The Unwanted Tamer

Griff awoke early the next morning, to a small lizard-like creature sitting on his chest. It was around a foot long with more of a beak than snout. It had reflective scales that glimmered in the light as it sat on his chest. It was a Glimmerlisk, a small aerial monster that was considered more pest than actual monster. They didn't attack people unless in a large group, called a shimmer. He hated the things and wondered how it had gotten in. When he looked around, he realized his window was open. It had flown in at some point the night before and eaten the few fruits a maid had left for him, in case he got hungry in the middle of the night. He quickly punched the creature before it woke up on him, and it was sent flying out the window before it unfurled its arms. Delicate, iridescent wings, resembling those of an insect were spread from its torso to its forelimbs. They were slender and nearly see through with veining patterns throughout. Its wings truly glimmered in the light though, showing its beauty and where it got its name. As Griff stared at the annoyingly beautiful creature, it screeched as if affronted before scratching the window with its hind claws, eliciting a high-pitched scrape. Then it flew off, joining a larger group in the sky as they flew away.

He had slept well, but his mood was soured by the Glimmerlisk's presence. He decided to try and plan his day, he hadn't been able to spend much time in the magic item shops the day before, since everyone had agreed to go to the gardens and they'd needed to get back somewhat early. Today though, he decided he'd go spend as much time as he wanted looking at their items before going to a library or magic tome shop. He wanted the day to himself, at least for the most part, to do what he truly enjoyed, researching magic. As he thought about what he wanted to do for the day, he realized he didn't want to go alone like he usually would. He wanted to go with someone; this was odd to him since he usually didn't like researching or reading when someone else was around. They usually got bored quickly and started bugging him.

When he thought about it, he originally thought about going with Jess, since she was a fellow magic caster, but realized he didn't want her along for it. He then thought about Fergus and had a similar realization. He momentarily thought about taking Gaia with him, since she would sit there quietly with her bonds. He'd brought her along once before but quickly realized that she couldn't really do much aside from sitting there and waiting for him to finish, it wasn't a fun time for her, despite her protests otherwise. All of those thoughts aside, he didn't want Gaia along either.

He specifically wanted to bring Stephanie along. They'd definitely gotten closer since the ruins, but he'd never felt the urge to ask only a single person to join him and exclude the others from his activities. It was a new feeling, and one he wasn't sure what to do with. He did remember that she was the only one who seemed genuinely interested in his ramblings about magic and sorcery. She never got the glassy, unfocused look Fergus got, or the polite but obvious disinterest Gaia had written on her face when he got into his lecturing mood.

The weirdest part for him was that as soon as he'd concluded he wanted her to join him; he'd edited his plans to include visiting the forges. He'd come to discover that he enjoyed the sound of metal being hammered and the hard but delicate work truly interested him, for some reason he couldn't place. He resolved to ask her to join him, not for the feeling of course, but because she was good company who enjoyed his knowledge about magic. He could always figure out what the feeling was as they went about their day, though. It would be killing two Glimmerlisks with one spell.

With this decision, he finished getting ready for the day and made his way down to breakfast. Most people were there already, pretty much everyone except Stephanie and John. John was likely still asleep, as he tended to sleep late, and Stephanie was probably in her forge or tinkering with something. Griff decided to go get her and try to wake up John, if possible.

He knocked on John's door first, but didn't get an answer so he walked in. He found John fast asleep half on and half off his bed. The Tigren was big, but the position couldn't possibly be comfortable, and yet he was sleeping happily. Griff started his attempts to awaken the Tigren.

He started by trying nicely. He wasn't expecting it to work but would prefer someone trying it if it were him anyway. When the nudging and quiet speaking turned into not so quiet and more shoves, he began to feel like he wouldn't wake the man up. Then he had a stroke of genius. He created a small magic circle near John, then activated it. This caused a burst of sound and magic to occur which immediately woke up John. Only it caused him to immediately go into defense. His eyes shot open, and he grabbed his great sword as he jumped to the ceiling. There he pushed off towards Griff, who had already moved away a bit expecting something like this to happen. Once John realized who it was, he quickly stopped and dropped his sword, instead tackling Griff.

"Really? Why'd you think that was a good idea?" John asked him as he grappled with Griff.

"You wouldn't wake up. So, I did something I knew would wake you up. I also knew you'd realize before actually attacking me." Griff replied.

"You are crazy. Why did you even want to wake me up anyway?"

"Everyone's already down at breakfast except you and Stephanie." Griff replied.

"What? Thanks, then!" John exclaimed and ran out after throwing on a shirt.

Griff just sat there for a minute before getting up and moving towards Stephanie's room. He was weirdly nervous for some reason, though. When he got to her door, he couldn't bring himself to knock for a couple of minutes. He finally did when he scolded himself for being ridiculous. There was no reaction from the other side of the door.

"Stephanie?" He asked a bit hesitantly.

There was no response. He knocked again but still got nothing, so he announced that he was coming in. He opened the door to find Stephanie sitting on the floor by a coffee table, tinkering with some new contraption she'd made. He walked over and sat near her but didn't say anything for a minute. He just watched her work and tried to piece together what the contraption would do. His guesses were usually wrong, though. He finally spoke after a few minutes.

"Hey, Steph. Breakfast's gonna be ready soon, if it isn't already. It's time to head down." He stated.

Stephanie jumped slightly, having not realized he'd entered or even gotten close to her. "Wh-what? Oh. Yeah, it's about that time isn't it. Sorry for making you come get me." She replied.

"Don't sweat it." He stated before pausing.

"Do you happen to have any plans today?" He finished asking a minute later, a bit embarrassed, he hadn't been able to ask without hesitating.

"Nope. I was just gonna walk around the capital or tinker with my stuff. Figured I'd tag along with someone if they were going somewhere that interested me, though. Why?" She replied.

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to join me for the day. I was going to go to some magic shops, some forges, and the library. We could go some other places too, but those were the main ones I was planning on visiting." He stated nervously.

"It sounds like you planned for both of us, didn't you?" She started slightly playfully before immediately continuing. "I'd love to! I've wanted to check out the forges since we arrived and haven't been able to go to many of them. I'd also like to check the library for any new techniques they have recorded. It'll be nice to go with someone who can understand some of the basics." Stephanie replied.

Griff let out the breath he hadn't realized he was holding. "Awesome. Shall we go after breakfast?"

"Sounds great. We should probably go down now though." She finished as the two walked towards the dining room.

They were the last two to arrive and breakfast was ready when they did. They entered to the sound of talking and eating as their friends joked and ate. The breakfast spread was massive, but it had to be when feeding fourteen hunters especially when most were bronze rank or higher. The food was delicious, and he enjoyed every bit of it as he talked with Gaia and Fergus. Fergus was planning on taking Gaia back to the gardens today since she'd asked if he'd be willing to go, they'd also be going to a couple other places as a date too. Griff was brought from his conversation by the Baron's voice.

"What're everybody's plans for the day?" He asked the table.

"We're planning on sightseeing today and possibly going to see a play tonight." Titania replied indicating her party's plans for the day.

"I was just going to walk around the capital and possibly meet an old friend." Freya stated.

"I was going to check out the blacksmiths for a touch up on my sword." Delilah stated.

"We were also going to walk around and sightsee." Fern added, for Douglas and herself.

"We're planning on going on a date and being at the gardens for most of the day." Fergus replied, holding Gaia's hand.

"Well, Griff asked me on a date so we're gonna go do our own thing." Stephanie replied, to Griff's horror.

As soon as those words left Stephanie's lips, Griff had all eyes on him. Not all of them were supportive. If looks could kill, Griff would've been dead many times over from the one Douglas was giving him. Fern was smiling as she looked at him. Hers was a bit more supportive but still had an underlying feeling of telling him don't screw up. Gaia was beaming at the two, she'd picked up something about them getting closer, but he guessed she was off the mark. Fergus looked between the two and just smiled. When Griff looked at Stephanie she was smiling happily, and innocently, like she'd not just caused this situation.

"Well then. You two have fun, as I hope everyone else will. I just ask that everyone, actually returns before ten tonight." The Baron stated as he gave everyone a look.

Everyone nodded, acceding to his request. With this, everyone went their own way except for those who were going out together. Griff luckily didn't see Douglas before they left, giving him one less thing to worry about. Now it was time for their date. Wait, no it was their day out. He hadn't planned on it being a date, but he guessed that was what it technically was now that everyone thought so.

Their day out, as Griff insisted on calling it, started a bit shakily. He was worried about Douglas doing something or spying on them, much like they had on Fergus and Gaia's first date. As they got to the first magic shop, these worries were pushed aside. They started by checking out the items in the shops as they were both interested and knowledgeable about enchantments. Griff in the theory behind most of them and Stephanie in the actual practice from her enchanted weapons. They had fun inspecting the magic and ended up buying a few items that had magic they were interested in. They did the same for a few other magic shops before realizing it was almost lunch time.

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They walked around for a bit trying to find somewhere to eat and eventually settled in a small café called "Cayde's Corner Café." It was a small place in the center of the buildings, which was odd considering its name, but had been suggested as a great place to eat when they'd asked someone about it. They had a wide variety of food, but they'd been told the owner prides themselves on their bread and baked goods. The only thing was that no one knew who the owner was, the employees claimed to have met him, but none of the customers had seen him. When they looked at the menu, about half consisted of baked goods, like cinnamon rolls and bread, while the other half had things like sandwiches and pastas. All of it sounded delicious to Griff, the same went for Stephanie as she'd said as well.

They got in the short line to order, as they seemed to have come just before the midday rush. They quickly ordered their food and waited at a booth in the shop. Theirs was right by the window and let them see the street. They watched the people passing by on the street until they were brought their order. It was a small mountain of food but wasn't that odd since many people were ordering similar amounts. They ate their meals and enjoyed every bite. Griff's favorite was one of the sandwiches which had some kind of meat similar to pork with a slightly spicy condiment on the café's sourdough bread. Stephanie on the other hand absolutely loved their pasta, it had meat from a chicken-like domesticated lizard monster called a Quadactyl, and a sweet sauce. They also enjoyed the café's baked sweets for dessert before relaxing for a bit.

They'd been relaxing for about ten minutes when they heard a commotion outside. The midday rush had arrived and there was a line stretching for quite a distance from the café's doors. They heard some people complaining about someone cutting in line as they saw people moving aside. They couldn't see who was causing the commotion until they entered the building. It was a short lizard-like person around three feet tall, with white scales that had the slightest hint of blue in them. They just walked straight in, ignoring all of the complaints, and went behind the counter without saying a word.

A few minutes later the same person, who Griff realized was a kobold, walked up to their table and put something on it. When he looked at what the person had placed there, it was a pair of baguettes but seemed different. Firstly, they smelled sweet like they had sugar and cinnamon in them. When they hesitated, the kobold mimed eating the food, obviously asking them to try the food. They hesitated but took the baguettes and took a bite. The taste was that of a cinnamon roll in a baguette form, still tougher than a cinnamon roll but had the sweetness of one. It was weird at first but soon the food was gone, and the kobold had a big grin on his face as he spoke.

"Rawr?" The Kobold asked.

"What?" Griff asked.

"Rawr?" The kobold repeated.

"It was delicious. Thank you. What do we owe for-" Griff started.

The kobold motioned that he didn't need to pay before speaking again. "Rawr. Rawr rawr. Rawr."

"I'm sorry I don't understand you." Griff replied.

The kobold thought for a second before running back behind the counter. He returned with a piece of paper and began writing. When he was finished, he showed it to the pair.

"It was a test creation. Free, just wanted opinion. Can understand language not speak it." The message stated.

"Ah. Ok. Thank you for letting us test the new item then. What're you planning to call it?" Stephanie asked.

"The kobold turned the paper over and wrote again. "The Cinnaguette."

"It's fitting. Thank you again for the food." Griff stated. Then continued when the kobold was about to leave. "Wait, what's your name?"

The kobold motioned the pair in closer before speaking. "The Breadman, Cayde." Then wrote a message on the paper. "But no one will believe you even if you tell!"

With this, the kobold, Cayde, grabbed the paper and laughed as he sprinted back behind the counter disappearing. The two just sat there for a moment dumbfounded. That was the owner of this café? A mischievous kobold that holds bread and baked goods like a religion? They both had the same thought at this realization which was along the lines of "You know what, fair enough."

"He was interesting, wasn't he?" Griff asked after a minute of silence.

"That he was. Keeps it lively around here I bet." Stephanie replied.

They stayed at the café for a little while longer before leaving to go to the blacksmith shops and forges. The journey took a bit longer than they originally planned, but they arrived at the blacksmiths area around an hour later. While there were weapon and armor shops by the Hunter's League, none of them were true blacksmiths shops and didn't have the forges. Those shops were run by hired workers on behalf of the blacksmiths for their mass produced or apprentice's works. Only true connoisseurs went to the blacksmiths true shops for custom orders or to view their works.

This was where Griff and Stephanie were going. Stephanie was ecstatic to see the capital's blacksmiths and the works they were proud of. She was the only smith in her family and had learned most of her profession by herself. This was mostly through books or trial and error, so to see the capitals blacksmiths shops was almost a dream come true. She was nearly running, trying to drag Griff along so they could get there faster. Griff happily picked up the pace seeing her so excited. Soon enough, they had arrived at the forging quarter. They hadn't known that the blacksmiths had their own section of the city, this was where all of the forges were located so no one would be bothered by the sounds they made while working. Luckily, even if they'd gotten lost on the way there, they could have looked up to see the smokestacks from the forges and known where to go.

The smokestacks were fascinating to Griff because, while they had the usual black smoke associated with forges, there was a magic circle above them that changed them somehow. He couldn't tell how unless he was much closer to them, but the color of the smoke changed to white almost like steam. He was fascinated and almost stopped moving, causing Stephanie to slow and look where he was, seeing the magic circles. She was similarly interested in what the magic circles did but was more interested in seeing the products or techniques of the blacksmiths, so she pulled him along. It was easier than she expected, until she remembered most of his strength was based off of his magic.

She dragged him along towards the closest shop, where she was distracted by the workmanship of the products. The items in the shop were all quality work and they even had a central masterpiece to display the blacksmiths prized creation. She let go of Griff's hand which she'd held for most of the walk and ended up using to drag him towards the shop, after he'd been distracted by the magic circles. She was quickly inspecting all of the works in the shop to see if there was anything she could learn. Granted she knew there was a lot she could learn from experienced blacksmiths, but few forged in a way that was even close to how she did.

She still liked forging in different ways and trying various techniques. It was how she'd been able to develop her own technique. She'd learned multiple different techniques and tweaked them to fit her. Then she'd find another technique, try it and incorporate the parts that worked for her. It was in this way she'd developed her current style and was always hoping to learn more. She'd be able to use it to improve her own skills. Not many people tinkered like she did, so forging techniques were the most common she could learn or even find. These were the thoughts that ran through her head as she slowly and meticulously inspected the current shops products.

While Stephanie went off to inspect the items, Griff was brought from his rumination by Stephanie letting go of his hand. He hadn't even noticed she'd done so, but thought it was a shame when she let go. This caused more questions and thoughts to pop into his head, like why did he think it was a shame? Another was, I want to hold it again. He didn't understand these thoughts and the weird feeling he'd had the entire day. It stumped him, but when he saw Stephanie inspecting the items he was happy he'd brought her here. He spent a little time looking at the shops items, but he didn't really have a need for any weapons or armor, due to his bound items. He also didn't use metal armor due to his Lightweight ability, but he could appreciate a well-made piece of armor.

He wasn't nearly as engrossed in the shops products as Stephanie but enjoyed seeing her happy, so he was too. She spent a few hours inspecting the items and even asked if the blacksmith would let her watch her forge. The blacksmith was an elven woman named Gertrude and actually let Griff and Stephanie watch some of her process. She even explained some parts as she went, but Griff didn't understand a lot of what the woman was saying. Stephanie on the other hand understood every word and listened intently while watching.

Griff just enjoyed the sound of the forge and the metal being hammered while Stephanie watched Gertrude's every movement. He could tell Stephanie was learning from the experience, as she always got a certain determined look on her face when she was focused. He always found her beautiful, but especially so, in those moments. His thoughts ground to a halt at this and he once again questioned himself on what it could mean. He did not find an answer this time either. They spent a couple hours watching and talking to Gertrude before she closed down her shop for the night. She hadn't finished her work but wanted to do the rest alone, so the pair left, to a pouting Stephanie's dismay.

They looked around the area and realized most of the shops and forges were closing so they started moving back towards a library. They didn't know if they'd have time to visit one before they needed to be back but decided to try and find one at least. That was until Griff's stomach rumbled loudly.

"Hungry?" Stephanie asked as she giggled slightly.

"Yeah. Shall we stop at a restaurant on the way back? We can try to go by a library tomorrow if we don't make it today." Griff asked.

"Sounds good." Stephanie finished as they began walking.

As they walked Griff didn't even notice that he had grabbed her hand and held it the entire walk. They discussed various places they could eat and eventually decided to just get something from a food stall. They ended up stopping for some steamed buns at a stall. The vendor of the stall, a thin young man, was calling to people on the street.

"Ah, you two!" The vendor started before continuing after Griff pointed to himself. Yes, the lovely young couple! Come on over, I've got the best steamed buns on the street! Don't you want the best for your lovely girlfriend?" The vendor finally finished.

By the time he had, Griff's face was bright red. They looked like a couple? And why did hearing that make him happy? Either way, he went over to the vendor with Stephanie, still holding her hand.

"Yeah. Don't you, Griff?" Stephanie joked.

"Yes." Griff replied.

"It's only a stone core for a bun!" The vendor stated with a smile.

Griff pulled out four cores and paid the man before being handed four buns. "What a fine boyfriend you got ma'am. He sure knows how to treat you!" The vendor finished before they walked away.

This time it was Stephanie's turn to blush, which Griff found adorable. They quickly ate their steamed buns, which were quite delicious, as they walked. They soon realized they wouldn't be able to stop by a library and instead decided to return to the Baron's estate. He grabbed her hand as they walked again, it was slowly becoming something he really enjoyed. They reached the estate much quicker than they wanted as they both enjoyed the early evening. They didn't talk much on their walk back, instead just enjoying each others company. They reached the front door, and Stephanie was the first to speak.

"That was a lot of fun. Thanks for inviting me. Sorry for teasing you this morning. I know you didn't mean it as a date." Stephanie stated.

She had a slightly sad expression which made his chest tighten. He once again didn't understand why, but knew he only wanted to see her happy.

"I really enjoyed it. I'd love to go out again, just the two of us. Sorry we didn't get to stop by the library." Griff replied.

"Not at all. I can always go another time, and I think you really wanted to go more than me, anyway."

"It was worth the trade off though." Griff replied honestly.

Stephanie was silent for a little bit as she tried to understand what he meant. Griff's brain caught up with what he said as he tried to do the same. The only thing he knew was that he genuinely meant it.

"I'd be happy to go again sometime, if you want, of course." Stephanie finished her face going a bit red.

"I'll gladly invite you again then." Griff finished.

With this, the two entered the building and split up to go to their own rooms. Neither of them had noticed the four people scattered near the mansions door. Two had been hiding, one more successfully than the other, as Douglas was behind a bush and Fern was close by on a bench. The other two had been walking down the front path and stopped a distance back so as not to disturb their friends.

"I wonder how their date went?" Fergus asked Gaia.

"I think it went well, at least from what their saying it seems like it. They might go on another at some point." Gaia replied.

"Really?" Fergus asked.

"Yeah. But only if Griff finally realizes that he likes her. I think he just doesn't understand how he feels. Then again, I'm one to talk."

"You can count me in that category, too, can't you?"

"Yep. The only one who does know is Stephanie, I think. She seemed really excited he invited her and seemed to want to go out again." Gaia stated.

"Good. It's been a bit since I've seen Griff that happy." Fergus finished as they walked inside.

The other two stayed outside for a bit as Fern held Douglas, who was sad his girl was growing up. They sat and Fern helped comfort and calm him down as he simultaneously raged about Griff taking his daughter on a date and sulking that she liked someone. They stayed out there for a while before going in to eat with everyone. They all enjoyed a meal together where everyone talked about their days. Griff and Stephanie's day was the main conversation but nothing bad happened. Douglas just glared at Griff while Fern was delighted at what he'd planned for them. Soon enough dinner was over, and everyone retired to their rooms to go to bed. Some with more success than others.