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He shrugged “Maybe before the curse? Not since the curse, though Or at least not since Butler One was killed gruesomely and Butler Tas thrown from aSince I have been in this post, no, there has been no one new in this castle”

He scrunched up his face and slammed the wardrobe doors

“Tower!” he shouted at me “No one new has been in this tower!”

I put up est this cascade of crazy “Got it”

He gaveat the overstuffed chair in the corner Then the table beside it “Are you a reader?”

I came to attention “You have a library?”

He rolled his eyes “Only the best library in the wholenew since then, obviously, since the rest of the world thinks we just faded away Fucking de me His eyes widened “Holy fuck, you’re pretty” His expression turned grave “You’re not allowed out after dark anyway, but don’t go out after dark No one here will force you—the punishment is death if anyone does that—but they’ll be like flies on shit, mark my words You’re new and you’re pretty and everyone ant to shairls, boys who like girls, girls who like boys—they’ll all want to shas that you will need another decade at least to be co about So just stick to your room Read your books, fuck yourself with those vibrators, and pretend life is normal”

“I don’t kno I can possibly pretend that”

“Man, I wish I were you” He shook his head sadly

“You wish you were a prisoner in a castle, kept away from your family who needs you, all because you went in the Forbidden Wood to keep your father fro?”

“But did you?”

“What?”