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It had been a simple request from the farmer, and the first one that he’d ever made in the months that they had become acquainted. It should have been easy to answer then, but as the words clicked together in his mind, Krobus struggled to grasp the full extent of their implications until after the farmer had long gone. Their interactions had always been pleasant, why change anything now?
For the next two nights he hadn’t dared to broach the topic with himself, but by the third morning he knew that he couldn’t avoid at least considering how he might respond to the request. Knowing the ever racing mind of the farmer he would at least be needing an answer sooner than later.
Rolling the void pendent over in his hands, Krobus sat in his sewer home in a state of unbroken meditation that lasted him well past Friday and into the following Wednesday. In the moment, and before things had clicked, he’d offered to think on the matter, but even after weighing the pros and cons of the generous offer, he was still firmly stuck without a concrete decision even now.
He already knew what he wanted, the question that remained was if he could bring himself to go through with it or not. On one hand, despite the recent invasion of this area, he was more than a little fond of the ever cozy environment of the sewers, but of all the humans he’d encountered in his observations and by happenstance, the farmer had been the only one who he’d gotten to know well enough that he considered him to be a friend. From those many observations he’d sought out, most humans didn’t seem to take rejection well, and despite being fairly comfortable with the human’s friendship, Krobus wasn’t eagar to loose this friendship to a hasty refusal on his part just as he had gotten comfortable.
It wasn’t that the farmer had ever lashed out at him or anything, but it was still somewhat difficult for him to understand some human expressions, and the farmer was no exception to that problem.
It was just at the point where Krobus had finally resolved to put his deliberations to the side for the day that the urgency of his choice was once more cemented by the sound of the sewer hatch creaking open for the first time this week. There was only one person who dared to come into the sewers from that entrance and despite himself Krobus began to mull the viability of stalling for more time with some excuse or other that he had yet to settle on.
“Good Morning.” The farmer greeted him with the same casual smile that he always wore no matter how bright the day might be, and a flimsy excuse suddenly wouldn’t do that kindness towards a shadow person justice.
“Farmer?” The farmer looked up from the usual supplies he had the occasional inclination to peruse, and gave a hum of acknowledgement before catching sight of the pendant in Krobus’ outstretched hand. His eyes lingered on it, fixed in place with an unfamiliar light that almost made Krobus retreat from his course.
It was only thanks to the weight of the pendant in his hand that he swallowed back his fear and resolved to match the farmer’s earlier sincerity regardless of the outcome. He’d been alone before.
“I can’t accept this, the sewers are my home, and despite what happened with the dwarf… that feeling hasn’t changed…” Rushing the words out, he felt the knot of anxiety in his chest already starting to loosen as he watched for any response to his confession. The farmer still remained frozen for several moments before he finally seemed to process declaration. Finally he reached out his hand and closed Krobus’ fingers around the glowing pendant with a gentle touch.
“It was a gift, and a standing offer. I don’t need it back even if you don’t want to come to the farm, that was never what this was about.” He spoke the last words in almost a whisper as he seemed to easily accept the results. After such lengthy deliberation, things couldn’t be this simple, there was no way that he could keep such a beautiful thing without some concession to the offer.
“But…” The farmer slowly shook his head at the attempted rebuttal and Krobus still clutching the treasured pendant close, did not move to continue his protest.
“I value you as a friend, Krobus, and I would never want to make you uncomfortable with my offer. If you ever feel unsafe in the sewers again the offer always stands, but other than that… I’ll be perfectly happy to just enjoy this friendship as we did before.”
Krobus held the invitation tightly in his hand as he looked for any sign that the farmer was putting on a front for him. Despite his scrutiny the expression seemed to be the same as all the ones that he’d seen before, and it made him secure in the promise that he didn’t need to accept the offer if he didn’t want to.
With that understanding now formed, an uncharacteristic happiness overtook him and he scooped the farmer into a hug. It was a warm and pleasant sensation, much more enjoyable than he had ever guessed the action could be despite his constant observation of it, and to his surprise, despite the unexpected nature of the gesture, the farmer returned the hug just as enthusiastically.
“I’m glad to have met you, Farmer.” The wasted days he’d spent in deliberation all seemed so silly now, and he resolved, at least in some matters, to be more straightforward with his friend.