Day Four-Twenty-Nine: Joyous reunion

What the HELL was I THINKING when I said I MISS that harpy? GODS HELP ME, coming out here was DUUUUUUUUMB.

We arrived a little after lunch, unlike my original prediction. Eve's a heavy sleeper, and I didn't wanna disturb her from her nap, so I spent the morning preparing a little meal and waiting for her to wake up. When she did we had day-old pancakes warmed over a fire. Mmm, travel pancakes. Thanks, Bora.

(Eve has a thing for pancakes. I'm not sure what it is, exactly, but she gobbles them down like no other food. But not like the Eve of old - that Eve would have followed up the pancakes with half a gazelle, or something. New Eve, though even less talkative, is not grisly at all. And she smiles! Gods, that tiny smile. Warms your heart right up.)

After sitting and watching the clouds and playing tag among the blooming flowers - I was enjoying our little vacation from society - I reluctantly took the wagon across the foothills and into Libby's camp. Eve regarded the place with a little more fear than usual, and I can't blame her. It's not quite so idyllic as Pubton's rural setting.

Libby's crew has accomplished a lot since my last visit. (No wonder, their taskmaster is the boss from HELL. The side effect of being employed by a SHE-WITCH is productivity.) The tents have turned into small huts, there are a few larger buildings for smithing and serving food and such, and the Hypermole has managed to carve a sizable chunk out of the side of the mountain. You can walk about a hundred feet into their first mining cavern before having to turn back.

I didn't go in. I've lost interest in mines. They freak me out.

Libby was busy fixing the Hypermole after a malfunction (what a surprise, one of her gadgets got all fucked up, just like EVERYTHING SHE TOUCHES), so Grylock, who, being a greedy little industrialist, came with Libby after the vote, led Eve and I on a tour. There wasn't a ton to show us of interest, unless you're into mining.

Which I'm not.

Eve didn't seem too keen, either. If anything, she wanted to leave.

"Has there been, uh, any… trouble?" I asked slyly. "Of the… furry… kind?"

Grylock took the hint. "A little. We think. Lotta stuff's been screwin' up, 'n we occasionally find tracks windin' through the camp after a night's sleep. Onea our watches got punched in the face yesterday. Poor sod's takin' a breather today. Nose is all mashed. Dunno how you humans can get along with those tiny little things."

"We manage." I held Eve a little closer to me. "There's, ah, somethin' on the mountain I probably shoulda mentioned a while ago. Might be important."

"Yeah? Thanks for the intel. Really coulda used it, oh, two weeks ago? When we first came here?"

"Ah, push off. Look, I wanted to keep quiet, 'n my dad 'n Pagan agreed with me... kinda… but there's a cave here. On this mountain. It's, um, a half hour hike to the right, up past those rocks. See?"

Grylock peered in the direction I'd indicated. "I see it. There's no cave, though."

"No, you can't see it from here, that's why I said it's a half hour hike -"

"There's no cave," Grylock cut in. "I ain't the best digger ever, but I'm no slouch at scoutin'. S'kinda what goblins do. I've checked this mountain from the tip of 'er peak right down to 'er nethers. Same for the other mountains. There ain't any caves."

"What?" I shook my head. "No, no, that's not so. You must've missed it. The werewolf backed us up into -"

"WHAT IS THIS THING DOING IN MY CAMP?"

We spun. Storming at us from the direction of the Hypermole, her jaw set in a hideous frown, Grayson wandering along behind her, was Libby. Each footstep was an earthquake, each swing of her arms an executioner's axe, each blink and growl and swish of the hair a promise of horrifying death. 

I was not at all surprised to look to Grylock and discover that he'd run off. Little bastard.

Libby looked ready to charge right through me to get to Eve, though she stopped short when I stepped in front. "YOU. GET IT OUT OF HERE."

"That IT is your daughter," I growled, assuming she meant Eve. it wasn't a big leap of logic. "And she's awake. And she's NORMAL."

"I have enough problems. I DON'T need a bloodthirsty little BITCH ruining my camp."

"DON'T…" I struggled to check myself, fighting the rush of blood to my head. Libby has a great way of doing that, lately. "Don't call her that. Ever. Again. Can't you… just… calm down… for two seconds…?"

Libby's teeth clicked menacingly, as though she might eat the two of us. She looked from me to Eve, Eve to me… and her face softened, ever so slightly, when she noticed Eve hiding behind me. "The hell… is… SHE doing?"

I turned to Eve and hugged her. She hugged back, eyes wide and terrified. "She's AFRAID of you! Obviously. She's not like she… used to be. I dunno why… but… that's all gone. No more crazy strength, no more swords, just… Eve."

Libby bit her lip and looked to Grayson. He shrugged. I noticed, one, that he hadn't said anything, and two, that he looked very, very tired. Bags under his eyes, slightly ashen skin, a grim frown. Surprising - he's normally a springy ball of sunshine, if sunshine could be manipulative and hateful.

"… I don't care. She's with you, I don't want to see you. Go away."

"Libby! Don't do that, she's your daughter! You never gave her a CHANCE -"

"I GAVE HER PLENTY OF CHANCES!"

The roar threw me off guard. Not so much because it was angered, that's par for Libby, but because it sounded a bit pained.

"I CARRIED HER! I NURTURED HER! I FED HER, I WASHED HER, I… when you weren’t there… and all the times I tried to… talk to her… BUT SHE NEVER CARED! SHE HIT ME! SHE DESPISED ME, LIKE SHE FUCKIN' DESPISES EVERYONE! 'N I DON'T CARE WHAT SHE'S LIKE NOW, I WANT HER AWAY! YOU, TOO, YOU CHEATING ASSHOLE! GET OUT OF MY CAMP!"

She rampaged off to a building to yell at her workers. Grayson wandered behind at a distance, his eyes sagging, a smile curving his lips.

I turned to Eve and put my hands on her shoulders. "'m sorry, kiddo. We tried."

Eve sniffed, staring at her feet. I could see she blamed herself, and I tried to set that to rights by giving her a big hug. It helped - but probably not as much as I would have hoped.

Though I'd love to hit the road, I've decided to give Libby one last shot. We're staying the night. If she has it in her to apologize, maybe we can work on it. When she DOESN'T, which she WON'T, we'll take off.

Starting to wonder if maybe I should move further away than just back to Pubton.

Sincerely,

Dragomir the Father