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Bado leaned back in the plain wooden chair behind the counter like he always did, big, booted feet propped up and his angular hands behind his head, the very picture of indolence. A gently cool Autumn breeze snuck into the shop through the open window and stirred his dark, messy hair and short beard framing his jaw, slightly pointed at the corners and in the center. He sighed happily at the caress of the air. It was so pleasantly quiet and calm when business was slow.
Then his peace was stolen. Forte’s voice came in on the breeze, stiff and bright and splitting the still air like the crack of a whip. Bado groaned through a frown that stretched the smile lines around his mouth. It sounded like she was headed this way by the way her bold voice grew louder. He sighed. So much for the pleasant quiet...
Suddenly, another voice rode the breeze right into his gently pointed ears and they perked up with interest. The warm, fluttering laugh of Frey, the acting Princess of Selphia joined with the sound of Forte’s voice and both of their footsteps on the even flagstone paths of the castle town. Now her company he would hardly have objected to but not if it brought Forte near enough to scold and glare at him. He made a little noise of frustration. The times when Frey came by herself to his store were so much more enjoyable. He couldn’t get away with even a hint of flirtation while Forte was around.
He sighed again. It didn’t much matter, anyhow, he supposed. Sure, Frey giggled and leaned close to him and joked and laughed and pestered him often enough, but she was oblivious enough about most things that he didn’t dare assume all her flirtatious behavior was deliberate, or understood to be just that. A lot of women could be like that, after all. Even if she were practically dangling his chief desire right before his nose without realizing it though, he didn’t mind it too much. Seeing her and hearing her laugh and memorizing the color of her eyes and the contour of her lips was enough. At least he could pretend to himself in dreams that he was actually kissing those lips.
Bado bit his lip with a fretful expression. A pang of longing hit him and he almost forgot that the pair of women was nearly at his doorstep. The handle to the Meanderer’s heavy oak front door turned and the latch clicked open. On a sudden impulse he shut his eyes tight and let his lips part just enough to breathe deeply through his mouth as if he were asleep. He heard the hinges of the door creak as it yawned wide and the heavy clanking boots and softer padding footsteps of Forte and Frey, respectively, sounded their way into his blacksmith shop.
“Tch, asleep on the job again, is he?” Forte growled and her steps drew closer. “I’ll box his ears. That will wake his lazy ass up!”
“Oh, Forte wait!” Frey’s voice caught up with her friend, a hushed, breathy laugh nipping the end of her sentence off as he heard her lighter footfalls approach suddenly and slow Forte’s heavier ones to a stop. “If he’s tired, just let him rest!”
“But—“ Forte protested.
“Look, we didn’t come to buy anything and there’s no one else here! What’s the harm in it, anway?” Frey laughed again. Bado thought by the sound of their movements Frey had looped her arm through Forte’s and was tugging her back away from the tall, ostensibly unconscious shopkeeper leaning precariously backward as he made a saw-toothed snoring sound.
“You shouldn’t encourage him… only makes him worse.” Forte grumbled, but didn’t offer any further argument, to Bado’s surprise and delight. He could have blown Frey a kiss in that moment to express his thanks for preserving his relaxing afternoon, but that would have blown his cover, so he remained still and silent except for his deep breathing.
“Aw, he’s cute when he’s sleeping!” Frey whispered, muffling a giggle.
“He is never cute.” Forte returned flatly. “C’mon. Let’s go if we’re going to go.”
The pair went back out of the shop without another word. Bado suspected for a moment that he heard Frey’s footsteps slow and hesitate at the threshold as if she had turned back to look at him, but by the time he cracked an eyelid to peek and see if this were actually the case, she’d already turned around and he only caught a glimpse of her long, pale green hair as the door closed behind her.
He sighed, a half smile tugging on one corner of his mouth. The voices of the two women resumed once they were outside and Bado listened to them grow fainter as they strode away with a slight pang of loneliness suddenly occupying some portion of his chest. He frowned again. Then his ears pricked up as he recognized Frey’s next words.
“Oh, hey Forte, I forgot something I need to do at the castle. Could I please just catch up with you later? Sorry.” She added guiltily.
“It’s no problem. I can handle patrolling by myself, I nearly always do, after all.” Pride swelled in the lady knight’s voice as she spoke this answer.
“Thanks Forte,” The princess said warmly. “I’ll make it up to you later.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Forte answered graciously, and as he heard them call quick goodbyes to one another, Bado vaguely wondered what Frey was on her way to do at the castle. He watched her silhouette pass in front of the window and disappear behind the door, and he waited for her to reappear beyond the window on the other side of the entrance on her way back to the castle, but the familiar shape of her did not appear there. His brow furrowed just before heard the door handle turn again. In a very slight panic, he shut his eyes again.
The door creaked open slowly and the slight, nearly silent footsteps of the princess’s tiny feet sounded in the quiet emptiness of the smithy once again. He didn’t open his eyes, but continued to feign sleep. He wasn’t even sure why he was doing it, but something kept him from breaking his rouse.
“You can stop now.” She said quietly in a sly voice. “I already know you’re not asleep. You’re a pretty poor actor.” A giddy laugh threatened to bubble up his throat but he kept it in check. He was seized by a strong impulse to deny her accusation by continuing to pretend sleep. Maybe he just didn’t want to admit the fabrication outright, but after this first thought he was forced to admit to himself that he was curious… curious to see what she’d do if she became convinced he really was asleep. If he insisted on it long enough, she’d surely buy the act eventually, right?
“Sticking to your story, huh?” Frey hummed with that same sly curl in her voice. “Well then, if you’re so determined to convince me you aren’t listening to every word I’m saying right now, I guess I can do whatever I like at the moment, can’t I?” She paced about the room with exaggerated strides and ‘hmm’ed loudly a few times.
“I could…. Tie your shoes together. That’d be fun.” She mused. “Or I could tickle your nose with a feather…” He heard her rummaging on a nearby shelf before walking back over to peer closely at him. He could feel the presence of her close by, could even sense the air that moved when she moved and the sudden lack of cool autumn air where she was now standing. Had she actually found a feather to tickle him with? He did not want her finding out how ticklish he was, just now. And what if she tried to tickle or touch his ears? Nervousness closed in. Then Frey said something else that stunned him enough to slightly interrupt the rhythm of his breathing.
“Or… I could always just take something.” She said slowly, thoughtfully. “Shoplifting is so easy it’s ridiculous when the rooster leaves the roost unguarded.” Inwardly, Bado strained in surprise and slight alarm. Sure, he didn’t much care if a shoplifter walked off with a piece of his merchandise now and again; that was just part of owning a shop. But he never would have guessed her for a thief. Then he mentally chided himself for taking her so literally as she continued in exaggeratedly contemplative tones like someone pretending not to know where a child is making a game of hiding from them nearby.
“Hmm,” She continued loudly, “I wonder what I should steal…” She paced back and forth around him as if scanning the store for a trophy worth taking while he was determined to feign ignorance of the act. He wondered if she’d actually go through with the taunt if he refused to budge. Meanwhile, Frey paced back over to stand beside his chair. The next time she spoke, her voice was low, smooth, and close to his ear. She’d leaned over him to make sure he could hear everything in her voice; the tone, the warmth, and the teasing all pouring directly into his pointed ear.
“What do I want most in here, let’s see…” She trailed off, apparently considering carefully. He resisted the urge to swallow and instead continued breathing softly. “Ah, of course!” She said in tones of realization.
A warm, soft sensation he’d hitherto only enjoyed in his dreams suddenly pressed against his mouth; her sweet, hot, perfect lips kissed his without hesitation and the abruptly decadent sensation startled a muffled gasp from him. Just as abruptly, he overbalanced and tumbled to the floor as the teetering chair he had been reclined on tipped his huge, muscular frame directly onto the floorboards. He yelped as he hit the floor, sprawled clumsily with one long leg draped over the fallen chair and the other foot still halfway up the counter.
Frey laughed aloud merrily and covered her mouth with her slender hands as she let out all her mirth and humor in the wake of his embarrassment. He blinked a couple times in stupefied, dazed confusion and then since he did not wake up, concluded this must be reality and not a dream after all.
“Here” She said in between giggles, offering him her hand. He took it and she leaned very far back to pull him up to his feet again. He stared at her with a stupid grin plastered all over his face for another couple heartbeats while she gave him a wry look, complete with a smirk that plainly said ‘Finally caught you off-guard, huh?’.
“Well!” He said, finding his voice, finally. “If that’s what you want most in here then why didn’t you just say so? I’m having a special right now on those, you know, but—“ Here he snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her against him, grinning wolfishly down into her mischievously smiling face as he tilted her chin up with a gentle brush of the fingertips of his free hand. “They only come in bulk...”