Clipped Wings

What a tale. Shalia did not want to believe it, a tragedy like that for someone so young, but she knew it was very realistic. It was Islana's truth after all and she did not get the impression that this girl lied much. At least not noticeably.
There was a long pause before Shalia said anything. What did you say to someone who just spilled their life out to you? The little treacherous details of what made them who they are?

"You really do draw in chaos…" She frowned.

Escaped the hands of a man who wanted her for childbearing, dropped into the possession of strangers once more for the same purpose. Fleeing for years and grasping at the first opportunity to escape that you could find, all while being a witch. What a dreadful experience. Shalia knew something of that and it made this dig under her skin much deeper, crawling and gnawing on her body like panicked bugs. Most of the redhead's life she was a possession to be bought and had. Never truly been given a chance to start over since that lord would be obsessively persistent with her return wherever she went. She found herself wanting to reach out and sweep Islana's tears away for her, even if they might have frozen at her touch, but she had done it on her own. She had clearly done many things on her own.

"I wish we could have met on different terms. I wish you hadn't been dragged through your own personal hell, that I didn’t bring you right back into something similar and involve you in my mess. But…" Shalia thought carefully over her next words. "Hearing all of this now…your fate with the Kumik was no different than it was with this beastly Vasant fellow. When I traded for you, I saw a scared and beaten down girl who stood no chance among the clans. You've endured much. Please forgive my judgement."

She came to see great potential in Islana for more than just her magik over the past few days, potential that she might be able to cultivate in the future. She was proving to be someone the older weaver was interested in getting to know as they hadn't had much choice other than opening up to one another out here. The ability to connect with someone on this intimately human level had been almost entirely stripped from her all these years in Fang, so she valued this unexpected breath of fresh air. Slowly coming to cherish and have a willingness to protect. Really give the fire-haired woman a new opportunity if she wanted it.

Not as a pet. As a person.

Shalia sighed. "I enjoy my moments with you. But you may feel like your wings have been brutally clipped so many times they can never regrow properly. I’m confident you will fly again. Fly high like Kaithak.” She nodded to the nestled falcon with a promising smiIe. “We can all reach beyond our past, especially once this Alcuin is removed for good if your eyes were honest. I suppose now is as good a time as any to inquire about the man who sold you, the vengeful one? How does he play into your life?”