Heart to Heart

Chapter 22

"C-Can you go easy on me, Karlach?" I asked as I was laying on the ground, panting.

Sweat was rolling down every inch of my body and my entire body was sore, especially my lower region, more specifically my legs. I don't think I was going to be walking for a few days. Alongside that, my arms were screaming in pain as I knew I wouldn't be able to lift anything.

"You go so hard and rough," I said.

"You should know that by now," Karlach said, stretching her arms. "Ten years of fighting in Avernus had to pay off one way or another."

"I wished it paid off in another way," I sighed.

"Come on, one more match before we call it a night."

I reached my arm out and she grabbed it, pulling me up. Every muscle in my body ached and was desperate for rest and relaxation. But I raised my sword and stood tall and strong. Karlach lifted her axe and held it in her hands tightly. She charged, raising it upwards, about to strike me. I raised my sword up and blocked her swing, using her momentum to push her away from me. I went to elbow strike her face, but she backed up, headbutting me slightly. The one thing we established when fighting one another was, in under any circumstances, we do not go after the horns and tail.

Headbutting was fine, but Karlach has a hardened skull so it packed a punch. Stumbling slightly, stars started to swirl around my head. She raised her axe once more, but regaining my senses back, I ducked my head underneath and my legs kicked upwards, knocking the axe from her hands. Stepping backwards, she slipped her foot underneath the handle, kicking it up so she could catch it.

I charged towards her and she used the space between the blade of the axe and the handle to catch my sword. She swung upwards and the blade of my sword went upwards as well, almost losing my grip on it. She pulled back the axe and swung at my face. I ducked and dodged out of the way. I was right by her tail. Without thinking, I grabbed her tail and yanked it slightly.

"FUCK!" she yelled.

"Sorry! Sorry!" I said, removing her tail from my grasp.

It dropped onto the ground and her teeth clenched together, a hiss of pain coming from her. She whisked around and faced me, her eyes full of rage. Her tail stuck straight out, only the tip of it was wagging vigorously back and forth. It wasn't fluid like how our tails wagged when we were happy or excited about something. It was stiff, almost a mechanical movement.

"I thought we established no horns and tail!"

"We did, I-I just," I let out a sigh. "I'm sorry, Karlach."

"I think we should call it a night," she said, walking back towards where we set up camp.

It was right by a river so we could get fresh water along with water to bathe in, as Karlach had made a wooden bathtub. The bath was already filled with water and it was just a matter of one of us using it before we drained it for clean water. We already had buckets ready for when that happens.

"Yeah," I said. "D-Do you want to take a bath first?"

"You can," she said.

Once we reached camp, I grabbed a change of clothes and got undressed, slipping into the water. There wasn't anything going for this bath, as the water was lukewarm. Dipping down into the water, I laid my head against the wooden planks used to make the tub. I heard shuffling around and I opened one eye, finding Karlach's bare back was facing me. I immediately closed my eye and she slipped into the water, heating it up to where it felt like a bath. She let out a sigh as I could only imagine what position she was in.

"Karlach, I-I'm really sorry about earlier," I said, my eyes still closed.

"I wouldn't worry about it, Y/N. It happens," she said, no hint of anger in her voice. It was calm.

"But we established a rule and I broke it."

"Accidents happen, Y/N. And that was an accident. Even if you accidentally pull at my tail again, there was no malicious intent. Now, if you were Astarion, that's a different story."

"Did he actually pull your tail?"

"Several times."

"That must have hurt."

"It did."

"Did it hurt tonight?"

"A little bit, but like I said, there was no malicious intent behind it."

"But I still hurt you. In more ways than one."

"Can you look at me, Y/N?"

I slowly opened my eyes and I found her to be relaxing. Her arms were up on the wood, her fingers dipped into the water as she slowly spun them in circles. Her tail was wrapped around her waist and her knees were protruding from the water. Thankfully they were in the way of covering her chest.

"It's time we move past that, yeah? I think we've got a lot we can learn from one another. A lot we can learn from ourselves, too. Sure, you hurt me. But I hurt you. There are times where we hurt each other and we need to more forward with not only each other, but ourselves. I understand you feel guilty for some of the things you've done to me. And I feel guilty for the things I've done to you. Look, Y/N," she said, reaching over to place her hand on my cheek.

"It's time we move on from the past, alright?"

I nodded my head, "Y-Yeah."

She smiled, her thumb caressing the skin. My eyes fluttered closed, taking in her warmth now that she was able to touch me without scorching my skin off. She pressed her forehead to mine, as she was really close to me now. My heart felt like it was going to burst out of my chest. I feared she would be able to hear how fast it was going.

"I have forgiven you, Y/N. It's time you heal, too."

"I-I don't know if I'll be able to."

"I can help you," she whispered. "That is, if you can trust me with your heart."

"I trust you with more than my heart."