How did I get here? (Mdu_ntr)

[Anonymous]

Sharing a mind seemed like it would definately speed up communication and simplify the relation ship between mage and master. It was something she had never considered someone actively seeking through. She had shared mental thoughts many times with her second master and her friend, but they had not been linked by anything but special abilities or strange magics. "A headband?" That seemed simple-- too simple maybe. "Will I have garments I am expected to wear?" She hadn't quite mastered the word/concept match up of uniforms.

Louhi shifted cautiously to peer at the words a moment. She had learned to read and write from her second master, but this was not the same language. "I do not recognize it" She admitted. "But I believe with some instruction, I could learn, if you'd like me to." She was well aware sometimes not being able to read was the desireable situation. Ignorant slaves were more easily cowed into obedience seemed to be the common view.

"I learned to read one of the old earth languages." She did wonder if her friend was still alive. He had been a bit unusual himself. He'd actually been there when her second master was, before she'd been thrown through time. However, considering they were no longer confined to the same planet, finding him seemed highly unlikely even if he was still around. Besides, she had a new master now, no time for friends.

[Anonymous]

'Yes. A headband will be attached to your head so that we can communicate. It is an invasive procedure but it will not hurt nor affect your otherwise. I have mine in my desk but there is no need of it while I have no mage.'

While he was still up he collected a metalic circlet from his desk and turned it around in his fingers. There were inscriptions and lines across it where pieces of silvery metal met. After wiping it slightly with a cloth from his pocket Thanael passed Louhi the headband.

'Uniforms are not required but I do prefer you to wear one while in my service. The clothes you currently have will do for now but they are improplerly styled for function. I will look into getting you new ones.' Yet another thing he added to his mental to-do list. Hopefully whatever powers she had would be worth his curiosity.

Thanael nodded and moved picked up the computer. With one hand he clicked a few buttons and typed something on the screen. He found a document written in Aedolisian script. Seeings as that was where people came from, it was logical that they would have an older writing system than Edani. If she could, that would make her worth double, perhaps more.

'Here, try reading this instead,' he said as he placed the laptop back on her lap.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, Louhi was a little apprehensive about what sort of uniform he might come up with, but as with anything, she was sure she'd get used to it eventually. The idea of wearing pants wasn't even so bad, as long as she didn't have to run around half naked with her legs showing-- despite his assurances legs were perfectly fine things to show. It was hard to instantly reset a mindset locked in a person's culture and upbringing.

Shyly, she wiped her hands against her garments to make sure they were as clean as possible before carefully accepting the headband. "Will mine look like yours?" She thought it pretty, but then in her view, silver was something confined mostly to finery of sorts, either jewelry, ornamentation or silverware-- all things worn by masters and mistresses, not 'the help'.

Her powers had lured the attentions of men more than once. It was entirely possible he would find her powers quite worth his trouble-- though the mastery of her powers would be a journey the two of them would walk together. She was still trying to figure out just what her powers were since they seemed inconsistent and somewhat on an 'as needed' basis.

Louhi peered at the lettering, considering it. It was indeed more familiar, and the lettering was at least the same. Her lips slowly moved as she read over the screen, discovering she could read at least parts of it. It wasn't entirely the same, but it was close enough that with a little thought and effort, she was making it out. It had been quite a while since she'd even seen printed letters in any language. She'd been living in a cave before the toxic monster thing had tried to eat her and forced her to involuntarily teleport in an effort to save herself.

She looked up, trying not to seem too eager. "I can read this, but I am out of practice, and not extremely fluent." She admitted. She was more than willing to let him know she wasn't a great reader. She'd hardly had lessons reading. Her lessons had been in copying books. There was no reading required in that, though it had become more interesting as she realized what it was she was copying-- though it also confirmed she was working for a psychopathic, murdering mad-man, though, at the time, she had needed one, as much as she hated to admit it. She had needed him and his regular supply of blood. At her home, she'd been called at witch and nearly burned at the stake. Her second master, had called her a vampire-- which was logical considering she craved blood when her iron got low enough, and now, she was called a mage. Somehow, only her True Vampire friend had seen her simply as Louhi, not Louhi, the witch, Louhi the blood-sucker, or Louhi the mage. She was Louhi, his friend.

Louhi faltered half a second as she brushed the memory of him away. She was determined to put her past behind her, though she often did miss her vampire friend-- more than her mother, point in fact. Her mother had sent her on the run. Her friend had stood up for her, protected her. It made quite a difference in her mind.

[Anonymous]

Thanael's idea of a good uniform would be something loose enough to move around in but not overly flowey or austantatious. It also had to be pressed so that it had stiff lines. To him, uniforms had many purposes, the greatest being that they gave off information about rank and how a person was to be addressed. You didn't see a navy officer in nurses' scrubs afterall.

For Louhi, he would prefer pants and a long-sleeved shirt. They would cover her burns and sensitive skin as well as allowing her freedom of movement. Her skirts would restrict the amount of movement she could do: no climbing or walking around in windy, sandy terrain. She had already experienced the results of that and would understand the change of fashion.

'They all look the same, the only difference is how your is attached. Once it's on you will not be able to take it off,' he said. He doubted this would worry her. She seemd good at adapting to new conditions, new masters, even if she had never been with a Mordecai before.

Thanael blinked when she said she could read the script. He hadn't actually expected that. 'Strange. I cannot even read that language well,' he said. 'Have you the ability to read any other scripts?' He continued watching her read. He would have had to use a translator or have a dictionary on hand to understand the writing.

The Mordecai watched as Louhi appeared to be day-dreaming. It must have been something uncomfartable for her to remember. He wondered what had happened to her in her life's journey. Hopefully these experiences would not inhibit her work. He had seen many mages whose fears caused impracticalities, such as one who had been in a scrape with a gun and from that point on had been afraid of any projectile. After continually cowerring every time something moved past her face, it was decided that TRIM was a better place for her.

[Anonymous]

How they were attatched did worry her just a little, though that was due to some rather barbaric practices she had observed over time, but so far, he had given her no reason to doubt him, so it was not a very big worry at this point-- though he had said it was invasive, and while she didn't understand what exactly that meant, it didn't sound good by any means.

"Well, I think it's an old language...it has letters like these, but they're... a little different. I haven't seen it in quite some time, though I have seen similar ones through the years." Perhaps she had, in a way, watched the evolution of the english language into these new languages littered across space. "I don't know what it is called though" They didn't walk around back in the day, knowing they spoke 'english' as opposed to whatever other language might have been around-- or at least she didn't. She had been young and never exposed to other languages until later, and by that time, english was mostly gone.

As to how she spoke whatever language it was they spoke in these parts, just being around it over time, she'd picked it up slowly but surely. She was in many ways uneducated, but she was certainly not dumb.

[Anonymous]

'That would be logical,' he agreed. 'This is writing from Aedolis - Earth. It is something I copied off the VCN.'

Thanael looked at the time on his laptop and sighed. It was getting late and Louhi hade had an eventful day. He was just wearing her out by keeping her up. 'As much as I would like to find out more about you, it is getting late and I plan on getting up at 5am tomorrow. Do you think you can sleep now? I shall get you some blankets and fresh clothing. If you think you can get up you can change in the bathroom.'

He pulled one of the blankets off his bed. He only kept it on there for appearences. Often he would remove his blankets before sleeping and fold them on the chair in his room. He then went to his cupboard and pulled out a ironed and folded loose shirt and a pair of slacks, also ironed. They were placed on the gurney.

[Anonymous]

"yes Sir, I do believe I can sleep" And if she couldn't, she would certainly give it a good try. "Would you mind handing me my walking stick there? With that, I suspect I can manage to get myself that far at least" She was certainly optomistic about the odds anyway. She hadn't tried to stand on the leg yet, but with the walking stick, she scarcely needed the leg to get around on.

"Do I have duties before you wake, Sir?" If he was getting up at 5am, it seemed likely she was getting up even earlier, though how she would ensure she did not over-sleep, she wasn't sure. Her mother had always just known what time it was and gotten her up, and then her second master hadn't really cared much about routine, but had no qualms about waking her up if she overslept, and then finally, there had been a contraption called an alarm clock, which was certainly the most reliable of the methods, there had even been one with small sticks inside so when the power ran out, it would still work. She had been quite fasinated by that, though any time there was a power outage, she was convnced she'd caused it-- which was often true. She had a knack for causing power surges and shorting out electronics as well as bursting even oil lamps, but what her power was, she couldn't tell you. She just knew it happened around her. Strange things happend. It all boiled down o her being a 'witch'.

(OOC: I appolgize if there are missing letters and funny typings. The keyboard/site is being really slow and dragging, so my letters aren't all registering and the text box keeps 'clicking' and going back to the top, so typing is interesting.)

[Anonymous]

Thanael did not pick up the walking stick. 'Did you wish to sleep somewhere else? I would prefer if you did not walk around until morning. I'm sure you can get changed without getting up,' he said. It was not a direct order, he just didn't think it wise for her to be moving about so soon after her operation. She could try walking in the morning.

'I get up that early so I can train. You may come with me to familiarise yourself with the area or you can stay and rest. I have no need of you until we go to the hospital. After that my application should be passed and we will be preparing you for your new life.' He had been about to say "headbanding" but he didn't want to bandy the word around like a threat. She would be afraid enough when he took her to the surgery room. Thanael did not envy what the mages went through there. He was sure that when there were no Mordecai around, the mages were given less than sufficient doses of tranquillisers an pain nedications.

[Anonymous]

Louhi faultered a moment. He had just said for her to change in the bathroom if she thought she could get that far, and then apparently changed his mind. "Yes sir" She said softly. Maybe he didn't want her to have a walking stick. Maybe that was the root behind it..and that did indeed make her nervous. She needed the walking stick. She'd never changed in front of a man before either and was not exactly enthusiastic about it, though she would do as she was told.

"I would like to go with you tomorrow" She said, wanting to be more familiar with things and potentually a better mage, and also was not eager to be left alone in a strange place where people didn't seem to care the mage belonged to someone else. "What sort of training do you do?" She thought of training as it pertained to horses and such.

[Anonymous]

OOC: Dang, my bad. *headdesk*

'I will be exercising first then weapons training before returning at 0730 hours to change and shower. In future, you will be training with me. I hope to see you walking more soundly within the month,' he explained.

Thanael turned to leave the room before she changed. He paused, realising that he hadn't said goodnight. 'I hope you sleep comfortably. If you cannot I will find something to help you,' he said. He never used sleeping tablets himself so it would be likely that the ones he did have were out of date.

[Anonymous]

"Yes sir" Louhi said, deciding her best bet was to listen for sounds of him getting up and assume that was close enough to 0730 hours...whatever that meant. Surely she'd get the hang of their odd time system eventually.

Within a month. That certainly sounded reasonable. She'd have to work on that. Maybe she could please him yet. For whatever reason, she still had a very strong desire to please her master, even when she was abused by them, but more so when she was not. It was almost as if she felt she needed to make up for the kindness she was being shown, as it wasn't something she assumed to be the natural attitude towards a person's 'lowers'.

"I'm sure I shall sleep fine, sir." And if she didn't, she didn't and she would sleep better the following night due to being more tired. Sleeping pills were not something she was familiar with. She had never known anyone to take them, and she herself had hardly taken medicines of any sort. "Good night, sir" She murmured, not sure if that was still an acceptable phrase, but if they were going to be getting up early, surely they would need to go to bed at a reasonable hour.

[Anonymous]

Thanael dimmed the lights in the room so that she would have enough light to see where she was without impeding her sleeping. He took his laptop with him as he left the room and closed the door. If she startled during the night and short-circuited everything in the room, he did not want it getting damaged.

Thanael changed into a white singlet and shorts before folding his casual clothes and placing them on his bedside table. He had only been wearing them since bringing Louhi home so they were hardly dirty and placing them in the wash would be a waste of resources.

He finished his evening routine before checking on Louhi. He kept the door open so that if she called out, he would be able to hear her. He then picked up the book he read each night and settled himself under the sheet.

[Anonymous]

Louhi quietly changed into the night clothes provided and settled herself onto the cot where she had been since she'd been brought from the hospital. She wasn't sure she dared to get up, even to go to the bathroom. He said for her to stay in bed, then she was required to stay in bed. That was how it worked. She'd met more than one servant who had to have permission for just about everything, personal needs included, but considering how little she had actually eaten and drank for the day, any needs she had could wait until morning when she had permission to get up and try to walk.

Thoughtfully, she flexed her toes, trying to get a sense of her foot again. It was an odd sensation to be sure, but she didn't dwell on it long, instead trying to obediently settle in and go to sleep, since those were her orders.

If she did not fall asleep quickly, she at least assumed the posture of sleep quickly with slow, even breathing, eyes closed. She didn't quite dread sleep, but it wasn't always something she enjoyed either. Fire often entered her sleep, along with her mother and her vampire friend. Some time, far into the night, she silently opened her eyes and gazed around the dimly lit room. She was grateful he had left some light for her to see by, it helped her orient herself and dispell her dreams. She sighed softly and rolled over onto her stomach, resting her chin on her hands a moment before trying to settle in again. At least with dreams occuring frequently, handling them was something she was very used to doing.

Eventually she did fall asleep again, though as time grew closer to when she would have to get up, she found herself sleeping more lightly, and even waking periodically to make sure he had not gotten up yet. Not having an alarm clock, or a set method of being woken so as not to be late made her rather nervous, largely because she had not yet learned his expectations or the consequences of failure.

[Anonymous]

That night Thanael dreamed. He dreamed of his new mage crying in a corner. When he went over to her she looked up and had the face of his previous one. She blinked at him in surprise then the room shattered like a lightbulb, leaving only the two of them in a blank dimension. The girl cowered away from him then burst into flames, burning his hands and face.

Thanael woke up, turned on a light and went out to the kitchenette to get a glass of water. He stopped as he left the room and went back to get a glass of apple juice as well. Neither he nor Louhi had had dinner and she was possibly feeling unwell from not eating. He was not sure how often she ate or how much. He drank the water, placed the cup on the counter then picked up a stool to rest the apple juice on. He then washed up his cup and went back to bed.
___________________ _

Thanael had other dreams but they were less interesting, less memorable. Normally he didn't care about his dreams but this one stuck in his mind as he made his way to the kitchen once more. It didn't seem to want to leave, which was starting to get on his nerves more than the dream itself had.

He looked across the bend to the gurney Louhi lay upon but she seemed fast asleep. He called her name once then turned back to the food he was preparing: wheat biscuits with banana slices. He prepared two bowls of the food then made himself a cup of coffee.

[Anonymous]

Louhi sat up, glancing around the room until her eyes landed on him, not entirely sure if she'd been called or not, but with a quick survey of the setting, she decided she had been called. "Yes, Sir?" She asked, eyes bright and eager to please, even though they were not as vibrant as they might be when she had her health fully restored to her.

She shifted to swing her legs off the gurney, but then stopped, recalling he had not yet given her permission to get up, nor had actually commanded her over to him, so she waited for his instructions patently. Typically, she expected to be up before the master, serving him food, not the other way around, but she would likely have to grow accustomed to the food of this new place as well. Hopefully it would set well with her, but so far, she'd been fine, or fine enough anyway. She had rarely been so ill as to let it interfere with the things that had to be done.

[Anonymous]

Thanael found himself puzzled by her movements. 'What is it? Do you not think you can get up?' he asked. He carried her breakfast over to her and set it next to the cup. He then carried another stool over to her and began drinking his coffee.

'Eat that. I don't know what you normally eat but from now on we'll be eating the same food,' he explained. 'I don't suppose you can cook?' Most food that he made was quick, simple and nutritious simply because he didn't have much experience until his last mage. Thanael had never trusted his previous mage to cook for him so he had had to teach himself. The creature had never adjusted to living as a slave and often tried to find ways to make Thanael's life harder. It was much of a blessing that he had been sent to TRIM.

[Anonymous]

"I did not have permission to get up" She said openly. Slavery was not a new concept to her. In fact, she found the idea of being completely free somehow more terrifying, though considering she was rather young, perhaps it was the allure of someone being there who actually wanted her to stay alive for a period of time. A dead slave was no good to anyone.

Louhi hardly looked her good over before obediently putting it into her mouth and eating it. It was certainly a step up from what she'd been eating before she mysteriously ended up on this planet.

"I apologize, but the answer to your question isn't as simple as it should be" She said, figuring he expected a 'yes or no' to his question of her cooking abilities. "I do have experience cooking...but I don't know how to operate your cooking machines. I learned how using..." She had to pause to recall what her vampire friend had called it. "Old fashioned wood burning stove, I think, and I was pretty good with an open fire, and then I learned again with 'gas'" She shrugged awkwardly "but there was another one, circles on the top glowed red and became very hot, but I burned everything using that one." She admitted, blushing a deep, shame-ridden red. "I imagine your cooking machines have changed a great deal since I've last seen one, but if I can master the cooking machine, I can cook." She assured, forgetting her 'place' she was usually so aware of and actually looking him in the face for once, seeming somehow hopeful.

[Anonymous]

'You may get up Louhi,' Thanael said with a sigh. He had forgotten that he'd need to explain his rules over again... not that his previous mage had often followed them. 'Unless I have said otherwise, you are free to say and do as you wish within this apartment. Outside the apartment you will need to ask permission or I will tell you. When we have been bonded you will ask directly through the mind-link.'

'You would have about the same experience as me in cooking then. I will show you the basics later tonight then you will do the cooking from tomorrow onwards. The hotplate is fairly simple to use and the rest goes in the oven.'

None of his cooking appliences could be seen in the kitchen. The apartment was designed so that everything folded away or shrank so that it could be placed in a drawer. The only heating applience that could be seen was the cordless kettle, which Thanael had just used to make coffee.

[Anonymous]

Louhi glanced at him a little uncertainly before saying "Yes, sir" glancing around the room for her walking stick. She wasn't so sure what her leg was going to do, so having a means of keeping her from falling flat on her face, other leg buckling under her was a plus. If he didn't want her to use it in public, fine, she'd find a way to manage, but in the apartment, where she could do as she wished, she wanted her first attempt at walking to be with stick in hand.

Louhi nodded "alright" She said, leaning slightly to peer into the kitchen, though she couldn't really see it from where she was. It was probably better that she couldn't. It looked so unlike a kitchen she was used to, it'd probably just make her anxious about trying to learn on it and not completely burn her master's food in the mornings.

"Sir, may I please have my walking stick?" She wasn't sure where he had put it the night before and while she could probably, at some point learn to pick it up with her mind, for now, though she had seen it happen before, she didn't know how to cause it to happen and control it. Controlling her powers would actually be very welcome, it would eliminate the fear of being fearful- that was when she lost control.

[Anonymous]

Thanael finished his coffee and rose from the chair. After opening up the dish washer he placed his cup in and searched for Luohi's stick. It had fallen off the makeshift bed while she had been sleeping. 'It is on the floor below you. I will only get it if you do not think you can,' he said.

He noted that Louhi still hadn't had her juice either. She seemed to only do things if she had been directly ordered to. Obedience was fine but Thanael did not want to be constantly making sure she did what most would do naturally. He wondered if she had even gone to the toilet in the last twenty-four hours.

'Is the juice not to your liking? I'm afraid that is the only type I have at the moment so you will have to make do with it,' he said. 'If you did not drink it because you were unsure whether you were allowed to, then you are foolish. I would not offer you something if you were forbidden from taking it. It is going to become wearisome if I have to tell you everything before you will do it.'