He followed the artist-knight into Fiona’s room, hesitating, hand on the door. He should shut it. This wasn’t his room. The client would want privacy. He should shut it. So shut it. Shut it.<em>Shut the door</em>. Please the client, please the Master.<span class="bbc_u">Shut</span>.<span class="bbc_u">The</span>.<span class="bbc_u">Door</span>.<br/><br/>The struggle started and ended in the time between one breath and another. He pushed the door closed behind them and did his best to ignore how suddenly he was trapped. He wasn’t, he knew, it was just a door, it wasn’t manacles, or – hah – belts tying him down. He’d been in a closed room with Master Ryan day one day and it hadn’t bothered him at all recently. He’d been in here with Fiona with the door shut. Just being in a closed room didn’t mean bad things happened.<br/><br/>He reached again for his cold place, knowing he’d not be able to move or breathe or obey if he didn’t stop this now. It took a few moments before his panic was smothered under the glacier of his mind. He had missed some of what the man had said – use his name, moron – missed what Sir Bereck had said, if he had said anything at all. If he had, it seemed to be of no consequence. Lucky.<br/><br/>The man settled in a chair, and gave his third order of the day. Sit down. That was easy enough. Natural and neutral? Trickier. He didn’t voice his assent, but walked from the door across the room and settled on the chaise where, a week before, he had shared with Fiona, the faint ghost of her lips on his making his tongue flick across his lower lip, hitting the stinging bite Master Ryan had given him, and he felt... better. The memories of their careful attentions were soothing. He relaxed back, and kicked his legs forwards, now half collapsed rather than the upright, ram-rod straight poise he had been trained in.<br/><br/>“Is silence necessary, or preferred? I have a habit of falling asleep when I sit still for any length of time.” He’d managed to work a wry, apologetic tone into his voice. While it was true, there was no danger of him falling asleep with Sir Bereck – any client – in the same room.<br/>