Chapter Text
Denying Usul was no easy task.
It began that very same evening, after Chani had returned from the princess's quarters to their own modest chambers. Usul had come from the desert and was in the process of removing his stillsuit. Ordinarily, Chani would've come to his side and assisted him, then rubbed and kneaded his neck and shoulders until they were loosened, all tension gone. He would then assist her with her own stillsuit, and soon enough he would be exploring every line and curve of her body at his pleasure, caressing and holding her in ways that were somehow both utterly gentle and shamelessly possessive. His skill and familiarity with her body, his almost careless mastery of it, never failed to enkindle a wild, devastating sort of passion in her.
She needed Usul's company now more than ever, especially so soon after their son had died. Only when Usul was stroking her hair, whispering sweet words against her skin, his every touch eliciting exquisite agony—only then would the constant of haze of grief abate momentarily, allowing her to breathe.
However, Chani knew that if she allowed it to reach that stage, there would be no turning back. She'd be held captive by her own desire, unable to deny Usul anything, begging him for release.
Therefore, Chani walked to a different corner of the room and began undoing her stillsuit's straps by herself. Usul immediately glanced her way.
"What's wrong?"
Chani pretended composure, removing the stillsuit piece by piece with calm, unhurried movements. "I've spoken to Irulan."
"Yes?" Usul's voice was cautious, but she could hear the disapproval beneath it. "How was it?"
"It went very well." Chani was finally released from the stillsuit, and she slipped into a robe, the fabric a flimsy defense around her as she avoided looking in Usul's direction. "We've agreed to share you."
"Sihaya," he was behind her, drawing her to lean back against his warmth, his voice soft in her ear, "I told you, you needn't do this—"
Chani jerked away, keenly aware of how rapidly her resolve would drain if she allowed him to linger against her. She whirled around to face him.
"Don't touch me." The words emerged harsher than she'd intended.
"This isn't you, beloved." Usul seemed concerned. "What has the princess said to you?"
"We had a very pleasant conversation."
He shook his head. "Then why are you acting like a frightened hare? Something isn't right."
Chani took a deep breath. "I told her that I'll only allow you to touch me after you promise to perform all of your matrimonial duties with her."
A stillness followed that. Even as Chani turned away, busying herself with freeing her hair from its woven confines, she couldn't help but listen while the silence stretched, long and unnerving.
"You shouldn't have done that." There was no inflection in his voice, each word as ruthlessly presice as his bladework. "The marriage shall never be consumated. I'll sooner have her garroted."
He won't hurt me, Chani told herself. The irrational, primal part of her mind refused to believe it, however, and was screaming at her to flee.
"No one will try to force you to consumate the marriage, so there's no need to get carried away." She was surprised to find her voice steady. "You are free to choose, as am I. You don't wish to include Irulan in our relationship; I do. We can talk this out in the manner of our people. Every single day, many couples in the sietches deal with similar situations."
Another moment of quiet surrounded them. Chani glanced at Usul, then immediately regretted giving in to her curiosity. His expression might have seemed smooth and unreadable to most, but she knew him well enough to glimpse the looming tempest of fury, disappointment, and disgust in his eyes, the emotions nearly potent enough to overwhelm and break her.
"You're free to do as you wish, Sihaya. If you ask me to refrain from touching you, I'll honor your request. But don't imagine this as a way to pressure me into physical intimacy with Irulan. I speak in earnest when I say I'd rather execute her than ever allow her into my bed."
"You're too livid right now to have a reasonable conversation," said Chani, running her hands through her hair. "We can talk later."
He made no answer except to advance closer and closer to her, stopping only when he was standing near enough for a kiss. Yet he made no move to touch her.
"Usul?" Chani asked, soft, uncertain.
He let out a sigh. "I'll wait, Sihaya. The moment you wish it, I'll be by your side. You have but to say the word. Until then, farewell, beloved."
Without waiting for a response, he turned and left the room. He wouldn't return, Chani knew, not unless she called him back.
There was one person who could help her, Chani hoped. One person who loved Usul as much as she did and also understood the utmost importance of making an ally of the royal princess.
However, finding time for a private meeting, considering the Reverend Mother's packed schedule, was a challenge in and of itself. Jessica apparently had her hands full dealing with negotiations and communications regarding several imperial factions, not least among them her own Bene Gesserit Order. Finally, Chani managed to secure a moment of the Reverend Mother's time by requesting entrance to her quarters at dawn.
"What is the matter?" asked Jessica, as soon as Chani had taken a seat across her.
Tea cups were placed on the table between them, the rising steam filling the room with its pleasant fragrance. Chani had always preferred coffee, but she briefly sipped the bland drink, just to be polite.
"We're in a predicament," said Chani.
"I heard Paul has moved to separate quarters." Jessica's tone was completely neutral, devoid of even the barest hint of either positive or negative judgement. "Is this the thing you're referring to?"
"Yes." Chani took another sip of tea, mainly because she felt the need to do something with her hands. "He won't listen to reason."
"Never try to use reason in arguments with a man when it comes to conjugal issues, Chani." Jessica offered her a weary smile. "They drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience. So, what has he done?"
"He's refusing to bed Irulan." Noticing the Reverend Mother's bemused expression, Chani hastily added, "I mean, after their marriage takes place, obviously."
"Hmm. Start at the beginning, please."
After Chani had finished summarizing the two conversations held during the previous week, Jessica sat in silence for a few long moments. Chani, having nothing else to do, sipped her tea. The flavor, although still bland, was quite soothing, she had to admit to herself.
"Presenting him with an ultimatum might have been a mistake," said Jessica at length. "He must resent being backed into a corner."
"What should I have done, then?"
"I can't tell you what you should have done." Jessica's tone had a cynical edge to it. "I can tell you how a typical Bene Gesserit Sister, acting in accordance with her training, would've behaved: she would've chosen to be coy, avoiding intimate relations under the pretext of various excuses, all while dropping vague references hinting to her interest and concern for Irulan. This would've been done with the goal of luring Paul in the correct direction, eventually leading him to propose the desired solution of his own initiative."
Chani frowned. "He would've seen through such simple deception."
"The chances of such a strategy succeeding with Paul are slim—likely close to non-existent," Jessica affirmed. "The other option would be to approach him with neither deception nor demand, but with a request for an honest discussion."
"That would've led nowhere." Chani ran a finger around the smooth rim of her cup. "He would've been quite content to share these honest discussions with me for as long as I kept bringing up the topic—thirty years, if necessary—all while never actually budging an inch."
At least in this way, she added in her thoughts, I don't have to bear the brunt of frustration alone. He'll suffer from this situation as much as I will.
"That's why you've chosen open warfare," Jessica concluded.
"Well..." Chani didn't like calling it warfare, but she supposed she couldn't protest too vehemently against this portrayal.
"If you decide to persist down this path, it's critical that you remain aware of the immense dangers that lurk ahead. Winning a war means utilizing ruthless cunning and never giving in to mercy before victory. No one can predict how horrific the results may turn out. It may all end in the destruction of yourself, your opponent, or both of you."
"Then you think I'm committing an error?"
Jessica looked at her in silence for another long moment. "Not necessarily. I'm no oracle, and I have little basis for predictions of the future beyond educated guesses. However, two things are obvious to me: the first is that if Paul wishes to avert widespread bloodshed in his pursuit of power, Irulan is an indispensable ally. The second, that no matter how acute his foresight, it's easily blinded by human considerations of love and fidelity."
"He's ignoring future risks because he wants to stay loyal to me?" Chani placed the cup down on the table, suppressing the sudden urge to smash it against the floor in frustration. "We've just lost Leto, and yet he chooses to behave so recklessly? He has no right!"
"At the end of the day, Chani, he was raised as an Atreides before he ever became Fremen." Jessica's voice was uncharacteristically gentle. "Once he found you, the thought of being with another woman became intolerable to him. In fact, I'm certain he's deeply hurt by you persisting in your efforts of foisting the princess upon him."
Chani didn't manage to hold back a grimace. "This is absurd. How can he not realize that I'd much rather have him alive, sane, and content than needlessly prudish?"
"His way of seeing the world is quite different from your own. I can't say that either of you is strictly wrong. The Atreides men have always had a way of inspiring unparalleled loyalty among their people."
"Have any of these Atreides men been emperors before?"
Jessica gave her a hint of a wry smile. "No."
"When a village man—a man of the graben and sink—chooses to move to a sietch and marry a Fremen girl, he knows he can't treat her in the same manner as he would a woman of his village. Do the Atreides not know this?"
"It's one thing for him to know this," said Jessica softly. "It's another to come to terms with the relentless demands of power, the necessary sacrifice of yet another part of his father's legacy."
Do I not know of fathers and their legacies? But Chani kept silent.
"Was there anything else you wished to ask of me?"
Dozens of questions raced through Chani's mind, but she knew voicing most of them would be a waste of breath, since they weren't the type of questions that Jessica—or perhaps anyone—could provide a meaningful reply to. So, instead, she returned her mind to practical issues.
"Does Irulan have to be a virgin when she marries him?"
"According to imperial law? Yes." A faint trace of concern appeared on Jessica's features. "Why do you ask?"
"How does one lose a virginal status, according to imperial law?"
Jessica's wariness seemed to deepen. "Do you want me to explain the technicalities?"
"No, not exactly. I want to know if there's anything I could do to Irulan that would take away her virginity. Just so I know to avoid it, that is."
Jessica looked positively alarmed. "Chani, what are you planning?"
Chani bit back a sigh, wishing for a brief moment that the man she'd fallen in love with hadn't come attached with such a myriad of senseless cultural hang-ups and taboos.
"Don't worry, it's nothing scandalous."
"Then what is it?" Jessica didn't seem the least bit reassured.
"Usul will likely be stubborn and persist in his refusal for as long as he can. He thinks I'll break before he does. But there's one way I could outlast him. If I find a new companion, someone who could provide comfort and distraction while—"
"Are you planning to attempt and seduce Irulan?"
Chani thought of the blonde, green-eyed princess, of the way her breaths had quickened slightly while Chani had held her wrists. She thought of the way Irulan had smiled right before Chani had kissed her—a smile of pleased wonder.
"No, I'm not." Chani lifted the tea cup to her lips, finishing off the last swallow. It's not so bad, she thought. Maybe I have to give tea another opportunity.
"Are you certain of that?" Jessica's disbelief was evident. "That seems to be your aim."
"I meant to say, I'm not planning on attempting a seduction." Chani placed the empty cup gently back on the table, careful not to make a sound. "I've already begun."