Pure Creature (The Witcher)

SECOND THOUGHTS

The night continued with the greatest of normalities. Jaskier convinced Geralt to allow me to stay another day and night, in the event that the demon remained asleep. Hours later, the musician climbed some narrow stairs to go to bed.

"Hmm."  Geralt shuffled closer to me.  "You can stay in bed. I stay there on the couch."

The house didn't have many dividing walls, as well as non-existent doors. From the humble kitchen you could see the bed and there I felt a little exposed. And I didn't know those men very well. The couch wasn't very far from the bed, but it was kept in a more discreet corner. Including that Geralt was a very tall man and would have to shrink a lot on the couch.

"Thank you, I'm fine on the couch."  I smiled politely at him.

Geralt accepted my choice without displeasure and offered me some more blankets. Then, he dragged a bench next to the door and sat down facing it. Before falling asleep, I took time to study his rigid position. It was the first night that I felt truly protected.

A noise woke me up as Geralt stood up next to the bed. His back was turned, so he couldn't see that I was secretly admiring him. He took off his clothes and my heart accelerated. His skin, filled with scars, flooded my eyes with tears. It was the price for killing monsters, for defending the world from evil. He suddenly turned to me, although I had closed my eyes in time, I hadn't disguised my sob very well. I tried hard not to cry. He took two steps forward only to give up on what he planned to do and lay down on the bed. I didn't open my eyes again, I was afraid he was awake and knew I had been looking at him. Well, I didn't mean to increase his anger.

"Good morning!"  Jaskier woke me up and I saw the bed was empty. "He gets up very early. Went for a walk with Roach. Do you know, Janet?"  He crossed his fingers.  "I would like you to show me what it's like to live in this new era... Please?"

The sun was shining, meaning there was no obstacle blocking my exit. I decided to offer him clothes that were more appropriate for our time. He was vain and loved to experiment. We wasted the morning choosing new clothes. The next step was to take him to a restaurant for lunch.

"Janet, can we be friends?"  He asked in the middle of the meal.

"Obviously. Of course. I liked you as soon as I met you."  I admitted it.

"So... are you good at keeping secrets?"

"What is up?"  I was worried.

"Everything is fine."  He shrugged his shoulders.  "It's more of an outburst than a secret. What I mean is I'm a womanizer."

"What?"  I almost spat out the small sip of water.

"Yes, you can laugh, you're welcome."  He made a face.  "The truth is that when I saw you for the first time, I thought you were one of Geralt's conquests. It really surprised me because it's unusual for him to appear with beautiful women after Yen... you know the rest."  He murmured.  "Returning to the main point. There are no ulterior motives, from the second I thought you were a possible companion for Geralt."

"Oh, Jaskier breaks my heart knowing that I won't have a chance with you."  I played with a fake whimper.

"Yeah, I'm sorry."  He let out a laugh.  "But who knows?"  He laughed even more, but immediately his expression became serious.  "You deserve someone more... stable than me."  He was silent for a few moments and his sly smile returned.  "I've met some women here and well..." He whistled.

"Friends!"  I reached out for a handshake, after a good laugh.

We walked in front of other windows to describe objects, such as accessories that stood out to them, and their functionalities. Then we went to buy a gas cylinder for the small stove, which was in the house, which should still work, and we returned before dark. Along the way, while Jaskier carried the cylinder, he demonstrated his enthusiasm for learning how to use instruments from my time. He liked to impress.

Geralt found us as we approached the house. He was very upset with us. He almost took out all his anger on us for disappearing without warning. Jaskier asked me to ignore the witcher, as he had a harsh temper. It was getting dark and Geralt was still outside.

"Do not worry!"  Said Jaskier.  "He knows very well how to take care of himself!"

Yes, the stove worked. And I decided to make a simple meal. Jaskier was very intrigued how everything had evolved so much. And, equally, he was confident that the new people would love his own songs. While the food was cooking, he sang to me. Just as Jaskier was explaining to me how women were courted in his time, Geralt arrived slamming the door loudly. We were both startled by that entrance.

"Another one who got carried away by your songs?"  Geralt looked very irritated at Jaskier, ignoring me.

"Oh no..."

"I don't care!"  He growled.  "Shut up!"

"Hey! Why are you treating Jaskier this way?"  I stood up.

"No problem."  Jaskier shrugged his shoulders.

"And that demon? Did he decide to take a vacation?"  Geralt shot.

"It exists!"  I got excited.

"Hmm. I would say..."

"Oh, come on Geralt. Calm down!"  Jaskier interjected.  "Come sit down and taste what Janet prepared for us."

"I'm not hungry!" He made a face.  "I'd rather go outside and play with demons."

I felt a little down despite Jaskier trying to cheer me up. I confessed to him that I wasn't even feeling the devil. I didn't know what was going on. So I wondered if it was possible that he was trying to attack my family. I had called them during the afternoon, but I couldn't there because there was no mobile network. As the hours passed, Jaskier ended up going to sleep. Geralt hadn't returned yet and it was risky to go look for him. I fell asleep until I heard the door creak.

"Geralt?"  I looked around disoriented.

"Who else would it be?"  His voice seemed sweet, something that I found strange after his rages.

"Geralt, tomorrow I'm going to visit my family, I need to know if they're okay. The demon could be trying to haunt them..."  I shuddered.

"As you wish."

He didn't tell me anything else. He didn't look at me again. And he lay down, this time, without taking off as many clothes as the night before. He probably knew he had been watching him. I felt a little sad at his indifference and tried to fall asleep.