"I know. That's one of the Elf things I don't have."

"Is your hair like that on purpose?"

"No, I just get tortured a lot so I don't turn into an Elf or have inadequately orcy kids. They let up some after I had the baby."

"Do you turn into an Elf if you're not tortured enough?"

"Probably too late. Might have been too late my whole life, I dunno, when my parents tortured me they told me it was so I wouldn't turn into an Elf because then they wouldn't love me any more."

This Elf is maybe having a hard time thinking of anything to say.

"...my adoptive orc parents," she clarifies, "my Elf dad probably killed himself before I was born and my Elf mom was kinda..."

Nod. "I, uh, I'm sorry that happened to you. Are you okay? Do you want a - hug, or -"

"...okay."

He raises an eyebrow.

"You can hug me and it'd be nice it just seems kinda funny."

"I, uh, know that Angband is horrible in all kinds of obvious and subtle ways, and don't usually care to let myself be upset about that because that'd make it good tactics for the enemy to throw tortured pretty girls at me - though, thinking about it, maybe that's not a bad incentive to set up -" he hugs her - "but you're clearly - as innocent as anyone sworn to the Enemy can be, and it's just - sad. That there's nothing better."

Hug. "What d'you mean nothing better?"

"We can't let you go, we can't treat you like a free citizen, we can't even spare most people fleeing Angband, it's that or this or Mandos and it'd just be nice if there were more than that."

"Oh. Yeah. Well, this is pretty okay."

He doesn't remove his arm. "You can stop with the thoughts if you'd rather swear to inform us when you get orders."

"Okay. I don't actually have to do stuff though, I space way the hell out when people're trying to torture me into swearing shit."

"I can't really believe that but I hope that you're right."

"It'd still be a problem if somebody reminded me real convincingly, just, isn't if a random Balrog says 'hey go stab people'."

"I am informing you now of my intent to arrange convincing fake 'reminders'. If you get a reminder it might be the Enemy or it might be the convincing fake reminders I am going to arrange."

"Ooh, thanks."

Pat. "So would you rather an oath than the thoughts?"

"I don't really mind the thoughts very much but the oath'd be fine too."

"Oath's riskier. If you don't mind it I wouldn't chance it. But either one would be acceptable to us."

"I don't have many things that need to be secret from you unless you decide to like specifically go kill my family in particular or whatever."