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7
KRISTA
Iwent to sleep last night with the captain of the royal guard on my mind. The thought of him kept me warm in an otherwise cold bed, making for a good night’s rest.
I’m happy to be back at the forge this morning. My smile may look strange to others but it’s no mystery to me as I look at my reason why, giggling as Lasta berates another smith for his poor quality of work.
He’s so aggressive, in a way the exact opposite of me, who can only ever inflict pain on myself. It enthralls me, and if I’m being honest, it turns me on.
As rough as he can be, I sense something soft there when he talks to me. I can’t be sure if I’m the only one he shows it to, but I want to believe so.
His interaction with me yesterday is lodged firmly in my heart. It almost affects today’s performance at the forge. Luckily for me, smithing comes more naturally than it does to the others, and so I somehow maintain a steady output of work.
But no amount of skill stops my mind from wandering. In his eyes, I feel as though I’m wanted and appreciated. Deeper thanthat, though, I feel seen for the first time since arriving here at the castle.
The easiest thing for a human like me is to fall into the background, to barely even exist in the eyes of the naga. Yet still, the captain of the royal guard most definitely took care of me yesterday, though I’m unsure of how obvious he was about it.
“I want to be seen by him,” I whisper to myself.
My hands drift upwards, wrapping around my throat in a poor attempt to replicate how he handled me the day before.
Only when I squeeze a little too hard do my hands ignite with pain. Grunting, I drop them to my side in frustration.
“I better get back to work,” I mumble.
I’m about to push a cart of steel ore to the smelter when I notice another smith eyeing me in a strange way.
Could he have seen me choking myself?
I’m about to say something when the man on my mind interjects on my behalf.
“What are you doing just standing around?” yells Lasta.
The man’s face lights up with fear as he spins to face the overseer of the forge.
“Sorry, I-I was distracted!”
“You better pay attention when handling your tools and equipment here. One distraction is all it takes to accidentally forge your own hand into a stump!”
“Yes, sir, sorry!”
He scurries away as Lasta glares at him. The captain of the royal guard then turns to me. As he approaches, his rigid posture seems to loosen up.
“For you,” he says, placing down a mug of water he had been holding. “How are your hands doing?”
“A lot better today, thanks for asking.”
His signature scowl turns slightly upwards but not quite into a smile, rather a straight line. Still, it’s the most satisfied I’veseen him, and I wonder if he feels proud of himself for assigning me lighter duties.
“I’m glad to hear, now get on with your work. There’s still a daily quota to be met.”
There’s that gruff commanding side of him I know,I think to myself with a smile.
“Sure thing.”
Lasta nods and turns to leave, but spins around clicking his fingers.
“I almost forgot. Stay behind at the forge after duties wrap up for the day.”
