“No, why would I miss you? You’re terrible.” Holly’s voice cracks as she lays down and turns her back towards Susan.  Susan giggles a bit and opens the cage door, gently running her fingertip over Holly’s bruised shoulders.

“Look at all those bruises…” Susan says in a hushed tone as Holly sucks air through her teeth and squirms a bit, arching her tiny back and moving away from the finger.  

“Does that hurt? Hmm?” Susan asks as she pinches the tiny girl and rips her from the cage, allowing her to dangle from between her thumb and index finger in front of her face.  Holly falls limp, lacking the energy to struggle.  “I asked you a question.” Susan says.

“Yes...It hurts.” Holly cringes, beginning to stir uncomfortably between the two meaty pads of Susan’s fingertips.  “Please put me down.” The tiny girl whines, her voice slowly becoming more desperate as pain starts to flood her senses.

“Good, soak that feeling in, really think about it, it is unpleasant, isn’t it?” Susan asks as she gives Holly a quick squeeze between her fingertips, causing her ribs to compress.  

“Unghn.” Holly moans miserably as she falls forward, her head hanging limply in the air, her long hair cascading downward like a small curtain.

“I asked you a question.” Susan says.

“Yes…” Holly pants.  “It’s unpleasant, please stop.” Holly pleads as Susan places the small bowl of birdseed into the cage. The giant woman then proceeds to lift the small bottle cap that Holly had used as a makeshift toilet, carefully out of the cage.

“People feel this every day of their lives. If you had the power to help them, to alleviate their suffering, would you?” Susan asks as she closes the cage door and walks over to the desk.

“Please...Please, I’m so hungry!” Holly whines as she weakly writhes between the massive fingertips.  Susan chuckles to herself and sits down in front of the computer, switching it on and placing Holly on the desktop.  Susan tosses the bottle cap into a wastebin as she continues to hold Holly hostage between her fingertips. The giant woman squeezes the little girl once again, causing her to cry out in agony.

“I asked you a question, and it was not if you were hungry.” Susan says, her tone dripping with venom.  

“Yes!” Holly squeals through her tears, only to cry out in agony again as Susan’s fingertips grind her little body once more.

“The truth Holly Bryant! I told you, do not tell me what you think I want to hear, because what I want to hear is the truth…” Susan says as she lays the tiny girl flat on her back, pressing her fingertip on top of her.  Holly struggles and pants as the fingertip smothers most of her body.

“No…” Holly whimpers.

“No what? No don’t hurt you? Or no you would not help those poor, poor people?” Susan asks as she applies a bit of pressure to Holly’s body.  Spots begin to form in front of Holly’s eyes and she grows light headed as she tilts her head to the side.

“I wouldn’t help them, but you already knew that, so why are you even asking?” The tiny girl says in a faint tone.  

“It says right here…” Susan types away at her gigantic keyboard, and clicks her mouse a few times.  “That your parents donated over five million dollars to various charities last year, your mother even volunteered over sixty hours in soup kitchens.  Were you with her?” Susan asks, still resting her finger on the girl.

“No, my mother is weird…” Holly pants.

“Weird?” Susan snorts.  “The woman is a saint.” Susan says in a gentle voice as she plucks Holly up and walks back over to the cage.   The giant woman opens the door and gently places Holly inside before closing it again.  “In fact…” Susan says as she slides the water bottle downwards, positing it so that tiny Holly can easily reach it without straining herself.

“You can thank her for the sustenance you are about to receive.” Susan says as she bends down and looks inside of the cage, watching as Holly climbs to her feet.

“Why should I thank her?” Holly says as she stumbles towards the bottle, falling to her knees and greedily pressing her lips against it. The water flowing down Holly’s throat feels like the sweetest gift she had ever received in her life, however, the fact that she did not have to struggle for it felt a bit off somehow.

“She is the one that left me on the highway, if it was not for her, I wouldn’t be in this situation.” Holly says, her voice already becoming clearer and less raspy. The tiny girl presses her lips to the straw once again.

“We all love to blame our parents for our own shortcomings. But in reality, she is not the reason you are here.” Susan explains as Holly crawls over to the bowl of seeds, digging her hands inside and plucking out a few, which she lays at her feet.  She sits down and begins eating them one by one.

“Then why am I here, besides the fact that you are purely psychotic? Holly asks. The tiny girl screams as the floor tilts upwards against her, her body, along with the seeds, and the bowl slide towards the back of the cage. Holly hits the bars in back of the cage painfully before everything levels out.  She flops to her face and groans miserably, slowly climbing to her hands and knees.

“Have you forgotten that I am much bigger than you my little songbird? Apologize.” Susan demands.

“I’m sorry…” The tiny girl says, defeatedly.  

“You are here because of you Holly Bryant, no one else.  I was just going to give you a bottle of water and a lift, and instead you acted like the spoiled bitch that you are.” Susan explains as Holly climbs to her knees, looking across the cage, and out at the familiar sight of Susan’s freckled face.

“That and I had just eaten my last little captive...” Susan trails off, looking away before giggling.  

“Woopsie! I guess I let that cat out…” Susan grins.  Holly’s eyes grow wide and her heart slams in her chest.

“Eaten?! You’re going to eat me?!” Holly shrieks.

“Yes, that is unless you are a good little astronomer.” Susan giggles before rolling her tongue slowly across her giant lips.

“Scared?” The giant woman asks as she clamps the cage between her huge palms, rocking it back and forth and knocking Holly to her side.  The sound of seeds skittering against the floor of the cage fills Holly’s ears.   

“Yes!” Holly whimpers, placing her hands on the floor and pulling herself up.

“Good, eat… I still haven’t forgotten about my nails, you have ten minutes.” Susan says in a stern tone before rising to her full height and walking over to her desk.  She sits down and begins typing away again, leaving Holly ponder on a few things.

“Astronomer?” The tiny girl asks herself as she walks over to the bowl of seeds, scooping a hand into it, and pulling out a few.  She nibbles at them as she looks at Susan, wondering why the woman typed so much, and what she did for a living.  It was apparent to the tiny girl that Susan worked from home, which only made matters worse for Holly, since the woman was available to torture her all day, everyday.  Holly eats as many seeds as she can, and bends down in front of the water bottle again, pressing her lips against the bottle and drawing out a few mouthfuls.  Holly can feel her strength slowly return as her body begins to accept the food and drink.  A moment later Susan stands up and approaches the cage. The giant woman grasps the water bottle in her hand, and in an instant Holly watches as it is pushed to the top of the cage, well out of her tiny reach.  

“Free ride is over Ms. Bryant.” Susan says as she opens the cage door, laying her hand on the cage floor, palm up.  “Get on.” Susan commands.  Holly stands up, and timidly walks towards the gigantic hand, stepping up and sitting in the middle of the warm palm. “Good girl!” Susan coos as she slowly brings her hand out of the cage, and closes the cage door.

“So what were you dreaming about?” Susan asks as she carries Holly over to the desk, gently lowering her hand and resting it on the smooth desktop.  Holly immediately stands up and walks towards the side of the hand, sitting down she slides herself off and onto the desk.  The hand disappears and Susan sits down in front of Holly.  

“I was dreaming about...Bruce, our cook.  And I was dreaming about my mother, and you.” Holly admits as Susan opens the draw and produces a small emery board.  The giant woman snaps a small end off of the nail file and places it in front of the tiny girl.  Holly looks down at the large piece of wood by her feet, she bends down and grips the saw sized chunk in both hands.  

“I...Don’t know how to file nails.” Holly admits timidly, swallowing hard as she rises to her full, miniscule height.

“Oh I see, well that makes sense, you’ve probably never had to do it yourself…” Susan says as she picks up the broken files in her free hand.  She spreads out her gigantic fingers before Holly, and begins to file her nail, giving the little girl a good demonstration.

“You’re not going to put me down, and torture me for not knowing how?” The tiny girl asks timidly as she kneels in front of Susan’s index finger and brings her smaller file to bear on the nail, using both of her hands to run it back and forth against it.  

“Not at all my little astronomer.” Susan says as she sighs contently, her eyes darting to the huge computer screen.  

“You are very confusing…” Holly says as she continues her work, smoothing out Susan’s gigantic fingernail, sweat beginning to glisten on her forehead. Hollys arms and back immediately scream in pain as she works, but she simply grits her teeth, sucking it up.

“Or you are simply very confused.” Susan says as Holly stops filing the nail in front of her.

“How’s that?” The tiny girl pants.  Susan lifts her hand and inspects the nail, giggling a little bit before placing it down before Holly again.  

“Not even close…” Susan grins.  Holly closes her eyes, her tiny jaw hanging open the slightest bit.  The tiny girl sighs as she begins working again.  She can see the fine nail dust mist from the fingernail before her, and turns her head to cough.

“So, I’m an astronomer now?” The tiny girl pants.

“Yes, you are my little astronomer.” Susan trails off as she stares at her screen, typing with her free hand and moving her mouse here and there.

“What does that mean...exactly? I mean, I get the bird thing, but this…” The tiny girl stammers as she tries to make sense of the designation.  

“You are not ready to know.” Susan says as Holly stops filing again.  

“How’s that?” The tiny girl asks again, and once more Susan inspects her nail.  

“Good, next.” Susan says as she lifts her adjacent finger up and down a few times.

“Holly pants for a few moments before she stands up, and carries the file over to the next finger.

“I wasn’t ready to be tiny, and trapped in a cage...But that didn’t stop you there.” Holly says as she kneels down before the finger, and starts to file it down.

“See, that…that right there is why you are here.” Susan says, narrowing her eyes and looking down on the slaving girl.

“You have no concept of anything but yourself.” Susan says, a little bit angrily.

“That’s not true.” Holly says, agitation permeating her own tone.

“Don’t argue with me little girl, I’ll swallow you whole.” Susan threatens, causing Holly’s eyes to grow wide.

“I’m sorry...Please don’t do that.” Holly whimpers.  Susan giggles as the tiny girl continues to work away at her nail.

“See…you were living in the past, when everyone thought the sun revolved around the Earth.” Susan begins. “And like that early model of the solar system, you thought that the universe revolved around you...But guess what?, it does not, at least not anymore.”  Susan explains.

Holly fumes, using her anger to file the giant woman’s nail down.

“You’re just jealous…” Holly says in a hushed tone.

“What was that?” Susan says, lowering her face towards Holly.

Holly looks upwards and gasps, her eyes growing wide as her heart slams in her chest. Her anger taking a backseat to her intense terror.

“Nothing!” The tiny girl squeals.

“Honesty Holly, or death.” Susan says in an intense tone as she pinches the tiny girl’s head between her massive fingertips.

“No, please! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to…” The tiny girl stammers fearfully.

“Just a little pressure, and squish!” Susan says playfully as she begins to increase pressure on the little girl’s skull.

“No wait!” Holly shrieks.  

“I’m listening.” Susan says, halting her fingertips.

“I said that you were jealous…Please let go...please let go.” Holly whimpers.

“Jealous of what?” Susan asks, a bit calmer.

“That you’ve had to work all of your life! And I...I…” Holly stammers, her eyes glazing over as she contemplates her response.  “I…” She repeats herself as Susan looks down on her, a knowing look on her giant face.  Susan releases her grip on Holly’s head and allows the girl to fall to her hands and knees.

“I’ve had everything handed to me…” The tiny girl pants as she looks down at the desktop, closing her eyes.  

“I am...” Holly’s voice cracks.

“You are what Holly?” Susan asks.

“I am useless, aren’t I?” The tiny girl asks, looking up at her gigantic tormentor with tears in her little eyes.

“Yes, you most certainly are.” Susan says as she looks away from the tiny girl, resting her hand flat against the desk.  She positions the finger that Holly was filing in front of the tiny girl again, tapping it on the wood. Holly lifts the file to the fingernail and begins working once more, a intensely hollow feeling gripping the pit of her tiny stomach.

“I’ve worked hard all my life little girl, yes, and now you will too.” Susan says to the tiny girl.  Holly stops filing for a moment, long enough to wipe the tears from her cheeks before continuing.  The tiny girl sobs to herself gently, feeling completely displaced from reality itself.

“The difference is, I will enjoy my life and feel accomplished...and you...well, you’ll be pampering my fingers and toes, because that is all you are good for.” Susan says, causing Holly to sob even harder.

“No, no. Shh...shh…” The giant woman coos.

“You’ve just made a miraculous breakthrough.” Susan whispers.