"Don't you think it's weird, giving us a break on our third day of training? It's not even a holiday or anything."
.
"I dunno. Honestly, I feel like I'm wasting my time. These tests are so easy, it's just some light combat and walking."
.
"Yeah, honestly, what's he testing?"
"Our patience?"
.
Aisha resisted the urge to spit on the young adults as raucous laughter rung throughout the room. Despite the fact that she cared very little about their opinions, her anger still brimmed, thinking of the physical and mental anguish she had gone through, literally fighting for her life in those damn trials - just for these kids to dismiss them as nothing more than a light exercise. Her fists clenched weakly, but eventually, she shook her head, biting her lip bitterly.
.
What was the point of judging these people? It wasn't like she had any right to.
.
The thought was sobering. Aisha unclenched her hands, instead exerting her anger by pacing over to the nearest wall and sitting down, pulling her knees up to her chest. The movement pacified her slightly, as she wrapped her arms around herself, breathing in slowly and closing her eyes. If she focused hard enough, it almost felt like someone else was embracing her, their warm, brown hair falling over her arms...
.
But it seemed like the universe was unwilling to even grant her this small reprieve, hearing a shuffling beside her. Her ears twitched, and her head turned, insult primed before she even saw who it was.
.
But the words died on her lips as she frowned, recognizing the figure next to her. The blonde hair and soft eyes gave Aisha mixed feelings - the healer girl absolutely did not deserve Aisha's ire and scathing comments, but she felt like slinging them anyways.
.
Seeing her just made Aisha angry. Memories of being saved by the timid girl flashed through her mind, of the weakness she felt, and the humiliation that followed - being saved by the stuttering moron was almost worse than bleeding out and dying.
.
"So how was your day off?" The girl asked amicably, a bright, friendly smile on her face. A normal person would have found it difficult to not smile back in return.
.
"Why are you here? Go away."
.
At Aisha's unreasonably hostile response, the blonde girl was too stunned to even take offense. Instead a confused expression spread across her face, eyebrows furrowing as her expression grew concerned.
.
"Huh?"
.
"Why are you here?" Aisha repeating, blatantly omitting the hostile remark she had tacked onto the end of her previous retort. "What's your reason for wanting to do this?"
.
Despite being rudely interrupted, and being asked such a personal question, the girl held her smile and answered, sitting down and leaning back on the wall as well.
.
"The sisters at my covenant sent me here to strengthen my magic."
"They couldn't do that themselves?" Aisha asked. "Did you sisters like you?"
.
There was a long, uncomfortable pause as what Aisha said sank in to the little girl.
.
"Um, I guess not." She said, unsure if she was answering Aisha's second question or not.
.
"You have no personal wish to be here?"
The girl bit her lip and tilted her head up slightly, thinking about her answer. After a few seconds, she turned back to Aisha, an unsure smile on her face.
.
"I want... I want to help people. Um... even though the other sisters at the temple don't like me, my sister... my actual sister... she's really sick... I want to help her. The others couldn't do anything, but... mayb-"
"How did your sisters hear about this place?" Aisha interrupted rudely.
.
Despite Aisha's open hostility, the priest girl held her patience, showing no sign of irritation other than a deep breath and a twitch of her eye.
.
"I don't know. They just gave me a teleport crystal."
"Do you still have it?" Aisha asked.
.
"Uh... yeah! Here it is!"
.
The priest girl fished into the folds of her dress, pulling out a large, glowing stone with a rune etched onto the side. Aisha turned it over, to what looked to be just a rough surface, but on closer inspection, thousands of tiny runes were packed together on the surface. While the crystal that her mistress used were small, crystalline, and broke on use, this one looked a bit more sturdy, fitting in the palm of her hand.
.
"It's gray." Aisha observed.
"Oh, it is? Weird. I guess it's still recharging."
.
"...What about the others? Have you talked to them? How did they get here?"
"Um... some of them were sent here by their parents."
"Some of them?" Aisha asked incredulously.
"All the ones that I've talked to. Why?"
.
Aisha didn't respond, thinking. The boys yesterday had also been sent to this place by their parents. All the people the stupid little priest girl talked to had been sent here by their parents, or some relative. It seemed like... it was almost like she was the only one brought here by the man himself.
.
Aisha bit her finger and began to knaw at the skin, thinking hard. The question he had posed was still in the back of her mind - why she was here.
.
The obvious answer was to get stronger... was she thinking too shallow?
.
Their reason for wanting to become stronger?
.
Aisha paused for a second. She had never really thought about it. It had always just seemed like such an obvious conclusion, but now, she seemed less sure. She was weak, so she should become stronger, become less weak...
.
It wasn't like she had to fight anything. Outside of training, the most she had to do was pick up clothes and walk around.
.
It would be helpful to have more stamina, to not get crushed by her mistress for sure, but...
.
...
.
"Are you okay?"
.
"I'm thinking!" Aisha insisted, face flushing.
.
There was supposed to be a "but." Another reason to become strong. But for some reason, she couldn't get her head off of the thought of that stupid fucking woman!
.
It would be so nice to be able to flip her. To be able to push her down, bully her. Then Aisha would have the power. She could do anything she wanted.
.
Aisha grimaced. Was everything she wanted, in that moment, encompassed by the desire to overpower her mistress?
.
.
A loud crack startled Aisha out of her thoughts of her mistress, her head darting around rapidly as she tried to pinpoint the source of the noise. The priest girl, as well, shared Aisha's reaction, looking around before settling onto the middle of the room.
.
It was that reprobate she called her teacher.
.
"Ugh." She muttered, unintentionally.
.
It was creepy, the way he looked at everyone without turning his head. Everything about the man just made him seem inhuman, although he was just human enough to the point where Aisha didn't really care; it was judt infuriating, not being able to read him.
.
"Today we'll be sparring. You-"
.
"Alright sparring! Let me go first! This has been so boring!"
.
Aisha wheeled around to face the boy who had spoken. It was Leo! The stupid boy had raised his hand, and without even waiting for Xelos's confirmation, had strolled up to him, grinning. He looked back at Aisha and the priest girl and winked awkwardly, in a clear attempt at feigning confidence. Aisha physically winced as he turned his back to the man who he had just challenged to a fight - who would be charmed by such an idiot?
.
Aisha glared at the priest girl as she smiled back.
.
Aisha was surprised the boy wasn't on the floor already,
.
Xelos did not bother finishing his sentence after Leo had interrupted him, instead moving to a more open space in the center of the room, motioning for the students to clear into one side of the room - annoyingly, the corner that Aisha was sitting in. She swore she could have seen his eyes shift over to her as he did so.
.
For a while, there was only silence, as everybody in the room stared at the two in the center of the room, waiting to see how the fight would turn out. Xelos just stared impassively, as usual, but the nervousness on Leo's face was palpable.
.
The boy finally lost his patience and stopped, breathing heavily, as he stretched his arms out in an open position. His hands began to glow a bright yellow, as Aisha could visibly see the air around him start to coalesce around him like a storm.
.
"He's charging up for a big attack!" The priest girl said excitedly, next to her.
.
Aisha felt the wind pressure emit outwards from Leo, her face being physically pressed back into the wall by the force. She looked around and saw that the other students in the class were also being pushed back, glowing barriers attempting to shield them from the force.
.
Leo brought his hands back into his chest, now glowing an intense bright light that covered his entire body, distorting the shape of his body.
.
Aisha was surprised. She thought that he was all bluster, but it looked like the kid actually was pretty powerful.
.
With a deafening roar, hundred of beads of yellow light began to fly out from his hands like a storm, physically pushing the boy back with every projectile. The room was filled with a blinding light, as each magical bullet, about as big as a melon, flew out of his hands. Aisha could actually hear the sound of each bullet impacting its target, a loud whizzing noise, as mana burst like shrapnel on Xelos's body. The loud sound of spellcasting filled the room, as the other students wowed and cheered. He was a gifted mage, although Aisha was unimpressed - she had seen far better before.
.
Uninterested in the display, Aisha attempted to watch the teacher's reaction instead, but found it difficult, the man's form blotted out by the bright lights and explosions. Aisha swore she could have seen some red, but it might have been blood from her own eyes, attempting to look at something so obnoxiously bright.
.
It had been a few seconds, and the barrage of yellow magic continued to fill the room. The loud magic continued to fire, but Aisha's ears picked up another noise, almost inaudible.
.
(Footsteps...)
.
The boy turned his head to look at the rest of the applauding students, excited to see his classmates' reaction to his arcane prowess, but before Aisha could even muster up a hateful look, he was suddenly on the floor.
.
Aisha hadn't seen anything, too focused on the kid, but when the dust settled, Xelos retracted an extended hand, completely unscathed.
.
"What happened?" Aisha's unwanted companion whispered. "Did you see anything?"
"No, it was too bright."
.
"Is he okay?"
"Serith, I hope not." Aisha mumbled under her breath.
.
Suddenly, the blonde boy's unconscious body was sent flying across the room into an unoccupied corner. This time Aisha didn't miss the movement - Xelos had kicked the body, treating it with the same cold indifference that he had shown to Aisha so many times before.
.
"Hey, what the fuck!?"
.
Aisha turned to the sound of the voice and saw the blonde's brother, standing up angrily from his sitting position.
.
"You're going to kick him while he's down like that? What's your problem?"
"He's not worth the effort of moving." Xelos said icily, gaze boring into the eyes of the redhead.
.
The boy froze up, unused to the tall man's gaze - instantly, his body turned cold, and his chest froze.
.
The dark eyes stared past him, like he wasn't even there. He didn't recognize him as something to even look at - Xelos looked at the boy the same way someone would look at a section of drywall.
.
The redhead boy clenched his fists, clearly restraining his anger, before pointing at the taller man indignantly.
"Dammit, you're trying to get me mad, aren't you!?"
.
"It doesn't make a difference, if you're going to attack me either way."
.
Aisha hated that she agreed, watching the redhead storm up to the tall man angrily. What was the point of even pointing it out, if he was going to play into his hand anyway?
.
The redhead's body erupted into red light, and he wasted no time with talking as he rushed towards Xelos, fist flying in a controlled motion. Aisha had to give him the slightest bit more respect - his movements were lightning fast and controlled, unlike his brother's.
.
And unlike his brother, Aiaha saw the attack that sent him careening into the open corner with his sibling - with nothing more than a hand on his face and a movement of his arm, Xelos shoved the boy violently away, physically sending him through the air.
.
At the display of strength, Aisha stiffened. But more importantly, the violent way he had responded to the attack was concerning to her - with that amount of force to someone's head, there was no way...
.
Aisha got up and began to creep her way over to the pile of unconscious bodies unnoticed, the spectacle of Xelos's strength captivating everyone else in the room.
.
"Hey, where are you going?" The priest asked, scrabbling up to her feet and following.
.
.
"Wow!" A student marvelled. "He's so strong!"
"He must be as strong as a judge magister, and we haven't even seen him cast a spell!"
"A little violent, though..."
"Don't worry, they'll be fine. Mana shield will protect them, even if they're unconscious."
"He might be even stronger than a judge... maybe even stronger than a ruby adventurer..."
.
More and more unconscious bodies were thrown into the corner as the more confident student stood up in succession to challenge the man, hubris, and a lot of peer pressure motivating them to walk up to the man and challenge him. Each were disposed of just as easily as the first, some students knocked to the ground before being tossed away, while others were sent into the corner with a unreasonably powerful blow.
.
He had gone through five more students, before Aisha made her way over to the pile of bodies, the girl crouching down to inspect their wounds.
.
"Oh, good idea!" The priest smiled from behind her. "We should check if they're okay."
"Mmh." Aisha mumbled, as she reached down.
"You really are a nicer girl than you let on, you know... you should act warmer to people..."
.
Aisha's blood ran cold, as she placed a finger on the blonde boy's neck. There was no pulse.
"They're dead." She whispered.
.
For a minute, the priest didn't respond.
.
"...What?"
"They're not breathing." Aisha whispered. "None of them are. There are holes in their skulls."
.
"Don't... don't joke..."
.
"I'm not joking, retard!" Aisha shouted, slightly panicked. "Look!"
.
Aisha moved one of the bodies' heads to the side, revealing a growing pool of blood that had previously been obscured. Bodily fluids poured out of the corpse in a slow drip, forming a trail as Aisha let the body go, hands shaking.
.
The priest girl screamed, and for once, Aisha didn't care, the blood rushing through her ears blotting out her hearing.
.
"What was that? Why'd Chiel scream?"
"Wait, there's something wrong..."
"Is that... blood?"
.
Frightened, no further students stood up, as Xelos tossed his most recent body at Aisha's feet.
.
"No potential." He muttered, letting out a short breath from his nose. "All gifted, but..."
.
"It's made you all so complacent... You don't have it... like her. That drive..."
.
Screaming erupted from the room, as chaos began to spread.
.
Bodies began to fall to the ground, and this time, Aisha saw it. Saw the thin, black beam that pierced through their bodies, completely bypassing any arcane barriers that the students attempted to place.
.
Some attempted to fling spells at Xelos, but just like the first boy, they had zero effect as they were blocked, thin red shields materializing around Xelos's body, each just large enough to block the spell completely efficiently.
.
"There's no potential here..." The tall man muttered absentmindedly. "I thought here... but I guess it's just hardwired in..."
.
"Maybe I shouldn't call it potential. Latent ability is so common, maybe motivation is a better word..? No, that's not accurate... Well, it doesn't matter..."
.
Xelos's absentminded musings grew more and more distinct as time passed, and the screaming and yelling died down.
.
Soon, there were only a single girl left in the room.
.
.
.
Chiel shook violently as Xelos advanced on her, falling onto her ass as her heel caught on a corpse.
.
"Why are you doing this!?" She screamed, throat hoarse.
.
"I wonder if there are still dragons around..." Xelos mumbled, not even looking at the priedt girl. "Maybe they went like wooly mammoths... I should look."
.
"Bastard!" She shrieked, tears begging to leak out of her eyes.
.
"She liked dragons... I think." Xelos sighed. "I don't remember anymore..."
.
Chiel closed her eyes as the shadow grew closer and closer, as the end of her life came nearer and nearer.
.
A hand gripped her shoulder.
.
.
.
...And shoved her to the side, moving her body to the left slightly.
.
Chiel screamed, but soon, the fear in her voice turned to confusion, as Xelos grabbed one of the corpses on the ground, lifting it up and tossing it aside violently.
.
"Y-you won't kill me." A shaking, familiar voice whispered from behind Xelos's frame.
.
"Then why are you hiding, if you're so certain? Why are you shivering? Why are you afraid?"
.
Trembling herself, Cheil was able to muster up enough energy to move to the side, eyes meeting a tiny frame covered in blood.
.
Aisha was completely silent, a mixture of fear and anger on her face as she stared down the towering man, head forced to crane almost directly upwards to meet the man's eyes.
.
"You saved me." Aisha said, voice shaking, unconfident. "You wouldn't have, if - if you were going to kill me here. There would - would - would be no point."
.
"Good observation, but flawed, like usual." Xelos noted. "I saved you to see if you had the proper drive."
.
Chiel saw Aisha's body physically freeze up as Xelos said his next words.
"And you don't."
.
"So then, that's it?" Aisha breathed out shakily.
.
"In a way."
Aisha's eyes sank, defeated. Despite not having exerted herself at all, there wasn't any strength in her arms. Her body had given up. Or rather... she had given up.
.
"In the end... i was... completely normal, right..? I wasn't any smarter, or... or talented... or even..."
.
"You were slightly more clever." Xelos shrugged. "But all beings are good at something. Most just chose to focus on the things they aren't good at, and wither away."
.
"In that way," He continued, "You are completely ordinary."
.
"..."
.
"If I had... if I had really put in the effort..." Aisha whispered shakily. "Could I have... could I have been someone... someone that could have been loved?"
.
"You could have."
.
Aisha broke eye contact, pressing her forehead to the ground, nothing but bitterness, and anger in her expression. A familiar expression, but this time, Aisha knew exactly where her anger should have been placed.
.
It was all her fault... her own. She had been given another chance, but she still wasn't able to give up those bitter feelings and resentment.
.
Strength returned to her body, and her trembling returned, though this time, it was from the pure strain she was putting into her fists.
.
"Fuck... Can you at least... tell her?" Aisha whispered. "That I should have been better..."
.
"You should do that yourself."
"...Wait, what?"
.
.
Aisha did not even recognize the change in scenery around her until her shaking hands met the rough, jagged edges of the stones beneath her, digging into her palms. Taking a shuddering breath, she slowly raised her head, until her eyes met Xelos's again, the angle making his frame appear taller than the building behind him.
.
"I can work with you." He said offhandedly.
.
"Remember that feeling of rage."
.
"Don't waste it. Be prepared for tomorrow."
.
And just like that, Xelos walked away from the lot, leaving the sun to blaze directly onto Aisha's form.
.
"W-what the hell just happened?"
.
The shrill, shrieking voice was familiar, but Aisha found that the anger that usually accompanied it was gone, replaced with a numbness in all of her limbs.
.
"I... I can't move." She whispered shakily.
"I'll heal you."
.
A pair of soft hands pressed on Aisha's shaking back, although magic emit from the hands. For a while Aisha just laid there, until eventually the shaking stopped, and she felt feeling in her limbs again.
.
She rose into a sitting position, carfully extracting the rocks from her bleeding palms and biting her lip. They would leave wounds, that her mistress...
.
"W-wait! Where are you going!"
"Home." Aisha struggled out, rising to her feet with a bit of exertion.
.
"You're just going to go home? After what happened?!"
"You should go home too. Nothing will result of staying here, crying. Don't tell the guards."
.
"Why not!?"
Her voice came out in a shrill, shriek that hurt Aisha's ears.
.
"You couldn't possibly be thinking about coming back!??"
.
.
.
It was still early morning when Aisha got back to the house, the sun blazing above on the little house on the hill. She hadn't ever really thought a lot about it, but... looking at the house now, Aisha had so many questions. How did it get here? How did mistress come to start living in it? Who built it?
.
(Why am I asking all these questions now?)
She slumped down onto her butt, sliding down the front door to wrap her arms around her knees. Bringing her hands up to her face... they were shaking. And now that she noticed it, her entire body was shaking too.
.
(I-I... I could have died... Why does that scare me so much? I-I've... never wanted to live so badly before... I-I...)
Her thoughts were answered as the image of her lovely, beautiful mistress popped up in her mind, and that familiar burn in her chest returned.
.
(S-She loves me.) Aisha whimpered. (I-I I I have to-to live... I want to live with her. She makes me so happy...)
.
The door opened behind Aisha, and she fell ungracefully onto her back, flailing her arms and legs clumsily. Her head hit the floor, and she got a full view of her naked mistress, looking down at her with a confused look.
.
"Hey, what are you doing out here?" She frowned. "You're getting dirty."
.
Aisha turned red, embarrassed to be caught in her moment of reflection. "Uh... nothing."
.
Lorian put a hand on her hip, pushing her waist to the side sassily, her lips pursed into a wry smile. "It's never nothing with you."
.
"W-well..." Aisha mumbled, unable to meet her mistress's gaze. "I just... sorry..."
.
Lorian's expression went soft, eyes widening slightly.
"That's... don't worry about it, Aisha." She whispered. "I'm not mad at you."
"Okie." Aisha responded, meekly.
.
Aisha attempted to rise to her feet, but found that the shaking in her limbs had yet to subside, as her knees buckled, forcing her to the ground. Before she could even brace her fall, though, she found her momentum stopped by a pair of large hands around her midsection, warm and soft, but also firm, protective.
.
"You're such a helpless thing, you know that?"
.
Aisha blushed red as she was scooped up into a princess carry, her body pressed up against her mistress's chest. The pure difference in size between them was made readily apparent by the movement - if Aisha wanted to, she could fit her entire body into her mistress's arms....
.
"Come on, Aisha." She cooed lovingly. "It's cold outside."
"O o-ok mistress..." Aisha said quietly, resigning herself to her fate passively.
Lorian stared at the submissive, blushy look on Aisha's face and frowned. "...Is there something wrong?"
"N-no." Aisha whispered, turning her head away.
Lorian decided not to press the girl and brought her inside the house, shutting the door with her butt. She carried her all the way to the couch, where she sat down, setting Aisha down in her lap and carressing her cheek with a hand. She smiled as the girl leaned into her touch meekly, nuzzling into the warmth and amazingly soft hand.
.
Aisha finally turned to look hesitantly at her mistress, and her breath hitched as she saw a wandering hand approach the top of her ears. She squeezed her eyes shut, preparing herself for the inevitable rush of euphoria-
...
Nothing?
She opened her eyes to address her mistress, who smiled down at her affectionately. Emotions rushed through Aisha's head. A part of her didn't want pets, but a much larger part of her screamed out for her mistress's loving pets and scritches. Was she teasing her?
.
"Mmmmm..." Lorian mused, putting a finger to her lips. "I'm always petting you. I'm kind of jealous!"
"W-what?" Aisha blubbered, dreading what her unpredictable mistress was going to say next.
"Mmmm..." She teased, drawing out Aisha's held breath. "We've got so much time, and it's been quite the long day. I think... today you're going to pamper me!"
"W-WHAT!?" Aisha exploded, her face going scarlet. "I-I-I-I-I-I-I-ca-wuh-"
But her stammering fell on deaf ears, as Lorian was already getting up from the couch, rearranging their bodies so that Aisha was sitting on the couch upright. With a grin and a playful wink, she laid down on the couch sideways, resting her head on Aisha's lap and closing her eyes contently.
.
"Make me feel good." She said softly. "You can do whatever you want."
For a minute, Aisha just sat there, legs tingling from the feeling of her mistress's hair, and mouth agape, shocked. When she felt no movement from the girl, Lorian pouted, whispering another set of instructions.
"Start with my face." She said. "Massage it for me."
.
Aisha blushed, but an order was an order, and she hesitantly reached out a hand to touch her mistress's cheek. She whimpered as the woman sighed, reaching up and taking Aisha's hand in both of hers, and nuzzling the appendage affectionately.
.
At the shocked and vacant look on Aisha's face, Lorian giggled. "Sorry, sorry! I'll let you do what you want." She closed her eyes again. "You just feel soooo good."
.
Aisha blushed again, but after a while, she returned to rubbing her mistress's cheeks, marvelling at the smooth, almost buttery surface. Aisha was almost afraid that she would rub it off and smear it on her hands. They were just so... delicate... and... wonderful. She shifted uncomfortably as Lorian sighed happily, feeling... unworthy of touching such a goddess's skin.
.
"Alright. Now... pet me please!"
"W-wwhat?"
"Stroke my head for me. Pat it!"
Aisha whispered something unintelligibly as she reached a hand up to touch her mistress's head, and began to stroke down awkwardly.
As soon as her fingers felt the back of her head, Aisha's eyes widened. Lorian's hair was so soft and smooth, she couldn't help but run her fingers through it.
She marveled at the feeling of her silky hair. It flowed like water through her hands, the strands falling from in-between her fingers as if they had no weight at all. Aisha lifted up a few strands and for a while, just watched as they cascaded down her fingers as she tilted her hands.
Lorian smiled as Aisha played with her hair. She knew something was up with the girl when she had come home looking so strange. She was a little disappointed though, at how quickly Aisha figured out what she was doing, and retracted her hand in embarrassment.
.
"S-sorry mistress." She mumbled.
"Don't apologize." Lorian cooed. "You can touch me wherever you want."
Aisha gulped. "A-anywhere?"
"That's right." Lorian affirmed.
"A-ny-where-you-want." She whispered seductively, emphasizing every syllable.
She subtly pushed out her chest and rubbed her legs together, drawing Aisha's attention to the body parts. Lorian could practically see the temptation in her eyes, as her mouth opened slightly to pant over her mistress's body. Her hands physically shook, her face turned red, and her breaths sped up, matching Lorian's accelerated heartbeat, as the small girl moved closer.
Lorian smiled giddily as Aisha's hand moved down towards her breast, the girl's gaze locked onto the smooth, scantily clad globe... and touched her tummy.
.
(Aw, come on! ) Lorian whined internally. (Just take me! Just take me!)
But despite how disappointed Lorian was, she couldn't help but smile as the girl poked her tummy, slowly feeling the smooth skin that she had spent so many nights laying on top of. She giggled as Aisha's touches became more playful and confident, starting to press down into the meat of her body, tickling her slightly.
"H-hey!" She laughed. "S-stop that! That tickles!"
Aisha jumped back, retracting her finger as if it had been shocked by a live cable. "Ah! U-uh sorry."
"Wait no! I didn't mean it like that! I... ah... oh dammit, nevermind..."
.
She pouted and sighed, her fun over and the mood ruined. She reached up and kissed Aisha on the cheek, nuzzling her nose into Aisha's neck as she returned to a sitting position. Aisha wanted to jump off a cliff to avoid the embarrassing, burning, loving sensation in her chest.
"Thank you for that." Lorian mumbled. "I love you!"
.
Aisha couldn't take it anymore, the heat in her face starting to make her head light, and passed out, right into the loving lap of her mistress.