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"Pick up your feet, you're making too much noise" Giga whispered with a hiss over his shoulder to the masked Barioth hunter trailing up the rear. Keida shot him a glare under the frosted bangs of her armor but said nothing, simply concentrating more carefully where she stepped. For nearly an hour it had been almost endless nit-picking from the two men who guided her through the woods, almost anything she did was wrong- "What next? They'll tell me I'm breathing wrong?" She thought.

                "That mask of yours helps prevent the cold, it doesn't silence your breathing, control it- Slow and deep" Fenrir said quietly over his shoulder as he carefully slipped over a fallen tree, Lyger perched perfectly on his shoulder as Fenrir's boots landed against the dense undergrowth in silence. Keida stopped for a moment as she straightened and stared at the back of his head, her face null of emotion before sighing- quietly- and continued to follow. Soon, the party came to a holt behind a small rock cluster at the edge of an open, mossy flat, staying low behind the well shadowed hiding spot Keida nestled between them. Neither Fenrir or Giga moved or spoke, simply stayed crouched and waited with their eyes closed. Keida watched them both intensely as she tried to assess what they were doing, she could tell they were concentrating, the deep furrow in both their brows confirmed that much, but on what specifically- she couldn't tell. She listened as hard as she could, feeling as though she was actually straining her ears but heard nothing. She took deep breaths through her nose in an attempt to maybe smell a particular odor, the only thing gracing her nostrils being the thick musk that was both Fenrir and Giga's sweat.

                "Hey..." Keida breathed as quietly as she could before continuing, "What are you two--?"

                "Shh!" Fenrir hissed before grabbing her hand a lot more gently than she expected, "No talking, it's nearly here". She went to open her mouth to ask 'What is?', but Fenrir's single finger against the mouth of his helmet kept her silent. It was then he lowered her palm flat to the earth beneath her and he closed his eyes once more. Keida watched him for a moment before she too closed her eyes and pressed her hand into the cool grass, concentrating hard. It was only feint, but she could feel it- The vibrations through the earth as giant and heavy feet crashed against the ground some distance away. She opened her eyes with a gleam of excitement in them as Fenrir smirked at her expression, noting she'd begun adapting and learning.

                "Meow-ster..." Lyger purred attentively, his eyes narrowing as his ears twitched at distant sounds slowly growing clearer to the waiting hunters.

                "How many?" Giga breathed as he slid his Heavy Bowgun from his back, rummaging through his assorted ammo packs. There was dead silence for a moment as Lyger's ears flicked and twitched, the distant booming slowly growing louder as the beast approached.

                "Single prime, three followers..." Lyger replied before dismounting from Fenrir's shoulder, drawing his own tiny weapon. With a silent nod, Giga loaded a round of heavy piercing ammo into the barrel and locked the firing pin in place ready to go. Keida looked to Giga who gave her a relaxed thumbs up, pointing at Fenrir behind her. She turned her attention to him as he jerked his head to the edge of the rock shelter in front of him, indicating for her to take a look. She gulped as she crawled forward past him as silently as she could, perching in the edge of the shadow and carefully peered around the stone corner to see what they were up against. Not a moment after, a Great Jaggi strode into sight, two Jaggia and a single Jaggi in toe. She slid back into hiding and looked at the two men almost offended, both their heads tilting slightly in confusion.

                "What kind of joke is this?" She asked bitterly, keeping her voice down.

                "What do you mean? It's your first contract, this is the Great Jaggi that's been harassing the farmers in these parts, it's our job to take it out" Giga replied before shrugging, "Simple, really"

                "And that's my point!" Keida glared, once again trying to keep her voice low as she glared at Fenrir, "I thought you said you were taking me on a hunt, not a measly errand"

                "If this is such an easy contract you should have no problem dealing with this guy by yourself then" Fenrir replied without batting an eye, shocking Keida silent, "This is an easy contract... This is an assessment, you fight alone, and I judge you".

                "Judge me?" Keida spat now obviously offended, "How dare you- You have no right to do this"

                "Actually I do. I need to know what level you're at, I'm not going to assume your abilities and skill, and go strolling in against something like an Alatreon only to have your inability to fight, dodge or work as a team put Giga or my life at risk saving yours" Fenrir replied aggressively pointing at her, firmly poking her shoulder as he spoke, "We need to hunt together, as one, to the point of almost zero verbal communication. I need to see what your fighting style is like to work around or with it, we won't let you die... We may be solo hunters, but we're not heartless". Keida was silent for a moment as she stared at him through his visor, the flare in his aqua eyes glimmering through the well shadowed slits of the metal. Silently and reluctantly, she nodded, steeling her nerves and clutched the hilt of her long sword.

                "You promise me?" Keida suddenly spoke up, he eyes fixed on her target that drank from the pool of mountain water no more than twenty feet away.

                "What's that?" Fenrir asked curiously, tossing his head slightly to display his interest.

                "That you've got my back". Fenrir was silent as she looked back at the two of them from the corner of her eye, the amber in her stare flickering as she waited for a reply from either of them.

                "On my honor, or may Fenrir be stripped down and bitten on the ass by a hoard of Melynx" Giga pledge, hand over his heart before Fenrir twisted and punched him in the leg. Even if it was a joke, it was all Keida needed. She broke cover as swift as an arrow and set upon her target with blinding speed.

                "Fuck she's fast--" Giga smirked, Fenrir keeping silent as he watched. Keida let out a savage cry as she let her blade loose from its bindings taking the Great Jaggi by surprise as it lurched aside to face her as she sent the blade crushing down against it's face immediately dealing a hefty wound down against it hardened, scaled face. She fought intensely, not once letting up against either the Great Jaggi or its smaller brood lings. She wasn't afraid to dodge nor defend, flashing the two still well hidden men a smirk as she parried under the Great Jaggi's gapping jaws as it lunged in low for a savage bite. As she twisted down and pivoted to turn away from the monster's side, she brought her longsword up in a strong stance, as though she were swinging a bat. The blade connected with the Great Jaggi's lower ribs and it was then that she twist the blade slightly up to lock in under the beast's scales and followed through with her swing, letting out another battle cry as the combined power of both her, and her weapon lifted the Great Jaggi off its feet and sent it hurling backwards against another nearby rock cluster. The Great Jaggi slammed against the rock at such velocity the impact sent the monster crashing back through it to the ground behind, as expected; dead. The few Jaggi and Jaggia that remained eyed her cautiously as they screeched at her, but quickly scattered realizing they were to be slaughtered if they stuck around. Keida panted catching her breath as she cleaned and sharpened her blade on a nearby whetstone eyeing the surrounding area cautiously, the crunching of rocks, leaves and dirt behind her allowed her shoulders to relax, relieving some of her obvious tension.

                "Not bad..." Fenrir said flatly, arms folding across his chest as she turned to face him.

                "That's it? That's all you've got to say?"

                "oh, no, I've got more... Your footwork needs attention, your grip on your blade is wrong- you're expending too much energy trying to maintain control over it, you're oblivious to certain elements of your surroundings that you could have used to your advantage in that fight, and you're too cocky". Keida grunted angrily at him before shoving him aside in frustration, setting her blade back into its scabbard as she strode back towards camp.

                "Wow!" Giga huffed sounding surprised as he watched Keida walk away before he looked at Fenrir, "Way to asshole there buddy, sure nailed that"

                "What? Was anything I said wrong?"

                "Well, being honest- No, but there's still a way to go about it, bro" Giga shrugged, only having Fenrir shrug back as he helped Lyger climb up onto his shoulders.

                "Then she needed to hear it. The sooner we start fixing the little things the sooner we can take on proper contracts and won't have to worry about her merely being a target" Fenrir sighed as he too started to walk back with Giga at the heel, the giant, white, spiked, fur mane of Keida's Barioth armor bouncing through the dense green growth ahead of them.

                "Well... Was there anything she did right in your opinion?" Giga asked. There was nothing for a while as Fenrir continued to follow the angry white mass ahead of them and thought, finally Fenrir lifted his visor but kept his eyes fixed on the back of her head.

                "Yeah... She's open to criticism... She may not like it, but she just took all of that in her stride, and she's going to practice. She'll have good and open communication skills..."

                "You hoping to achieve silent bond level?" Giga smirked making Lyger's ears perk with joy but Fenrir sneer.

                "Meow-ster would be a ggrrrrr-eat hunt-uurrr with her as a partn-uurrr" Lyger purred in agreement, only having Fenrir make an irritated noise of disgust.

                "No... Besides, out of all the other hunters I've had join me you, Giga, are the only person who I've ever achieved silent communication with... And it took us years" Fenrir added making Giga sigh.

                "True... But I still think you need to tell her she did good. Two parts asshole, one part nice guy"

                "She'll figure that out herself in due time" Fenrir smirked at his friend as they made the final hill climb to camp where the caravan waited to give them a ride back to the city, Keida already sitting on the rear of the cart, turning her nose up as Fenrir came over the lip of the hill.

                "If she doesn't poison your next drink first" Giga smiled before jogging ahead and jumped up sitting beside her with a playful shove which did make her smile, Fenrir climbing up onto the front of the caravan for the trip home.

~

                "I dunno' about you guys, but I'm calling it a day" Giga said as he raised a hand to shield the sun from his eyes, "I've gotta' go collect some parts from the smithy, ordered them a while ago and now we need to talk modifications"

                "Hmph, sounds fair... I'll send for you later" Fenrir huffed with a nod as he waved a farewell, Giga raising a hand back with a nod.

                "See you then Fenrir, Keida" Giga smiled before turning on his heel and left for the blacksmith. Fenrir stood and watched Giga disappear into the crowd before turning his gaze back Keida and sighed, having her look up at him with irritation still firmly grasping her features.

                "Come on.. Let's go complete this contract... I assume you want to be paid" Fenrir said before turning towards the direction of the Guild Hall, not even making sure she was following. Keida collected herself before sighing in defeat and followed him through the crowd- getting some money would be nice. Soon Keida was right on his heel once more, following like a lost puppy, silent and obedient. Lyger watched her for a while, Fenrir almost seeming to ignore her presence beside him.

                "Meow-ster?" Lyger purred softly, Fenrir's hand rising to scratch the Felyne's cheek in response, "Maybe we should brrr-ring her with us for dinn-nurr". Fenrir glanced at the curious cat perched on his shoulder before grunting slightly.

                "... Maybe"

                "Maybe what?" Keida asked looking up at him with a curious squint, trying to keep the irritation in her glare, but the constant scowling was starting to give her a headache. Fenrir looked down to her as he continued walking, ascending the stairs to the hall before looking ahead once more.

                "We'll show you where some of the better spots to eat are after we collect your reward, sound good? You must be getting hungry after keeping up all that scowling and glaring all the way home" Fenrir smiled slightly, feeling another glare intensify against the side of his head. Once inside the pair went straight back to the guildie girl who had initiated their contract, approving completion and handed over the reward fee to Fenrir. Keida was silent the whole exchange and kept her gaze low, Fenrir was right; she was hungry, she was tired, and above all disheartened.

                "Hey, what are you spacing out for, here" He called softly bopping her on the top of her head gently. When she turned shooting him another glare she was surprised to be met with a weak smile, the pouch of money being held forward, "You killed it alone, right? Your reward fee, take it"

                "But you and Giga helped me track it down..."

                "Trust me, Giga and I are not strapped for coin..." Fenrir huffed before nodding to the clerk and turned once again to leave, this time making sure she followed.

                "What's with the niceness all of a sudden?" Keida asked as she stashed the pouch away and followed, Fenrir smirking descending the stairs.

                "Because as the team rule, Final Striker buys first drinks"

                "Since when is that a rule? And since when are we a Team!?" Keida barked even more frustrated and confused, stopping a few steps behind and folded her arms. Fenrir stopped also and looked back, squinting against the dimming afternoon sun.

                "Well I've got no choice at the moment do I... I have to look out for you, I'm kinda' stuck on this... Might as well call it what it is for now" Fenrir shrugged, ignorant to his poor choice of words. Keida glared and shook her head in frustration trudging past him down the steps.

                "Sorry I'm such an inconvenience to your existence" She spat as she shoved past him, making his brow raise, and sigh following leading her towards the restaurant districts and into a quaint looking tavern towards the southern end of the district.

                "Order what you like... Foods on me, drinks are on you, fair?" Fenrir asked before pulling off his helmet, setting it beside him on the table, Lyger stretching contently as Keida too removed her helmet, placing it by his. She shrugged silently in agreement and began mindlessly letting her eyes wander the rough looking menu scroll nearby on the wall. Fenrir looked to Lyger who burred, shrugged and began cleaning himself calmly, Fenrir sighing with a nod as he hailed a waiter to collect their order. Food and drink ordered meant they were then left with the awkward silence that loomed between them waiting for its arrival. Keida sat staring blankly at the table edge in front of her, Fenrir at her.

                "Hey.." He called, having her look up slowly, reluctantly meeting his eye "What lodge are you booked in... I'll make sure you get there and will send Giga to get you in the morning"

                "I don't..."

                "What do you mean you don't? You don't know?"

                "No, I don't have one..." She admitted, the realization dawning on her and she groaned pulling what money she had from her pouch and began counting it out. Fenrir sat back with a groan, rubbing his face tiredly before pinching the bridge of his nose- this was getting ridiculous. She whispered to herself as she counted, trying to do the sums in her head, Fenrir shaking his head as his eyes washed over the small stacks of coins that sat before them.

                "You don't have enough, they're not expecting you, so they'll charge you more for a late room rental"

                "Then what am I meant to do? I can't afford a room, I don't know anyone in this damn city and hell knows what would happen if I camped out" She ranted in panic, hands coming up to smother her face, pressing the heel of her palms against her eyes, stopping the tears threatening to spill over.

                "Meow-ster..." Lyger purred as he clawed at Fenrir's armored hand. Fenrir's eyes rolled with his head to meet the golden stare of his Felyne companion and instantly knew what Lyger was going to ask. Fenrir sighed and sat forward against the table, linking his fingers together and cleared his throat gently.

                "Hey... Calm down.. I've got a proposition for you..."

                "I'm not letting you pay for a room, I'll do it myself--" Keida said firmly as she sat up, quickly smearing her palms against her cheeky and looked away.

                "N-no... I wasn't going to say that..." Fenrir countered with another small sigh, her only display of curiosity was now looking at him from the corner of her eye, "You can stay with me... I've got more than enough room for your equipment and any supplies you may need. It's a big house, but only one master bedroom... So if you're cool with sharing bed space until we can rack up enough funds for you to have your own estate, you're welcome to it...". The look of disbelief and uncertainty on Keida's face was worth more than any rare gem. Her jaw gaped slightly as she once again glared in curiosity, looking him in the eye. He sat back into his seat comfortably, his usual slouched position as Lyger now sat proudly once more, tail flicking happily. She went to speak but the bartender and waitress arriving with their drinks and meals kept her quiet for a moment longer. Once they had left, Fenrir sat forward, arms folded against the edge of the table and he smirked.

                "I only have one condition..." Keida said flatly as she picked up one of the still sizzling meat skewers from a platter, making Fenrir's head toss in curiosity.

                "Oh? And what's that?"

                "I get first bath every night" She replied, completely serious before tearing one of the chunks of tender meat from the stick. Lyger meowed a laugh as he happily pulled apart the meaty whole fish before him, and Fenrir actually managed to laugh before bowing his head.

                "I think I can live with that..."

Description
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"Pick up your feet, you're making too much noise" Giga whispered with a hiss over his shoulder to the masked Barioth hunter trailing up the rear. Keida shot him a glare under the frosted bangs of her armor but said nothing, simply concentrating more carefully where she stepped. For nearly an hour it had been almost endless nit-picking from the two men who guided her through the woods, almost anything she did was wrong- "What next? They'll tell me I'm breathing wrong?" She thought.

                "That mask of yours helps prevent the cold, it doesn't silence your breathing, control it- Slow and deep" Fenrir said quietly over his shoulder as he carefully slipped over a fallen tree, Lyger perched perfectly on his shoulder as Fenrir's boots landed against the dense undergrowth in silence. Keida stopped for a moment as she straightened and stared at the back of his head, her face null of emotion before sighing- quietly- and continued to follow. Soon, the party came to a holt behind a small rock cluster at the edge of an open, mossy flat, staying low behind the well shadowed hiding spot Keida nestled between them. Neither Fenrir or Giga moved or spoke, simply stayed crouched and waited with their eyes closed. Keida watched them both intensely as she tried to assess what they were doing, she could tell they were concentrating, the deep furrow in both their brows confirmed that much, but on what specifically- she couldn't tell. She listened as hard as she could, feeling as though she was actually straining her ears but heard nothing. She took deep breaths through her nose in an attempt to maybe smell a particular odor, the only thing gracing her nostrils being the thick musk that was both Fenrir and Giga's sweat.

                "Hey..." Keida breathed as quietly as she could before continuing, "What are you two--?"

                "Shh!" Fenrir hissed before grabbing her hand a lot more gently than she expected, "No talking, it's nearly here". She went to open her mouth to ask 'What is?', but Fenrir's single finger against the mouth of his helmet kept her silent. It was then he lowered her palm flat to the earth beneath her and he closed his eyes once more. Keida watched him for a moment before she too closed her eyes and pressed her hand into the cool grass, concentrating hard. It was only feint, but she could feel it- The vibrations through the earth as giant and heavy feet crashed against the ground some distance away. She opened her eyes with a gleam of excitement in them as Fenrir smirked at her expression, noting she'd begun adapting and learning.

                "Meow-ster..." Lyger purred attentively, his eyes narrowing as his ears twitched at distant sounds slowly growing clearer to the waiting hunters.

                "How many?" Giga breathed as he slid his Heavy Bowgun from his back, rummaging through his assorted ammo packs. There was dead silence for a moment as Lyger's ears flicked and twitched, the distant booming slowly growing louder as the beast approached.

                "Single prime, three followers..." Lyger replied before dismounting from Fenrir's shoulder, drawing his own tiny weapon. With a silent nod, Giga loaded a round of heavy piercing ammo into the barrel and locked the firing pin in place ready to go. Keida looked to Giga who gave her a relaxed thumbs up, pointing at Fenrir behind her. She turned her attention to him as he jerked his head to the edge of the rock shelter in front of him, indicating for her to take a look. She gulped as she crawled forward past him as silently as she could, perching in the edge of the shadow and carefully peered around the stone corner to see what they were up against. Not a moment after, a Great Jaggi strode into sight, two Jaggia and a single Jaggi in toe. She slid back into hiding and looked at the two men almost offended, both their heads tilting slightly in confusion.

                "What kind of joke is this?" She asked bitterly, keeping her voice down.

                "What do you mean? It's your first contract, this is the Great Jaggi that's been harassing the farmers in these parts, it's our job to take it out" Giga replied before shrugging, "Simple, really"

                "And that's my point!" Keida glared, once again trying to keep her voice low as she glared at Fenrir, "I thought you said you were taking me on a hunt, not a measly errand"

                "If this is such an easy contract you should have no problem dealing with this guy by yourself then" Fenrir replied without batting an eye, shocking Keida silent, "This is an easy contract... This is an assessment, you fight alone, and I judge you".

                "Judge me?" Keida spat now obviously offended, "How dare you- You have no right to do this"

                "Actually I do. I need to know what level you're at, I'm not going to assume your abilities and skill, and go strolling in against something like an Alatreon only to have your inability to fight, dodge or work as a team put Giga or my life at risk saving yours" Fenrir replied aggressively pointing at her, firmly poking her shoulder as he spoke, "We need to hunt together, as one, to the point of almost zero verbal communication. I need to see what your fighting style is like to work around or with it, we won't let you die... We may be solo hunters, but we're not heartless". Keida was silent for a moment as she stared at him through his visor, the flare in his aqua eyes glimmering through the well shadowed slits of the metal. Silently and reluctantly, she nodded, steeling her nerves and clutched the hilt of her long sword.

                "You promise me?" Keida suddenly spoke up, he eyes fixed on her target that drank from the pool of mountain water no more than twenty feet away.

                "What's that?" Fenrir asked curiously, tossing his head slightly to display his interest.

                "That you've got my back". Fenrir was silent as she looked back at the two of them from the corner of her eye, the amber in her stare flickering as she waited for a reply from either of them.

                "On my honor, or may Fenrir be stripped down and bitten on the ass by a hoard of Melynx" Giga pledge, hand over his heart before Fenrir twisted and punched him in the leg. Even if it was a joke, it was all Keida needed. She broke cover as swift as an arrow and set upon her target with blinding speed.

                "Fuck she's fast--" Giga smirked, Fenrir keeping silent as he watched. Keida let out a savage cry as she let her blade loose from its bindings taking the Great Jaggi by surprise as it lurched aside to face her as she sent the blade crushing down against it's face immediately dealing a hefty wound down against it hardened, scaled face. She fought intensely, not once letting up against either the Great Jaggi or its smaller brood lings. She wasn't afraid to dodge nor defend, flashing the two still well hidden men a smirk as she parried under the Great Jaggi's gapping jaws as it lunged in low for a savage bite. As she twisted down and pivoted to turn away from the monster's side, she brought her longsword up in a strong stance, as though she were swinging a bat. The blade connected with the Great Jaggi's lower ribs and it was then that she twist the blade slightly up to lock in under the beast's scales and followed through with her swing, letting out another battle cry as the combined power of both her, and her weapon lifted the Great Jaggi off its feet and sent it hurling backwards against another nearby rock cluster. The Great Jaggi slammed against the rock at such velocity the impact sent the monster crashing back through it to the ground behind, as expected; dead. The few Jaggi and Jaggia that remained eyed her cautiously as they screeched at her, but quickly scattered realizing they were to be slaughtered if they stuck around. Keida panted catching her breath as she cleaned and sharpened her blade on a nearby whetstone eyeing the surrounding area cautiously, the crunching of rocks, leaves and dirt behind her allowed her shoulders to relax, relieving some of her obvious tension.

                "Not bad..." Fenrir said flatly, arms folding across his chest as she turned to face him.

                "That's it? That's all you've got to say?"

                "oh, no, I've got more... Your footwork needs attention, your grip on your blade is wrong- you're expending too much energy trying to maintain control over it, you're oblivious to certain elements of your surroundings that you could have used to your advantage in that fight, and you're too cocky". Keida grunted angrily at him before shoving him aside in frustration, setting her blade back into its scabbard as she strode back towards camp.

                "Wow!" Giga huffed sounding surprised as he watched Keida walk away before he looked at Fenrir, "Way to asshole there buddy, sure nailed that"

                "What? Was anything I said wrong?"

                "Well, being honest- No, but there's still a way to go about it, bro" Giga shrugged, only having Fenrir shrug back as he helped Lyger climb up onto his shoulders.

                "Then she needed to hear it. The sooner we start fixing the little things the sooner we can take on proper contracts and won't have to worry about her merely being a target" Fenrir sighed as he too started to walk back with Giga at the heel, the giant, white, spiked, fur mane of Keida's Barioth armor bouncing through the dense green growth ahead of them.

                "Well... Was there anything she did right in your opinion?" Giga asked. There was nothing for a while as Fenrir continued to follow the angry white mass ahead of them and thought, finally Fenrir lifted his visor but kept his eyes fixed on the back of her head.

                "Yeah... She's open to criticism... She may not like it, but she just took all of that in her stride, and she's going to practice. She'll have good and open communication skills..."

                "You hoping to achieve silent bond level?" Giga smirked making Lyger's ears perk with joy but Fenrir sneer.

                "Meow-ster would be a ggrrrrr-eat hunt-uurrr with her as a partn-uurrr" Lyger purred in agreement, only having Fenrir make an irritated noise of disgust.

                "No... Besides, out of all the other hunters I've had join me you, Giga, are the only person who I've ever achieved silent communication with... And it took us years" Fenrir added making Giga sigh.

                "True... But I still think you need to tell her she did good. Two parts asshole, one part nice guy"

                "She'll figure that out herself in due time" Fenrir smirked at his friend as they made the final hill climb to camp where the caravan waited to give them a ride back to the city, Keida already sitting on the rear of the cart, turning her nose up as Fenrir came over the lip of the hill.

                "If she doesn't poison your next drink first" Giga smiled before jogging ahead and jumped up sitting beside her with a playful shove which did make her smile, Fenrir climbing up onto the front of the caravan for the trip home.

~

                "I dunno' about you guys, but I'm calling it a day" Giga said as he raised a hand to shield the sun from his eyes, "I've gotta' go collect some parts from the smithy, ordered them a while ago and now we need to talk modifications"

                "Hmph, sounds fair... I'll send for you later" Fenrir huffed with a nod as he waved a farewell, Giga raising a hand back with a nod.

                "See you then Fenrir, Keida" Giga smiled before turning on his heel and left for the blacksmith. Fenrir stood and watched Giga disappear into the crowd before turning his gaze back Keida and sighed, having her look up at him with irritation still firmly grasping her features.

                "Come on.. Let's go complete this contract... I assume you want to be paid" Fenrir said before turning towards the direction of the Guild Hall, not even making sure she was following. Keida collected herself before sighing in defeat and followed him through the crowd- getting some money would be nice. Soon Keida was right on his heel once more, following like a lost puppy, silent and obedient. Lyger watched her for a while, Fenrir almost seeming to ignore her presence beside him.

                "Meow-ster?" Lyger purred softly, Fenrir's hand rising to scratch the Felyne's cheek in response, "Maybe we should brrr-ring her with us for dinn-nurr". Fenrir glanced at the curious cat perched on his shoulder before grunting slightly.

                "... Maybe"

                "Maybe what?" Keida asked looking up at him with a curious squint, trying to keep the irritation in her glare, but the constant scowling was starting to give her a headache. Fenrir looked down to her as he continued walking, ascending the stairs to the hall before looking ahead once more.

                "We'll show you where some of the better spots to eat are after we collect your reward, sound good? You must be getting hungry after keeping up all that scowling and glaring all the way home" Fenrir smiled slightly, feeling another glare intensify against the side of his head. Once inside the pair went straight back to the guildie girl who had initiated their contract, approving completion and handed over the reward fee to Fenrir. Keida was silent the whole exchange and kept her gaze low, Fenrir was right; she was hungry, she was tired, and above all disheartened.

                "Hey, what are you spacing out for, here" He called softly bopping her on the top of her head gently. When she turned shooting him another glare she was surprised to be met with a weak smile, the pouch of money being held forward, "You killed it alone, right? Your reward fee, take it"

                "But you and Giga helped me track it down..."

                "Trust me, Giga and I are not strapped for coin..." Fenrir huffed before nodding to the clerk and turned once again to leave, this time making sure she followed.

                "What's with the niceness all of a sudden?" Keida asked as she stashed the pouch away and followed, Fenrir smirking descending the stairs.

                "Because as the team rule, Final Striker buys first drinks"

                "Since when is that a rule? And since when are we a Team!?" Keida barked even more frustrated and confused, stopping a few steps behind and folded her arms. Fenrir stopped also and looked back, squinting against the dimming afternoon sun.

                "Well I've got no choice at the moment do I... I have to look out for you, I'm kinda' stuck on this... Might as well call it what it is for now" Fenrir shrugged, ignorant to his poor choice of words. Keida glared and shook her head in frustration trudging past him down the steps.

                "Sorry I'm such an inconvenience to your existence" She spat as she shoved past him, making his brow raise, and sigh following leading her towards the restaurant districts and into a quaint looking tavern towards the southern end of the district.

                "Order what you like... Foods on me, drinks are on you, fair?" Fenrir asked before pulling off his helmet, setting it beside him on the table, Lyger stretching contently as Keida too removed her helmet, placing it by his. She shrugged silently in agreement and began mindlessly letting her eyes wander the rough looking menu scroll nearby on the wall. Fenrir looked to Lyger who burred, shrugged and began cleaning himself calmly, Fenrir sighing with a nod as he hailed a waiter to collect their order. Food and drink ordered meant they were then left with the awkward silence that loomed between them waiting for its arrival. Keida sat staring blankly at the table edge in front of her, Fenrir at her.

                "Hey.." He called, having her look up slowly, reluctantly meeting his eye "What lodge are you booked in... I'll make sure you get there and will send Giga to get you in the morning"

                "I don't..."

                "What do you mean you don't? You don't know?"

                "No, I don't have one..." She admitted, the realization dawning on her and she groaned pulling what money she had from her pouch and began counting it out. Fenrir sat back with a groan, rubbing his face tiredly before pinching the bridge of his nose- this was getting ridiculous. She whispered to herself as she counted, trying to do the sums in her head, Fenrir shaking his head as his eyes washed over the small stacks of coins that sat before them.

                "You don't have enough, they're not expecting you, so they'll charge you more for a late room rental"

                "Then what am I meant to do? I can't afford a room, I don't know anyone in this damn city and hell knows what would happen if I camped out" She ranted in panic, hands coming up to smother her face, pressing the heel of her palms against her eyes, stopping the tears threatening to spill over.

                "Meow-ster..." Lyger purred as he clawed at Fenrir's armored hand. Fenrir's eyes rolled with his head to meet the golden stare of his Felyne companion and instantly knew what Lyger was going to ask. Fenrir sighed and sat forward against the table, linking his fingers together and cleared his throat gently.

                "Hey... Calm down.. I've got a proposition for you..."

                "I'm not letting you pay for a room, I'll do it myself--" Keida said firmly as she sat up, quickly smearing her palms against her cheeky and looked away.

                "N-no... I wasn't going to say that..." Fenrir countered with another small sigh, her only display of curiosity was now looking at him from the corner of her eye, "You can stay with me... I've got more than enough room for your equipment and any supplies you may need. It's a big house, but only one master bedroom... So if you're cool with sharing bed space until we can rack up enough funds for you to have your own estate, you're welcome to it...". The look of disbelief and uncertainty on Keida's face was worth more than any rare gem. Her jaw gaped slightly as she once again glared in curiosity, looking him in the eye. He sat back into his seat comfortably, his usual slouched position as Lyger now sat proudly once more, tail flicking happily. She went to speak but the bartender and waitress arriving with their drinks and meals kept her quiet for a moment longer. Once they had left, Fenrir sat forward, arms folded against the edge of the table and he smirked.

                "I only have one condition..." Keida said flatly as she picked up one of the still sizzling meat skewers from a platter, making Fenrir's head toss in curiosity.

                "Oh? And what's that?"

                "I get first bath every night" She replied, completely serious before tearing one of the chunks of tender meat from the stick. Lyger meowed a laugh as he happily pulled apart the meaty whole fish before him, and Fenrir actually managed to laugh before bowing his head.

                "I think I can live with that..."