"You never told me your name.", you said after listening to the sound of the wind forming little waves on the flat surface of the lake.

A huff escaped him, mocking yet amused.

"You're being careless.", he said and turned his head to you.

He was still sitting so far away that you couldn't see his face, but certain outlines were better visible now. He had a long face, oval shaped, or at least a full beard that made it seem stretched.

The blue of his eyes was still as haunting as they were the first time they had lit up. His nose was long, almost triangular shaped and tilted downwards with a round tip.

"I'm just curious.", you said and turned your eyes back to the lake. "It would be careless to keep talking to a stranger. I should stop meeting you."

"No!", as if you had threatened to slice his throat, he sat up straight and crawled towards you.

But as his face started to light up, he stopped and retreated again.

Grabbed by curiosity, you leaned into his direction.
He backed away as you came too close.

"Why are you afraid to show your face?", you asked, still leaned into his direction.

"I'm not afraid.", he frowned, his hands stroking over the tattoos on his biceps. "Nothing can scare me. I don't know what fear is."

Tilting your head, you dared to let your hand slide through the grass. As he missed to notice it, you reached out even further. The tips of your fingers stroked his pant leg.

He didn't react at the touch and remained unmoved.

"If you're not afraid, at least tell me your name.", you said, soft but demanding.

For a moment, his blue eyes were glued to yours.

"You won't like my name.", he finally said.

"Why not?"

He let out a deep breath.

The warmth stroked your cheek as you leaned towards him to finally be able to see his face in all its bearded, grim glory. And yet, his eyes made you gasp for air. They seemed so soft to you, so different from the words that left his thin mouth.

He was a soft, maybe even loving, creature, locked away inside a hollow puppet.

"Nobody ever likes my name.", he finally said and reached out to let his thumb draw a lone over the bridge of your nose. "They mock it. They spit on it. They pity it. It's just one more piece of my curse. My mother gave it to me."

As his rough skin stroked over yours, he pressed down so hard that you had to flinch. A trail of warm blood dripped over your skin and as he didn't stop rubbing, your hands rose to make him stop.

He froze, his eyes wandering over your face.

"I hurt you.", he said with an expression on his face as if he wasn't surprised but disappointed.

Shaking your head, you wrapped your fingers around his hand, a huge hand with narrow, long fingers, and gifted him a smile.

"Don't worry, it's not your fault. My skin is weak.", you said and poked your cheek to show that a deep, dark spot formed without much force. "I get hurt every time. All the time. There's nothing that can't hurt me."

"Hm. Strange. Usually, it's my fault that things break."

Confused, you tilted your head. But the confusion didn't last long. Instead, your attention was caught by his bright blue eyes again. Without thinking, you reached out and let the tips of your fingers stroke over his cheek.

And again, he did not react to the touch. He just stared at you.

"You are touching me.", he said.

Unsure, you pulled back.

"I- I'm sorry...", you mumbled and wiped the blood that was running down your nose with the bandaged back of your hand.

But it still confused you. It seemed strange to you that his body had no reaction to your touch. It was as if his nerves were numb to everything.

He shrugged.

"It's fine."

"Is it?"

"Yes. People have done a lot worse than touching me. And it's not like it's a bother. Nothing ever bothers me. Except one thing. But I've given up feeling bothered by it a long time ago."

Listening to his words, you couldn't help but chuckle softly in amusement. A sigh followed.

"I know how that feels.", you eyed the blood that was stuck to the bandages. "But still... I hope one day things will change. One day I don't have to feel this curse anymore. Only this hope keeps me alive. It keeps me sane."

All of a sudden, the hint of a smile appeared on his bearded face. He reached out and started stroking your head, as if he was petting a stray dog. But the movements were sloppy and awkwardly stiff. Even his fingers were strangely curled.

You could feel the pressure of his touch pressing down on your head, so hard that it made you squeeze your eyes shut in an effort to endure the friendly gesture.

"That hurts...", you finally gasped as the feeling of your skull bursting spread through your forehead.

He stopped.

"I always do.", he mumbled and buried his fingers in the grass, so deep, that soil and roots got stuck under his short nails.

"It's fine. I'll be fine."

"It might be for you. But not for me. I don't want to do this any longer."

With a swift movement, he got up, tearing the pieces of the landscape out that he held tightly.

The movement was so sudden that you stumbled back in surprise. The rough touch of the grass made your skin itch and burn. But as he wanted to leave, you grabbed his hand and squeezed it as tightly as you could.

"Wait!", you begged with wide eyes while your body felt like it had been bathed in salt after being cut open. "You didn't tell me your name yet."

"I won't.", he wanted to turn away.

"Then I can't talk to you any longer!"

He froze. His eyes were widened a bit.

"Why not?", his voice suddenly sounded so disappointed, so fragile.

"I'm not allowed to talk to strangers. But... if you tell me your name, we're no longer strangers. So we will be able to talk."

"Huh.", slowly, he lay his eyes on you. "It's Baldur."

You smiled, relieved.

"Nice to meet you, Baldur. I'm (Y/N)."