Page 15 of A Tale of Mirth & Magic

E LIKKI

W ow. Way to make a girl swoon.

Barra held me in that firm way that would give anyone jelly legs.

The music, the soft light, the dancing, the centaur writhing in the background—incredibly romantic.

Barra was giving me serious puppy eyes, and I could feel his strong heartbeat against my cheek. And his half-hard cock against my hip.

I wondered how long it would take to get to the inn from here if we galloped. Or maybe we could just sneak into the woods again after the troupe moves on…

Mulberry had reached the end of “The Elvish Darling of Drallomere.” His beautiful voice spun the lovers’ ending. Happily ever after, of course, they lived in peace and harmony until their dying days. Forever and ever.

Bullshit.

But the kind of very pretty bullshit I liked to hear about in songs sometimes.

I closed my eyes against Barra’s chest and enjoyed the calm and happiness of this moment.

Mulberry stopped singing, and the strings stopped playing.

Kramdor’s pan flute closed out the song, his final lone high notes floating in the air.

And then silence. The song was over.

I reluctantly broke away from Barra and cheered, clapping hard for the troupe. Barra joined me. The musicians soaked up the praise, blushing and chattering.

“Well, we really ought to be getting on now,” I said. “Thank you all so SO much for playing for us! You’re fantastic.”

I elbowed Barra.

“Oh, right—fantastic! I will certainly remember this for a very long time,” he said.

Vin jumped forward, tipping horns toward us and curtsying once more with his pink pantaloons. “The pleasure was all ours! Thank you for giving us your ears and your praise!”

“And your dancing skills! You make an adorable couple,” Niv said.

“Oh, no no no, we’re not a couple,” I said. “Just a couple of people. Walking. Together. To the inn, you see.”

“Sorry, my mistake,” Niv said.

“Give it time!” Gethos yelled. Kramdor shushed him. Gethos stage-whispered to Barra and me, “ You two look hot together! ” The dwarf rolled his eyes.

“You are all magnificent,” I said, true affection in my voice. “I hope our paths cross again.”

“Can we give you anything in return for the performance?” Barra said.

Niv said, “No need, no need. We just wanted to enjoy playing for a while. Wash the bad taste of that dreadful show at the inn out of our mouths.”

“You two clearly have superior taste to the folk we encountered there!” Vin said.

“Just promise to tell everyone you meet about the magnificent troupe who dazzled you senseless—the Willful Wheels!” Mulberry said.

The others jumped in, all talking at once, arguing for their preferred name choices.

As they gathered, jabbering together, Barra and I packed away our food.

He boosted me into the saddle again—I gave a half-hearted protest, but I obviously wasn’t going to turn down a free ride—and we headed out with a final wave to the troupe.

As we set off down the road, Mavis’s lute plinked discordantly and Gethos waved his tambourine back at us with a cheery “Goodbyyyye, hotties!”

We turned the bend, and they fell out of sight and earshot. Barra caught my eye. We both burst out laughing.

“I liked them!” I said finally, trying to catch my breath. “Maybe they’re not the most naturally gifted, but what sweethearts.”

“You’re right. I’m surprised to say it, but I’m glad they cornered us into an impromptu performance,” Barra said.

“Me too. I hope they find a better reception at the taverns in Povon.”

“Maybe they will. Although we didn’t have the most pleasant experience there, they have a great deal of charisma. With luck, they’ll charm the townspeople out of their coin.”

“What are you saying?! I have charisma for days.”

“You absolutely do. You’re brimming with charisma. But—”

“BUT! You have a but!” I yelled.

“But,” Barra continued, “you are also very… passionate. And maybe that passion shows up a bit, um, forcefully?”

I snorted. “You’ve known me for one day, Barra. Let’s not pretend you’re an expert on my passions .”

He flushed and didn’t respond. Just inclined his head in acknowledgment. We walked along in silence for a while.

My indignation faded a bit, and I said, “Well. You might not be entirely wrong. I suppose.”

“You did break a man’s wrist for speaking rudely and touching your arm. Not that it was unwarranted. He was a creepy bastard. I’m just saying.”

“In my experience,” I said carefully, trying to keep my temper in check, “it’s better to shut someone like that down as soon as possible—as completely as possible—rather than play it nice and risk them trying again.”

“I can understand that. But—”

“No. No, you don’t understand.” I fumed.

“You don’t have any idea what it’s like, living the way I do.

You’re this huge, seven-foot-something giant, and a man besides.

How do you think I survive, as a woman traveling alone?

Do you think I haven’t tried the kind approach?

The gentle but firm, ‘thanks but no thanks’ response?

“I meet everyone with friendliness and an open heart. A smile and a compliment. That’s the way I am.

And most folks match me kindness for kindness.

But certain people—they’ve always been men—seek to take advantage of someone the moment they perceive a weakness.

I’ve encountered enough of them on the road, been hurt by enough of them, to know that type when I see them.

“So yeah. Maybe I lost my temper a little. Maybe I shouldn’t have broken his wrist. A finger might have been enough.

Or a very tight five-second squeeze around his sweaty neck.

But I don’t regret it. And I don’t need you trying to reprimand me when you have no idea what my life is like or what I’ve been through. ”

I broke off my tirade, breathing hard. I concentrated on reining in my irritation. Pebble was solid underneath me, and I stroked her neck, focusing on the rough gray hair against my fingers and the feeling of her steady steps along the road.

After a while, Barra said solemnly, “I’m sorry, Elikki.

I didn’t mean that to sound like a reprimand, or a judgment.

I do think it was a bit more violence than the situation called for.

I’m not going to lie about that. But I also didn’t think through what your reasons might have been.

Or how your life experiences informed that decision.

You’re right.” He swallowed hard. “I don’t know at all what it’s like to grow up the way you have, rely on only yourself for so long.

I can’t imagine. Of course you do what you feel you must in order to be safe. ”

His soft voice stopped. It felt like a relief, to be heard and properly listened to. I let out a long sigh.

“To be honest, I don’t even know if it was a conscious decision,” I admitted slowly.

“My magic… sometimes it’s difficult to control.

In that moment, there in the market, I felt so powerful and—and furious .

Part of me wanted to wrap his entire arm, his whole body, in metal and crush it.

It was nothing to snap just a wrist. My anger just kind of… takes over sometimes.”

I took a breath and tried to look at Barra.

“I just want you to know. Even though I don’t regret doing things like that, I don’t feel good about it either.

I’m not sure it was even a fully conscious decision.

Afterward, I always feel a bit crappy. So I tend to push down any misgivings I have later with things that feel good.

A tasty meal, some drinks. A fun night, and everything looks better again. ”

“A one-night stand with the first person you see?” Barra looked at me, realizing something.

“Maybe,” I said, watching him. “Is that so horrible? Sex is one of the few fun, free things we get in life. Why not enjoy it when we can?”

“It’s not horrible. It’s just not me. I don’t want to be used in that way.”

“Used?” I laughed. “Used how? If two consenting adults want to bone, neither is taking advantage of the other.”

Barra shrugged. Gruffly, he said, “I just can’t do that. I’ve never been able to have sex with someone without feeling… attached.”

I gaped. “So you’ve never just slept with someone for the fun of it? Had a one-night stand? Is that why you didn’t come upstairs with me?”

“I have, but it hasn’t ended well for me,” Barra said, ignoring my last question. “I’ve been told that I can get a bit clingy. I suppose I… misinterpret peoples’ actions.”

“Hmm. What a complicated way to live. Probably hard to have a good sex life, then, especially in a small place like Nepu.”

Barra coughed, flushing a deeper violet.

“Well, wait. How do you feel now, after what we did in the woods this morning? Are you all right?”

Barra looked equal parts embarrassed and gratified that I asked. It took him a while to gather his thoughts. I was getting used to that about him.

We walked along. I felt a light breeze play with my hair, and I admired the way the late afternoon sun fell through the trees’ leafy branches. Dappled light spotted the dirt road in a playful pattern.

“I do feel all right. I think. I care about you—probably more than you care about me—but I deeply enjoyed our time together. And I’d… I’d like to repeat it. If you want to,” Barra said.

My pulse raced at his words, but I tried to stay calm and not spook him.

“First of all,” I said, “I don’t think it’s good practice to assume others care less about you than you do about them.

You don’t know how I feel! I like you very much.

Second, I absolutely would like a repeat of this morning.

Yes, yes, yes. No question. And third, I have a proposition.

Why don’t you use our time together to try again at simple sex for sex’s sake.

Maybe it didn’t work with those other people because you were always envisioning a future with them and overromanticizing it.

But with me, that won’t be an issue since we’ll be parting ways soon.

Too soon to develop real feelings for me. It could just be fun.”

At Barra’s long silence, my stomach clenched.

Had I pushed him too much? A better person than I would probably suggest that we take sex off the table permanently now, knowing that he gets too easily attached.

But… Barra had said he wanted to repeat things.

And he was a grown man—if he wanted to risk it, who was I to deny him?

Trying to lighten the mood, I batted my eyelashes dramatically and winked a few times. He smiled distractedly at my antics.

“I don’t quite know what to say to that, Elikki. But I’ll think about it,” he said.

“This is obviously my blatant attempt to get into your pants. Just to be clear. But I also really think you’d enjoy it,” I said.

“I know,” he said. “… Thank you?”

“You’re very welcome.”

We carried on in silence for a while again. Suddenly, Barra said, “Did I tell you that I actually think I broke Felsith’s other wrist?”

“What?!” I screeched. “Wait, you’re giving me a hard time, and you did the same thing ?”

“It was when you were trying to get away from him and the constable at the tavern. He tried to bolt after you, so I grabbed him. Breaking his wrist was an accident! I just meant to hold him back. Although I must admit, it was pretty funny.” Barra chuckled.

I sputtered, indignation and amusement warring. Picturing Felsith, amusement won out.

“I wish I had seen that.” I broke out laughing. Barra joined me, and we cackled together. “Both wrists!” I howled, wiping tears from my eyes.

“That poor fool,” Barra said, chest heaving. I loved seeing him laugh so wholeheartedly. “Bad luck crossing the two of us.”

“He better hope he doesn’t again.”

“From what you’ve said, Elikki, it sounds like you hurt him by accident too. Your power and your anger are hard to control. Just like my physical strength. I need to be on constant guard, watching myself when I’m around others, and I still make mistakes like yesterday.”

I murmured something noncommittal, thinking about everything he’d said. He wasn’t wrong. But I’d rather just laugh at stupid Felsith’s misfortune and put him in the past. He was on the road behind me. I was moving forward and leaving all that.

“How much farther do you think the inn is?” I asked.

“Not far. We should arrive within the hour,” Barra said.