The Wheel Turns I

Posted on Sat Dec 17th, 2022 @ 11:38pm by Princess Royal Giana Orsini & Major Sacha Lavigne
Edited on on Thu Jul 13th, 2023 @ 7:52pm

Mission: Historiae Terrae Et Imperii
Location: Rio, Giana's Apartment
Timeline: Date 2371-07-12 at 2115
3171 words - 6.3 OF Standard Post Measure

ON

Giana sat inside of her Rio apartment alone outside of the single maid to serve her and of course the royal guards stationed outside of the door and strategically around the building. One thing the residents of the apartments couldn’t complain about when Giana was in her private apartment was any sort of safety concerns. She felt and looked exhausted, the last near twenty-four hours had been truly trying for her and she had retreated from the palace to her own private space just to try and focus herself again. She hid it well from her family because in truth, they just didn’t know her, but she was in crisis and in pain. Her future was uncertain, but she was sure it was bleak. The only saving grace was that Giuseppe had finally been put away. He couldn’t hurt her anymore.

Probably, at least.

She had requested that Sacha come to visit her, the message telling him it was important. It was only fair to him that he be told exactly what she had shared with her father and brother; truly, it was past time. There was also the matter of her ascension to Dominion Lady that they would have to discuss, and the lack of position that he would have as a result of it. Perhaps in time her father would change his mind, but that would require Sacha to change as well. It all would, really; at least out in public, and he really had to try to be better with her father if they were going to survive. She was determined to survive.

Her eyes were red and puffy from the tears that had come and gone intermittently all day. She was sitting on her couch in a white tank top and black shorts. She hadn’t showered at all today, her hair was tied up in a mess of a rat’s nest, and she looked as much of a mess as she felt. In her hand was a PADD she was struggling to read through and she finally found herself at her wits end. She tossed it onto the coffee table and leaned back on the couch, putting her hands over her face and taking a deep breath.

Sacha arrived by transporter wearing a pair of faded jeans and a green shirt that made him look like an incredibly handsome working man. He wasn’t wearing a smile and he didn’t seem amused. Something terrible was happening, and the arrest of Giuseppe made it clear to him that whatever change was happening might not be good for any of them. On a side note, he was getting sick and tired of being summoned by his unofficial fiancé. It was annoying for him, as a man, to always have to respond to her in the seasons when she cared enough to make time for him, or when she needed something. He came to the door to her apartment with a grimace and knocked on the door with authoritative military precision, showing a side of himself he rarely, if ever, had shown her.

Instead of it being one of the guards or a servant to open the door, a moment after he knocked it was Giana herself who did so. She stood in the doorway and looked up to him, her already misty blue eyes suddenly becoming watery with tears.

“Sacha…” She practically whimpered out.

Upon seeing her in such a state, his eyes softened a bit and he lowered his head to look at her. His face was marked with reserved concern.

“Giana.” He said, walking in and placing his hands gently on her arms to move her into the apartment with him. “What’s wrong?”

"I just.... a lot of things have happened and we need to talk." She said and reached up to wipe her eyes. "Do you want something to drink...?" She sniffed again and swallowed hard, trying to compose herself and not doing a good job. "Are you hungry?"

“No, I’m fine.” He said, rejecting all of her offers and instead pulling her into his arms and giving her a hug. He didn’t say anything at first, just kissing her forehead. “Let’s have a seat and you can start at the beginning.”

As they moved to sit down on one of the plush, comfortable couches, Giana suddenly realized she didn't know where to start. The things she wanted - needed - to tell him were in two completely different domains. She licked her lips, her blue eyes searching his face as if she were going to find the answer to her own question somewhere there. "I..."

She started and stopped immediately, frowning and searching for the words. "My father came to visit me last night. Late. He wanted my support for Paolo, so we worked out a bit of an agreement." She wiped her eyes again this time with a tissue. "I don't know if it will matter when Paolo becomes Emperor, he could take it all away... but maybe he won't." She cleared her throat and took a sip of water, trying to find a voice that sounded more like "her", but she wasn't sure what she was managing at the moment.

"Part of that agreement is while Paolo is not of age and until he has a child, I will be Crown Princess. The other part of it is that... I will be named Lady of the Northern Dominion."

Sasha’s lips parted. He was speechless, which was very odd for him indeed. He had cared for Giana, the rebel girl underneath the royal life. He had never liked the socialite princess very much and he hadn’t even imagined her one day being so close to the Imperial Throne or wielding power in her own right.

“A Dominion Lady?” He asked, looking at her squarely and finding himself wondering how she would handle those steady and tedious responsibilities which had no glamor and went unnoticed and unpraised. “Is…is that what you want?”

Why did everyone always look at her like that when she took a step of ownership and power in her own life? Did everyone think she was completely incapable? ... Was she completely incapable? She shook her head, her expression hardening slightly. "After everything that has happened, the chances I was robbed of in life... I felt like it was a good idea. I'm not just some vapid little princess like everyone seems to think." She frowned and then looked at him. "But this would... also obviously affect us."

“Obviously, I know you aren’t a vapid little Princess, Giana.” He said, his tone strangely sounding like something of a chastisement; a very rare thing from a man who was generally upbeat and charming. “I also know you enough that, intelligence aside, I can’t imagine you truly enjoying the job. That’s why I asked if it was what you wanted. Not if you could do it.”

"I'm nearly thirty. That's practically in the grave as far as being fashionable for the young masses is concerned." She frowned at his tone and pulled back from him slightly. "I have Bella Gia, sure, but that isn't something solid as much as I want it to be. If I had my choice I'd just keep living my life carefree and unattached like we always have, but I don't have that choice anymore Sacha."

She frowned and wrapped her arms around herself protectively. "But you do."

“Why don’t you have that choice anymore?” He asked, ignoring the bait.

"Well, you know I have to marry, obviously. As for the rest of it, like I said, I'm getting old. I really should have been approached to launch Bella Gia years ago, but I will have to make due with the rest of my youth as I can." She shook her head. "I'm the Emperor's daughter. I don't get to live the life I want. You've known that from the beginning."

He pursed his lips then, looking at her with thoughtful eyes. He was much more subdued than he was normally.

“To be honest, mon cher, I think that’s bullshit.” He said, folding his strong arms over his chest. “You could easily step into a more subdued role. You could run your company, head up some charities, and spend your life kissing babies and making them with me. I just think that isn’t good enough for you. A life in the middle of the pack…isn’t good enough for you. You want to stay on top. But I’m worried you will lose who you really are in this… dash for relevance.”

"Of course the middle isn't good enough for me, Sacha. If middling was good enough, I'd be like my sister." Giana frowned deeper and looked into Sacha's eyes. "Is that what you want? A middling woman?"

"Why do you keep looking for a way out for me?" he asked, frowning. "Merde..every time we speak, you are feeding me reasons to go. Telling me I can leave. Asking me if I really want you."

He seemed to be getting angry then. He had put up with this attitude since they'd reconnected and it was getting quite old for him.

"Do you think I'm some sort of idiot, Giana? Do you think I don't know what I want at this point? Who I want?" he asked, his handsome face expressing his irritation. "Why the fuck would I be all in for spending my life with you when I thought it would get me killed and then suddenly long for freedom once it became safe to love you? I was asking because I want you to be happy....now I'm wondering if you even want to be happy, or if you'd rather be respected and powerful."

Giana didn’t understand why he was getting angry with her, but now she was getting angry as well. Her hurt and vulnerability were pushed to the side as she looked up to Sacha while he practically glowered down at her. “I want it all, Sacha, and I want you, but if you ever thought being boring middle of the pack would be good enough for me…”

“The middle of the pack isn’t boring, Giana.” Sacha countered, shaking his head. “It’s fine down here. There is no pressure to do…what I think you are doing. Trying to stay relevant as the world moves to the next thing; trying to stay beautiful regardless of age. It’s tiring, and a losing game. And you will have to consume everything in an attempt to get what you want, yet, in the end, you will still be miserable.”

He leaned in to her, speaking quieter and more intimate.

“We have never had a happy Emperor. I mean…just look at your father.” He said. Truth be told, he wasn’t ranting at her and he hadn’t lost control of himself. But he was irritated, and he was coming to a certain breaking point. He was starting to see a clear picture of what he thought Giana wanted, and he wasn’t sure he could be that for her. She wanted to be a goddess, but he was no god and he didn’t want to be one either. He also didn’t want to be his wife’s play thing, at least not in the way she seemed to want. ”I want Giana..”

“And I want you, Sacha.” She assured him, taking his hand. “But I don’t want to just be forgettable and in the middle either. That isn’t me. You know that. You’ve always known that. I want to have a family with you, I want to give you babies just like we always joked about. I want to call you husband and you to call me wife… but I also want to hear the masses call me Dominion Lady. I don’t want to be Empress, Sacha. There are plenty of happy lords with happy lives.”

"Was you becoming Crown Princess your father's idea or yours?" he asked, taking her hand but still presenting the challenging question. "Some might say Giuseppe's son has a better claim."

"It was mine and it would only last until Paolo is of age and picks Elana instead. Giuseppe's son has no real claim anymore. Giuseppe was removed from succession, so was his son. He may still have the title Grand Duke as Giuseppe still had Prince, but it means nothing." She shook her head. "The Empire needs stability if something were to happen to Paolo and my father both. We don't need a constant revolving door of babies."

"We won't. If we get a baby, someone will kill the baby and take the throne. They could do the same to you too." he said honestly. "Perhaps your uncle, Prince Mario, or your aunt, Princess Claudia. Maybe one of their many children. A Sato, a Georgiou, a Burnham, a Silva, or perhaps an Emperor Richard Ramsay, that fucking egghead. If Elana is going to get it anyway, then why not let her have it now and focus on your company? Why are you playing that game you said you'd avoid so long ago?"

Giana frowned and pulled her hand from his slowly. “Are you telling me you’d rather see my sister be Empress over me if the worst were to happen?”

"Yes, Merde. Yes." he said with a sigh. "Since when would that be something that bothers you? You say you don't want it, but you pull back when I agree with you."

For a long moment, it seemed she was just stunned into silence. Elana. Over her. She was angry, but more than that, she was hurt. She turned away from him and walked over to one of the windows to look outside. She hadn’t told him about Giuseppe first because she didn’t want to risk manipulating him, but now all she felt was regret over that decision. “I don’t want it, Sacha, but my being Empress would be far better than my sister. I refuse to be middling, to fade into nothingness once I get a little older. That isn’t me. It never has been. The reality is this is the best way to make sure it doesn’t happen.”

He rolled his eyes as she turned around, still not allowing himself to be overcome by his increasing passion. He walked over to the coffee table where assorted candies sat in a bowl. He picked a few up and popped them into his mouth, exhaling.

"Well fine. Do what you want then." he said, sounding somewhat resigned, as if it wasn't actually a big deal to him. "Rule the Empire and be the most fabulous woman alive forever."

He sat down on the couch and put his feet up on the table in a way he hadn't for a while. He took another few pieces of candy and ate those too, chewing heartily and pulling out his Vox, the cell phone-like device he carried in his pocket. Scrolling through, he said nothing for a long while, not entirely sure how to communicate with Giana. It was like talking to a brick wall, he had to admit, and he was starting to wonder if she really heard anything he had said since he'd walked through the door.

For a long moment, the only sound that filled the room was that of Sacha's crunching and the tapping on his PCD. Giana had turned to look at him, watching him carefully, before finally giving a sigh and walking over to the couch. "Sacha, I want to do it with you. I love you."

"Hmmm." he said, taking another handful of candies, bigger this time than before, and popped them into her mouth. He went back to the device, cueing up something new and saying nothing else. He hadn't given her this particular treatment since they were teenagers, and he didn't really remember doing it then. He just knew that, at times when she was particularly exhausting and emotional, all he knew was to disengage from her and worry about himself; worry about what he liked, what he wanted, and what he might plan. "Seems like you want to do it, regardless of me, mon coer. And I understand. You don't owe me anything. You can do whatever the fuck you want. And you're going to."

"That isn't-" She stopped and just looked down at him for a long moment, watching him munch on candy and play on the Vox. He looked like a man, sounded like a man, fucked her like a man, but had he ever really progressed beyond that teenager? Did he want to? It sounded like he wanted nothing other than to do what he wanted and live a carefree life forever - like he didn't want to grow up. She didn't try and speak again, just looked at him.

If Giana was waiting for him to speak again, he didn't seem as if that was going to happen any time soon. He responded to several messages from work and, when that was finished, he put the device down and ate the last few pieces of candy he intended to have. He was, after all, quite intent on keeping his figure and his fitness. He looked up at her, right in her eyes, and his gaze was evaluative, yet somehow passive. He seemed comfortable looking at her, waiting for her to decide what kind of woman she was going to be. He intended to be a man and not a lap dog. He was more certain of that than ever. And if she couldn't accept that, then he wouldn't have trouble finding someone who did. Despite that, he loved her, and he had to work to keep from softening.

"If you want a man who will follow you like a pathetic little puppy and won't have an opinion out of 'I love you, my goddess, let me rub your feet,' then you should pray they work overtime to find Ed." he said, not unkindly, but with a sort of manly strength he'd never shown her. With her, he had been like a boy again, but he was a Major in the Imperial Marines, a leader among men, and he had found himself years ago. "Si tu veux m'épouser? I'm going to say what I think, and I want it to matter to you. I'm done being accused of not loving you totally. It's starting to get insulting. Me comprenez-vous?"

Giana took a deep breath and moved to sit down with him, though gave him his room. "Sacha, I wasn't accusing you of not loving me at all. I know you love me, I don't doubt it." She started to continue and then shook her head. "Dis ce que tu as à dire."

TBC