Immediately full of concern, Stare pulled away from him, which was not something he particularly seemed to like. A snarl of dislike came to his face as she sat up, pushing his arm away significantly. His lips pursed as she started, and she felt a wave of regret coming from him.

“What is it?” she asked. “You did something else to me? Am I … infertile?”

Flatly, he glared at her. “It is not another factor of your existence that I have changed that I have not related to you. Rather, it is in connection to one that already exists. Before I speak, however I will say that I will not be persuaded to alter the situation that it is.”

Tightly, her arms folded across her chest, brow rising, she spoke with a sour voice. “Vitruvion, what did you do?”

“My dear, a little more respect would not go amiss,” he frowned. “Mutual respect in kind - I am telling you this, despite not considering it particularly more consequential than … well.”

“‘My lord’ then. Better?”

His lips drew a thin line, and his eyes narrowed back at her, but he sat up sharper. “Fine. I need to ...” he focused on the door for a moment, and Stare heard the scrape of a lock being drawn. There were a couple of seconds then as she felt a vague popping sensation inside of her ears, Vitruvion's mouth seemed to slow - then speed up. She recognised it as his spell to encase them in a deaf bubble, so that only he and her could hear what was said.

After, he raised his hand and formed it into a pointing finger and indicated it at her chest. “Your soul is not within your body.”

It took her a moment to process what he was saying. Her soul was …

“What?”

Vitruvion ceased to look at her as he slumped back into the sofa. “As I said, as you heard. Your soul resides elsewhere, not within your body. I was reluctant to tell you because of this,” he savagely gestured at her, “reaction, but -”

“Where is it?” she asked quickly, her voice full of anxiety. “And am I … am I going to be sick, or ill or …?”

“Firstly, it is very safe, and currently far away. I will not tell you more than that. Secondly, no, not at all. Paradoxically, you might actually be healthier as some diseases also affect the soul and as it is not with you …” He shrugged slightly, then looked down at his now slumped arm that had been tight around her. His lip curled with distaste.

“Why would you do that?” she asked quietly, her heart hammering. “When …?” Though the answer to the latter question was somewhat more obvious. It was what he chose to answer first.

“'When’ was when I and Galatirion cooperated to enable your mortality negligible,” he answered, his tone now foul and negative. It was clear it was to do with her reaction. “'Why’ is more complex. It will take some time of explanation. Now, you can either listen to me, and let do so, or interrupt me every few seconds in that rude manner you are prone to do.”

He spat the last. Clearly, he was agitated and had not expected her to react as she had. Stare sucked in her breath, and moved back, away from him, pulse quickening. Her jaw tightened but she remained silent, but his words were more of an order tham anything. Indeed, she could interrupt him, but it was very clear that was not what he wanted. And with her recent pledge to him, and her willingness to accept him as the defacto authority in her life, Stare found herself reigning in her desire to retort and simply stared at him instead.

“Thank you,” he growled. “Now,” he bent to grab the wine and his goblet with rough movements. “'Why’ has to do with the methods in which were used to make you immortal. When Galatirion first blessed the elves with long life he wove it into the very core of their beings - into their souls. This being his expertise, and the fact that he rarely imbues another race with immortality, he suggested the safe detachment of your soul from your body before we worked.” He poured the wine and then shoved it out towards her. Stare took it from him with tense fingers before setting it down, unused. Vitruvion, irritated still, leant back into the cushions. “Naturally, he suggested I do it, as your god, as my magic and yours are supremely intertwined. Thus, I removed your soul from your body, and once the process of true immortality was complete there seemed more reason to keep it out than place it back in.”