[The Next Morning]
The night came and went quickly and the following morning wasn't too different from the previous one. I woke up and saw that Lyca was gone. Figured she was off hunting again so I started packing the campsite up. The ashes in the fire pit were still hot and glowing so I could get it up and started again. Lyca would come back minutes later with her kill. A bounty of six rabbits which she held up proudly as if to impress me with her hunting skills. So I let her skin them and add their pelts to the collection of furs we had while I cooked them over the flame until the meat was nicely done all the way through. And so we had rabbit for breakfast and like yesterday Lyca wolfed them down like a starved animal. Bones and all.
Seriously, how she can eat them all so quickly and even the bones too without dying or at the very least suffering from indigestion is beyond me. Once we both ate our fill we were on our way with Lyca standing by my side. All the while she kept smiling happily with her wolf tail wagging behind her.
"I can tell that you're a real morning person." I said to the wolf girl as we walked.
"I'm just excited." she replied happily. "My life has changed so much so quickly. I have a Mate and now I'm going on a journey with him to a strange new world. It's all really exciting." she told me.
"Well I'm glad that you're enjoying yourself." I replied before yawning. "Personally I would kill for a coffee right now. With some doughnuts to eat." I told her as we kept walking.
Her smile dropped when she heard that. "Did you not like the rabbits I caught for you this morning?" she asked tilting her head.
"Uh, no." I replied hoping I didn't offend her or anything. "They were good really. It's just, I don't personally eat a lot of rabbit because it's not very good for you. Plus my favorite breakfast food are doughnuts with coffee." I explained.
Her ears twitched at that. "What are those?" she asked. "And also, why is rabbit bad for you?" she also asked.
"Doughnuts are little pastries that are really popular in the morning. They're like bread only sweet and crumbly. Coffee is a drink that can be served either hot or cold and people often drink it in the morning to wake up properly. Most people like myself like to add cream and sugar to it to improve the flavor." I explained. "As for why rabbit isn't good for you, it's a very lean meat with very little fat and oils." I said answering her second question.
"Hmm, yeah I see what you mean. That's why whenever I eat rabbit I don't like it as much as other meats. Doesn't taste as good." she responded while comically sticking her tongue out.
"That's not what I meant." I replied. "Back home there's a condition that pioneers and explorers have known about for centuries called rabbit starvation. As I said, rabbit doesn't have a whole lot of fat and oils so there's very little nutrients in eating rabbit. I'm not as familiar with Werewolf physiology as I should be, but if humans were to exclusively eat rabbit for months at a time then they would ironically starve to death in several months." I explained.
She tilted her head to the side and looked at me with genuine wonder. "How do you know all this?" she asked me.
"Back home I had to study a lot of subjects in school with history and science being two of those subjects." I answered. I then looked ahead as we kept walking through the forest together. "And I'll tell you what." I continued. "While I do enjoy meat cooked over an open flame like we've been eating lately I would really like to find a cooking pot so we could make a soup or stew." I told her.
"Soup? Stew? What are those?" she asked as her ears twitched.
"Another method of cooking meat and vegetables." I answered. "It involves cooking them in a pot in either a broth or even in water with some herbs, spices or other ingredients to improve the flavor. I personally love soups because they go great all year long and are a great way to eat both meat and vegetables together." I explained.
"I don't know what soups are but they certainly sound delicious." she said with a smile. "If we find a cooking pot would you cook the meat I hunt in a soup?" she asked me with her tail wagging behind her.
"If we can get a cooking pot sure." I answered. "In fact, I'd love to start cooking all sorts of recipes like soups, stews, bisque and chili." I told her.
"All those sound really good." she said with her enthusiastic smile. "Already I can see it now. I bring home the meat and my loving Mate cooks it for dinner. For me and our Pups." she said with a small blush.
I began to heat up from that as well. "P-Pups?" I asked looking over and blushing a bit.
"Of course." she said gripping my arm and leaning into me while we still walked. "I wanna have lots of beautiful Puppies with you my Love." she said in a dreamy school girl kind of way. I was about to respond to that when I felt my foot get caught on something and I fell forward onto my stomach. "Theo! Are you okay?!" she panicked.
Apparently there was a root from a tree that was sticking up from the ground and my foot got caught in it while I wasn't looking. "I'm fine." I said as I got back up and brushed myself up. That was when I noticed what I was getting myself up off of. A dirt path not too different from the one I was walking along days ago. "Lyca, we found the road again." I said grinning.
"Oh yeah." she replied with her tail wagging behind her. "I remember there being a pathway leading to the human town when I went this way." she said looking to the left and right.
"So which way do we go now?" I asked her.
She looked first to the left, then the right and then the left again. "I...can't remember." she admitted.
"I thought you said you knew where the closest human settlement was." I replied.
"Well I've seen it from a distance but I've never actually been there and it's been a long time since I've actually gone there again. Before now I only ever left my den to go hunting." she told me.
I sighed and closed my eyes before bringing one hand up to pinch the bridge of my nose. "Okay." I said trying to think. "I believe that our next course of action should be to get a sense of where we are." I said before looking around. Suddenly I had an idea. "Lyca, are you a good climber?" I asked.
"I've climbed several trees in the past to catch a few possums and even a few raccoons." she said placing her paws on her hips while puffing out her chest. Obviously trying to impress me. "And come to think of it there are some really tasty birds too but they can be very tricky to catch." she rambled a bit.
"Well that's fine but that's not what I'm worried about at the moment." I replied. "You see that tree right there?" I asked while pointing in the direction.
"Yeah?" she asked back while looking at the very tall oak.
"Would you consider climbing up as high as you can and get a lay of the land?" I asked her.
"A what?" she asked tilting her head in that very cute manner she usually does when she doesn't understand something.
I rolled my eyes. "I mean, see if you can see the human settlement by climbing up to the top. Maybe then we can get some proper directions." I explained.
"Oh okay, give me a moment." she said happily as she ran over and stared climbing up really quickly.
As I watched her climb up the massive tree by jumping from branch to branch and digging her claws into the wood, I brought my hands up to rub my arms. "Shit it's getting cold." I said as I felt a chill from the sudden gust of wind.
"I'm at the top!" I heard her call down to me. I looked up and sure enough there she was looking down and smiling.
"Do you see the town that you told me about?!" I called back up to her.
I watched as she looked left and right before looking back down at me. "No I can't see anything." she answered. But then her eyes widened in what I thought looked like surprise. "Theo look out!" she shouted.
I began to panic and turned just in time to see a tall woman, probably about 182 cm approach me. That was when she wrapped her arms around me and lifted me up off the ground and squeezed me firmly but gently. I heard Lyca land on the ground behind me as she dropped down from the tree.
"Theo! Are you okay?! She isn't hurting you is she?!" she asked sounding like both worried and angry.
I was able to turn my head to a battle ready Werewolf and reply. "No she's not actually hurting me. In fact, I think she's hugging me." I told her.
She looked genuinely surprised by that. "Really?" she asked.
"Yeah and it feels really nice." I answered.
She then pulled me away and held me out in front of her. I was now able to get a much better look at her. She was wearing a blue winter coat that went all the way down to her feet. And her feet were pretty darn big too. Probably four or five times as big as mine and they had a very hairy apelike look to them and were covered in snow white fur. Her hands were similar, large and apelike with the same snow white fur that was nice and soft to the touch. She had a very warm and friendly smiling human face and snow white human hair that was long and braided. She had sapphire colored eyes and pink rosy cheeks that blushed as she grinned at me with that warm and friendly expression. I'm guessing that she's another type of monster.
"There, are you feeling better now? Maybe a little warmer?" she asked in a very cheery tone.
"Actually yes, I'm not as cold as I was moments ago." I replied actually just now noticing how warm I felt in my core.
That was when I heard a giggling and looked to see a smaller version of the large ape woman walk around her towards Lyca. She had to be her daughter because she looked just like her in every way. Snow white human hair and fur with big ape like hands and feet with a winter coat that matched her mother's. She smiled and ran up to hug the Werewolf by the legs before looking up with her own warm and friendly smile.
"Hi!" she beamed happily.
And that was when more of their company showed up. I looked to see several more people on the road that Lyca and I found minutes ago. "Greetings travelers." said one of the men with a smile and a wave.
The man in question was a tall one just like his wife. I could tell he was probably just a little taller than her, maybe by a few inches. He had a full head of yellow blonde hair with a slightly darker looking blonde beard. His eyes were blue and he wore a yellow and white coat with a hood that was down and dark green trousers with brown hiking boots. He looked to be in his early or mid thirties. There were also three others with him. The other man was also a human wearing a dark blue and brown coat with a hat atop his head and he had a bright red handlebar mustache with two braids hanging from each end and green eyes. His trousers were blue and he had on a pair of hiking boots as well and looked to be just a little older than the other man.
The last two traveling with them to their left were a woman and young girl. And upon first glance I thought they were Centaurs, what with them having four legs and standing a little taller than both of the human men with them. But looking closer I realized that rather then having the lower bodies of horses they looked more like reindeer and on the top of their heads they each had a pair of antlers as well. Both deer women wore matching purple winter coats and hats that allowed their antlers and deer like ears to stick out. The mother deer woman looked to be in her early thirties and her daughter looked to be probably six or seven. Behind them was a really big brown yak who was pulling what I could only guess was a merchant's wagon.
The blonde haired man walked up first. "Brigitte dear, we've talked about personal space haven't we?" he asked the large ape woman. "I know you and Mabel love greeting new people but we can't just run up and hug every person we see." he said smiling while crossing his arms.
She smiled and rubbed the back of her head. "I know we've talked about it dear, but he looked so cold standing there in the snow so I couldn't help myself." she replied grinning.
He then turned to me and extended his hand. "Sorry about that good Sir, as you can tell my Wife and Daughter are both really affectionate and love greeting people with warm hugs." he told me.
I extended my own hand and shook his in his firm grip. "Given everything I've been through in the last couple of days it's hardly the worst thing to ever happen to me. Actually it's nice to meet someone who isn't attacking us." I told him.
"Sounds like you've had a rough time on the road there Son." said the red bearded man.
"You can say that again." I replied.
"Pardon me, where are my manners?" asked the blonde haired man. "Allow me to introduce myself and everyone here with me. My name is Bjorn, and you've obviously met my lovely Wife Brigitte and our Daughter Mabel." he said referring to the ape woman and ape girl. "This here is my Brother Sven with his beautiful Wife Siv and their Daughter Liv." he explained introducing me to the other man and the deer woman and girl.
Lyca then jumped onto my back and hugged me from behind. "My name is Lyca and this is my Mate Theo." she said happily with her tail wagging behind her.
Bjorn then had a smug expression at that. "So I see it's the wilder women who's company you enjoy eh?" he asked which made me flush.
"Nice to meet a man who understands men like us." said Sven. "Tell me, how long have you two been together?" he asked me.
"Lyca and I met only a few days ago." I answered.
"And now we're on our honeymoon." she added which got me to flush again.
"Oh Really?! Congratulations!" said Brigitte who clapped her hands together.
It felt weird to have Lyca talk about us as if we were officially married now. We haven't known one another that long really and it was by accident that we even met. I still couldn't wrap my head around any of it. I decided to try and move things along.
"So um, are you two heading anywhere by chance?" I asked them.
"That we are Son." replied Sven. "My Brother and I are traveling merchants. We go from town to town buying and selling goods to support out families." he told me.
"The both of us want to raise enough money to one day set up a shop but until then, we're peddlers." said Bjorn.
"Speaking of which, are those furs that your Wife and you are carrying for sale?" asked Siv. "Because we're buying any animal furs we can before we reach our next destination and we'd be willing to pay you a decent amount for the ones you're carrying." she told me.
Come to think of it, I was getting tired having to carry these damn things around so it would be nice if I could drop this load all together. May as well make a small profit in it because chances are Lyca and I were gonna need some money once we've made it to Faloneshire. But then again, these weren't really my furs to sell. They belonged to Lyca from the years she's spent hunting near her home.
"Lyca is that okay with you? Can we sell your furs for some money?" I asked turning to her.
"If you think it helps then sure. I can always go hunting again and collect more furs later." she answered smiling.
"Then it looks to me like they are on the market yes. How much are you offering?" I asked them.
Sven reached into the bag he had by his hip and I could hear the jingle and clinking of coins. "I can offer you thirty silver and since you seem like such nice people, I'd be willing to throw in some winter coats. It's gonna be cold getting to Heavenstagg from here." he answered.
That name threw me off. "Heavenstagg? You mean this isn't the road to Falonshire?" I asked him.
"Um, no." he answered. "The road we're on leads to the trading town of Heavenstagg which is under the protection of Thane Grimbeorn the Stone Fist." he told me.
I then looked over to Lyca. "I thought you said you were going to lead me to Falonshire." I told her.
"No I didn't." she replied.
"Wha-yes you did." I said back.
"No I said I was going to lead you to the closest human settlement that I knew of. At least if I remembered where it was that is." she explained.
"Then why didn't you tell me that you didn't know where Falonshire was?" I asked getting pretty frustrated.
"You never asked." she replied shrugging her shoulders.
I then turned back to the other two gentlemen I was talking with. "Are you telling me I've been heading to the wrong town the whole time?" I asked them.
"Son, you're not even in the right Kingdom." Sven answered.
"Falonshire from my understanding is a town in the Kingdom of Midland. I think you may have crossed the border some time ago because you're in the Northern Kingdom of Vinterheim." Bjorn explained.
My God! I've been going the completely wrong directions the whole damn time! I was so incredibly pissed right now that the needle on my anger meter has broken off. So I turned away from the group and walked away.
"Theo?" I heard Lyca call to me as I kept walking.
"Son are you alright?" asked Sven.
"Daddy is the nice man going to be okay?" asked the little ape girl to her father.
I walked over to the side of the road where there was a mid sized stone in the ground and sat down. Honestly, if I had the energy I would walk over to the nearest tree, grab it firmly by the trunk and bash my head repeatedly against it until blood would gush from my ears and my skull would show through my forehead. But right now I just wanted to try and collect what little of my sanity I still had before I would try doing something like that. So I sat there with my face in the palms of my hands trying to figure out what I was going to do. I was so fucking tired of being led astray and truth be told, I was so fucking sick of this world. Why couldn't I just get to the Mage's College and get back home already? Was that really too much to fucking ask for?
I was so deep in thought that I nearly jumped when I felt a soft pair of paws on my hands. I looked up and there was Lyca who got down on her knees before me. "Theo, are you alright?" she asked me sounding worried.
"Lyca...I..." was all I could responded.
"Are you mad?" she asked.
"I...yes." I confessed. She didn't look too happy to hear that as her ears folded downward. "Lyca I'm not mad at you." I said taking her paws in my hands. "I'm just really really frustrated that's all. All I want is to make it to the Mage's College so that I can find out how I can get back to my world. I really wanna go home and ever since I first set out I've been mislead and have been getting lost." I explained as I stood back up and brought her up with me. "But I'm not mad at you. I know that none of this is your fault and you've tried so hard to help me on my journey so soon after we've met and we barely even know each other. I'm grateful to you, you know that right?" I asked trying to give her a reassuring smile.
She smiled back with her ears sticking back up and her tail wagging again. "Of course I want to help you." she said leaning in and hugging me again. "You're my beloved Mate and I'd do anything for you." she said lovingly which made me flush red again. "Now come on, let's go. I may not know how to get to the place you wanna go but Siv said that there are many travelers that go to the town that they're already heading to so somebody there could help us." she told me holding my hands in her paws.
To be perfectly honest, I really didn't want to have to go to one town just for the sake of finding out how to get to another town that I actually needed to get to. But then again begging and taking your pick never exactly went hand in hand and besides, it's not like I've got a whole lot of other ideas at the moment. So I gave a hopeful smile and nodded before following Lyca back to the others.
The two human men and their monster wives and daughters looked like they were waiting for us to get back and that's when Bjorn spoke first. "You alright Son? You looked rather distraught moments ago." he said.
"I'm fine now. Lyca helped me out." I replied which earned me a loving squeeze when she held my hand in her paw.
"So how bout it then? Would like to travel with us to Heavenstagg?" Siv asked us. "The road is dangerous if you don't know the way but luckily for you, my kind are experts at traveling long and dangerous roads through the snow and mountains." she told us.
"Yes we're ready to go." I answered. Actually, I thought it was going to be nice to be traveling with guides. Things were looking up after all it would seem.
So there we were traveling together now. Siv and her daughter Liv walked at the front of the company with Brigitte, Mabel and Lyca. They offered to let her travel with them while they guided us men to Heavenstagg to have a girl's talk while I walked with Bjorn and Sven. They figured us guys could have some privacy. Their wagon was pulled by the yak behind them so there we were. I also finished dealing with the two brothers and sold all the furs. I now had a purse of thirty silver, real silver with me and both Lyca and I were given some new wool cloaks which were draped over our shoulders. Lyca wore a nice soft blue one with her hood down and I got a grass colored green one which worked wonders keeping the cold wind off of me.
As we talked, Sven changed the subject by asking a new question. "By the way Son, I couldn't help but notice that your accent is a bit strange. What clan are you?" he asked me.
"Clan?" I asked back.
"Yeah I mean you don't sound like you're from Vinterheim. Are you from northern Midland or from Westumbria? Which clan do you owe life to?" he asked me.
"Well my Mother is French and Italian and my Father is German Irish." I replied. Both brothers looked at one another and I could tell by their expressions they didn't get it. "Look guys, I'm not from Vinterheim, Midland or any of these kingdoms. I'm not even from this world. I was ripped through time and space into this one from my own. That's why I'm trying to get to Falonshire or anywhere in Midland really. I need to get to the capital and find the Mage's College so that they can figure out how to send me back to my world." I explained.
Both of them just smiled with Sven trying his best not to laugh and Bjorn looking at me with pity in his eyes. I guess I really shouldn't be surprised. The family who found me on their farm may have been willing to believe me sure and Lyca believed me when I told her but it only makes sense that other people were going to think I was nuts. And why shouldn't they? If I was listening to myself I'd swear I was going nuts.
"Right. Look, don't take this the wrong way Son. But I do fear that you may be a few coppers short of a silver piece." said Bjorn with a joking smile.
I decided to change the subject and ask about something else. Looking up ahead, I looked at Sven and Bjorn's wives and daughters. "So if you don't mind my asking, what are they?" I asked them.
"Who?" asked Sven.
"Brigitte, Mabel, Siv and Liv?" I asked.
"You don't know?" asked Bjorn.
"No." I said shaking my head.
"Well, my lovely Brigitte and our precious child Mabel are Yetis." Bjorn told me.
Yetis? Like Bigfoot or Sasquatch? This guy means to tell me that he found, married and slung one up the Abominable Snowman? Er, Snow woman? Funny. I heard stories about Sasquatch or of people who've claimed to have seen them and the way it's described it's always a really big and hairy apelike man. None of them described them as cute and attractive women who smothered you with warm hugs. Can this world possibly get any weirder?
I then turned to Sven. "And what about Siv and Liv?" I asked him.
"Why they're White Horns obviously." he answered.
"Never heard of them." I said shrugging my shoulders.
"Oh, well White Horns are the guides of the mountains." he replied. "They're kindhearted beasts who lead those who're lost to safety should they stray or wonder from the path. It's how me and my beautiful Siv met y'know. I got horribly lost in a snowstorm once long ago. I was so sure I was gonna freeze to death that night and then there she was. Came out of the dark snowy night and led me to safety. Of course, I was weak from the cold and from fatigue so she let me ride her back and she brought me to her home and offered me a place to stay for the night." he said with a sly smug. "And that Son really was the best night of my life let me tell you." he added with a wink. "Why she and I were brought together by the Gods that night and we've been together ever since." he finished.
I honestly didn't even want to imagine how he made love to a woman who's lower half is the hindquarters of a reindeer but I shivered at what it implied so I quickly turned to Bjorn.
"I take it you and Brigitte have a similar story?" I asked him.
"You're damn right I do." he smiled. "Just like Sven, I got horribly lost during a blizzard once. And I was pretty sure that was gonna be the end of me right there. The night was so cold that even the snow was blue. But just as I was about to pass out I felt a warm embrace and looked to find myself in the arms of my beautiful Brigitte. You see, Yetis have a natural desire to warm others with their hugs if they see someone who's cold and I just happened to be one of those poor lads freezing that night. She held me in her loving embrace until I felt warmth in every fiber of my being. And after that she followed me back home where she and I became husband and wife. And we've been at one another's sides, keeping one another warm every night since then." he smirked.
Again this put a weird image in my head. Thankfully, Sven decided to pull me out of it. "Alright Son, we've told you our stories now it's your turn." he told me.
"Huh?" I replied.
"How did you meet your lovely young Wife?" he asked me. "Werewolves aren't as common up here in the north as they are further south but there are some packs running around here too. So how did ya meet?" he asked me.
"It's a long story so I'll give you the short version." I answered. "I was hoping to find my way to the town of Falonshire as I said before. But after getting some bad directions I got horribly lost. After I set up camp I was tracked down by an Ogress who chased me a good couple of miles. I barely managed to escape only to run right into Lyca's den where she proceeded to hold me down and have me on the floor of her cave. And she's been calling me her Mate and been with me since. She even fought off that same Ogress who chased me he night before." I explained.
"Oh I see, skip the romantic walking, talking and dinner and go straight to making the Beast with two Backs eh?" asked Sven with a sly smile.
"...Yeah it was definitely a spur of the moment thing for us." I replied trying not to blush.
"Alright then tell me this Son." said Bjorn. "What did ya do with her legs?" he asked me smiling.
"Her...legs?" I asked him.
"Aye her legs." he replied. "If you don't mind my saying she has a very nice pair of legs. They look like they go on for days in fact." he commented.
"I...didn't do anything with her legs." I answered, not really getting where he was going with this.
"Oh I see. You just moved em out of your way and went on with your business. Good on ya Son." he said with a big grin and this time making me flush.
I was getting really uncomfortable talking about this. "So what can you tell me about Heavenstagg? The town that we'll be arriving in?" I asked them.
"Oh Heavenstagg is an old place. Been here ages and ages. It's actually built on both sides of the Norvi River so the markets are rich with fresh fish and they're right outside the gates to Gorimbad, one of the three great Dwarven Kingdoms so it's one of the few places in the world where both Humans and Dwarves live side by side together." Bjorn explained to me.
"And the Local Thane, Grimbeorn the Stone Fist is a hero. When the Orcs and Goblins formed an alliance twenty years ago and invaded Vinterheim, he took up arms and fought side by side with King Balthrasir of the Dwarves and together the both of them rallied their fellow troops and overcame legions of foes. He was nothing but a common soldier before that and Jarl Rayloff the White Mane made him a Thane just like that. Can you believe it? A commoner became a Thane just like that." he said with no small amount of admiration in his voice.
Orcs and Goblins huh? Well that's wonderful. I was worried my journey home was going to be too easy. But then again, I did have Lyca with me and she was able to fight off an Ogress who tracked me down to her den. What's an Orc or a Goblin to her? Still, I shouldn't be depending on her to do all the fighting. If I'm going to survive in this world I'm going to need to be able to defend myself too and I sincerely doubt that the dagger on my belt was going to suffice. If I could at least get a short sword I'd be able to put up some sort of fight. I mean, I've never actually used one in a real battle before but I'm still pretty young so I doubt it's too late for me to learn how to use one. Come to think of it, there was a whole list of things I was going to need.
In addition to a weapon for defending myself I was going to need a proper tent with some sort of tarp just in case it should rain in the near future and some warmer blankets too. I mean, I wasn't going to be staying in Vinterheim for very long but I have no idea how close Autumn and Winter are in this world and the last thing I need is to be stuck in the middle of a cold winter's night with no way to keep warm. I also really wanted to try and get some cooking pots and pans because while cooking over an open flame is really nice I really wanted to try and make soups in the future. Soups were my absolute favorite dishes and it really was the best way to keep warm. And I also wanted to see if there were certain medicines I could get as well. Can't be too careful.
As we walked, I couldn't help but notice that Lyca was laughing as she walked and talked with Bjorn and Sven's wives. The way she reacted to what they were saying to her makes me wonder what the subject is.
[Lyca's POV]
The white Werewolf waled with both mothers to her left and right while they both held hands with their daughters. "So, you seem to have found yourself a very handsome man. How did you meet?" Brigitte asked her.
"Oh it was a dream come true." she answered. "I was sleeping soundly in my den several nights ago when I was awakened by him entering the mouth of my cave. He was soaking wet and horribly lost when I watched him remove his clothes and then we were swept up in the moment." she said thinking back to the first time she and Theo mated. "And you wouldn't believe how good a cook he is." she continued as she looked over to Siv. Every time I caught something I was hunting he'd prepare the meat over the fire and make it taste so good." she told her.
"Are you gonna have babies?" asked Liv who held hands with her mother while she walked.
"Oh believe me, I want to and we're trying." she answered. "I'm pretty sure it'll take us a couple of tries but we're gonna have a whole pack together." she told her.
"Well I hope you both are blessed with many beautiful babies Lyca." said Brigitte. "But, I'd like to share with you a few tips and tricks for your next night alone with your Husband." she told her.
"That's right, I have some advice I'd like to share with you as well." said Siv.
"Wait, right now? But aren't we walking with your daughters?" she asked them.
"It's okay, my cousin and I already know all about sex." said Mabel who walked with her mother.
"Our parents make love at the end of every journey from town to town." said Liv. "Also, Mom and Dad wanna give me a little Sister." she added.
[My POV]
I watched as my companion walked and talked with the other two women and their daughters and her reactions. I couldn't hear what they were saying but I could tell by how Lyca blushed that it wasn't any good. At one point she turned the brightest shade of scarlet red I had ever seen and she shouted just loud enough for me to hear.
"What?! I'm not sure I can do something like that!" she shrieked with one of her paws over her mouth.
'Oh God what are they talking about?' I asked inwardly.
Now the rest of the day was actually uneventful. I just walked and talked with Sven and Bjorn while Lyca traveled with their wives and children. And after things seemed to have calmed down I found myself enjoying their company. Once Sven and Bjorn were finally willing to stop prying into mine and Lyca's sex life we actually had a nice talk. As they told me about their wives I could tell that they truly loved them. From what they told me, Siv hoped to develop a new series of roads for safer travel so that merchants and peddlers would be less likely to get lost in the dangerous and cold mountain passes. Vinterheim's economy was heavily dependent on trade given that they didn't have as much farmland as most other kingdoms like Midland.
Vinterheim was also a close trading partner with the Dwarves so safe paths to and from the mountains were important and it's for this reason Siv wanted to come up with the shortest and safest routs to and from the various cities, towns and villages of the northern kingdom. And it was this very same desire that led her to meet Sven in the first place and I could tell that he was widely supportive of his wife's dream. Brigitte had similar dreams of her own. From what Bjorn told me, Yetis have a natural and caring nature towards humans and strive to make winters more livable. In addition to being an expert hugger, Brigitte is also a tailor and specializes in wool. She's constantly trying to come up with new ways to work with wool to make lighter yet warmer coats.
And just like with Siv, this was how Brigitte met her husband Bjorn. While both brothers wanted to set up a shop together one day they wanted to help their wives accomplish their own dreams. And it was really nice to see both families working together in such a way. With Siv's knowledge of the mountain paths and Brigitte's skills in making coats, they made quite the team with their husbands who traveled frequently to buy and sell various goods. I could tell that both families could do a lot of good. And the thing is right? I honestly had no idea what I could or should do here in this world. Back home in South Portland I was a college student who was hoping to develop and create video games one day but naturally none of my skills would get me anywhere here.
The passes that we took would lead through woods and eventually rocky regions and it didn't take long at all for the temp to drop. I was so glad that Bjorn gave me this cloak because good grief was it getting cold. And it didn't take very long at all before I saw the green of grass and trees get replaced by the white of snow. First there was just a sheet and later a pillow and finally the ground had a thick blanket of snow. I was eternally grateful to Bjorn for this cloak because I really hated the cold. I really hoped that our destination wasn't far because I didn't want to be stuck on the road any longer. Fortunately for me my silent prayers were answered when after we reached a clearing in the woods I saw from a distance the town of Heavenstagg.
The houses from a distance were very neatly made and all in a line and just as the two brothers told me, there was a river running right through splitting the town in half. I even saw fishing boats moving up and down with men on board casting nets over the side.
It was then our company stopped and the ladies all came back with Bjorn and Sven reuniting with their wives and daughters and Lyca returning to my side. "Well Son, it's been very nice traveling with you but I believe this is where we must part ways." said Bjorn who extended his hand to me which I accepted. "I do wish the best of luck to you and your lovely Wife." he told us,
"Thank you very much for guiding us here. If it weren't for all of you I'm not sure where we'd be." I replied with a genuine smile.
"And thank you for the cloaks, they feel very nice and warm." said Lyca.
"The tavern you're looking for is at the southern most part of the town. Travelers stop there all the time so there's no better place to get directions. I'm sure you'll find someone who'll help you find the right path to back to Midland and the town of Falonshire." Sven told me.
"At this point I'll settle for any place in Midland so long as I can get to their capital." I replied.
"You've a long and dangerous road ahead of you Son. Good luck." Bjorn told me one last time.
Lyca and I watched as the two human men and their monster wives led their daughters and their wagon with their goods down the road towards the town on the river. I then let out a sigh and turned to Lyca.
"Well, are you ready?" I asked her.
She smiled and clung to my arm. "I'm right here for you Theo. Always by your side." she smiled with her tail wagging within her cloak.
"Well, let's see what fate has in store for us." I said as we both continued on the path. "Hopefully the worst is behind us." I told her.
[Author's Note] Sorry for the long wait everyone. I've been busy with work, moving and recently my nephew was born so I've been spending lots of time with my brother and sister in law who are new parents. I cannot put into words what it's like to hold your new niece or nephew. I've also got another one on the way and just around the corner.
And I know this may not have been the most exciting chapter but I promise that a lot more will happen in the next few chapters to come. Believe me when I say you're gonna love what I have in store. The battles and love scenes will be worth the wait.
As always, thank you all so much for reading my stories. Please leave me either a Review or a PM on what you think and if you have any ideas you wanna share with me I'm always happy to hear what you have in mind so lay em on me.
This is Dragon1990 signing out :-)
