjoy thoroughly. But Hayley had other things to take care of.

"Are you okay?"