Chapter 145: In the name of the nine gods of chaos

Koth had been filling the horses' water trough and was heading inside. Halfway through the garden, he stopped and took it in. Irin had performed a miracle with it. Now, he could walk along the cobbled path without stumbling over overgrown grass and plants. The garden looked neat and there were flowerbeds interspersed with beds where he had helped her plant vegetables. He had never minded the overgrown garden. It was just something that was there. Now, he liked how it made the space feel cared for. Irin had avoided making it too organised; it still looked organic and a little wild. He liked that. He walked inside and smiled at the small stool in the entrance room where Irin had placed flowers, a bowl of grain and the incense burner he had gifted her. It was the first step to a shrine for Alesseja. He would make a small table that would fit both the room and its purpose. It would be something he could do during the winter. Maybe it could be a Yule gift for her.

"Irin?" he called.

"In the kitchen," she answered. He smiled and walked towards the sound.

"What are you doing?" he asked as he bent down and kissed her. She was sitting at the table with flowers, herbs and crystals scattered in front of her.

"I'm making some protective amulets. They will make sure the wearer cannot be possessed," she explained.

"Smart thinking," he told her.

"Are the horses okay?" she asked.

"They are fine. The rest and grazing have done them good. Noodle has found a good hunting ground; I think he is getting fat," Koth said.

"He is not!" she told him indignantly. He chuckled.

"I'm heading to the workshop; I need to create some spell scrolls we can use if needed. Want to join me?"

"I think I'll stay here and finish off. I'll call you when it's time to start cooking dinner," she said. He nodded and gave her another kiss. He walked up to the top floor of the tower and felt the usual calmness and focus he always felt in her workshop. He had cleaned it and even made room for Irin. He had cleared out a big armchair and placed it by one of the windows, along with a desk and chair. He could see her sitting in the armchair, reading while he worked. He opened a window as the air was still a little stale. A storm was rolling in from the sea, he noticed, and he made a mental note to close the window before the rain came. Making himself comfortable at his work desk, he started drawing the spell scrolls.

"I'm heading outside to set up the kite," Irin called from below after a while.

"Okay," he called back, a smile on his face. Koth loved living with Irin. The tower felt like a real home. It was so much nicer than he had ever thought, to have someone to talk to – or even just to be silent with. He loved that Irin and he could work on separate things sometimes and work together on others. She didn't mind him spending hours in his workshop, and she was good at letting him know when she went outside, so he always knew where she was. Like just now when she had told him she was setting up the kite. He froze. She hadn't said kite, had she? No. She wouldn't... He stood up so fast the chair tumbled backwards as he rushed to the open window. The wind had picked up, and he noticed the storm was much closer now. He looked down and a good distance away from the tower, he saw Irin. Her dress billowed in the wind, as did her short hair. Noodle was doing his best to fly around her as she set up a kite.

"Irin!" he bellowed. She looked up at him and waved happily. "No, don't wave," he groaned to himself. "What are you doing?!" he called. He knew the wind was swallowing his words, because she gave him a thumbs up and continued working. Whose bright idea was it to put his workshop on the top floor of a tower? He wondered as he tried to get down the stairs as quickly as he could without breaking his neck. He sprinted outside and reached Irin just as she started letting the kite fly in the wind.

"In the name of the nine gods of chaos, what are you doing, woman?!" he yelled. She looked up at him with surprise.

"I'm setting up the kite. I told you that," she answered.

"Are you trying to kill yourself? A storm is coming," he said, pointing towards the sea. She glanced in the direction he was pointing and nodded.

"Yeah, I know."

"You know? You know?!" he bellowed in frustration.

"Koth, calm down. I'm setting up the kite as the amulets will work best if they get a little touch of nature's power," she said.

"So you are trying to kill yourself? I'm trying really hard to keep you alive, little one. The least you can do is to not actively work against me," he pleaded.

"Koth, you are being silly. I know about the dangers. That's why I'm setting the thing up now, before the storm rolls in," she explained. Koth rolled his eyes, took hold of the kite string and reeled it in. Then he lifted Irin with one arm, picked up the basket with amulets and the kite in the other, and walked towards the tower.

"No self-preservation at all," he grumbled. He put her down in the kitchen and placed her things on the table. "I know the lightning can be useful. That is why I installed a lightning catcher at the top of the tower that feeds the energy into a cage at its foot. That is how you harness it safely," he told her.

"You have one of those?" she said.

"We do."

"Oh, great!"

"Irin," he groaned.

"What?" she asked.

"Please be more careful. I love you and I would like to see you live past this week," he said. She smiled at him.

"You are very sweet, but I would have been fine. I have never had one of these fancy lightning catchers; I have used a kite for years and never had an accident," she told him. It didn't make him feel any better. It just made him think of how prone she was to put herself in dangerous situations.

"I guess you won't agree to stay in the tower and never go outside?" he asked.

"No, I won't," she told him with a giggle.

"Could you at least tell me when you are thinking about doing something reckless?" he asked.

"I did tell you," she pointed out. He couldn't argue with that.

"You did," he agreed and kissed her hair.

"Will you show me how the lightning catcher works so we can put my amulets there?" she asked. No, Koth didn't want to do that. He didn't want her anywhere near the thing, but that wouldn't be fair.

"Fine," he grumbled. As usual, Irin didn't seem affected by his grumpiness. She looked ecstatic and grabbed the basket with amulets.

The storm hit with full force half an hour later. Koth was happy the horses were free to wander into the woods to seek shelter. The thunder made the windows rattle. Koth looked at Irin, worried that the storm they had faced on the beach had made her fear the storms. She looked calm.

"How about I make a stew with that rabbit you caught yesterday?" she asked.

"Sounds like a good meal on a day like this," he agreed. "I'll chop the vegetables; you just tell me which you need," he told her.