I don't know if I can handle how sweet I plan on making this... we shall see!
Enjoy!
"If a person seems wicked, do not cast him away. Awaken him with your words, elevate him with your deeds, repay his injury with your kindness. Do not cast him away; cast away his wickedness."- Laozi
He liked Echo village for the exact reason that most everyone else had left.
It was mostly abandoned.
It wasn't that he didn't like the added benefit of more customers, he did of course, but he also liked knowing that there was a very good chance that the people who lived around him would be busy with other things and he wouldn't have to see them, talk to them, or entertain them.
That probably explained why he was annoyed to see the blue hair heading towards the plaza, its disordered locks blowing crazily around a face flushed from the bite of the still cool spring wind.
He noted that she was dressed much the same as she had been when he met her a week ago, and again when she had come to buy fodder from his shop a few days before. He was beginning to suspect that the only thing that really changed on her was the level in which her hair was falling out of its twin braids, and the color of the shirt she wore under the same worn pair of over-sized overalls.
Today's was a bright orange that did nothing to flatter either her pale complexion or hair.
She was carrying a reed basket tucked up under her arms where they crossed under her chest. He watched for a moment as she stopped by the stall containing one of his cows and a few chickens, one hand reaching out to tickle the cow under its chin.
He could have sworn it smiled.
"If you aren't going to buy anything then you need to leave."
She glanced over and dropped her hand; a smile forming that told him she was completely disregarding his order.
"Hello, Neil."
He simple continued to frown at her, annoyed for reasons he couldn't quite put a finger on when she straightened to make her way over to the counter. "I don't like loiterers."
She simply continued to smile, and settled her basket in front of him, her mouth working to conceal a laugh. "That's surprising."
His frown deepened at the jab and he attempted to shove her basket away, only to be stopped by her firmly holding it in place. "What do you want? Or are you here just to be in the way?"
She blinked at him then tilted her head, her arms coming up to rest on the counter even as she rested her chin on her fists. After several seconds of her staring he grabbed the basket by the handle and lifted it away. When she automatically reached for it he simply held it higher. "What do you want, Alys?"
He watched as she rose to her toes and leaned over the counter attempting to grab the basket again. He was almost tempted to laugh, almost when she gave a frustrated huff of breath that caused her bangs to riot over her forehead, and swiped at him, instead he kept his face blank and simply stepped away.
"I'm not going to answer you until I at least get a hello. Are you this rude to all your customers?"
"None of my other customers feel like I need to justify their existence."
"I don't feel like you need to justify me, but you could at least not be rude."
He rolled his eyes and tossed the basket toward her, watching as she scrambled to right it in her arms. He should just do what she wanted; it was at least a way of maybe getting rid of her faster. "Fine, hello, Alys. What can I help you with?"
She squinted at him, a frown working over her face for a moment before she straightened her shoulders and rested the basket back in front of her. "Hello, Neil. I brought you a present.
"What? Why?" The questions came out harsher then he meant for them to, but he was completely flabbergasted as to why she would do such a thing. Despite that she smiled again, a quick flash that passed almost as quickly as it appeared. "Because you brought me Bess, and she is just… awesome, and you gave me all those tips and told me the best places to plant her fodder, and I thought, even though I still don't think you like me very much, you deserve a present for being so helpful."
He wasn't good with gifts. He also wasn't good with people being nice to him. He especially wasn't good with them staring at him expectantly, as if he was supposed to do or say something that he was at a complete loss for. He could feel the heat starting in his cheeks and ruthlessly shoved down the embarrassment. When he spoke again his voice was rough with the effort. "I didn't ask for any gifts."
She was no longer looking at him, instead focusing on the basket in front of her as she rooted through it. "That's the great thing about presents; you don't have to ask for them." Missing his struggle as the heat enveloped his face again, she gave a triumphant laugh as she pulled out a large jar from the depths of the container. She beamed as she held it out to him, still ignorant of his internal battle. "My first successful milking! Bess put up a bit of a fight, but I think we finally reached an agreement. I wanted to share it with you."
He didn't know what to say to that. Instead, he just glared at the offered container as if it contained something that might poison him. For all he knew it did.
She sighed dramatically at his continued silence and set the jar on the counter. "Well, whenever you decide to acknowledge it, I'd like to know what you think. Now to business, which I'm sure will make you happy."
He raised a brow in question, not bothering with saying anything else. It didn't seem to be working out for him when he opened his mouth.
"Treats. Do you have treats I could give to Bess? I'm so proud of her letting me milk her, I think she deserves them."
He got the treats for her, making a point to let her know that she should only give the cow one a day, making her repeat the command, then watched her count out her money carefully. He figured she didn't have much to spend on such things, and thought for a moment about giving her a discount since she was so new to this, but decided it might be insulting, not to mention bad for business.
She tucked the basket under her arm again and stepped away from the counter, her smile firmly back in place, and her whole demeanor thoroughly pleased. "That's all I needed then. Have a good day, Neil, and thank you for your help."
He sent her a nod then watched as she stood there, bouncing a little in her mud covered boots, her expression expectant.
He sighed. He was doing that a lot when it came to her.
"Goodbye, Alys."
She beamed and shot him a wave before walking past his shop and toward the base of the nearby mountain, probably off to save a bunny or something.
He stared at the jar that sat in front of him, the cartoon cow plastered on the side looking back at him stupidly. He really missed his life from just a week ago, the one she wasn't in.
