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“High time to go to bed,“ Eskel yawned as he put his Gwent cards aside.
Vica frowned. “But it isn‘t that late!“
“Old men need their sleep.“ Geralt stretched. “And this old man,“ he nodded at Eskel, „tries hard to keep his last bit of dignity. So, not another rematch for tonight.“
“I think you‘ve played well. Using the Blue Stripes card was quite a clever move,“ Vica smiled at Eskel.
“Thank you.“ The witcher emptied his mug. “See Geralt, Vica appreciates a solid technique.“
Geralt tried to suppress a grin. “Fortunately for Lambert.“
“He…“ Vica tried to come up with a clever response as the two men laughed.
Eskel patted her shoulder. “ Never mind.“
“Right, main thing is you‘re happy,“ Geralt nodded and gave her a friendly smile. “And now free him from the library.“
“Miracle he hasn‘t blown it up already,“ Eskel tilted his head. “Been in there for hours.“
Vica smiled. “He‘s reading about arachasae.“
“Ugh. Ugly critters.“ Geralt grimaced towards Eskel, who nodded thoughtfully.
“Yeah. And venomous as hell. Tell him to take enough Golden Oriole along.“
Geralt snorted. “As if he‘d listen.“
“He will,“ Vica nodded as she got up. “Good night boys.“ She gave them her brightest smile.
“Sleep well,“ Eskel returned the gesture.
Geralt nodded. “See you tomorrow.“
Tightening the shawl around her shoulders, she hurried through the main hall and went upstairs. It was a cold night, even for the already harsh winter in the mountains. Without knocking, she opened the library door and went inside, the loud squeaking of the rusty door hinges accompanying her steps.
“Sounds like the end of the world,“ Lambert stated as he watched her come closer.
She grinned as she sat down beside him. “The hinges could do with an oiling, but the sound‘s quite fitting, don‘t you think? Ringing in your home time, figuratively spoken.“
“And you literally used the noise of hell to do so. Congrats.“
Vica winked at him. “A pleasure to see you, too.“
“All great pleasures in life are silent, as Vesemir likes to say,“ he murmured as he looked back into the weighty tome before him.
“So sleeping with me is an eternal torment for you?“ She asked in a playful voice as she went up, got behind Lambert and started massaging his shoulders.
He laughed. “Silly.“ Closing his eyes, he relaxed under her touch. “Couldn‘t bear Eskel and Geralt any longer?“
“They were tired.“ With a quick move, she folded down the collar of his shirt and placed a kiss on the back of his neck. “And we should got to bed, too.“
“Still have to read this chapter. Takes forever to work through because the fucking thing‘s probably older than Kaer Morhen. Half of that shit isn‘t even legible anymore.“
Vica took a look over Lambert‘s shoulder. He was right, the book was old, the pages thin and frail, the writing small and partly blurred. She sighed. “Call it a day. It won‘t run away.“
“It won‘t, but that fucking, village-destroying creature has the darling feature of getting out only at full moon. So, I‘ve got four days left for updating my bestiary, preparing Samum bombs and riding to Lubronski. Journey alone will take two days with the fucking snow still there.“ Lambert tilted his head to brush his nose over Vica‘s cheek.
The gesture made her smile. “Not to forget brewing enough Golden Oriole.“
“Eskel?“ Lambert rolled his eyes.
Vica giggled. “Eskel.“ She kissed Lambert‘s temple. “I could help you.“
“Preparing bombs?“ He snorted. “No fucking way. You‘d probably kill yourself.“
“Your trust in me is really heartwarming,“ Vica sighed. “I can copy the important information into your bestiary, meanwhile you can prepare the bombs and pack your things.“ She gave him a questioning look. “Still don‘t understand why you were so eager to take that contract. Thought Eskel wanted to.“
Lambert pondered. “Doesn‘t sound too bad. But there‘s no need to draw little flowers and tendrils next to the text, you know?“ He smirked as she rolled her eyes. “And for the contract – it‘s a surprise.“
Vica raised an eyebrow. “A good one?“
“‘Course,“ Lambert nodded. He looked outside the window. “After finishing this page, we‘ll go.“
Vica watched him for what seemed like an eternity before she decided it was enough. She took his hands, sat down on his lap and kissed him.
“Pup, you‘re distracting me,“ Lambert moaned as he pulled her closer.
She smiled against his mouth. “That was the plan.“ Stroking her fingers through his hair, she looked into his eyes. “Bed?“
“Bed,“ he nodded as he kissed her again.