Page 30 of To Free a Soul
She finally pulled her gaze away to where Weldir’s head was, even though there was little for her to see right now.
“I am. Fenrir is sweet. He’s rather obedient, and even if he’s wary of me, he’s never really pushed me away. I think he’s... lonely... and has been since he gained much of his humanity.” She bit down on her bottom lip, the corners of her eyes crinkling before she looked down at her hands. “I want him to find a friend. To find...love, if it’s possible.”
“Aren’t you being too hopeful?”
She was allowing herself too much yearning for this when it was likely to fail.I don’t see the human living past a few days.Fenrir would inevitably eat her, or a Demon would.She’s likely going to flee and get herself killed.
Not only was Fenrir’s cave at the fringe of the Veil’s forest, but she’d also need to safely navigate up the cliffside and then escape through the infested forest above. There would be no escaping for her, and Fenrir would chase after his prey before she could get far.
Despite the way her heart was beating fast and echoing in his realm, Lindiwe offered him a strange smile. “Sometimes all you need is hope.”
What a preposterous notion!Weldir didn’t say that, though; he’d learned that stating his objections could upset her.
“Take me home,” the human demanded, Weldir having missed her final bites of her carrot and whatever she’d done afterwards.
Fenrir tilted his head, and his impala horns cast a devilish shadow against the wall behind him.“No. Stay.”
Then he leaned closer to sniff at her face, and she shrank into herself while bravely, albeit foolishly, pushing at his bony snout. He licked at her hands, and his purple tongue slipped between the spaces of her fingers.
She cringed in disgust.
She retracted her hands and wiped them on her dress. “You can’t keep me here, Demon.”
“Demon?”He tilted his head the other way as he pulled it back.“Furnrearh not Demon. Furnrearh is Mavka.”He bashed his fist against his skeletal, protruding chest, and a hollow thud reverberated.“Mavka.”
The female’s lips twisted. “Did you just call yourself Fur and Rear?”
Fenrir shrugged.“Is name.”
“It’s stupid to call yourself something just because you’re furry,” she stated matter-of-factly, lifting her chin. “And mentioning your rear is impolite.”
“It’s only because he said it wrong,” Lindiwe whined defensively, covering her eyes with one hand and shrugging with the other. “At least he finally figured out the gist of it, and that his name isn’t actually Mavka.Thatwas a pain to unfold in his mind.” Then under her breath and laced with a sigh, she muttered, “And it’s more than I can say formostof my children.”
“Furnrearh,”Fenrir stated, punching his chest again.“Is Mavka.”
“No. Call yourself something else,” the human demanded. “I refuse to call you a furryarse.” She whispered the last word as if she found it indecent.
“Furnrearh,”he said again, before pointing at her.“Human. Little thing.”
“I have a name, and it’s not human nor little. Nor am I athing.” Then she grumbled, “But I honestly can’t expect any etiquette from a monster.”
Weldir looked at Lindiwe to see how she fared with their offspring being called such a thing. Her face was expressionless and dull, and that could only mean two things when it came to his mate. She either didn’t care, or she was boiling with rage over it; there was no middle ground.
It also made it exceptionally difficult for Weldir to know if he’d truly done something wrong or not.
“Human smell nice,”Fenrir said, leaning in once more with his deer tail wagging.
“My name is Katerina. Stop calling me human.” She braved pushing his snout to the side, and he resisted at first before letting her win. “If you’re too stupid to make up a name, I’ll give you a new one. It can be my gift to you for letting me go.”
Obviously she spoke too fast and too complicatedly for Fenrir, and he sat there twisting his head one way and then the other in quick succession. Rattling came from him, like dry bones clacking together each time, and it likely didn’t help his cause.
Katerina cupped her narrow chin and tapped against her cheek in thought. “I think I’ll call you... Orpheus. I think that’s fitting. If I try to run from you, I’ll likely be eaten by a Demon or a snake, and if you look for me, I’ll probably die anyway.” She picked up the tangled ends of her hair and sneered at them before throwing the mess over her shoulder. “I’m in hell, since you brought me to the Veil – of all the idiotic places – and you’re obviously already in love with me like in the tale. Even in this pathetic, disgusting state.”
Clearly realising she’d rambled to a being that barely understood a word of what she said, she rolled her eyes with an exaggerated sigh.
She placed her delicate, pale hand against her chest. “Katerina. Katerina is human.” Then she pointed at him. “Orpheus. Orpheus is Demon.”
He patted his chest.“Mavka. No Demon.”
