"That was surprisingly productive!" Jaskier says after Karon's left. "I have enough for a song about a linnorm -"

"Jaskier."

" - and enough for two dozen about tarpan ponies. He really painted quite the picture, didn't he? Fierce and bold-hearted, giving their loyalty only to those who deserve it. Fighting side by side with their master, following him faithfully up mountains through ice and snow..."

"They're actually quite prone to running off."

"Truly noble and majestic creatures," Jaskier continues, undeterred. "It's practically my duty to spread the world of their beauty, strength, and courage. I think I could make them into fashion, Geralt."

"You could do that," he admits, and Jaskier preens a bit. "But," Geralt adds, "those people will find out the 'noble creatures' of your song eat noble fingers."

"Oh, I knew a nobleman who kept a riding bear. The sort of person who procures an animal because it sounds impressive in a song is the sort who has people to actually deal with it. The trick, according to the man who cared for the bear, was to feed it until it hadn't room left to swallow the tip of a pinky. These can't be worse than bears. And they make for a much better gift than one!"

"I'm the one who'll be given one," Geralt says. "Even if you name Karon as the witcher who wants them, it'll be me. And they'll be offended if I say I want money for killing a monster and not to be given a wild animal."

"You deprived that poor man of these wonderful creatures for, I'm going to guess decades? Decades," Jaskier says. "Surely traveling with one...or possibly several, plan for success after all...for a bit isn't so bad."

"Have you ever encountered a wild pony wearing a bridle, Jaskier? You wouldn't think that much hate could fit in a skin."

"That's not what Karon says."

"It's this whole thing he has about... He liked that they don't start off liking anybody, and that they'll always do what they want over what you want. And he liked that getting them to like him didn't make them one drop more positive about anybody else. And even that would take him months. Months, Jaskier."

"Well, what was your plan?"

"Countries only ban witchers until another monster shows up."

"That doesn't seem to have worked."

"It did," Geralt says, petulant. "Unfortunately, Remus didn't get some first in case he was kicked out as soon as he'd finished, because no one wants to be around them longer than they have to, and Basil, the prick, refused to get any because he thought Karon needed to get over it."

"So we're agreed! Your way, as usual, is terrible and I don't know what you were thinking, so I shall solve your problem myself. So, Remus, Basil... And a Mieszko. More friends of yours?"

"They're dead." Which rather brings down the mood, and has definitely sharply recontextualized the fact Jaskier has never heard Geralt talk about them before. Though he didn't mention Karon who's proved himself still alive either, so maybe it's just bad luck? Jaskier's not sure what to say - apologize? suggest again that maybe talking about things for once might actually help? shut up? - when Geralt speaks again. "Fine. Sing about the virtues of wild ponies to everyone, then."

"I shall! As a special favor to you both. Now that I've fixed things between the two of you -"

"You haven't."

"- Now that I've fixed things between the two of you, I think that the thing to do if someone else tells an embarrassing story about you is to respond in kind. Which is to say, surely you know some story of Karon's mistakes you could share?"

"No."

Jaskier considers teasing him about being the prematurely white wolf, but if Jaskier's guess is right that was some lie and he'd be reminding Geralt that Karon did keep from blabbing, not riling him up against the other man. Some other monster hunt that went wrong, Jaskier figures is most likely. He doesn't know why Geralt doesn't want to talk about how he got some of his scars because Geralt doesn't talk about them, so the cause of his white hair could be the same sort of thing. No, he probably doesn't have any real leverage in that respect. This requires a different tactic... "You're always complaining about people not knowing enough about monsters," Jaskier wheedles.

"Hm," Geralt says. "Perhaps Karon will indulge you if your songs actually do get him his ponies."

"I'll call it a lindworm in the song."

Jaskier watches a ferocious internal battle play out across Geralt's face. He waits.

"Don't use his name," Geralt says at last. "But there was this one time..."