Rune threw her arms around me even tighter but didnât say a word. Although, she was shakingâ¦
âHa⦠You know, honestly, I think just being around you is making the curse lift even faster.â
âThen⦠You shouldnât let go⦠So you get better fasterâ¦â
âWas she lonely⦠Or, no she must have been worried about me⦠If everyone told her I was cursedâ¦â I slowly put a hand on her head and held her close. âWith how attached she is I feel kind of guilty using her like an emotional support dog⦠Although, she is adorable and fluffy⦠And like the most precious thing ever.â I picked her up again and fell back on the bed rubbing my face against her fur. âYou are just the cutest, do you know that? I bet no one ever tells you that do they.â
âStop it.â She giggled pushing my head away but grabbing onto my shirt to make sure I never got too far from her. âOf course no one does, everyone else thinks that about you.â
I couldnât even say anything back, suddenly feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. âThis child is now mineâ¦â I sighed, my attention slowly drifting back to my aching body. âThis bed isnât nearly as soft as mine is itâ¦â I pouted.
âNoâ¦â
I let out a long groan. âI wanna go back and sleepâ¦â
âThen why donât you?â
âWell⦠Itâs kind of like⦠The curse on me is almost broken, but in order to finish breaking it I have to do something that I really donât want to⦠Like how you hated it when Bear had to help you use the bathroom⦠Itâs that kind of feeling⦠Probably.â
She let out a small groan. âAnd you donât want to do thatâ¦â
âExactly. See I knew youâd understand.â
A slight high-pitched growl escaped her mouth as she tucked her chin. âWell⦠I mean⦠The thing is⦠Having him help me⦠Was still less embarrassing than wetting the bed and having him clean it⦠So⦠It wasnât the worst thingâ¦â
I sighed. âRight⦠So if I donât just suck it up and deal with it, something even worse will happen later⦠Yeah⦠Thatâs probably trueâ¦â
âI-I didnât mean that. Iâm sure everything will be fine...â
Stolen novel; please report.
âThis kidâ¦â I sighed again, standing up. âWhat do you say, should we head back to my room? While I was gone I had a tailor make us a bunch of fuzzy blankets from dire wolf fur andââ âWaitâ¦â I paused, staring at her wolf ears and slowly glancing down to her tail, suddenly feeling VERY uncomfortable.
âP-please donât stare at me like thatâ¦â
I quickly turned away âSorry about that. I was just thinking⦠You kind of resemble a wolf right?â
Her ears started twitching as she raised her hands together in front of her chest. âI-I would make a horrible blanket. I donât even have that much fur!â
Rolling my eyes I rubbed a hand through her hair. âThat is NOT what I was getting at.â I let go again heading for the door. âI was just thinking. Is it not weird for you? I mean like eating wolf meat and stuff?â
She suddenly frowned. âIâm not an animal⦠Iâm a person⦠And I taste like a human, not like a wolf⦠Besides, Beast kind is closer to dragons than animals⦠At least thatâs what everyone saysâ¦â
âThatâs⦠A lot to unpack⦠Come to think of it, I hardly know anything about her either.â âHow do you know what you taste like?â
She straightened out like a pencil before turning slightly red and looking to the side. âOh uh, well⦠When I was younger my teeth would get really achy if I wasnât chewing on something⦠And so I chewed on things⦠Including my own arm at one point⦠But that doesnât mean Iâm a dog! J-just becauseâ¦â
As her voice faded out I chuckled, rubbing her head again. âDogs donât chew on themselves when they teeth. Although dragons mightâ¦â âwait⦠Is that what was happening? But she said when she was younger, and Iâm way older than she isâ¦â
She smiled widely, one hand on her hip and the other arbitrarily pointing at nothing. âSee, I told you.â
âI was just checking.â I smiled back, opening the door and leading the way, locking it behind us. âIf the dragon is teething that might make sense, essentially it reincarnated into my body, but its presence is too weak to take over, although itâs growing stronger with time as it literally matures⦠But since itâs just a sliver of soul, it's maturing faster than normal⦠Or maybe itâs maturing faster because of my recovery magic⦠Eh⦠I guess the reason doesnât matter so much⦠The point is that one of us is going to win.â
âAhhhâ¦â
I looked down at Rune, holding her hand as we walked together. She was drooling, staring at a food stand several blocks away.
âAre you hungry?â
She wiped her mouth. âSorry. Iâm weak against bison meat⦠It just smells so good⦠And I can see all the fat on those steaks⦠They make my tummy ache until I eat something. Oh, but I should be fine in a few minutes after we pass them.â
âshe can smell it from here? He hasnât even cooked any yet, so itâs not like the scent is that strong. Though thatâs to be expected but⦠She said she could SEE them?â âDonât worry about it. That demon that cursed me, I got a whole bunch of money for killing it. So for helping me break the curse, Iâll buy you some bison meat.â
Her tail suddenly shot straight up as she started to drool again. âOh no⦠You donât have to do thatâ¦â She said sloppily, intently staring at it as some drool leaked down one side of her chin.
âI honestly feel like I do thoughâ¦â I chuckled, walking up to the stand and buying her as much as she wanted, getting some for myself too, finally getting my appetite back. Then we continued on our way.
Even after she finished it was like she was in a daze. She couldnât wipe the smile from her face as she constantly rubbed her belly leaning against my arm as she held my hand. âSo yummyâ¦â She muttered, not even keeping her eyes closed as if still savoring it.
âIt was actually really tough⦠Which normally I would hate, but it felt really good on my teeth, the flavor wasnât bad either.â
âAh!â Her grip suddenly tightened as she tripped, pulling her entire body up and wrapping around me, making me pause.
âUh⦠You should probably watch your step⦠I could carry you too I guess butâ¦â
She pulled her neck back and tilted her head as if waiting for me to finish.
âJust maybe not quite like this?â
She quickly let go, stiffening up and becoming embarrassed again, hugging my arm and turning away. âI-I can walk⦠I know how to do that at least, promiseâ¦â
âAlright⦠But if you do trip again donât feel bad for leaning on meâ¦â