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I.
Athyx is not a fan of Itumaak.
That is something he'll say up front.
And like – he doesn't dislike the white fox. He’s fluffy and good at taking opponents down for his mistress to shoot, and he makes Sagani happy.
It's just that, how he grew up in the Living Lands, Itumaak would be considered food.
(Well, maybe not his first choice. Not a lot of meat on those bones. But one can't be picky.)
When the find the black hound, abandoned by her former master, giving him the puppy eyes, he tries to say no. Then Edér starts giving him the puppy eyes as well, and, alright, that combination is lethal. He gives in. The dog is barely useful, trotting behind them and making an easy target of itself, but it makes his friends happy, so he keeps his complaints to himself.
The orange tabby, he’s alright with, too.
… He might need to have a talk with Aloth about the slender, black cat following at his heels though. That thing is not normal.
The point is, Sagani likes Itumaak, and Athyx likes Sagani, and the logical conclusion should be to make friends with her companion to get closer to her.
This is… harder than it sounds.
He tries to imitate Edér, at first. The farmer seems to get along well with the hound, Cassidy, after all, and even the cats, Raya and Paw-Paw, listen to him sometimes. So, as they’re camping one night, Athyx clucks his tongue at Itumaak. When he gets no response, he tries again.
Nothing. Maybe he’s making the wrong sound? He moves his tongue to the back of his teeth, making a sharper noise. Sagani is starting to look at him strangely. Maybe he should stop.
A moment of silence passes, then Athyx puts his lips together and whistles. There’s the soft padding of footfalls in the grass and dirt, and then a black, furry body deposits itself on his lap, panting up at him.
Itumaak twitches an ear and rolls over in his sleep.
II.
Edér’s tactics were obviously a bust. Maybe those techniques work better on domesticated animals than on a ranger’s companion.
(Or maybe he’s just bad with animals. An equally likely option.)
Athyx tries food, next. Everyone likes food, right? Surely that'll help warm Itumaak up to him. The fox isn't one for begging at the table (unlike the other pets), but if he can just get his attention...
“Athyx, what are you doing?” Sagani’s voice breaks his thought process and startles him, the piece of meat he had been holding under the table slipping from his fingers and falling onto the ground with a soft and wet plop.
Cassidy’s tail brushes against his leg as she makes off with the undeserved treat.
In the corner of the room, Itumaak’s tail twitches dismissively.
III.
Athyx is pretty good at getting around unseen. He can blend into the shadows with ease, a useful feat for scouting out unknown locations and picking out possible dangers.
Itumaak, as it happens, is also rather good at sneaking around, so when the group plans to scout out a mansion, he suggests he go in alone with the fox, first.
“I mean, I can go too, you know,” Sagani remarks, crossing her arms. Athyx almost loses his resolve.
Instead, he replies, “No, it’s alright. This is a two-man job. Or, you know. Man-and-fox job.”
The ranger scoffs, but smiles and nods. “Alright. Itumaak, follow the Watcher. Be quiet.”
And quiet he is. The two have no problem getting in without notice, and before long they’re on the second floor, scoping out the bedrooms for potential threats.
“We’re a pretty good team, Itumaak,” Athyx says, cheer in his voice.
Itumaak shakes out his fur and starts barking.
IV.
Not a minute later they are swamped with guards. Athyx takes a moment to shoot an exasperated look at the white fox, then starts charging up a spell, his focus bursting out into a shockwave originating from Itumaak himself and shocking all the guards currently ganging up on them. When the fox looks back at him, he grins and gives him a thumbs up, then returns to the matter at hand.
The timely arrival of the rest of the party saves their hides in the end, and Athyx and Itumaak are left tending to their wounds while being berated at by Sagani for being ‘irresponsible’ and ‘foolish’.
Athyx nudges Itumaak with a sympathetic wince.
Itumaak paws at the dirt and turns his back to him.
V.
His nightmares are not all that uncommon, but usually Athyx has the luxury of them happening in rooms in inns or at Caed Nua. Now, here, camping out in the wilderness, everyone notices how he twists, and turns, and murmurs, before staring up at the leafless canopy above, unable to return to his slumber.
He turns his head. Edér is to his left, looking at him with concern. Athyx smiles reassuringly, and that’s when he notices Cassidy lying, curled up next to the man. That looks so nice and comfortable…
To his right is Sagani and Itumaak.
He probably shouldn’t.
It takes some time for everyone to go back to sleep, but when soft snores and other noises fill the campsite once more, Athyx starts slowly scooting over the leaf-covered bed that makes up the forest floor. Occasionally, when Hiravias lets out a particularly loud snort, or Paw-Paw meows at a bird, he stops, and waits, then he scoots on.
Eventually he’s close enough that he can curl himself around Itumaak, careful not to touch lest he wake the fox. Satisfied, he closes his eyes and drifts back off.
Five minutes later, Itumaak gets up and walks around Sagani to sleep on her other side.
I.
“Hey.” Athyx sets himself down into the dirt next to Sagani, who looks up from fletching her arrows.
“Hey, you,” she replies with a slight grin. Itumaak’s ears perk up, but there’s no other response from the fox.
Athyx fiddles with his sleeve for a while, tearing at loose strands of fabric.
“So, need anything, or just enjoying the view?” the ranger asks after a while of silence, as she fills her quiver back up. He ducks his head with a slight smile.
“Enjoying the company,” he quips, which is totally not something he’d heard Iselmyr tell Pallegina three days back. It makes Sagani laugh, though, and that alone makes it worth it.
“Likewise, Watcher.” She grins and stares out into the sunset for a while. “I know you, though. You don’t usually come sit with people without some kinda purpose.” It’s not said in any sort of accusing way, simply a stating of facts, and Athyx hums non-committally.
“Sharp as ever. There… might be something you can help with, yes.” He looks sideways at her and Itumaak. The fox has his eyes closed, enjoying the last rays of sun. “Your, uhm… Your companion. Itumaak, I mean.”
“What about him?” There’s a glint in her eyes as she asks this, one that makes Athyx slightly afraid of continuing his line of thought.
“I… he doesn’t like me, does he?”
Sagani’s bark of laughter startles both him and Itumaak, both sitting up straighter. “What gave you that impression?”
“Well, I just… I’ve been trying to, uh, appeal to him, and he just kind of, uh, ignores me, so I figured…”
“Did he bite you?”
“… No?”
Sagani grins, near-feral, but Athyx has long stopped seeing that as a threat. “Means he likes you. You should be flattered.” She clucks her tongue and the fox gets up, trotting around her to sit down next to him. When Athyx doesn’t act, she gives a little wave of her hand. “Go on, scratch him between the ears or something.”
He reaches out, careful as can be, and places his fingers in between Itumaak’s fluffy white ears, scratching his head.
Itumaak’s tongue lolls out of his maw and his tail starts thumping the ground.