Greenling
It wasn’t menacing in any way; yet, somehow the feel of her velvet glove against my skin, and her warm breath in my ear, caused my hackles to raise for the first time I could ever recall.
“Why, darling” she purred hypnotically, making my bones vibrate and my muscles loosen, “whatever are you doing out here, all by yourself? Where are all your maidens?” (‘Maidens’ was the term given, regardless of age or even gender, to those who tended and raised the Estate’s youngest inhabitants – at least until they were old enough to become a part of the family business, or else be relegated into becoming maidens themselves.)
I sucked in a breath, feeling fuzzy, even happy. “I’m sorry Madam Dro, they mus