“Perfect timing, Ida just got here,” Erith said as he opened the door into their home.
I was so used to seeing Mitus in the metal-and-wood pub. Picturing that traumatic moment from his childhood that was seared into my memory. It was amazing to step into their comfortable, homey apartment and see him reclined on the couch with Ida, engaging in lively conversation. He lookedhappy. I’d never seen him smile like this back in Virylan.
“Took you long enough!” Ida called to us, glancing over the back of the couch in our direction. “Mitus, my crutches are just—” She stretched forward to grab them from where they leaned against the coffee table.
“Got ‘em,” he said handing them to her.
They walked over together and we exchanged hugs. Being friendly with Mitus was slowly starting to feel less strained. I was clearly more uncomfortable than he was by now. He’d really taken to G.P.O., and dedication to the cause had rerouted much of his anger. He didn’t talk to me about it, but Erith hinted as much.
The two Arielnas had grown close. If the twin beds pushed together—visible through the cracked bedroom door—wasn’t enough of a hint, Erith smacking Mitus on the ass when Ida’s back turnedwas. Mitus’s ears lay flat in irritation, which made Erith grin mischievously.
“Sorry to make you guys wait. We left before the stars rose, but Nurghle wanted to take his time today,” Vivian apologized, opening the box in my arms and pulling our cat out. Once on the ground, he scurried for the“litter box”of sand in the corner.
“He’s getting less scraps from me if he keeps cutting into our time together,” Ida teased. “I finished that jacket for him. Let’s make sure it fits now so I can adjust it if needed before you leave.”
Once Ida had successfully clothed all thepeoplein our group, she had become fascinated by the idea of dressing the little beast. Once Vivian had mentioned pet clothing was a thing on Earth, Ida immediately added Nurgle’s measurements to the small notebook that housedallour measurements. We were a well-dressed group.
“The material is waterproof, and it has a hood like we discussed,” Ida explained as Vivian followed her back to the couch where the miniature jacket waited.
“I should get our supplies before the shops close,” I said to the Arielnas next to me.
“Want company?” Mitus asked.
The question was so unexpected, I hoped I didn’t look as surprised as I felt. “Sure.”
“Cool. I have a few things to grab, too.”
I was expecting a hard conversation topic to arise the second we were alone. But that moment never came. Our errands felt incredibly…normal.
“Ugghhhh, I shouldn’t have stayed up so late,” Vivian groaned as we slowly walked with Nurghle up the mountain. “Can we stay in a grove tonight? I amgrrrrroooooooggy.”
“Of course,” I replied. It was getting dark anyways.
A late, side-tracked departure mixed with allowing Nurghle to sniff all that interested him had put us behind our usual schedule. It was no longer necessary to move as quickly as possible through the forest; we’d made nice with everything living on the mountain.
“Did you want to stop in the next one?” I asked.
“Please!”
The groves had become our travel sanctuaries. The beasts were all perfectly happy to let us rest in their home for the night in exchange for food. They kept a healthy distance from Nurghle when they stopped by for payment, then disappeared for the rest of the evening once they were fed.
“This one is Brian’s grove,” Vivian reported cheerfully as we approached a group of densely packed trees. They glowed soft teal in the starset twilight. “He prefers the pink meat strips.”
“Brian” the grove beast was identifiable through his antlers that forked further up than most. His skull had the shape of a smile. I thought that was a little eerie, but Vivianlovedit. She had a soft spot for the bigger horrors this world had to offer. I was a lucky male to have made that list.
My beautiful goddess of pink skin and red hair was bathed in blue light as she stepped under the interwoven tree branches.Her features tinted purple. She looked like the blackberry water we kept in a pitcher on the counter. I was reminded of the first time I tasted her under the oval leaves and sparkling crystals of one of these very groves.
“Brian!” she called out, cupping her hands around her mouth.
The beast appeared silently—as if materializing through thin air—before greeting us with haunting, hollow noises.
Nurghle didn’t like the forest creatures, buthadgrown to accept their presence from a distance. He sauntered to a nearby tree and began to claw its bark, his back bowed in a stretch.
“Alright, here you go,” I said, tossing the meat.
The beast snapped chunks out of the air one after the other, and each piece was swallowed whole by darkness. Once full,Brian’sskull pivoted on top of its black mist as if disconnected from its body. The beast faded into the distance.
“Home at last!” Vivian let out a relieved sigh, leaning against a tree trunk and stretching out her arms.
