The one with the Nilfgaardian bat that brought gifts

When Dandelion left to visit the Morel estate to discuss organizational matters, Geralt withdrew back to his bedroom to finish some paperwork. They were going to start harvesting in about a week. New barrels had to be ordered, a few helping hands had already been hired. Geralt thought back to his first few harvests and how stressed out he had been back then. Wine, and everything connected to it, was so delicate. A pest here, some wrong weather there and there would be no harvest. He had been lucky so far and was spared any worst-case scenarios. The vineyard had been rather profitable considering its small size. On top of that Geralt still had income from his witcher contracts that could tie the vineyard over if it had to be: The other vineyard owners of the region were paying him a yearly base rate so that they could call upon his services whenever they were needed. Kit had called this a framework contract.

Luckily, so far, he had never needed to fall back on his additional income. The sales were going well which was probably in part due to peoples' undiminished curiosity in his persona as, after all, even hate was a form of interest.

"You should sell it as fermented witcher essence. Use the rumors about you as a marketing ploy," Kit mused one morning, looking at him from over her current book 'Monstrum, or a Portrayal of Witchers'.

"Can you please not read that?" Geralt had no idea why he had even kept it.

"Why? It's such an interesting read."

"I'd rather you did not read any of that."

She put the book down. "Are you afraid I'm going to believe anything that's written in here? You, uh, 'veritable scoundrel, without conscience and virtue'?" she read with a mocking voice while eying the open page of the book and shaking her head.

Geralt said nothing, just scowled and grunted. He dreaded the day when she would pick up something about him or witchers in general that would completely change her opinion of him, make her despise him.

"Geralt, give me some credit, please. Why would I value the content of this book higher than the experiences I made with you? Don't be such a fool." She picked the book back up and started reading again. He wanted to be reassured but he was not.

Later in the day Geralt decided to take up Dandelion's advice. Nothing that he would do too often but he could not see that there was any harm to be done.

"Dandelion invited us to come to the wedding tomorrow. Would you like to go?"

"He can just do that? Invite others to a wedding that's not his, I mean?" Kit asked while brushing Roach's fur. She still did not enjoy riding but had taken a liking to the horse.

"Sure. But I assume it's not the appropriate thing to do where you come from?" Geralt leaned back against the wall of the stable and watched her brushing the dark brown fur in circular motions. It reminded him of the way her fingers had massaged his scalp. He shuddered.

"Absolutely not. There are usually special dinner reservations involved so you can't just add people. And the couple typically doesn't want strangers in the photographs of the supposedly happiest day of their lives." She paused for a moment. "Weddings are nightmares anyway. Expensive, boring… and most marriages get divorced. What's the point?"

"Love, I suppose?"

"Maybe."

"Marriage is not for you then?" Geralt was genuinely curios to hear her opinion. To be married was the most important thing in the lives of most women he knew. But of course Kit had a different background so naturally all of his assumptions were bound to be wrong.

"I don't know. I just don't see myself there. I'd be happy to just have… someone. Don't get me wrong, I love the idea that someone is so certain of their love for someone else that they would swear on that in front of all the people who matter. It's a beautiful thing. I just have never met anyone who I could imagine that with." Kit put the brushes away and hugged the horse's neck. Roach, meanwhile, snorted softly into Kit's hair. "But sure, why not go there if it's okay?"

Geralt nodded.

Something was off about her today but he, as always, did not know what it was. There seemed to be an underlying sadness to her.

"What's wrong with you?" he tried.

Kit did not look at him. "Just having the blues, I guess." She then walked over to him, arms crossed in front of her chest, and leaned her head on his shoulder. Geralt knew she was lying but he did not like to press her. Instead, he put one arm around her back und pulled her a little closer.

While he certainly was not delighted at the fact that she was obviously struggling with something, he could not deny that he enjoyed it when she sought his proximity and comfort.

"Say, do witchers get married?" Kit suddenly asked, leaning against the stable wall next to him.

"Mh," Geralt pondered. "I have never been invited to a witcher's wedding."

"But you can?" Kit asked, looking at him questioningly.

"There is no law against it. Why do you ask? Still worried about my virtue?" He half-smiled.

"Always," she chuckled. "But mostly I'm just curious. I was wondering if you were maybe in a similar position like priests where you are not allowed to have a wife or children."

"Witchers are sterile, so we cannot have children. Of our own, anyway."

"Does it bother you?"

"Can't say it does. This life is not compatible with children. Raising Ciri was enough of an adventure." Geralt had eventually told the whole story to Kit who only nodded.

"It's better this way. If this world develops anything like my own, this planet will burst at the seams in a few hundred years. Although I do wonder what a witcher baby would be like." She giggled. "It would probably ride the house cat into battle, hunting mice with a butter knife in hand, and if you try to feed it with things it doesn't like, it'll fight you."

"And then it sets the house on fire because it has no control over the signs," Geralt mused. Kit laughed.

"What about you?" he asked. Every woman wanted children. Every woman he knew anyway. But the fact that Kit had asked him if he wanted children, like it was a choice to be made and not something that was inevitably going to happen, told him that she might feel differently about the issue.

She shook her head energetically. "Absolutely not. I hate children. I don't want to be responsible for anybody but me. And in all honesty, I find the idea of having to share my body with someone else terrifying. Especially in this world where you don't have hospitals. Sure, living up to the age of 'died in childbirth' is probably pretty adventurous and, as they say, only the best die young, but… It's just nothing that I feel I have to do."

"I assume this is normal in your world?" He cocked his head.

"Yeah, pretty much. My world offers so many opportunities, so many things to live for – a lot of people decide not to have children. It's not at all uncommon." She told him about how she liked to travel and how easy that was. Geralt could not quite understand how people had learned to fly and probably did not grasp half of what she excitedly gushed about. But she was in a better mood after that, which was the only thing that mattered.

In the evening of the following day, they found themselves watching Erasmus Morel swear his love for Anais Thomas. The tall brunette Anais was a perfect match for the equally tall, dark haired Erasmus who had inherited his good looks from his mother's side of the family.

"Where are they from?" Kit whispered.

"His mother is from Ofir." The dark hair and skin of the Ofiri guests contrasted against that of the lighter skinned local inhabitants.

"I wonder where that is. Just by the sound of it, probably something that corresponds to my world's version of the middle-east."

"I have never been there but I heard they have cities in the middle of the desert and white horses with black stripes."

"You mean zebras? Those are black with white stripes."

"How do you even know that?"

"It's common knowledge. And the black with white or white with black stripes discussion comes up sooner or later, always. In utero zebras are completely black. They only develop the white stripes shortly before birth. Their skin beneath the fur is completely black by the way. No stripes at all."

"Didn't you say you were an accountant?"

"No, I said that an accountant is probably what's closest in this world to my job."

"Does your job involve striped horses?"

"No, why?"

"Then how do you know these things? I don't understand. Why does an accountant know about striped horses?" Little things like these made Geralt feel like he was inadequate and doubtful about the possibility of winning her over. He had always considered himself reasonably educated and well-versed – until he met her.

Kit just shrugged, blissfully unaware of the doubts she caused him. "Information in my world is available everywhere at any time. I literally have access to nearly everything mankind has ever learned or researched with a device that fits onto the palm of my hand. I don't even need to pick up a book for that. I just ask google and in a split second all I need is there right in front of me to read up on."

"And who is this google and where does he take his information from?"

Kit burst out in laughter which earned her some angry stares from the people surrounding them. The ceremony was still ongoing.

"It is a search engine," she whispered. "I honestly have no idea how to explain the internet to you. There is nothing comparable."

"I don't like it when you do that," Geralt grunted.

"What?"

"You talk about something that I don't know and then you don't explain it to me."

Kit sighed. "I'm sorry. It's very hard to get used to these things that are an integral part of my life not existing here. But the internet is really difficult to explain because it's nothing physical and there really isn't anything to compare it to. But I'll try to think of something, okay?"

Geralt hummed, clearly not satisfied with the answer.

After the ceremony, Geralt and Kit were paying compliments to the newlywed couple as was customary.

"Ah, what an honor to have the famous Geralt of Rivia with us tonight! And your betrothed I suppose?" the smiling bride greeted them while her husband only nodded. He was much too taken in with his new wife as that he could have bothered with anything else.

Kit had attached herself to Geralt's arm the moment the ceremony was over. They had not talked about it but they resumed their half-act that they had established previously in Beauclair.

Geralt just nodded. "I wish you both happiness and fortunes."

"It is much appreciated," Anais replied smiling. "We are also very much looking forward to hear your friend, the bard, sing tonight. He told us he defended you in a bar fight a few days ago. Is that true?"

Geralt did not flinch. "He is a good friend. We stand up for each other if it has to be."

"You are a terrific liar," Kit commented later on with admiration in her voice.

"Not as much as you think," Geralt sighed, having other things in mind. "In Dandelion's world he's the one saving me all the time, not the other way around." Next to writing songs, turning narratives upside down was Dandelion's greatest talent.

"And people actually believe that?"

"Not so sure about that but he's the better storyteller. It sounds more interesting to his audience this way."

Kit stared at him questioningly. "And you go along with all of this because…?"

"It's hard to explain. He's a good person, really. Was one of the first people to just accept me as an ordinary man, not making a big deal about what I really am."

Kit caressed the back of Geralt's hand, that she had been holding all the time, with her thumb. "I'm so sorry, Geralt. I don't think I have quite understood what life must be like for you." Her blue eyes, full of sorrow, captivated him. It surprised him every time that her ability to sympathize with him had not been diminished the slightest even though she now knew much more about him and his kind. Yet, there was not a hint of disgust in them. He held her in high regards for that.

He smiled weakly. "It would be a lot to ask to understand an entire world in just a few days."

"I know, but still. I wish I could help."

"What about a dance? That'll lift my spirits." He gave her an encouraging smile.

"Dance? Voluntarily? You?" she mocked him, raising one eyebrow questioningly.

Geralt shrugged his shoulders. "Seems like I'm developing a taste for it. Particularly for the way you dance." He offered her his arm which she took smiling.

This time she did not need to guide him. His hands found their place on the small of her back and his body molded itself to hers the moment her hands intertwined behind his neck. A familiar warmth spread through Geralt's body while they moved to a song that Dandelion was intonating in the background. He felt want, longing and, oddly, a sense of security. For one dance everything was light and beautiful.

Dandelion's set was only interrupted by rounds of applause.

"He's really popular," Kit remarked with a surprised tone.

"Even more so in the north," Geralt explained.

"Master Witcher, may I have your attention for just one moment?" A small, round man addressed Geralt. "What a coincidence that I find you here tonight as I was about to contact you anyway. I guess it's destiny!" he exclaimed excitedly while a tuft of blonde hair, that had escaped his hat, bobbed around energetically.

"If destiny is involved, I want nothing to do with it," Geralt grumbled who did not want work to be brought up during the evening.

"Well," the man started fidgeting, "I'll call it a bout of good luck then. Anyway, we have an issue and could use your help. Could you spare a moment of your time?"

Geralt looked at Kit who just shrugged her shoulders. He did not want to but out of obligation went with the man who started explaining his problem while gesticulating wildly.

"It's a beautiful evening, isn't it?" A stranger addressed Kit from the side. His grey hair stood up a little at the sides, his skin was pale and he carried a small bag to which a bushel of herbs was attached. His hands were folded behind his back as he observed the scenery.

"Very much. Are you enjoying yourself?" she asked politely.

"As long as I am in good company, always." He turned towards her. "May I inquire about your dress?"

"Sure, what about it?" She was still wearing the high-waisted linen skirt but had exchanged the top for a blush colored strapless blouse with long sleeves made from silk.

"It is a very interesting ensemble. I don't think I have ever seen anyone wear anything comparable."

"I find it preferable if I don't need someone else's help to dress myself. Life is too short for that. I don't know where people here take the patience from to deal with layers and layers of clothing."
The stranger chuckled. "That is indeed true. Please excuse my impertinence but may I ask where you are from? Not from around here I suppose?"

Kit nodded approvingly. "You suppose right, I'm not from here. I am coming from… very far away. A world away so to speak. How about you?" She gave him an expectant look.

"I think that we have in common." He chuckled, much to Kit's confusion.

"How do you know the couple? I assume you do since you've come such a long way?"

"Not quite right." The stranger chuckled again. "I didn't come for them – though I always do enjoy a good wedding. But I am actually here to help out a friend. I haven't found him yet but he's usually easy to spot. In fact, I think there he is. If you'll excuse me." He bowed politely and was about to turn away but stopped mid-movement. "I forgot, this," he rummaged through his small bag, "is yours, if I'm not completely mistaken." Smiling, he handed her a red scarf. The scarf she had lost in the storm at the wine festival.

"Thank you! That… But how…?" She turned to look at him but the stranger was gone. "What on earth?" she mumbled to herself.

Geralt had finally shaken off the unwanted client who had tasked him with smoking out a kikimora nest. The deadly critters had decided to occupy a cave that was urgently needed to store the new wine barrels from the upcoming harvest. Unwanted tenants in the form of hexa- or octopods were a common problem around Beauclair.

The witcher, who had been looking for Kit, turned his head when he heard someone call his name.

"Regis? I didn't expect to find you here!" he exclaimed in surprise while he gave his old friend a hug.

"Technically, you did not find me but I found you."

"True. I'm glad you are as nitpicky as ever since it must mean you're well." Geralt sighed. "Thank you for coming anyway. I know you're still not welcome in this area but believe me when I say that I was a little desperate." Regis was still detested by the other vampires in the region, particularly by the lower ones - ever since he killed their friend Dettlaff. For that reason, they had only ever met on the grounds of Corvo Bianco and never outside its premises.

"Don't worry, dear friend. I won't be staying long and everything will be in order."

"I am relieved to hear that," Geralt replied. He had thought himself rather selfish for asking Regis to come despite the circumstances. "How have you been doing? Still travelling the south?"

"Yes and no. I recently decided to settle in Nilfgaard. Turns out, despite their modern attitude, they are in severe need of modern medicine."

Geralt chuckled. "You are selling them the potions you've been testing on me for all those years, aren't you?"

"Precisely. This is why I wasn't able to come any earlier. The demand is rather high, what can I do?"

"I'm not surprised. I noticed you developed your mandrake cure to perfection. You could have mentioned that you adjusted the formula. It had already been working miracles before but now it appears I could lose my head and stick it right back on using your paste."

"I can't seem to remember to have adjusted anything. But I'm glad to hear about it anyway even though I would like to strongly suggest that you don't get yourself into a situation where your head is at risk of being separated from the rest of you. I'm afraid I won't be visiting as frequently as I used to and therefore won't be able to supply you as fast as you might need me to. I'm rather busy at the moment." Regis shrugged apologetically.

"I understand. Thank you for coming anyway. I could use your opinion on my… friend."

Regis chuckled. "I just met your friend. She smells of you. And you of her."

"We were just dancing." Geralt felt the need to justify himself. Why, that he did not know. "And when did you even meet her?"

"And before that you were just sharing a bed?" Regis mocked his friend, disregarding his other question.

"Just how…?" Geralt looked at him in confusion.

"My feathered friends have been telling me. I sent them to Beauclair immediately after I received your message. They have been watching over you and reporting back to me since the day you visited the palace." Geralt remembered how he had felt like someone was observing them but had dismissed the feeling since it seemed so unlikely with them being high up in one of the palace's towers.

"Spying on people like a true Nilfgaardian," Geralt scoffed and rolled his eyes. "I didn't think you'd be so easily corrupted."

Regis, knowing Geralt well enough to differentiate between accusation and humor, chuckled. "My hands were tied and since the case didn't seem urgent I sent my feathered spies to provide me with an overview."

"I assume birds do not understand the concept of discretion?" Geralt raised an eyebrow.

"They do. They did not lose a croak about what happened during the nights." A mysterious smile spread across Regis' lips. "Don't worry old friend, your secrets are safe with them."

Geralt sighed, partly out of frustration that there was nothing that the birds could have watched and spilled about. "Then what do you know and what do I still have to tell you?"

"I gathered as much as that she, Kit, if I am not mistaken, is not from this world and neither of you knows how she got here. Is that accurate?"

"Precise and to the point."

"And now you want me to… to do what exactly?"

"I don't know, Regis. I want her to be able to go home. She's not happy here, she's got a family waiting for her. I'm not sure what brought her here. But I figured you might know more." Geralt looked at him full of hope. He did not like having to rely on other people but he also had to acknowledge that he himself would not be able to help Kit.

Regis nodded. "I'll see what I can do. But by the fact that I am still living in this world and not my own, I hope you are not expecting much of me." Regis' face was sincere and full of sadness.

"I'm desperate. She's hurting." The mere thought caused Geralt pain.

Regis stayed silent for a moment before he replied. "She didn't look it when the two of you were dancing. Quite the opposite. In fact, it seems she is settling in rather well." The vampire nodded his head in Kit's direction. A small group of women, amongst them Anais, had gathered around her. They seemed to be chatting excitedly.

"Don't be fooled." Geralt shook his head. "She is a terrific actress. She pretends to be happy all day long but will start crying at night, when she thinks nobody can hear her."

"And you?"

"What about me?"

"You looked happy. I've known you for a while and that is a very unusual sight. I don't think I've ever seen you dance. If you even consider that dancing."

"Regis, do us all a favor and don't encourage my selfishness. She needs to go home and not be with an old man who has nothing to offer."

Regis mustered the ground between them in silence. "I will not waste my breath then making a list of all the things that you have to offer." He closed his eyes for a moment and shook his head, "But, you know I am not one to give false hope, therefore let me be straightforward with you: I don't think she will ever return." He raised a hand in that calm and graceful manner that was typical to him, to indicate Geralt to listen. "No, let me finish before you start protesting. I have reasons to believe that I am right. I will have to examine things a little closer before I can tell you something more definite, I don't wish to get ahead of myself. But I am saying this: Your energy is much better spent trying to make her feel comfortable. For if I am right, she will need something to fall back on. You know that I consider us higher vampires to be quite sophisticated but the conjunction did drive some of us mad. As to your friend's state of mind - I cannot judge. Despite my advanced age, however, my eyes are seeing quite well, and I saw that she was very comfortable around you. Build on that. Should I be wrong and she will eventually return home, no harm will be done. Should it turn out that I am not mistaken though…" Regis did not finish the sentence.

Geralt stayed silent for a moment, pondering over the words of his friend.

"I'm sorry, I know it's not what you wanted to hear."

"Well, when do I ever get what I want?" He placed one hand on his neck. A headache seemed to be coming his way, the pain in his jaw had been worsening over the day.

Regis' gaze wandered back to Kit. "Maybe now you will."

Geralt grunted.

"Anyway, where did you find her? I would like to examine the area a little closer, see if there is anything else to be gathered."

"In a barren field close to Flovive. Nothing looked out of the ordinary. As if she had fallen from the sky."

"There were no markings indicating that she had appeared elsewhere and was just dropped there?"

"No, nothing that caught my eye."

"Very well then. You shall hear from me tomorrow afternoon the latest." Regis was about to turn and leave, then added: "Do the two of you a favor and enjoy the evening."

Geralt nodded and was about to thank his friend but he had already disappeared.

He felt a knot forming in his stomach. What would happen if Regis was right? How would Kit take it? After the initial days, once she had accepted her current circumstances, she seemed to be happy most of the time. She had, after all, mentioned plenty of things that she liked about this world. But would it be enough?

He silently prayed that Regis was wrong.