Page 9 of A Tale of Mirth & Magic

But—she had little breadcrumbs stuck on one corner of her rosebud mouth. I squeezed my hands around my toasting skewer to stop me from reaching out to brush them away.

Her pink tongue flicked up, catching the crumbs in a quick wet swipe.

Crack.

Elikki looked over, surprised. The wooden skewer was in bits in my hands.

“Old one,” I grumbled, tossing it into the fire. “Broke.”

She stood gracefully. “Oh, I should grab more firewood for us. Be right back.” Without a backward glance, she sauntered away to the edge of the campfire’s glow.

I stared after her, then hurried to get my bedroll laid out before she returned. After a moment’s hesitation, I put my wool blanket on top of her pack. I rarely got cold, unlike other folk. Ma Reese said it was my giant blood that kept me warm in the frigid cold and cool in the hot summers. But Elikki was an elf, and she didn’t have my thick skin. She needed the blanket more than I did.

I lay down on my bedroll, facing the fire and wrapped in my large cloak. “Good night, Pebble,” I murmured.

A mischievous voice replied, “Night, boulder.”

My face flushed. I propped myself up on an elbow and said, “No, I was saying good night to my horse. Pebble.” I nodded in her direction. She whinnied back at us.

Elikki set down the branches she’d gathered and said in a faux serious voice, “And do you chat with your horse often, Barra?”

My pulse jumped the moment she spoke my name. “Sometimes,” I said gruffly. “She’s an excellent conversationalist.”

“Ah! The mysterious monosyllabic man has jokes!” Elikki’s eyes danced with laughter. “I think you need better banter than you can get from a horse. You have friends, a partner? Where do you live?”

I raised one eyebrow at her. She threw some wood on the fire, shrugging.

“Look, I’m sleeping out in a dark forest with someone I just met. I mean, sleeping near someone I just met,” she clarified with a little smirk. “Not the most comfortable position for a woman to be in, alone. I need to know some more about you.”

I instantly felt like a jackass. Too caught up in the notion of keeping her safe, I hadn’t even thought about how she’d feel stranded here in the wilderness with me, a huge quiet man she barely knew. A stranger. No one even really knew she was out here. I’d gotten so used to her overconfidence that it never crossed my mind. She might be terrified under that smirk.

Granted, she didn’t look terrified, as she yawned, adjusting the long, sharp metal pin in her auburn hair into a more comfortable spot for sleeping.

Nevertheless, my mas and sisters would be furious with me if they knew how oblivious I’d been. I was quiet by nature. As I grew up, surrounded by mostly humans, dwarves, halflings, and other similarly fragile creatures, I learned to move and speak carefully around others. My family and neighbors were used to me, of course. They never blinked twice at my size, strength, and deep voice. But despite how worldly and accepting most folks thought they were, it just took one slight mistake—letting irritation show on my face, say, or bumping into someone accidentally—before I got those inevitable looks of fear, discomfort, or distress shot at me. I hated those moments.

So, I was constantly on my guard. I had to be. Always aware of my body, and loath to draw attention to myself. In my experience, most people aren’t too eager to get to know me either. It was for the best.

But that wasn’t a good enough excuse here, with Elikki, when she was telling me she needed reassurance. I could practically see Ma Wren shaking her head at me, expression fond but stern.

“That’s true. I should have realized.” I met Elikki’s eyes in the firelight, apologetic. “I’m from Nepu, a village west of here. A few friends, no partner.” I coughed, then continued. “I spend most of my time with my sisters. There’s three of them—Telen, Sassura, and Monty. Or my mas. Or I’m working.” That’s enough sharing, surely?

“Hmm. Interesting. And what do you do?”

“Bookkeeping, mostly. I handle the accounts for Ma Reese. One of my mothers. She’s an armorer, runs a weapons repair and customization business. Specializes in swords and knives.”

“That’s really nice. You, working with your ma.”

I snorted. “Sometimes. She can be a lot. Big personality.” I lay back flat on the ground and crossed my arms behind my head, suddenly missing home. Which was ridiculous since it had been only two days.

Elikki drifted over to her bedroll and began spreading it out a few feet away from me. Reaching to her pack for something, she found the blanket.

“What… Is this yours?” she asked.

“You can borrow it,” I said. “If you want. It’ll get chillier in the night.”

“Then won’t you need it?”

“No. I don’t feel the cold much,” I said, meeting her eyes.