Part 3: Dark Clouds
"What now? Are you in or not?" asked Rilliana, looking at her friend with a wicked smile.
"Let me think!" said Trisha, drumming nervously on the table.
"Girls I need to get to bed, could you please make up your mind?" said the gnome, Arissa Berryriver, examining her hand again.
"All right as you wish. All in," Trisha said, sliding her money into the middle of the table, "Show me what you got."
Arissa and Rilliana exchanged a look.
"I'm out." they both said as if in unison.
Trisha snorted in disappointment.
"And won again. Come on, it's no fun like this."
Trisha said, pulling the entire pot towards her.
"How about another game then?" asked Rilliana.
"Fine with me, but I'll beat you there too."
"Oh no not with me. I was serious just now you two." said Arissa jumping from her chair.
"I think our host wants to get rid of us, Rilliana." said Trisha and also got up from the table to better put her winnings in her pockets.
"Can you blame her? You robbed us dry." said Rilliana.
"No honestly girls, I have to get up early tomorrow," said Arissa, stretching and yawning, "but will you guys be able to take the job next month?"
"Count on us!" said Rilliana, saluting.
"No problem, Mrs. Berryriver, it was a pleasure to make your acquaintance." said Trisha, bowing.
"The pleasure was all mine Trisha darling, and you can call me Arissa. Take good care of my Rilliana," replied the gnome.
"Don't worry I'll keep her on a short leash."
"I didn't really want to know that exactly. Well then, good night you two." said Arissa and escorted the two friends outside.
"Good night Arissa," they said, hugged the gnome and walked back to Trisha's apartment.
"So she taught you how to survive on the streets?" asked Trisha curiously.
"Yes, the orphanage couldn't always provide for all of us. So I took it into my own hands until I got caught once. Arissa luckily was able to talk me out of the mess. She taught me a lot of tricks after that," Rilliana said, looking thoughtfully up at the dark sky, "I think she was, until I met you, the only one I could call family."
"Aww Rilli, I wish we had met much sooner," said Trisha, putting an arm around her friend.
The elf said nothing and instead kissed her friend's cheek.
"Rilliana, are you coming to bed?" asked Trisha as she fluffed her pillow.
"No!" came back from Trisha's study room.
"No? What's that supposed to mean?"
"Come here we need to work something out."
Trisha frowned. Had she said something wrong?
"Can't it wait until tomorrow?" asked the Shifter, walking into the study.
"Are you serious?" asked Trisha when she saw Rilliana, dressed only in a shirt, sitting on her work table which she had pushed into the middle of the room. Her legs were crossed and in her hands she held a deck of cards which she was shuffling playfully. Behind her on the table lay a stack of ropes, neatly lined up.
"I was just kidding at Arissa's. I'm pretty tired too, Rilli."
"Well, I wasn't kidding."
"Rilliana please, we will do this tomorrow, alright?" said Trisha and was about to turn around when Rilliana said, "I'll wager two weeks."
Trisha stopped and thought. Two weeks of Rilliana at her mercy sounded tempting, but should she lose …
"Naa, it's too risky for me."
"If you sit down now and play with me, I will be the bait in Arissa's mission."
Trisha hesitated. Even if she lost what was two weeks compared to not having to play bait.
Trisha licked her lips and grinned mischievously. It was a win-win for her. Trisha let her smile disappear and turned to her friend.
"I'm in. Looks like I'll have to teach you a thing or two about negotiating, though." she said, sitting down at the table.
"Why? I got what I wanted, didn't I?" said Rilliana, sitting down across from her.
"I assume those aren't just here for decoration?" said Trisha, pointing to the ropes.
"They're there to make it a little more interesting. We play best of nine. With each round lost, a new restraint is attached and at the end the loser will be gagged."
Explained Rilliana and dealt, "Each round an all in."
Trisha glanced at her cards.
"Well, nervous yet?" asked Rilliana with confidence as she placed the flop, turn, and river face down on the table.
She placed her cards face up on the table and smiled at Trisha.
"Two kings!"
"The key at Hands of Fate is not to get nervous." said Trisha, also placing her cards on the table.
"Two and four? You're going down." said Rilliana, revealing the flop, turn, and river. Her face froze.
"Seems like I have a straight." said Trisha, grabbing a rope, unfolding it and tying one of Rilliana's legs to the chair.
"You can go ahead and deal, I'm still a little busy here. I don't want you to get loose."
Rilliana gulped, this should not have happened.
The elf dealt the cards again while Trisha tied the last knot and stroked her friend's leg.
"That was only one round, your luck has run out now."
Trisha just smiled to herself, not even looking at her hand.
"And go," the elf said, "two aces!"
"I have, oh just… Two twos. "Said the Shifter but looked not very surprised.
"So far so good," said Rilliana, uncovering the table cards,
"Ace, so far so good, eight, seven, oh a charity two. Don't worry, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose Trisha."
The Shifter said nothing and just pointed her finger at the last card.
"I guess that means we are about to have…"
Two.
"Excuse me?" said Rilliana, her jaw dropping.
"You know, maybe it would be better if I gagged you right now, so it wouldn't be so embarrassing for you." said Trisha and began to fix Rilliana's other leg to the chair.
Feverishly Rilliana looked at the cards.
"Is something wrong?" asked Trisha, putting her hands on Rilliana's shoulders.
"NO! No, everything's fine."
"Well then, deal."
The elf did as she was told and laid the cards for them slowly and deliberately.
"I have a jack and a ten."
"Ten and another two. Come on! Lay out while you still can."
Rilliana uncovered the table cards and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Ha! A straight! It's your turn to be tied!"
"Rilli honey… I got a flush…"
"What?" and sure enough, Trisha had gotten a flush with the last card.
"Oh come on!" said Rilliana, crossing her arms in defiance.
"Give me your hand!" demanded Trisha, tying her hand to the armrest.
"Here, I'll shuffle this time," said Trisha, picking up the deck, shuffling it briefly, and dealt.
Without much talk, they both turned over their cards.
Rilliana groaned loudly as she lost again.
"I'm going to end this now my darling, alright?" said Trisha, tying even the last limb of Rilliana tightly to the chair.
"No, no, no! You may have the match point, but I still have a chance."
"Rilliana? I have to keep myself from laughing all the time, you know why? You took my magic deck of cards which punishes cheating."
"I'm sorry, what?"
"Here." Again Trisha dealt and then revealed all the cards for herself and Rilliana.
"You got a Royal flush…" Rilliana said and became quiet as she saw her Cards.
"Yup… you cheated, and the deck punished you by losing this match of Hands of Fate."
"Then let's play again this time with a nommmhmm!"
Trisha had shoved a thick gag into Rilliana's mouth and knotted it.
"Rilli, you don't believe that yourself, do you? Punishment must be, and I won. I'll see you in the morning… Slave" she added.
Trisha placed a kiss on Rilliana's forehead and walked to the door.
"Mhhhmmh! Mh mmmhmh mhmhm!"
Trisha turned around again and looked at her friend.
"Alright, have it your way." she said, walking over to a cabinet and taking out an oblong smooth crystal, along with a rope.
"I was going to give you this for our six-month anniversary, but I think now is the perfect time."
She pressed on the crystal, and it began to tremble.
Rilliana's eyes grew as big as plates.
Trisha put the crystal into Rilliana and fastened it with a crotch rope which she tightened mercilessly.
"Punishment must be." whispered Trisha, biting Rilliana's earlobe.
"Sleep tight." said the Shifter, turning off the light and closing the door.
The soft shout of the elf that came through the door was like music to Trisha's ears. She just smiled to herself and lay down in bed. She thought about what she could do with her slave for the coming weeks.
Rilliana screamed in the darkness with all her might, but it fell on deaf ears, if Trisha could hear it at all.
If she could manage to free herself she might be able to catch Trisha off guard and turn the tables. She looked for a knot like she had learned from Trisha, but to no avail.
"Mmmmh!" cursed Rilliana, throwing her head back as the crystal began to stimulate her.
"I deserved it, but I'll get you eventually Trisha, just you wait!" she thought and closed her eyes, the crotch rope combined with the crystal didn't make it easy for her to concentrate.
She doubted that she would get to ''sleep'' this night.
When Trisha woke up, at first she wondered where Rilliana was.
Then she remembered. Immediately she jumped out of bed, rushed to the door of the study and listened. Trisha heard only a soft moaning.
She quietly opened the door, but refrained from turning on the light and instead let the light from the hallway half-light her study.
Rilliana was a wreck. Her whole body was wet with sweat and her blond hair was sticking to her face. She was so exhausted that she sat bent forward in the chair. The only thing that prevented her from falling out of it were her wrist and leg restraints. A light buzzing was heard as Trisha approached, and she noticed a puddle on the floor around the chair.
"Oh you poor thing." said Trisha gently pushing Rilliana back and untying her bonds. Next she removed the crystal and powered it off.
Trisha thought she heard the elf breathe a sigh of relief, but it could have been her imagination. She removed the sweaty shirt and carefully lifted Rilliana out of the chair. Trisha placed the elf in the bathtub and began to fill it with warm water. Trisha undressed and got into the tub herself. All the time she made sure that Rilliana didn't suddenly fall over. Trisha washed her friend thoroughly from top to bottom and rinsed her hair several times.
Half an hour later Rilliana was in Trisha's four-poster bed and covered by thick blankets. The two had not spoken the entire time, but Rilliana had smiled in satisfaction as Trisha tucked her into bed.
"Get some rest, we have a busy day ahead of us," Trisha whispered, kissing her girlfriend on the forehead.
"Thank you mistress." Murmured Rilliana barely audible and fell asleep.
While Rilliana slept, Trisha removed all traces of last night and packed her and Rilliana's backpack. Additionally, she put a cage next to it and threw a blanket over it. On top of it she put a pile of black leather straps. Lastly, Trisha set out a plate of food for Rilliana and a letter of instructions should she not be back by the time the elf woke up.
Slowly Rilliana regained consciousness but only gradually did her senses return, and she caught the smell of cheese. Carefully she straightened up and took the plate in her hand. Immediately water ran into her mouth and she devoured the cheese sandwich in four mighty bites. Then she noticed the letter, unfolded it and read:
Hello slave,
If you read this letter I am currently in the city and making some preparations. I want you to put on the leather straps next to the backpacks if you feel up to it. After that, I want you to kneel on the ground and wait for my return with your hands on your knees and your eyes downcast.
I will be back soon.
In love,
Trisha
Behind Trisha's signature, Rilliana could see that her friend had kissed the letter. The elf hugged the letter and walked on shaky legs to the leather straps.
"Trisha, where do you always get things like this?" Rilliana asked herself as she placed the straps against her body for a test. It fit albeit just barely.
"Better if I put it on right away." she muttered, biting her lower lip.
At first, she had trouble figuring out how to put it on until she undid a few buckles and slipped into it. The harness wrapped tightly around her body in a zigzag pattern, highlighting her slender body and lifting her breasts. Rilliana swallowed as she looked at herself in the mirror.
"Beautiful…" she murmured, stroking the smooth black leather with one hand. She was so lost in thought that she didn't notice Trisha coming home.
"Well, do you like the harness?" asked the Shifter.
Rilliana startled and immediately fell to the floor as the letter had instructed.
"Yes mistress, I love it!" she answered.
"You haven't seen everything yet." said Trisha, lifting the covers off the cage to the side. There were more leather straps in the cage.
"Close your eyes!" demanded Trisha and Rilliana did as she was told.
The elf felt the Shifter put a collar around her neck and seal it with a small padlock. Rilliana couldn't see it, but the moment the lock clicked into place, an evil grin flashed across Trisha's face.
Next, Trisha retrieved the remaining leather harness from the cage and placed it on the floor in front of Rilliana.
"Lie down!"
The elf felt a chill run down her spine as she lay down on the leather.
Trisha wasted no time and folded Rilliana's arms and legs to fit into the pockets of the new harness. She finished her work by binding the two leather constructs together. Rilliana could now only move on all fours and neither grasp anything nor take off the harness.
"You can open your eyes again. What do you say?" asked Trisha gently, helping her to stand up.
Rilliana looked into the mirror. Back looked a helpless elf with a wide grin on her face. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came from her lips. Panic-stricken, she looked up at Trisha.
"Ah, I forgot about that. This collar has some nice Features, like you can't talk while wearing it. But you can bark like a dog." Said Trisha and Rilliana immediately saw in her face that she had not forgotten.
"Come on, bark once for me." Trisha said and watched the elf in anticipation. Rilliana just shook her head and tried to loosen the collar with her useless arms.
"Alright, have it your way," said Trisha and pulled Rilliana by the collar into the cage, which she also locked and threw the blanket over.
Trisha heard whimpering and barking from the cage.
"It's too late for that now, Rilliana. We are leaving in a few minutes."
Rilliana had no idea how Trisha had managed to load her in the cage and all the luggage into a carriage, but here they were now, slowly rocking south. The elf thanked the gods that no one had seen her.
"You know," Trisha began, "I was actually going to go on vacation with you "Normal," but this is much funnier."
The elf whimpered submissively and pressed her head against the cage door.
"I'll let you out when we get there. Not that you'll get lost."
A dull sound was heard from the cage as Rilliana kicked at it to voice her displeasure.
"Oi! That's still part of your punishment for cheating. Besides, you lost, and you're mine for the next two weeks, so be a good dog before I decide you can walk behind the carriage."
Immediately Rilliana made no more noise and lay down.
Hours later, the carriage stopped.
"We are here, young lady." said the coachman and opened the door.
"Thank you, Jeffrey, could you carry my luggage into the house?" said Trisha, jumping out of the carriage and stretching.
"Of course." said Jeffrey the coachman took her and Rilliana's backpack and disappeared into the house.
Rilliana also stretched as best she could in her little cage and looked anxiously out as Trisha lifted her out of the carriage.
"That wasn't a house! That's a mansion!" it popped into Rilliana's head when she saw the building.
She barked happily and couldn't wait to explore the house with Trisha.
"Stay still for a bit Rilli. I don't want Jeffrey to get a heart attack when he sees you." Trisha said, throwing the blanket over the cage as footsteps were heard.
"Would you like me to carry that inside too, young lady?"
"No, thanks Jeffrey. I can do that by myself thanks for the ride and say hi to my dad."
"It was an honor, hope to see you again soon." said the coachman. Rilliana heard the crack of a whip and Jeffrey drove off.
Trisha waited a moment then lifted the blanket off the cage and opened it.
"Come on, let off some steam!" commanded Trisha and immediately Rilliana stormed out of her prison and stumbled on all fours across the cobbled floor into the house.
Trisha went after her laughing and explained where she had taken Rilliana.
"This is one of my father's estates. We used to come here when we wanted to go on vacation but had to stay near Goramag. Here we have enough space and peace to do everything we want. "
Rilliana barked questioningly.
"Yes, everything," Trisha confirmed, watching her friend try to lie down awkwardly on the floor with her belly up. When she finally managed it, she proudly presented her body adorned by the black straps. She whimpered softly and looked at Trisha begging.
"Alright an hour break, but before that…" said Trisha raising her hands and kneeling down to Rilliana with a wicked grin.
Immediately the elf feared what lay ahead and tried in vain to crawl away.
"When you present yourself to me like this, you don't think I'll let an opportunity like this slip away. You won't escape me!" said Trisha and tickled Rilliana.
Immediately Rilliana howled with laughter and defended herself to the best of her ability, but she had no chance as Trisha's paws worked every free spot on her body. She knew all of Rilliana's weak points and within a very short time, Rilliana was gasping for breath.
When Trisha was satisfied, she stroked the elf's breasts one last time and began to loosen the harness that held Rilliana's arms and legs. The last thing she did was loosen the collar, but left the rest of the harness on Rilliana.
"Trisha, it's beautiful here." said the elf, still lying in the hallway and stretching slowly.
"Wait until you see the rest." whispered Trisha, pressing a kiss to her mouth.
Trisha spent the next hour showing Rilliana the entire house while the Elf wore nothing but her leather harness.
Only when Rilliana's stomach growled loudly did they return to the hallway.
Trisha locked her back into the abandoned leather restraints and led her by the collar into the garden.
"I'll make something to eat for us, in the meantime, romp around in the garden a bit more."
Immediately Rilliana stormed off and ran as fast as her bound body allowed over the soft grass. More than once she fell down and within no time she was covered with dirt from top to bottom.
"Rilli dinner is ready!" Shouted the Shifter and put two bowls down for the elf.
"You're not coming into my house like that!" said Trisha, cleaning Rilliana's face so that at least she could eat something quickly now.
The elf looked at the bowls, one was filled with water the other with an oatmeal Rilliana didn't manage to identify.
"That's all you're getting. Get used to it." Trisha said when she noticed the questioning look from the elf and went back into the house.
Rilliana's stomach growled again, so she sighed and hesitantly began to eat.
It was a warm mixture of potatoes and apples and after the first bite she devoured the rest in the bowl in record time.
She took the bowl between her teeth and carried it after Trisha.
"Ooh does little Rilli want more?" she asked lost in thought as she felt the bowl against her ankles and looked down at the elf.
"Here my darling." she said, filling the bowl once more.
Rilliana barked happily and sank her face into her food again since she couldn't use her hands for an unforeseeable amount of time.
"Wait… Rilliana didn't I just tell you not to go in the house like that? You brought half the garden into the house!" Trisha said in anger, pointing to the muddy prints Rilliana had made.
The elf humbly ducked her head and whimpered in front of Trisha.
The Shifter sighed heavily, lifted the elf up and carried her into the bathtub.
One week later
Rilliana yawned loudly and rubbed her face against the leather harness in which her arm had been stuck for the past week. Except for a few breaks that Trisha allowed her, she had meditated, eaten and bathed in the harness. By now Rilliana had so much practice running around the house on all fours that Trisha had trouble catching her when they were playing. The elf got up from her soft pillow which served as her bed and walked around Trisha's bed to see if her friend was already awake. She was still fast asleep and Rilliana refrained from waking her. Instead, she crawled into the kitchen and took a sip of water from one of her bowls.
While she drank, Rilliana thought about what Trisha planned to do with her during the second half of their vacation. She couldn't wait to find out, but she had to be patient until Trisha woke up. They decided to get some fresh air and skillfully opened the door to the garden. Opening doors in her condition was not an easy task, but she had learned and perfected it over the week. She heard the frogs croaking in the pond and some birds were already awake singing their enchanting song. Rilliana crawled over the grass and breathed in the cool mountain air. She never dreamed that she would ever be as happy as she was right now. She looked back at the villa and saw the light go on in Trisha's bedroom. Beaming with joy, Rilliana walked back to the house when she suddenly stopped. Something was wrong, something was missing.
"The animals…" thought Rilliana, "they have fallen silent. But why?"
Curious, she looked around, seeing nothing. She looked back toward the house and saw Trisha, whose face jumped from joyful to fearful as she spied something that was above Rilliana. Something had cast a shadow near Rilliana in the moonlight, and her heart skidded as she saw it coming closer and closer to her.
"RILLI RUN!" yelled Trisha, running towards her friend.
Rilliana didn't need to be told twice and sprinted towards her.
She put all her strength into her limbs and demanded everything from her body.
Only a few meters separated them from each other when Rilliana felt herself losing the ground beneath her, and she flew over Trisha, whose face was twisted with fear.
Rilliana's mouth moved, but no sound came out as the collar still blocked her voice. The ground moved farther and farther away from Rilliana as she was lifted into the darkness by a giant bat.
Trisha knelt on the grass and stared up at the sky, stunned.
Rilliana's frightened face was burned into her memory.
Tears streamed down Trisha's face, and she clenched her paws into fists.
Slowly she stood up and forced herself to remain calm.
She wiped away the tears with the back of her hand, noticing the color of her new bracelet. It was yellow and as long as it only turned green again Rilliana was safe. She went back into the house and into the bedroom.
She rummaged around in her backpack until she found a rolled up leather towel and placed it on the table.
Trisha unrolled it to reveal a dark dagger.
Trisha shook her head when she saw it.
"Didn't think I'd have to use you here," she muttered, trying to concentrate. She began to take her animal form, her arms, and legs becoming more muscular and her claws and teeth longer and sharper.
"Rilliana… don't be afraid, I'm always with you!" she said, throwing on her cloak and running in the direction where the bat had disappeared.
Rilliana trembled with fear and the burning cold she was exposed to as she was carried through the air. She prayed to all the gods that Trisha would bring her home safely or that she would survive the bat through the intervention of the gods themselves. She suddenly felt the first rays of sunlight hit her and the bat howled and picked up speed. Rilliana saw a mountain peak in which a crack had been struck. "Is this the bat's lair?" Rilliana pondered. And looked up at the bat. Why the bat had not already sunk its long fangs into her was beyond her, but she did not question it. Every second more was a gift. The bat cried out in pain as the sun finally rose and Rilliana wished she could cover her ears. Her captor began to trundle and lose altitude. The elf closed her eyes as the gap got closer and closer. It hissed loudly as the bat took shelter from the sun in its hoard and Rilliana felt herself being let go. She snapped her eyes open, just in time to brace herself for the impact as best she could. Due to the enormous speed she rolled helplessly over the ground and then remained motionless on her back.
"Ouch" she thought and looked up to the ceiling of the cave. There the bat had hung upside down and seemed to lick its wounds inflicted by the sun. She felt her pulse skyrocket and panic seize her heart again, but suddenly there was something else.
"Trisha…" She remembered her training and what her Feline friend had taught her. First keep calm, then assess the situation and get a picture of your surroundings. She forced herself to breathe calmly and looked around carefully. She saw animal bones that she might be able to use as weapons if she could get her hands free. Rilliana looked down at her naked body that was trapped by the harness and pockets her limbs were in.
"I guess I can forget about that." she thought and continued to look around. The rocks could perhaps provide her with a bit of cover. Had her voice not been magically silenced, a joyous exclamation would have been heard in the cave. A ledge she might be able to squeeze under was near her. Carefully, she tried to turn onto her stomach, which was difficult anyway, but in such a situation? With momentum, she managed it anyway, stayed lying down and listened.
The bat didn't seem to be interested in her at the moment and continued to lick at its burns. Hesitantly, Rilliana got up and crept towards the ledge. She looked up and was relieved to find that she was unobserved. There was a loud crack. Horrified, Rilliana looked down at the ground. She had broken a bone. The bat cried out and lunged to the ground, Rilliana didn't wait to see what happened and stumbled over the bones towards safety. She felt a breeze and threw herself to the ground to slither the last bit across the floor. She bounced against the wall and hastily pulled her legs back and not a moment too soon because in the next moment claws scraped across the floor where she had just been lying. The creature howled and tried to get Rilliana out of there, but the elf pressed herself into the corner and held her breath in tension. Only when the scratching stopped and Rilliana heard flapping wings did she dare to gasp for air.
"That was close." She thought and relaxed. Suddenly she felt a sharp pain. She looked down at herself and discovered a bone stuck in her torso. Blood leaked from the wound and dripped to the floor. Rilliana swallowed. "Please Trisha… Hurry…"
"If I… No as soon as I… Get my hands on… This damn beast… I'll snap its neck!" Trisha said as she climbed the mountain. She pulled herself up onto a ledge and took a deep breath.
The feline shifter looked up and saw that she had soon reached the crack where she thought the bat was.
She looked at a bracelet on her wrist and her breath stopped, it was blood-red.
"Rilli…" she murmured, looking up again, "hold on!"
Rilliana shivered, by now she had lost a lot of blood, and it was getting harder for her to stay awake.
She swallowed and took a deep breath. It was getting more and more difficult for her to breathe.
"Trish…" she thought and closed her eyes. The darkness then embraced her.
Sunlight streamed through the window onto the bed. Rilliana blinked as the rays shone into her eyes.
"Am I in heaven?" she thought and straightened up.
She groaned as the pain in her upper body proved to her that she was not in heaven and instinctively reached for the injury. A bandage had been applied. The next thing she noticed was that she no longer had her harness on, which made her a little sad. But hopefully that would also mean.
"Trish …" she asked softly,
"Trisha?"
She carefully swung her legs out of bed and stood up. Immediately, she lost the strength in her legs and fell to the floor. There was a muffled bang that echoed throughout the house.
"Rilli? Are you awake?" Trisha asked and came running into the room.
“By the gods, stay in bed!" she said, helping Rilliana up and back into bed.
"Trisha I…"
"It's all right. You're safe and nothing can happen to you now," said Trisha, hugging Rilliana gently.
Tears rolled down her face.
"Trisha, please don't cry… I'm okay. You saved me."
She hugged her friend tighter.
"How long was I gone?" asked Rilliana.
“Two weeks…" said Trisha, sobbing.
Rilliana gently patted her back.
"Then I guess I owe you another week."
"What?"
"I owe you another week don't you remember?" said the elf.
Horrified, Trisha, looked at Rilliana.
"You want to… Go on?"
"The way you did back then…"
"THIS IS TOTALLY DIFFERENT! RILLI I THOUGHT I HAD LOST YOU!"
"But you saved me… And protected me…"
"Rilli I… I need a break…" said the shifter and stood up.
"Trisha…" said Rilliana weakly as she looked after her friend.