A Sort of Freedom (Finished)

[ruma]

Two days and nights passed. Ruma had barely slept. Running diagnostics, taking measurements, she had just enough time to get food and a quick dose of shut-eye, but all of her work was dedicated to making Jin a free man. Or at least free from the dungeons. But it was finally finished.

Bag around her shoulder, she headed down into the dungeons. Night had fallen on the fortress and naturally everything had become very cold. Entering the dungeon, the smell of decay was around her again. She hated this place, and felt horrible that Jin had to spend multiple days here waiting for her. Survivor's guilt, she hated being at fault for something, and she blamed herself for this.

When she got there, it seemed that Jin was still alive, which was good. She had heard the guards had been a little rough, but they seemed to have calmed down.

Waving to Jin, she got his attention before reaching into her bag and pulling out a black metal collar, unhooked for now.

"Hi Jin. It's all set, ready to go. I just need you to come here and I'll put it on, then we can get you out of this crummy cell." For someone who was about to claim a slave, she was oddly cheery.

[Jin Reno]

Jin had gotten bored during his time in the cell. There wasn't much he could do, and the longer he waited the more restless he had become. What could a man do when locked up for so long he wondered, so he decided he needed to stretch out his muscles the best he could.

First up was the squats. Simple movements really. Stand with feet parallel with his shoulders and squat down before rising back up. He did this, and for about an hour, until his legs were a bit sore. But his boredom wasn't cured. Hell, it seemed worse now.

Push ups. Push ups were good right? Jin lay on the ground, supported his body with the palm of his hands and the tips of his feet, and pushed up. Ahhh rib pain, how dull it had gotten, but still how much it annoyed him. Still, Jin pushed up, and down, up and lowed down.

His shirt was folded up nicely to the side, and Jin was about up to 100 when Ruma came into the dungeons. Looking up from the ground, Jin smiled at her and pushed himself up to his feet. "Hey Ruma!" He said, excited that he was being visited again. However, she pulled out a small, black metal collar and Jin rubbed the back of his neck for a moment. "Alright. Well, lets hope it fits and doesn't choke." He said, walking over to the bars and couching down a bit.

[ruma]

Ruma went towards the bars and put the collar on Jin. Turning the knob, the collar locked into place. It dangled slightly, a bit big but other than that no problems existed. Ruma then pulled out a remote of sorts and took a look at it. She took a few steps back, measuring distances before putting the remote away and taking the keys from the guard.

"Everything seems to be working exactly as planned. Which means only one thing." She unlocked and opened Jin's cell door. "Welcome to your new life. Now let's go before the smell overtakes us all." She made motions for the door, beginning to walk that way so she could leave as quickly as possible. She did not like it down here. It was also nice to be able to walk with Jin as a companion rather than a prisoner.

[Jin Reno]

With the collar on his neck now, Jin ran his fingers over it a bit to explore it somewhat, before giving it a little adjustment and picking up his things. He put on his large resting shirt and held the others in his arms, Lisa resting atop them as he smiled at Ruma. He was glad that soon they would be leaving the dungeon, and even happy at the fact that Ruma seemed to be happy about it all too.

"Thats good. I really wouldn't like things to go differently when my life is on the line." He said with a small chuckle, the collar really feeling different on his neck as he walked out of the cell. "Thanks Ruma! What do you think, does this collar bring out my eyes?" Jin said with a grin, smiling at her as she began to leave. He quickly followed after her, moving his neck around now and then still. "You know, you get used to the smell after a day..." He added, shivering a bit at how bad it all seemed the first day.

"So, what do you have planned now that I am a free man?" Jin asked, walking next to Ruma happily.

[ruma]

As the two of them exited the dungeon, Ruma began to strike up a few topics. She shook her head and laughed at his comment about the collar. "You didn't need the collar for that." Now for some of the important things.

"Well first and most important thing is we need to make sure your rib fully heals. I will need you to be healthy for some of the things I have planned. Nothing dangerous, just two-person jobs. Putting up plating and some other things. Also, I took care of your mini baba while you were in the cells but you're doing that from now on. Damn thing nearly bit my fingers off every time I tried to feed it. Oh! Before I forget, in between running diagnostics and pressure checks on the collar, I made something for you." She reached into her bag once more and pulled her present for him: the hookshot from storage. "I know it doesn't help much now that you're a bit more confined, but I repaired it for you either way."

As they passed through the corridors, she noticeably walked with a bit of a spring in her step. She was very happy that Jin was out of the dungeons, even if, in a way he was still a prisoner.

[Jin Reno]

He blinked at her when she said he didn't need the collar when he joked about the eye thing, but tried to ignore it, simply walking with her and looking around them. Last time he came through this area, he wasn't nearly as energetic and had almost lost his head.

Jin listened to each thing that Ruma said, nodding and taking things in around him. He waited until she was finished before happily picking up the hookshot and pointing it around, but not actually firing it now. "Thanks for all of this Ruma!" Jin said with a grin. "My rib is feeling better. Kotone visited me the second day, brought me food, changed my bandages and rubbed the area above the rib with this cream, played a song. We had a nice little chat, and she stopped the guard from picking on me." He said, the hookshot resting next to Lisa on his clothes.

"Sasha couldn't bite your fingers off, but... well... she could possibly leave some cuts. Thanks for feeding her though, I was worried about her... but after what you said, she probably likes you now, so thats good." Jin mused with a smile, before he picked up the hookshot once more. "When my rib is all better, I'd love to take this for a spin around the fortress if you don't mind. It looks fun." He said, holding onto it, the handle of it similar to that of a clawshot.

Jin smiled at Ruma and thought back to what Kotone had said before, and in a moment of happiness and mental force, he gave the Gerudo Inventor a quick, one armed hug. "Thanks again." He said, before walking a bit ahead of her.

[ruma]

Ruma smiled, chuckling a bit. "I heard your visit went well. She really is a good flute player, but she needs support. A single flute can only carry you so far." She was happy he was happy about the hookshot. It wasn't going to be of much help, but anything to make him comfortable.

"You're a tough guy Jin, I think your ribs should be ok before too long. We'll have a couple of healing potions whipped up for you to take periodically. I'd like to do more but at the end of the day you're still only a slave, so my hands are tied." She responded to his hug by hugging him back, although she used both her arms. "You're welcome Jin." She pointed him to go a different way. They were going to her room, not the mess hall.

"You should be able to have free reins around the fortress and slightly beyond. Just don't travel too far without someone accompanying you or you'll be in for a shock." She laughed at her own joke, amused about the idea of him being shocked, though at the levels she programmed it for it wouldn't be fun for him. Non-lethal levels of course, unless he tried to rip it off.

[Jin Reno]

"I am glad we were able to talk though, apparently she is a history buff too, and there is a chance that she might want to take me going adventuring to some really fun places at some point. And wouldn't it be hard for her to play more instruments?" He said, not thinking all the way through at the moment.

Jin nodded and smiled at Ruma, glad to know that while he was a fast healer, they had set things up for him to help him heal quicker. "No worries, but thanks again Ruma... at this rate I might as well just say thank you every other time I speak, you are just doing so much to help me out." He did blush a bit when she returned the hug, and though he was a bit distracted, he did notice that they were supposed to go a different way. "Ah, right, coming."

He prodded after her, once more walking behind her as she spoke. He slowed down for a moment before getting back up to speed and walking closer. "So this thing will really give me a shock if I go too far? And if I go too far from someone who has my 'reins' they'll be able to shock me too?" He asked, his hand resting on the collar once more. "Theres... no chance this would go off accidentally... right?" He asked, a little wary of it.

[ruma]

Ruma made her way to her room, Jin following her. "She needs a band to play with her. More instruments that way. And there's no need to thank me. Just keep yourself healthy and you'll be more than worth any efforts." She unlocked the door to her room and inside lay most of her contraptions, functional and otherwise. A desk was littered with papers and the bed most certainly was not made. Even though she was only one person, she still had a queen-sized bed, which made sense since she practically was a gerudo queen.

"The collar is only programmed to go off under two stimuli, neither of which can be triggered by accident. It's perfectly safe, provided you don't try to remove it. I'll explain more as it becomes relevant. For now, lay on the bed, sorry it isn't made, but I just want to check on your rib recovery." She laid her bag down on the floor and sighed. She was still really tired from a lack of sleep.

[Jin Reno]

"Oh, a band. Well, if I had any musical talent I would offer, but I don't. And you don't have to worr... ok, you might have to worry a bit about me keeping myself health... I tend to encounter some interesting things when I am out adventuring..." Jin said with a nervous smile. As she opened the door to her room, Jin walked in and looked around, seeing how most of it was sent for her and her inventing, it was one of the more amazing things that Jin has seen.

He looked back at her when she spoke about the collar, finding himself once more rubbing it a bit with his fingers unconsciously. "Hmm... Well, thats good at least... and I won't try to remove it and I really hope I don't do anything to have it go off the other way." Jin said, shifting the collar a bit. He looked over at the bed and walked over to it, putting his stuff down at the foot of the bed, removing his shirt, and laying down on the bed.

He was feeling a little nervous, but she wouldn't do anything to hurt him. Right?

[ruma]

Ruma shook her head, trying to shake off some of the cobwebs. She was glad Jin was doing a good job of following orders, but she was very tired, and the idea of laying in bed was very appealing.

She ran her hand slowly and gently over Jin's ribs, feeling for anything out of place. It was about all she could do without doing anything really painful. During the process she was yawning like crazy. Eventually she just gave up. Removing her small side pouch, overshirt, and boots, all she was left with was her tan undershirt and black shorts.

"You're fine Jin, you'll recover in no time. But I am so tired I can barely focus." She climbed into bed and pulled the covers over her, yawning again. Soon she naturally found herself cuddling up to Jin, almost like he was a teddy bear.

[Jin Reno]

Jin watched Ruma and noticed that she seemed to be eyeing the very bed he was laying on with a bit of want. It then dawned on him that the collar she made, it couldn't of been something she had lying around, especially since it fit him so well and was made so well.

Had she been working the entire time he was in that cell? Was it partly because she had felt bad for making him feel bad himself before? Jin started to feel a little guilty, and he shivered softly when she examined his chest gently. He watched as she worked, yawning more and more, and he began to yawn as well. Was the bed this comfy when he first laid down?

Jin looked to the side as she got ready for bed, feeling slightly flushed at the thought of watching her. However, when she spoke, he looked back at her, watching as she got into bed next to him and pulled the covers over herself. "Thanks... and sleep well then." He said softly.

At first, it was a little too much for Jin as she cuddled against him, but that soon passed, his own weariness finally showing itself after his restless nights in the dungeon. It wasn't easy sleeping down there he had found out, but this bed felt amazing, and the warmth that the Gerudo was now sharing with him even put him to sleep, one arm gently wrapped around her.

[ruma]

It didn't take long for Ruma to fall asleep once Jin became accustomed to the cuddling. It was strange for her to have someone to cuddle with. She didn't exactly construct very many soft cuddly things. And to call Jin soft wasn't exactly accurate. But he was warm, and he was hers, in a way. It didn't matter now, they were simply two people who were sharing a bed and for different reasons were just really damn tired.

[Jin Reno]

The night went by easily and smoothly, and Jin hadn't dreamed a single dream, the entire night just seemed to be fine. The night went by without Jin even moving around as he slept, as if he was trying to not wake the woman who was next to him. Soon though, the night came to an end and as the sun began to rise, Jin woke up slowly and stretched out, feeling something strange against his side.

The realization slowly hit him as he remembered where he was and who just so happened to be next to him. Shaking his head slowly and rubbing his eyes with the palm of his hands, Jin looked down and noticed two things on his chest. One was Ruma, and the other was an slightly larger version of Lisa, which caused him to double take both things. Ruma fell asleep cuddling him, and during the night Lisa seemed to grow into a new form, strangely enough.

"Morning... I think we might want to get moving now..." Jin said, yawning a bit and patting Ruma's head.

[ruma]

Ruma's sleep had been quiet, undisturbed. She often has dreams of building some of the ultimate technology, releasing it upon the world, and being heralded by it. But not tonight. Tonight she needed to sleep badly enough that it overrode any dreams.

She woke up when Jin patted her head. She was laying on his chest, and had no issue with this. He was warm, like a second set of sheets. "Why? We have nowhere to go" she said groggily, still wanting to go back to sleep. She moved off of his chest but kept the arm around him, figuratively holding him there. "Give me more time, I need to calibrate."

[Jin Reno]

He blinked at Ruma when she spoke that she needed to calibrate, and he tried to figure out she meant by that. "Hmm... well, I guess we should just wait here for a little bit then I think." Jin said, looking up at the ceiling of the room, his arm around her, holding her. "So I guess today we are to just do nothing?" He asked, trying to figure things out.

In the mean time, he softly petted Lisa's head tentatively, the tortoise now about a foot long through shell size. Why she was bigger he couldn't tell, but from the way things have been, he wondered if she now had some sort of newer form. He looked back at her Ruma and rubbed her back softly.

[ruma]

Ruma giggled, burrowing into Jin slightly, keeping an arm around him. If it was that cuddling thing, she wasn't surprised people liked it so much. It felt good.

"You're warm. Are you always this warm?" she inquired. She always felt cold when she woke up, even in the heat of the desert she found a way to be cold. "That's how a lot of my days go. Eat, sleep, work on whatever project needs to be worked on, which is unfortunately a lot of them. Maybe with you around a few different things will happen, but we'll just see." She slowly began to feel energy coming back to her, her grogginess beginning to wear off.

[Jin Reno]

Jin smiled, blushing a bit and he rubbed her back softly, holding her still. "I see... it seems like you might have gotten into a bit of a rut with the way your life has become." Jin said, looking down at Ruma. He scooted up into a seated position on the bed and cracked his back a bit.

"I don't know if I've always been this warm. I've never actually woken up with someone else to compare with." He said, rubbing his head and looking down at her. "As things are though, I do hope that we can actually get things done and have more interesting times." Jin added with a smile.

[ruma]

Ruma slowly removed herself from the embrace of Jin, stretching out along the bed before working up the energy to get out of bed. She found her glasses and put them back on, blinking a few times before equipping her helmet.

"Well, over the next few days we'll have to get you accustomed to helping out the Gerudo, of course as my slave I'm top priority. We'll also test you out in live sparring, both with some of the females and the robots. Anyway, if any of the other Gerudo try to push you too hard of cause you harm, let me know. Even though you're a slave, we keep our slaves healthy. Some seem to forget that." She put on her overshirt and her pouch, cracking her neck and picked up a hammer off the floor, a floor littered with many of your tools.

"I'm going to go and pick up two servings of food. While I'm gone, pick up the tools off of the floor and just...put them on the bed." She decided with a new person here she should probably do something to clean up around here. He was just as much a guest as a slave, at least to her.

[Jin Reno]

Jin felt a little saddened by the fact that Ruma was getting up now after he had just started to get comfortable. He got up himself though, and started to get fully dressed in his own clothing, soon ready to start the day as she spoke.

"So I am to start my new life as a slave then I guess? Its not too bad though, the idea of getting to spar with some Gerudo and I will finally get to see these robots of yours too, thats exciting." He said, smiling as Lisa watched the two of them from the bed. "Yes Mistress Ruma." Jin said, bowing to her from the waist, giving her a little smile before he nodded his head. "I'll make sure to keep you informed then, you have my promise." He added, feeling it necessary to keep her happy.

When she spoke next, Jin smiled at her and gave her another waist bow. "Yes Mistress Ruma." He was enjoying this little game, and he quickly made the bed before he started going around and picking up each of her tools and putting them onto the bed, not in any particular order, but definitely not in a jumbled mess.