Recovery

I must have dosed off after Isa got what she wanted. When I woke again the room was lighter and Isa was gone. 112 was still naked sitting on the chair looking in my general direction but I was pretty sure she did not currently see me.

"You haven't sat there this whole time have you?"

112 blinked a few times and looked at me. I had surprised her and it took a few moments for her mind to work out what I had said, "No, sir. I found more food and water, then found where I could go. After that I came back."

"Still under orders to be naked?"

"I don't own any clothes, but Isa had said yesterday that it was probably for the best anyway, since she would leave it up to you for how you want to treat me, sir."

I sat up looking at her, she looked much better then last time I had seen her. "Come here."

112 got a spike of wariness but rose from the chair, "I don't think Isa like what happened last time you said that, sir."

"She didn't and she was right, but that isn't what I want this time." I felt her confusion rise and she became more worried but she didn't stop moving.

I put my legs over the side of the bed as she stepped up to it. She froze as I grabbed the collar. It hung loosely around her neck, it still wasn't set, not even part way. My magic flowed out from me mapping the spell that made up the collar until I found what I was looking for. My magic felt like it wrapped around the existing spell which if I was right would keep it from being able to trigger any more.

Pulling my attention back to the woman standing still before I opened my mouth to speak, but I closed it for a second because words didn't seem to make sense for a moment. I blinked then tried again and the words worked this time, "Now if someone says either activation it won't work. Well, if our lord activates it would still but that would be it." I felt her surprise and fear at the thought of our lord, "He probably knows what I did, actually I am sure he could have stopped me if he had cared." I shrugged just slightly. "But that isn't the only thing. 112 I remove all currently standing orders on you. 112 you will not take orders from any of my brothers or sisters or the priesthood that are not messengers. If they try to activate the collar to give you an order you are to tell them they cannot. If they insist on doing it anyway you are to come to me. If you cannot come to me you are to go to Isa or Bella. If you cannot get to them either you are to go to a messenger of our lord or our lord, tell them of the order I gave you and what I did to the collar. They will be able to release this order if they want since they are not covered by it." I let go of the collar and 112 stepped back in surprise. "I am going to need something besides your number to call you."

"Primavera, was my name, sir." She had raised her hand to her collar.

"Hum, how do you like Vera?"

"Whatever you want, sir." Vera shook her head and I could feel her thinking.

"Well, Vera, if my wives give you clothes you can wear them, but make sure you don't try to hide the collar. Also I didn't order you to stay in the house, but if you leave without permission I will have to track you down and I won't be happy. I can undo what I have done, but I don't think you will give me a reason to, hopefully."

Vera had taken a step back and only seemed to realize she had when I stopped talking. She took a knee looking at the floor and I noticed she was crying but her emotions weren't right for if something hurt her, "Thank you, sir. I-"

I tilted my head and waited but Vera did not continue the thought, "I don't understand, are you afraid of something?"

Vera let out a small laugh, "No, sir. I am very grateful, and amazed, and sorry for how I got here in the first place, and happy to be here. I had been terrified of someone activating the collars effects but you," She touched the collar again, "and just-"

"Well I do hope you figure out what you are feeling soonish, I can feel my wives waiting for us and if I take too much lingering they might check on us and if they see you like this they just might team up on me, I think."

Vera snorted despite herself and smiled at my chest, "Of course sir, that would not do." Vera stood turning to face the wall and took deep breaths and wiped her eyes.

"Good, in the drawer over there are shirts and the one below it has pants if you could fetch them, it would be appreciated."

"Yes, sir." Vera nodded and walked over to the dresser still trying to get her tears under control. She brought over a shirt and pants while I stretched.

I dressed quickly listening to the front room of my apartment. They were sitting in silence right this moment but there were three woman out there, not two, and my daughter was out there as well. I could feel her but not like I could feel her mothers. She wasn't like anyone else though, but I was in a hurry and put the puzzle to the side for now.

I tucked in my shirt before Vera opened the bedroom door for me. I tried to keep my expression controlled as I stepped out into the sitting. Hopefully I didn't look too much like I was stepping into the arena but this place could be just as deadly, if I screwed up, only now, as I had learned the hard way, it wouldn't be me who died.

As I walked in I saw Isa's eyes flick to Vera. She studied the other woman and frowned. If that was all I had to go on I might have written it off, but Isa's anger spiked as well. Vera didn't seem to have the same problem reading Isa that I seemed to have though for she spoke up as she closed the door. "Sorry that took so long, mam. He is a talker." She didn't look up from the floor, but I could see the smile and from a shift in Isa I think she did too.

"He is a talker, and it will probably get him into trouble one day."

My wives were sitting on one couch facing the other woman who held my little girl. The current mother of the house of Estro, sat with her back to me pretending to be unaware of what was going on around her as she rocked the baby in her arms. Yet she looked at Isa and added, "It gets him in trouble most days, but so far he has been lucky enough that it also gets him back out again. Good morning, Mir."

I walked over to stand behind the couch my wives sat together on. "Good morning mother, I had not expected you so soon."

"I had to come see the newest daughter of my house, it is rare to know for sure who the father is. Well it had been, but she will be the first generation of my house where that isn't likely to be true."

"Still 50/50 that they won't too, the house of Estro isn't as small as it once was, mother."

"No, but that is also more your fault then mine." I felt her emotions split and go many ways at once, but none of it registered on her face as she smiled down at my daughter. "Your wives tell me she doesn't have a name, yet."

"Yes, I didn't get enough time to talk with them before her birth. Then I overused myself and was asleep these last three days."

The mother's eyes flicked to Vera who was still standing against the door to my room, "I don't blame you, if someone had hurt one of my children like that I would have ripped their throat out." The mother said it in a pleasant practiced voice but I could feel the steel in her emotions. She was not like her mother had been, her children were not only a means to an end, they were an end in and of themselves and she managed to care deeply for all of them still. Even after watching so many die in the arena.