Chapter 4. introductions.
Hans got out of his bed and made himself decent in a hurry. He rushes down the stairs as he makes his way outside. He puts on his usual tunic and such as he exits into the foggy morning air. There was a small part of him hoping that last night was just some wild dream, and not something he would have to deal with. As he walks over he sees the outline of several patches of fence wrecked and ruined from falling debris, which he will need to sort out after he deals with… whatever he found himself in. He makes his way through the fog and sees his barn door is still ruined; he would have to fix that. He enters the barn and makes his way to the back, his animals much calmer than last night. They still stayed on the sides of their stalls opposite of his "guest". He turns the corner and sees that she is still fast asleep, her head on top of a small pile of hay.
Her wound looked better now that it had time to scar over, its gonna be a mark on her for the rest of her life for sure. He takes a seat and watches her, taking in her features. Her face seemed markedly less damaged than what he would have expected from a beastmen. Her form underneath the blanket looked somewhat lithe now that he had gotten to see it in better light. His eyes drift down, quickly skipping over some of the more risqué areas as he looks. Her armor looked rough and jagged through the blanket, and probably on the brink of collapse if her physical state was anything to go by. He decided it was time to get introductions out of the way, so he needs to wake her up. He is wary in his approach, knowing that he is literally poking the sleeping beast. He looks around and settles for a spare rake handle against the wall. He gave her side a couple of pokes with the long stick, only to be met with a sleepy puff of air from her nose. He kept his poking up.
"Hey, its morning already, don't you think it's time t- "Before he can finish, her arm swings up and hits the stick from his hand with great force. It gets thrown across the aisle, a crack in the wood where it was hit. She bolts upright, her eyes flared wide as she immediately regrets moving so fast. She clutches her side and winces from aggravating the wound and looks to the man to find out what happened. "Morning… I tried to wake you up and well… you have good reaction time apparently." He said with a small laugh, hoping to ease the tension. She looks down at the blanket on her and looks back up to him. "You looked cold, so I thought I could give you something to warm up and dry off." Hans said quickly, hoping it didn't make her angry for some unknown reason. She tossed it to the side and sat herself against the wall to relieve some of the strain on her side. "Sorry if that hit you." she said with a slight shame to her voice as she gestures to the splintered tool.
Not knowing what would be right to say, he simply says, "it's alright, didn't hit me at least." With a sigh Hans sat down across from her, preparing to start asking what he felt was necessary. "So, what's your name?" He asks first. "Nathiqe." "Do you have a last name?" "What do you mean by that?" She asks with a light curiosity. "The name after your first one. Usually, it tells you what family you're from." She seems to ponder for a second before answering back. "I don't remember having a family name. I do have a title that I would use. Nathiqe sharp horns." Interesting. Though it didn't make much sense to him, it probably is what worked for massive hordes without real families he imagined. And the title makes sense at least, her horns were long and sharp with a slight curve as they went up.
Before she can ask him back, he is already on the ball. "My name is Hans by the way, Hans Bauman." The young man said with his hand extended. She grabs it and shakes it lightly, thankfully not overdoing the grip. Next, Hans wanted to know why she was so different from what has been told to him about beastmen. "Why are you like this? civil I mean. I've always heard your kind will slaughter any and everything." It was blunt, but he wanted to know what made her different, and in turn, him safe. While annoyed at being grouped in with her kin, she couldn't full blame the man after the reputation they made. The annoyance was still shown on her face as she tried to think of why she was like this. in truth, she never thought about it much. She enjoyed fighting and killing on the field, but when it came to settlements and people who can't or won't fight, it made her lose interest.
She was always singled out whenever she would leave once the raiding really started to pick up. She wasn't sure she could explain it to him, but she would have to try. "I'm not entirely sure myself. I've always been bored in only fighting. Outside of wars I've never had the same blood lust." She said absentmindedly as she was thinking about it herself.
A beastman who was bored of senseless slaughter? He wasn't sure such a thing was real, but the evidence of it being possible was right in front of him. He felt conflicted to say the least. The fear of her killing him was still way in the back of his mind, but the bored and curious parts of his mind led him on in this whole thing. He wondered what else he could learn from her, but his thoughts were interrupted by the loud growling of stomachs.
Both Hans and Nathiqe seemed to share in needing something to eat. The young man gets up and wonders what he should offer her. She was much bigger, so he would probably need to give her some generous portions. "What do you eat anyway? Besides meat obviously." "I haven't really tried anything else." She tries to get herself up, but as soon as she rises to her Shaky legs, she falls back down with a thud and an irritated growl. "Just bring me something from one of those pens and I'll handle the rest." She said nonchalantly. "Sorry, but these guys aren't for eating." She looked a little disappointed at hearing this. He didn't want to lose his whole pantry at once, so he had an idea. "I'll go hunt us something to eat, you just stay here and heal that wound, alright?"
Seeming to have no other option, she simply sat and accepted the offer, but not before asking him something. "Why are you doing this for me?" he stopped in his tracks, a little unsure of how to answer it. He didn't know why exactly, the only thing pushing him is his curiosity of this rare encounter, and morals to help someone who's struggling. "I just wanted to help Is all. You were in distress, and I was there. Simple as." He hoped she would trust him on that because he wasn't truly sure himself. She gave a nod and let him proceed. Hans walks back towards his home and notes the fog had grown thinner, which should make the trip out easier. He goes into his home and fishes his hunting gear out. a green cloak and an old crossbow. He used these on occasion when he wanted something a bit wilder to eat. Venison was good, and on rare occasions he could find boars to cook with grot's fungal recipe. He puts on his hood and slings the crossbow on his back.
He exits out of the house once more with a goal in mind. He grabs his homemade transport sled from the tool shed and sets off into the woods. He follows the muddy track for a few minutes before passing over the short makeshift bridge he set up for the crevice that separated these woods. As he crosses he can see further away from the trench is a wreck of wood and a spiky looking pig impaled in the hole. Explains how she got here at least. As he travels a through the wet woods, his sense of sound was filled with the wet dripping of rain falling of trees into the dirt below. Various bird calls broke through the sounds of wetness as he arrived at his destination. His usual spot was a tall tree that stood slightly above the rest of the canopy. What kind it was, he was not sure.
He attached some planks to it to work as steps, and a small platform at the top to sit upon. He covers his sled with some foliage and climbs up to his spot. The climb up is brief, and with a sigh of relief, he takes a seat upon the top and is ready. He forgot to bring any sort of bait and decides to just sit and wait it out. although it meant keeping them waiting, this area had a good amount of wildlife traffic. A stream nearby made him feel certain he wouldn't have to wait long at all, even in his unprepared state. He pulled the weapon from his back, leaned against the tree to get comfortable, and began his wait.
Nathiqe sat in the pen of the barn with not much to do. In short, she was bored. As she sat, her mind was only thinking about the man who helped her through the worst time in her life. Whenever something went wrong before, it would be up to her to figure out a solution, not trusting anyone else to help her without wanting something substantial from her. Now that she was forced to accept help, she wonders if this has been what she has been missing out on her whole life? She quickly dismisses it as this being the exception. She knew no one in the herd would do something so… generous, to a stranger no less. Her thoughts start to go back to her previous life as a member of the herd. What could she even do? Even if she managed to go back and kill that Minotaur, which she doubted she could even pull off at this point, she wouldn't be accepted as the leader anymore, not after the display of cowardice she showed in front of everyone.
As thoughts of what to do next were clouded with uncertainty, she let out a frustrated growl from the brainstorm she was trying to have. Her thoughts are interrupted as she hears clucking noises from around the corner. All of a sudden a small bird turns the corner and enters her pen, its head tilting curiously as it approached Nathiqe. She had seen these animals many times before in settlements, but never got a clear look at them. this one appeared to be a solid white, with a red crest of flesh on top of its head. It begins to peck and scratch at the floor, looking for something to snack on.
A part of her mind is telling her how easy of a meal this would be, but the other side is reminding her what Hans said. As weird as it was, she didn't want to upset the man. Not out of a fear of her life, but out of care for the individual. It was a strange feeling of almost respect she has not felt for someone before, she couldn't fully explain it to herself. she holds back, seeming content with letting the small bird search her stall. The bird made its way towards her and hopped up onto her lap with a small flap of its wings.
It nestled into her lap, seeming enamored with her fur. It was strange, but very comforting having something so small and soft resting on her. she brought a hand down to feel its feathers, but when she made contact it caused the bird to startle slightly. she kept her hand on it, enjoying the feeling of soft feathers against her palm. She began stroking it, enjoying the soft coos the bird let out as it began to fully rest on her. this is the perfect distraction she needed while trapped in here. And so, she sat, content with grooming her new little friend in the barn stall while waiting for Hans to return.
He began to feel boredom set in as he sat on the platform, and it had only been 40 minutes so far. His mind was stuck on her, and what he was going to do. From the sounds of her story, it sounded like she had no where to go. Would she try to stay with him? will she set off for the woods once she has healed? Will her herd come looking for her and attack the town? All these questions made his head swirl as he wondered what fate she would bring them. He wondered how he should act around her, was it like being around normal women? The memories of his failed attempts at dating flashed through his mind. He then inwardly scolded himself for even having the idea of dating and her in the same string of thought.
Sure, she was built nice, but he couldn't imagine something like that ever truly happening. The tendrils of this thought never left his brain, never truly shaking themselves from his subconscious once the idea was thought of. He tries to distract himself by watching some of the falling leaves from the trees and enjoying the sound of a light breeze passing through the woods. With the rustling of branches putting his mind to ease, he rests his eyes, just wanting some reprieve from all this newfound responsibility. Just as he begins his rest, he hears it. The snapping of branches and the crunching of foliage in the area. He moves slowly into position, as to not scare it away, as he gets on his stomach and aims down the crossbow. He can hear the crunching coming closer and getting slower.
That's when he spots a brown form walk into view. It was a young buck, seeming to be passing by. He noted how this should keep them fed, due to its above average size. It was perfect. he looks down the sights on his weapon and golds his breath. "3,2,1, hmmh." He quietly counts down to himself as he takes the shot. Quickly the bolt is let loose as it flies through the hazy air. The buck looks over in the direction of the sound but is quickly hit in the heart as the bolt passes right through the animal. It falls to the ground while going into shock, barely having enough strength to do more then weakly cry out. As the creature falls, Hans begins his descent from his perch and pulls the sled over to it. This should do nicely. Little damage to the valuable bits, and the bolt on the ground for easy retrieval. He notes the glassed look in its eye as he ties it to the sled. Maybe once they are on full stomachs they can sort out what's next. He begins the journey home, slower than getting there with his new cargo. He follows his steps back as he thinks of how to prepare the meat.
Hans arrives home after the trek back and sees everything is still in one piece. He drops the sled off in front of the barn and walks back in and sees that there is no bloodshed, so far so good. He makes his way over to her stall and is slightly shocked to see one of the hens on her lap, with her hand on its back. It seems they both dozed off in his absence. He can't help but let out a small chuckle at the precious sight. It was heartwarming seeing her with his animals like this. All his barn animals were sweet things, and he was glad she listened to him and even reciprocated their gentle nature. He decided to let her sleep as he began the food processing. Once the deer was skinned, he put the large chops of meat over the fire pit in his house. He had them pierced with a metal spit as he let them cook. He took them off every so often to rub the spices in that his mother's recipe called for.
He never felt like it was as good as hers, but he still loved the taste of it. After a couple hours of prep, the food was ready. He threw the remains of the deer he couldn't use back in the woods, for whatever is out there to take care of it. He brought the final product out to the barn on large trays. He made it into the stall with the venison roasts and saw Nathiqe staring with a hint of drool leaking from her mouth. It seemed like she could smell it form a mile away. He sat down with the 2 trays; both had a large chunk of well-seasoned meat on them. Hans could tell she was more excited for this then him. She quickly placed her feathered friend to the side and grabbed one of the large chunks. She began chowing down on the large serving of meat with her eyes closed and a smile on her face.
It was clear she was at least enjoying it, which gave him some pride in his cooking. "That good huh?" he said with a grin. She stopped her chewing for a moment to reply. "I've never had something like this, the herd never made it like this. they normally soak in blood and serve it after cooking. This is incredible!" the thought of this being her first real taste of cooking warmed his heart and gave him satisfaction at someone enjoying it so enthusiastically. As the time went and the portions shrank, it came to an end as she ate a roast in half, while Hans only hat half of one. While it was more than enough to keep him filled, he was surprised with how much she could really eat.
They passed the time with idle chit chat, little tid bits of info about themselves. Hans learned that she was the only female warrior of her herd, and Nathiqe learned that there is a town nearby, but Hans lives by himself. Before she can press why that is, Hans excuses himself. "I gotta take care of some of the animals real quick. I'll be nearby if you need me." Her face lost some of its positivity and started to look stern once more. "I understand." She says as she leans back against the wall, trying to get a hold of her new feathered friend. As Hans leaves the stall, she already feels boredom setting back in. While she usually had activities to distract her, she never knew how to distract herself while sitting idly. The bird helped, but the feeling of wanting to talk to someone who seems to actually care about her in some level makes her desire it.
While Hans wanted to talk with her further, he needed to give the animals some more feed. He did not wish to talk about his lonesome living status in general either. As he dumps the piles of various grains to the cows, he moves on to the chickens still in their pen. He thought to put some out for thew one with Nathiqe but decided he shouldn't since it will come back to its nest eventually. As he feeds his sheep, he notices the ram's horn has gotten rather dull and dirty. Now would be a good time to get this sorted since he managed to pull himself away from his guest. He goes inside to fetch some wax and a rag. He enters the barn again and begins the process of cleaning off and polishing the rams' curly horns. The animal protests at first, but once Hans gets it still it accepts the treatment.
The ram had a dirty white coat that he has been meaning to take care of. As he gets to polishing and wiping down the rams' curved horns, a curious Nathiqe peeks her head over the stall with strain. She watches as the cloth makes the horns shine in its wake, and it makes her wonder. "Why do you do that?" she asked warily. He looks down at the now shiny horns and back to her. "He likes it usually. Makes him look nice and clean. Satisfying to see afterwards to." He said with a smile as he admired his work. Looking at the rams' horns and feeling slightly jealous at the decorated state they were in compared to hers made her think. "Could you do mine next?" she said with uncertainty, almost asking if it was physically possible as opposed to if he would do it.
He looked at her almost with worried expression on his face. Could he do that? He thought to himself in a similar fashion. He wondered if it had any deeper meaning or if she really did like the idea of having clean horns. The thought of a beastman with vanity would amuse him usually, but now it made him curious and almost uncomfortable. He decided to make the jump and go for it. "Sure, why not." He said with a smile to try and ease his tension and hers hopefully. He walks over to her stall after putting the finishing touches on the ram. As he enters her stall with rag and wax in hand, he pulls up a small stool so he can stay at her head height for this process. "Just sit up straight for this, and I'll see what I can do."
She replies with a nod and tries to keep her posture up as best she can in her state. Once he starts applying the wax, she feels somewhat relaxed at having his hands run gently up and down her horns. Little bits of wax fall onto her fur but are quickly wiped away by his hands. The young man can't help but feel strangeness giving a walking animal a pedicure. As he sat there, he let his eyes wander the various planked surfaces of the barn, noting the tools beginning to rust, and small holes in the walls. He will have to do something about the barn doors sooner or later he realized. He moved the waxed rag up and down her long horns in slow but firm motions. Little specks of dirt and spots of grime come off, leaving behind a nicer tone to the set of horns as he works.
As she sat there, she pondered why she never kept upkeep on her horns before. it was nice when she got to see a clean pair, but it never crossed her mind. The sound of the rags rubbing fills her ears as she begins to relax, satisfied with the treatment being given. "you're all set, looks good as new" the man said happily. She was a little disappointed it didn't last longer. As Nathiqe felt the new almost oily feeling of her horns, Hans simply admired his work. Sure, it was not perfect, and he may have made it brief for comfort reasons, but he was satisfied none the less. Even though she couldn't see them right now, the new textures felt pleasing against her hands, giving her some comfort at being cleaned even if only slightly. "Thank you, they look nice, I think." She felt dumb at having said that, but the feeling didn't last when Hans simply gave her a thumbs up. "Another satisfied customer." He says as he throws the rag into a nearby bucket.
He stays seated, intent on talking with her further. "So, what was your previous home like?" She wonders what he means. "Do you mean life in the herd in general?" "I meant more so where you lived. Like, where you would sleep and keep all your things." Did that sound weird? "I lived in a tent most of the time, occasionally I would have to sleep in the woods if I was getting ready for an ambush." A tent huh? "That tent held all my possessions before I left. The only things I managed to keep is what armor stayed on me and my axe." She shows him the axe in question while trying to pick the mud off of it. Hans admired the large weapon, impressed with the upkeep maintained on it, considering its eventful past. He noticed the dwarf rune hammered into one of the sides, letting of a dim glow as it sat rested. He would have to ask Kothek about something like this next time he saw him. "Where did you get that rune?" "Hmm? Oh, I found it in caravan chest." That seemed kinda underwhelming. "What does it do for your axe?" "I'm not sure. I heard runes from the dwarves could make changes to equipment, but it has not done much for mine yet."
Hans wonders if it has more purpose than just glowing, a question he will hold for later. Another one he wanted to ask was about her previous leader. He wanted to know what kind of creature would be strong enough to lead beastmen but couldn't fight in one on one. "I wanted to ask, who was this herd leader you were following, and why- "quickly Nathiqe yawns with her arms stretched upwards, quickly getting into a position to rest. "I'm sorry, but I feel exhausted. Maybe it's the medicine still lingering." "Oh, yeah I guess it could be." That's weird considering she had just recently woken up. Maybe an extra day of rest would be better for her. "I'll answer your questions tomorrow if that's alright." "Yeah, sounds good. Did you need anything else?" "Nothing I can think of." "Alright, but I am gonna grab you a pillow first."
He says as he leaves the barn to fetch the bedding. She was glad he believed she wanted to sleep. She was not actually tired but was not ready to talk about her biggest failure to him. She rests back onto the hay with the blanket, intent on trying to sleep now that she has convinced him that's what she needs. She hears his footsteps enter the building and sees him turn the corner with something large and soft looking. "This is for your head; I hope it makes the floor more bearable." "Thank you Hans, I know I have said it before, but I appreciate it." She can see the smile on his face from her words. "It's alright, I'll see you tomorrow then. Yell if you need me."
He walks out of the ruined doors and decides to fix some of his fencing before taking an early rest. He was not sure what it is, but he had a feeling she was hiding something. He didn't feel any ill intent from her, but he had a sneaking suspicion she didn't want to come clean on what lead her to this point of being stranded with him. He wont force it out of her, but he would have to get a better idea if he wanted to know how to deal with this. Once again, this is something he will deal with tomorrow.
Hey everyone, sorry if this one took so long to get out, I have had a lot going on lately. I hope to get these out more frequently and hope to start other stories at some point. To all those following and favoriting, thank you, it really means a lot to me and makes me want to make more. Until next time,and happy holidays!