Dannon lingered in the hallway outside the huge cell door. Sure, he'd gotten himself a forester straight from the forest, but it was one which didn't like humans and even bit off their fingers when given the chance. He definitely wouldn't want to cooperate, but was there even anything he could say to change his opinion?

Judging from his reactions it seemed like he understood the language at least, but understanding and listening were two very different things.
Trust, understanding, cooperation... Dannon sighed and reached for the hatch. Here goes-

"Ah!" He jumped back as he looked straight into the brown-eyed glare. The slave was standing right behind the door, staring out through the bars once the hatch opened and nearly giving Dannon a heart attack.

"Good morning." Dannon greeted him, quickly regaining his composure. There was a certain glint in eyes behind the bars. At least it seemed the guy had a sense of humor. "Did you sleep well?" The slave stood, not moving a muscle and letting the silence stretch out. So much for pleasant conversation. Dannon sighed, crossing his arms.

"All right." He started. "You don't like me. I get it, but acting like this won't get you anywhere."
The slave still didn't respond of course, much as expected. Way too stubborn for his own good probably, but then again that was some of the reason why he was there.

"I know you can speak." Dannon continued. According to the slave traders at least. "I am a reasonable man, and I'm here to negotiate, but I can't do that until you talk to me." He paused, making himself look straight into his eyes to patiently wait for an answer. The slave wasn't the only stubborn one there… but there was a limit to his patience though, and after a while he started talking again.
"I have an offer for you."

The slave calmly turned and left the opening altogether. Dannon stared at the empty hole in the door before quickly stepping closer, changing his angle so he could see him standing by the open window. "You won't even have to be a slave!" He insisted. "You'd be more of a… subordinate, or…" he traced off. He hadn't really thought up a good term for his position.

The slave actually glanced in his direction before letting his eyes fall back to look outside the small window. He had bathed at least, and his earlier nearly black hair was now more of a dark brown.

There couldn't really be much to see at that part of the garden though. Dannon had never seen the point of hiring gardeners too often and the plants behind the house were rarely tended. It was about time he did something about that of course, in case his mother visited, but right now it didn't really matter. Unless…

"I have a forest too, you know." He tried, and the slave tensed up. He didn't move a muscle, but he was definitely listening. There was a reason they called them foresters after all. Some even compared it with a drug addiction.
"It's pretty nice, especially now during summer. If you worked for me, you could go there and..." The slave raised his hand and slammed the window shut before walking over the small bed and lying down without even looking at Dannon.
So he got a reaction out of him at least, but he'd hoped for a more positive one.

Dannon frowned. Getting to a level where he could reason with this guy could still take forever. He couldn't even see his face now since he was lying down, and that just made it even harder. Looking down, he slowly adjusted his gloves, feeling the impatience build up. He never was good at sitting back and waiting for things to happen, but if he wanted quicker progress he would have to turn to more extreme measures.

Swallowing hard, he reached for the door, ignoring the shaking of his hand. If he thought too much about it the fear would kick in, and then he'd never achieve anything.

The lock clicked open, and the slave instantly raised his head and whirled around on the bed.

Dannon stepped into the room and quickly shut the door behind him, instinctively closing his eyes. It was probably for reasons like this people thought he was crazy. The wooden floor vibrated with angry steps, and Dannon crept closer to the wall as he felt every muscle tighten with fear. Oh god. A short rush of air was the only warning before the force hit him, and his head hit the wall with a bang. His throat. He opened his eyes, seeing glaring slitted pupils up close. Too close. His arm was pressed against Dannons throat and he grabbed it, gasping for air. Too close to breathe. Too close to think.

"Idiot." The slave said calmly, with only a slight accent. "Open the door."
Dannon felt his heartbeat throbbing painfully at the back of his head. He opened his mouth, but his throat felt so tight and only a small sound escaped.

"Open the door or I'll fucking kill you!" The slave gave him another push and Dannon winced. He swallowed hard and closed his eyes.

"I-If you kill me… y-you're… dead" He stuttered between breaths. The statement had sounded much more threatening in his head.

"Don't mess with me human!" He heard the other hiss, and Dannon actually whimpered as the pressure increased on his throat.
"I don't have the key!" He exclaimed desperately, struggling to breathe.

His hold seemed to lighten slightly, and Dannon opened his eyes, hating the cowardly tears that blurred his vision. The slave was studying him, frowning slightly. He furrowed his brows, and the pressure suddenly disappeared. The world spun as Dannon was whirled around, and pushed, and then his feet disappeared beneath him as he fell into the bathtub with a big splash.

Water was suddenly all around him, and while it instantly cleared his head it also filled his mouth and nose, and he struggled, arms flailing, until he finally broke the surface. He coughed, spitting out water and gasping for air.

The slave was lying on the bed, calmly staring up into the ceiling, and Dannon leaned hard on the edge of the bath tub he was sitting in. He was alive. So far so good. He coughed again and calmly rested his eyes on the water surface. He could breathe. The slave wouldn't touch him.
His heartbeat calmed and logic returned, and he reached up to feel the bump at the back of his head. He was fine. He was sitting in cold dirty bathing water, but he was fine.

Eventually he stood up, taking with him a great deal of water as he stepped out of the tub.
The slave stayed on the bed, only glancing as Dannon pulled forward the small wooden chair and slumped down into it with a sigh. He started squeezing water out of his clothes and cleared his throat.

"So." He started, ignoring the slight shaking of his voice. "With that out of the way, are you finally ready to talk?"