Something Extra - Hungry Heart - Ch. 15 (Patreon)

Chapter One  / Chapter Two  / Chapter Three  / Chapter Four  / Chapter Five  / Chapter Six / Chapter Seven / Chapter Eight / Chapter Nine / Chapter Ten  / Chapter Eleven / Chapter Twelve / Chapter Thirteen / Chapter Fourteen 

Chapter Fifteen – After the Night Comes Day

“Toru,” Duril called to him in a gentle voice.

Now, how was he supposed to get out of this? He had been dishonest to the person letting him sleep under his roof and share his meals, although he didn’t have much. A person who had saved his life more than once. Duril deserved more than to be treated like that. If the fear of being rejected weren’t in the way, he would say something.

What was he thinking? He wasn’t afraid of anything. Ever. Well. Maybe he was just a tiny bit anxious.

He jolted when Duril touched his head. The gentle hand moved across his jawline and began caressing him in the way he liked best. Despite himself, he leaned into the touch and began to purr.

“You are such a cat,” Duril said and laughed.

Toru caught himself and pulled his head back. But it was too late, and the healer now knew the entire truth. Feeling more chastised by Duril’s kind response to his obvious deceit than any other time in his life, he shifted into his human form.

He still kept his back turned away from his friends. A hard hand landed on his shoulder. That couldn’t be Duril.

“I think it’s high time you said sorry for leaving without us, kitten,” Varg said.

By the tone of his voice, Toru could tell he was laughing at him. That made him bristle. What right had the wolfshifter to meddle into his affairs?

Duril came by his side and wrapped his hand around his elbow. “Unlike our mutual and dear friend Varg, I don’t mind if you don’t apologize. All I care is that you’re alive and well. You worried us sick, Toru.”

The healer’s kind words reached him in ways Varg’s stern rebuke couldn’t. He turned toward Duril, wrapped his arms around him and embraced him tightly. He kept his eyes closed, pressing their foreheads together while making sure the moisture in them did not fall, and Duril responded in kind.

“No love for me, then?” Varg protested.

Without opening his eyes, Toru let go of Duril and embraced the wolfshifter, too. As he held the stronger body in his arms, he whispered, “Laugh all you want, because this is the only one single solitary time I’m doing this, I swear.”

Varg patted him on the back. “Who’s laughing, kitty?” He said, somewhat hoarsely.

Toru could tell the other was as overcome as he was by unfamiliar emotions. At least he wasn’t the only one.

He brushed the back of his hand against one eye, then the other. “How come you followed me? And how did you find me?”

“We asked Agatha about you, and she told us. Not everything, I guess,” Varg added. “We hope that you will consider us your friends now and tell us what made you leave Whitekeep in such a hurry.”

“And we followed you because we care about you,” the healer stated quietly.

Toru nodded and grimaced. “I do owe you an explanation. If only I had one that I could be sure I understood myself.”

It wasn’t like him to open up, and it was harder than everything else he had ever done. But Varg and Duril were looking at him with eyes filled with gentleness, and if he looked back too much, the chances were he wouldn’t be able to control himself.

He sniffled. Duril searched for something in his leather pouch and handed him a piece of cloth. He accepted it without making a fuss.

“Are you angry that I didn’t tell you?” he asked Duril.

“About your tiger powers?” The healer smiled.

Toru nodded. “I can shift,” he admitted, while moving his weight from one foot to the other.

“I can see that. But I’m not angry.” Duril added, after a short pause, “Maybe a little hurt.”

Toru scratched his head. If the healer wanted to punch him in the nose or slap him silly or not talk to him for a few days, he would get it. But now he felt guilty. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

Duril caressed his shoulder. “I know. I know that there’s only good in your heart, my dear friend.”

Toru looked down, smiled, and then glanced up at Duril. The warm brown eyes were looking at him just as always, with kindness and understanding.

So, nothing had changed?

“Duril might think that, but, frankly, I don’t mind kicking your ass,” Varg intervened, ruining the moment.

“No way,” he protested. “You’re a crazy mutt to jump into the fire like that for me.”

Varg offered him a sly grin and ruffled his hair. “I can’t really say anything to contradict that. I must be completely nuts, but let’s face it, you’re glad I did. We did,” he said, pointing with his chin at Duril.

Toru blushed. His friends were right. “I’m sorry,” he mumbled under his breath.

Varg cupped one hand around his ear. “What was that? Did you just apologize?”

“Take it or leave it, mutt.” Toru wasn’t totally against a rough tumble with the wolfshifter. After the strange things that had been happening lately, it would feel good.

“I’ll take it,” Varg replied and patted his shoulder. “Now, I think we are all rightfully famished, and before we sit around and talk about what happened, we should hunt.”

Toru’s stomach growled loudly. Duril and Varg laughed wholeheartedly.

“Didn’t you bring anything to eat with you?” he asked.

Duril opened his pouch and peered inside with a concerned look on his face. “I’m afraid all we have left is some cabbage.”

Toru’s face fell, sparking another bout of laughter. He sighed. “Fine. I’ll have the cabbage.” He opened his palm but looked away. Maybe if he ate it without looking at it, it would taste a little better. He could pretend he was eating a delicious steak.

Something was pushed into his hand. He brought it to his mouth, feeling dejected at the thought of having to stave off his hunger with crunchy vegetables.

But the smell that hit his nostrils and the taste that danced on his tongue made him break into an instant moan of delight. “This is meat,” he shouted happily.

“Of course it’s meat,” Duril replied. “All of this time I couldn’t help worrying that you might be hungry.”

“Duril, you’re the best friend in the world,” Toru said without stopping his loud chewing.

“What about me?” Varg asked.

“You didn’t bring any meat. You’re second,” Toru replied without one trace of remorse.

Varg smacked him playfully upside the head. “That’s because I hunted it down.”

“And Varg cooked it, too,” Duril added.

Toru’s initial belligerent thoughts stopped. “Did you?” He stared at Varg.

The wolfshifter nodded. “Sure did. Now eat and get your strength back. There are many things we need to help with around here.”

***

Varg was happy to be reunited with Toru and find him as full of life and vinegar as usual. But his responsibilities stretched beyond that, at least for now. Not far from them, Zul and Onyx were talking in hushed voices, and there was an intensity to that conversation that reminded him of the trial of fire they had all been through.

Accompanied by Toru and Duril, he walked toward the boy and his servant. Zul made a bow and made as if to take a step back, but Onyx grabbed his hand and made him stay by his side.

The young wolfshifter pushed his chest forward and stood straight. “We are forever indebted to you. Please, tell us what you would like as your reward. We will do our best to repay you.”

Varg grinned and tousled the child’s hair, which earned him a not-so-friendly look from behind shaggy bangs. The streaks of tears on his dirty cheeks were still fresh, but Onyx was already settling into his role as ruler of the land.

“Who is ‘we’, pup?” Varg teased him.

“Zul and I. We’re the only ones left, so we should rule. And call me ‘Lord Onyx’.”

“That will be the day,” Varg said with a large smile. “Don’t worry, pup. As soon as we’re back at your castle, and you’re in front of your people, I’ll call you that. But when we’re between friends, like now, allow me to be your senior. You have much to learn.”

Onyx looked at him with eyes filled with wonder, much to his surprise. “Can you teach me how to shift?”

So were the dispositions of the young, always changing at the flicker of a whisker. It was a comfort to see it. Onyx had already gone through more trials than other pups his age, and not to dwell on sorrow and hurt was the quickest path to healing.

“I don’t have to. You’ve already done it,” Varg assured him.

Onyx stared at his hands and then patted himself down, like he couldn’t believe he was human. “But I don’t know how,” he complained.

Varg took him by the shoulders and looked him in the eyes. “It’s in your blood. Close your eyes, feel the scent of the forest around you. Be the wolf in you.”

Onyx’s nostrils flared and his eyelashes fluttered. Varg smiled as he saw the boy changing. Zul shouted in delight, and Toru and Duril followed his example.

Varg was happy to see that the boy’s fur was no longer in the same bad shape as before. The bald spots were almost gone, and his coat no longer appeared dull and ratty. The pup began running around. “I feel so much stronger!” he yelled to the wind.

“That’s because you are,” Varg confirmed.

“But how do I change back?” Onyx asked, suddenly worried.

Varg crouched and made a gesture for the pup to come close. The intelligent eyes stared at him. “It’s just the same. Think of your human side. What do you like most about being human?”

“I can be like my mother and my father,” Onyx said.

Varg nodded. “And what else?”

Onyx thought for a while. “And I can sit at a table. And use a fork!”

The others laughed.

“I doubt that’s high on Toru’s list,” Varg commented.

“You mutt!” came the immediate reaction. “Not everyone’s high born, like you.”

“High born?” Onyx asked.

“Toru’s talking nonsense,” Varg replied.

“He is a Sir,” Duril intervened.

Something changed in Onyx’s eyes.

“And a great fighter,” the healer added.

“And a mutt, but the good kind,” Toru cut into the conversation.

“Then I want to be like you when I grow up,” Onyx said.

Varg smiled. He still had a mind to give the pup a lesson for being a bit of an insufferable brat before, but all that seemed gone now. “Then that means that you want to shift at will, too. Just think of it. Trust in yourself.”

Onyx closed his eyes. “I want to be like Sir Varg,” he said with confidence. When he opened his eyes, he was already in human form. “I cannot believe it is this simple! Was it always this simple?”

Varg stood and towered over the young boy. He caressed his head. “Not for everyone.”

Onyx’s eyes darted downward. “Does it mean that I’m less than my brethren? Not… enough?”

Varg hurried to put his mind at rest. “Nothing like that. The ones among us destined for greatness tend to be late bloomers. I, myself, couldn’t shift until I turned ten.”

“For real?” Onyx’s face lit up.

Varg smiled. “And look at me, how big I got.”

“The biggest mutt I’ve ever seen,” Toru interjected.

“I will get big, too,” Onyx promised.

“Now, pup, it’s time that you lead us back to your castle. And don’t worry about our reward. Some food and board are all we ask. And the promise that we will always be friends.”

Onyx seemed to take that as a direct task. “You have our promise, Sir Varg. Zul, I believe that you should hurry a little ahead and see about arranging the quarters for our new friends. As for the food --” he stopped, lost for words.

“We’ll hunt,” Varg promised. “And Zul, we’re happy with hay on the ground, or even a bare floor.”

The rabbitshifter nodded eagerly. He began rubbing his hands together. “Lord Onyx would never allow such a thing. I’ll make sure that our guests have the best linen in the castle.”

Onyx turned toward him and whispered, “Do we have linen?”

Zul appeared filled with importance as he puffed his chest out. “If we have, the best of it is reserved for our guests.”

“All right. I’m counting on you,” Onyx replied, although he didn’t appear to be completely convinced. “Sir Varg, I am, however, ashamed to tell you that there’s not much, if anything, left to hunt in these woods. As you are well aware, I was forced to rely on your generosity to get reacquainted,” he seemed to lose his train of thought for a bit, “with the taste of meat.”

“Worry not, pup,” Varg said joyously. “Don’t you hear the forest? It’s alive again. And you don’t have to send Zul ahead. He could join us.”

The rabbitshifter began walking, suddenly in a hurry. “Oh, no, no, I’m not cut out for such things. I’m going to prepare a salad, to go with the food you’ll bring.”

“Are you sure?” Varg called after him.

Zul just waved. It was clear that witnessing a rabbit sacrificing himself for the sake of his master was one thing, but getting to watch him hunt belonged in the realm of impossibility.

***

“I’m afraid I’m a bit the odd man out,” Duril said. “Maybe I should join Zul and help him with the preparations.”

Toru wrapped one arm around his shoulders. “Don’t tell me you don’t like to hunt, either.”

Duril raised his only whole arm. “It’s not a matter of ‘like’ or ‘want’. I feel like I’ll get in the way.”

Toru frowned for a moment. “What’s that on your hand?”

“What?” Duril stared at his hand. His eyes grew wide as he saw the three tiny leaves placed in a circle on the back of his hand. That hadn’t been there before.

Varg and Onyx came closer to look.

Emboldened by a jolt of recognition, Duril walked close to a tree. He tentatively placed his palm against the bark, now alive with sap underneath the hardened exterior. He leaned forward, listening. The leaves on his hand became greener and started to pulse. Faintly, a whisper rose from the tree.

“Can you hear this, guys?” Duril asked.

Varg replied, “I don’t hear anything.”

Murmurs to the negative came from Toru and Onyx, as well.

The voice of the tree was now loud and clear in his ears. “Healer, we are the gift given to you by Lady Amethyst. You lent your ear and listened in our darkest time. Whenever you need our help, just heed our voice.”

“What is he doing?” Onyx whispered.

Varg explained, also in a whisper, “Duril knows a bit of magic and how to talk to trees.”

Toru whispered, too, “Since when does he know magic? Did he keep it from me?”

Duril murmured his thanks to the tree and turned toward the trio. “Guys, seriously, I can hear you even if you whisper.”

“We just didn’t want to disturb your conversation,” Varg said. “What happened?”

Duril looked at his hand. “Lady Amethyst kept her promise. She has given me an incredible gift.”

“What is it?” Onyx asked. “What did she give you?”

Duril turned and placed his hand on the bark of the tree. “She gave me better ears,” he said.

“What was wrong with yours before?” the young wolfshifter asked.

Varg stopped the pup with one hand on his shoulder. “Nothing was wrong with Duril’s ears. But he’s an even better listener now, I believe.”

Duril looked into Varg’s eyes recognizing, as before, the bond growing strong between them. He had used to be a healer with only one whole arm, but now, he was an adventurer and someone who could listen to the voice of trees and talk to them.

And he had friends, amazing friends who saw in him more than he did. It was through their confidence that he became more.

“My mother,” Onyx started. “She gave her life for me. And dad.”

Duril walked closer to the young wolfshifter and caressed the boy’s cheek. Onyx rubbed the back of one dirty hand against his eye. “Lord Onyx, that’s what makes your parents so amazing. They stopped at nothing to save you.”

“But how can I repay them?”

Varg intervened. “They know you love them, pup. Today we’ll hunt, and we’ll go back to the keep, and then we’ll feast. Then we’ll go to sleep, but in the morning, your new life begins. You’re asking what you can do to repay them. The answer is this: live to be all that they hoped you would. Rule with a firm hand, but with a kind heart. Be brave, but not reckless. Lend an ear to those who seek your counsel honestly, but don’t let sycophants get your attention and waste your time.”

“What are those?” Onyx asked innocently.

“You’ll learn. And we are here to help you during your first days of true rule over Fairside.”

“Fairside … yes, it’s what this place is called. But doesn’t the world know it as Vilemoor?”

“That is your noble task, young Lord Onyx,” Varg said with the hint of a smile. “To let the world know that Vilemoor is no more.”

The young wolfshifter seemed to ponder over another thing. “You said you would be here for the first days of my rule. Does that mean that you will leave soon?”

Duril looked at Varg, then at Toru. He knew what Onyx was asking, and the question was on his mind, too.

“Adventure is calling for us,” Varg replied. “But we will send word to my pack, near Whitekeep. I’ll have my friends come and help you rebuild this place. And you will always have allies and friends in us, no matter where the road takes us.”

“You can bore the kid to death more once we have our bellies full,” Toru said. “Now let’s hunt some real food before we all starve.”

Duril laughed at that, and Varg did, too.

Toru shifted and turned toward them. “Now, are you coming or not? Duril, hop on my back.”

“Are you sure? I’m quite heavy,” the healer protested.

Toru rose up on his hind legs and placed his front paws on Duril’s shoulders. “You’ll feel like a feather, trust me.” And he then dabbed the healer’s cheek with his tongue.

Duril blushed. He didn’t want to contradict Toru. It was strange to talk to a tiger, although he was plenty familiar with shifters as a general rule. But even shifted, he was sure he would be able to recognize Toru among a thousand tigers if he had to. His eyes were unique, and the look in their golden gaze made Duril know that he would travel to the end of the world if the tigershifter asked him.

***

They filled Duril’s pouch to the brim with roasted meat, then they improvised carrying sacks from their shirts. Toru was happy as he hadn’t been in what seemed like forever. His belly was full, he was together with friends and he was coming back from a bountiful hunt.

Duril had insisted on gathering some berries and wild roots, so they had had the time for letting their full bellies rest, and the healer and Toru had even had the chance to take a nap side-by-side in the sweet grass under the warm sun. But now the group pressed onward to the castle keep as evening was setting in and the sky turned milky indigo.

“I used to loathe the night,” Onyx said. “But not this evening.”

The breeze was kind and gentle on their faces. A faint scent of smoke was rising from not so far away.

“The world has changed,” Varg offered his words of wisdom. “For the better, I dare to believe.”

“Never forget, Lord Onyx,” Duril cut in. “After the night comes day, and what a glorious day today was.”

“Indeed,” Varg confirmed.

“Argh,” Toru protested. “Are you folks always this sentimental? I hope you’re not going to fill my ears with weepy songs tonight. We fought evil and we won. That calls for a victory march, not all this sappy talk.”

“I agree,” Duril added. “Hey, does anyone know The Tale of My Warrior Friend?”

“Was I born in Whitekeep?” Varg retorted. “Sure thing I do!”

“Not me,” Toru said.

“Me neither,” Onyx added. “But I’ll sing along!”

“Just follow my lead, then,” Duril said. “It goes like this …”

It all began on a dark summer's night,

I was the most victorious fighter around,

But he was the bravest warrior.

He was my friend,

My brave friend,

My warrior friend.

We used to win all battles together,

Back then in the valley of dread.

We wanted to fight together, never surrender,

But victory never went to our head.

Until one evening, one dark evening,

We decided to fight the biggest evil of all.

Together we fought the enemy,

And we were about to take the fall.

And then it happened:

Oh no! Oh no!

My friend missed, and his blade broke,

And smoke all around us made us choke.

The next day my head was in agony,

But the best thing of all, I had company.

My head... ouch!

We drank too much,

Because we fought and won again,

That brave warrior and me.

He was my friend,

My brave friend,

My warrior friend.

Duril, for all his size, had a pleasant, melodic voice, and the rhythm of the song sang to him. Toru took the healer by the shoulders, and Varg did the same to him. The wolfshifter lifted Onyx to sit on his arm, hiking him up from the ground, and together they marched toward the castle.

***

The first thing Toru noticed was the light. The dark town hiding behind the tall walls was no more. Instead, torches had been lit at every corner and in front of each house, and there were happy noises, of people talking, dragging long tables outside, and bringing out food.

“What happened to this place?” he wondered out loud.

“I believe that the evil holding the people here in its grasp truly is no more,” Varg replied.

“Oh, my Lord,” Zul hurried to welcome them, and people around them then noticed they were there. “Good folks, we were waiting for you!”

“To bring this?” Toru asked and held high his shirt in which they had wrapped some of the meat they hunted.

Zul hurried to take it from him. “This, too, but we were waiting for our heroes. Please, let’s get you cleaned up a bit, and we’ll begin the feast!”

The people began to cheer them as they moved through the crowd. Toru didn’t mind the attention and took a crown of flowers from a little girl who was trying to offer it to him as a gift. At the girl’s insistence, he placed it on his head.

“Ah, you’re so pretty now,” Varg teased him.

A tall young man hurried to wrap a garland around the wolfshifter’s neck.

“Look who’s talking,” Toru shot back.

Duril didn’t protest when a woman offered him another crown made from flowers. “I’m happy to see this transformation. I’m still amazed by it, but it looks like, indeed, the evil was forced from Fairside.”

Varg helped Onyx sit on his shoulders so that he could be at a vantage point and address his people.

“My people,” the young wolfshifter’s voice rose over the crowd, “today marks the beginning of a new future for us.”

“Where did he learn to talk like that?” Toru whispered.

Varg hushed him. “I helped him prepare the speech while you and Duril took a nap. Don’t make him lose his concentration.”

The crowd cheered.

Onyx continued, “My mother and father are not here with us, today, but they are here in spirit.” His child-like voice carried pride, and it was enough to silence the crowd with each phrase he spoke. “My noble duty is to carry on their legacy. We will do so together, my friends!”

The people cheered again, and Varg let Onyx down so that he could join Zul who was gesturing for them to follow.

“Nice and short, the way I like them,” Toru commented. “Are you earning your coin on the side writing speeches?”

“I still haven’t bitten your ears for all your shenanigans so far. Tease me more, kitty, and you’re in for a rough tumble with me.”

“I look forward to it,” Toru replied in kind.

“But first, let’s enjoy the feast.”

“If I had known they were preparing like this, I wouldn’t have eaten so much,” Toru complained.

“Don’t tell me there’s no room left for a hearty portion of pork stew.”

“Do they have pork stew? There’s always room for that. But where did they get the pork?”

“I’m in the habit of not asking too many questions when people struggle to put a meal together after being dominated by darkness and evil for three centuries.”

“Any evil left in the meat that’ll end up on my plate won’t survive my belly,” Toru said.

“I doubt there is any evil here,” Duril intervened. “As I look around, all I see is a different place. Only last night, we were riding through this market square, chased by an army of wraiths.”

“I guess you, too, have stories to tell,” Toru said. “Tonight, we won’t sleep a wink.”

***

That had been what Toru said before the feast, but now he was snoring while sleeping sprawled on his back. Duril took a blanket and covered him. The weather was fair in Fairside, hence its name, but the nights were still cold inside the castle.

“He’s sleeping like a log, isn’t he?” Varg asked.

“He deserves it after everything he’s been through.”

“You’re mothering him too much,” came the gentle chiding.

“I can’t help it,” Duril admitted. “He’s young.”

“Not that young. He should have known not to leave without us.”

“Varg, do you believe in destiny?” Duril asked.

They each had their own bed, but they sat on Toru’s, as it was large enough to accommodate more than one person.

“I can’t say. I’d rather not,” Varg replied.

“But it feels like what happens with Toru is more than living day by day, like the rest of us.”

“Because of Agatha? Or because he’s a tigershifter? We don’t see his kind often in this parts.”

“Yes, on both accounts. And more. If it’s Toru’s destiny calling for him, do we intervene in it? Is it for the good of it all or maybe not?”

“Do you have any second thoughts?”

Duril shook his head. “No, but I was just wondering about our place in it.”

Varg shrugged. “If Toru’s destiny lies ahead, calling for him, and we followed him, that only means that we are part of it.”

Duril nodded. “Part of it. I like that.”

“What about you?” Varg asked. “Do you believe in destiny?”

For a moment, Duril lost himself in thought. “I wish that it exists. It would mean that there’s something more to a person, a higher calling.”

“Then we should heed that calling,” Varg said. “And now, let’s get to sleep. If our troublesome kitty here deserves his sleep, the same thing can be said about us.”

“I believe you’re right,” Duril replied. “Good night, Varg. I am once more honored to fight alongside you.”

“I feel the same. Rest well. Tomorrow, we will have to help Onyx organize his estate and affairs. I hate these formalities, but they are a part of life.”

“Don’t worry; I’ll help to the best of my abilities.”

Varg patted his shoulder and gave it a squeeze as he got up. “I’m counting on it, friend. More than you think.”

***

Toru woke in the middle of the night, dying for a drink of water. He moved quietly, his eyes quickly adjusting to the dark. He filled a glass from a pitcher left on the table and gulped it in one go.

That dream had come to him again. The road was calling, but this time, the hunger in his heart was not as great. “Whatever you are, you’ll have to wait,” Toru whispered.

He wouldn’t leave without his friends this time. It wasn’t an easy thing to accept, but being lonely was no longer an easy coat to wear.

Was he starting to think like a mutt now? He laughed to himself. He needed no pack in his life. But being on his own, facing dangers, no longer held the same appeal as before. He had been happy to see Varg and Duril rushing to his rescue.

For the moment, his heart was full. The call of the road was still there, and it was still strong, but he could let it wait. Now, he had friends he couldn’t ignore and leave at the whim of a scent, no matter how powerful.

He stole a glance in the direction of Duril’s bed, and then a naughty thought crossed his mind. He smiled as he tip-toed carefully to get closer.

The healer seemed deep in the world of dreams.

***

Duril felt hot, too hot, and the sensation was so familiar, but he couldn’t remember from where, as his mind was foggy with sleep. Then he realized that he was immobilized, one heavy arm, and an equally heavy leg thrown over him and holding him tightly.

And there was also the sensation of a hot body keeping him wrapped in an embrace, glued to his back.

“Toru?” he whispered hesitantly, not wanting to wake up Varg, who was sleeping a few feet from them. “Is it you?”

“I hope you’re not letting just anyone embrace you like this,” Toru whispered back.

“What are you doing? Can you not sleep?”

“You know I sleep better like this. In bed with you. And I’m a bit nocturnal.”

“Right, you’re a cat. Wait, was that you, with the tail, that time?”

“Hush, you don’t want us to wake up the mutt,” Toru whispered quickly.

Of course. Like any cat, Toru didn’t like getting caught. “Then just sleep.”

“Are you still tired?”

“Yes, aren’t you?”

“Not anymore, and don’t worry. I’ll do all the work.”

Duril was about to ask what Toru meant by that, when he felt a hot tongue in his ear, and a hand snuck to his chest.

He let out a small surprised sound before he could stop himself. This wasn’t good. It wasn’t bad, either, but not good if he ended by waking up Varg.

TBC

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