Hey, guys! Welcome back to Hear a Tale! I am now completely finished with college, graduation and all, and I have time to write again! Yay! Thank you for your patience these past several weeks :) Now, without further ado, review time!

Thanks so much to CitrusChickadee (H'aanit may pretend she's serious, but she's just as much of a troll as anyone else XD And thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed!), Guest (Both Linde and H'aanit have perfected the art of messing with everyone around them, haha! XD), and Guest (Thank you! Yes, I do still plan to return to that trilogy in the future! Just wanted to take a bit of a break from ROTG to write for some of my other favorite fandoms first :) for reviewing! Again, thank you all for your patience, and I hope you continue to read and enjoy!

With that, on with the tale!

Relevant Events: None

22. Mother Nature

Tressa squinted at Linde, her keen merchant's eyes taking in every detail of the snow leopard as she padded at H'aanit's side. Linde's tail swished gently across the grass beneath their feet, and her ears twitched every now and then, picking up some distant rustle or birdsong in the forest. She looked, for all intents and purposes, like an ordinary cat - albeit a particularly large one.

There had to be something Tressa was missing.

H'aanit cleared her throat lightly, arching an eyebrow in the younger girl's direction. "Tressa?" she prompted carefully. "What…art thou doing?"

"I'm trying to figure out the secret…" Tressa murmured, not looking up. Linde had now noticed the merchant's eyeballing, and had proceeded to mutely stare at her in return, her feline face frustratingly blank.

"The…secret," H'aanit repeated, blinking. "To…what, exactly?"

"To how you communicate with her so easily!" Tressa finally straightened, wheeling around to face H'aanit with an exasperated huff. "I thought it must be that Linde's just an overly expressive leopard, but even if that's the case, it should still be impossible for you to get as much information from…from something like her tail waving or her ears twitching as you do! I don't mean to brag, but I consider myself preeeetty observant, and I just…can't see it!"

H'aanit's bewildered expression gradually shifted to one of mild amusement. "Aha…I see."

"And then there's the way you talk to her," Tressa continued, rubbing at her chin in thought. "With most animals - dogs, or cats, or even my squirrel at home - you teach them commands for specific things, right? But that's not how you talk to Linde at all! You just…say things, in plain Orsterran, and she understands perfectly fine! I just…I don't get it!"

"Calmen thyself, Tressa," the huntress chuckled. "Thou art beginning to sounden like Cyrus on one of his tangents."

Tressa shook her head, taking a slow steadying breath. "Sorry. I just…want to understand, I guess. How is it that yours and Linde's bond is so…so close?"

"Well…'tis because of my homeland." H'aanit reached down to stroke Linde's head, a soft smile on her face. "S'warkii hath been a village of hunters for many, many years. My people hath perfected the art of communication and taming of wild beasts. 'Tis in my blood, thou might sayest."

"Sure, but…how do your people do it?" Tressa asked. "I mean…is there some kind of trick to it? Is it something that anyone can learn? Or is it just…some special sort of magic?"

"Mhm, well…" The huntress paused, eyes raised skyward in thought. "Perhaps our connection to Draefendi the Huntress doth contribute somewhat. However…I doe not believe 'tis entirely magic, or unattainable to outsiders."

"Draefendi…" The merchant cocked her head slightly. "Is that all it takes, then? Worshiping Draefendi the Huntress gets you all those neat nature powers in return?"

"Not…quite," H'aanit replied with a chuckle. "'Tis not so simple a transaction, little merchant. Thou couldst thinken of Draefendi as the mother of nature itself, but to praisen her is not the answer to everything. To communen with beasts as I doe…'tis something that taketh time, and practice."

"I'm still not sure that I understand…"

"Hm…" H'aanit paused, studying Tressa's crestfallen features,"...thou hast a squirrel at home, yes? How dost thou speaken with her?"

Tressa frowned. "I told you, didn't I…? We just…give her commands, and she listens."

"What about outside of those commands?"

"Outside of…? Oh, well, um…" The merchant paused, brow furrowed in thought. "Well…I guess I do kind of talk to her as if she was a person a lot. Tell her about my day, praise her for finding fruit and nuts for us, that sort of thing…oh!" Her face suddenly lit up with a grin. "And sometimes, if I'm telling her about something sad that happened, she'll do this cute little thing where she climbs up on my shoulder and rubs against the side of my face! It's like she can tell it makes me feel better!"

H'aanit smiled. "Well, then…there thou hast it."

"Huh?"

"Thine interactions with thy squirrel…they doe not soundeth so different from how Linde and I art, yes?" The huntress reached out to place a hand on Tressa's shoulder. "The key to connection with beasts…'tis simply empathy."

"Empathy…?"

"Of course. All that may separaten us from beasts is the ability to speaken. An animal feeleth emotions, just as thou dost. To listenen and to understanden them…'tis how communication worketh, yes?"

"Huh…" Tressa's eyes widened slightly. "You're right! Sure, words make it easier and all, but…at the end of the day, they just help express emotions, right?" The girl beamed and knelt down, patting Linde lightly on the head. "If my squirrel can understand how I'm feeling without me even realizing…then I should be able to talk to animals no problem when I'm really paying attention!"

"I liken thy spirit," H'aanit chuckled, "though do not despairen if thou canst not graspen it immediately. As I said before…it taketh time and practice."

"Understood!" Tressa proclaimed, though she still bounced excitedly on her heels. "But just you wait, H'aanit, I'll be a master of beasts, just like you, before you know it!"

The huntress smiled wryly. "I am certain that Draefendi herself wilt ben envious of thy prowess."

"You bet she will!" Tressa beamed. "Mother of nature or not! Alright, come on Linde - let's go practice!" The merchant beckoned to Linde, then spun on her heel and marched further along the path they walked.

The snow leopard blinked slowly, then lifted her head to stare quizzically in her mistress' direction. H'aanit laughed softly, then scratched Linde lightly between the ears.

"Best to humoren her for now," she told the big cat. "Thou knowest Tressa's capacity for stubbornness as well as I."

Linde gave a soft huff, but protested no further. Leaving her companion's side, the leopard trudged after Tressa, begrudgingly resigning herself to whatever "practice" the enthusiastic merchant had in mind.

I'll see you guys next time for Tale 23: Cat!