#in another life they wouldve been besties going around together looking for oddities and solving mysteries
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A chuckle escaped Samhain upon seeing Gruff change napping spots. Now that the dog was closer, he reached out to pat him on the head but only for a minute. He had a feeling that their game of questions was soon coming to a close; the boy looked drained.
The boy didn't know. Of course, that would've been too easy. If the contract was originally formed because Maude needed the creature to retrieve Bran from the fae, that meant that its part of the contract was fulfilled - but Maude's was not. The creature was always hungry, according to Bran. An insatiable appetite for dreams. Dreams that kept dreamers in an endless sleep, or sick as Nettie described. But then where would the dreamers disappear to?
The dreaming was a strange sort of dimension, akin to the Otherworld, except that it was impossible to bring over one's physical body. Samhain could think up of a few worst-case scenarios but they were all merely conjecture, and Samhain had a feeling Bran wouldn't know the finer details of how the creature worked.
“Why are you trying to help us?”
The question suddenly pulled Samhain out of his muddled thoughts, throwing Bran a puzzled look in response. The boy was avoiding eye contact which only made Samhain smile brighter. "Hmm.. What an odd question.. Why, ah wonder.." he mused aloud as he pulled a knee close to his chest and leaned against it.
"Ah suppose... It's because ah think ah can? Because ah want to?" Looking away from Bran, Samhain focused a bit of magick into his hand where he made a little, white butterfly out of thin air. It twirled and danced in the palm of his hand and out and around his fingers as he continued. "Because... even though ah live longer than some, ah know nothing's forever in this world of ours.. And at the end of it all, ah want to leave without regrets. An' that includes helping others when ah know ah have the means an' power to do so. It could be as complicated as makin' a healing potion, a charm that helps one find their way home, settling a debt or breaking a curse.. Finding closure..."
"..Or it could be as simple as sharing a smile or makin' someone laugh." With a flick of his wrist, Samhain sent the butterfly fluttering away and over in Bran's direction before settling on the boy's foot. If he reached out to touch it, it would dance about for a little while before breaking apart into fine, glittering dust.
"Hmph, out of all the questions you've asked, this one's the hardest," he chortled, scratching his head a little. "Kindness isn't something you do to get something in return. It's just.. something you do," said the ghoul, shrugging his shoulders and looking back up at the boy. "What does it matter if you've never done anything for me? Kindness is... something that everyone deserves, even if the world's made you think otherwise... That's what ah think, anyway."
Feeling that was a good note as any to leave on, Samhain picked himself up and stretched his limbs, joints popping and cracking as he did so. "Ah suppose that's enough for tonight," he said, dusting himself off. He felt bad for causing Bran one heart attack after another with his line of questioning but was glad the boy was open to answer everything he asked. "Thank you, Bran, fer indulging me. Ye didn't 'ave to but ye did."
It’s what’s best for everyone. Bran swallowed. A similar thought had crossed his mind earlier, but hearing it from Samhain himself left a hollowness in his chest. It would be safest for Samhain to leave, but… despite everything, Bran wished he’d stay a bit longer. If only because it would make Nettie happy.
Beside him, Gruff blinked his eyes open groggily. An internal clock had informed him it was time to switch his nap spot. With a yawn, he pushed himself to his paws, stretched, and picked up the branch between his teeth once more. He padded over to Samhain and dropped the stick, then curled up near him. One paw rested on the branch to guard it from thieves.
Without Gruff’s steady warmth pressed against him, the chill that had settled over Bran deepened. His hand trembled slightly as he curled his fingers into the damp grass. Samhain spoke again, about getting fae food elsewhere, about nullifying the contract. He’d figured out that Maude had a contract with the creature. Bran’s breath caught in his throat.
He had never spoken with someone who’d deduced so many secrets about them before. Hiding Feld’s influence had always been a strict rule, both spoken and unspoken. It felt freeing in a way — to finally talk openly about truths that affected him and the other residents of the inn so deeply, truths inextricably woven into the fabric of their lives. But more than that, it felt wrong. Forbidden. And the more this realization set in, the more Bran’s blood ran cold.
Surely this would have consequences.
“I don’t know,” he replied quietly. From the resigned tone of his voice, it was clear he didn’t have high hopes. “I don’t think that would be enough. Maude would know more, but she… she doesn’t like talking about it. You probably shouldn’t ask her.”
One might assume that being confined to bed rest for over a day would leave Bran energized for a while afterward, but exhaustion was already creeping in. It always caught up with him before long nowadays.
Bran inhaled, determined to continue their game for as long as he could. This could be his last chance to ask questions before Samhain left. He studied the other, his brow furrowed as he mulled over his next question. He knew Samhain was kindhearted, but even so, he didn’t understand why he seemed to care about them so much. The importance of fair deals had been ingrained into the boy. It didn’t add up.
“Why are you trying to help us?” His voice was soft with genuine uncertainty. He fidgeted with his hands again, avoiding Samhain’s gaze. “You’ve only known us a couple days, and we… haven’t done much for you. I’ve only caused trouble for you, really.”
#hearthtales#they just be two lil curious detective bois#in another life they wouldve been besties going around together looking for oddities and solving mysteries#lmaoooo look we appreciate Gruff all the same he's doing his best#oh! so!! we can end the back and forth here or we can have Bran get in one last round of questions before we finally wrap up?#he can insist Sam ask one last question so he gets one in turn!
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