Chapter 51: Empty, foul words

Koth saw an old dwarf, clearly a shaman, glaring back at them. His instinct was to reach for one of his spells. If this shaman wanted a fight, he would get one. Irin placed her hand over his as he reached for the spell that created a circle of fire.

"You must be Viturleiki," she called to the dwarf.

"You have heard of me," he said, sounding pleased.

"Melir told us about you," she told him.

"Oh, that little menace," Viturleiki said. He had gone from pleased to irritated in a heartbeat, and it rubbed Koth the wrong way. The boy might have an endless sea of questions, but he was honest and enthusiastic. The shaman's irritation was uncalled for. Then Koth could admit that due to Viturleiki's little stunt, the man could create world peace and Koth would still find it lacking.

"Why did you heat the handle?" Koth asked. The dwarf shrugged and looked smug.

"Needed to see if you were posers, or actually used your brains," he said.

"Both our brains work perfectly well, as do our magical powers," Koth told him. It was meant as a warning, and he could see that the shaman took it as such. Irin shook her head; she had understood it as well and wasn't happy about it.

"Let's ignore him and continue with our day, honey," she told Koth. He grunted and opened the door for her, after making sure the handle was now back to normal. As they made their purchases, Koth relaxed again. He focused on talking to Irin and the shopkeeper. When they were done, he insisted on carrying the bag and opened the door for Irin. He looked at the place the shaman had been, but he was gone.

"See? This is better than fighting," Irin pointed out. He grunted again, and she smiled at him. She was one of very few people who didn't seem to take offence at his grumpy mood.

"So, the rumours about you two being married are true? I wouldn't have thought it." Koth looked in the direction of the voice and saw Viturleiki leaning against a wall.

"That is none of your business," Koth pointed out, and guided Irin to walk in the other direction. It was the opposite way they needed to go, but he could cross a street and then double back. He would rather take a longer route than deal with that shaman. What he hadn't taken into account was that Viturleiki followed them.

"I just say that the two of you don't really seem like a couple," he continued as he walked a little behind them.

"What do you mean?" Irin asked and glanced back at him.

"Don't encourage him, little one," Koth told her.

"Well, he is a wizard, you are a cleric," Viturleiki told her.

"I don't see what that has to do with anything," Koth said. Then he grunted, having engaged with the irritating dwarf despite his intention not to.

"You are all discipline, research and study. She is free-spirited and impulsive. The two types of magic really don't match, don't you agree?" he cheerfully told Koth. "Then we have the fact that she is a beautiful lady and you... Well, you know. The two of you don't match. In fact, she would be a better match for me than for you."

"Enough!" Koth roared. He really should ignore the shaman, but he had hit a sore spot. He saw the people around them jump back up to give them space.

"Honey, it's fine," Irin said. "He has no idea what he is talking about." She took his arm and started to walk again. Koth followed her, noticing a group of women giving him a sideways glance. Then they watched Irin, and as they saw her being relaxed, they relaxed as well.

"Don't be sour just because I'm saying what everyone is thinking," Viturleiki tried next. "You should really have a think about it. Better to break it off before there is an offspring or two." Koth clenched his fist. He could almost feel it connect with the dwarf's face. It would feel really nice, and in the worst-case scenario, Irin could heal his hand. He ground his teeth as he tried to be good for Irin's sake. "Then, you can always drop them off at an orphanage if that happens." Koth almost thought the dwarf knew him, as all his barbs hit home. Irin stopped and spun around.

"You are a vile little man. What have we done to you? You know nothing about us, and you are lucky Koth wants to keep me happy. Otherwise, he would have killed you by now. The only thing holding me back from telling him I think that is a good idea is my respect for Lokhue and his father. Don't push me," she told him in a calm, cold voice. Viturleiki stared at her, blinking slowly as he tried to understand what was happening. Koth felt his own anger dissipate, and he chuckled and kissed Irin's hand.

"I know you are trying to get me to react. Why, I don't know – maybe to justify starting a fight. You should worry about provoking my wife. I have seen her cleaving an opponent in half, more or less, and she is the one with the temper in the family," he told the shaman.

"I do not have a temper!" Irin objected.

"You are right, my mistake," Koth said with a chuckle. He couldn't resist kissing her. It was a chaste kiss, but it would have to do as they were in public. She looked happier after the kiss, and they walked off towards the inn. Viturleiki didn't follow them that time.

"I can't believe he actually said all of that," Irin fumed as they got back to their room.

"What I don't get is why he did it," Koth said as he put their shopping away.

"Maybe you were right? It would make sense if he is looking for a fight but doesn't want to start it," she suggested and sat down on the bed.

"Maybe. It seems... I don't know. It doesn't feel right," he said. "Are you okay?" he then asked.

"I am. Are you? He came after you worse than me."

"I got thick skin," Koth said. Irin stood on her knees on the bed and took his face between her hands.

"That doesn't mean it doesn't hurt. The things he said, they are not true, just empty, foul words spoken by a spiteful man." Koth took hold of her waist and pulled her to him.

"I know," he told her.

"I don't care about anything that he said. Your magic is seriously impressive, and I can watch you work with it for hours on end. I don't care that you are half-orc or that you are bigger than me. I actually really like it. Who knew I had a thing for big, muscle men? I like you, Koth, not despite what you are, but because of everything you are," she said. She took his breath away with her confession. The dull ache and fear he had felt, thinking maybe Viturleiki was right, faded. He pulled her face into his and kissed her. He couldn't put his feelings into words, but he could show her.