She gave him a dull look.

“Go ahead, do the thing.”

She remembered from when she first arrived here. He looked at her like he was expecting her to change her mind, but she gestured for him to get it over with.

He walked up the stairs, opened the door that was already slightly ajar, and then roared furiously loud, making her eardrums throb with the booming depth of it. The two small Demons that had gotten inside scattered, hissing when they saw her, before shrinking away from Orpheus and the Mavka that was with them.

“I will help to carve the salt circle,” the Mavka said, placing his items down to lessen his load, then using his claws to dig into the ground.

“I’ll make the protection trinkets!” she offered, raising her hand and going inside, so happy and relieved she could use her damn legs again.

Orpheus removed the bulkier items, like the rolls of fabric, so he could fit through the doorway. Then he removed the rest inside. He placed them mostly in the kitchen area – up against the counter if it was large and on top if it was small.

He sniffed the air to triple check there were no Demons before letting out a snorting huff.

“Keep your sword on until all the protections are up.”

“It’ll be done in no time with all three of us,” she said, waving her hand up and down dismissively while he grabbed everything from the top cabinet she couldn’t reach.

Then he procured the dill from the garden, informing her it was still intact because they hadn’t been in a frenzy from her scent like before.

She smiled at the familiar environment once she was by herself, before lighting all the candles she could reach, feeling comfortable in the cosy and warm cabin in the woods aesthetic. She had been restless, wanting to return here during the entire way back.

I guess I really am starting to see this place as my home.

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Reia curled up on the armchair covered in furs in front of the fireplace as it crackled with life.

Once all the protections were in place, the Mavka left to return to his own home, then she and Orpheus went through everything they’d obtained. Most of it that wasn’t cooking related went into her room. She was eager to start making her own clothing.

She had eaten a simple meal, had her first warm, relaxing bath in over a week – too exhausted to want anything naughty – and was now resting in her chair.

Night had not long fallen, and she had started going through the three books she’d gotten. Orpheus had left to go to the stream, getting her water since what had been left behind was now stale.

She’d given the Mavka the book on how to build different styles of houses that also had some explanations for building furniture as well. He’d given her his embarrassed glowing eyes while explaining to her he couldn’t read. She just pointed to the diagram pictures and told him that he just needed to follow them to the best of his abilities.

Orpheus then told him when he started building, he would also show him what he knew.

She went through the book about the different creatures, nothing really grabbing her attention. She also came to the realisation that she knew more about Duskwalkers and Demons than what was detailed inside of it by living in the Veil for nearly a month and half and having someone who could answer all her questions.

Ghosts were a known thing, frightening creatures that haunted places that had been decimated by Demons. They were lost souls that had died in such a horrifying way, filled with so much longing to live that they never left. She’d heard of them but had never seen one. Not even in the Veil.

She wasn’t particularly interested in the mythical creatures. Who cares about elves when they aren’t real?

Why did she need to know all these made-up facts as if the author had been trying to fabricate their myth to be truth?

Reia flicked through the fighting book with excitement as she wanted to start practising some of the swings and techniques, but it was only something she could do when she was training.

Eventually, she moved onto the final book, flipping through the different children’s tales. There were twelve of them in the thick and weighty book, and it was tiring to hold up. She laid it on her lap as she skimmed over the pages, only pausing when Orpheus entered the house.

“You’re still awake?” he asked, placing the bucket on the furthest corner of the kitchen counter so it was out of the way.

“I’m tired, but not that tired,” she laughed, gesturing to window next to her that ran over the porch. “The sun only went down not too long ago.”

He came to stand in front of her near the fire. He stood there quiet for a moment, staring down for longer than was normal, before hesitantly asking, “May I sit with you?”

“Of course,” she said with a note of confusion, unsure why he was even asking at all.

Orpheus promptly sat on the ground next to her and plonked his head on her lap when she’d been expecting him to sit on his own chair! He’d pushed her book to the side with his snout, making it fall between the armrest and her thigh to make room for himself.

He gave a loud snorting huff of contentment.

“I haven’t been alone with you in quite some time, even before we left.”

Her hands had flung into the air near her chest in surprise, but they fell now to sit around his head.

“Well, you did go out hunting for me before we did.”

“And then you did not speak to me, even though I brought you meat and got stung by bees for you.”

Reia pursed her lips and squinted her eyes at him. She wanted to tell him that he’d deserved it, but she’d ignored him because he’d implied that he wouldn’t believe her promise to stay inside if he left – except she hadn’t waited for him to tell her why.

We were gone for a long time. She couldn’t imagine what she would have tried to do by herself had she been left alone for eight days. I would have been bored brainless.

Instead, she’d gone on an amazing adventure, and knew she was only the second human who had ever done it.

“Why are you wet?” she asked when she felt a slight amount of dampness soaking into her dress.

“Washed in the stream while I was there.” He pushed the tip of his snout against the book in the gap between her and the chair. “Is that one of the books the Witch Owl guided you to take?”

Reia nodded before pulling it up to hold it. “I don’t know why, though. It’s just full of children’s stories.”

“Are they truthful tales?”

“No, just made-up ones.”

“Would you be interested in reading one?” He lifted his hand to place a claw around the book’s spine edge to lean it

towards him. “I can read, but I am slow, so I don’t read for enjoyment like you humans do.”

“Are you really asking me to read to you?”

The audacity! Reia didn’t even read for herself.

“Why not? It would please me if you did.” He lifted his head so he could reach up and cup the side of her face while facing her. “Your voice is lovely. I would like to hear it.”