Ribbons

"Never a set time, they come home when they're sent home. I'll be alright here," I told him, curling up in my bunk with my blanket.

"That's all you got? A bare mattress and a thin blanket? Not even a pillow?"

"It's fine," I told him, all of me shaking.

"Are you... are you having a convulsion?" he asked uncertainly.

"N-not sure... never had one before. D-don't think so. Can't stop shaking, though."

"You sick?"

"Dunno."

"Should I tell Oren? Have him send the doc?"

"N-no! I just n-need rest I think."

He huffed, then went and pulled a blanket off of Lane's bed and put it over me.

"W-we don't use each other's things," I managed, still shaking.

"Jube?" Erin called from the doorway, looking at Finn in alarm.

"You one of the orphans?" Finn asked her.

"Yeah?"

"She's sick or something. You need to take care of her."

"No shit? We always take care of each other, I don't need anyone telling me to do it. Who the fuck are you? You need to get out."

"Erin! No! He's w-with Oren Dutant! He w-was just seeing me home safe."

"Oren Dutant? What the fuck is he wanting with you? Are you in trouble? Did he do this to you?"

"Bitch, you better watch your fucking tone and where you hurl accusations," Finn snarled at Erin.

Erin took a step back and dropped her eyes.

"Finn! Th-thank you for getting me home, Erin w-will take care of me now! Please tell him thanks!"

Finn glowered at Erin like he wanted to say more, but he left.

Erin came closer and I held out Lane's blanket to her. "He didn't know."

She took it and tossed it on Lane's bed, then came to me and felt my head. "You feel cold, not hot. No fever. You really sick or just trying to get away from that goon?"

"I j-just need rest," I mumbled, pulling the blanket up to my chin.

"Jube?!?" Derrin cried from the door, then hurried in. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"She's sick," Erin told him, getting up and letting him take her place next to me on the bed. "I think Jace must have fucked up and got her involved. One of Oren Dutant's goons brought her home."

"Jube, what's wrong?" Derrin asked worriedly, feeling my head, then stroking my face. "You're freezing!!"

"Guess what I just heard... she ok?" Terrence asked as he hurried in.

I turned away from all of them, trying to stop shaking. Was this from using my ability so much? Forcing it the way I had?

Derrin spread his blanket over me, then laid down behind me, spooning me and holding me to his big, soft chest.

Sleep rolled me hard.

I woke in the morning, wincing, then groaning as I moved, aching all over.

"Feel better?" Derrin asked softly, quickly letting me go and getting up out of my bed.

"Thanks, Derrin," I told him, patting his arm. "You didn't have to do that, but you were so warm and you helped. Thank you."

"Sure! Yeah, any time! A guy came by? He brought a lot of food? Said the one box was yours but we split out the rest, is that ok?"

"Of course. You can split out the other box today, it's more than I can eat anyway. Did Jace come home?"

"No, he never did. Did something happen?"

"Not that I can talk about."

"He got you mixed in with Oren Dutant?"

"I can't really talk about it. I have to get dressed, Derrin, I have to be at work early today."

"Sure... if you want, I can sleep next to you tonight too? I don't mind at all! Or you can sleep in my bed if that's better? Mine's more firm than yours, I don't know if you like that."

"I hope I won't need to, but if I do, thanks. I appreciate it."

"Sure! Yeah, no problem! I'm happy to help! You need anything?" he asked as I got up and bent to get my things. "Oh... that's a new dress? I've never seen you wear a dress?"

"Holy shit," Gary called from where he was dressing across the room.

"Yeah," I mumbled, ducking into the bathroom. Flying into my clothes, I hurried back out and darted through the front door before anyone could say anything.

Rhonda gave me a tight smile, handing me a box full of everything I would need. "Remember to stay quiet, ok? Just do your job and be invisible."

"Got it," I agreed, then left to go to the council hall.

I was ridiculously early, but I didn't care. I wanted time to set up and just be alone for a while.

As I sat there getting everything ready, I remembered what the woman had said the day before at the diner.

Oren didn't like girls? Wasn't that what she'd said? Or something to that effect? What had she said exactly? He had toys, but he wasn't into girls? What did that mean? That he was into boys? No, I didn't think so, he'd said nothing to that effect when it was the subject the day before and he was talking about the others. She'd meant something else. Like maybe he didn't like either? That might explain why he hadn't forced her to his bed or made her do anything for him. Why he'd just forced her to perform for him in front of his men, just to show her that he could do as he pleased.

Was that what the woman had meant?

"Jube!"

I looked at the door, then flinched back as Jace came hurrying into the large, empty room.

"I've been looking for you, you weren't at home!"

He'd been crying and he looked exhausted.

"Jube, please! You have to ask him to take me off the holes! Please! He'd do it if you asked him! He likes you and if you asked him, he'd give me a real shot! Please, Jube? I need this from you! I can't go back there, you don't know what they're making me do!"

"Did they rape you?" I asked angrily, looking him in the eye then.

He grimaced, but then shook his head. "I didn't rape you, Jube! You like me, you've had a thing for me for a long time! I was just giving you what you wanted!"

"I said no."

"But I wanted us to be together! I wanted..."

"He raped you?"

Gasping, I turned to Oren in the doorway, his features livid.

"You told me he wanted to choke you and hurt you, you didn't say he already had!"

I shook my head as Jace stood up straight, going white.

"And you! I told you to leave her alone! To stay away from her and not bother her at all! You weren't to even speak to her! Then Finn tells me the first thing you did was go home and ask where she was, then go to her work and ask where she was! Then you come here and try to manipulate her and influence me! And you raped her..." he growled darkly, then made a sharp motion.

Kyle and a strange man came in, one I hadn't actually seen before but I knew from Jace's flicker was Luis. They grabbed Jace and shoved him to his knees as Oren moved closer.

He was furious and Jace had a new death flicker. Oren this time.

"He didn't really!" I told Oren, jumping up. "He thought he was, but he didn't actually! He never... got it inside of me, just shoved it between my... umm... you know. My parts."

"That he thought he was is enough," Oren told me, taking my shoulder gently and moving me back. "This is no longer negotiable, little one, but I will take it away from here. Away from you. Do you need someone to stay here with you until it starts?"

"Would you, if I asked?" I pleaded, not wanting him to kill Jace.

His face softened, then he smiled gently. "Your heart is lovely, little one," he told me, stroking his rough fingers over my jaw. "I have business I must see to, but I will leave John to..."

"No. It's all right, if you can't stay, I don't need anyone. Just please... don't drag it out or hurt him?"

He said nothing, only leaned in and kissed my forehead, then turned and stalked out. They dragged Jace out behind him and I wilted.

This was a huge mess.

He was going to die anyway and now I was in Oren Dutant's hands. He owned me.

For what?

It was all for nothing, now.

But was it really that bad?

So far it hadn't been horrible. Outside of being exposed to a few of his men and forced to orgasm. I'd overused my ability and had a bad side effect from it, but was that his fault?

It was, I guessed, since he was the one who'd demanded I do it for him.

Two council members came in then, followed by Mike Greer, all of them talking.

The first two ignored me as they took their seats, but Mike looked me over worriedly before sitting down. After a few more minutes, more came in, then more as the time grew closer. They were all there, though there was still 15 minutes until it started and the door was closed and a guard posted at it.

"Should we start?" a woman asked, looking over her papers. "We're all here."

"She's not the usual girl?" a man noted, gesturing to me.

"Rhonda sent her, the other is out sick," Mike offered quickly. "Let's go ahead and start."

I took notes quickly as they all talked and went over everything and part of me wondered what Oren wanted with all of this boring stuff. Negotiations with the refinery to the north for gas, with the east for more food, with the south for small animals. It all seemed pretty hum drum and ordinary until they started talking pharmaceuticals from the west.

Mike especially seemed worried as he looked at me again and again. Finally, he spoke up. "I think we should leave things as they are on that front. We get as much as we need now, and..."

"At a huge markup! If we can get Juniper community to deal with us directly now that they are up and running, we can get all of it for a third of what we have to pay now!"

"But you KNOW what that will do! You KNOW who..."

"He can't control everything, Mike! If we can take this one thing and make it ours, it'll be easier next time for the next thing! We can take him out of power slowly!"

Mike glanced at me again, his expression sick. "Well I vote against it."

"We knew you would," a woman rolled her eyes. "We'll still have a consensus. Everyone for reaching out to Juniper community, say 'aye'? Ayes have it," she smirked at Mike. "Next order of business... The expansion. We have seven pillars made and we have to decide if we are going south towards the river or west towards more farmland."

She went on and they argued over the merits of both, but I was still thinking about Oren and how upset he was going to be. None of them had a death flicker, though, so that was good at least.

As soon as it ended, they all stood and talked for a while, Mike especially hanging around and sidling closer to me like he wanted to talk to me.

I didn't stick around, tucking everything away and hurrying out.

Mike caught up to me. "Hey! Hey, I'm sorry, I forgot your name? Look... can't you leave part of that out? Could I just edit your transcript a bit before you show them to Mr Dutant?"

I shook my head, hurrying faster. He reached out like he was going to grab me, but I ducked away from his hand with a cry of fear.

"No! No, I would never hurt you, hand to god, I wouldn't! I just want to talk to you face to face a minute!"

"I need to hurry, he told me to get straight there! Don't touch me, please!"

"Can you just slow down, please? Talk to me? Can you just..."

"Everything good here?" Finn asked, scowling at Mike as he moved to fall in next to me.

"He was just escorting me to Oren after the meeting," I breathed, feeling stressed. How was I supposed to keep people from getting hurt? Or killed?

Finn snorted like he found that hard to believe.

As soon as we walked in, Oren turned to me, then grinned and came and leaned in, kissing me on the lips. "I've been waiting for you!" he told me as I blushed and looked down, confused.

"I have the whole meeting right here," I told him quickly, showing him the little box.

"Set it over there! It will wait, little one, come here. Would you like another shower? How do you feel today, better?"

"I'm better," I agreed uncertainly. "Umm..."

"I have clean clothes for you. Go get a quick shower, ok? Mike, I wasn't expecting you here? I'm guessing you have something pressing to tell me about the meeting? Go ahead, Jubilee, I will be out here when you finish."

I went to the back room warily, but it was empty. So was the bathroom.

I hurried in the shower this time, yanking on the little blue dress and going back out front breathlessly. I wanted to know what was going on!

Oren grinned again as I came in and stood up, pulling me close to him. "Feel better? I like blue on you, that's your color I think, isn't it? Mike was just apprising me of the council's vote, despite his warnings."

"I have it all written down," I agreed, wondering why he was being so solicitous and affectionate as he sat down and pulled me to his lap.

"I imagine you do. Relax, little one. I don't want you to overexert yourself today, do you understand? I don't want you sick again like yesterday, ok?"

I nodded, pretty sure I understood. He didn't want me to force the flickers.

"Good. You were saying, Mike?"

Mike launched back into talking like he had been when I'd come in. I only half listened to him as I tried to look over Oren without him noticing. I wanted to understand what all of this was. Did he like me or didn't he? Was I a tool? A prop? A toy to use and have fun with? Why was he trying so hard to put me at ease and see me protected and taken care of if that was all it was? Did he like girls or didn't he?

Did I want him to like me that way?

I was fairly sure I kind of did.

Even if it was just because he was attractive and powerful and I wanted to be liked by someone like that...

Maybe that was shallow, but I'd never really been looked at like that by anyone but Derrin. It would be nice for someone like Oren to notice me that way.

Hadn't Jace looked at me like that after all this had happened? Or had he just seen someone who might be able to better his situation and use for a while?

Yeah, I was thinking it was the latter. He'd never really wanted me, just felt like he could use me. That stung, but I knew it was true.

Oren was probably using me too.

Even Derrin only liked me because he felt like everyone else was out of his league.

Oren turned and looked down at me, his lip curling in amusement. "See something you like, little one?" he asked teasingly.

I looked down, horrified. I'd been openly staring at him!

He chuckled, then squeezed me slightly. "I'm not complaining," he whispered, then kissed my temple. "You don't have to be embarrassed. Mike, I already knew about Juniper figuring everything out, who do you think sent them the pharmacist? I already have everything worked out with them. If they'd managed to do this without me knowing first, I would have been sent word immediately. This was all me, I started setting things up as soon as I found out there had been a pharmaceutical manufacturer there. Sent them everyone they would need."

Mike looked sick as he looked around the room. "Are you going to kill them?" he asked Oren finally.

"Not yet. I'm going to give you the opportunity to talk them around. Convince them to work with me instead of against me. If they balk? Then there's plenty of people eager to work with me who I could put in their position. They need to understand that Bladensburg is mine. Juniper is mine, any of the communities in our circuit... they are mine, Mike. They need to understand that. Do you understand that, Mike?"

"Yeah! Yeah, Oren, I get it. I'll talk to all of them, ok? Corrinne first, she's the most outspoken. If I can convince her, it'll help bring the others around. So... we good?"

"Yeah, Mike. Go on and make sure they understand, because this is the only chance I'm giving them."

"Understood," Mike agreed, standing and hurrying out the door. He looked grim, like he had a hard task ahead of him.

Oren turned back to me, smirking as he looked over my face. "I was told your living conditions are deplorable, Jubilee. Are they?"

"Deplorable? Umm... we do well enough? We make due, anyway, and it could be a lot worse."

"Just because it could be worse doesn't mean it's not bad," he told me, his eyebrows climbing. "I was thinking about yesterday, too. When I asked you if you wanted a boon... you didn't ask for something big or extra... you asked to be treated fairly, you and the other orphans. To be allowed to work for a fair wage and enough time to live off of. That told me a lot about you, Jubilee. Jace wouldn't have asked for the same thing, you know that, right?"

"I know," I agreed, wondering where he was going with this.

"So I want to ask you, what boon would you ask that was just for you and frivolous as you would see it?"

"I... I don't really want anything like that," I shrugged. "I can't even think of anything like that..."

Oren snorted slightly, then shifted me to face him. "There has to be something you would like just for you?"

"A new blanket?"

He laughed then, shaking his head. "No, Jubilee, something frivolous! Not a need. Your needs will all be met, I promise you. Something extra."

"Umm... if you... if you do that thing again? Could it be alone and not in front of people?"

"That thing?" he laughed out loud, amused. "You want me to get you off, Little One?"

"No! No, I just mean if you're going to and I don't have a choice or anything? Could it be away from the others?"

He chuckled, his eyes lit up with delight. "You said the thief... Jace. You said he didn't actually rape you? He didn't penetrate you?"

"No?"

"He was too small or just didn't do it right?"

"A little of both, I think," I mumbled, a little horrified.

"And you've never been with anyone besides him?"

"No..."

"But you do seem well versed in the functionality."

"I grew up in a one room house with a LOT of other orphans, most of them a lot older than me and we had very little privacy. I think we've all seen about everything you CAN see... I mean... probably not everything, but the normal things, you know?"

"Understandable. How often did you get yourself off while your fellow orphans fucked, Jubilee?"

I felt my face go hot as I shook my head. "I didn't! I didn't do that!"

He snorted, his eyes crinkling as he grinned. "It actually surprises me that you aren't lying when you say that! I would have wagered that you would have! So when did you get off, Little One? Don't say you haven't, I know you have. You come to it too easily."

"Can we talk about something else?" I asked, hiding my face.

"Tell me," he murmured, stroking my hair off my face as he pulled me closer to him in an almost hug.

I glanced around the room and everyone was watching us, all of them as amused as Oren.

This was mortifying.

"I hid... in the bathroom or in the little shed at work where I could be alone. Sometimes in the back yard at night, out by the pillar where no one could see me in the dark."

"How often?"

"Once a week, maybe?"

"And you never did it where anyone could see? Not even the thief? Show off for him a little?"

"No!"

He laughed again, hugging me to his chest as the others chuckled as well. "Maybe you should have," he rumbled, then kissed my temple. "He would have seen you then! I guess it's a good thing you didn't, though, isn't it? Good for me. You want me to get you off, Jubilee?" he asked, squeezing me close and nuzzling my hair.

"Want the wand?" John asked hopefully.

I shook my head quickly, hiding my face again.

Oren smirked and turned me, hugging me to him with my face in his neck. "Just relax, Little One," he whispered, patting my thigh. "Finn, how many we have waiting?"

"Four," Finn answered quickly.

"Go ahead and start. Don't move, Jubilee, stay just as you are," he told me quickly as I started to turn as the door opened.

Relaxing, I hugged his neck and laid my head on his shoulder with a sigh.

He didn't want me to try and read anyone, he just wanted me close. That felt... a little good.

Or maybe he wanted me to save it for later?

Maybe he wasn't worried about these people and he didn't want me wasting energy on them.

I sighed, hating that I kept second guessing myself.

Hating that I couldn't figure out what it was he wanted from me. He was surely toying with me on top of using me. Trying to keep me in his thrall.