Breathe Me (Closed)

He released a small breath of pent up air from his cheeks, almost making a whistling sound. "No. He's a big boy though and I trust that he can make his own choice appropriately." He assured her.
Terra watched him watch her for a moment, guilt shining in his eyes for a second before he continued with instructions."Kiki's down the hall resting if you need anything. I should be back around the same time as Adint returns, an hour, give or take. Absolutely no door or mail. If you hear either, stay away. Got it?" Jamal ordered. She simply nodded, his rules made sense and so she would follow them. She guessed that's why he was such a good leader. Again she nodded obediently, waiting for him to leave so she could carry out her own tasks.
 
Kiki's ears perked when she heard the door slam shut, and went back out into the room. She listened to Jamal tell Terra the rules, the same rules he'd told her when he brought her here a couple days ago. She sat down against the wall across from Terra and pulled her old book out again. Once more, she began the slow work of deciphering the words in the book. She understood it better each time she read it.
 
The old man welcomed Adint with mockerey, calling him several inaproppriate thing's, Adint just sighed though, "What do you need me to do?" He asked, looking at the old man.

The old man told him to clean his garage, more or less, if you were to ignore all his cursing, he went in there muttering, it was dark and completely filthy, he turned on the light and gasped, several thug's started beating on him. The old man had set him up.
 
He gave the girls a final nod and left, shutting the door softly and locking it behind himself. Silently he padded down the stairs and out onto the side streets, head bowed deeply against the cold but his eyes sharp, flickering over to look at every snap of branch or muffled cough as some humans also took the less used paths. Most were too busy shuffling their feet through the snow and puffing furiously on their freezing hands to pay Jamal much attention.
 
When Jamal left she almost admitted to herself that she missed him. She looked over at Kiki and found she was reading a book. She couldn't tell which book it was from her position, but her parents used to read to her all the time and she'd loved reading before she was forced to live on the streets.
"What book are you reading?" Terra asked, noticing that Kiki was having some trouble mouthing the words very quickly.
Terra slowly removed her legs from under the blanket and sat up on the couch. She leaned down and grabbed her plate, cup and fork, preparing herself to stand. This was going to be painful.
 
Adint tried to stand up, however he was pummeled again, and again, he cried out in pain, when they were done he was left in the garage and locked in there, still shivering.
 
Kiki glanced up when Terra spoke, then jumped up. "Nuh uh, I don't think so." She said as she set down the book and took her dishes from her. "Jamal would have my hide if you were up and about right now." She headed towards the kitchen and came back a moment later. "It's 'The Daughter of the Forest'. She said, in answer to Terra's question. "It's really confusing, but I'm starting to understand it, a little."
 
"Why do you think I waited until he left? I still have to get up to change. Where's the bathroom?" Terra said, frowning at her own weakness. "And listen Kiki, I could read some of it to you if you want. I used to read all the time before...I couldn't get reading material." Terra offered, looking away from her blue eyes when she finished her sentence. She gulped, suppressing memories.
 
Kiki thought about that for a moment. "How about I help you to the bathroom, then we can read." She offered. She gestured to a closed door down the hall. "It's right there." She waited to see what Terra would say to that. She knew that the idea of being helped to the bathroom wasn't a pleasant one. It had been horrible for Kiki to admit she needed help too.
 
Terra hissed in irritation, but she knew Kiki wouldn't give in. "Fine. But you're not following me in there. Most of everything below my waist is uninjured." She grumbled. Terra held out her arm in such a way that implied Kiki could hold her elbow for Terra to lean on.
 
Jamal reached the location that the humans had most recently been sending him to in order to pay. Strangely, it was their house. It made sense though. It was their land, their turf, and they owned it, giving them many advantages, one of which included being able to do whatever they liked with him without him able to say anything against their claims. If they were to tell authorities that he broke into their home and tried to kill them, who would they believe? It made the situation risky when he was overdue without enough cash, like today. With a deep lungful of air, he pressed against the back door and passed the threshold of the house.
 
Kiki took her elbow and helped her to the door. "Sorry, I know it's irritating." She said. She pushed the door open and stepped back so that Terra could go in. She leaned back against the wall and waited.
 
Terra stood slowly, leaning heavily on Kiki as she took her first few steps. Her legs weren't very wobbly after she got used to her own weight again. It was her back that was giving her trouble. In order to stand up straight, her back would stretch up and naturally arch like always. But with the huge bruises and cuts all over her torso, she could only lean forward, grunting and hissing at the agony in every step. She hated to admit it to herself, but she wouldn't have made it without Kiki's help. When she got inside the bathroom, she flicked on the light and the dim bulb flickered above her. She was still hunched forward with her clothes in her left arm, so she turned and stuck her head out to see Kiki. "Yeah. Thanks." She mumbled. Terra locked the door behind her and placed her hands in the counter beside the sink, staring up at the cracked mirror on the wall. Her violet eyes had lost their luster and dark circles below her eyes gave away how little she'd slept recently. Terra looked away before she could destroy herself with criticism. You're beautiful... he'd said. Could Jamal really see straight?!
He'd provided her with a faded black half-sleeved shirt that Terra imagined would have fit her perfectly if she had been eating enough. The bottoms were ripped, dark wash jeans in a little better shape than her own. She changed into the outfit not without effort and a lot of leaning on the counter, groaning when they slid against her cuts and bruises. She slid off her converse but kept them cradled in her left arm, threw away her old outfit and did her business with the toilet. When she opened the door again, gripping the handle with shaky strength, she half-smiled at Kiki and held out her arm again. "So. That book. What's it about?"
 
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Kiki took her elbow and helped her back to the bed. "It's about a girl with six brothers." She replied. "And her stepmother does...something. and it turns the brothers into swans. That's as far as I've managed to get without getting lost and starting over." She admitted. "I never really learned how to read properly, so I only know a little bit. It's getting easier though." She carefully helped Terra sit down and then sat next to her. "Eventually I'll be able to read just as well as any human." She said with a smile.
 
Arint held himself in a tight ball in the garage, he should have told them he would be here, he sighed softly, the room was dark, however his eye's had ajusted, he looked at the wall's too see if there was another way out besides the locked doors.
 
Terra leaned back on her right arm, the farthest from Kiki, and held out her left hand for the book. She was surprised at this girl's motivation. If she had to read the same stuff too many times over, she would have just given up out of boredom or frustration. She smiled back at the girl so determined to learn. "I stayed with my parents until I was 13, so they taught me most of what I need to know to read right. It's the vocabulary I'll be rusty on. Let me read the summary on the back cover and I'll see what I can figure out."
 
Kiki handed her the book and let her read the back. Sorcha is the seventh child of Lord Colum, an Irish warlord. Sorcha's mother died shortly after her birth, leaving her in the hands of capable servants and her older brothers. As she and her brothers grow, they become very close. When their father marries a new woman who Sorcha and her brothers come to realize is an evil witch, they ban together to rid their lives of this threat, only to cause this powerful witch to lay a curse on the brothers that Sorcha alone can reverse. Daughter of the Forest is a novel about love of family and the strength of character that allows Sorcha to break the curse that holds the lives of her beloved brothers.
 
"Sorcha is the.. seventh child of Lord Colum, an Irish warlord. Sorcha's mother died shortly after her birth, leaving her in the hands of.. capable servants and her older brothers. As she and her brothers grow, they become very close. When their father marries a new woman who Sorcha and her brothers come to realize is an evil witch, they band together to rid their lives of this threat, only to cause this. powerful witch to lay a curse on the brothers that Sorcha alone can reverse. Daughter of the Forest is a novel about love of family and the strength of character that allows Sorcha to break the curse that holds the lives of her...beloved brothers." Terra read, smiling at herself. Not bad for 6 years of only reading street signs and the occasional newspaper for 6 years.
She looked back at Kiki's deep blue eyes. "Doesn't seem too bad, even if it might get a little complicated. Seems like a pretty good read. Wouldn't have been my first choice, but I like this Sorcha girl. Seems brave. Where'd you get this anyway?" Terra asked, cocking her head a little and swishing her tail back and forth slowly.
 
Kiki glanced down. "Well, some human was sitting outside the library and left it on the park bench. I tried to go in to return it, but nekos weren't allowed inside, so..." She shrugged. "I figured it must not be that important." She nodded. "I like her too, she's really interesting. I've had this four a few months now."
 
The room was dark and it didn't seem as if there were any lights on anywhere else in the house either. His fingers fidgeted nervously against his thigh, recalling in his head over and over again the conversation that they had had the last time. They told him the date, time and this was the same place as well, but something felt very off. Unable to stand it any longer, he reached out in the darkness and flicked on the light switch.
At least half a dozen men now stood around him, one of which stood directly in front of the door, blocking the only escape that he knew about. His head bowed and staring at his feet, he tensed, waiting for the pain of the men's fists digging into his flesh. It didn't come. Warily, he raised his eyes and with a sudden jolt of panic, realised that they were all smiling. Not the good kind, but the type that people only got when they were self-satisfied and hiding a wicked secret. Some of them were cracking their fists in their other hands, and it was only then that he noticed the tell-tale smears of blood that were proudly displayed on several of the men's knuckles.
 
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