Mora crouched on the cave floor, mouth gaping. The man was beautiful. Sharp, violet eyes that still seem to glow despite the light pearl. Pale skin that seemed paper-white in the soft illumination. Thin lips stretched in a wide, fang-baring grin. Long, black hair draped down one shoulder and loosely braided into a silky tail.

“There you are.”

He is covered in swathes of black and purple fabric in some sort of formal robes. The colors were slightly muted as if fading from wear and time, though the garments are so obviously high-class. But that didn’t detract from the obvious strength of the man’s build as he sat laid out on the floor.

“Greetings, Mora.”

She shivered hearing the delight his voice. She snapped her jaw close and glared at him—definitely a him...probably—in defiance. She’s ten years old at the moment, she can be all irrational and weird. She’s totally not seduced or anything like that.

“Your teeth are all Vampire Lestat-ish. You sure you’re not gonna attack me?”

Cramming as much haughty disdain in her voice seemed to not work as the man only chuckled and moved his arms. Which, despite being draped with the robe sleeves and were really nice, were hung and restrained by a pair of old-ass metal shackles. Damned guy’s chained to the wall.

“This one do not understood half of your words but we already spoke of this. Have we not?”

Huh. He seemed to have calmed down from his previous predatory sneer, allowing Mora to relax and sit down where she was, picking up the light pearl to place it on a spot that let the light reach his features more. Toothy guy is truly pretty.

“Right. I told you my name. Accidentally, but still. So what’s yours?”

“This lord’s name is Slade.”

She mumbled the name, wondering why he’s staring at her like he wanted to know what she thought of his name. Maybe?

“It’s a good name. Cool and all-dark like. Are you an Edge Lord?” She grinned at her joke but flushed immediately when he only raised a dark eyebrow like some kind of haughty auntie.

“Haha. Um...You need help with those shackles? They look old. A few Rock Bash—haha—and they’ll probably fall apart.”

Following words with actions, she stood up to look for a suitable rock to slam on those chains. While she does, she wondered at the sense of safety she has around someone who, for all logic and rationality, seemed to be a predator.

Glowing eyes, check. Fangs and scary grin, check. Dark but delicious voice, double check. Chained to a wall in a cave that for all intents and purposes seemed to be hidden and abandoned—probably for crimes of devouring the life blood of definitely gorgeous virgin lady villagers or something, check check check. Mora, little girl, you should be terrified right now.

“Do not bother. If a simple rock can break these bindings, do you think this one would have remained disgraced here?”

Mora snorted as she continued to survey the loose rock near the edge of the pear light’s reach. You won’t know unless you tried. Also, I can hit you if you turned out to be an actively-monstrous toothy guy. Need rock. This one? No?

She lifted a few rocks, choosing one that looked sturdy enough to be used as an improvised hammerhead but light enough she won’t strain carrying it. Taking her new bashing tool haha, she made her way to Slade, stepping as close as she dared. Mora did her best to avoid looking at that peerless face, studying his bindings instead.

Okay she has biases with pretty men, but she knew how to poker face, she does. She knew enough to appreciate but not be controlled. She wouldn’t have aged a virgin if she didn’t. Aged? If that fall really killed her real body on Earth, she literally died a virgin. Damn it.

“Watch yourself. Don’t move.” She warned him worried about hitting him accidentally.

She ignored the derisive snort and approached the man’s bound right arm. She pulled the wide sleeve away from the pale wrist, absently noting that he didn’t have injuries on his arm that could indicate that he had struggled against the metal.

Mora touched the shackle that circled his wrist and tensed at the burst of pain that shot through her from the contact. She paused, waiting to see if it was more than just static, continuing her perusal when the sharp pain faded away into nothing.

The shackle was wide and clunky and made of some kind of dark metal that was already pitted and gouged as if it was more an ancient artifact than a functional binding. The chain has a bit of length to it and connected the metal ring to an ornate anchor on the wall. Made of the same metal, it has what seemed to be decorative swirly, loopy...are these script of some kind?

“What is it?”

Slade seemed to have noticed her pause even as she took the short chain in hand to find if there was a portion of the chain weak enough to take advantage of.

“You’re old right?”

“Hmm?”

She looked him in the eye and marveled once again in those strangely colored eyes. Thinking that with his teeth hidden, his face was damned gorgeous without the fangs making him frightening.

“You’re very old right? Like super old.” She shook the chains to prove her point. “Like metal chains getting dusty and brittle-looking kinda old.”

The smirk he directed at her was answer enough so she turned back to what she was doing, finding a link in chains though it was so slight. The chains were clearly made well when it was new, polished to remove as much of the seams as much as possible to avoid weakness.

“Hey ancient-man, keep it taut over here.”

Somehow he obeyed, keeping the chain taut to let the link she’d chosen stay touching an angled portion of the rocky wall that jutted out. She lifted the rock again and was about to slam it against her target when he spoke again.

“These are not normal metal, understand.” She glared at him, stone paused aloft. But he only continued. “They are enchanted to not break. You definitely cannot—”

She grunted and then directly smashed the rock against the chain. The two of them froze as the weathered metal shattered into pieces and clattered to the stone floor until only the shackle remained on his wrist like an ugly bracelet.

“Hah!” She placed the rock down carefully at her feet and placed her fists on her hips in a heroic victory pose. Mora didn’t realize that her small body only made her actions seem adorable.

“...”

Slade seemed surprised, his eyes glowing bright again, but he didn’t speak. Mora shrugged and lifted the rock again, heading to his left arm that remained hanging.

This time, he moved, helping keep the chain taut as he had done for the first one. She had to move his hand a few times to get the chain where she wanted it on the wall. She noticed that his skin felt cold, but she left the thought for later.

“You do not speak like a child.”

His voice was quiet and contemplative. Mora didn’t react much, she just shrugged. If I don’t acknowledge it, you have no evidence against me, bleh—

“Meh. Ready?”

She lifted the rock and confidently smashed it against the chain laid against a jutting portion of the wall. The chain once again disintegrated into shards, but before she could cheer aloud, something rammed into her and slammed her to the ground.

Gasping from the sharp cold and stinging pain that invaded her whole body in a single moment, she curled around her middle and raised her head to face the monster that she had stupidly released. Gad freakin’ damn it!!!