"Our records show this building abandoned," said Maria, baffled at what she was looking at."I'm squatting here," said the elf. "No one else is using the building. Can I have it?"She did not use magic when she said this. She spoke as a human woman would speak to another woman, sensing that Maria was someone she could trust, someone who would want to help her."We have a municipal program to help squatters get title to their homes. I should be able to help you with that, but where has all this marvelous artwork come from?" Maria asked, stunned."I have made it. I am an artist," replied the elf."What is your name?" said MariaThe elf would not say her real name, because real names had great power in her language, but she wanted to be friendly to this woman, so she said "I am Laurielle Fleetfoot." It was something she made up on the spot that sounded pretty to her."It must have taken forever," continued Maria."I've been working on it for a while," said the elf, though she had not been working on it nearly so long as a person would have had to, because she was very quick and also some of the work was magical. "I've been squatting here for at least a year."
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