Page 130 of A Soul to Keep

“I’m sorry.” She patted his arm through her cloak. “I shouldn’t have run off like that. It’s my fault.”

“As long as you are safe, I do not mind that they are angry with me.” And, well, they did look rather pissed off with him, their eyes narrowed into glares.

“There are still a few things we need to get, but we should hurry,” Orpheus told them. “He needs an axe and a few other carving tools.”

They went back to where she’d run off from and bartered for the rest of the items.

After that, there wasn’t anything else they needed, so they headed towards the edge of the village to leave. Orpheus told them their stay had to be short, especially since the washing spell would fade soon, and she needed to be long gone before it did.

Only when they were passing the fabric stalls did they stop, upon her request.

She pointed to a roll of fabric that was pink, another that was black, a pale blue one, as well as one that was brown. Orpheus traded for multiple metres of each, as well as some proper sewing supplies. There were also jars of clothing dye. Reia smiled underneath her mask, happy that she could make her own clothing and had proper dyes to change the wedding dresses she had back at the cabin.

The last thing they took was something for her to eat, and she held onto it until they had left the village and crossed the clearing, which was now heavy with shadows as night fell. Only when it was safe for her to remove her deer-skull mask did she begin eating.

“How are you supposed to carry me, now?” she asked Orpheus around a mouthful of food. His back was covered in lots of large and heavy items. “I don’t really want to cling to the front of you.”

“Will you be alright on my side? It’ll be similar to my arm except you’ll be pressed against me.”

She took the last bite of a swirling pastry that tasted like chicken and leek. “I guess that’ll have to do.”

She walked closer and allowed him to curl his arm around her until she was secure, and then he lifted. She almost yelped when she felt his large hand grab her entire arse, his fingers splaying over both cheeks. Bending her legs around him, she held onto his shirt with both hands.

“Well,” she laughed, staring at the side of his bony face before looking forward when they picked up the pace, no longer hindered by her short strides. “I would say that went really well. I expected something to go wrong.”

“Something did go wrong,” Orpheus said with a dark tone. “You should not have left my side, or, at least, you should have told me that you were following the call of the Witch Owl.”

Reia shrugged.

“How was I supposed to know what she looked like when human? I just saw a woman wearing a cloak of white feathers. I didn’t know it was her.”

“What if you had been taken, Reia?”

“I knew you’d follow me.” She turned to the Mavka to steer away from Orpheus scolding her. “Did you get everything you needed, though?”

“I... don’t know.” He looked to Orpheus. “Did I get everything I needed?”

“This should be enough for you to begin. It will take time for you to build a house, and you will have to make this trip yourself multiple times.”

He brought a hand up to cup the side of his snout, tapping it with a claw. “My cave is in the cliff of the Veil. I cannot build it in the forest there. It’s the serpent Demon’s territory, and he is very violent. He will destroy whatever I make.”

Orpheus was silent for a little while as he thought.

“I recently killed the Arachnid of Sorrows. If her territory is still empty of a strong predator, you can build there. If not, kill them and take it for yourself. They will not have built their nest yet and will have minimal defences.”

The Mavka’s eyes brightened to yellow. “That territory borders yours.”

“I am aware.” Orpheus moved a low hanging branch to make sure it didn’t brush against her. He was always so careful of her wellbeing. “It means I can aid you. However,” he said in a dark tone while pointing at him, “that does not mean you can enter my territory freely. It is mine, and if you begin to linger in it, I will fight to keep you out.”

“Orpheus!” she exclaimed, smacking him lightly in the chest. “That isn’t very nice. He’s your friend.”

“Friend?” he asked, cocking his head to the side. “But you are my companion that lives with me.”

“So?” Her brows drew together. “You can have more than one friend. Even ones that live in their own houses and visit.”

“But I do not want him to visit, to be close to you,” Orpheus shamelessly stated.

“Mavka can be friends?”

---