Conquerer And Vanquished

"Forgive me for my incompetence. I have no excuse." Shu said, dread filling her as her grip on the young man tightened from seeking some sort of reassurance.

A silence filled the area, berating herself from her lack of thinking. Her eyes closed tightly for fear of finding disgust and irritation on the boys features, bowing her head, as it was only appropriate.

Her grip on his hands began to loosen, as she felt resistance. Opening her eyes to gaze at the young man, she took note of the look of discomfort from the light of the night. Quickly letting go of his hands, he moved them to rub his neck looking away from her in a sense of embarrassment.

"It's useless to apologize now, the past is the past moving forward is the only option."

Slowly agreeing with his words, she waited for him to speak, not used to being in the company that required too much conversation.

"Why are you out at this hour anyways? Small girls like you should be locked away at times like there. Drunken men usually tend to fancy anyone they come across in the dead of night." he stated, glancing around suspiciously, as if one were to appear and whisk her away.

Masking her amusement, she gave him a hard look. "Slaves don't have a curfew, especially if needed by one of the mistresses of the estate. Besides there's guards on the prowl, I doubt any drunk man would set foot on this territory."

The boy just scoffed, a hint of surprise making its way into the depths of his eyes. " When I say drunken men, I mean the guards...." waving his hands in dismissal, he faced her entirely elbow rested on his thigh from his cross legged stance ".... enough of that, I believe I heard you mention your current position as a slave, is that right?"

Slightly hesitant to answer the question that breeched her status, she nodded.

"You're correct, I work out in the fields. Why the intrigue?" she asked, burying her slight insecurity with suspicion.

"Oh trust me, no intrigue. I'm just taken by surprise that you're a slave. I've been mistaking you for a lady in waiting or a maid since this morning."

Tilting her head for him to elaborate, a smirk could be noted from the shift of his features.

"Well considering your method for untangling the mass of curls atop your head, I assumed you were a treasured pet of one of the mistresses, only good for company. Not having any sense for even the basic of things." he said, smug amusement being carefully hidden in his way of speaking.

Fighting back a smile, at how utterly ridiculous his way of thinking was, Shu crossed her arms feigning offense.

"I'll have you know that my hair has always been a burden in the mornings. Although you may have looked down upon me earlier today, that gives you no right to criticize given that your hair is buzzed down."

Bowing his head in defeat, he smiled. "Fair point, young lady. I surrender my teasing, you win. May I know the name of my conqueror?"

His smile was contagious. Engaging in such a conversation with someone similar in age had been nice. However, as Shu gazed at the boy awaiting for a reply, the realization of not knowing a thing about him had settled in her mind.

"You may, however before you do I must know the name of the vanquished." she stated, becoming desperate with salvaging any small detail of the hazle eyed boy.

Meeting her eyes, he gave her a dazzling smile whispering softly " Altan. Altan Ozkan."