On The Ropes

What a fine morning. Clear blue skies with the sound of nature in the background, it’s quite calm and peaceful. A bit chilly, but wrapped in a warm blanket and a hot cocoa to drink, it’s still quite relaxing.

Now, if only I wasn’t tied to a tree upside-down then it would be perfect.

There’s not much I can do about it as I don’t have the means to escape my binding, though. The only thing I can do is enjoy what I have right now.

Fortunately, I’ve gotten more amenities after Aria’s visit yesterday. I thought that, after she got mad at me, she would give me smaller portions of food if anything at all, but that has not been the case. In fact, she addressed most of the complaints I made about being stuck here to this tree.

I received a couple of potions to repel animals and bugs. I got them once yesterday along with the food for lunch and I received another set today when I woke up. They only work for a day so I have to reapply them again, or so the note that came with it says.

I'm not sure if they actually work because I haven't heard of such a magic potion before, but all I can do now is believe in Aria. The bugs don't seem to come near me now, though, so I can probably assume it works.

I also got a book yesterday; it was a collection of heroic short stories. I now have something to distract me.

Last night, a thick yet soft blanket came along with the food for supper. I had a very comfortable sleep because of it. At least, relative to the past few nights.

This morning, I received a hot drink along with my breakfast to fight off the chill that the morning brings.

The only thing missing is a way to bathe myself, but I can live without one for the moment now that I'm not being feasted on by insects.

I wish I had a way to test the animal repellent, however. I haven't seen the foxes that were trying to steal my food since yesterday so I probably could afford to relax now, but knowing it works for all kinds of animals will give me peace of mind.

As I was mulling over the subject, I heard movement from a distance. Leaves are being rustled and this time it doesn’t sound like the foxes from before or something of similar size. It was larger!

As it came closer, I feared it was a bear. There would be nothing I could do to defend myself, much less run away, being hanged to a tree, so I started wishing I also asked for a pencil to write my last words with and tell Aria I would be haunting her after I’m dead.

Especially when she’s taking a bath.

Especially when she’s taking a bath!

It would be her fault, after all. First, for hanging me to a tree and, second, giving me a defective product.

I prepared myself for the worst. Then, it emerged from the bushes.

Time stood still as I gazed at my visitor and it did the same.

What appeared wasn’t a bear, but it was still pretty bad. Not for my physical well-being, but mentally.

The one that emerged from the bushes wasn’t a wild beast, but it wasn’t human either. However, my visitor is similar to a human in not only shape but also for having the ability to talk and reason. Although, they differ in appearance with the long pointed ears and the ash-colored hair.

It was a female elf clad in a forest green cloak.

“Oh my”, she said as soon as she realized what she was looking at.

“Oh my”, she repeated as she took a step closer.

“Oh my, oh my, oh my, oh my” she excitedly chanted as she rushed towards me.

“Fancy meeting you here, Erik”, she greeted as she crouched in front of me to meet me at eye level.

“Hello, Faeleth”, I greeted back.

I also knew who this elf was, which is why I’m dreading the encounter. I say this because, well, she has certain tendencies I am not comfortable with.

I continued, “What brings you here to my tree?”

“Just tracking a runaway boar”, she said as if it was not an important matter. She seemed more interested in the situation I’m in. She asks “What are you doing here?”

“Just hanging around”, I quipped, saying the same joke I told Aria yesterday.

I got a chuckle this time, but I wasn’t sure whether it was because of the joke or Faeleth was simply amused by the situation I’m in.

“How are you hanging without a rope?” she curiously asked while looking up at my feet and the branch I’m under.

I explained to her the situation.

“How fascinating”, she giddily commented. “Then, you wouldn’t mind if I tie you up a bit more?” she asked as she produced a rope from under her cloak.

“Actually, I would!” I exclaimed as I grabbed the rope from her, fearing that she might just tie me up regardless.

“Boo! But, you let Aria hang you here”, she complained.

“It’s not like I consented to being hanged upside-down here, you know?”

“I’m also curious, is abandonment play good? I didn’t realize Aria was into it. Is she enjoying your play, or is it more your thing?”

“I also did not consent to being left here and Aria didn’t abandon me because of some kinky play!”

“Boo! I guess I’ll just ask Aria instead.”

“She’ll tell you the same thing!”

“Then, can I at least whip you while you’re like that?” she asked as she produced a bullwhip from under her cloak.

“It’s going to hurt so no!” I raised my voice again as I grabbed the whip from her, once more fearing that she might just do what she’s asking of me regardless.

“Boo!” she pouted, looking like she had given up on her requests.

This is why I have trouble dealing with her; she was very into BDSM as a dominatrix and very open about it.

It’s not that I dislike her for it, however.

I first knew of Faeleth’s inclination towards BDSM when I asked her out on a date once. She was upfront and honest about what she was looking for in a relationship. But, I wasn’t into the same thing, much less was I a masochist, so we decided, on that one and only date we had, we weren’t right for each other and moved on but stayed cordial.

Although, for some reason, ever since she told me what she was into, she started asking if she could do certain things to me just like now even though I already told her I wasn’t into that sort of play. Eventually, it became awkward for me to even speak to her, but I can’t exactly tell her to leave me alone or outright avoid her. As I was a man of the forest, having a good relationship with the elves is imperative in my line of work and she’s usually one of my liaisons. Not to mention, she’s a long-time friend that I did not want to offend.

On the bright side, she always asks for consent first and does not force the issue if I decline.

“I guess, when you think about it, it makes sense you wouldn’t want to play with another girl now that Aria’s back”, Faeleth said, continuing the conversation.

“Huh? What does Aria have to do with it?”

“Aren’t you two together?”

“We just met for the first time after six years some days ago.”

“Didn’t you have some romantic reunion which led you two to fulfill your love after being separated for so long?”

“I admire your imagination, but nothing of the sort happened! The first thing we did was argue, then she hanged me to this tree!”

“But, you’re in love with her, aren't you?”

“Currently, I’m mad at her for hanging me to this tree!”

“Oh, but that is just now”, she cheekily countered. “What about after this? Weren’t the other girls saying you were still clinging on to her after all these years?”

“Why would they think that?” I had no clue what the other girls were talking about me. “It’s been three years since she last wrote back to me.”

“Just because she stopped writing doesn’t mean you’ve stopped waiting for her.”

“I stopped writing to her a year after, two years ago.”

“Two years isn’t that long a time, you know?”

“I’ve gone on dates with other girls then!”

“And how many have you gone steady with?”

“Ugh”, I groaned. I haven’t gone steady with any of them. I get a date or two, but never more, to my frustration.

“I mingle with the human girls from time to time so I know the things they say about you, would you like to know their reasons?” Faeleth asks, as she wore an expression as if she just locked onto prey.

A chill went down my spine. She was reveling at our conversation, which means the things she is about to say is something I would definitely not be happy with.

Yet, I was filled with curiosity that needed to be satisfied. I took the bait. “Yes, I would.”

A wicked smile spread across Faeleth’s face. “Firstly, you tend to take your date to places you’ve been to with Aria.”

“It’s a small town; there aren’t many places to go to.”

“Then, you tend to talk about Aria during your dates.”

“She- She’s a local celebrity; I thought talking about her would be a good ice breaker since almost everyone knows her.”

“Worst of all, you’re a mopey drunk.”

“Well, I admit I might embarrass myself at times whenever I get drunk and I can understand some girls not wanting someone like that, but all of them? I don’t get how that’s the worst.”

“A lot of them said they would have been fine with you like that, but…”

Faeleth paused teasingly.

“But?”

“Just after a few drinks, you would start crying about how you miss Aria and keep asking whoever is listening to you why she stopped replying to your letters.”

“What are you talking about? I certainly don’t do that.”

“Oh, but I’ve also witnessed it happening. Don’t you remember?”

“I don’t recall it ever happening.”

“Seriously? That only happened months ago. Remember that time we happened to meet at the pub you frequent so we started drinking?”

“I think I remember that…”

I have a faint recollection of meeting her once at the pub so it likely did happen. Although, I don’t recall what happened after.

“You only had a few pints until…”

Faeleth paused again, this time seeming like she made some big realization.

“Say, Erik”, she called for my attention, now with a smug face. “Remind me again, how many pints can you handle?”

Shifting my eyes to the side, I answered “I don’t know, a dozen maybe?”

I lied. I was aware of it being fewer than that.

“Liar”, she said.

My bluff was called immediately.

“When we drank, it only took you two pints to become too inebriated. From what the others have told me, that number seems to be around your limit."

“I’m a lightweight, so what?!” I exclaimed, now resorting to being defensive.

She snickered for a moment before continuing.

“So, wouldn’t it explain why you don’t remember sulking about Aria so publicly?”

“If that’s really the case, then how come nobody has told me about it?”

“I don’t know”, she said. “Maybe they’re all being considerate?”

“Then surely there should be at least one or two who are inconsiderate enough.”

“Oh, but you don’t know what you look like when you start being mopey”, she said, giggling. Then, wheezing, she continued “Your pathetic side really comes out when you’re drunk. The way you complain, the way you sulk and the way you cry is like a lost child longing for his mother. You look so wretched, even the coldest of hearts might feel bad for you. Ah, just remembering a man like you being like that is making me excited!”

“Alright already, stop bringing it up!” I pleaded as I covered my head in shame.

Is this why I couldn’t get past the second date?

I do invite the girls to drink with some friends. I also wondered why the boys and some of the girls I am with would always try to warn me about drinking too much. Is this the answer?

Then, there’s the daughter of the owner of the pub. Could she be rejecting my advances because she has witnessed that embarrassing side of me one too many times?

Meanwhile, as I am ruing my drunken behavior which has been unknown to me until now, Faeleth, with heavy breaths and flushed cheeks, has been simply enjoying watching me getting embarrassed over it.

This is specifically why I have trouble dealing with her. She may back down on physical torture if I say no, but it doesn’t mean she would not resort to breaking me down mentally.

Her fun doesn’t stop there as she’s having a field day recounting all the girls she has talked to who have had firsthand experience of dealing with my patheticness. This causes my embarrassment to pile up.

Begging her to stop just motivates her more so I stopped after the first few times

By the time she’s done, she was on the ground rolling around in muffled laughter. I was still taking emotional damage from her being like that.

Once she calmed down, she turned back to me and asked “Can I ask one more thing?”

“Go ahead, it’s not like I can feel any worse than this”, I replied sulkingly.

“No, I promise I’ve had my fill”, she said, still snickering. “I was wondering why you haven’t escaped from there yet.”

“You should be asking that the first time you spotted me!” I complained. But, it did not surprise me that her priority was to tease me first.

Regardless, it was not an unexpected question from her, who is also in the same line of work as me.

As a hunter, normally, we’d be carrying things that can help us escape man-made traps because there is a chance we could get caught by something made by somebody else, including magical ones. Even if magic is rare, we would still be carrying magic potions that can enable us to unbind ourselves from magical traps because it could mean getting trapped without a way out if we got caught on one when we're in the woods alone.

Unfortunately for me, I wasn’t carrying the potions when I was hanged to this tree, which I explained to Faeleth.

“Then, do you want me to cut you free?” she offered.

“I’m worried about the way you phrased that, but, no thanks, I’ll stay here until Aria herself takes me down from here.”

“Hmm”, she hummed with a knowing smile. “You’re willing to take on her anger even though you don’t know what you did. You really do love her.”

“Alright, I’ll admit I’m still in love with her!” I reluctantly confessed. “You’ve teased me enough for the day so leave it at that!”

It wasn’t a forced admission either. I’m aware of my feelings towards Aria. I was actually happy to see her when we met at the pub. I try to hide it since, having had no contact with her for three years, I thought I should move on from her. Although, I didn’t know my feelings leaked out of my subconscious when I got drunk.

“Then, I still have a job to do'', Faeleth declared as she stood up. With all her teasing, I forget that she was tracking a boar until she saw me here. She probably took the time to take a break. “Is there anything I can do for you before I leave?”

“Yeah, can you spare a drop of that enchantment potion to undo magic traps on my dagger?”

“I thought you were going to wait for Aria to get you down there herself?”

“I know, but it’s for emergencies”, I explained. “You were making a lot of noise when you came here, weren’t you? I would think you’re aware that bears have been sighted roaming in this area so, in case one appears, I need something to help me escape.”

“I see, but it’s going to cost you”, she said, looking like she was scheming something.

I knew what she was going to ask, however. I’m not going to like it, but I had no choice. Those potions were expensive, after all.

“Alright, but just once and untie me immediately, okay?” I reluctantly agreed to her terms as I handed back her rope.

She then handed me the potion and I immediately applied it to my dagger.

Afterwards, it was my turn to hold up my end of the bargain. Faeleth began working the rope on me expertly and it was done in an instant.

Once she was done tying the final knot, she took a step back and admired her work with a perverted grin on her face. Then, she took another step back. Then, another step back. Then, another.

At that point, I realized she was trying to sneak away from me so I cried out “Oy, Faeleth, that’s not part of the deal!”

Then, she just ran and disappeared into the bushes.

“FAELETH!” I screamed her name.

In her defense, she came back moments later to untie me. All while laughing her heart out and saying she just wanted a taste of how it's like abandoning someone.