This is a joint venture of Kaana Moonshadow and myself. We had lots of fun writing it and hope you have as much fun reading.
We don't own Bishop, but we sure as hell wish we did.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The bread tasted like ash in her mouth.
Liliana forced herself to chew, and then swallowed, pressing her lips firmly together to keep herself from moaning at the searing pain that suddenly shot through her throat. But he had ordered her to be silent, and so she desperately tried her best to become almost invisible, while tears still streamed down her cheek and then down her neck.
When she had finally returned to consciousness, she had been nearly petrified with fear as she had found herself shackled to the wall of a shabby, wooden cabin somewhere in the woods. She had sat up, the chains around her ankle tinkling lightly, and had reached for her burning throat with a shaking hand, her wide-eyed gaze wandering around the small hut in fright.
First, she had thought the cabin to be abandoned. The windows were dirty and covered with cobwebs, just like the floor and the ceiling. The wind had blown dried leaves through the half-opened door, which were now gathering in disordered heaps close to the threshold, and there was no furniture despite a small, worm-eaten desk and a lopsided stool in the darkest corner of the hut, close to a small chimney that once seemed to have served as a fireplace, with a large iron pot dangling from a rusty chain.
Then she had noticed the backpack, armour and weapons leaning against the opposite wall, and with a terrible leap of her heart, she had suddenly realised that it had to be his belongings, and that this hut had to be some kind of hideout.
A shadow had fallen through one of the small windows, and then the door had opened with a loud creak, and he had stood in the doorframe, his lithe figure clearly outlined against the bright light of the sun. His hair and upper torso had been soaking wet, like he had just washed himself with his clothes on, and the waterdrops in his dark hair and on his skin had sparkled brightly as they had dripped onto the floor, while Liliana had stared up at him, her eyes wide with fear.
For a fleeting moment, as he had stood there in the bright light of the sun, his disheveled hair circling his head like a fiery halo, he had looked more like a creature of the woods than actually human - wild and untamed and terrifying, and she had truly feared that her heart would simply stop beating through sheer fright as he had entered the hut, casting her a long, piercing glance before finally turning his attention to his belongings, starting to lay out his bedroll.
She would never understand what had made her open her mouth and try to speak with him. It had been a sudden, urgent desire to understand what was going on, what was actually happening to her, and why, that had made her address him in a croaking voice despite the pain it induced in her throat, and Liliana now desperately wished that she had never tried.
She had been so angry as she had seen the bastard kneeling there, first ignoring her completely and then making fun of her brother and family while her throat had hurt like hell, that she hadn't been able to restrain herself. But the moment the curse had left her lips, she had known that she had made a grave mistake.
She had seen him tense at her cutting reply, a dangerous smile flickering across his face, and then he had gotten up, slowly crossing the room, and she hadn't been able to do anything but watch in growing alarm how he had stalked closer and closer, a strange light glowing in his eyes, and then had kneeled beside her to talk quietly into her ear.
The memory of his cool voice, low and threatening, was enough to make her shiver again, and for the first time, Liliana had truly realised that this was really happening to her. She was here, out in the wilderness, chained to a wall, and completely at the mercy of the madman who was now whispering into her ear, his breath hot on her skin.
She had never felt so terrified before, and had desperately tried to shy away from him, but there simply hadn't been enough space - with her pressing her back so tightly against the wall and him trapping her effectively with his arm beside her head, and so she hadn't been able to do anything but stare up into his strange eyes, almost paralysed with fear.
Swallowing another piece of bread, she cast a quick glance at his silent form and saw him still lying on his bedroll with his back to her, unmoving, and her hands started to tremble uncontrollably as she remembered the feel of his hand, forcefully grabbing her hair, and how he had hissed into her ear, telling her what he was about to do to her.
I don't believe him.
Of course he must have lied. Why would anyone pay a single coin to see her killed? It made no sense.
He just made it all up. His mind must be damaged somehow, thinking that he will get paid for seeing me dead.
She remembered the way he had looked at her, standing there under the trees, like she had been some kind of ghost, and knew she was right. But on the other hand, that was not a truly encouraging thought, either.
He said he won't kill me until the bruises around my throat are healed.
Which meant that her family had at least a couple of days left to find her. She had not lied when she had told her captor that her father was a very influential man. Sooner or later, they would find her, and everything would be alright again. Until then, she would have to do her best to make herself as invisible as possible, and to keep him from losing his temper with her again.
Which meant finishing her meal.
It was difficult, with the bread still tasting like ash and her throat hurting so much, but after a while, Liliana found that the pieces of bread were actually easier to swallow if she kept them in her mouth for a moment to let them soak with saliva, and slowly, she finished her unpleasant meal.
All the time that she fought to keep her stomach from revolting too much, her captor remained silent, lying on his bedroll with his back to her, and his breathing was slow and regular, as if he had fallen asleep.
Her tears had finally stopped flowing, and without thinking, Liliana lifted her hands to clean her face, and her heart beat frantically in her chest as she heard the chain give a soft, clanking noise at her sudden movement. She froze, her eyes wide as she stared at the man lying only a few feet away from her. But he did not move, and so she finally allowed herself to relax a little, her breath now coming in short gasps.
Maybe he had fallen asleep, after all.
Carefully, she lifted the hem of her dress to cast a look at the ring that chained her to the wall, and her eyes widened even more as she saw that he had removed her shoes to fasten the shackle around her ankle.
He touched me.
The thought made her feel sick all of a sudden, and although she tried her best to fight the images down into the darkest regions of her soul, she couldn't help but imagine her lying here on the ground, unconscious, while he towered above her, undoing the laces of her shoes, touching her calves with his bare hands while his fingers slowly wandered over her skin…
Suddenly, her stomach gave a sudden, forceful jerk, and she had to press both hands firmly over her mouth to keep herself from throwing up, and a painful moan escaped her lips as she felt bile searing her already sore throat, the chains clanking audible again.
"I would keep my hands away from the chains, if I were you."
At the sound of his deep, sneering voice, Liliana froze like a doe that had caught the scent of a predator in the air, and she felt the beat of her heart accelerating painfully again as she stared at him, her eyes wide.
"I… it's just that the chain is cutting into my flesh…", she stammered in a croaking voice, and she could feel her hands starting to tremble violently once more as she saw his shoulders actually tensing in the dim light.
"There's a simple trick to that, little mouse."
He turned around to stare at her with these bright, unusual eyes, his gaze cold and unfeeling, and it seemed to pierce her very soul as he addressed her in his sneering voice again, clearly pronouncing every single word.
"Don't move."
She hastened to nod, driven by an almost desperate desire to calm him down, and after another long stare, he finally turned his eyes away from her and lay back on his bedroll again, staring up at the ceiling.
The bile seemed to burn its way right through the sore skin of her throat, but Liliana did her best to ignore the searing pain and kept her mouth tightly shut, even as her body screamed for some water to clear her throat, but she simply sat there for a long time, her heart beating as fast as a koolibri's wings, until the pain finally became too much to bear.
"Do you… do you have some water for me, please?"
At the sound of her quivering voice, she saw him turn his head once more, his eyes now narrowed to slits, and frightened, she pressed her shivering back firmly against the wall as she saw a strange fire ignite in them, but the pain in her throat made her speak up even despite her fear while more tears welled up in her eyes, blurring her vision.
"Please, I promise to keep silent from now on, and that I won't make any trouble, but my throat feels so raw…"
Her voice finally gave out under the strain, and although Liliana tried to fight the sudden urge, she couldn't keep herself from coughing so violently that she actually feared to suffocate in the process. For a short while, he simply watched her struggles, his eyes still cold and unfeeling, until he finally got up with a hissing noise and reached for his backpack to rummage through its depths, his movements stiff and angry.
After a few moments of searching, he pulled a waterskin out of his bag and threw it in her direction, without giving her as much as a glance. The skin came to land only a few inches away from her feet, and Liliana reached for it with trembling hands, opening the skin and drinking thirstily.
The water was warm and tasted of leather, but for her burning throat, it was heaven.
She drank greedily, the feel of the liquid like balm on her sore skin, and then leaned forward to let the waterskin glide back across the wooden floor towards its owner again. She opened her mouth to thank him, but closed it hurriedly as she noticed the way his eyes narrowed dangerously to slits as soon as he saw her attempt to speak up again, and so she simply leaned back against the wall once more, her arms closed tightly around her knees, and waited, while more silent tears trickled down her face.
Gods, this is like walking through a nightmare. Why can't I wake up?
For what felt like an eternity, she simply sat motionlessly on the blankets, with her back firmly pressed against the wall, and watched with aching limbs how the light falling through the windows slowly wandered across the floor, indicating that the sun was nearing its zenith. All that time, her captor remained in his corner of the hut, still staring up at the dark ceiling and obviously deep in his thoughts, and for that, she was thankful.
But as noon wore on into late afternoon, she felt other, more basic needs try to attract her attention, and just like the sore throat, she fought them as long as she could, the memory of his piercing stare actually frightening enough to steel her resolve. But as her need finally became unbearable again, she imagined what he would do to her should she accidentally wet herself without saying so much as a word, and therefore decided to adress him despite her fear, her voice small and quivering audibly.
"Can I…"
"Don't try my patience, little mouse!"
His voice was barely more than an angry hiss, as if he was trying to speak through tightly gritted teeth, and she felt shivers of dread run down her spine as he actually propped himself up on one elbow to glare at her, the intensity of his amber stare more than a little terrifying.
"I'm sorry!", she whispered, mortified. "But I…" She felt her cheeks reddening with embarrassement, and for a fleeting moment, she truly did not know what to say. No well-born young lady would ever talk to a man about such things in public, let alone to such a shabby specimen like him. "I… I need to answer nature's call."
He threw back his head and laughed, and just like the first time, Liliana felt the hairs on her neck stand up as the harsh and cruel sound echoed through the cabin, and she winced, fighting the sudden desire to cover her ears with her hands. He shook his head, grinning slightly, and his voice sounded actually a little amused as he spoke.
"To answer nature's call? That what you rich floozies call it down in Waterdeep?"
Liliana suddenly felt as if all blood had drained from her face, and for a long, painful moment, she could do nothing but stare at him, her eyes wide, horrified. How could he know where she lived, if he was nothing but a madman living out here in the woods?
He must have heard it while lingering in the shadows of our camp, she desperately tried to convince herself, but couldn't help but notice that the thought seemed to lack a certain amount of conviction, and so she couldn't prevent a tight knot from forming in her belly, twisting painfully amidst her guts.
Her captor cast her an amused glance, the cool of his stare actually thawing a little, and his lips twitched as he gracefully got to his feet, amusement still very prominent in his voice.
"Well, now, we wouldn't want you to soil your pretty dress, now would we?"
With a few steps, he crossed the distance between them to kneel beside her again, and Liliana could feel her blood pounding painfully in her temples as she tried to retreat further against the wall, watching him in alarm as he slowly reached into a pocket of his breeches and then held out a rusty key, his voice alarmingly quiet.
"Listen carefully, little mouse. I will take this key here and then open the chain around your ankle."
She stared up into his unusual eyes, strangely hypnotised by the cool intensity of his gaze, and shivered as she felt his hot breath caressing the soft skin of her cheek.
"When the chain's gone, you will rise slowly to your feet and walk outside the hut, with me following close on your heels. No fast movements, no running, nothing that could give me the impression that you're actually planning on something as suicidal as attempting to flee."
He almost casually lifted a hand, and she couldn't keep herself from flinching as he reached out to touch her hair, softly stroking her windswept curls, and she felt goosebumbs rise all over her body as he lowered his voice into that deep purr again, making her heart almost leap out of her chest in fright.
"Did I make myself clear, little mouse?"
She nodded, still staring up into his cool eyes, so very close now, and her mouth felt terribly dry all of a sudden as every cell in her body seemed to scream violently at his touch, her mind racing feverishly.
You have no right to touch me! You're scum! Only Cedric has a right to touch my hair!
He simply looked at her, his hand still softly stroking her silvery tresses, a strange expression on his face, and so Liliana hastened to nod a second time, her voice quivering ever so slightly as she did so.
"Yes."
He blinked, and for the length of a heartbeat, she thought to see something close to confusion flicker across his face before he finally turned away with a snarl, his voice surprisingly harsh all of a sudden.
"Good."
He leaned down to open the lock, and Liliana had to bite hard on her lower lip to keep herself from flinching again as his calloused hands touched the bare skin of her ankle. A soft, clicking noise, and then the ring clattered onto the wooden floor, the sound a little subdued by the layers of cloth that had been wound around the iron.
He stood, the key vanishing in his pocket once more, and then gave her a sharp nod with his head.
"Go."
