Long Way Down

The man didn’t show any obvious signs of aggression, which meant he wasn’t likely to be apart of a hunting party sent by Kyros. If he was, he would have grabbed her while she slept to haul her off back to the man meant to be her husband, without giving her a chance to react. It didn’t matter though, because he was large and intimidating and while he looked nothing like the tyrant she ran from, she was still frightened. She had been young when she was made a slave, when she was told what her fate would be, and after her mother abandoned her, she had lost faith in everything, in everyone. If she couldn’t trust her mother to protect her, then she couldn’t trust anyone. The world was a cruel place, and she was uncertain how long she would last on her own.

The man stepped back, but he did not leave. He spoke, claiming he hadn’t meant to startle her but she quickly shook her head. "No, it was my fault." Take responsibility, it made things easier. That one had taken her some time to learn, but by now it was drilled into her brain. When she was a child, she had been the mouthy one between her and her sister, always getting into trouble and always blaming it on her sister. Once captured, she had tried turning to denial, not wanting to be the cause of her sister’s pain, but Kyros and those who followed him had no patience for her excuses. "It was my fault." She repeated the words, more adamant this time, her mouth set into a hard line. She had fallen asleep, she had let her guard down. Anything that happened from here was a mess of her own making.

"Speech" || Thoughts