Vognez, a purpleblood troll, was adopted at a young age by a rich buyer looking for an expensive pet. He had gotten a chance to meet the man who would become his owner once before his adoption, and he had seemed like he would be a nice owner who would treat him kindly. However, when he arrived at his new home, his owner gave him his first beating to show him how things were going to work in this house. He gave him rules that he would have to follow effective immediately.
Vognez would not be allowed to speak for any reason, and any speaking equated to a beating. Despite the warning, he would practice speaking when his owner wasn't home or when he thought his owner wasn't listening. He loved language, and wanted the chance to learn to speak like he heard on the TV. He got away with it for a while, but when he was caught, his owner hit and kicked him until he was afraid to speak another word.
Begging for food was another no-no, which made things complicated when his owner repeatedly forgot to feed him. Hunger became a constant state for Vognez; he never really knew what it was like to be full. Once, his owner forgot to feed him for four days. He became so desperate for food that he tried eating out of the garbage to sustain himself. His owner heard the noise coming from the kitchen, and caught him in the act. Needless to say, his owner was not pleased. Vognez never ate out of the garbage again. It didn't matter how hungry he was; he wasn't risking another beating like that.
When his owner left for the day, or when it was time for bed, he would be locked in a cramped cage that only seemed to get smaller as he grew. He didn't have a say in the matter, and the longer he delayed going in his cage, the worse it would be for him. Things seemed like they couldn't get any worse, and for a long time they didn't. It wasn't until his owner came home drunk one night.
He pulled Vognez out of his cage violently. Vognez didn't know what was happening until he was being kicked repeatedly. He fell to the ground as his owner kept kicking him. He cried and plead for his owner to stop, but he was too drunk to understand him. He kept kicking and hitting him, believing that he needed to be taught a lesson, when in actuality he had done nothing wrong.
After his owner was finished, he passed out on the couch, leaving Vognez cowering in the corner, crying, bruised, and broken. He noticed a cold winter breeze hitting him; the door had been left open in his owner's haste. If he wanted to leave, this was his chance. He wouldn't get another one. He stood up, ignoring the pain all over his body, and left the house. He didn't know if he was ready to face whatever was out there, but he couldn't stay.
A week on the street with no food left Vognez starving and weak. He had been used to not getting meals, but he'd never gone this long without food. He was also suffering from the cold, but luckily he had a cold enough blood color that he hadn't gotten frostbite yet. This wouldn't last forever, though. If he wanted to survive, he'd need food and warmth soon. He sat on the edge of the sidewalk and held his stomach. He sat shivering until he saw a shadow pass by.
"You should get a pet, Joey. I'm sure you'd be a nice owner."
"You tell me this all the time, Gail. And I always tell you, I'll get one when I'm ready."
"You're just delaying the inevitable." She smiled at him.
"You really want me to get a pet, don't you?"
"Yes! I'll even help you pick one out; I have friends at the shelter who'll help us."
"I'll think about it. Listen, I gotta go. I'll see you later." He kissed her goodbye, and left the cafe, wrapping his scarf around his neck.
Gail had been pressuring Joey to get a pet after hearing about an increase in strays that were being abandoned during the winter. He wanted to get one, but he kept putting it off. He figured he'd do it sooner or later, and he wasn't very worried about it. He was walking down the street when he spotted a tiny figure sitting on the edge of the sidewalk. He thought it was a little kid at first, but then he saw the horns protruding from its head. A troll. He'd seen pictures of them on tv, but this was the first he'd seen in real life. He passed by it, thinking about why a troll would be on the sidewalk on its own. He stopped and wondered if it had been abandoned like the other pets, and how long it had been out in the cold. He had heard they could talk, so he decided to ask it.
"Hey? You okay buddy?" He said quietly, slowly approaching it. It looked over at him for a second, and then buried its face in its shirt. "No, it's okay, don't be scared... What's your name?" It didn't respond.
He got a better look at the troll, and saw it had many bruises all over its body and dried blood on its face. Purple blood. Jeez, it's one of the expensive ones. I can't believe somebody threw it out. "Do you have a home little guy?" It shook its head no.
He thought for a second. "Well... You can't stay out here; you won't last very long in the cold. Do you want to come home with me?" It looked up at him, still not speaking, and he noticed it was shivering. He took off his scarf. "Do you want this?" It slowly nodded. He wrapped the scarf around him, noticing it was huge on him, but figuring that it would keep him warmer that way.
Joey wasn't sure if it was able to walk, so he started to reach towards it to pick it up. He stopped when he saw it flinch. "Oh, I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm gonna pick you up; is that okay?" It tried to stand on its own, but fell back down. It looked at him and nodded, knowing it didn't have any other option. He picked it up and let it get comfortable in his arms, trying to hold it carefully to not hurt it. It quickly fell asleep, exhausted from everything it went through, and he carried it back to his house.