Disclaimer: I don't own the World of Two Moons. I do, however own a few of the characters in this story.

Chapter Four: New Room

Dewshine remained in her little corner throughout the day, and Bretch came back once at around noon with a smaller meal for them to share. The man also brought a near-sunset meal, which was also eaten mainly in silence, though not tinged with the elf's fear as the morning and afternoon meals had been; it was a comfortable quiet, almost friendly. After he picked up the tray and table, he turned to the prisoner, for though the elf was not chained, she was not allowed out of the room.

In his language, Bretch said suddenly, "This room is not comfortable for you, Shining Dew. Perhaps you would like to move to another room; one with chairs and a real bed, such as you have had in the forest?" Dewshine looked up at him startled. It seemed that he wanted to be friendly, and wanted her to be comfortable. This man was not what she had expected at all, and he must have seen the confusion in her eyes.

He sighed and turned to leave. "Wait, Bretch?" asked Dewshine. She still knelt on the floor as she had for the meal, her toes folded under so she could leap up if necessary and now put one hand slowly up to him. Startled, the human took it hesitantly, shifting his burden so that he could free one arm. Bretch raised her slowly to her feet. "Actually, I would like to move." He nodded, smiling faintly, and let go of her hand. Dewshine smiled back at him. "And thank you," she added in his tongue.

Bretch nodded again, still smiling, and went out the door. This time Dewshine started to examine her room. It had stone for walls, ceiling and floor; in the wall opposite her, in the middle and about as high up as Aroree or Savah, was a mettle-barred window, about a large as the hole to a room in the Father Tree. Faint sounds drifted to her from the window, but not many. Even in daylight, as she guessed was the time, the room was mostly in shadows.

The elf backed up a few paces, the ran at the wall, and used it as propulsion to grab the high-up window. She dangled for a second, the her boots gave her some leverage to push herself up so that she was perched on the wide window sill. Dewshine looked around. The window opened out over an ally way, facing another wall that was about the length of two wolves from the elf..

She remained there until she was startled by the door opening, but stayed where she was, looking out the window. Her gold hair, green-brown skirt and tan shirt fluttered in the slight breeze. In her own language, she joked with whoever it was coming in the door (she assumed it was Bretch), "Not more food? If I eat much more I'll be so fat I won't be able to ride!"

"No more food. But I have had words with several people, and they say there is room for you more comfortable than this that is ready." The man was waiting in the doorway, but, even though she was faced away from him, Dewshine could smell and hear the presence of two others; the two who Bretch had sent running the day before. She spun on the window ledge, looking down at the men.

One was guarding the door, the other advancing on the elf with the chains Bretch had taken off her in his hands. He glared at the prisoner. "Please, Dewshine," Bretch pleeded in her own language as she glared at the three of them, feelling confused and frightened as she pushed herself farther into the bars of the window. "Listen to me. I cannot move you to a new room without the chains on. I am sorry, but you must trust me. You will come to no harm." Then he whispered, "I promise."

Warily, the elf glanced out at him, then slid off her perch and ont the floor, landing on her feet. She stood tall, warily, and clenched her fists and teeth, but held out her arms, blue eyes alert. The man shackled her and she allowed Bretch to silently take the chains and lead her carefully out of the room. They walked down a hall, then up some stairs, then down another hall, all lit by torches and with no people, until they stopped at a door near the end of he second hallway. Even if I did escape, I could never find my way out, Dewshine realized as she was led into the room.

At first she didn't examine it, but she did smell the freshness of it. Bretch took the keys from the man who had locked the elf up again, and released her, then gave the chains and keys back to the man and waved them both out and backed up to lean his back against the wall next to the door. "Well?" he asked in elf-speech, "Is this room to you liking?" He was smiling. Dewshine turned- and gasped.

The room had an earth floor, scattered with leaves that seemed to have fallen from the small trees that were planted in the room in no pattern at all. A pair of the larger trees had been formed into a hollow of interwoven wood, and padded with skins. The wall opposite the door, which was set in the corner of the room, had a window that was barred not by mettle, but by the branches of a living tree, so that th sunlight that filtered in was soft in a green sort of way.

A pile of rocks seemed to have a spring gushing out of it; the water flowed over rocks in an S- shape and then turned to the wall, where it disappeared through an opening in the wall. Next to the spring, the large rocks projected out to form a flat area a lat about waist level to Dewshine, and a pair of boulders with flat tops served as chairs for the table.

For a human, it must have taken a long time to create something this perfect for her. The elf turned to Bretch, and didn't realize there were tears in her eyes, but did smile at him. She could find no words to thank him, and so stretched out her hands, palm up. He took them with his, a smile on his own face.