Tzipora awoke wrapped in Anak's arms, smothered beneath a wool blanket. She moaned sleepily as she shifted her body to look at Anak's snoring face. She reflected contentedly on the night before as she lightly stroked his cheek. Tzipora gently squeezed Anak's nostrils together with a roguish twinkle in her eye.
Anak awoke suddenly with a snort, causing Tzipora to giggle as she let go of his nose. She looked down at the handsome, sleepy face in front of her. "Good morning," she softly greeted with a delinquent smile.
"Morning," Anak groaned tiredly. He shook the sleep from his eyes, sitting up, then glared at Tzipora, "Did you just try to suffocate me in my sleep?" He pretended to be suspicious.
Tzipora put on an over dramatic expression of malice, and laughed deeply, "Indeed. All according to plan. What woman doesn't dream of murdering her husband in his sleep?" She couldn't make it through her last question without bursting into laughter; her genuine, gorgeous laugh this time.
Anak smiled, "Husband?" he teased.
"Don't tell me you plan to abandon me?" Tzipora pouted, but she was still in good spirits. She could read Anak fairly well, and she could tell he didn't actually recoil at the thought.
Anak pulled himself close and put his arm around Tzipora. "Never. What kind of man would abandon his wife?"Anak winked. "I had just planned to give you a grand ceremony is all."
Having grown up in Ischuros' noble society, it would've been customary for Anak to be wed in a ceremony. However, it wasn't uncommon for the average citizen to settle down with a person and simply make the decision to be husband and wife. Considering what they'd done together last night, they could be considered to be espoused. His parents hadn't had a ceremony either after all. This discussion was only half serious anyways.
Tzipora beamed at him, "We can still do that," making Anak chuckle.
They both got out of the bed and started to get themselves clean and dressed. As he was rinsing out his hair in a basin in the corner, Anak called out, "Hey, did you have somewhere you were planning on going after finding me?"
Tzipora paused with her shirt halfway down her head. "Actually...yes." She finished pulling her shirt down, no longer having to worry about a cold metal collar obstructing her, and walked over to Anak, who was drying off his head. "I wanted to take you to my ancestral land. I think it would do you some good. Do us both some good. What do you think?"
Anak pulled the towel from his head and shrugged, smiling. "You're in the lead now. I go where you go." In accordance with the message he'd received, he would go wherever Tzipora would lead.
Tzipora smiled back mischievously. "You said it first," She teased. Well, mostly teased.
Before they left the inn, Anak had inquired with Amel about a stable where they could buy a mount.
"You're quite the brave one." Amel whistled.
He wasn't exaggerating. The mounts of this age were no mere beasts of burden, there was no such concept. They were predators who had been bound and forced by enchantments to carry riders or pull chariots. The further from one of the major cities one found themselves, the less reliable the enchantments were on the available mounts, meaning the predatory beasts could break free and attack the rider at anytime.
Mimma was perhaps the least significant of the coastal villages with the least possible amount of traffic crossing between the three cities. When Tzipora and Anak reached the stable, it was clear it didn't see much business. there wasn't even anything that could properly be called a stable. Only a shoddily nailed together wooden structure and a few posts stuck deep in the ground. The beasts tied to the posts at least had leather harnesses, but they all looked sickly and weak, and their enchanted collars were barely holding themselves together.
A man leaning against the post saw them approach and heaved himself up, waving at them. "Hey! You guys come for a mount?" His excitement bled through his tone, as the first customers in ages had arrived. Drawing closer, Anak actually recognized the man as Karanu.
"Hey! Drinking buddy!" Karanu happily called out upon seeing Anak's face.
Anak scowled recalling the way he had been cheated. 'Of course Amel would recommend this business,' he bitterly thought. Anak didn't know this, having spent all three days shut up in the inn, but it really was the only stable in town.
"Hey. 'Drinking buddy'" Anak coldly returned.
Karanu frowned at his tone, "What? I take it you don't want a mount then?" He tried to threaten.
Anak shrugged and turned around, "Yeah, you're right." He began to walk away as Tzipora followed, smirking to herself. She knew exactly what Anak was doing. Going by the state of his so-called stable, he needed the business more than they. It was a foolish threat.
Realizing this as well, Karanu frantically began to apologize. "Look, I'm sorry alright? Its true I'm a scammer. Amel has me get people to buy drinks that might not otherwise, and I'll get to drink for free in the process. But, honestly, I didn't intend to ditch you."
Anak turned around incredulously, "Really? You expect me to believe that?"
Karanu blushed, "Well at first I meant to, sure. But I came to kinda like you, kid. It's just when your lady there," he gestured towards Tzipora, "came stumbling through that door it scared the wits out of me. Then you go and run over to this raving loon..." He was still gesturing Tzipora's way.
"Hey!" Tzipora scolded, causing Karanu to flinch in terror.
"Sorry, sorry." Karanu held his hands over his head submissively. Tzipora merely huffed in annoyance.
"I get it." Anak pressed forward, "Just find us a good mount, alright?"
"Oh they're all good." Karanu smiled as he gestured to the weak looking animals on the posts, "Please, feel free to choose whichever you like."
Anak sighed and looked over the poor crop of beasts. There were four in total, and none of them looked any better than the other. This was a far cry from the service of the top class stables in Ischuros he was used to. He even had to bring out the mount himself.
He looked back at Tzipora, defeated, "Do you see anything you like?"
Tzipora looked over the creatures. There was a white, hairy bipedal creature, thick and tall enough to ride comfortably on its furry shoulders, called a snow gorilla. It had a vicious light in its eyes and it bared its fangs at Tzipora when she inspected it. Looking away quickly, Tzipora scanned the remaining mounts. The next beast had a large imposing, grey-armored frame on four brown, hairy legs. The claws which extended 12 inches from its paws clacked threateningly on the hard ground, and it waved the massive horn on its forehead, bellowing savagely from a toothy maw. This beast was a gryzocerous.
Tzipora shuddered before shifting her vision to the next creature, a widow tiger.
"Not that one." Anak quickly declared, noticing her gaze.
Tzipora shot a bemused glance at Anak. Was he afraid of widow tigers? She turned her attention back to the last mount on the posts. This one stood proudly on four thin legs obviously designed for sprinting, with hooves on the hind legs, and wolf like paws at the fore. It had a short white tail, a lanky, brown body with long thick hair, and an extended snout. Fangs protruded from its lips, and sharp, black antlers sprouted from its brow. It also had a broad back and shoulders well suited for riding.
"What is that?" Tzipora gasped towards Karanu at the sight of the beast.
"That nasty beast is a vulpetir" Karanu grinned, "Lethal looking, isn't he?" He almost seemed to be bragging.
"What do you mean? He's gorgeous!" Tzipora protested.
"Uh, Tzipora? Are you looking at that thing?" Anak was shocked at the response Tzipora had to the deadly predator. Even the vulpetir seemed surprised as it looked up at Tzipora.
Tzipora ignored Anak and approached the vulpetir. "You know what I'm saying, don't you?" She smiled gently at the creature that was shying away slightly at her approach. She held eye contact as she extended her palm forward, slowly drawing closer to the beast. The vulpetir snarled, and seemed to try lashing out, but a red spark sprang up from its ragged collar and its body froze.
Tzipora frowned and muttered, "I hate collars." She abruptly walked quickly over to the vulpetir, which suddenly developed an expression of fright and tried to scramble backwards, but it was still bound by the slightly defective collar.
"Stop!"
"What are you doing?"
Anak and Karanu called out together fearfully.
Tzipora ignored them, standing before the vulpetir, and gently placed her palm on its snout, while tearing the already broken collar completely away. "That's better right?" She smiled at the creature sweetly.
The fear on the vulpetir's face was replaced by confusion. It sat on its hind legs, hooves splayed outwards, and cocked its deer-like head to the side, long tongue lolling out from the side between its sharp molars. Then, its eyes brightened considerably and it suddenly leapt onto Tzipora, taking them both to the dirt.
"Tzipora!" Anak ran towards her in a panic.
"No, wait! He's friendly, look!" Tzipora shouted between giggles as the vulpetir licked her face happily, obviously not attacking in the slightest.
Anak, having stopped stunned at the scene, sighed and turned to Karanu.
"I guess we'll take this one."