Page 34 of A Soul to Touch

The next morning, with a humorous expression hidden behind the cup of peppermint tea she held with both hands, Mayumi leant against her kitchen counter. She was fully dressed, but she’d been groggy the entire time as she put her clothes on since she hadn’t made her tea yet.

After being kind enough to let him sleep a little later than she had the previous morning, she’d put Faunus to work again.

He’s so tall.He easily reached up to the ceiling.

Actually, the poor Duskwalker had to curl his enormous height forward and awkwardly lean his hips to the side while dipping his shoulders the other way just so he could see what he was doing. His face was only centimetres away, making it extremely difficult for him.

Which was hilarious for Mayumi to witness.

What is he? Seven feet and three inches?Either a little less or a little more, but she knew her house could only fit the height of a six-foot human. Anyone taller struggled to stand upright.

He’s lucky he doesn’t have long horns or antlers on top of his head like the reports I’ve seen of other Duskwalkers.

It would have been impossible for him to be inside her homeat all if that were the case.

She’d convinced him to remove his cloak, and it was now draped over her coat rack right next to the door. It revealed that he had long lizard-like protrusions coming from his back, which had ripped through his shirt. They mostly pointed down his spine to be almost streamlined. She also saw he had them down the back of his calves and forearms.

Mayumi took a refreshing and waking sip of her hot peppermint tea and watched as Faunus pushed a loose bit of timber up until it was flush with the others. Then he reached for a nail he had clamped between his fangs.

She’d offered him a hammer, but he told her he doubted he’d need one. Now she understood why.

He used his thumb to press on the back of the nail and justpusheduntil it was flush. He grabbed another nail and did it again to the same piece of flat timber.

For the last few minutes, Faunus had been fixing some of the normal wear and tear of her ceiling. It was something she’d been planning on doing in the future with a ladder, but it was a hell of a lot easier just to have him do it since he was already here.

I wonder if he could fit inside the crawl space of the attic and fix in there too.

There was a lot of damage to her home.

Before he passed away, her father had a leg injury that prevented him from safely doing any repairs himself. Over the last few years, the house had begun to wither.

Mayumi had been working through a list of tasks to fix it. She’d already repaired the top of the roof as soon as she arrived because of multiple leaks, then there were the shattered windows she’d replaced, the door blinds that were falling apart, and the front door that had been squeaky.

Much of what had been left required either two people or someone tall.

Since Faunus was done with that section, he moved to another slab of timber that was beginning to fall. He pushed it up and then held his hand out to her.

She gave him a handful of nails, which he put between his fangs, and he slowly got to work making sure it was secure.

Faunus had made no complaint. The moment she’d emerged outside, she’d turned her head to the side to find he was already awake. He’d been leaning back with his arms folded behind his head, one leg crossed over the bent knee of the other, with his tail tapping against the ground.

He’d immediately asked what she wanted him to do today, giving her the impression that he wanted to be helpful.

“What is it you are drinking?” he asked, randomly striking up a conversation when he’d mostly been quiet. “I’ve never smelt that scent before.”

“Oh, this?” She gestured her mug forward. “It’s peppermint tea. It helps me wake up.”

Mayumi wasn’t a morning person.

Tea was her general preference, coffee second. She’d take tossing herself into the snow when it was available and she had no other resources. If it was any other season of the year, she’d dunk her head into water and nearly drown herself awake.

Yesterday morning had been more challenging.

She’d tried using tea, but it had done very little to ease her hungover and tired mind. Throwing herself into the snow hadn’t really been of much help either.

After drawing him into the clearing with her wound and then speaking with him, she’d been restless afterwards. Marianna’s Sleeper had taken longer than she would have preferred to slip her under, and she’d drank way too much.

She didn’t make that same mistake last night.

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