"Are you able to teach me?"

Master asked a simple question, one that I didn't have a concrete answer to. Ard had never told me I can't spread the magic she had taught me to others, and even if she had the method I used to heal myself wasn't one she taught me. I could certainly try, so I nodded my head. "I try, but need time. Go soon have to."

Master turns her head slightly, repeating my words in a whisper. But realization dawned, "You have to go soon? Why?"

I nodded. "Ard, owner, me make promise go back, not much time here. We make deal, deal say she cure throat, I made 'pet,' I stay here to meet master. I go back."

Silence permeated the atmosphere now. I don't think my words weren't incomprehensible, although I was trying to force as many words out and even at my fastest I was still frustratingly slow, they still showed some semblance of having some sort of meaning.

"What do you mean you're made 'pet?' Have you been made a slave?" Mom spoke up, finally having something she could easily comprehend. Technically I could be considered a slave, but I don't truly understand how faeries manage these sort of things. Throughout the year all I've met are Ard, Aoibheann, and Saraid, no other humans. So I might be the first case of a human being considered a slave, or maybe the first human to interact with a faery in the way I've been throughout this time.

I nodded. "What!" Mom and dad both exclaimed in unison. "Why would you do that? What makes you think that was a fair trade at all? Do you know what this means for us?"

It means I could speak, and I could finally say I love you to everyone I need to say it to. I've not said it yet, since I haven't figured out the best timing for it. But my reasoning back then wasn't something I consider wrong, if I had to make the choice again I would do it a hundred times over. And it's not like Ard mistreats me, I don't have much work other than a consistent training schedule and having to learn magic. To an extent, I was living like a noble.

But before I could speak any of that, "I don't want to hear about how everything is great, do you understand that you're being taken away from us?"

Yes. I nodded, not meeting either of my parents eyes. "How much to ransom you back? Are we able to?" Dad asked. A reasonable question. But again, it wasn't one I could easily answer. What could Ard possibly want? I could think of a couple of arguments I might be able to use to convince her, but all of them require deception in some way. And more importantly, my relationship with her isn't at the point where I could easily do that with a clear conscience.

"Maybe? Me have speak." I messed that one up, I forgot to include the to, but before I could correct myself dad had already answered.

"When? How long can you stay here for? Can you meet up with this Ard faery at all? Can we meet her?" The questions come too fast, and the answer might cause dad to become too impatient. I nodded, not meaning to answer any specific question. I looked around the room, trying to figure out what I should do. I could try to call out for the girl, but whether or not she was either around or would answer was a different question. But things have progressed to the point where it'd be easiest on my part to have her meet up with me, and perhaps with my parents as well.

I got up, mom and dad getting up with me once they noticed I was going to get on my feet, and walked out of the roundhouse and into the forest. But before I went I turned to my parents and said, "I go meet with Ard, you stay. Ard no like people, she say." I waited for an answer, but dad shook his head and mom nodded. Not at me, but at dad's shaking. This is becoming more difficult than I know how to deal with. But having no other options, and being unwilling to force my parents to stay back, I walked into the forest, through the harvested fields, and kept walking for five minutes just so I could get some distance away from the village.

My parents followed me throughout, and for some reason so did my master. Doireann, not wanting to miss out on anything, joined in. That makes four people that Ard didn't know, and from the conversations I had of her I knew she wasn't fond of having to meet new humans. The only reason I had been able to talk with her was because I had caught her off guard, otherwise she never would've made her appearance.

Let's hope that'll change. I didn't have any predetermined way to get Ard's attention. So I did the only thing I could, I yelled her name, a challenge considering I didn't fully understand the method of yelling and articulating specific sounds. But I did my best, and after two minutes of constant calling, and after my throat started to feel like it was being torn apart, the green hooded figure of a small child appeared peeking behind a tree.

Looks like I had managed to get her attention. She stared at me, her expressionless face still as still as always. I motioned for her to come as I didn't want to speak, or rather yell, anymore. But she stayed in place. I looked behind me and saw that everyone was looking at her, so I motioned for them to stay where they are as I walked over to the tree Ard was hiding behind. Perhaps she could be convinced to meet everyone while not hiding behind a tree.

She kept her eyes trained on everyone else as I walked towards her, but once I gotten close enough to touch her she changed her gaze away from them and to me. "You've been calling me for a while. What is it?" She said, speaking her native tongue rather than my own. Shows how much I've learned throughout the months now that I could understand what she was saying.

"Meet with them." She didn't respond for a while, and showing no signs that my words had reached her ears she stood as still as the tree she was hiding behind. But she responded, eventually.

"Why?"

"Want discuss deal with you, easier to talk with you than me. Willing?"

Again she didn't respond. She breathed in a deep breath, and then nodded. Looks like she is willing, a very good thing. I smiled and walked back to the group. "She say she willing."

Dad and mom nodded, not looking at me but at Ard. I turned around and waited for her to come out, which took her a couple of minutes to do. Why was she so unwilling to meet wtih humans? I didn't fully understand, she said she's somewhat scared, but the feeling is indescribable. I fully understand now that she wasn't joking. She stood, in clear sight, her clothes as fancy as always. She looked between me and my parents, waiting for something to happen.

My dad was to first to speak up, his face stern. But I could feel that there was anger at something about this situation, more so than the anger of knowing that his son had been turned into a slave. Or a pet, if we're to be less technical. He cleared his throat and took a step forward, not to make physical contact with Ard but to show that he will be the one speaking.

"You're Ard, correct? I don't know what counts as polite among faery folk, but around here making introductions would be the first step of being polite. I'll start. I am Neill of Adh village, father of Attie. I'd like to thank you for helping my son with his speech problems. I don't know what your relationship is with him, but I don't approve of him being made a 'pet' as he told me. Is there anyway we could have him back?" Ard had done much more than help with me with my 'speech problems,' but I didn't want to butt in with my slow and unnatural speech.

Ard kept her stare at Alfred. Without looking at her ears, and since her ears were behind her hood, I couldn't tell what she was thinking. "I am Ard. I have made Attie into my pet as he had agreed to it. After I had saved him, fed him, and offered him clothes, and taught him magic, I thought to offer him a deal. I want him, and I don't think you can offer to me anything I would want. What can you give? Why should I?"

Dad's eyebrows twitched. "I'm able to offer you wheat and copper in exchange. Truthfully I don't have much, but if it's within my power I would be willing to give it to you."

"What is wheat? Why would I want it? And copper, that is... what?"

"Is there an adult I could speak to here?"

"Adult? I am fully grown, I have been for many years now."

"Our eight year old daughter is taller than you, how can you be fully grown? Are you messing with me? Why should we listen to your words anyway?"

Things are getting too heated up. "Dad, Ard no-"

"Attie, not now. Do you understand what my son had gone through here? Do you expect me to believe that your manipulative tactics to having him become fond of you would work forever?" Dad begone to walk up to Ard, and I realized something very bad was about to happen. I'm not sure what, but this wasn't going to end well. I tried to grab dad's tunic but he forcibly shook my grip off. I looked over to mom for support, but she didn't look at me back. She looked as angry as dad was. Doireann couldn't say anything to help, either, being a kid.

But master spoke up, "Neill-"

"Shut the fuck up!" Well, she didn't speak much. Dad towered over Ard, and Ard stood absolutely still save for the neck movement she needed to do to look up to Dad's face. "You will give us back our son. If what you've said is true, then I am thankful. But Attie's life isn't so worthless as to warrant me forgetting him and letting him become your plaything."

"No. He is mine, and your threats mean nothing. Was I wrong to bring Attie here?"

Dad tried to place a hand on Ard's shoulder, but the moment he got close enough, something I wish hadn't happened, happened. His arm exploded. There are very little other words I could use to describe what just happened, one moment he had a right hand, and the next he was missing a massive portion of his arm. From the elbow down, meat and bone was exposed, but his hand was gone.

"Dad!"

"Neill!"

But I reacted before anyone else had, running towards Ard and dad before any other damage could be done. But it was too late, the next moment dad's head looked to have collapsed form the pressure of some massive weight. Ard took a step back as his body fell to the ground, not a single drop of blood on her. I forgot that I could speak as I moved over to his body, checking on him. But it didn't take a herbalist to know he was dead, or will be very, very soon.

Chunks of his flesh was littered on the ground, some of it on trees a distance away. His face was caved in, the features that I knew to have belonged to my father gone. This, I couldn't save him from this. What had happened? Why had it happened? What?

Why?

I could hear the screams of mom, and the crying of Doireann. But my world zoomed down into two things, dad was dead, and Ard had killed him. I looked over to Ard, her face as emotionless as it's always been. I got up and moved closer to her as well, but I wasn't sure of what to do. I felt like I was going to pass out from the feeling of nausea that was beginning to overwhelm all my senses. My blood tingled, and the world turned darker. I wasn't passing out, but something very bad was happening inside me.

"He tried to hurt me." Ard's words, that I could definitely hear. Mom moved me aside as she got on her knees and looked at the state of her husband. Doireann, I couldn't look at her. My gaze was directly at Ard. He tried to hurt you? That doesn't justify you killing him? I got up off of my knees and walked closer to Ard, all of my senses told me she needed to be killed. She was a threat, she had killed my father, I couldn't accept her presence. But another part told me this was all just a grave misunderstanding. Perhaps I was just dreaming.

I looked at her, standing in a similar way that my dad had with her. But I took a step back, not out of fear but out of some deep understanding that this will lead no where good.

"I'm going now. I'm scared, they're being too loud. This isn't going well. Bye, Attie." Ard spoke in her native tongue, but before she could move I shot out my hand grabbed her arm. Unlike with dad's, my arm didn't explode. Ard didn't do anything but look at me, but I could feel that she was in fact shaking. This isn't going well at all. Through the crying of mom, and the crying of Doireann, I shared a look between Ard and myself. What the fuck am I supposed to do here?

"You're coming with me? Then come, you've visited the woman you needed to. You have no further business here, and it's dangerous for you to remain here. Follow me, Attie."

I let go of Ard and moved backwards. I didn't want to hurt her, some part of me screamed that I would die in a similar way that dad just had, and perhaps she would do something much worse. I don't know what to do. Ard tilted her head, walked closer and grabbed my hand, and tried to pull me away. But I shook off her grip. "No."

"No?"

"I not go. Stay."

"What? Are you disobeying me?"

"Yes."

I felt dread. Something terrible was going to happen, something much worse than what had just happened was going to happen. I felt my soul freeze, and the webs that had grown larger with my body start to almost fracture. I felt everything, each crack, each broken segment start to disappear. Pain echoed from every inch of my body, and it took only a miracle to have me stay upright. But Ard wasn't touching me, and she didn't do what she had done before with the bathing.

I wanted to scream, but unlike when I had been incapable, I couldn't move. I could only stay still, watching and feeling every inch of my internal magic break apart. How do I make this stop? Is there a way to make this stop? Was my soul dying?

"Attie, follow me. Breaking an oath is dumb, do you want to destroy yourself? Come here, before you die."

I followed, mindlessly, anything that would stop this feeling from developing further. And unlike with my scream, my legs did move, and instantly I was released from the soul destroying pressure. At that moment, I couldn't stand, and I fell on to the ground face first.

"What did you to Attie!?" Mom's voice, through what felt like water, reached my ears. No, stop. Through instinct I managed to put enough energy back into my limbs to get myself back up on to my knees, just in time to be able to catch mom before she did something she would very likely die from. She almost ran past me, but I grabbed her dress before she could get far, and pulled as hard as I could. She fell, but she kept trying to get closer to Ard. It took all of my energy to keep her in check, but this was quickly proving to be failing.

Ard, thankfully, stepped back, looking at me and at mom. "I go."

Ard nodded, mom didn't seem to hear, or notice anything. I kept trying to keep her restrained, but this was going to fail at some point. "Go!" I yelled at Ard, she jumped at my yelling, took a moment, and then ran. I'll follow her very soon.

I let go of mom, and watched as she tried to run into the forest with Ard. But Ard was incomprehensibly fast, as if like the wind she disappeared deep into the forest. I hadn't seen her run so fast before, this was a very good thing right now. I had no choice but to follow her. I looked at the herbalist, she was hugging Doireann closely to herself, keeping Doireann's face tucked away and not allowing her to see what was happening. Her expression was horror stricken.

"Goodbye. Love." Was all I said, faster than any other words I had spoken before, and I ran towards mom. She was a far distance away, still running even with her dress. How determined was she?

But I was faster than her, and I would eventually catch up. It took a solid while of sprinting, but it's clear that I was in better condition than her, as it didn't take much more than a minute to catch up enough to grab her. And this grabbing might've brought her out of her trance, as she looked at my direction, slowing down and finally stopping. She fell down, as if losing everything needed to make a person stand. I didn't know what to say.

"Mom?" I said through gasps.

She looked up to me, showing me an expression that I couldn't understand. I crouched down and hugged her. "Sorry. Sorry. I love you."

But she didn't hug back. Instead, she pushed me away, and no longer looked at me. I felt like my world was collapsing each passing moment.