“I can watch him,” Agalon said to Ara, whose eyes narrowed. “You can wait at the door.”

He handed her her staff with more force than Xaxac thought was strictly necessary.

“Don’t give me that look,” he told her, “I’ve handled plenty of um before. One, unarmed, ain’t nothin.”

Xaxac was ecstatic to get out of his filthy clothes and hummed a tune as he stripped out of them and tossed them to the floor of the bathroom, but he stopped as he let the robe fall to the floor, to stare at Takashito.

He was standing at the edge of the bath, staring into it, at the sparkling, rose-colored water. He glanced at Ara, who seemed to be arguing with Agalon and occupied, then stretched out his hand and moved it in waves.

Xaxac looked at the bath.

Nothing happened.

He couldn’t possibly use the crystal on his collar, because Xaxac was sure he was trying to do magic.

“I’ll be at the door,” Ara finally said, apparently unconcerned with hiding the anger seeping into her voice, louder than the conversation had been, “He tries anything, you holler. You ain’t got nothin I ain’t seen.”

She snarled as she turned, and when she closed the door, she did so with far more force than Xac thought the door was used to in a house without Lorsan.

Xaxac quickly stripped out of the rest of his clothes and slowly sank into the water.

“You alright, there, Ta-ka-shi-to?” Agalon asked and gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I feel fine,” Takashito explained, “I have had much worse, at the prison. You did not have to heal me. They do not heal us there.”

“I mean, you look like you ain’t never had a bath before. Don’t y’all… y’all wash, right?” Agalon asked and Xaxac saw Takashito tense.

“They ration water,” Takashito explained, “at the prison. It is rationed carefully. We only bathe once a week, and we are allotted a certain amount. You can not go over it. I have not felt clean since I arrived in this country; I was not particularly clean then, and I feel as if I have not washed away the filth of that battle in the past century.”

“Well,” Agalon said as he moved away to undress, “I got some slaves that’ll change the water when you get out.”

Takashito began to slowly peel away the uniform he had been given. Xaxac noticed that he didn’t even try to take off the collar. The water was only waist high when he stood in it, but he ducked himself quickly and did not come up. Agalon slid into the bath beside Xac and draped an arm lazily around him.

“Did you like bein out there again today?” he asked, “You seem like you’re makin friends.”

“Everybody’s been real nice to me,” Xaxac said, “I think they’re startin to like me.”

“Honey Bunny,” Agalon took Xac by the face in an attempt to force him to meet his gaze, but Xaxac kept his eyes locked to the place Takashito had gone underwater, “Everybody likes you.”

“Is he ok?” Xac asked, “He’s been under there a long time, and he seems… sad… is he… is he ok?”

“Ya’ alright, Taka?” Agalon asked, and when he got no response he rolled his eyes, took a deep breath, and went underwater himself.

Xaxac followed his example.

Takashito was lying on the bottom of the bath with his eyes open, as if he was staring at the ceiling, and his arms outstretched. Xaxac watched the gentle rise and fall of his chest and had a moment of panic. He jerked forward, grabbed Takashito by the shoulders, and jerked his head above water.

“Xaxac!” Agalon chastised as soon as he broke the surface, but Takashito made no move to stop him, only gazed into his eyes, taking in the panic there.

Eventually he moved his head to the side and spit more water into the bath than Xac thought could have possibly fit in his mouth.

“You thought I could drown,” he said matter-of-factly.

“You was gonna drown!” Xac said, “It… listen at me, it ain’t that bad- you’re alive, an’ as long as you’re alive-”

“Darlin, let go of him,” Agalon said, “You’re scarin him to death.”

“I am not afraid,” Takashito said, “That is actually… sweet. But I will not drown, Xaxac. Water elves do not drown. We do not know how.” After his concern passed he reached up a hand to gently pat Xac on the cheek, and broke into a grin, “The look on your face!”

Xac took a step back and sat in the water.

“Let him get clean,” Agalon grabbed Xac by the arm and tugged him gently back to the side of the tub.”

“What a good idea,” Takashito said as he reached over the side of the tub to pick up a bottle of shampoo and began to lather it into his hair. He started to sing in a language Xaxac did not understand, but fell in love with instantly.

“Stop that!” Ara yelled from her position outside the door.

“I think they think we are sirens,” Takashito chuckled, “If only.”

Then he was underwater again, and once again he did not come back up.

“Master?” Xac asked, “Is Takashito… bad? Was he one of them people you fought against? In them bad memories you talk about?”

“I don’t reckon… he’s a bad person,” Agalon said, “They just… don’t appreciate nothin. But he’s tryin, I think. Don’t you think? He seems like he’s tryin.”

Xaxac wondered if there was a place, far away and underwater, where humans went to school like elves. He wondered how humans could do that. Lorsan was the only person he knew who went to school, but Takashito said that humans went to magic school with elves. But humans couldn’t cast magic. Why would any school let them do something so dangerous? He remembered the time he had picked up one of Agalon’s mage crystals sober; he had almost passed out from whatever it had done. Humans could not cast magic. The water elves didn’t seem like they were very good at taking care of humans, and the holy book Lorsan had read them had said that elves were supposed to take care of humans.

Xaxac thought of the quilt he had seen,the one Sakala had made that he was sure had won first place at the rodeo. It had more people who looked like Takashito, elves with their colors all wrong. They had been fighting elves like Agalon.

With humans.

Lorsan said they had been fighting for their homes, for their lives.

Nine times out of ten, the prey wins. Because the predator is fighting for their lunch, but the prey is fighting for their lives.

Takashito finally came out of the water, glanced at them, and went to apply his conditioner.

“Do you stay here because you are a shifter?” He asked Xaxac, “Instead of with the other warriors, I mean. You are the only one who came with us.” His eyes roamed over Xac, then moved on to Agalon, saw the way his arm draped over Xac, the way Xac leaned into his embrace, and something seemed to click in his brain.

“I live in the big house,” Xaxac said contentedly, “with Aggie.”

“It is… strange… to me…” Takashito said as he soaped up a washcloth to use, “That you have made humans a slave race, and yet… well, perhaps not so strange… maybe...”

“Maybe what?” Agalon asked, clutching Xaxac tighter, “What was you gonna say?”

“Nothing,” Takashito said, “No longer relevant. I answered my own question. It is very nice of you, your grace, to allow me into your home. To give me clothing and food, and allow me to use your pool.”

“I’ll put in a glowing Progress Report,” Agalon promised, “You look like you’re makin progress. I mean, I don’t know what you was like when you got here.”

“I am… content to be outdoors,” Takashito said, “I do not think… I will ever enjoy… confinement? That is not the right word-”

“New language can be hard,” Agalon said.

“What? No- I… I have spoken this language for a century. I simply… do not think a word exists for the concept I am talking about. When I go home, I am not even sure I will build a house, even if I find a job and can afford one. I may just… exist, for a while. I would not like to be… to have any sort of… attachment. Or… responsibility. I would like to be able to go, at a moment’s notice. We were, perhaps, better at that than your people are, anyway, before. We had… not so many walls, so many pointless things. You are trapped here. You are trapped by this house and the things inside it. By the plantation.”

“I ain’t trapped,” Agalon laughed, “This is my house.”

“Right,” Takashito looked deeply into Xac’s eyes, “this is your house.”

He disappeared under the water again.