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Three days have passed since the farmer brought Krobus the Void Ghost Pendant, and now he stands at the exit to the sewers, watching through the bars as the last rays of sunlight disappear over the horizon.
Truthfully, he’d been procrastinating going to the farm. The farmer’s hug had left him reeling, and a thousand scenarios had flooded his brain.
What if they expect him to hug them?
What if he gets hugged again, and he dissipates into smoke?
What if he gets there, and the farmer doesn’t hug him ever again?
Maybe he wrecked his chances. He’d never been hugged before, especially not by a human. Did he react with the expected etiquette? He didn’t have arms at the time, and those seem important for reciprocating a hug.
Is he a bad hugger?
Yoba, he hopes not. He rocks on his feet, the light outside long since gone. He walks through the bars easily, his body phasing right through. He takes a deep breath of the ocean breeze, and begins to make his way through the Cindersap forest. The few times he’s sought out The Wizard have given him a passing familiarity with the forest’s layout, allowing for a straightforward trip.
If he is a bad hugger, he hopes he’ll get another chance to learn. Physical affection is new to him, and he’s not quite sure whether he even likes it yet, or whether hugs are something he’d be able to get used to.
He nears the two buildings by the farm entrance, and he slows right down. The lights inside are still on, and he finds himself wishing he’d waited just a little longer before leaving his sewer. He can’t see any figures looking out the windows but he remains incredibly cautious, dashing from bush to bush and staying in the shadows. It just wouldn’t do to have him be discovered by the human town now.
He makes it onto the farm, and he breathes a sigh of relief. Leaning against a tree, he looks around. On the left there is a large group of fruits trees, and only two appear to be in season. They look like pomegranate and apple trees, but it’s hard to tell from this distance.
On the far right there is a group of three buildings, and some half-grown pumpkins grouped around sprinklers. He recognises a few sprinklers as being the same as the kind he sells in his shop, and he wonders if they’re the same ones he’d sold to the farmer in the past.
Pushing away from the tree, he makes his way over to the buildings.
Of the three buildings, only the third has a faint glow to its windows. Judging from the smoke coming from the chimney, he assumes the light source must be a fireplace of some kind. It makes the most sense for that one to be the farmer’s house, but his curiosity gets the best of him, and he peeks inside of the first building, the largest of the three.
The inside of the building reveals itself to be one giant room, with only a small divider wall on the left. Inside are several large animals, all appearing to be asleep. He may not know very much about humans, but he can recognise the wide mix of livestock when he sees them.
He takes a few steps in, looking over the cows, sheep, pigs, and goats. He walks over to a pair of sleeping sheep, and can’t help but lean over to feel the softness of their wool against his face. There’s nothing as soft as this down in the sewers.
“Ma-a-ah.” bleets the sheep he’s touching, and he jumps back. It’s eyeing him half heartedly, and he notices the odd, squared shape of its pupils. He steps back again, and decides to leave the animals to their rest.
Walking out of the barn, he pokes his head into the next, smaller building, deciding against properly entering this one, it’s full of birds, and he’s surprised to see void chickens nesting alongside ducks, rabbits, and normal chickens.
It makes sense. He’d always wondered how the farmer got their hands on so many void eggs after the first one they bought from him. Grinning, he leaves the building. He should’ve guessed that they’d simply found a way to hatch the first egg.
Now with only the farmer’s home left, he freezes again.
What if the farmer changed their mind about inviting him to move in? What if he wasn’t actually welcome? What if the farmer expected him to live in the barn with the other animals? What if they had a visitor over, and him walking inside would reveal his existence to another human, who would draw their weapon and attack him, and he’d be turned into a pile of void essence???
He blinks rapidly, and takes a few deep breaths to calm himself down. He walks over to the front door and gives it a gentle kick meant to serve as a knock, accidentally pushing the door open.
A fireplace in the back right corner of the room is the only source of light, but it’s more than enough for Krobus’s light-sensitive eyes to see by. To the left is an area he assumes to be a kitchen, though he isn’t entirely certain, because he’s never actually been inside a human kitchen before. The right side of the room has a couch facing a tv near the fireplace, potted plants scattered around the room. Directly ahead of him, across from the front door, is a set of stairs leading upwards, while the right wall has a doorway to another even darker room.
He walks inside, and carefully nudges the door closes behind him. It’s late, and the farmer isn’t visible or audible from the front room, so he assumes they’re asleep.
He shifts in place. He was invited to move in, but right now, he feels like he’s intruding. He jumps up on the couch. Maybe he’ll just… wait here. Is it weird if the farmer walks out and finds him just… sitting in their house?
Would waiting in one of the barns be less weird? What if by offering for him to move in, they actually just meant for him to build his own place on the farm? It’s not like the farmer is much for words. He prefers it, sometimes. Silence is peaceful, and doesn’t grate at him when he’s having an off day, but when it comes to organising things, he forgot just how nerve wracking it was to not have all the information.
He stand up, and walks into the kitchen. Humans make other humans food, right? He’s made a few different human meals to stock his shop, so he’s at least familiar with the process of cooking, but he’s never specifically cooked for a human before. Maybe it’s a good place to start.
Krobus manifests a pair of arms, opens the fridge, and looks inside. There are the usual things – some bottles of milk, some fruits and vegetables, and some normal chicken eggs – but he can’t help his smile when he sees the bottom shelf taken up entirely by a large box filled with void eggs, horseradishes, and a large pumpkin.
It’s still far too early to start cooking the farmer a morning meal, so he shuts the fridge, and sits back down on the couch.
He’ll just wait here for now, but he’s glad to have a plan. As soon as the dawn starts creeping through the windows, he’s going to cook the farmer breakfast. He smiles, and snuggles into the corner of the couch. Maybe, if he cooks it really well, he might just get another hug.