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“I thought you didn’t trust me,” I growl. “What does it matter what offer I give you? After all, my word is hollow.”
I turn the doorknob again, trying to refrain from laughing.
“Wait, Zephiro!”
I pause, giving her an opportunity to speak her truth.
“I trust you!”
My eyes meet hers. Their refreshing blue depths could drown all of my resolve if she only knew how to use them.
“I trust you, Zephiro.”
I bow my head solemnly, then raise it to look once more in her captivating eyes.
“You’re just saying that so I’ll let you out.”
“Tell me what I have to do, and I’ll do it.”
I nod, lumbering across the hardwood floor to her bedside, where I grip the shackles around her ankles.
I can see the excitement in her features. Her eyes are wide with anticipation, and her legs are clenched.
“You want me to let you out of these?”
She nods in desperation.
“Be honest with yourself,” I tell her. “Then maybe I’ll consider it.”
I let go of the shackles and walk away. I can see her excitement become fury, but she doesn’t dare challenge me.
I’m the one holding the keys.
During our next few encounters, she sulks. I leave the food on her bed, offering a bit of small talk. She ignores me and eats when I leave the room.
I worry that maybe she’s regressed and I’ve caused her to hide.
But then one day, she opens up to me, and I finally feel like it’s not out of pressure or some desire for freedom.
“How long have you been doing this?” she asks.
I cast a quizzical look. “What do you mean, ‘how long have I been doing this?’”
“You know… eating elves, running through the countryside.” She can see that her question isn’t registering with me. “Kidnapping human girls?”
“How long have I been alive, you mean?”
“I suppose,” she replies. “If you’ve been doing all this your entire life.”
“Decades, or centuries, or millennia…”
“That’s quite a gap.”
I shrug. “We don’t really think about time the same way your species does.”
“We?”
She’s puzzled by such a simple word.
