-= 3 =-

                                    

                                          
A hum left her as she curled up further in the heated fur blankets that were piled on her slim form. She thought about continuing to sleep in, but was quickly brought back to reality. Annelie couldn't sleep in, not when her mother had returned home. No, she was needed at the bakery, helping her mother and father bake bread and other goods. She jerked up, breathing heavily and freezing at the sight of the room around her. 
                          
Her green eyes trailed down to the bed, which was not her own. What is going on? This cannot be reality... or can it, she questioned mentally. A fire was burning merrily in a hearth that was set in the bedroom she was occupying. 
                          
It was so pleasantly heated, far different that of what she had grown accustomed to. The fine stone walls, added to the loveliness of the room. A large painting of a fiery autumn forest hung over the mantle of the fireplace. She swallowed as her eyes followed the sparsely decorated wall to the thick glass window that no heat seemed to escape from. Not a single cold draft came from it. 
                          
Tears formed once more in her eyes as she realized how far her family had fallen. Once, they had been doing well for themselves. Yet, that seemed so many years ago. Annelie felt like she had aged decades since she turned six years old. 
                          
Her hand drifted up to her face to rub at the wet trails that coursed down, seemingly endlessly. "I must check on her Zaman! What if she is fevered and ill! I cannot keep myself from assisting such a maiden! I have honor!" the same man whom she had heard before passing out exclaimed enthusiastically. 
                          
"Fine! I don't want to hear about it when you have to let her go! I don't need to listen to your pestering and endless mutterings," Supposedly Zaman snapped out in an irate reply. 
                          
Her hands tightened into fists in the fur of the animal hides on the bed. Those were the same voices, that she was sure of it. So, she tossed the furs aside and crept out the bed, hoping to find somewhere to leave this place she had been taken to. 
                          
It wasn't like she wasn't thankful. Rather, she didn't know what was going on, and had no idea the mindset of those who had taken her in. With a hurried manner, she opened the closet door to the room, slipping inside. Her hand curled around the knob and tugged it closed right before the door to the room swung open. 
                          
A man strutted in, arms wide and a huge white-teethed smile on his face. "I have arrived!" he shouted. 
                          
"Shut your trap, Liyor. You do not wish to- where is she? Where did she go? What if the master finds her roaming the castle? What would he do to us?" Zaman muttered, but his voice quickly grew in volume. "The master will be most displeased! Oh... oh no... no no no!" 
                          
"She must have woken up already! We must find her! Quick, Zama-" Liyor began, turning to face the doorway once more. 
                          
Annelie saw the paling of the man's face, and struggled to see what was causing such a reaction. However, the thick dark oak door blocked her view, leaving her chest feeling tight. "What do you mean, she?" a deep voice growled. 
                          
Her green eyes grew wide and she covered her mouth to keep from making any noise. A shudder of fear seemed to shut down her system. Soon a man who towered over everything, even Liyor, came into the room. His dark hair was a mess, and he stood with a fur cape brandished over one shoulder. It was a dark gray, and looked to come from some sort of wolf, or even a bear. 
                          
Tears came to her eyes once more, despite trying to keep herself from becoming a mess once more. No, I am not like this... I shouldn't be crying at every single thing. Especially not because of a strange violent man who I have never seen before, she thought. Her teeth moved to bite her bottom lip, a habit she had formed when she was younger.