I noticed that the woman was snapping at her Old Sir and shook her head. “Oh, it’s okay. He’s my Old Sir. He doesn’t mean me any harm.� She smiled brightly, the naivety just oozing from her every pore. “I was his slave!�
“AGhahaha…â€? Too late. The Man had moved to put his hand over her mouth before she mentioned that little detail. Hence…the nervous laughter. “Sheâ€"Iâ€"someone gave her to me,â€? he stuttered, “I never really wanted her, per se…her…she…ah…â€?
I spoke up for the Man cheerily. “My trainer and First Sir gave me away to try out on the public.� The Man pulled his hand away from I, running his fingers through his shaggy blond hair. “And my Old Sir has been very good to me up until now,� she added with a smile thrown in the Man’s direction, “so please don’t hurt him.�
Then it hit herâ€"she had no Sir. Her trainer had taught her specifically that if she did not have a Sir, she was as good as a cat decaying in the street. She paled and looked up at the Man, her big, bright, turquoise/green eyes twinkling with worry. The Man took a step back in surpriseâ€"she never looked that way at him! What was wrong? “What’s wrong, I? Your hand hurt a lot?â€?
“Noâ€"I don’t have a Sir.â€?
The Man blinked at her, unsure how to handle the situation before breaking out into a comforting smile. “Oh, is that all? You don’t need one.�
“I’m not supposed to walk around without one, Old Sir!�
“I, call me Fohn. I hate it when you call me Sir.�
“I’m not supposed to call you by your first nameâ€"doing that is an honor I’m not worthy of, my trainer says.â€?
Fohn opened his mouth as if to explain why this trainer was a lunatic to begin with before heaving a sigh, somewhat deflated. “Fine.â€? He looked up at Zareen, the constant battering of having to look out for I every second of the day showing through his wrinkles. “Is there any way you could beâ€"?â€? What was the right word to use around I? Certainly not Masterâ€"she didn’t know what that was the last time and…well…some man he was about to hand her over to…ah, never mind. “â€"her…caretaker?â€?
I looked up at the Man named Fohn. “Caretaker? She takes care of me, right?� Fohn nodded. “I can’t do that.�
Frustrated, Fohn found himself close to barking out his next statement at Zareen. Yeesh. The closer he got to getting rid of her, the harder it was. It took him a second to calm down. “Thenâ€"! Is there any way you could be her friend? Would that work, I?â€? I nodded. “Right. Her friend. At least? Please, I have to put her in a pair of trustworthy hands.â€? Fohn pleaded mightily, his wrinkles seeming to deepen more and more with every word.
((Ugh. Sorryâ€"trying to get back into the swing of things with I and Fohn. Sidenote: Fohn is pronounced “phoneâ€?. xD HAHA! IPHONE! HAHAHAAâ€"! [/bad joke]))