Shani woke up slowly, realizing that she was lying in a comfortable bed with a blanket covering her. As soon as she noticed the change of environment, the woman quickly got up, startled, before noticing a small girl playing with a spinning top on the floor.
Hearing a noise behind her, the little girl turned around and opened her eyes wide when she saw Shani sitting on the bed. The child immediately stood up with a smile and approached Shani.
She was fair-skinned with long brown hair tied in a braid that fell over her left shoulder, and brown eyes. The little girl was wearing a blue shirt with a pink vest, ordinary pants and simple shoes.
"You're awake! Geralt will be happy to see you, are you his wife?" asked the excited little girl.
Shani calmed down when she realized that the little girl probably knew Geralt, but that didn't stop a slight blush and embarrassment when she heard the child's last question.
"Geralt and I aren't married, but we're good friends." Corrects Shani, a little unhappy with what she's said, but she pushes the feeling away. "Where am I? And Geralt, where is he?"
"Ah, this is the Crow's Perch, Geralt arrived last night when I was playing outside... thought you were married, the way he carried you in his arms all the way here. I heard everyone talking about it." Comments the little girl, laughing at the end. "It was so romantic."
"He... carried me in his arms? I must have been more exhausted than I thought." Shani thinks before calmly getting out of bed under the watchful eye of the child.
"Are you sure you're not Geralt's wife? You're gorgeous." Asks the child again, making Shani smile at her.
"No, I'm not his wife, just a good friend. But tell me, what's your name and how do you know Geralt?" Shani asks, kneeling down in front of the little girl.
"I'm Gretka, Ciri told me all about Geralt!" Gretka says, smiling at Shani.
"You really like Geralt, don't you?" Shani asks calmly, making the little girl nod. "How about hearing some of the stories I know about him?"
Upon hearing this, Gretka smiled brightly and nodded before sitting down in front of Shani, which made the woman sit on the edge of the bed before she began to tell the stories of her encounters with Geralt.
(Meanwhile, in the bloody baron's office.)
Geralt and the Bloody Baron's sergeant were in front of the fireplace warming up after a long night of celebrations that the wizard didn't know what they were about. Despite his last-minute arrival, he was still welcomed by most of the soldiers and guards with the sergeant and now leader of the Crow's Perch meeting him to discuss favors.
"So another horse is all you want?" The sergeant asks after a while before walking over to the baron's table and sitting down, looking directly at the wizard.
"Yes, I just need another horse to pull the cart." Geralt assured the sergeant, making him nod.
The man remained silent for some time, a thoughtful expression on his face until he looked at Geralt again.
"I think we can make a better deal actually." The sergeant comments, causing Geralt to raise an eyebrow. "That carriage of yours is fine for carrying supplies, but there's nothing to protect it from the sun or rain. So how about I offer you a carriage with a cover on it, plus one of our best horses, for a price of course."
"...I thought I was asking a favor and not being asked." Geralt comments with narrowed eyes, causing the sergeant to nod.
"Of course, you'll get another horse regardless, I just never said it would be a good one. I'm offering you a new carriage and one of the best horses for a very modest price indeed." The sergeant smiles, which makes Geralt glare at him in annoyance before sighing.
"Okay, what's your price? Some monster terrorizing the surroundings?" Geralt asks, surprised when the sergeant nods.
"No, surprisingly the monsters haven't caused that many problems. This year's harvest wasn't the best and we need more food or to get rid of some mouths to feed." Explains the sergeant calmly, looking solemnly at some papers on the table before turning back to face the wizard. "I just want two simple things, the first is some of your supplies to solve part of my problem."
"...That sounds understandable. What's the second thing?" Geralt asks after considering it for a few moments.
"Take the girl Gretka with you." Declares the sergeant, making Geralt's eyes widen in surprise at what he's heard.
"What?"
"The girl, Gretka, you and your companion take the girl with you wherever you want, I don't care." Said the sergeant with a weary sigh before turning to face Geralt. "We have about fifty people to feed, not counting those who live in the fortress, so we're going to cut some costs and that child... that child is more trouble than help. The bloodthirsty baron helped her because he has a soft spot for children, but we don't have that, Gretka is too clumsy in the kitchen and wants to play all the time."
"She's a child, she's supposed to want to play." Geralt comments, making the sergeant nod.
"Of course, but she wanted to play during work and that just gets in the way and spoils the food. Besides, the girl loves the 'white wolf' and if you take her she might listen to you without throwing a tantrum." The sergeant shrugged before standing up and holding out his hand to Geralt. "So, what do you say?"
Geralt looked at the outstretched hand for a few seconds with a frown on his face, he didn't like the idea of people offering him their children, especially given the upbringing of all the other witchers and Ciri herself. However, from the way the sergeant was talking, it sounded like they were going to get rid of Gretka one day or another, and that was only the best of options.
Besides, he knew that if he left Gretka alone and she was abandoned in the wilds of Velen, Ciri would never forgive him. With that in mind, Geralt begrudgingly reached out and shook the sergeant's hand, sealing the deal.
"Perfect! I'll send my men to start preparing your new wagon and horses." The sergeant nods in satisfaction before leaving the office, leaving Geralt alone.
"...Shit."
Shani couldn't help but smile at the way Gretka was behaving, after several days full of adrenaline and death it was nice to have a bit of the childishness and innocence that only a child could provide. Ever since they had met, Shani had been telling Geralt stories she knew and some she had witnessed, much to the child's delight. It was funny to think that there was a child who would be so excited about witchers, but perhaps she shouldn't be so surprised, after all Ciri was another child who also liked witchers.
"...So in the end, Geralt managed to break the curse by sleeping in the coffin of Striga, who had turned human during the morning." Shani says, making Gretka impressed.
"Geralt is amazing!" Exclaimed the excited little girl, making Shani laugh.
It was at this moment that the bedroom door was opened and Geralt entered with a tired look on his face, but he soon stopped when he saw Shani and Gretka talking. But as soon as Gretka saw him, the little girl got up and ran over to him smiling.
"Geralt! You're here!" Greets the little girl, surprising the wizard even more when she hugs him. "Is it true that you fought an immortal? And cured a cursed princess of turning into a Striga?"
"..." Geralt remained silent, staring at Gretka for a few seconds before turning to Shani who seemed to be enjoying the scene in front of her.
"She's a big fan." Shani declared while still laughing at the expression on Geralt's face.
The wizard just sighed before pushing the child away and kneeling down in front of her, noticing how excited she seemed by his presence.
"Gretka, I have something for you." Geralt commented before reaching into one of his bags and pulling out a rag doll, much to Shani's surprise and Gretka's delight. "Why don't you go and play with your new doll while I talk to Shani?"
"Will you play with me later?" Gretka asks, lifting her eyes from the doll to look at Geralt, who nods.
"Sure, why not?"
"Yay!" Celebrates the child before walking off humming with the new doll in her arms.
Seeing that they were now alone, Geralt stood up with a tired sigh before turning to Shani, who looked at him with a smile and a curious look on her face.
"A doll? I didn't know wizards carried dolls around hunting monsters." Shani commented with a playful tone, which made Geralt smile.
"What can I say? I can't sleep without her." Despite his tone, Geralt couldn't help but smile when he saw Shani laughing, having enjoyed his joke. "But actually I always carry one with me for cases when I have to calm a child down after surviving monsters... it's more useful and recurring than you might think."
On hearing this Shani seemed to lose heart, nodding briefly before looking at Geralt. "What's the problem? Did they deny help?"
Geralt nodded hesitantly, not knowing how he should explain to Shani what had been decided. The wizard soon noticed her worried look and sighed.
"No, they didn't deny it, quite the opposite in fact. As well as giving us a horse, they're also going to get us a new cart." Gestalt declared, causing Shani to stare at him in surprise.
"Really? That's... That's great. But why don't you seem happy about it?" Shani asks in confusion.
"Well... it wasn't really an exchange of favors, it was an exchange." Geralt explains, causing Shani to sigh and rub her face.
"What kind of monster will you have to kill?"
"None. What they asked me was something else... What do you think of Gretka?" On hearing Geralt's question, Shani raised an eyebrow, trying to understand what this had to do with the request they had made.
"She seems like an ordinary girl, clearly she idolizes you and sees you as a hero, but what does that have to do with it? Geralt, what did they ask for?"
"In exchange for a new carriage and an extra horse, we must give them some of our food and take Gretka with us." Geralt revealed, only to be answered by silence.
The wizard stared at Shani, who remained silent with wide eyes, but she didn't answer before looking again at the door through which Gretka had left and then back at Geralt.
"Did you accept?" Shani asked with a serious tone, prompting Geralt to nod. "Good."
"What?" Now it was Geralt's turn to be surprised, he hadn't expected Shani to like his new company.
"Geralt... We're taking Gretka with us, as I said it seems like a good idea. If they asked you to take her, it's because they were already thinking of getting rid of her and I dread to think what could happen to that little girl with the war going on." Shani explains with a sigh before getting up from the bed, straightening her clothes and looking at the wizard. "So, shall we go? I believe you promised to play with a child and it's not good to keep a child waiting."
A smile appeared on Geralt's face before he nodded.
"Of course."
The two soon left the room and walked outside, noticing how the soldiers stared at them, looking grateful but still angry. As soon as they left the fortress, they saw Gretka playing with her doll in front of the huge tree in the middle of the courtyard.
Shani smiled before pushing Geralt forward slightly, which made the wizard move towards the child.
"You've finally arrived!" Gretka exclaimed, smiling at him.
"I told you I was going to play with you." Commented Geralt, bending down to look at Gretka, who smiled back at him.
"I knew it, Geralt's the best!" The little girl declared, turning to a soldier who rolled his eyes, making her point her tongue at him.
At that moment, Shani approached the two and nudged Geralt. "Geralt, aren't you forgetting something?"
Upon hearing this, Geralt glared at Shani, looking exasperated, while Gretka looked between them curiously.
"I was just getting there." Geralt assured before turning back to Gretka. "Gretka, what do you think of the Crow's Perch?"
"It's nice, but they don't let me play much." Complains Gretka looking annoyed, which makes Shani kneel down next to Geralt.
"What do you think about going on a trip? With me and Geralt?" Shani asks, making the child blink in confusion and stare at them.
"A monster-hunting trip?" asks the confused child and, before Geralt or Shani can deny it, she perks up before nodding. "Yes! That's amazing, like when Ciri faced the king of the wolves, can I go? Can I? Can I? Can I?"
Shani couldn't help but laugh at the girl's excitement before looking at Geralt. "I think it's settled, she'll go with us."
Upon hearing this Geralt sighs, but agrees with Shani.
(The next day.)
Geralt and Shani walked together to the courtyard of Crow's Perch castle and saw the carriage waiting for them, already noticing how much bigger it was with a cloth cover with some packages in the back. The previous day had been spent mainly with Gretka, getting to know the child better and, to Geralt's surprise, she and Shani hit it off almost instantly, which made the decision to take her with them even easier.
The sergeant who was inspecting the wagon soon noticed the couple approaching and couldn't help but nod at them.
"Look at the witcher and his wife, you've finally arrived, the carriage is ready." declared the sergeant.
"Look, we're not..." Geralt tried to deny the misunderstanding again, but Shani interrupted him.
"Thanks for that, we plan to leave soon. Where's Gretka?" Shani asked, prompting the sergeant to point at the carriage, which made the wizard and the doctor move closer, where they could see Gretka inside the carriage holding a wooden spinning top in one hand and the doll Geralt had given her in the other.
"As soon as the brat woke up she ran to the wagon and apparently slept there." Explains the sergeant, yawning. "What do I understand, it's not even dawn and you already want to travel? You really are freaks."
"We're in a hurry." Geralt declared simply as Shani headed for the carriage. "I guess it's goodbye then."
"Yeah, I guess so. Until next time, witcher." With that, the sergeant walked away as Geralt climbed into the driver's seat and grabbed the reins.
Geralt took one last look at the crow's perch before glancing at Shani sitting inside the carriage holding Gretka close to her, giving him a quick wave. With that, Geralt turned back to the road and snapped the reins, causing the horses to start galloping.