You sighed and closed your eyes, willing yourself to get some sleep for once. Meulin was off doing … Actually; you had no idea what she was doing. Probably trying to talk to some of the other trolls, even though you are sure most of them don't understand sign language. She was leaving you alone long enough to sleep, and you were grateful. You haven't slept very well when she was around since the nightmare.
Just as you were about to fall asleep, you heard someone walk up behind you. You sat up and whipped around angrily, wanting to know who disturbed you. You can't say you were prepared for what you saw next.
"Why hello there, Kurloz," a tall orange man said, looking down at you. You swore you recognized him from somewhere, but you couldn't place where. The fact that he knows your name unsettles you, and you stood up, looking at him cautiously.
"Kurloz, I've been bored lately, so I'm going around granting wishes. Consider it an act of good will. So," he leered, "What would you like? Almost anything at all. I do speak sign language," he added when you glanced around for something to write on. No need to use your telepathy on him—he didn't need to know about that.
First, who are you, and why should I believe you can grant motherfucking wishes? You signed. Something about this person made you uneasy, but you didn't think he was lying. Actually, you thought he was perfectly capable of doing what he said, and a lot more.
"Who I am isn't important, but I suppose you could call me a god if you wanted. As for why you should believe me, you say that as if you don't already. Besides, I'm offering you a wish. Are you really going to question it?"
You hesitated, and then decided the worst he could have done was lie about what he was able to do. Anything I want? Really? You signed. He nodded You didn't even need to think about what your wish would be. I want you to fix Meulin's hearing.
He seemed impressed. "Really? Are you sure?" You nodded. "She'd want you to fix yourself, you know."
You paused, then nodded again. I know.
"And you still want to fix her instead?"
What happened to me was my own choice. What motherfucking happened to her wasn't. I am absolutely motherfucking sure that is what I want my wish to be. So, fix her. Now.
"In a bit of a hurry, aren't you?"
Can you do it, or not?
"Of course I can."
Well then do it. Now.
He concentrated for a moment, then opened his eyes again. "Her hearing's fixed."
If you're motherfucking lying-
"I don't lie. I might not tell the whole truth, but I don't lie."
Something about that sentence caught your attention. What? What do you mean, not the whole truth?
"You might want to go find her now. I doubt she'll be able to find you anymore." He the distance, you could hear a scream you immediately recognized as Meulin's. You were torn between absolute terror and pure hatred for the man in front of you.
What did you do?
"An eye for an eye, a sense for a sense," the man muttered, glancing in the direction of Meulin's scream.
What did you motherfucking do?
He opened his mouth to speak, then thought better and took a few steps back out of your reach first. "She's blind now."
All earlier thoughts of keeping your telepathy a secret forgotten, you screamed into his head. "What do you mean she's motherfucking blind now?"
"I mean she can't see now. Blind."
"You motherfucker! I'll kill you!" You lunged for him, but he sidestepped again. You tried to control him as you do with Meulin, but stopped dead when you realized he wasn't coming towards you like you wanted.
"I'd stop trying that, if I were you," he said. You did not try to control him again, but you still wanted to kill him the second he let his guard down.
"I want you to fix her now," you snarled into his head.
"Kurloz, I already fixed her. You wanted her hearing fixed, and she can hear now. I don't work for free, and I figured you weren't going to give me something in return, so I took something."
"You never asked for something! I would have given you anything!"
"I never asked? Hmm, must've forgotten."
"You motherfucker!" You took a step forward, and he, a step back.
"This is exactly what you wanted. You were the one that asked me for her hearing to be fixed, remember?"
"This is not what I wanted! Put her back the way she was!"
"I can't," he said, and then paused. "Or won't, I guess. Same difference."
"I said put her back!"
"What if I refuse? And before you say something else, I don't think it would be wise to threaten me again." He smiled, but there was no humor in it.
"I've never been a wise motherfucker," you said, but held back the threat all the same. You doubted it would do any good, anyways. "Look, this isn't what I wanted. If you fix her," you faltered, but continued in what you hoped was still a confident manner. "If you fix her, I'll owe you one or something."
He raised his eyebrows. "What lengths you'll go to to keep her safe. You'd really do that for me? Me, a possibly unhinged, malevolent person who just blinded your friend?"
You took a deep breath, then smiled as wide as you could. It stretched and pulled at your stitches, but it did its job, because the orange man looked deeply unsettled. "Unhinged and malevolent sounds like a pretty sweet combo. Besides, I always remember the motherfuckers I owe. I'd really do that."
He thought for a moment, and then nodded. "Fair enough. Fine. I'll put Meulin back the way she was. But you owe me."
"Of course," You told him, then paused. You figured asking was worth a shot, so you concentrated and asked him something else. "So I guess there's no motherfuckin' way you'd give me a straight fix deal?"
"What? Of course not. You had your chance. I already fixed her, and you made me undo it. I'm not going to redo it. Even I have limits."
"Motherfucker," you muttered.
"Now, just out of curiosity, what are you going to tell Meulin when she comes to you with a story about how," he put on a falsetto, cruelly accurate compared to Meulin's voice, "I was able to hear just like normal for five whole minutes, but everything was really dark."
You glared at him before you answered. "I'll get something figured out before then."
"So, not the truth, then?" the man asked.
"No. I'm not telling her this."
"Alright. Well, I really should go now, but I have a feeling we'll be seeing each other again very soon, Kurloz."
"Right. I guess I could thank you."
He looked incredulous. "What for? I didn't do a thing, except extort a favor out of you and Meulin's expense."
You smiled again. "That's why I ain't gonna. I said I could thank you, not I will."
"Hmm. Fair enough, I suppose. Goodbye, Kurloz Makara." You heard Meulin scream again and look in that direction, but when you looked back, the orange man was gone. You lay back down on the ground; when Meulin comes to find you, she might as well think you were sleeping the whole time.