She had a small dagger at her side, except it wasn't of much use against the thick hide and muscles of the bear. The far safer approach, was to watch it bleed it out, rather than risk imminent bodily harm.
"You did well," I said with a light clap and a slight smile, as I stepped out from behind a tree. Having watched the entire fight, I was able to witness her development firsthand. She wasn't sitting idly by while I hunted goblins in a dungeon, no, she was obviously quite a busy-body.
Startled, she turned back twice to check if her vision was playing tricks on her before realizing that I was, indeed, standing in front of her. As if she were a child caught red-handed, she blushed and seemed embarrassed.
"Saw it all, did you," she asked as she looked away and started to cut up the bear.
"You've improved considerably since the days of the Earl," I stated clearly as I crouched down beside her. "You know, I can't help but wonder if you're mad at me."
The last line was misdirection, though I knew there could be a faint possibility that it held some truth, the likelihood of that being the case struck me as slim to none. Kate and I had both come to the conclusion, ages ago, that Selene suffered from some sort of survivor's guilt and felt, if she wasn't the most reliable person in the group, she was doing something wrong.
Sure, she was a bit useless the last time… that was the reality.
Yet even so, she was too hard on herself.
Selene didn't reply to me for a while as I sat within arm's reach, staying silent as she worked on the bear's hide. What seemed like fifteen minutes had passed before she finally started to talk, slowly at first, then eventually fully opening up.
"I'm tired of being the one that relies on others, while everyone carries their weight and more," she explained as she stabbed her dagger into the bear's hind-muscles. "Everyone looks at me as if I'm the one to lead, there is always expectation from me, and then when the hunts start, I'm the one looking from behind.
"We led the warriors on an expedition while you were gone, to learn to hunt in teams and gain familiarity with each other. At the start, they came to me to ask questions, by the end, they only asked Katherine."
She continued on for a little longer, as I contemplated what she was saying.
Only nodding and saying little one word phrases to let her know I was paying attention, I mainly stayed silent. Preferring to listen rather than talk when someone was having a heart-to-heart. Though, her problems sounded… as if she were struggling slightly with jealousy, and maybe a combination of failing to reach her ideals.
I was familiar with the latter part.
"You know, I often failed a lot when I was younger, still do really," I said with a soft, calming voice. "Personally, it always bothers me as I don't forget those failures but I've learned to live with it. It's bound to happen, where you won't succeed. The important part is not letting it detract from who you are."
That was the truth… though to say I could always follow through with it, would be a lie in itself. Preaching to the choir or the blind leading the blind, whichever case it was, knowing what to do and actually sticking to it were two different things.
Yeah, I was escaping from my reality in this very game.
My whole existence here was a lie.
"You make it all sound so easy," she countered as she sat down and faced me.
"I'm guilty of it too," I stated with a shallow laugh at myself. "At least, I'm aware of the lapses and the mistakes, that's what I tell myself afterwards."
"I've yet to see you fail, so how can you compare?" she asked seriously, with a fierce look in her eyes. Those solid titanium gray eyes of hers, with a hint of bronze in the sunlight, seemed to pierce right through me.
"I died in the Rattanorv cave, didn't I?" I countered.
"That was your decision, so that we could escape, it was noble of you… even if you don't die," she lamented with a snicker. "Things would be different if we didn't die."
"Then why cut yourself off from the rest of us?" I inquired with a raise of my brow.
"What does that have to do with dying?" she answered, somewhat confused by my statement as she crossed her arms and leaned back. She was getting a little angry with me however it was necessary to keep pushing.
"It's precisely because you can die at any point," I started to explain before holding my tongue to gather my thoughts. What I wanted to say was different from what I could say. I was at a loss, but I decided to give it my best try.
"You and Katherine, and all the other members of Dragon's Breach get one life, if you lose it, all is forfeit. That's why it's important to take advantage of the situation that's given, and work to improve. It's natural for everyone to struggle with some inner turmoil, an inner demon or two or three.
"Kate has her issues too, and you help her with those, do you not? So, why when the situation is flipped, do you deny Kate the opportunity to return the favor? Is she not good enough to help? Is she inadequate as a person, or as a friend?
"All I'm trying to say is, it's fine to seclude yourself when you need the space, but don't deny us the ability to help where we can. You've offered and aided both of us in the past, and I'm sure you have helped many a man or woman in the village. Allow us at least an opportunity, to do the same."
Having finished my long-winded explanation, I broke eye contact and stared off into the distance as I let it sink in. Selene took her time to wrap her mind around it, before finally clapping her hands on her knees and sitting up.
"I make no promises," she said as she briefly looked away. "But it's a fair point… thanks, for coming out and finding me. I needed that."
"If you ever have a problem you can always come to me," I said with a smile.
"Thank you, that means a lot Sigurd," she replied with a weak smile.
"Anytime, Selene."
Chapter 61: Stranger, Danger?
(Saturday, September 11th Game Day / Friday, March 26th Real Day)
A few days had passed as Selene appeared to have returned to normal, with her behavior more consistent with how it had been in the past. Between her and Katherine, the two of them seemed to be getting along just fine as they managed their own affairs apart from me.
The Loyalty Bar had received a slight bump from both women, as Selene's Affection for me rose slightly after talking things out while Katherine's went up in both. Her Trust Bar raised due to the Rattanorv incident and Affection saw a boost from general discourse. All in all, I was making good progress with my Companions.
Unfortunately, I had yet to reach the threshold for Soul Link with Katherine, though it actually wasn't too far away. A few more adventures, a little more Trust building, and maybe some flirtatious behavior, and it was within reach.
Well, that was for another time.
Without anything in particular needing to be done at the village, I had taken the day off and decided to go on a hunt. In search of new creatures roughly fifty miles to the southeast of Dragon's Breach, my travels had thus far proved fruitless with only a wolf to show for it. One lousy wolf in fifty miles, and it was a mangy one, at that.
In the midst of skinning a hide, I was suddenly startled when a wild beauty appeared through the bush! She had stumbled forward and fell to the ground in an awkward display of coordination, or lack thereof. Brushing the leaves off her clothes and plucking the ones stuck in her hair afterwards, she then patted her knees and stood up.
Watching the scene unfold before me while kneeling down next to the corpse of the wolf, with hands halfway through the process of carving the carcass into something usable, I was completely thrown off guard. My hands and arms dripping with blood, all I could muster was a weak smile as I realized the graphic nature of the scene.