TW: Slavery, dehumaization, SA, implied child abuse,

https://pin.it/6CgAfFtHR

Song: Die your daughter susannah joffe

Relationships:

Father- "Rorik Ogone"

Rorik was a blacksmith. He was rarely talked. He taught Rona metalwork, how to forage, how to hunt and how to survive on her own. Rorik was very strict and had extremely high expectations for her: He wanted her to take care of the household, help him with the forage, find food for her and her siblings, be strong and not show any emotion. He would punish her by starving her, beating her and forcing her to out the house at night. Despite this Rona feels a deep respect towards him and understands his behavior.

Mother- "Olga? Helga? Helia?"

Her Mother was often sick and lay in bed most days. Rona barely saw her mother as she spent most of her time working or with her father. She can barely remember what she looked like, let alone her name.

Lord Whitehorn:

Bought Rona and owned her for 3 years. He taught her how to read. He would constantly make advances on her before eventually threatening her and coercing her into sleeping with him. When his wife found out she had Rona whipped and sent back to the market.

Rona was born in Emberaxe to Rorik- the village's blacksmith. Her mother was a frail woman. After her birth she became sick and bed-ridden. Just like that Rona was handed over to Rorik. Perhaps it was because Rorik wanted a son, perhaps it was because his wife was bed-ridden due to Rona or perhaps because Rorik knew what it took to survive in this world, whatever the reason was Rorik started to raise Rona his own way. The second Rona learned to walk he took her to the forage. There wasn't much she could do at that age but he put her to work. She carried water in from the river, swept the floors from metal shavings, wiped the sharp swords and daggers on display. If she missed a spot she wouldn't get any food that day. Rona didn't complain though, there was something enchanting about watching the metal turn a furious red and seeing the sparks fly out when Rorik hit it with a mallet. Rorik didn't talk much. He stood at the furnace all day silently, went into the mountains before coming home with a slaughtered goat. Rona was 6 when she skinned a goat. Her father held her hand as he helped her cut the skin from it's torso. "Gross, I don't wanna touch it" she said as she felt it's insides. The second she said that her Rorik dragged her outside by her hair and locked the door to the house. After that day she never complained again.

When summer came around Rorik woke her up at dawn. She knew better than to ask where they were going as he dragged her out of bed. He packed some food and and a flask. They walked out of the village, through the valleys and hills, to the mountain. Rorik let go of her hand and started climbing. She followed after. The air was freezing,the snow was slippery and the rocks sharp and jagged. Yet Rorik kept climbing, not once did he look back. By the halfway point she couldn't climb anymore, she placed her bloodied hands on her knees and vomited before passing out from exhaustion. She awoke to a sharp slap across her face.

"If you do that again, I'll leave you here for the wolves to devour." Rorik growled through clenched teeth.

Rona forced herself to get up and follow him to the top. The view was breathtaking, she could see her whole village from above, Rorik stood next to her watching before he turned around and started to descend without a word. They returned at midnight and Rona passed out in her bed. The next morning Rorik woke her up again.

Rona started to train. She would wake earlier than Rorik and run to the forest to chop firewood. She ran for miles through the hills and valleys. She tried going up the mountain herself when Rorik was busy. By the time she turned 10 she could not only keep up with Rorik but even run ahead. This seemed to please Rorik as he let her forage her own dagger. The first attempt was crooked so Rorik threw it out but the sentiment was there. Rorik took her hunting. They spent the whole day in the forest until they killed enough deer to feed the entire village. However the good times didn't last long. Her mother became even more sick. It became Rona's job to watch after the kids. By the 6th child her mother became fully bedridden. She could barely talk, let alone get up. Now, Rona had to milk the goats in the morning, prepare breakfast for Rorik and the kids, go hunting and skin the game, help Rorik out at the forage, keep an eye on the kids, keep the house clean, herd the village animals in before the sunset. Once, a chicken had gotten loose and she spent the afternoon looking for it. She came home, put dinner on the plates. Only at the table did she realize she had forgotten to hang up the laundry. Rorik took her plate and dumped it out in the goat's pen. If the chores weren't done - she didn't eat. Winter was long and difficult. Along with the usual chores Rona had to chop firewood. Once during a trip to the forest her sister got lost. She spent all day looking for her but she was nowhere to be found. When she retunred home the door was locked. When she entered though the back Rorik threw her out of the house. Rona spent a week wandering the freezing forest until she finally found her.

One day when Rona returned home from a hunting trip she saw a strange sight. The cows usually near the gates were gone. Strange. As she walked further in she noticed it was quiet, the sounds of kids and animals unusually absent. The blood soaked snow was the first sign things were wrong. Really wrong. She ran home, shoving the door open. Inside was a mess, chests - open, bags of grain - gone. All her siblings, mother, Rorik, Gone. Everything, Gone. Gone. Gone. She stepped back bumping against someones chest. There stood a man with a toothy grin. Before she could run, he tackled her to the ground. She pushed him off easily but more started coming in. 6 in total. They tied her hands with rope before throwing her on the back of a horse. After days of riding they threw her off in some strange cellar. More men came, stripping her down. They burned her clothes, chained her arms and neck. They threw her in a room with dozens of other women, all chained and nude like her.

They sat there for weeks being fed once a day. She found out she was somewhere in Tamsworth, wherever the that was. The rest was a blur. All she remembered was being lead out onto a podium in some colored tent. Her hands were tired above her head and a wooden slab hung from her neck. "50 gold". She didn't even know how much that was. Men and women walked by, looking at her, opening her mouth, lifting her leg, touching her chest. Their voices were muffled, as if underwater. And then she was cut down from the podium and led into a carriage. A blonde man with a missing tooth sat in front of her. He introduced himself as "Whitehorn, Lord Whitehorn". He explained she was simply going to tidy the house. The whole ride he held his hand on Rona's thigh. The Whitehorn manor was beautiful, marble floors and pastel walls with engravings, but the most impressive was Whitehorn's study. It had a bookshelves to the ceiling, from one wall to another. Rona couldn't read but it fascinated her. Still she did as she was told, cleaned and moped, dusted and swept. Whitehorn seemed to follow her every step, he kept a hand on her waist or on her behind. He'd offer pastries but Rona refused. As she was cleaning his study he opened a book.

"Come here, Rona, don't be shy, I want to show you something, every proper servant must know this" Whitehorn had said.

Rona obeyed. Whitehorn talked for a while, showing her the symbols in the the book. He called her into the study, day after day. Eventually they began to make sense, the symbols conveyed meaning, formed stories. It was fascinating. She couldn't help but sneak in their at night, taking the books out with trembling hands as she read. Then Whitehorn walked in. He locked the door behind them.

"I should have you hanged for this, Rona" he said walking over to her with a smile. "or perhaps you could do something, make me forget I ever saw you here. What do you say?"

Rona knew it wasn't really a choice. "Yes sir" she said in a low defeated tone as he shoved her over the desk. She lived there for 3 years. The study- alluring and deeply repulsive. It all ended when his wife walked in. She screamed for what seem like hours, kicking and pulling Rona's hair. "Filthy " was the last thing Rona heard as the guards dragged her to the stables out back. The next day she was stripped, tied to a pool. A man with a whip walked out. 50 lashes. That was what the wife ordered. As the man brought the whip down over and over, Rona didn't make a sound. Even as blood poured down her back she didn't spill a tear. Even when the whip cracked over her face, even when she couldn't stand afterwards. She was sent back to the slave market shortly after. She stood shakily on the podium for days. 50 gold. 25. 10. 5. Eventually she was given to a brothel, though that didn't last long either. Sure, men were dogs, they'd a pig if it stayed still but they weren't blind. Rona had large scars going down her back, chest and face. She wasn't the prettiest girl to look at. So she was back to the market