– K Á R A –

The mortals had dragged us before one of my least favoured places on the mortal realm. But even that mattered little this night. For once I did not glare at every corner of the densely filled room of singers, dancers and drinkers. This night I was sat beside Tayah Ashrive as she grinned and drank under the soft candle light.

The darker skinned locals brewed a different beverage slightly stronger than ale and the men were having a painfully loud time coming to terms with it. I sat close to my immortal with my elbow grazing her own on the table as I threw back a tankard of the heavier drink. She was clad in nothing but that silken tunic that seemed to take on a silver light against the flames. A beautiful second skin to match her eyes. I tore my own off her and finally threw Kaden an exasperated look.

"For the sake of the Underworld Nafferion, it is called heket and it is made from a similar grain." I cut in as Kaden slapped down his mug and eyed a thickly chested woman passing our table.

He grunted and seemed to turn it in his mouth before his eyes found the table again. "Don't like different." He grunted. "But those lasses..." He seemed at a loss taking in the thin and revealing clothing so different from the hard wintered Uccellons.

"I wondered how long it would take for your mind to linger on such things." Tayah remarked. 

"Do not act as if your mind has not lingered on such things this span." Kaden drawled with a lazy smile, making Tayah's eyebrows shift.

"On better things." She murmured.

I choked on my drink. Tayah smirked.

It was strange that for once all of us–and a new addition–were reunited once more. I glanced at Yanu who wrapped his hands around a tankard almost as big as his head. I dropped my mouth to Tayah's ear and she shifted subconsciously nearer.

"Should the child really be consuming that?" I murmured, as he giggled towards Kaden.

Tayah cut me a look that said she was equally lost. "They seem to serve any age in this town–I think it's a custom." She whispered, glancing at a family laughing loudly over their tankards and cheering out over the lutes and singers.

"Then again he has more sense than those two–forget I mentioned it." I muttered, eyeing John as he slammed a steak knife between his fingers increasing in speed. Tayah caught where I looked and sent a brief flame brighter into the candle on the table, making John lose focus and stab his finger.

"No fire in the tavern!" He bellowed, sucking his finger and pointing the knife her way. I felt my energy brighten in response to the threat but her hand calmed me under the table. It had become second nature to us even before Yascalla. She could feel my energy just as easily as she could read my emotions now. Tayah threw him an innocent look over the rim of her mug.

"Aye put some more hairs on your chest lad, drink up!" Kaden suddenly boomed and clanked his tankard against Yanu. The boy had gone from sheer terror of the man to idolisation in a matter of sun quarters. But Tayah's hand reached out and lowered the boy's mug before he could eagerly follow Kaden's moronic demands.

"Challenge someone your own size." She told him flatly. 

I stared in shock as she then guzzled her tankard and Kaden rushed to sink his drink down his throat faster. She slammed the wood down first with a wide grin and threw her thumb off in the direction of the bar. Kaden scowled and collected the empty mugs as he disappeared to fill them.

"Unbelievable." I uttered dryly.

"She has the heart of a farmer what else do you expect?" John scoffed with a grin. 

"You always were a slow drinker, Sir John." She mocked back.

"Alcohol is to be treated like a woman." He retorted, making her pause waiting. "Taken smooth on the lips, consumed slowly and when you wrap your hands around it you don't let go until it's sucked–"

Tayah palmed the steak knife in a flash and sent it through John's sleeve. I wished it had ventured higher. He burst into fits of laughter as Kaden returned with two overflowing tankards. It was more than a good thing that the boy understood none of their barbaric language. 

"The songs be strange here." Kaden grunted. "They clap too much." He stated, turning from the bench to stare at the energetic patrons before the musicians. 

I smirked and set my forearms on the table as I appraised his put off expression.

"They also like to dance, mortal."

Tayah's eyes found the side of my face excitedly and I raised a hand before she could even say the Underworld damning words.

"Absolutely not."

"But what if–"

"I do not dance, Tayah Ashrive." I said slowly, meeting her eyes with my burning silver.

"I could always teach you the Uccellon way." She grumbled and took the tankard from Kaden before taking a deeper drink. It was quite adorable. I smirked and resumed my own drink. But this seemed to get the giant's attention.

"What of the women?" He probed.

"What of them." I retorted without emotion.

"Would they dance... with an outsider? A Uccellon?" He asked hopefully.

I lowered my tankard and felt all the eyes of the table turn on us.

"No, mortal not usually–" His face fell. "However..." His eyes darted back up to my own. "Your particular... build. Is seen as quite desirable among the people of this continent. A warrior's stature–even though looks are no judgement of such things–"

"YES!" Kaden boomed, slamming a hand down and making the table shake. I glared. "Finally a land where the women shall not trip over themselves looking at this heathen!" He roared, drinking a large mouthful and throwing an elbow into John.

John looked entirely unconvinced. "Let us see exactly how far that gets you man. I will have half the town by four spans end." He dismissed, pushing back his dark hair arrogantly.

I laughed whole heartedly at this. "Mortal you have neither the warrior's build nor darker skin for their affections. You will sooner receive injury than a lover."

I had never seen the mortal wear such a dark glare in my direction and I adored the fact. I gave him my own slow smile in response that promised anything but amusement.

"Okay, enough!" Tayah interrupted, looking between us. "I've put up with the pair of you wanting to kill one another long enough. This needs to end tonight."

"Tayah it's that damn demon! I have done nothing–"

She threw a hand in his face and silenced him. "I cannot have my closest companion and my closest... everything. At each other's throats."

"What would you propose?" I enquired with a calmly amused expression. Though I savoured the way she described her affections for me so casually. Everything indeed.

"You really want to know what I think?" Tayah asked, placing a hand on the table between us. "I think you both get blind drunk on whatever dark ale this is until your words work out the rest." She finished simply, leaning back and taking another drink.

I stared at her in disbelief.

"Drinking will not make my affections grow for this buffoon." I deadpanned.

"Nor will I think her any less worthy of a bowl of horse's piss." He shot back.

Tayah shook her head with a neutral expression. "I don't care. Nothing else has worked and I am not going to spend my night keeping the peace. Which reminds me..." She pointed to her tankard again and Kaden sighed.

I leant close to her again and felt her heartbeat pick up despite her casual expression. "I may love you, immortal but what you ask now is impossible."

She turned to me without seeming to note the mere inches between us and shrugged lightly.

"You never know what a person can do after enough ale."

"It's heket–"

She grabbed my jaw with heavy amusement. "Would you just... turn off the immortal ego for tonight, please?"

I looked between those beautiful eyes that I already knew I would do anything for. I sighed and gave her an imperceptible nod. She smiled slowly before John cleared his throat and slapped his empty tankard down.

"Tell you what immortal." He began and eyed me closely. "You teach me some of the Kanton tongue and I'll be less of a horse's ass in your general direction." He even went as far as to extend  his hand out to me. I stared at it for a moment as Tayah watched me with a grin.

I sighed and glared at the heathen. "Yula ni kevinan morta."

He frowned at me and I smiled.

"You have a deal, mortal." I told him.

"Now that's not what I want to learn." He stated as Kaden returned and dropped a handful more of full tankards on the table this time. I plucked one out and drank heavily before rolling my neck and trying to find patience with a male I despised. 

"What do you wish to learn?"

"Oh, only the simple things." He grinned back. "Hello, beautiful. My name is John."

I stared at him flatly before giving my response slowly and deliberately making sure not to smile at all while I did. I still caught Yanu flashing me a confused look when his language entered the air. John nodded intently and I made sure he pronounced each word clearly. 

"And one more thing." He nodded quickly, "I would like to take you to bed."

I bit down hard on my tongue and felt Tayah flash me a look over her drink. She noticed the way my heartbeat was dancing from this. But she did not stop me either. I told him another line in the Kanton tongue slowly and this time Yanu coughed into his drink. Kaden smacked his back oblivious to the situation. 

John rose from the bench victoriously and took his drink with him.

"Well Kaden, see just how much you shall eat your words now." He drawled, pulling back from the bench and swaggering through the crowds to the first bar wench he could lay eyes on. I watched him intently and the dark haired woman he leaned over to.

"What the hell did you do?" Tayah murmured, watching him with me.

"He's asking that woman if she would like to see his collection of rabbits heads." I told her simply. Watching with a slow grin as the woman's eyes widened in confusion when he spoke. Of course the mortal carried on despite it.

Tayah couldn't control her shaking laugh beside me and bit her hand watching. "And then?"

"And then he will tell her, her hind quarters look like–"

The woman slapped him suddenly and threw a drink over his face. Tayah lost the will and buried her face into the furs on my shoulder as John stood there dripping in the heket and staring at the wall. Then of course his rage filled eyes landed on me.

I clapped towards him slowly with a grin.

* * * * *

I had been in unforgivable situations with mortals before.

The night Tayah had stood before me blind drunk and dripping with water in Ravensbrooke, before punching me squarely in the face was one. This night when John had stormed back to our table and dumped the remainder of his drink over my head was the second.

Our entire table froze around us at the sight. 

I could smell the drink finding its way slowly down my cloak and hair just as slowly as I rose my eyes to his. Tayah couldn't seem to find the words. There would be no words for this. I took a measured breath.

Then grabbed his collar faster than he blinked and slammed his head onto the table, shaking tankards off it.

"Just don't kill him!" Tayah got in quickly, before I palmed the candle in a bright hand and slapped him heavily across the face with molten wax.

He roared like an animal and flipped the table over. Every eye turned to the violence in a beat and rushed to crowd our space eagerly. If there was one thing drunk mortals appreciated–it was a show with their drinks.

John pulled up the nearest chair and swung it at me. I could not combust it to ash with so many witnesses... So I received the wood harshly against my forearm and growled low. It shattered against me and the crowd got louder.

"I meant work this out with words–" Tayah's words did not last before I spun a broken chair leg into my hand ready to beat him with it.

"John!" Kaden rumbled, throwing a candlestick his way. He caught it on reflex before throwing Kaden a dumbfounded look.

"This is the best you could find?!"

I lunged at him without using any immortal strength. I could knock his ego around the room without it. He drew up the metal candlestick the moment before I clubbed him at the head. The crowd cheered and even the lutes started up again even more aggressively in fast tune.

"Even one hit to your head will satisfy me for the rest of my life!" John called, as he danced back against the ring of the crowd.

"Too bad you do not have a long expectancy." I said in a low voice.

I grew tired of the makeshift weapon and launched it at his head before rushing him. He ducked by the time I sent a forward kick into his chest taking the wind and weapon out of him. A thickly armed man caught him with a grin and threw him back towards me.

I nodded a quick thanks before aiming a punch straight for his nose. But before it landed a fast and immortally strong hand caught it.

Tayah Ashrive watched me with a slow smile.

"You know I did owe you for the number of times you sent me to the floor." She murmured, before throwing my hand back and standing before the mortal. John's expression quickly turned amused behind her.

"I wouldn't mind watching trouble in paradise." He mocked, panting.

I glared before levelling the look at Tayah. "Fighting your mortal's battles now?" I quipped.

The crowd turned curious and threw a few jeers in around us. Tayah feigned left and sent a quick kick to my ribs. I danced back and tucked my arms behind me.

"Your training is complete. Or did you need a reminder?" I asked calmly.

She lunged slightly faster than a mortal should and jabbed quickly to my head as the crowd increased in volume. I caught both before she sunk low and shifted her weight in a way I had not taught. Her hand pulled my weight fast over her shoulder and I had to roll out from the fall. I cut her an irritated look.

"My training was complete long before you had a hand in it!" She grinned.

I rolled my neck and removed my emotion. "So we don't have to play fair." I murmured, turning and slapping a nearby heket into her face before sliding low and taking her off her feet. She spat the drink from her face and threw a blind kick out which I side stepped.

She rolled forward onto the balls of her feet with a look of disbelief.

"That was low for you."

"I've seen you do worse." I smiled.

She lost her smile and threw punches at me faster than she ever could have as a mortal. Her attacks were impressive. Creative and filled with purpose. I had never openly admitted her skill to her so she would always aim higher. But my training and my life had been made into a weapon for centuries. I'd been moulded into a god killer. And I would never show that face to the woman before me.

I took her hits on my forearms and when that wasn't enough I dodged them all together.

"Stop playing defence." She hissed over a heavy breath. "You'd think you learned something in your old age." She goaded. 

I passed another fast swing at my face and turned her body with her own momentum sending her stumbled in the other direction with a grin. A number of patrons cackled in response and unfortunately made the stunning immortal angrier. I sighed and shook my head.

"If you want to hit me hit me." I teased.

She growled and dived forward with the rage of Ares I expected. It called to my own power and I could now see both of us tried that much harder to keep it concealed. I would take hers away the moment it dared to show itself either way–

"No hard feelings if I do." She snapped, throwing a series of hits so fast at my head that one almost caught my jaw. The shock made me miss the low kick to my stomach and sent me to the floor heavily. The crowd called out in victory and I felt droplets of alcohol thrown into the air.

More than that I caught John roaring out his own enthusiasm. I took a deep breath and pressed my head back to the floor trying to measure the emotion burning below.

Tayah appeared above me and tilted her head with a look of irritation.

"When will you ever just lose that restraint around me?"

My eyes met hers and I kept my face emotionless. "You fought well, there's nothing else to it." I stated, rolling up to my feet fluidly and meeting her gaze a few inches away. Her heart picked up as she held my eyes relentlessly.

"I know you hold back. I have seen you truly fight. You forget this." She murmured.

The noise of the crowds that turned away and resumed their night became secondary. Even the leering looks from the mortal I wanted to end drifted away. Of course she had. Because when I had fought Anselle on a ship filled with Odians, when I had pulled her out of a burning wreckage and looked upon the creature that tried to end the reason to my life–I held back nothing.

The centuries of carnage and destruction I had brought to enemies of the realm was unleashed. I could never become that before the woman that meant everything. It was reserved for the ones that meant nothing.

"Who says I was not truly fighting?" I smirked before her. "Perhaps it was an off night."

She poked me in the ribs and I grinned catching her hand. But her scowl was still in place.

"You never bother to show your skill–"

I caught her lips with my fingers with a head shake. "This is not the reason."

"Then why–"

"Did you not promise me the customs of Uccellon dance earlier?" I suddenly interrupted with a brow raised. Her expression changed rapidly to that of shock and excitement.

"I'm going to accept that distraction before you change your mind!" She promised with a gleam in her eyes as she captured my hand and dragged me towards the mortals that conducted the customs of Kanton.

Little did Ashrive know I was versed in all customs of the realm's continents. I would entertain her teaching the moment before I took her arm and matched her step for step as flawlessly as a Uccellon would. As long as she never got the notion in her head for me to fight her the way Odin's daughter of origin would truly fight.