Private Tales What Does Not Kill Us

[Pern]

The confusion persisted as, too, did the fatigue of sleep. Thank you?

Read?

Then it all rushed in at once as Pern laid her eyes on the short note she'd written in the wee hours of the night.

"Oh," said Pern, blinking a few more times as she slowly pushed herself to sit up, "oh!"

Flooded by the very sudden knowledge that he had, indeed, found the gift and how very self-aware it was making her, she dithered some more for many of the same reasons. "I, uhm, well it wash meant for Heart and Hearth-" Pern's eyes trailed from the note and back to Hath's face, "day..."

"But you can't... of courshe you can't, I knew thish. I washn't thinking. There wash jusht show much on my mind and-" a quick breath caught in her chest as she looked back to the note.

He wanted to know what it said. Naturally. Why wouldn't he? Pern's mouth suddenly felt very dry.

"I can... read it for you," she reached forward to take it from him, sitting up a bit more fully now, and took a deep breath as she felt her heart begin to hammer in her chest for no apparent reason.

"Hath," Pern began, her eyes wide and round and glancing up at him, "I'm not even sure if you can read thish, but I made thish blade for you while we shtayed with your mother'sh clan. Took time to finish it - I would work on it while you shlept..."

Her throat was getting tight. She cleared it and pawed at the side of her neck awkwardly as she felt the blood rush from her chest and up into her face.

"Thank you for everything you have done for me and sheeing me through what hash-" her face was quite warm, furiously blushing, "what hash been the greatesht adventure of my life."

 

[Hath Charosh]

Half way through her reading, Hath realised how difficult this was for her. He had not thought that she would have written this all down simply because it was difficult to say out loud.

He had no idea that she had been finishing off the blade for all this time. It must have taken such determination for her to keep that a secret through everything.

After she cleared her throat, Hath reached out and placed his hand across her knee.

Hath was typically direct in expressing himself. As she continued he looked genuinely overwhelmed. Pern might not have felt a love for him in the way he wanted to be loved in return, but their time together had been life changing for her.

Pern would think of their adventure for the rest of her life. Despite all the hardship they had been through, she was thankful for his support.

"Thank you," he said, meeting her gaze directly. His emotions churned around in his gut and Hath didn't know what else to say.

He reached for her slowly. Two thick arms wrapped around Pern and she - and her letter - would be pulled into his broad chest.

" We will... Have more adventures..." Hath promised, but his own voice betrayed him, stuttering every word.

 

[Pern]

As if her eyes could not go any wider, the bulk of his arms wrapping around her nearly popped them from her skull. All the rest of the blood in her chest rushed up into her face and she was certain that now her cheeks and her ears were both the color of wet sand. Had it been this warm yesterday? It suddenly felt very warm in this tent.

Pern sat frozen in his hug for several moments that, to her, felt like an eternity. Her heart, already having been pounding from reading the letter, now felt as though it might just burst.

If it weren't for Hath's stammering, she might've sat like a statue the entire time but something about the break in his normally resolute and assured tone caught her out of her overwhelming rush of emotions. Was he... was he about to cry? The drive to concern herself over others before herself would always win out it seemed.

She hadn't meant to upset him with the gift!

"Of - of courshe we will," Pern replied, pulling one of her arms from between them where they had folded against his chest to hug back. "We shtill have a waysh to go... and then, who knowsh!"

Smiling again, the heat from her cheeks abated for far more comfortable warmth and for once, Pern relaxed against him and rest her head there. This was... nice. She'd never really hugged someone before that could really get their arms around her except for Scy, but this was different.

 

[Hath Charosh]

The greatest adventure of my life

Those words echoed around inside his head. Even as the moment settled between them. His sudden flare of emotion at her sentiment faded into something more comfortable. The surprise Pern felt from his hug faded.

He let his hand settle into the small of her back. Hath barely moved. The palm of his hand gently moving up and down.

There was a shared warmth between them. Like a fire on the coldest winter day. The cool morning breeze crossing the dew was almost welcome now. As he breathed in, her hair tickled his chin. He enjoyed the scent of her hair.

He was reluctant to pull away from the embrace. His hands were curious to slowly explore with gentle touch. He let out a slow breath. Fingertips pressed into her for a moment before he carefully pulled away.

Hath left one hand on her shoulder. Moisture had gathered in the corners of his eyes.

He grunted and gave a firm nod.

"We have not finished this adventure," he agreed.

 

[Pern]

"Don't-" Pern said as she looked up at him and his misted eyes, feeling the twinge and sting of tears in her own, "don't cry, you'll make me cry." She was not very good at holding back those kinds of emotions, especially when brought on by others.

"Ish it good? Doesh it fit your hand well?" diverting attention and subject matter was the only way to combat it. Pern gently cleared her throat as she sat up straight again and looked to the gift in question. "I ushed one of your other bladesh to shize."

 

[Hath Charosh]

"It is not a bad feeling," he replied.

Hath followed her gaze. For a moment he had forgotten the item that had caused this outburst of emotions. He had been so focussed on the sentiment and on the feeling of her wrapped up in his embrace.

He gave a sharp nod.

She had been asleep when he had unwrapped the gift.

Hath unsheathed the knife. He gripped it with his right and ran his thumb over the blade from side to side.

"It is very fine," he said firmly. This time his voice only wavered a little.

 

[Pern]

"The balansh may be a bit off," she admitted with a slight frown, "but I can adjusht it neksht time I have accesh to a full forge." Perhaps she could convince the centaur to let her borrow his tools once he'd finished his day of work.

There was no question of the blade's strength or sharpness, however. Pern felt fully confident in both aspects. It would serve Hath well for many years to come.

"Now we jusht need to find you a new bow."

 

[Hath Charosh]

Hath balanced the knife on his middle finger. Then he held it and tilted it back and forth. The position where it balanced as well as the distribution of weight mattered.

As he did this, he brought his left fist to his face and smeared a tear away before it could fall.

"We need ink too," he said.

"I did not mean to embarrass you, but I liked to hear those words from you."

 

[Pern]

"Yesh," she said, suddenly aware that she'd forgotten all about the ink, "I should make a lisht..." and moved to take out her journal, ink, and quill once more. Pern paused as he spoke again, missing the gesture that rid himself of any hint of tear, and frown self-consciously.

"I'm glad they could make you happy," she said after a moment to collect her thoughts on the matter, "I've never... given a Heart & Hearth gift to anyone before."

 

[Hath Charosh]

"Using ink to buy more ink," he observed.

Heart and hearth day. He didn't know the tradition, but he thought asking for a specific explanation could wait for another day. The word heart and her tone said enough.

"Then if it was a first gift it was a very good one," Hath declared.

"You know... That I care for you very much."

His second declaration was harder to express than the first. He watched as she gathered her writing implements.

 

[Pern]

"Washte not," Pern replied. The ink was there to be used and if its last drops of use would remind her to buy more? Well, it wasn't wasted.

A smile pushed past her tusks as he complimented the gift, color shifting back into her cheeks yet again - only faintly at first and then full on flushing again at his next words. Oh gosh, there was that terrifying swell of emotion in her chest again. Felt her neck and ears growing warm for the second time this morning.

Truly the morning was far warmer than she'd expected.

She managed to gently clear her throat and acknowledge his words with a quick nod, shuffling through her journal for an empty page and grateful she had that to look at cause she could not bring herself to look at Hath in the moment.

"I know..." Pern nodded again as she scribbled in the list of items they'd need to be on the lookout for.

Ink.
Quill? This one was a bit tired and had little left to sharpen.
Bow

"I..." there had been so many instances in their journey where she thought Hath would be taken from her. Forgetting entirely that he was not just her guide but her guardian, beyond any of that he'd become one of her closest friends and the thought of losing him had moved her to do things she'd never considered herself capable of doing.

Attacking his brother.
Calling upon the Dawnbringer.
Killing a man.

She had a scar on her leg where the arrow had gone straight through during her brother's attempted kidnapping of her. Pern thought she'd take more arrows if it meant saving Hath from certain death.

"You are very dear to me, too, Hath," Pern looked up at him, her own eyes misted faintly from her thoughts, connected with his gaze for the briefest of moments before it all was too much. She cleared her throat again and went back to her list, "What - what elshe do we need..."

 

[Hath Charosh]

It was only a few words, but he could see the effect it had upon Pern. She wasn't used to people caring about her in this way - beyond just a few people in her life - let alone expressing it.

Hath simply reached out and touched fingertips to the outside of her shoulder once.

Settling his hands back into his lap he considered her question. He offered a small smile.

"New waterskins," he said firmly. "One large, several small."

Even if they went north with this orc tribe then they would need to be able to carry their own water.

"Some salt for preserving meat."

 

[Pern]

He really could be quite empathetic and gentle when he wanted. Pern glanced at his gesture with a wane smile, wariness of her embarrassment fading as he added to the list.

Ink
Quill
Bow
Waterskins - lrg + sml
Salt

Pern looked to her backpack and searched through several pockets - of which it seemed to always have more than one thought it aught to.

"Hmm," her brow furrowed, "we sheem to be low on medicinal ointment ash well. I am shore the tribe hash shome, but it would be good to keep our own."

She added that to the list.

"Well we should be able to pick up your arrowheadsh thish morning. Shall we get going?"