Let's Play!

Finding herself out in the yard, swinging on the porch bench swing, she sighed inwardly as she managed to lay down as it simply used her momentum to keep swinging.



~~ A few hours later~~



Gazing up at the moon, having not moved from her spot, Victoria sighed inwardly as she thought about those at him, silently humming a little melody to herself, rather confused about what to do with her current situation.

After a little while of just standing there, Lot had paced across the room, his feet leaving prints in the dust. He walked over to the thick purple curtain and gave it a tug, pulling it back enough so that he could easily maneuver the painting he held to the other side. The man paused for a minute, gazing at the table with a yellowing tablecloth that draped to the floor.



His eyes brushed over a small box that looked like it might hold jewelry or something of the like. There was a picture frame turned down so that its face was not exposed. Beside that was a long piece of silky blue fabric and a few papers stacked neatly. Lot sighed and moved to hang the painting on a nail above the display.



The sound of It echoed through the house, though only distantly in this part. Lot didn't think anything of it at first, but then remembered Elizabeth. The man turned promptly and whisked out of the room, inadvertently leaving the door unlocked behind him.



He found Elizabeth outside, humming something he couldn't quite put his finger on.



"What is that?"

" A song my mother sang to me when I was little.... "



Victoria explained softly, not even looking to her master, seeming to be long gone now. Talk about becoming homesick, and potentially depressed, he'd sent her into it, he should feel proud...Sort of.

Well, that would explain why he couldn't name it. The man stepped forward a few paces, looking her over. There was something... off. Another thing he couldn't quite put his finger on.



"Are you sure that you didn't get hurt?" Not everything bled externally... (And in some cases, more than one way.)

Looking up at her master with rather void eyes, she nodded slowly, looking back off as she thought about things, mind drifting to her best friend, who probably had forgotten about her, ... Her father that had probably passed on by now.... Her mother's grave sight that she missed..... Her brothers...



With a small sigh, she snuggled down tighter on the swing, not careing as it started raining, the porch protecting her ( Until the wind shifted and blew it right towards her).

Lot moved closer, the crease in his brow deepening as he reached out and grabbed the swing, pulling it back in an attempt to keep her dry.



"Are you sick?" He reached down and lay a cool hand to her forehead.

" no."



She replied honestly, unable to explain depression, as it was the first time she had gone through it, eyes wondering out over the grounds, not bothering her master's hand. The sad part was, it wasn't just family she was depressed over. ..... Lot was a good chunk too. He'd made her realize that even if he liked him, and he might take care of her.... She could sense the lack of feelings, and given she'd been raised with care, constantly around those that loved her and worried over her... it was almost as if she was being emotionally starved.

Lot sighed slightly, not feeling a fever. It was kind of funny, like the parlor trick he had pulled on Anna. The person he touched would always assume they were feverish because his skin was so much cooler. But that didn't mean he didn't know what he felt.



"Then what's wrong?"

Victoria simply shrugged, honestly not knowing herself, as it was the first time she'd dealt with it, looking to the ground now as she pulled into herself more, curling up more, trying to will herself to sleep.... it wasn't working.

Lot didn't say anything now. Instead he let go of the swing, getting frustrated. For another minute he just stared at her.



"Fine." Then he left.

Victoria jumped as she thrust the swing forward, now gettign hurt as she smacked her head on one of the rails to the porch, wincing and biting back tears as he walked away, chest starting to ache with all her other worries... She was currently more miserable then she'd been in the trade house, and she didn't think that was possible as her head throbbed, feeling something sticky in her hair.

Lot was back in a matter of seconds. He breezed out of the door.



"What happened?" His voice sounded almost urgent.

Tears pouring down her cheeks, she merely pointed to her head, thoughts starting to scramble about in a messy slew of indeterminable things. In pain, and heart ache ( as she was essentially letting Lot go emotionally, every way she knew how, as well as her family) she simply cried as her hand was slowly coated in her own blood.

Lot's pupils constricted and he walked forward. The man bent forward to gently put one hand behind her back and one to her elbow. He couldn't understand what she was saying through her tears. He moved with the hope that she would stand with him.



"Come on, lovely." His voice was smooth. Actually, it sounded like he cared. "Let's get you inside and take a look at it."

Moving with him, simply out of instinct, she couldn't stop crying though, her hysterics did stop, still unable to make any sense as he lead her.

Lot lifted her onto a bathroom counter, pulling her hand away. He inhaled sharply as his eyes rested on a wonderful gash. It was all he could do to keep his hands steady as he pulled the things out of the cabinet to clean her up.



"I think that we should take you to a doctor. To examine the inside."

Nodding slowly, she did as she wasn't in a position to argue as the nodding caused her head to throb worse, wincing and crying a bit more, waiting on him to call the shots. she wasn't even really aware he was her master right now.

Lot hand cleaned it and dressed it with a firm press. He was plenty practiced for that. The problem was that his teeth were burning and his mouth was watering. Lot gritted his teeth and disappeared for a moment, returning as he clicked a phone.



"Here sweetheart." He carefully wrapped a blanket around the girl and picked her up.



"Doing okay?"

" It hurts... I'm cold."



She said softly, rain covered... now she was coming down with a bug....

Lot shoved a cell phone in his pocket as he carried the woman out. The man walked out and back across the hidden path that he had first brought Elizabeth across. He was watching her carefully, very carefully. At the road there would be a car that would take them to the hospital. Thank you cell phones.

Shivering, Victoria dosed in and out, as blood lose tended to make you ligght headed, tears pretty much gone, even if the pain was there, not sure where she was being taken at this point, simply there for the ride.

Surprisingly, it didn't take more than twenty minutes to get into a hospital. It was almost strange. The nurses nodded politely, and Lot was shown a doctor immediately. The doctor looked at Elizabeth.



"What happened?" He didn't ask any of the biographical questions like normal.

Victoria looked up at him, through very clouded eyes, as she heard his question from a distance, in pain as she took a shallow breath, not realizing how close she was to passing out as she started to sweat.

Lot and the doctor both were looking at the girl. After all, Lot hadn't actually seen what had happened. The doctor threw away the bandage, his tone automatic as he reached to adjust her.



"Let her lay back. I'll send for the techs to prep the CAT scanner and we'll put in a couple stitches." He pulled out a drawer and grabbed some smelling salts and a magazine, handing them to Lot.



"It seems rudimentary, but that's all I can give you." His eyes drifted to the girl.



"Stay with us, now."

His words were like little kid babble as her eyes slowly drifted shut, unable to make out faces, or even shapes as she fell back into sleep, lost to the blood loss comma she was pushed into. resting in painful, but dreamless unconsciousness, she was unaware of what was happening about her.

Lot and the doctor both tried to revive the girl for a minute or so before the stranger began to hook her up to machines that monitored her vital signs. Lot's expression pinched throughout all of this. Had he just managed to kill off another one?



It wouldn't be long. Prepping was a fairly quick process. Even the stitches should happen fairly fast.

Unaware when, or where, Victoria opened her eyes slowly to a dim light in her face, setting up slowly, head feeling as if it'd been cracked in half. as she set up, she promptly vomited all over bedding, floor, and surrounding attendants, wincing as tears fell from all the pain it was causing her.

Lot couldn't hold in the short little chortle at watching everyone leap back. However, he seemed almost sickly in appearance himself, kind of like a man living amongst the feverish squalor and rats. The man stepped forward, running his hand over her head.



"They say that you'll live. And they're giving you the good stuff." Lot rattled a bottle of prescription pain meds.

" .... Who are you?"



Victoria asked, confused from everything going on, and everything she'd just gone through. .. Needless to say, she was having something similar to Dorysyndrome.

Lot's half-grin suddenly turned into a deep frown and a profanity escaped from him. One of the nurses glanced at him, but it didn't seem that she really wanted to chastise him. At least not out loud. She wouldn't dare to. Lot looked the girl square in the eyes.



"Lot. Remember?"

The vulnerability that crossed her face, followed by clear depression answered his question as her mind worked through the medicated haze in an instant, swallowing hard as she attempted to nod slightly, looking away now. It was hard to hide one's emotions in a state like this. So, that being said, she was currently trying not to cry.

It was kind of funny. The nurses were kind of rushing him out, but in a manner that said they really didn't want him to make a scene. Lot, being somewhat of a gentleman, allowed himself to be bustled out of the room. The nurses were fussing over the woman, when an older lady whispered to her.



"Do you need help? Do I need to call someone?"

Not thinking that she'd be in a place where slavery wasn't allowed, she merely shook her head (causing her to throw up into the trash can beside her bed) and let her tears fall.



" No."



She mumbled as her voice broke, in physical and emotional agony now.

The elderly woman was the one who cleaned up the mess, treating Elizabeth in a daughterly way. She offered the girl a glass of water, checking over her vitals and such.



"Are you sure sweetheart? I mean... I would hate to see what that man could do to such a pretty girl."

Victoria simply cried a bit harder, nodding slightly, looking as if she were in utter despair, letting herself be consumed in her depression while she could have it. It wasn't long however, before she was nodding off, due to the strong medication she was on.

And it wasn't long either until Lot returned. He sat in her room, signing papers and forking over some funding. (As a side note, his penmanship was very decorative with loops and curls of old handwriting - but you still couldn't read a word it said.) He would wait for the woman to wake up and then he would take her home. Just simply because it looked odd to be carrying an unconscious person out of a hospital.

Waking in the middle of the nest morning, she woke to see the doctor standing over her, placing three or four different bottles at her feet, explaining to Lot what they were for, as the doctor seemed to think she was still out.



" This one is for her aches and pains, this one is a muscle relaxant, this ine will help keep her coherent and help her heal faster.... And this last one is an anti-depressant. I would like to see her in about two weeks for a follow up."



He finished as he looked over Victoria, having had too many nurses complain about the patient being depressed not to try helping that out.

Lot simply picked up the bottles, tucking them into his coat pocket. He seemed rather indifferent outside, but on the inside he was somewhere between baffled and aggravated. Oh, and by now he was looking even more sickly. His skin was an odd, sallow color and his eyes seemed somewhat sunken. Still, he nodded and acted as if nothing were wrong.



"Of course." No thank you. No nothing. The man's eyes turned to Elizabeth piercingly.

Victoria simply looked up at her master, washed out, dehydrated, and very hungry, simply letting the nurse that came in dress her in some outfit she'd never seen before and place her in a wheel chair, insisting that they have to wheel her out.

Lot took her out to the street, opening the car. He now had a frown permanently plastered on his face as he waited. For once, though, he didn't say anything. Judging by his appearance, though... Maybe that was a good thing.