There was a moment of silence. Only unsteady breathing could be heard. Then-

“Miss Stare, I will have to recommend to Lieutenant Zulon that I alone am not sufficient.”

“Sufficient for what?” Stare asked him, still trying to control herself, dragging breaths in and out and still not able to trust herself. Or her eyes.

“Sufficient to do what Sir Elssmith commanded. Keeping you safe.”

“I can do that well myself, and Vitruvion knows that,” Stare grumbled, flexing her hand around the hilt of her dagger. But she dragged in a final lungful anyway and lifted her eyes to finally look at their companion.

The young blonde shivered, eyes massive and staring, with her bound hands held against her small breasts. She let out a whimper, before small droplets began to fall from her eyes.

“Th-thank you,” she mumbled through tears. “He - he did things to me …”

“I haven't saved you from that,” Stare said firmly. “Whatever you have heard about me, I can't, no matter how much I want to.”

Eirik gave her a sideways look which she ignored as the blonde girl took in her words. For a moment more she sniffed before she answered.

“But they say you - that, that you …”

“That I lived here for five months? Yes I did,” she grunted. “Now I work for Vitruvion in other ways. Apparently right now,” she didn't hide the disgust in her voice, “that means keeping this hellhole going for him.” She glanced over to Eirik, seeing him standing there, studying her. Her brow rose. “What?”

“Nothing, Miss,” he said carefully, “but I would say you are not the best at making friends.”

“You're welcome,” Stare replied, straightening as the guard arched an eyebrow but twisted away. He angled towards the door, where she knew more guards likely waited, and until recently however many had been skulking for Gravelle. Now Eirik was moving away too, leaving Stare alone to face back to the girl.

Who was beginning to tear up again, still bound hands around her face.

“So you will not help me escape?” she whimpered. “But I cannot stay here, I have my family, my fiancé, my-”

Fiancé. At her age. That made Stare twitch with discomfort. “What's your name?” she asked quietly, eyes impatiently on the blonde.
The girl looked slightly taken aback. “Well, it's Galina, but they all keep calling me 'Lament.’”

Stare looked at Lament and breathed in slowly. She gave her a once over and a nod.
“A pleasure to meet you, Lament. I am Stare, as I am sure everyone has told you.”

Lament swallowed a little and quietly nodded her head, sniffing once. Stare felt her heart pound with empathy for this creature, but knew she could do very little when it came down to it. What would Vitruvion allow her do do? To what extent would be let her go?

Eventually she sighed, the door closing behind Eirik symbolising peace for a moment. “I know it is difficult here, Lament,” she said firmly but quietly. “But I cannot help you aside from try to keep you safer. The best way to do that, while my own …” she paused to think about what to call the relationship between her and Vitruvion while the girl's huge eyes were resting on her. “Employer, because he does actually pay me. Master,” she let the word slip from the sides of her beak, “because he still is. While Vitruvion is away.”

“Some of them call you 'traitor’,” Lament whispered, “That you have betrayed us all.”

Stare breathed in slowly. “I had a choice. To stay as I was, with little purpose, being all but a project for him to work on my magic - or to be useful. To have a life. Someone that he trusts.”

“And does he trust you?”

The kenku glanced down to the cuff on her wrist, that bound her mind to his without her choice. She thought of how he had made her immortal so that he could keep hey forever by his side, and the way he was ordering his guards to keep by her side, to keep her safe. She thought of how she belonged to him now, body and soul, of how he had given her more responsibility than she could ever imagine. She thought of where he was now, and their joint fight against their brothers. She thought of how he held her when he slept, sharing a room like he had never done with anyone else. And she thought of now, how he had left her his empire, his world, with the knowledge that she would hold it as he wanted. She thought of how she would hold it for years of he needed, until darkness covered the world entirely.

She found herself sighing, and meeting Lament with the same intense gaze. “He does, at least I believe he does. But you should also know that I trust him.”