She started humming songs and listening to the sounds of the house. It was boring, yet quite valuable information. Meino had reported to the others. He had started complaining, but then he had stepped into a room and closed the door. That had muffled his words so much, that Eleeza couldn't understand them.
Later the three men had left, after giving orders to the one in the kitchen with the heavy steps. It seemed, as if this person was a kind of servant. They had told him or her that they would return for dinner and that he or she was forbidden to go up into the second floor. And the servant should not forget to give Lisa her lunch which made him or her snort. Then the three went down a corridor, opened a creaking door and most probably flew away, since there were no more steps. Eleeza really wondered how they could simply fly away, were they not afraid to be spotted by humans and maybe being shot at?
After their departure it got even more boring. The servant seemed to take a nap, because the heavy scuffled steps moved down a corridor and into some room.
The girl they kept captive like her, Eleeza assumed that she was Lisa, must to be bored as well. She seemed to read because else from the clinging of metal, she heard pages being turned. If she could just do any of those things. She pulled on the rope and regretted it the next moment. She explored the bed best she could and tried to put the pillows in the most comfortable way. She closed her eyes and tried to sleep. Around midday she heard a voice, a woman was singing downstairs. Eleeza listened up. The singing was nice, a human song she had heard in the city once. If this was the servant singing, she was definitely human, Eleeza guessed. She didn't believe that someone from the Otherworld would know this song.
When the birds started singing their songs for the night and the air got colder, Eleeza was sure that the servant was a woman who had either strange shoes or was very heavy. She had never heard anybody with such strangely heavy steps.
Eventually she heard voices from outside and a minute later one door opened. Lenrio and Nioru entered and chatted about the success of the day, they seemed to have found some silver. If Meino accompanied them, he was very quiet. They got their dinner and Meino finally walked up the stairs.
Eleeza hoped he would attend to her, she wasn't only hungry but badly needed to go to the toilet. But he climbed only first floor and went into Lisa's room. She realised now, what reason the captivity of Lisa had. She pressed several pillows over her ears to muffle the sounds they produced. She didn't sleep in the night, but refilled her strength with the help of the moon whose light entered the room. She enjoyed the brightness it sparked and eventually fell asleep.
The birds woke her the next morning. She lounged in the comfortable beddings of the new bed and tried to find out if the others were awake as well. Only the clunk of the servant's steps was audible, the rest seemed still asleep. She really hoped they would let her eat today. She didn't truly need it since she had fed on the moonlight, but her stomach complained and simply strength was not enough.
It took some time, but after the guys had taken their food and chatted a while, she finally heard Lenrio tell the servant in broken words: "Cathryn, prepare again tray for Lady. Meino take it upstairs."
So she would get food today, she smiled. And Meino was the simplest to handle of the three men. Again, it took some time, but then Meino finally came up to her.
"Good morning, Milady! I got you breakfast. Here, I will put it on the bed in front of you." In his voice was no trace of anger, he sounded sincerely.
"Thank you!", Eleeza answered. And then she added: "I am sorry about yesterday, I really don't know what happened."
"Yes, well. We will talk about that in your lesson later. But don't worry, I have taken no offense."
She smiled unsurely and puzzled.
"Let me show you your breakfast." He took her hand which startled her even though she had heard his movement, but he didn't seem to notice. He guided her hand to the stuff on the tray. Somebody had already spread butter and the cheese cream on the bread. She took a bite with great pleasure.
Meino watched her a bit, but then got up: "I will return later for your lessons. Enjoy your breakfast!"
"Meino?", she asked quickly. "I need to use the bathroom."
She heard him stop: "A hell! Sure, I will send our servant, she will take you."
"Thank you."
He left and she enjoyed the bread and an apple, as well as the mint tea which she had found on the tray. After a while she heard the scuffing of heavy steps closing her room and then a knock on the door. Eleeza leaned back and closed her eyes, she didn't want to frighten the servant.
The door squeaked and opened, the servant took three steps inside, quite out of breath.
"Oh, wow!", was all she said. Her voice was nice, she seemed still quite young.
"Hi!", Eleeza answered. A bit irritated about the start of their conversation. She tried to sense the woman, whose heartbeat was raised probably from climbing the stairs. From the origin of the voice Eleeza guessed, that she was quite as tall as Nioru. But else she couldn't find out more.
The servant cleared her throat: "Hi, I am Cathryn. Meino said you need a woman's help?"
"Yes, thanks." She was quiet for a while and Cathryn seemed unsure what to do. Eleeza was surprised how directly and open Cathryn spoke. She liked open humans for she despised the net of lies humans wove around them.
"Why do you take such strangely heavy steps?", Eleeza asked, thinking that if Cathryn truly was an open person, she would mind the straightforward question.
"Lenrio wanted to keep me from running away, so he used some kind of magic." And she ruffled with her clothes. Her voice had gotten very annoyed and yet her words had a sad tinge.
"What did he do exactly?" Eleeza asked curious when nothing followed.
"Well, if you wouldn't simply lie there with eyes closed like a queen, but looked, you would already know!" Cathryn said now in a very annoyed tone.
Eleeza raised to a sitting position and opened her eyes: "That wouldn't change a thing. I am completely blind. So, simply opening my eyes only frightens you and would help about nothing." Eleeza fired back, but in a soft voice. Still she heard Cathryn's heartbeat rise.
"Oh... I am sorry! I mean, I didn't know..."
Eleeza leaned back again and closed her eyes, which made Cathryn very quietly release her breath. Eleeza registered it anyway.
"So, what did they do to your feet?", she asked again in a soft voice.
"Uh. They transformed them to solid iron, from the toes halfway up to my knees. That's why my steps are so heavy."
"Solid iron? That sounds horrible. How are you able to walk?" She asked, putting true felt compassion in her voice.
"It's damn hard! Each foot weighs several kilos and it hurts where the skin turns into iron." She seemed close to tears, yet spoke stronly.
"I am very sorry for you, Cathryn. Those men are truly cruel!", Eleeza expressed. She heard Cathryn move her head, probably she nodded.
"And who are you? Why are they keeping you here?", Cathryn asked curiously.
"They want to use my magic. I was too careless, so they easily got hold of me."
"So you are one of them? I mean you don't exactly look human, but I wondered why they would keep you captive then.", she asked a bit surprised.
Eleeza nodded.
"And you have wings as well?"
Eleeza raised her eyebrows, got up and her wings lifted through her torn dress. Her long hair hung loose and the golden strands curled around her sweet face.
"Oh my dear god! You look even more a fairy than they do! You are fairies, aren't you?"
"Maybe some kind of." Eleeza shrugged and put her hair up to a big knot.
"And what's your name?", Cathryn asked.
"Eleeza." She answered, then added: "Or April, that's my name among humans."
"Among humans? Wouldn't they, I don't know, see your wings and do some doctoring?" She wondered.
"I can change my looks and hide all that differentiates me from you." Eleeza explained. Then she listened up, one of the men climbed stairs. They shouldn't find out they were chatting. She didn't know what they would do or even if, but she guessed they wouldn't find it good if Cathryn and she got too close.
"Cathryn, I really need to go to toilet. Meino said, you would help me. But he didn't release the rope..." She pulled on it, to emphasise her words.
"Oh, no problem." Cathryn shuffled to her. Suddenly the rope loosened.
"What did you do?", Eleeza asked surprised.
"I extended the rope so you can walk to the toilet." She said it so simply, as if it wasn't anything extraordinary.
"But how? You don't have magic, do you?"
"No, but Meino gave me one of those magical items which everybody can use."
Just then a memory popped up in Eleeza's mind, accompanied by a short pain. She tossed her head and massaged her temple. Horreummeomrial, that was the right term. You could store earmarked magic in it. So, that others could profit from you gift as well. Depending on the fabric, one could accumulate different amounts of magic in the horreummeomrial. With the right ones, she might be able to flee!
"You wouldn't free me?" Eleeza asked hopefully.
"Even if I could, they would get you again. I tried it once and didn't even get far. So why arise their anger?"
Then she gently took Eleeza's shoulder. She had a steady grip and seemed quite strong.
"Come on now, they will wonder why we took so long."
Eleeza got up and Cathryn took her hand: "I will lead you."
"If I could take your elbow, it would be much easier for me." Cathryn gave Eleeza's hand to her elbow and they walked out of the room.
Now Eleeza was sure, that Cathryn was taller than her by far. She smelled of food, oil and sweat, but there was a fragrance of flowers also. Her heartbeat was steady now and Eleeza guessed that the servant was a very steady person.
Eleeza took a deep breath, the air wasn't good in the corridor, but much better than the stale air in the room. The corridor was slightly windy and Eleeza could feel dirt and dust under her bare feet. The cold stone of the floor was sometimes coated by thin old carpets with many holes.
"What is this place?", Eleeza asked curious.
"I am not sure if I am to tell you about it.", Cathryn said carefully.
"Well, if I still had my sight I could tell by myself. I guess there's no harm if I know what kind of building this is."
Cathryn walked a few moments in silence: "It's an old castle. It must have stood empty for decades since most parts are more or less ruins."
They didn't walk far until Cathryn stopped. From the echo Eleeza guessed they had reached the end of the corridor. The wind got louder here and an awful smell hung in the air.
"That's the loo of the second floor." Cathryn stated. "It's a small annexe to the castle, underneath is nothing but the forest. I am not sure if it can still bear any kind of loads, but Meino was convinced. Still, maybe I shouldn't step on it being as heavy as I am with that iron. It's not big, maybe one square metre all in all. In the back, right in the middle is an opening and on the sides, are grip bars. I will hand you some water after you're done. There's no door anymore, so I will just turn around" Eleeza could here that Cathryn was uncomfortable with the whole situation.
So she just nodded and walked inside. It was cold and she regretted that she had no shoes. Carefully aware of the rope and afraid that the structure would give in, she was happy when she was done. The rope that had extended all the way, shortened with every step they took back to the room. They didn't walk fast because of Cathryn, Eleeza didn't mind at all. She rather enjoyed moving and savoured every moment. When Cathryn opened the door to the room that had become Eleeza's prison, Eleeza heard somebody breathing inside.
"So, it's time for my lessons already?", she asked towards the open room.
"Indeed", answered Meino and took her arm from Cathryn.
"You not needed now. Nioru get groceries, tell him what we need."
"Yes", she walked away with her metallic steps. Eleeza heard her sigh before she climbed down the stairs.