Killian's Promise II

"I don't understand you sometimes, sister." Killian shook his head as if to clear it.

Juno laughed lightly, stroking Killian's dark hair. "That's okay."

Killian made a big show of sighing, like he was placating her. "Fine, I'll be baron if it means that much to you."

Juno pulled her brother into a tight hug. "Thank you," she exhaled.

She spotted Killian's ears turning red.

"I need you to make me a promise," Juno pulled away from him, looking deep into his eyes.

"A promise?"

"Yes, I need you to promise me that you will fully devote yourself to the barony, no matter what."

Killian pulled away from her. "What are you talking about sister?"

"You are absolutely forbidden from dropping out of school. You said you'll be baron. A man is nothing without his word," she echoed words that her father once told her. It seemed like a lifetime ago.

Killian gripped Juno's arm hard. "Why are you talking like you're gonna die?"

"You won't have to worry about the kids. I'll make sure they're taken care of. But you have to take care of yourself. Always, always put yourself first, Killian."

"Sister!" His voice cracked, tears threatened his eyes.

But Juno couldn't let up. If she did, she would just be leaving him unprepared. Babying him in that moment would harm him in the long run. She offered her pinky to him. "Give me your word." Killian hesitated. Juno spoke again, her voice much harder. "Your word, Killian."

Finally he wrapped his pinky around her own. His hands, despite how big the rest of him was, were still smaller than her own. Juno couldn't help the smile that slipped out. She wrapped a hand around their joined pinkies.

"Good," she exhaled. She felt a weight lifted from her shoulders. "And no more hitting other boys."

"Sister!" Now Killian was a different kind of upset.

"You already gave me your word, Killian."

"But he said you were a whore!"

Juno froze. She swore colorfully in her mind. It was the only thing that she wanted the kids to never know. Judging from Killian's face, she knew he didn't believe the count's son. But how long would she be able to protect her lie?

How long would it be before Killian looked at her in disgust?

She sighed, shaking the chill from her shoulders.

"That's alright," she patted him on the head. "They can say what they like about me. I've heard much worse."

Killian looked like he was going to protest again, but Juno silenced him with a hard look. She gave him a practice sword and drew starting position.

All arguments fell away when their swords clashed together.

Juno returned to the brothel that night feeling strangely at ease. It was a feeling that was foreign to her body and while she felt so content, she felt a cold sense of unease due to the fact she was so at ease.

Her swordsmanship had not dulled as much as she thought it had. Sometimes, when she could find a private moment, she would practice her fencing with a stick behind the brothel. But a stick could never be a substitute for a sword and practice against the open air couldn't be compared to sparring against a living, breathing person.

Her pleasant mood couldn't even be ruined by the fact that Earl Sasha had bought her for the entire night.

Sasha Volkov was easily Juno's most devoted customer. A man that she had known even before she sold herself to the brothel.

He had been in love with Venus, but when she didn't give him the time of day, he turned his affections onto Juno. Juno had rejected his marriage proposals several times before her father died, and after her father's death she thought she had been saved from his advances. Her low position had already fallen below the point of Sasha's parents ever approving of the marriage.

But Sasha still pursued her relentlessly. After Juno moved her family from their estate, he could no longer locate her and by the time he found her, she had already sold herself to a brothel.

She would sell herself a thousand times before ever becoming his mistress.

It wasn't that he was ugly. No, he wasn't ugly nor was he particularly good looking. He was simply average. In truth, he seemed ideal as a marriage candidate. But there had always been something about him that rubbed Juno the wrong way.

SLAP!

She tasted blood in her mouth. Above her Sasha was screaming about her attentions wandering elsewhere when she was with him.

It was only after the first night that he bought her that she truly learned his violent temper.

She gently touched the tender cheek, already swelling from the blow. She knew the injury would linger for at least a week. The metallic taste of blood steadily streamed into her mouth. Her tooth had cut the inside of her cheek.

He raised his hand for another blow, this time striking her on the back of her head. Her ears rang. She had to blink a few times before her vision righted itself again.

She exhaled, swallowing what little pride she had left before groveling for his forgiveness. A sickening grin widened Sasha's face. Juno knew he took pleasure in her begging him. She figured that was a main reason he never bought her out of her debt. He didn't want them to have equal footing. Sasha would always want to be superior to her.

Juno was briefly relieved that she was the one who captured his sick fascination. Had he continued to pursue Venus in the same manner he had initially, she feared that her sister would be the one being hit right now rather than her.

'It's fine,' she told herself in the mirror after Sasha excused himself to the restroom. She touched her purple cheek lightly. 'You never cared much for your looks anyways.'

The swelling would cease. The color would return to normal. It was fine. She would heal.

But Juno knew that if it was Venus in her situation... Venus would break.

Juno held her head high. She would not break. No matter how many times she was wounded, she would heal.