Her Sweet Kiss | Geralt of Rivia X OC | The Witcher FF

Chapter 15 - An old acquaintance -

"I'll stick to Eve." he said beyond confusion. "Wow." he said and his throat escaped another confused chuckle. "That explains the swords and your new eye colour." he said and nodded at my eyes. I laughed and then took a sip from my ale. 

The door opened a second time but this time nobody paid attention to that. It was a commoner, nobody pays attention when one of them enters the tavern. But when a Witcher does, all eyes are on you. "Have any story of a monster to tell, Eve?" Theo asked and I thought for a second. "Eve?" another voice spoke. I turned around in my seat and before me stood an older variant of Jacob. I raised my brows in surprise. "Never thought to see you again." he said. I smirked and crossed my arms. "Neither did I." I said and he looked me up and down. Not in an abusive way.

He snorted. "Look at you. Still as young and beautiful as I got to know you." he said and gestured at the chair next to me, asking for permission to sit there. I nodded. "I age differently." I stated with a blank expression. We're adults and to keep the old quarrel up would be a waste of energy. "I see that." he said and ordered an ale for himself. 

"Be careful, Jacob." Theo started to warn him. "Don't let Rebecca hear that you're complimenting another woman." he snorted at what Jacob rolled his eyes playfully. "Your wife?" I asked and he nodded with a content smile on his lips. "Yes. We have two sons and the third one is on its way." he explained and I raised my brows. "Really? Congratulations." I said and pat his shoulder. "What about you?" he asked and took a sip from his mug. "She's a married Witcher, can you believe that?" Theo exclaimed excitedly instead of me. Jacob choked on his drink. 

"You actually married?" he asked surprised. I shrugged. "Why is everyone so surprised about that?" I mumbled into my mug. "Where is he? Are you settling down here?" he asked in a hurried voice. "You shouldn't drink. Perhaps there are chances that-" I stopped him there. "No, Jacob, there isn't and we're not settling down here. I'm just passing through to go home for the winter." I said and he frowned. Then he hummed. "Do you ever plan on having children?" he asked and I shook my head. "No, as a matter of fact, we can't." I said.

"Because you're travelling, I know. But do you ever plan on settling down?" he asked. He didn't change, he still has the same ambitions as he had years ago. "I'm a Witcher, he's a Witcher. We're both sterile." I kept it short before he could interrupt or make something up again. "A Witcher? Is it this white hair that was here before you and the bard left with him?" he asked and I nodded. He smirked a little. "I knew it. You two perfectly match." he said and put his head in his hand to steady himself. I sighed but didn't say anything more on that topic. 

"So what about the monster-slaying story?" Theo asked as he noticed that the conversation found its end. "What kind of beast do you want?" I asked him and shrugged. "Tell me about your first monster." he demanded and I chuckled in embarrassment. "The drowned deads down the road at the fisherman's place." I started the story. "I only had a steel sword and I was lucky that Geralt came along or else I might have become their next meal." I said and he didn't look satisfied.

"What about the rarest monster you ever encountered then?" he asked and I had to think for a while. "A djinn perhaps." I said and their jaws dropped. "A real djinn?" Theo asked and I nodded. He listened to every word I told him and it was obvious that this village was in desperate need of a bard that would tell them the things that happened in the last years. 

I placed a few coins on the table and stood up. "Thanks for the drinks and the catching up but I gotta go. I'll leave early in the morning." I explained and left the tavern. "To where?" Jacob asked and I looked over my shoulder. "Find my husband." I answered and then left the tavern. It was dark outside, a fresh breeze passed by and in the shine of the lanterns, the tiny bits of snow that fell was visible. Just like the hot breath that I brought with me. 

When I was younger I pretended to be tough. I wasn't. I just pretended until I was. Around this tavern some perverts are lurking, always looking for a young girl they could pull into the bushes and rape them. I was afraid the first time one of them approached me. I had bitten his arm and kicked him in the hollow of his knee and thanks to my height I managed to escape his grip and run home. I was around 15 then and ever since I carried a small dagger with me whenever I went to the tavern. I knew how to swing a sword at that age already so a knife couldn't be that different, right?

Well, wrong. A knife is smaller and therefore harder to handle when one always just trains with a sword. I was used to a long blade to keep a distance but with a knife, you had to keep your enemies close. 

Being a Witcher makes situations as such easier. I can hear and smell them long before they step into sight. Also two big swords on the back and scary looking, orange cat-like eyes do help scare off such people. Axii too is a very good solution to get out of conflicts when a fight isn't suited at the moment. For examples when guards are around they tend to accuse the Witcher first before the real attacker. The image of Witcher should be much better. 

Since the sacking of Kaer Morhen Witcher's have a bad reputation. Accused all knew about them breeding monsters. Vesemir didn't know. He told me how he found the cellar, in which I got turned into a Witcher, held mutagenes that were used to let monsters and humans mutate. How shocked he was when he found Deglan, his mentor, with the mages that were creating monsters.

Breeding monsters to kill them afterwards. Absurd. Vesemir was the only Witcher left afterwards with a horde of abandoned mutated human children. Geralt being one of them.