Warning: Sexual Content in this chapter, as well as abusive and violent themes. Be cautioned.

We were quiet, the silent ticking of the clockhands only interrupted by the sounds of the turning pages. After I had eaten, Ghirahim asked me to accompany him to the library. Apparently the demon had some studying to do in his pursuit of Zelda, or the "Spirit Maiden" as he liked to refer to her as. I took notice to what books he skimmed through; all seemed to be relevant to time.

A servant had delivered my uniform to me some time ago, along with what I could only presume to be a glare. So, even in this time demons hated to think that Ghirahim would take a mortal woman instead of the women of his own kind.

Stealing a look from the corner of my eye, I looked at Ghirahim properly for the first time in a long while. It was easy to see why most demon women would want him- hell, even some Hylian women found him desirable. He had a well-formed face, with a straight nose and a slender jaw. Sure, there was the fact of his missing eyebrows, but it made his large brown eyes stand out. His hair was smooth and well-kept, which meant he had enough time to worry about it. However, probably what attracted most was his body. Ghirahim was tall by my standards, and no doubt more muscular than many of the men in Skyloft had been. Not only that, but he oozed confidence that was borderline cocky and arrogant. He was powerful too, and much older than most would guess.

Ghirahim shifted in his chair, his eye catching my own. A smirk caught onto his face as I looked hastily away, back to my hands where I was mending the tears in my uniform.

"How discourteous of me, Fallon." I heard what I could only guess to be Ghirahim closing his book, the soft mix of a clap and a thud that paper makes echoing.

My shoulders lifted into a shrug, eyes now fixated on a rip on the shoulder of my blue tunic. My fingers quickly shoved the needle in and out of the material, closing the gap and tying it hastily. "You're not being rude, Ghirahim. We're both minding to our own work."

There was an audible sigh and the groan of a chair as Ghirahim stood, approaching me. "Well, perhaps so. However, I wanted to have a proper conversation with you without threats or punches, for as much as I love being thrown around I doubt you share my feelings." Hands appeared in my field of vision, gently stopping the rapid movement of my needle.

Looking up from his hands, I looked at Ghirahim's smiling face. What could he possibly want to talk about? "Okay…" I moved, hands placing the needle, thread, and tunic carefully on the floor before folding my hands in my lap. "What should we talk about, Ghirahim?"

There was movement, and before I could protest I was lifted into the air, and with some shuffling of bodies placed back down in Ghirahim's lap. Feeling Ghirahim's arms wrap around me, pulling me close, I didn't even bother to struggle. The two of us shifted a little, getting comfortable, until Ghirahim spoke, "To be quite, painfully honest, I don't know that much about you, Fallon."

So, it appeared that he still understood some of the basics of relationships. A small smile slipped onto my face as I sighed, "That's quite a broad topic, Ghirahim. Is there any particular thing you would like to know about me, or should I just start talking?"

"Oh, ramble on as you please. I quite enjoy it when women ramble," Ghirahim flashed a smirk, hand brushing my hair over my shoulder absentmindedly. "It leads to interesting topics."

Meeting Ghirahim's eyes for a moment, I thought of what to talk about. I'd have to stay away from topics of Link or Zelda, I didn't want to involuntarily give him a weakness of theirs. He already knew mine, so there's no use hiding myself from him. "Well, I obviously grew up in Skyloft. My parents were kind, my father a knight who would patrol often. My mother sold confectionaries at the market; we even made our own chocolate." I nodded, "It's very quite on Skyloft. It's nothing like it is down here on the Surface."

"A heaven for the remaining humans," Ghirahim let a bitter smirk fall on him, "So it really was."

Shrugging, I smiled at him, "I suppose you could say that. We always had enough to eat, and diseases were few and far between. There was the occasional disaster, most of the time it would be some fool who would try to fly at night. Or they'd be on a patrol and would be attacked suddenly. That's what happened to my father. Shortly after my mother caught the flu and passed away as well." My smile fell, remembering how weak my mother had been in her last moments. I felt Ghirahim's hand on my back, making smooth circles between my shoulder blades. Breathing in, I sniffed briefly before looking at Ghirahim again, "But I didn't feel too lonely."

"How come?" Ghirahim seemed to prompt, looking mildly curious. I partially was glad he didn't pretend to care about my parent's passing, I could just tell the words would have been hollow.

"I had the others there to help me get through. I worked for a while, getting enough money so I could go to the academy to become a knight." I remembered being so resolute towards Gaepora, refusing any of his offers to let me go to the academy for free. I didn't want to be in his debt, and so I made the money through odd jobs. "I got with my ex-fiancé during our school days. I had known Horwell all my life, but I had never given him a thought. It sort of just… happened."

"I see," Ghirahim's hand stilled on my back, eyes darkening as he frowned. "It just happened."

Slapping myself for being enough of an idiot to mention Horwell, I quickly added, "But, I focused more on my studies so it was more of just a title. I became a knight and patrolled for a year and a half. Eventually, I was offered a job as an instructor at the academy. That's basically all there is to know about me."

Ghirahim's hand was moving again, sweeping all across my back as he pulled me closer, "Now I think we both know that there is so much more than just that, Fallon. How long were you and this Horwell fellow engaged?" His lips were coming in dangerously close, his breath hot against my face as his eyes lowered to mine.

Fighting down a blush, I muttered, "You don't have to worry about him Ghirahim. You've seen more of me today than he has in twenty-four years."

"Hm, but how much more has he touched than me? You could be surprised how dirty the actions of the fully clothed can be." Ghirahim seemed sour, hands beginning to trace over the waist of my skirt.

A frown made its way to my lips as I returned his sourness, "Ghirahim, do you really think I'm not a virgin?"

"There's only one way to know for sure," Ghirahim made to raise his eyebrow, if he had any that is.

If I wasn't blushing before, I could feel it now. I shook my head, "You're so impatient."

"Why shouldn't I be? The thought of a wimpy human even touching you makes me mad, but when you won't let me touch you, it's more than a little infuriating." Ghirahim growled lowly in his throat, hands teasing my blouse out from under my skirt.

I was quiet for a moment, letting Ghirahim begin to pepper kisses on my cheek and jaw before I spoke, "I'm not a slut, Ghirahim."

Ghirahim paused in his kisses, "I never said you were, sweetheart." He's cautious though, hands stilling on my back and lap as his face meets mine.

"You're treating me like I'm one, though." I sighed, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. Did I really have to explain this? It was slightly embarrassing, to be honest, and it reminded me of when the other teachers at the academy would have me give "the talk" to the girls. "Think, please. I was in a long-term relationship and I'm still a virgin. I know you for four days and all of a sudden you expect me to have sex with a demon I just met?"

Brow creasing, Ghirahim gave me a confused look, "Do you truly value your virginity that much? It's purely symbolical for you humans. And as I understood in the past, most wanted to be rid of this status of a virgin?"

My mouth opened, before I closed it, trying to think of a way to explain it properly. "Well, in the old days when women were merely objects, it was more to show that a woman had never slept with another man. Now, it is still symbolical in that some women keep their virginity until they find the one they think they want to spend the rest of their life with. We see it as sort of a gift, per se." I shook my head, "It's hard to explain, without making it sound primitive."

The frown that was appearing on Ghirahim's face deepened, his tone taking on a hurt tone as he replied, "So you're saving your precious gift for another man."

A groan of disbelief flew past my lips as I looked at Ghirahim, "That's not what I'm saying at all. Ghirahim, did I ever outright say that we weren't going to go at it?" When he slowly shook his head, I continued, "Having your virginity taken away hurts for women, the thought scares us from charging headfirst into it. Also, the possibility of having children is an issue. But most of all Ghirahim, I'm afraid." Smiling slightly, I pressed on, holding onto his hand, "I'm afraid of how much it'll hurt. I'm afraid of how to react after we do it. I'm afraid of any consequences it might have on the two of us."

Frown straightening out, Ghirahim gave a sigh of relief, "And here I was, thinking that I'd have to kill some human." He leaned his chin in the palm of his hand, still having a look of mild befuddlement on his face. "Human morals have always confused me."

"Yeah, well, I would expect no less of a demon lord," I let a sigh escape my mouth as I gave him a skeptical look. "I would be more concerned if you actually understood our morals."

Snickering, Ghirahim pulled me closer to him, "Now if you would only loosen your morals… we could have some real fun, Fallon."

"Right," I lifted an eyebrow as Ghirahim pulled my leg so that I practically straddled his lap, "Because that happens in the span on five seconds."

"Would some liquor help?" He was really pushing his luck, hands ghosting over the back of my calves as he gave me a cocky smile.

Oh, may the Goddess give me the patience to deal with this overzealous demon lord!

"Ghirahim." My eyes met his in a very pointed look, "What happened to that nice conversation you wanted to have? Tell me about yourself." I placed my hands on his shoulders, ready to push him away at any time.

Pulling away the tiniest of bits, Ghirahim let loose a toothy grin as he replied quickly, "I'm the Demon Lord Ghirahim, Demon Sword of the Demon King Demise. I like blood, swordfights, books on magic, and sex. Lots of sex." With that said, Ghirahim decided to attack my collarbone with his lips.

My eyes met the suddenly interesting-looking ceiling as I flipped my hair out of my eyes, "Ghirahim, I already knew all of that. What else do you like?"

"Foreplay." Ghirahim mutters dully, making his way up my neck.

His lips tickled and I squirmed, "Anything else that doesn't involve sexual interaction?" It was starting to become difficult to focus on the ceiling, rather than my neck, or the way his palms massaged the backs of my knees.

"Nothing that would interest you, as of right now." Ghirahim's lips trailed up, over my jaw and to my temple, obscuring my view of the ceiling. Insufferable demon.

"Who made you the judge of that?" My thoughts were starting to wane from what was considered sane, wobbling off that thin tightrope I had so far managed to stay balanced on. Anymore and I would push away, I promised myself.

"Myself, of course," Ghirahim let out a low chuckle, hands leaving my legs and traveling to the small of my back. My brain focused immediately on the way his fingers seemed to draw shapes on my back, my spine letting out a shudder at the attention. That, coupled with the feel of Ghirahim's breath on my ear, made it extremely hard to find any sort of reason why I should push him away.

"Ghirahim, stop, please." I tried my hardest to sound stern, but even before the words left my lips I already knew that they wouldn't. "I'm tired from the past couple of days."

The roll of his eyes was practically audible, a long and warm tongue tracing the shell of my ear. "You'll sleep better after sex." Ghirahim's palms pushed me forward, farther onto his lap. He pulled away from my ear, choosing to stare at me head on. "I've been more patient than I usually am, Fallon."

My eyes took in his face- the dark brown eyes that made me blush with the emotion found there, the slightly rustled silk-like hair, the mouth poised to strike at any moment, but also the contours and angles of his jaw and cheekbones were almost, but not quite, delicate. Yes, he had been very patient. I sighed quietly, hands dropping to rest against his built chest.

I lowered my eyes for a quick moment, as if to find words that fit, before I met his eyes again, "If you aren't gentle, no sex for a month."

The demon's response was slow, the words slowly falling into place as he smiled, "Oh, I'll have to be extra gentle then."

I don't think my face could have been any redder, although by now I wouldn't be surprised if it was. Instead of answering him, I let myself fall forward and onto his lips. Ghirahim's lips immediately responded to the feel of my own, slowly moving together as I felt Ghirahim grip the back of my head. My fingers curled in on themselves as I tilted my head, trying to somehow get closer to the demon who so happened to hold my heart.

It was weird, it was different, and at the same time so familiar from when we would do this hundreds of years ago. Ghirahim's kisses haven't changed at all since then, deep and sensual as he worked to massage every inch my lips, the occasional nip of teeth as he sped up and slowed down.

Pulling myself away, my lungs gasped for air. Ghirahim looked down, lips starting to once again slip up and down my neck in a medley of licks, kisses, and bites. Heat radiated from wherever he touched, and soon enough I was feeling that the heavy skirt and blouse were much too warm.

"Bedroom?" I panted, gasping at the sensation of Ghirahim's tongue tracing the edge of my visible skin.

Ghirahim grunted, hand taking a moment to snap, and we disappeared and reappeared in the same moment. Caged in his arms, Ghirahim held me up, my feet dangling in the air. I felt one arm coiled under my rear, the other holding firmly onto my shoulders as he pressed me to himself. Instinctually hooking my feet around him, I took a handful of his hair in my hand, pulling his face away from my chest and into a kiss. His lips were slightly chapped, but that didn't matter now. His teeth bit into my bottom lip and I opened my mouth in an invitation for his tongue.

It was precisely then that I remembered I had no clue what I was doing. I froze, muscles tensing as Ghirahim tried to get my tongue to work.

Noticing this, Ghirahim stopped, pulling away to look at me. He took in the uncertainty on my face and sighed with the hint of a smile, "So you really are inexperienced." Lowering me to the ground, he took my face in between his hands. "And when you meant gentle, you meant slow."

I wasn't sure how to react. On one hand, I had all the experiences from being Kallen. On the other, I had barely even kissed anyone before Ghirahim. "Yes."

Ghirahim chuckled, thumbs tracing my cheekbones before he replied, "Then, this will be something different for both of us." I looked into his dilated eyes as he smiled dangerously, "Who knows? Maybe the change of pace will be good for me."

My heart flipped at that, my breath catching as I tried to be as calm as him. My smile wasn't as easy as his was, though, so I just placed my hands on top of his. "We'll see, then."

"That we will," Ghirahim's smirk broadened, leaning in to kiss me. It wasn't as hungry as it was before. It was calm, slow and steady, but still passionate. His one hand fell away from my face to my hips, pulling me closer, but not crushing me against him. It was nice, not at all rushed.

However, at this rate, nothing would get done. Grabbing Ghirahim's hands, I pulled back from the kiss. After giving me an inquisitive look, Ghirahim followed me as I crawled backwards onto the bed. With him now above me, I looped my arms around his neck. Finally finding my courage again, I smiled, pulling him on top of me.

The light that had been in Ghirahim's eyes returned as he looked over me. His head dipped down to kiss my temple, then my cheek bone, lips tracing over my own lips. Our lips reconnected, and I felt Ghirahim press down on me, body hard against my own. My hands found themselves hovering over the muscles in his arms, tensing and relaxing as my fingers drifted over them.

Ghirahim paused in our kissing, pulling away to look at my shirt in distaste. He licked his lips, hands grasping the hem as he slowly began to move it up my torso. Feeling the cotton move, I shivered slightly at my exposed stomach. I sat up slightly, raising my hands as Ghirahim pulled the fabric over my head. I helped him remove my breast band as well, unbuttoning the fabric and peeling it away. My heart began to hammer in my chest, and I could have sworn Ghirahim heard it from the smirk on his face. I settled back on the pillows though, feeling my face redden as Ghirahim stared.

The look on his face was frozen somewhere between lust, hesitation, and appreciation. I'm not sure which one frightened me more, so when he finally moved to trace the defined muscles on my stomach I jumped, tensing beneath his touch. The demon let out a sound that was reminiscent of a sigh, caught half way between that and a groan. Ghirahim lowered himself onto me again, mouth tracing down, between my breasts, to my navel, and back up. I felt him pause, before he glided over the curve of my breast. My back tensed as I felt his mouth kiss the nipple, a low and breathless sigh leaving my lips.

She was tense, but the way her body curved upward to meet mine was familiar. I paused, hands gliding down her arched back to the skirt that was still covering her lower half. My eyes traced up, past Fallon's generous breasts to her face. Her face was as red as it could humanly be, lips parted as she breathed and her eyes locked with mine.

They were shining, something hiding in them as she looked down at me. It was, once again, familiar. It hit me, that somehow, through the generations; her eye color was passed down. Fallon's eyes held the same depth as well, the same knowledge of life and death that I would not expect of a Skyloftian. This was not a woman to mess with. She knew of consequences and sadness, of lifetimes spent in vain, of struggles and tears. And I knew that she was hiding something.

I wanted to know what she kept to herself, but there were times for such things. And right now was not the time.

So, I felt the corners of my mouth lift up, moving up Fallon's body as I grasped at the buttons to the skirt. Her hands were warm as they latched onto my shoulder blades, lifting her hips to barely brush mine as I slid the skirt off and threw it off the bed and to the floor.

I was impressed; most virgins tended to just lay there and have the dominant partner do all the work. Her nails gently scraped my scalp as she pulled me close to her face. Instead of dallying around and exploring, Fallon was able to immediately find that one sweet spot, right below the corner of my jaw, where a pulse would have been if I was human. She licked at the spot, and I could feel her smile against the skin there as I groaned. No, I wouldn't let her take the lead.

"Why are you the one with clothes on?" Fallon chuckled, hands slipping under the skin tight jumpsuit and tracing muscles. I felt myself tremble and growled out, hooking fingers into her last remaining scrap of clothing and pulling them off of her.

"That is easily remedied, my dear." I pulled away from her lips and sat up, taking in the sight of her as I snapped. The air was cold, but it was hardly noticeable as distracted as I was. She was just about perfect- enough curves to make a man moan combined with muscles that would make them think twice about messing with her. Just how I liked it. And the expression on her face as she looked at me was just about perfect as well. "Do you like what you see?"

I bit my lip, nodding shyly. Once again the thought that I had seen him naked before entered my head, but I brushed it off as soon as I felt his now bare hands travel up my legs, thumbs grazing the inside of my thighs. Shivering, thought briefly that I couldn't take anymore foreplay. Anymore and I knew I would explode from waiting. But when I felt something- his finger- enter me slowly I forgot about it. I closed my eyes, hand touching Ghirahim's shoulder just so I knew he was there.

The bed shifted, and Ghirahim's lips were by my ear, "Open your eyes, Fallon. No harm will come to you."

Hesitantly, I opened my eyes, only to open them widely in a gasp as I felt his finger wiggle inside me. My heart jumped in my chest, and I placed my hand on Ghirahim's cheek, "Do you promise?"

Ghirahim smirked, turning to kiss the palm of my hand as I felt another finger join the first. "I promise. As long as I have the power to."

From there, it was hard to exactly remember what happened in what order. Did he kiss me first, or did he lick as bite at my nipples? Did I kiss him, or did he convince me to touch him? We were both sweating by the time Ghirahim felt that I was ready, and I was more than ready to trust him with whatever went on after that.

He grabbed my thighs, placing himself between them and locking my heels around his hips. I felt his member poking at my entrance, and I felt a trace of worry and nervousness enter my system before Ghirahim laid down on me. Our lips connected, and I felt his hand on my back, as he guided himself in.

"Be calm, Fallon." Ghirahim whispered, as I felt what had to have been his tip go in. I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.

Before Ghirahim got any farther, though, the door burst open for a servant to rush in. It was in that moment that I was very sure the servant would be killed later, for the servant immediately balked at the sight of his master over his mistress in bed.

Practically feeling the anger oozing from the pores of Ghirahim's skin, I sighed. So much for sex. Grabbing the sheets from the bed and sliding myself out from under the demon that looked ready to kill the poor underling, I threw them around myself and dragged my hand through my hair.

"What exactly did you come in here for?" I placed my hand on Ghirahim's shoulder, attempting to calm him down before he blew up the whole castle. Glancing down at him, I threw a corner of the sheets over his bare lap to maintain some semblance of dignity.

With wide eyes, the lupine demon jumps and begins to bark out, "The Spirit Maiden has been spotted entering the Earth Temple!"

Ghirahim moves then, standing and letting the sheets fall away. Before even I could move, he had the demon pinned to the wall with his sword in hand. "And so, you decided to barge right into your master's room, without even knocking?" The demon started to shake slightly. Ghirahim tilted his head to the side, his face hidden to me, "I ought to rip you limb from limb, you filthy hound. Now, apologize to the lady for barging in and peeking."

"Forgive me, my lady."

"Louder." Ghirahim's hand flashed, the demon howling as the blade of Ghirahim's sword sunk into his shoulder. "She can't hear you."

"Ghirahim, stop." I kneeled on the bed and reached over to lay a hand on Ghirahim's back, "It's okay Ghirahim, it's not like we can't continue later." Not sure why I was keeping him from further hurting another demon, I stood with the sheet wrapped closely around me, "Let the messenger go."

Ghirahim whipped his head around, eyes narrowed in anger as he met mine. "No, I don't think I shall." To make a point, the blade twisted in his hand, the demon's face scrunching in pain.

Sighing slightly, I pushed my lips onto his, keeping his chin captive in my hand. I didn't stop kissing him until I felt his shoulders drop, and then I pulled away to say, "Everything is okay, Ghirahim. I'm not going to run away. We can take care of business, and no matter what happens, there will be time afterwards."

Letting out am angered breath, Ghirahim ripped the sword from the demon's shoulder. Smoothing back his hair and straightening his shoulders, he spoke to the messenger in a short and slightly even voice, "Tell those in the Earth Temple to capture her, and to not let her out of their sights under any circumstances, understood?" He let the demon fall to his knees before scuttling towards the door.

"Of course, Master, I will see to it that everything goes as planned." With that, he ran out of the room as if it was full of poisonous snakes, which actually wasn't far off from the truth.

As soon as the demon left he whirled on me, crushing his frame against my own as we kissed. Ghirahim was trying to get us back in the mood, but it just wasn't going to work.

I sighed, patting his chest so he would move away, "Enough Ghirahim. Later."

"No, now." Ghirahim growled, pushing me onto the bed and crawling on top, ripping the sheet from my body.

My heart stopped for a moment, not believing what Ghirahim was trying to pull. "Ghirahim!" My eyebrows creased, "You're going to hurt me!"

"I think I've been more than patient, Fallon," Ghirahim snarled. He pulled me against him, and I felt him once again at my entrance.

It was then I panicked, refusing to scream though, because I knew no one would help me. I threw myself around, trying to get away. Ghirahim's hand took a hold of my wrists though, pressing them into the mattress above me. I was a fool, to think he would really be gentle. I was going to be raped, and there was just about nothing I could do at this point.

I let loose a shuddering sigh, closing my eyes and turning my head. I didn't want to see him. I wanted to be home, where I was seen as a person, where there were people who genuinely cared for me. I bit my lip, trying to not cry out in pain from my wrists and below.

"Liar." I whispered, "You goddess-damned liar."

The demon paused, still not fully inside of me, "You're an idiot to believe a demon." He didn't move though, and I felt my wrists being released from his hand. A hand touched my cheek and I flinched away, not seeing the hurt reflected in his face. A sigh left his lips, and slowly I felt him pull away. "Get dressed, we're going to the Earth Temple."

I sat up, shaking, just as the door closed behind Ghirahim. Dragging a hand through my hair, I took a shaky breath. That had been too close. I wiped a few tears from my eyes, trying to keep my eyes from reddening. I picked up my clothes from the floor, mechanically pulling them on. I needed my knight uniform though, and so I left the room to see Ghirahim standing outside, leaning on the wall.

He looked up as I exited, taking in my face for a moment, but he didn't say anything. I shouldn't have expected anything less from the Demon Lord.

I began walking to the library, noticing Ghirahim following me wordlessly. I honestly could have cared less at this point, I was so angry at not only him but myself. It hurt slightly, but luckily Ghirahim had not gone all the way. I turned instinctually, feeling my anger mount. I had trusted him, and I was so stupid to believe him. I had every reason not to; mainly that he killed me before. I was beginning to have doubts again, but I could have never foreseen what Ghirahim just attempted. Sighing, I opened the door to the library and walked in.

Ghirahim caught the door, holding it to slip inside. "Look, Fallon-"

At those two words, I let my rage unleash itself. I turned to look him in the eye, making him flinch for a moment. "Don't you dare, Ghirahim. Don't you dare go 'I'm sorry I tried to rape you even though I promised to never hurt you but you shouldn't trust me because I'm a demon.'" I scooped up my uniform marching right back to him, "Because I know for a fact that you can choose to be a gentleman. You do not have to conform to what you think a demon should be like. By that logic, every human should be good and let me tell you, they aren't. So don't you play that crap with me, cause I already know I shouldn't trust you as far as I can throw you." I poked his chest, "If you really want to be able to get past my ancestress, then you have to work at it. I'm not going to hand myself over to you on a silver platter."

Ghirahim's face twists in a mixture of anger and regret, "Damn woman, don't you think I know that? I was going to apologize, because I know when I am out of line. But, you know what, I'm not. Because you now believe that you have the right to lecture me, a demon older than you can imagine, on how I should behave? You need to realize your boundaries as well, Fallon, because you have far out stepped them." He crosses his arms.

My mouth dropped open and I blinked for a moment. I felt my face heat up, and after a moment of silent contemplation I sighed, "You're right. I am out of bounds and I am sorry for not letting you say your piece before rambling on. I'm just… tense."

Stepping closer, Ghirahim pulled a piece of my hair behind my ear, tilting my face to look up at him, "If I ever try to do something like that again, you have my full permission to punch me." His eyes were softer now. "Why don't you get in your uniform, and meet me outside the room?"

I nodded, giving him a shaky smile. I had to think about what he said, and as he left the room I shook my head. If there is ever a next time he tries to rape me, I won't just punch him. No, I'd leave and force myself to forget about him. I cannot get stuck up on an abusive relationship, like many of the women who had visited me as a priestess. I would not become weak.

I couldn't, not if I wanted to save my students.