He was with her within the space of a heartbeat. Wrapping both his arms around her while tucking his shoulder under her chin, he lifted her. His long snout pressed over her shoulder and the side of her head as he rubbed it against her.

“It feels warmer,” he said. “It makes me not want to leave.”

Reia couldn’t help frowning as her lips puckered into a pout. “You’re going somewhere?”

He placed her back down, releasing her as he stepped away. “You said you wanted meat, so I will get you meat.”

“You’re going hunting for me?”

The pink faded to its usual blue as he nodded.

“Yes. I will be gone a day or two. Now that I know you can protect yourself, I feel comfortable leaving you here. I knew if I told you to stay inside while I’m gone that you wouldn’t.”

He waved his hand to the window to gesture outside. “The protections in place should keep you safe, but if somehow one of the Demons got inside the salt circle, I know you’ll be able to protect yourself until you got inside.”

“So yesterday had been a test!”

He chuckled, the sound warm and light-hearted.

“Indeed, my brave little human.” Then he sighed, before dark blue seeped into the colour of his eyes. “But while I am gone, you must not do anything reckless, and... and please do not leave, Reia.”

He is trusting me. Orpheus was trusting that she wouldn’t try to run away.

That in itself meant more to her than he could possibly realise. Did Reia want to stay here forever? She didn’t know.

If the possibility of leaving this cute cabin in the woods safely presented itself to her, she wasn’t sure if she’d hesitate to take it. But a small part of her was growing attached to this place, to him, to this life.

Yet, that came with complications. Maybe she could live the rest of her life here, grow old and die, but how would Orpheus feel about that? She knew he wanted her to stay with him for eternity, for her to give him her soul. But she didn’t know if she wanted the same, to be here that long with him. She could only imagine how he’d be if she was gone simply because she’d grown old or died of a sickness after many years.

Eternity was forever, and having to spend it with him stuck in this gloomy forest... some of it had appeal. A lot of it didn’t.

Reia was human. Shouldn’t she be around humans, live with humans, have a husband and child who were human?

The path he was presenting to her wasn’t normal, and she feared to walk along it.

She reached up to cup his snout gently.

“Don’t worry, Orpheus. I’ll be here when you return,” she promised. “Safe and sound and ready for you to give me a bath.”

His eyes flashed to yellow. “You do like it when I give you bath.”

“Hey!” she exclaimed, her cheeks growing bright red with heat. “You’re not meant to say things like that!”

“But it is the truth.” He tilted his head at her. “Why can I not speak the truth?”

Because the truth was filled with the true intentions of her liking him washing her. She didn’t think a day had passed since she’d touched him that he hadn’t brought her release while washing her. It was like her body couldn’t help singing for him and was even doing it when she wasn’t in the water!

Oh, and he knew it too. Like now, when his purple tongue came out to lick at the nose hole of his bony snout as if he could smell it!

Damn bastard’s excellent sense of smell.

“Be safe, Reia,” he said, all playfulness falling to the side.

“I am excited to see what you will make for me.”

“You’re leaving now?”

She peeked out the window to see that it was still early morning. She hadn’t even gone outside to have her breakfast yet.

“The sooner I leave, the sooner I can return. I’ve already checked the salt circle and hung up new trinkets. They are strongest when I first do this.” Then he turned to walk towards the door. “And no more standing on the chair, Reia.

I don’t want you to hurt yourself. You are fragile. If you need something, I will help you get it down when I return.”

She rolled her eyes at that. It was like he thought she was made of glass. Even if she fell off the chair, she doubted she’d do anything but give herself a bump or bruise.

She would have wished him well or told him to be safe, but she didn’t think anything could harm him. He healed fairly quickly, and she’d seen him fight enough to know nothing could really stand a chance against him.

She watched him leave by looking out the window.

Maybe I should ask him to make me a step, she thought when he was gone. Then she burst out laughing. I don’t think it’ll matter. He’ll still be worried that I could fall from it.

Laying the bells and coloured beads she’d taken from the cabinet onto the table, she leaned against it with her arms folded across it and examined them. She didn’t know what she was going to make, but she thought he’d like it regardless. That didn’t mean she wasn’t going to put her all into it.

She grinned at the items.

Big, stupid, bonehead. Don’t think I didn’t notice the first protection charm I made is currently hanging above your bed. She knew it was the one she’d made since the ribbon bow was lop-sided. His were always perfect.

Before she did anything though, she needed to eat. Her stomach was grumbling, and she knew the sun would be warming the yard for the few short hours it did.

Reia walked around outside with her sword not long after she’d eaten her breakfast in the garden – knowing he would have disapproved of her sitting in it without him – for at least an hour or two after Orpheus left.

She stood at the end of the yard, only a foot or two away from the salt circle and in the direction she’d seen him go when she’d watched him out the window.

So… that’s the way out of the Veil.

When she had tried to leave, she’d gone in a similar direction, but it must have been more diagonal. She figured his path would be more direct.

She clenched her fist around the handle of the sword she was holding.

I could do it. Seeing the slight imprints of his heavy weighted footsteps, she’d be able to follow the way he went.

I have the amulet. She could feel the weight of it, the subtle swaying of the loose sapphire teardrop tickling her forehead. Unless a strong Demon tried to touch her, the others would burn themselves like she’d seen the day after he’d given it to her.

And I’m getting better with my sword. The dagger had been a foolish and useless weapon, she knew that now, but the heavy metal in her hands was sharp, long, and could deal a debilitating blow.

She turned her head to look around the yard.

There are no Demons here currently. Orpheus had either killed them or scared them off after her period. She was sure they would come tonight when his spell eventually wore off, but none were here watching the house right now.