"I never thought I would be here again."
"And I never thought that I would live in a sewer again."
Circe slowly turned her head toward Atlas, one perfectly shaped brow lifting with mild disbelief. The dim torchlight caught the edge of her sharp features, shadows dancing along the damp stone walls around them.
"You lived in a sewer before?" she asked.
"Yes, I did," Atlas nodded eagerly, as if recalling a fond childhood memory rather than something most would rather forget. He cleared his throat and puffed his chest a little. "Remember the time before I lived in the castle? I was brought in during my teenage years, but before that… this was my home."
Circe stared at him.
"I lived down here," Atlas continued, gesturing around the narrow tunnel as water trickled past their boots. "I even made friends with the rats. Named them too."
She pinched the bridge of her nose. "You named the rats."
"Yes! One of them was called Mr. TinCan. Very polite fellow. Always shared his scraps."
