Page 27 of To Free a Soul
Despite the fact that he could note all these details, Weldir, no matter how he tried from his realm, could not see inside the building. There was a barrier in place, a mostly clear one that had an oily, rainbow sheen to it like a bubble. His mist couldn’t penetrate it; therefore, his sight couldn’t.
But Lindiwe can walk through it in her Phantom form.
Just as he was about to rotate his viewing discs to bring another forward, a claw pierced the one before him. A finger followed, and it wiggled up and down. He pushed the disc to the side and faced Nathair, who had clearly breached the surface of the lake with the goal of interrupting him.
“Attention,” he demanded, slithering onto the land to circle Weldir within his tail.
“Maybe I’m too busy to give you attention,” he answered, rotating his head around and around to follow his skull. “I believe you’re also missing a ‘please’ somewhere in there.”
Nathair stuck out his tongue and blew air with it, then proceeded to shove his body across Weldir’s lap. He lay across him, the physical parts of Weldir’s body keeping him up, and wriggled back and forth. With his arms folded on the ground toprovide a resting spot for his chest and head, he thumped his tail on the grass in a silent demand.
Weldir gave in and scratched his back and sides, and all of Nathair’s fins quivered in delight while he rumbled a near purr.
Within a short span of time, perhaps minutes, loud, contented snorting came from his serpent offspring before he fell asleep under the power of Weldir’s petting.
His mist spread out from him in contentment, pleased that after so long within his realm, Nathair saw him as safe. He relied on Weldir to ease his loneliness, and Weldir did the same in return.
He continued to scratch Nathair’s scales, being careful that his claws didn’t harm him. Weldir avoided his gills when he moved to pet his neck, as they were rather sensitive. Nathair eventually rotated to his side while asleep and pushed more of his tail around Weldir as he subconsciously demanded stomach rubs as well.
His left hand stroked Nathair’s thin, scaly abdomen as he used his right to rotate the discs, noting both Fenrir and Leonidas were on the move during the early morning. Just as he went to shift his focus and check on one of his many other offspring, he paused when a log cabin in the forest came into view.
Fenrir hid behind some bushes to watch a woman pull out vegetables from an already upturned garden. Her actions, although frantic and fast, were calculated as she picked each one carefully while leaving many others behind. She threw them into a backpack, gasping every time a twig snapped in the distance, then reached for a kitchen blade.
The woman held it to her chest protectively, shaken but with a slitted, narrowed glare.
She looked prepared to fight, as if she expected something to jump out of the bushes and attack her. The straight strands of her black hair were tangled like a nest. The dress she wore waspale pink and of poor quality from what he could tell, compared to the elaborate garments Lindiwe had stored in his realm.
Once she had everything she wanted from the garden, she yanked up her bag and headed back inside with swift steps.
That’s when Fenrir stepped out of his hiding place. He lifted his bony wolf snout into the air, sniffing deeply before huffing out with his orbs shifting a dark yellow. On his hands and hind legs, he skulked over to the garden to shove his nose into where she’d knelt, then clawed at the ground like she had.
He pulled out a vegetable and took it with him as he lowered himself and headed towards the opening of her cottage. He skulked up the steps, sniffing each one, and followed the sounds of thumping, hurried footsteps and the clanking of items knocking to the ground.
This... is not going to end well,he thought, when Fenrir poked his head inside.
As he continued to rub Nathair’s underbelly, he cupped his chin at something peculiar.Fenrir hasn’t rushed inside in a bloodlust.His actions were more curious than anything.This woman must not smell of fear.Even if her hurried actions inferred otherwise.
She passed Fenrir, not seeing him as she turned her back towards the door while standing in a kitchen area. She checked the contents of a small ceramic jar before closing it and putting it in her backpack, then clipped a small iron skillet to it.
She’s packing to leave her home.
She threw the backpack on, which joined the bulky satchel she had at her side.
When Fenrir stepped a hand through the threshold, the floorboards underneath it creaked. She checked over her shoulder, then sucked in a gasp. She brought a kitchen blade to her chest defensively, while her backpack and arse hit the counter she’d been standing at.
She moved to the side, deeper into the house, and her bag knocked items off the counter, leaving behind a mess.
“H-how did you get inside?” Her wide eyes darted from the doorway to Fenrir’s wolf skull. “The sun is out. You shouldn’t have been able to survive.”
Fenrir’s skull twisted, causing the rattle of bones from within it, and he pushed his wide shoulders through the entrance.
“Back, Demon!” Her trembling hands swiped her blade through the air to ward him off. “Y-you’ve had your fill! Now back off. Go back to the forest.”
Weldir rotated the disc to get a different perspective, and a scene played out before him.
Claw marks littered the walls and furniture was upturned, showing that a kerfuffle had not long happened. And now that he was looking at it from a different angle, he noted the dried streak of crimson blood upon the ground that led through the doorway and down the stairs of her yard.
Fenrir gave a rumble, which could have been mistaken for a growl as he came closer to her.
