“Try a different attack, Reia.”
She stopped, huffing as she stood there.
“Wouldn’t it be better if you had your own sword so that I could attack it? It might help me learn.”
A sharp wind cut through them and billowed her white gown around her legs. The green one she had was ruined by Demon blood and she had yet to dye this one. She had collected the destroyed plants from the garden and was planning on boiling it this afternoon to dye a new dress.
Orpheus turned his head up to the sky and Reia followed his gaze. A sharp gust of wind curled around both their forms, filled with leaf litter and dust.
“That is a good idea, but something we will have to try tomorrow.” Dark grey clouds were rolling over them heavily, and she shivered when the air dropped a few degrees in temperature. “It is going to rain.”
“I love the rain,” she said, casting a smile at the clouds.
“You will not love it when it washes the protection circle away and Demons are freely roaming around the house.”
“Okay, yeah,” she sighed, slumping her shoulders as she turned her head down to look at him. “Fair point.”
“Come, we must prepare.” He gestured with a wave of his hand towards the front of the house they were standing close to. As they were walking towards it, he asked, “Would you like to help me make protection trinkets in case we need them?”
“Sure, but could you grab me some vegetables so that I can make a stew?”
When he agreed, she listed off what she wanted from what remained. She went inside while he fetched them for her.
Reia started up the cooking hearth so that she could begin to boil water, eyeing one of the cabinets above the kitchen area counters. She kept eyeing it as she was cutting up some of the herbs that were already available inside.
I doubt he’ll mind...
He was always telling her she could go wherever she wanted within the protective circle, could do or touch whatever she wanted. She nibbled her bottom lip, thinking heavily since what she wanted was something she knew was important, and she didn’t know if he’d consider it wasteful when it was used to protect her. Despite her happiness being something he considered a priority, her safety was the top tier of importance in his mind – to her annoyance.
Screw it, it’ll be fine.
Reia grabbed the chair she used to sit at the dining table with and slipped the weighty piece of furniture to the counter. She climbed onto it, making sure it was steady enough to support her weight, and then stood on it. She opened the doors.
Just as she was reaching inside, a large, warm hand wrapped around her back and side, startling her and making her nearly stumble. She swiftly turned to him.
“Be careful,” he said while supporting her back. “I don’t want you to fall and hurt yourself. If you want something, I am able to get it for you. What is it you need from here?”
His voice didn’t sound angry or bothered, was more laced with curiosity as he peered inside the cupboard with her.
“I wanted to use the salt you have for my food to make it taste better.” She grabbed the salt bowl with both hands as to make sure she didn’t drop it. “And I can do things for myself, you know. If I’m too short to reach something, I can use the chair.”
“I am sure that is true.” She yelped when his arm knocked into the back of her knees, knocking her over while the other came to support her back. She was cushioned into the cradle of his arms. “But I will be upset if you are harmed.”
He placed her down onto her feet, and Reia couldn’t help the small blush that rose into her cheeks.
Ever since her bath the previous night, she’d noticed that Orpheus was feeling more confident around her. He wasn’t as wary about being close to her, and although none of his actions had been sexual since then, there was a tenderness to them. Just like now, where he held her in his embrace so he could place her down on her feet, or when he’d held her face outside.
When she started to peel the potatoes, he came up beside her to crane his head over her shoulder.
“Would it be alright if you showed me how to do this?”
“You want to learn how to cook?” She continued to cut away the dirt-covered skins into a bucket inside the metal basin. “I would be happy to, but if I do, I’m sure you’ll try to do it for me, and then I will have nothing at all to do.”
It was as if Orpheus worried she’d break a nail doing even the simplest tasks. It was charming, but it meant there wasn’t a lot for her to do. He didn’t even like her cleaning.
“If it is something you enjoy, I will not take this task from you, but I would still like to know how. I once did, but that was a long time ago.”
“With the woman who lived here for a long time with you?” She bit her lips together when she realised she’d asked him a personal question she knew he wasn’t fond of answering.
“Yes.” He surprised her by replying swiftly. “She taught me how, but I have forgotten.”
Is he becoming comfortable enough to talk to me about her?
This mystery person played in Reia’s mind, and curiosity ate at her constantly. She had so many questions about a person who had stayed with him for long enough to ask him to build this house, a garden, furniture.
She must have lived here a long time.
Reia didn’t turn to him, trying to appear as casual as she could while he stood so close to her that she could feel the heat emitting from his body.
“Who was she?”
“Someone like you,” he answered, making her tense when she felt his claws brush through the ends of her hair. The disturbance of the strands tickled her scalp. “Someone who was not afraid of me.”
She only stepped away from him so she could take her now washed potatoes, carrots, cabbage, and onions to the side so she could begin to cut them. He followed so he could watch.
“What happened to her?”
He was silent then. The kind of silence that told her he was either uncomfortable telling her or uncomfortable by his own answer.
