"Listen to me, Charlie, please..." Ophidia's voice was begging, and though she let him step away she didn't release the hand that had taken her own.
"You had the right to know. A...a minotaur is--was--is a creature from ancient Greece, bred to...to guard things. Bred for mazes. There was a story once, about a woman guarded by a minotaur and a man who used a thread to find his way to her and out again...but...but Arkady...he said that..."
Her voice caught in her throat, and she ducked her head again. It was just...why hadn't Arkady told him?!? It would have been better...but...Arkady was a man, and Charlie wouldn't have responded as well. ...Not that he was responding well now.
"...H-he said that...that you'll grow more savage as you grow older, that...that you'll lose the humanity in you, that only your keeper will be able to be around you without...without...being afraid you'll kill them. He said...he said that..." She faltered again, and shook her head.
"It doesn't matter what he said, I'm not...I'm not going to let that happen to you."