[Susan Delgado]

Anna started to get to her feet, but fell back partway up, limbs shaking and head pounding. If this was what it was like to be mortal again...so weak and easily overcome! She huddled on the floor, staying as still as possible, until she thought she could move again. Even then, she didn't attempt standing but crawled across the cell toward the pile of food. She selected an apple and bit into it gratefully. She felt a bit better when it was finished and she rose shakily to her feet, still weak but stronger than before. She sensed Celumëomaryu watching her from just outside the bars and deliberately ignored her. She wasn't going to give the Elf any more of her attention; it simply wasn't worth it, was less than worth it, in fact.

She made her way back to the wall to examine the secret door. She found the switch again, but when she pushed it, the door remained firmly closed. They'd found a way to block it, or had broken the mechanism. She nodded when Calimiel told her she'd already tried that, and sank back down to the floor. She heaved a deep sigh. In all her days, she couldn't remember feeling so defeated. Even the day she'd died hadn't felt this way. At least then she'd still had freedom of a sort. More than this cell gave her, anyway.

"What do we do now?" She asked quietly.

Calimiel shook her head and sat down nearby. "I don't know," She said. She glanced over at Celumëomaryu, who was still watching them. Patience of the immortal, she supposed. "Anna..." She began.

"Yes?" Anna asked when Calimiel didn't continue her thought.

Calimiel had been thinking about the food. "How long do you suppose these bodies will last if they don't get fed?"

Anna glanced over at her friend. "What do you mean?" She asked sharply.

Calimiel indicated the pile of fruit and herbs in the middle of the floor. "That won't last forever, you know. Will the others remember that we need food? They didn't before."

"Before, only a few knew about the prisoners, and now that she's set herself as our guard, she should notice when the food runs out." She indicated Celumëomaryu distastefully.

"But you know how hard it is to keep track of time. What if she only glances closely at the cell once a week? We'd die."

Anna thought about that for a moment, then burst into laughter. Calimiel seemed worried, and also annoyed for not knowing the joke. After several moments, her cries of, "What? What?" got through the noise Anna was making and she was able to calm herself. She began to respond, then glanced over at Celumëomaryu again. The laughter had also attracted the Elf and she had come close to the cell. She was staring at them suspiciously. Anna picked up the apple still on the floor near her hand and through it through the bars. It swished through Celumëomaryu's belly and, with a disgusted snort, she moved farther away, though not as far as before. Anna gestured Calimiel closer and whispered into her ear, "If we die, then what? We're free of this cell! We'll be back in the Castle. But if she realises that, if she hasn't already, she'll make sure we always have lots of food. She'll make it a special point."

Calimiel obviously hadn't thought about it like that. She started at the ceiling for a moment, considering. "Would she have realised it already, on her own?"

"I don't know. She might have; she's very smart. But we won't give her any help."

Calimiel smiled and sat down again. "Let's play a game."

"All right. Something with hands, I suppose. We haven't anything else to use."

Calimiel nodded again and the two quietly began to make rules.

[ January 22, 2003: Message edited by: Susan Delgado ]