Tansy of the Wilds

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Xer'tal was certain he liked her. This Daffodil was definitely someone he could tolerate, even if she was scolding his Tansy like a mother hen about not standing up for herself or hiding the bad behaviour from her. He didn't much like the tone but he could understand her frustration. He still had a lot of it.

He had no use for the rest of Tansy's family, the old man aside. How they behaved was bullshit, especially against his wonderful Tansy. The sunshine he basked in, the honey that made his life that much sweeter. If the thought they could dim her shine while he was around they would be dealing directly with him. He was, however, glad that this Daffodil had smacked some of them and taken to task the others. That was good. He could appreciate that.

"I always knew you would pick someone like an orc or an elf." The other woman said it evenly, back to cooking as if nothing had happened. Her chipper attitude a touch forced but Xer'tal didn't begrudge her for that. "You were never our traditional girl." There was a heavy note of affection to her voice that had his Tansy sniffling all over again. He rubbed at her back, kissing the top of her head. She was so tender hearted and he would spend the rest of his life tending to her tears. Seemed a fitting end to his story.

"Aye, and I'm glad she ain't one for tradition." Xer'tal spoke loudly, firmly before he kissed the top of her head again, gently pressing on of his tusks to her head in an open orc affection. "My amauk'awa. My love." He murmured it against her hair, giving her a slightest squeeze.

"That's adorable. He calls you his sunshine." Daffodil gave an audible awe at that and Xer'tal almost grumbled but his Tansy wiped her eyes and then lifted her head. She beamed at him, giving him that sunshine smile that made his very bones feel warm. It was a smile that told him she was so very very happy she could call him hers.

"Breath of the sun." Xer'tal gave the correction off handedly as he brought up one finger and traced her bottom lip, tracing the curve of the smile he loved so very much. He doubted there would ever be a point in time where he did not love that smile, where it would not fail to make him feel like winter's chill was escaping him or that he was not basking directly in a personal ray of sunshine.

"I know that but we all know you are calling her your sunshine. Don't play with words like fools." The orcish saying tripped off of the other woman's tongue and he snapped his head to look at her at the same time as Tansy. He was shocked, he didn't realize someone else spoke orcish, from how it had sounded, only Tansy had picked it up.

"Daff..." Tansy trailed off as the woman carried over a large plate and set it in front of them both.

"Did you think you were the only one who could pick up a foreign tongue? The apple really never fell far from the tree. Grandmother had a knack for it as well." There was a light smile on her face, a teasing one as she winked at his Tansy. "I just never announced it. I knew papa would want me to stay and I loved Bertrum too much to do that." She chuckled and set some forks down beside the plate. "Eat up."

Xer'tal adjusted Tansy on his lap. To say he was shocked would be an understatement. He hadn't expected that, that someone else in the Wilde family would know orcish. "Full of damned surprises." He muttered it out before he grunted his thanks and started portioning out the food. The choicest bits he set to one side of the plate for his Tansy. She would get the best bites, always.

"I didn't know..." Tansy trailed off and he grabbed the second fork and handed it to her.

"Of course you didn't. I didn't want anyone to know. Papa has a one track mind and I knew that if I started, he wouldn't stop or let me be with Bertrum." Another plate clunked down on the table and he watched as Daffodil sat down as well. "I'm not as quick of a study as you are but I am passable. Not in elvish, I picked up orcish better. We did a lot of trading with them in the village. As I spoke it best, I was used more often than not. I can say goodbye in elvish and leave but that's about it."