Criminal

"This is so boring! I wish you would say something. Walking is more fun if you talk at the same time." She whined. Jesus Christ, ten minutes with this girl and I was already tired of her. If she was poor I would have dumped her already.

"Ughhrehaggehhphh!" She groaned.

"What, Idril? What could you possibly want to talk about!?" I lost my temper. That means I will have to work even harder at charming her.

"Something!" She shouted back at me instead if cowering. Maybe women aren't so predictable after all. "Is it too much to ask to have a simple conversation? Have you forgotten how to interact with elven beings? Were you really locked up that long?" A dull spark ignited in my brain. Locked up... It had something to do with her name.

"I apologize, I have not traveled with company in a long time. I've grown use to traveling in silence." I tried to control my anger. "What would you like to talk about?"

"Why are we heading north?" She muttered. What is with her? She goes from angrily shouting to bashfully muttering in seconds.

"Well, since I am supposed to be imprisoned for life and, as you can see,I currently am not, I am perpetually on the run. Also I take up small jobs for money and that's where my next one is." I shrugged.

She fell silent and we trudged on. Our pace is much slower than I had intended, so when darkness fell we hadn't reached our destination. But a light layer of snow covered the ground so we must be close.

I set up a fire and cleared away a patch of snow so our clothes would stay relatively dry. When it came to me.

"The Legend of Idril!" I snapped my fingers. "That's it!"

"W-what?" She stuttered, looking terrified.

"It was an old myth my mother would sing to me. Actually everyone in my town had heard it... Would you like me to sing it?" Singing was my best charming tactic. She nodded.

"One. Grey night it happened
Our perfect king tarnished his name.
A tad too tipsy and a little too lost
He stumbled upon an immoral wench
Bad decisions, bad decision
Oh, poor Idril.
Born a bastard
An illegitimate child
She was locked in the castle
And her mom in the dungeon
Hoping to keep them hid-den.
Bad decisions, bad decision
Po-or girl, po-or Idril
Locked in a tower for all her life
Never to meet the outside world
Just to keep the king's name clean
Oh poor Idril... Oh poor Idril."
I ended and she was in tears, I pulled her into a hug.

"Sh, it's just a story. Everyone knows the king has never had a child." She wailed louder and I held her tight. I really hate it when girls cry, I feel defenseless. They are always so difficult to calm down. I opt for a tight hug and some head patting.

"Okay, you can let me go, I do not need your comfort anymore." She said with no evidence of the tears she had shed. Her voice didn't even quiver.

I thought i knew everything about women. But this girl is different. I can't figure her out. She's up and down, angry then bashful, breaking then strong as a stone wall. She is making seducing her difficult.

"I only have one extra blanket because we have to use the other for sleeping on, to have at least some kind of buffer. So one of us freezes to death or we share." I changed subjects trying to keep up with her mood swings.

"I believe this is what we call a lose-lose situation." She chuckled.

"Hey," I feigned being hurt. "I have been told I am a fantastic cuddler, sort of like a teddy bear."

"By who? Your cell mates?" She grumbled.

"Actually, I am quite the ladies man." I said cockily.

"You are just so charming." I could almost taste the sarcasm in her voice. I snorted.

"Fine freeze to death it's not my problem." This girl is unreadable, one minute she shivers in response to the way I say her name, then refuses to be near me. But she will be worth all the work once I acquire that pouch full of gold.

She laid there for about half an hour, the I could hear her teeth chattering from across the fire. I felt bad so I moved the blankets over to her and laid next to her. I decided to be slightly decent elven being and laid the opposite way from her to give her some space. Then I allowed sleep to take me.