The Wolf, the Butterfly, and the Kraken

Chapter 3

He did not come back in right away to kill me. I was ready to try and do him some harm on my way out. I held a cast iron skillet in one hand and a skewer in the other. After what felt like forever I set them down. My back hurt, among other things.
I picked up the green bundle he had dropped last night. It was a tunic. Far too small for him, but it might work for me if I took it in a bit here and there. I would also need to sew up the tail slit. It looked like good, sturdy fabric, even if it had a couple of stains and was obviously used.
I washed myself and the robe, constantly watching the door. I felt filthy and no matter how hard I scrubbed, or how hot the water got I didn't feel clean. The robe washed fairly easily and was entirely dry when I put it on. I knew it wasn't much, but it gave me a small feeling of security, kind of like the greasy skillet I had been clenching.
I decided to wash the skillet when he still hadn't arrived, and a bowl. I ate some of the stew that simmered and waited, swearing I would not sleep.

* * *

I wondered if she was still there. I hadn't tied her up before leaving. Of course she had escaped all of the other bonds I had placed her in. If she were gone I would not have to face my shame.
I set my kill on my meat hook in the barn, a buck. Its blood had tasted good, warm and running down my jaws. It had been a good hunt. Tomorrow I would have to get back to farming. I could plant gerg in one field and sharm in the other. The third field needed to be still this season. All things needed rest.
I rinsed off outside and entered my home. She slept at the table. She was dressed and had a skillet and skewer by her hands. I had to admire her ferocity. If she were a Lycant she might be worth courting. I shook my head, no I was not going there.
Then I saw what I had not seen before. Despite her injury she cleaned my home well. The liquor bottles were gone, except for the last one, which still held about a quarter of a bottle. That stuff had gotten me into far too much trouble. I dumped it out. Then I found a cleaner tunic to wear. She slept on.
I took her skillet and put a piece of meat on it for her, placing it over the coals. When she woke I was sitting on the bench opposite her. She shrank away, clutching her skewer and looking for her skillet. I sighed and continued preparing gerg for planting.
She finally found her skillet and used the skewer to turn the meat over. It smelled amazing, but I had to see if I could make her understand. Elementals weren't known for their intelligence, or anything for that matter. She sat down to eat after a bit. I held up a gerg. "Gerg."
She blinked and said, "potato."
They had these too, huh. I repeated, "Gerg."
"Grrg."
I shook my head no. She could not call them that. That could be embarrassing. I repeated it until she said it right. Then I snorted approval. I showed her how I was readying them to be planted.
She sighed, "Great. Now I am going to be a field hand."
I had no idea what she said, but it sounded resentful. At least she didn't go to Kiro. Kiro would have skinned her and made her into fashionable bags. Of course Kiro did not have sex with his chattel. I shook my head to clear it. At least she understood planting. Yes, planting.
Tonight I would till the field. Tomorrow I would get her started on planting and retrieve my animals from the neighbors who had been kind enough to keep them while I raided.

* * *
He stayed out all night. I had no idea what he was doing, and didn't care. I had the house to myself. I washed a bunch of dishes and scrubbed the table that he had left a mess. I would be planting potatoes tomorrow. I started some beans to soaking and carved up the buck he had brought home. Tomorrow we could eat something slightly better.
He shoved me to wake me up in the morning, smelling like a wet dog and fresh dirt. Once he saw I was awake he dragged me outside and showed me a giant bag of potatoes ready to plant and a field of even rows of tilled earth. So that's what he had done all night. I was impressed. Still mad at the savage dog, but impressed.
I began planting, and once he was sure I knew what I was doing he left me. I hardly saw him at all that week. He put animals in the barn and did maintenance. When he was helping with a field he kept himself on the far side of it, away from me. I wondered if he was ashamed of himself. If a beast could feel shame then he should.
I learned the words for simple things when we had breakfast or supper together. He occasionally attempted the Veneran pronunciation of a word, but mangled it badly and got frustrated easily. I wondered if I did the same level of mangling to Lycant. But he consistently corrected me until I said it right. I had a feeling I would never have their language down properly because I didn't have a tail or the proper kind of ears. They also had an amazing sense of smell.