Chapter Twelve

 

Laying there in the predawn gloom, Stern felt happy. The previous evening had worked out better than he’d hoped. Cyra had been more active with him— she’d taken an active role in bringing him pleasure. When it was her turn, she’d asked for light touches and kisses, which he was more than happy to give her in return.

 

“What do you think, fur-face?” Stern asked Pawly, who was waking up on his chest. “This is going to work, right?”

 

Pawly purred loudly and snuggled against his chest.

 

“Me, too, but I still worry.”

 

Pawly chuffed, then stretched up and headbutted his chin.

 

“Thanks. We should go wake them…” He trailed off when his door cracked open and a single green eye peered into the room.

 

“You’re awake?” Cyra whispered.

 

Pawly stood up, then jumped off him. Being a cat, she pushed all of her weight down on his gut with a single paw.

 

“Oof!” Stern grunted.

 

Cyra opened the door, letting Pawly out as she slipped in. “Awake before I came to kiss you?”

 

“I woke up a minute ago,” Stern said as he slid to the side, making room for her to sit on the bed. “How are you?”

 

Cyra’s smile was wide when she sat down, then immediately leaned in to kiss him. Her love and happiness pushed into Stern, and he accepted them, letting her emotions mix with his as he returned her kiss. When Cyra broke away, they were both breathing fast and Stern realized that he’d drawn her partially on top of him.

 

“Sorry,” Stern whispered, worried that he’d gone too far.

 

“No,” Cyra whispered back. “Feel me.”

 

Stern blinked as he processed what he felt. Happiness, contentment, joy, and love were all Cyra was feeling in that moment. “Oh. That’s amazing.”

 

“Yes,” Cyra replied, then kissed him again.

 

Again, the kiss lingered. Cyra stiffened a little when his body inevitably responded to her being atop him. Stern felt a small spike of fear, but it was quickly drowned out by lust.

 

“We need to stop,” Stern panted when the kiss broke again.

 

Cyra was flushed and staring into his eyes, nodding slowly. “Yes. I want more... I do.”

 

“I know, but I still felt the fear,” Stern whispered back. “Soon, but not yet.”

 

Cyra bit her lip, blaming herself. Stern brushed at her ear gently like he’d seen her do to soothe herself. Cyra blinked, startled, but tilted her head a little so he had a better angle.

 

“None of that,” Stern said gently. “We’re already going much faster than I’d dared to hope for before. Last night was amazing, as is this morning.”

 

Cyra sniffled once and let him soothe her. “Okay. Sorry.”

 

“No sorry,” Stern said, kissing her nose. “I’m not upset, my dear healer.”

 

His nickname for her sent a spike of love through her heart, and she managed a trembling smile. “My dear healer…?” she whispered. “Yes, I’m your dear. I like that.”

 

“My dear healer, my dear lover, my dear fluffy bunny,” Stern said, tacking on Trish’s nickname for her, as well.

 

Cyra giggled and kissed his nose. “Okay. Thank you for being so understanding.”

 

“How can I not be when you’re with me?” Stern half-asked her. “You and Trish both accept my problems, too.”

 

Cyra shifted to sit on the bed again, and Stern let her go. “I hope that we’ll be able to do more before we become nickel-tier.”

 

“I think we will,” Stern said as he sat up. “Can I hold you? It might mean… uh, a poke.”

 

Cyra thought about it, then nodded slowly. “Please.”

 

Sliding his legs to either side of her, he held her from behind. He did indeed poke her gently as he positioned himself. Cyra breathed slowly and deeply, but didn’t feel fearful. “There. A steady presence that you know you’re safe from with you being dressed. I thought it was the sudden jolt that was the problem.”

 

“Maybe...” Cyra murmured. She felt safe and warm when he put his arms around her. “I like this.”

 

Kissing her cheek, he held her for another few minutes. “Anytime you want a cuddle, dear, I’ll gladly give it to you.”

 

“I’ll remember that,” Cyra murmured, then tilted her head back and to the side. “Kiss me once more?”

 

Stern did as she asked, kissing her softly. The kiss lingered before Cyra broke it and stood up.

 

“I’ll see you soon,” she said, looking back at him before she left the room.

 

Stern exhaled slowly before dimly noting that he wasn’t standing at attention anymore. “For the best,” he muttered as he got out of bed and started to dress for the day.

 

~*~*~

 

Stern gave Trish a smile when he stepped out of his room. “Where’d Cyra go?” he asked when he failed to spot her.

 

“Went down to get breakfast delivered,” Trish replied as she crossed over to him and kissed him hotly.

 

Stern grabbed her and kissed her right back. The two of them only broke apart when the door opened. Both of them were a little flushed when Cammie stepped out of her room.

 

“Did I interrupt?” Cammie asked with a raised eyebrow.

 

“No,” Trish said. “We shouldn’t be kissing in the main room, as it is. It isn’t fair to the rest of the crew.”

 

Cammie shook her head. “I don’t mind, but my brother might have problems.”

 

“How are you this morning?” Stern asked.

 

“Fine. I didn’t drink much, and I made sure he drank a lot of water before we went to bed. We should still probably let him sleep a bit longer.”

 

“Wake him when food gets here?” Trish asked.

 

“I’ll get him, then. Are we still sparring today?”

 

“Yeah, we’ll grab a room at the dojo,” Stern said.

 

“I’m going to take your brother to arrange for travel goods while you get armor with Stern,” Trish said. “We’ll meet back here, then go over to the dojo. All of that is after breakfast and checking on our gear.”

 

“Sounds like a solid plan,” Cammie agreed.

 

~*~*~

 

Stern walked with his hood pulled over his face, slouched and moving at a speed that was comfortable for Cammie. He was mostly being ignored, for which he was grateful.

 

“You hide who you are?” Cammie asked after a few minutes of walking.

 

“Their fear and hatred are difficult for me,” Stern said. “The more of it I feel, the more of it affects me. That’s true of every emotion, but out here, that’s what I would get.”

 

“Must have been terrible,” Cammie said.

 

“Only the majority of it,” Stern shrugged. “I had a loving family, at least.” He felt the spike of sorrow from Cammie, but didn’t comment on it.

 

“Family is special,” Cammie said softly.

 

“You and your brother obviously think so, even when he’s being… unpleasant.”

 

“He doesn’t drink to excess often.”

 

“There’s a story there,” Stern said, “but I won’t pry. You both might feel comfortable telling us in time.”

 

Cammie watched him from the corner of her eye, then nodded. “Maybe. I think it’d be like asking about what you endured.”

 

“Not much to tell,” Stern shrugged. “It’s fairly obvious how I’m viewed by most people.”

 

“But what about people who got to know you?” Cammie asked.

 

Stern was silent for a few minutes as they kept walking. “Most grew to hate the fact that I knew their feelings. They couldn’t hide what they felt and, in time, it broke even good friendships.”

 

Cammie didn’t know what to say. Her own experiences had been unpleasant at times, but she had had friends. Being cut off from everyone but family would have made things much harder.

 

The silence stretched out until they got to the shop Stern had been directed to. He opened the door, leading Cammie inside. The small jingle of a bell announced them to the woman with jutting horns standing behind the counter.

 

“How can I help you?” the bovine lykian asked.

 

“Stiffened leather for my friend, or a partial brigandine, if you can pull it off,” Stern said, keeping his head down.

 

“The first is easy. What do you mean by the second one?”

 

Stern exhaled slowly, then stood up, letting the shopkeeper see him as he pushed his cloak back to show off his chestguard. He started on the straps as the woman took in the sight of him.

 

“You… you’re…!” the shopkeeper began to stammer.

 

“An irregular,” Cammie said, stepping forward. “A Walker, too.”

 

The shopkeeper blinked at the dwarf, then looked back at Stern as he set the armor on the counter, his badge still attached to it. She touched the badge, then exhaled noisily. “Walkers…? Could have warned me.”

 

“I’ve tried that before,” Stern said a little tightly. “I still get the same response.”

 

Nostrils flaring, the lykian stamped a foot. “Fine. What’s special about this armor?”

 

Stern knocked on the strike plates, then explained the concept. The shopkeeper’s fear had faded and, in its place, curiosity and interest surged forward. By the end, she was nodding along with Stern’s explanation.

 

“I can make a set, but it’ll take a month.”

 

“Too long,” Stern said. “We plan to leave tomorrow.”

 

The shopkeeper exhaled noisily again. “I can modify a chest piece and leggings in a handful of days. She looks pretty average for a dwarf.”

 

“I doubt she’s average,” Stern chuckled, “but you can size her.”

 

Cammie’s eyebrow went up at Stern’s words. “How would you know?”

 

Stern looked at her, then sighed. “I was thinking of your perks and personality.”

 

Cammie snorted. “Guys. Right?”

 

The shopkeeper brayed a laugh, nodding. “Men. Come with me.”

 

Stern sighed again and went to wait for Cammie.

 

He wasn’t waiting too long before the two women came out of the back, laughing. The shopkeeper gave Stern an appraising glance, her laughter dying off.

 

“How much?” Stern asked, stepping back up to the counter.

 

“For the armor, I’ll say a silver,” the lykian replied.

 

Stern frowned, but nodded. “Can you dye them?”

 

The shopkeeper looked at the armor Stern was wearing again. “Like that?”

 

Feeling and hearing the doubt in her voice, Stern nodded curtly. “Yes. You might want to ask about this. It’s becoming more common. Darkhand is starting a trend.”

 

“They are?”

 

“Yes. The news is just reaching the city.”

 

“Oh. Hmm... okay. The dye is another large copper.”

 

Stern pulled out the coins and placed them on the counter. “See you in five days.”

 

“I’ll have it ready.”

 

Cammie stayed quiet as they left the shop. Once they were on their way back to the inn, she said, “You didn’t even try to haggle her.”

 

“The price was good, and crew safety is worth any cost,” Stern said.

 

She gave him a side-eye for a moment. “Really?”

 

“My father always says so,” Stern said softly. “And I’ve seen what losing crew members can do to people.”

 

Cammie was quiet, but the same sorrow she’d felt repeatedly came back and lingered. After a few minutes, she finally said, “Thanks.”

 

“No thanks needed,” Stern said. “You and your brother are crew, which is as close as one can be besides family.”

 

“Yeah,” Cammie said sadly. “That’s what it should be.”

 

“Yes,” Stern nodded. “Maybe one day, everyone will feel that way.”

 

Cammie snorted. “That’s never going to happen. People will always be people.”

 

“True enough,” Stern agreed. “Most people are only out for themselves, first.”

 

“Looks like we see people the same way.”

 

“Yeah. Something in common is always good.”

 

“Yes, it is,” Cammie smiled.

 

“Now let’s go see about weapons,” Stern said.