Ayra placed a cautious hand on Garnt's arm as he prepared to step out from their hiding spot. "Garnt, be careful," she whispered, her eyes fixed on the children. "Remember, we don't know what they've been through. They might be scared and not trust easily."
Garnt nodded, his expression serious. He took a deep breath and slowly emerged from the foliage, his movements deliberate and non-threatening.
The children, caught off guard by the unexpected presence, turned towards the sound of his footsteps. Their faces scrunched up in suspicion, their young eyes narrowing as they perceived a potential threat.
As Garnt approached with caution, the kids let out low growls, their protective instincts kicking in. They huddled closer together, ready to defend themselves against any perceived danger. Garnt stopped a few paces away from them, his hands held out in a gesture of peace. He spoke softly, his voice soothing like a gentle breeze rustling through the leaves.
"You two," he began, his tone kind and friendly. "I'm not here to hurt you. I just want to talk and make sure you're okay."
The children's growls subsided slightly, but their guard remained up. Garnt noticed they were hungry looking at the small berry-like fruit they were eating so he took a ripe fruit from his pocket and with a swift yet gentle motion, he tossed it towards the children.
The fruit landed between them, its sweet aroma wafting through the air. The kids paused, their growls replaced with curious sniffs.
Their eyes widened as they caught the scent of the fruit. Slowly, their suspicion transformed into intrigue. As they exchanged glances, a hint of their sibling bond surfaced—the shared experience of uncertainty and the need to look out for each other.
Seizing the opportunity, Garnt took a step closer, maintaining a respectful distance. "See? I mean no harm," he reassured them, his voice still calm. "You can have the fruit. I just want to help."
The allure of the fruit proved too strong for the children to resist. Their growls ceased entirely as they focused on the delicious treat before them. As they lunged for the fruit, their earlier tension melted away, replaced by a momentary distraction from their usual survival instincts.
With their attention diverted, Garnt approached slowly, his movements unthreatening. He crouched down a short distance away, watching the children with a warm smile. "It's okay. You can have it," he encouraged gently.
As the siblings tugged at the fruit, their eyes briefly met Garnt's. There was a flicker of vulnerability in their gazes—a glimmer of trust that might begin to form. Ayra watched from the foliage, her concern and hope intertwined. Garnt was taking a risk, reaching out to these children who had only known hardship.
As the children started to nibble at the fruit, Garnt continued speaking to them in a soft, soothing tone. Ayra remained hidden, ready to assist if needed, but allowing the connection between Garnt and the children to unfold naturally.
"It looks like they can't communicate," Garnt said to Eva looking at the two kids that were devouring the fruit.
[Well, no one in your era should be able to communicate properly. The whole reason you can talk with your mother and aunt is that I had to adjust things and that's exactly why you got so many restrictions, when obtaining blueprints and other stuff.]
It was exciting for Garnt to learn new things, but he was still confused.
"Then why can't they talk? From the looks of it, they are not mute,"
[It looks like they don't even know basic communication like sign language or just talking like humans, I guess that whoever is raising them is treating them like wild animals.]
Garnt felt sick to hear such words, but he knew it wasn't impossible with a man that used these kids as bait to hunt animals.
"I have an idea, I will just draw things on sand and if they agree, they can just growl or nod their heads. I'm pretty sure, even a wild animal can react like that,"
[Give it a try, I'm not sure whether it will work, but at least we can try.]
With her approval, Garnt quickly took a stick causing the two siblings to growl at him, but he quickly showed violence was not intention as he started to draw things on sand. First, he drew fruit and drew two siblings showing them enjoying and both of them just nodded their heads.
As he delved deeper into his sketches, a sense of urgency gripped him. He realized he had only a limited amount of time to gather crucial information. His first subject was the muscular man he had spotted on the hunting grounds. The moment the two of them laid eyes on the drawing, an unmistakable fear washed over them, as if they had encountered a ghostly apparition. The young girl's eyes welled up with tears, her distress palpable.
In a swift and caring gesture, Garnt reached out and gently embraced her, his hand tenderly patting her head. He understood that the situation was even more dangerous than he had initially presumed, considering their intense reactions.
[Looks like they are being abused, that man might not even be their parent.]
Eva said with her mind filled with guilt seeing the tears of these kids, but before Garnt could show them more and get more information, he suddenly heard a loud noise from the other side of the forest and he quickly identified it as the voice of a man.
"I need to hide, otherwise it would get dangerous," Garnt said, and tried to run away but the girl suddenly held him by his hand looking at him with her eyes heavy with tears.
Garnt felt like his heart was about to explode seeing her look, but he knew it wasn't the time yet. He needed more information, at least the weak point of the man. He didn't want to risk his aunt's life, so he decided to leave the girl for now.
"Take this! Make sure, you eat well and wait for me, I will definitely come back for you, I promise that," Leaving those last words and two delicious-looking fruits, Garnt quickly went back to the place where his aunt was hiding, and waited to see what was going on.
As he waited, he noticed a pair of figures emerging from the dense woods – a bulky man with a stern expression, and a woman who seemed to be whispering something to him urgently.
The sunlight filtering through the trees caught the glint of the size of the bulky man – a possible giant. Garnt's grip on the rough bark tightened as he clenched his jaw, his instincts urging him to intervene, to protect the girl he had just left behind. But he knew he had to be patient, to bide his time until he could find out more.