One day Magina heard the dogs barking as he was in the barn. There was no car or anything, so maybe it was an animal that didn't belong. Or a horse had broken free. Or maybe nothing at all. Since they were there to alert him should something be amiss, Magina wiped his hands on a piece of cloth and left the building.
All five dogs had surrounded a man. They barked, but didn't snarl or growl. The man looked scared by it, nonetheless. He had stopped walking, had stopped moving altogether and tried to keep all five creatures in his field of vision.
The man wasn't someone Magina had ever seen before. Not in town and definitely not on his farm. He was average, average height, average built, average looks. Average of age, too. He was blond with unremarkable features. Nothing hard there but not too soft either.
As Magina approached, the man looked up. He smiled tentatively but clearly relieved that someone was coming for his rescue from the dogs.
"What do you want?" Magina didn't call his dogs back but they stopped barking when he spoke. They had just wanted to alert him and now stood, waiting.
"Hi. Um, I'm looking for work."
Here? "Did someone send you?"
The smile had vanished from the man's face by now, probably due to Magina's not very friendly words and tone. "No. I saw the sign to the ranch and decided to give it a try." He seemed to become nervous. "I can do everything there is to do on a farm. I'm good with animals and I'm hard working."
Magina was unsure about that. He'd had maybe two asks about working on his ranch throughout the years. He hadn't accepted them. Because he hadn't wanted others around. But there was a lot to do. And he could really use some help. He just wasn't sure if he wanted another human being around all the time.
The longer he was silent, the more the man began to fidget. He didn't have much with him, just a small backpack and a water bottle in one hand. He didn't have any weapons, maybe a knife hidden somewhere, but nothing else. No car.
"Did you walk all the way out here?"
The man shrugged with one shoulder. "Sort of." He looked down at his hand clutching the water bottle, then back up. "Please, just let me try for a few days. If it doesn't work, I'll leave."
That was something he could do, Magina thought. A helping hand would be awesome and he could at least try it. If he was bothered by the man, he could send him away again. "What is your name?"
"I, um, my friends used to call me Dragon."
"Dragon?" Nothing about the man would've made Magina call him 'Dragon' but if he preferred this name, he'd use it. "Okay, Dragon. We'll try it. I give you three days, then I'll decide." He looked the man up and down, taking in his worn clothes and dirty boots. The water bottle, only half-full. The small backpack. "You can put your things into an empty room in the house. Then I'll show you around."
The man smiled. "Thank you very much!"
Magina called the dogs away and then watched Dragon head to the house. While he waited for him to return, he crouched and petted his dogs. His thoughts drifted through what he might do when having help on the ranch. He'd never had anyone here, so he wasn't sure how to split the workload. Maybe he'd just have a look at what the man was good at and then decide what to do. He wondered shortly where Dragon came from that he just walked onto some ranch and asked for a job. But then it didn't really matter.
Since there wasn't much to get from Magina regarding money and such, he wasn't afraid that it was a thief. More likely someone without a job and a home in desperate need of a roof over his head and food in his belly. If he was willing to work and they got along, these were two things he could provide. Probably not much more.
"Hey." Dragon walked over and Magina rose. "Isn't anyone else around? Are they all with the cattle?"
"There is no one else. Just me." The man stared, surprised at that. "Come." Magina headed towards the barn, where he had been working before he had been interrupted. Mucking out wasn't something that needed any explanations or briefing other than where to put the muck.
Of course it was faster to get it done by two persons rather than one alone, but it surprised Magina nonetheless. Dragon worked in silence, except for the occasional question about some routine.
Next was the garden but Magina saw relatively fast that gardening wasn't for Dragon. Which wasn't a problem, Magina liked to work with the plants and maybe he could shovel some time free with the man helping with other stuff to be able to spend more time in the garden. He'd have to plant more things anyway, if he needed to feed a second person. He almost smiled as he found himself planning ahead already. That was a good sign. This could actually work out.
Making lunch was all right as well. Dragon said he didn't like to eat meat very much but since Magina mostly had vegetables and potatoes and eggs it was fine. Dragon made himself comfortable with the kitchen and everything in it, also with the content of the fridge. Then he set the table. Magina was glad he still had a second plate and fork.
They ate in silence, washed the dishes in silence. Dragon didn't complain about anything there was to do and helped without having to be prompted to do so.
The afternoon belonged to the cattle. Magina had two horses that could be ridden but only one saddle. He gave it to Dragon and blinked alongside him. Theoretically he could always go to the cattle like that but not long ago he hadn't known how far and how long he was able to blink without feeling drained. After the nightmare and him having gone all the way to the Sunstrider ranch without a problem, he was more confident in maintaining enough energy even with having blinked over such long distances.
And the horses needed to get out once in a while, too. Magina had considered selling them, because if he didn't really need them, what was the sense of keeping them? But he liked riding on horseback and one could never know. He liked the horses as well, and didn't want to part from them. So he had kept them.
There was no time today to check the fences so they headed straight to the cattle. Magina would show Dragon a map with the layout of the land, later.
It took until late in the evening to check on the creatures because Magina hadn't been sure with a few of them and had checked double. He had the feeling something was wrong but couldn't place it. It didn't seem to be urgent, though, so he'd probably get the vet the next day. See if she had time. Dragon didn't say anything until they were on the way back. "I think you are right, that they have something. Not sure what, though." The man stared ahead without saying more.
Back on the farm was the usual stuff to do before Magina prepared dinner. He was extremely hungry because they had been with the cattle for longer than he had expected and then he'd had to prepare everything for the night, first. At least these preparations had gone faster together with Dragon. It was amazing, and the man didn't even know the routine, yet. It was also amazing that Magina didn't feel as disturbed about another person being around him all the time than he had expected to. Astonishing that it didn't make him uncomfortable or anything.
They ate in silence and then headed to their rooms. There were four empty bedrooms in the house, from before. Well, reconstructed from before. Magina didn't use them for anything so it was no problem that Dragon stayed in one of them. He supposed that the people working on the ranch and not being family had stayed in a different building, but there was no other building for that anymore. And it didn't matter.
Dragon looked tired as he scuffled into his room. If he had been on the road, looking for a job, he probably was. And glad to have a bed now.
Magina let him sleep the next morning. He didn't need help and it was only fair to give the men some rest. He could get up early on the following day.
Leaving some of the breakfast for the man, Magina went outside. He was greeted by the dogs and took his time to pet them all. Knowing he had assistance today made him linger with them longer than usual. Then he sent one of the five to fetch the vet and started into the day.
"Why didn't you wake me?"
Magina looked up from where he was cleaning the water tank of the horses. "Good morning." He shrugged. "You seemed tired yesterday and I thought you might need the rest."
"Thank you." With a smile the man took a second brush to help clean the tank. "Your shower doesn't work."
Magina had cut it off when he had wanted to save water. "Right. I usually take a dip in the stream nearby. I'll show you later. I try not to use too much water because I have to cut costs. The same with electricity. Some things don't work in the house because I don't need them."
The gaze sent his way was strange but Magina ignored it. He knew that he wasn't like all the others. But he didn't care and normally there was no one around to witness it. His thoughts drifted to Kael. He had said Magina was strange, but he had said it was refreshing. Like he liked it. He shook the thought off.
The vet arrived around midday. She raised her brows when she saw Dragon but didn't comment on it. The three of them headed out to the cattle, the vet on her quad, Dragon on the horse and Magina blinking alongside them. While she checked the animals, Magina used the time to show Dragon some landmarks in their vicinity. They went to a hill from where they could see better and he explained how far the ranch went, what direction the river came from, where additional water was and where the best places for the cattle were. He showed him some routes he took when wrangling the creatures and such things. They couldn't see all the ranch land from where they were standing and the house was hidden behind some hills, too. But it was a start.
When they headed back down the hill, the vet came towards them. She shook her head. "Nothing wrong, really. They seem to be unsettled by something but they are not ill. No injuries, nothing. Maybe they have been chased by a wolf or something. Or just the weather, it has been too unstable the last week." She stared back at the animals as she spoke. "If they were scared by something, you should check on them more often during the coming days. If it was a wolf, or maybe some people who were too loud, they could come back. But as long as they are not injured or anything you shouldn't worry too much. They are not that delicate." She smiled, of course not at Magina, more at the cattle, before they headed back.
Not worry too much. That was easier said than done. The cattle were Magina's income, his livelihood. If something or someone had spooked them enough for him to pick up on it, it hadn't been nothing. And so he decided to spend the night outside. Dragon stayed on the farm. Magina didn't leave him alone with the chores, this was only the second day, but he felt much better that someone would be here while he wasn't.
It was fine, he realized as he stared up into the night sky. It was cloudy, no stars to be seen and the air was chilly. Having someone to help on the ranch was fine, or maybe having Dragon as help was fine. He didn't know anything about Magina, wasn't from town. He was capable and efficient. He didn't talk much and he always knew what to do. And he didn't complain about the things that were different here than on other farms. Magina had shown him the place by the stream where he washed, had told him he cleaned his clothes there, too. Aside from another strange gaze the man had simply nodded.
The night was quite but Magina was up early nonetheless. He observed the cattle for a while but when he detected no uncommon behaviour, he blinked back to the house. He knocked on Dragon's door before making breakfast.
The man entered the kitchen just in time to set the table, which he did after a friendly 'good morning'. As they sat down, he asked after the cattle.
"Nothing." Magina shook his head. "But I'll stay with them a few more nights, just in case."
They ate in silence for a while. "What about me?" Dragon asked as he leaned back in his chair. "Can I stay?"
It was only the morning of the third day, adding the first half day in. But Magina had had enough time to think about the topic and the man was probably anxious to know if he had to leave or not. He wasn't sure if this here would suit the man, but that was something Dragon had to find out on his own. Magina wouldn't change how he handled the ranch and he wouldn't change the rules he had made for himself. If Dragon was willing to live by them and work just as hard as Magina did, then he was willing to let him stay.
They would have to make a work plan and Magina would have to tell him everything there was to know. "Yes, you can stay if you want to. I don't have much to pay you, we have to figure the details of it out, but at least you'll have a place to stay and enough food. Maybe we can get a few more animals to increase the income of the ranch. I wasn't able to do that alone but between the two of us it should be possible."
"That's all right. At the moment I'm just glad that I don't have to sleep on the side of the road. Thank you."
Magina would've almost asked why he'd had to sleep next to the road. Where he had come from and why he had left. But he wasn't sure he wanted any kind of personal relationship with the man and so he just nodded.
Living together, though, tended to create some form of personal relationship. Especially when also working together. After maybe a week, Dragon began to ask questions. About the ranch and about Magina. Magina made very clear that he didn't want to answer questions about himself but that still left the ranch, over which was enough to answer. Every ranch was different, was handled differently, with different characteristics to keep in mind.
Then Dragon asked if he should give advice on some things, stuff he had learnt differently on the ranch he had worked before. Magina wasn't stupid so he at least listened to the advice. Not everything was good, not in Magina's opinion, but not everything was bad, either.
And after a while Dragon spoke about where he came from, about his home and his family. Magina hadn't asked, but he didn't mind it as much as he had expected he would. He thought he liked the man and just because he didn't want to talk about his past didn't meant he couldn't listen to Dragon's stories. He didn't talk a lot, just sometimes, when they worked side by side and it wasn't too straining. Or when they had finished eating and took a few minutes to relax afterwards. It was nice, to have someone around. Slowly, even though Magina hadn't wanted it, they became something like friends.
An evening some weeks later, Magina worked in the garden. He had expanded it so there was enough for two of them and he had way more time to tend to it, now. He loved it, did it more as a hobby than as work, had even included some non-edible plants. Just for the fun of it.
Dragon kept him company, though he didn't help working. They had come to the understanding that this wasn't something he should do. Sometimes he fetched water, but Magina was faster with that, so the garden completely erased from Dragon's work-plan. Usually he sat down at the edge with a book and read. Or he talked a bit. Or he just stared at the sky, petting whatever animal joined him.
Today Dragon seemed more sombre than usual. Normally he smiled a lot, was always friendly and relaxed. Easy-going. He had been very quiet throughout the whole day and as he sat down now, he sighed. He was somewhat tense as he stared onto the ground in front of his feet.
Magina kept working but he glanced at Dragon from time to time. He never had to ask for the man to talk but today he didn't say what was bothering him. Magina straightened as he grabbed a water bottle. He stretched a bit, then drank. And decided to go with what felt right. He swiped the sweat from his face with his sleeve before sitting down side by side with Dragon.
"What's the matter?"
Dragon sighed before he smiled sadly. "I miss my friend." He had talked about the ranch he came from but he had never mentioned a friend. His family, yes, but a friend was new.
Magina knew that talking about this, about something that obviously bothered Dragon, would make them closer than before. Until now it had still been a relatively neutral working relationship. But this would change it, though. It was something truly personal and it had too much to do with trust. If they hadn't been friends before, they'd probably be afterwards.
After a second, Magina leaned back against the fence. "Tell me."
"I…" The man swallowed. It wasn't easy for him to say what would come next. "I betrayed her. That's why I left the farm of my family."
There was a long pause, but Magina just waited. There had to be more but he didn't want to pry. If it was difficult for the man to talk about, he'd just wait. And drink his water. They weren't in a hurry, the last days had been good. They could take a few moments and just sit around. Dragon could take his time before he was ready to answer.
"Today is her birthday. We've celebrated her birthday together since we were kids. Now I'm not sure there is anyone to congratulate her at all, not to mention celebrate. I miss her but she doesn't want to see me anymore. She hates me and rightly so. I never wanted to hurt her but I did and I can't change the past. I regret it, everything, all the time. But that isn't enough." His voice cracked and he took a deep breath. "I don't know where she is, anyway. She left a long time ago."
Magina whished he hadn't asked. Now he was confronted with this story and didn't know what to say or do. Should he hug Dragon? He eyed him but the man seemed to be not in a state where he needed hugging. Then what should he say? Should he say that he felt sorry for him? Or that everything would be all right? He didn't know and it made him extremely uncomfortable. He couldn't give him any advice, either. So he remained silent.
That seemed to be enough, though. About a minute later, Dragon smiled at him. It wasn't the sad smile from before, not really happy either, but something in-between. "I hope she's happy. Or will be happy again one day."
Three of the dogs came running, having spotted them sitting on the ground. They were all over Dragon, having soon found out that he was far more open to petting than Magina was. Not that he had ever neglected his pets, but Dragon was different. He cuddled with them and played, talking to them and such. They all loved him.
As he stood up, Magina smiled at the pile of man and dogs. "I'm sure she'll be happy again one day."
"Thank you." The sadness was still there, but not as much as before and though it had made him uncomfortable, Magina was glad he had talked with Dragon.
He kept working in the garden for a while longer. His thought slipped to Kael. He hadn't thought about him this day but the conversation now… Was Kael happy?
But then, what did he care?
They were no friends, they were nothing. But the last time he had seen the Sunstrider, he had appeared to be somewhat worn-out. Tired or something. He had been working with a horse and had been covered in dust. No way to really tell. Besides, it didn't matter.
But then he wondered: had he hurt Kael? He had always only thought about his own pain, about how betrayed he had felt, how he had been torn between hatred and lust. He was still torn between the two but enough time had passed since their last meeting. A meeting during which nothing had happened.
Somehow Magina had come to terms with the fact that it was a Sunstrider who saved him nightmare after nightmare. He couldn't change it anyway, so he had tried to get used to it. Now he felt calmer when thinking about Kael and he was actually able to see his point of view. Maybe it was because he wasn't as stressed as before because of dealing with a whole farm on his own. Maybe it was because working in the garden actually relaxed him, made his mind clear. Or it was because of the way Dragon talked to him, about himself and his family. And just now, about a friend he had lost. Whatever the cause, Magina was able to think about the Sunstrider without being instantly consumed by hate.
It must've taken lots of courage on Kael's part to approach Magina and ask him out. It must've been highly embarrassing, the way their second encounter had gone. And ended. He had been angry when Magina hadn't called. He had been even angrier when Magina had left him standing without explaining why he ran away. And then he had been attacked by Magina, still without any explanation. It must've taken courage to come to his farm and try to talk to him, only to be rebuked. For something he hadn't had a part in. Magina knew all that, but just the thought of magic, of someone who was able to wield magic, it made him sick in the stomach. When he thought about their kisses and stuff, he was flooded by so many conflicting emotions that his whole body hurt.
It was too late now anyway. What had happened and what they had done, he couldn't change it. There was no use thinking about it.