purple diamond in the rough

The deep breath of the man was noted and Gypsy pulled her ears back, expecting to be yelled at, berated or something else. Instead, she was given what she wanted: a name. Indigo Fatalis. And apparently, he thought he was going to take her somewhere safe. Panic surged through the young woman and her formerly detached state faltered. “But I…” and then he was asking her name. “Gypsy,” she whispered softly. “Gypsy Layne Rosza.”

What did he think he was doing, trying to steal her away from her father? Indigo asked if she could hold into his back and the diminutive lady shook her head vehemently. “You don’t understand,” She was speaking out of turn, but she couldn’t help herself. “If you take me away, he’ll think I ran away. He’ll find me.” Anxiety was beginning to reduce Gypsy to shivering. Fear. She tasted fear once more. “Please, he can’t think that I ran. It won’t…” she searched for the words. “It won’t go well for me.” How could she tell a complete stranger that, if her father found her, he’d beat her within an inch of her life?

Two years. Gypsy was only two years old and she’d already known abuse that others might only hear of in stories about poor, unfortunate souls. She was indeed one of those. Her tail hadn’t always been short. Her father had had it removed for ‘reasons’ that he hadn’t decided to tell her. Beatings, attacks, rapes, starvation, neglect… all of it. She’d suffered it all. It was how she’d been crafted into such an obedient thing.

Obedience… What if this was a test? It wouldn’t have been the first time that her father had tricked her with some off the wall request or task. This had to be a test. And just like that, Gypsy disconnected again. This was a test. Everything would be fine. She would go with this man, because she had been taught to do whatever a man wished of her. She would go with him and her father would be proud. He might hurt her just a little for balking initially, but he would give her a blanket and let her sleep beside a fire tonight. He would feed her.

Rising from her place, Gypsy gave the man a nod. If he wanted to help her atop his back, so be it. She would do her best to hold on. She would go where he wished to take her. She would be a good girl and she would be rewarded for it.