Vernisha had three cloth bags filled with clothes, money, and residence papers for all four of them, since those were needed to enter the city.

  It was taking Natasha forever to return. Vernisha found herself kicking a round stone like a football to pass the time.

  Every couple of seconds, she glanced at Ulah to make sure he was okay. He was fast asleep.

  She asked Marvin, who sat with his arms crossed, “You’re sure the dosage was right?”

  “Well, no. I didn’t use a scale. But seeing that they’re still alive, I’d say it was close enough.”

  Vernisha hummed to herself.

  Palia, who had been watching her for a while, said, “I’m sure your mom’s okay.”

  Vernisha looked at her. “Oh, yeah. I know. I’m just annoyed it’s taking her so long to return.”

  “Oh…” Palia sounded taken aback. She must have thought Vernisha would be anxious or scared.

  Ironically, it seemed like Palia was the one who needed the comfort.

  Vernisha told her, “Don’t worry. There’s nothing to worry about.”

  Palia nodded slowly and then quickly changed her expression to a smile. “Of course!”

  Five more minutes passed, and Vernisha’s frustration built. She kicked the rock as hard as she could, sending it onto some guy’s roof.

  There was a loud bang as it hit the galvanized roof.

  Tch.

  She sat near Ulah and took his hand, watching his fingernails. They had a darker shade.

  “Sorry,” she whispered to him.

  They would get him fixed. At least him.

  He was young and impressionable, like all kids. So, because of Caren and basically everyone, he too feared and hated vlandos.

  There was one time when Vernisha had been teaching him how to gut fish, since he preferred fishing over farming. According to him, farming was too much work, especially when the silo was so hot.

  Anyway, he had randomly started a conversation with her while opening a small fish’s belly with a knife. “Do you sometimes have dreams that you’re a vlandos? Like, just randomly, you’re really tall, super pretty, and can lift buildings?”

  Vernisha had gotten excited, thinking maybe she could make him like vlandos instead of fearing them.

  So she had lied, excitedly saying, “Hell yeah. All the time.”

  He had frowned and asked, “Do you think that means we should die? But I don’t want to die, and I don’t want you to die.”

  It had confused her, so she had asked him what he meant. He had anxiously explained, as if he was guilty of something.

  “Well, Dad always talks about how vlandos are evil and why they’re useless. And my friend told me that a vlandos beat his father up for no reason. And his father was angry. And…”

  Vernisha had listened and understood his feelings. He had been having dreams about being a vlandos because he was afraid of becoming one.

  Afraid that everyone would hate him, including his own family, especially his father. He had been closer to him, far more than Natasha.

  But that was probably because Caren was much softer on him and took him everywhere except market days.

  It did not matter to Vernisha how nice Caren was to him. She still hated him. Perhaps she hated him more because his love for Ulah could switch on a dime. Not because of actions, morals, ethics, or values, but because of something he had no control over.

  Caren would go from seeing him as his precious star to the devil, someone he would cry for as he sent him to his death.

  Vernisha knew why Natasha stayed with him. It was because of Vernisha, not simply because she had a child. Because of Vernisha’s powers, it was better for her to have an incompetent father, one who would probably never find out what she was.

  But Vernisha never understood why Natasha had married him of all people. For one, he was dirt poor.

  What part of Natasha’s brain thought it was okay to tie herself down to someone who made her live in a house that could not withstand a category one hurricane?

  Love. That was bullshit. If he were at least attractive, Vernisha could probably understand. But he was not.

  Even if he were handsome and had money, it would not be worth dealing with someone as hateful as him.

  And if his views were ever questioned, he would always get angry.

  Vernisha remembered a time when Natasha had been interacting with some guy. Vernisha had been there, so she knew it was not anything flirtatious.

  The conversation had been about the best seasons to harvest red cucumbers and how certain farmers inflated them with water, and so on.

  When the interaction had been done and Natasha came inside, Caren had been angry.

  He did not stop accusing her of cheating on him. He even tried telling her not to talk to other men when he was not around. Obviously, she did not care.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  Vernisha did not get his point either. If Natasha had been cheating or flirting with any men, she could have understood the issue. But she was certain that was not the case. Not Natasha. She did not care about that stuff.

  He tried threatening her with divorce, but again, she did not care. It quickly became clear that his threats had no weight.

  Unlike him, people were constantly showering Natasha with both romantic and sexual interest.

  He stayed, though. At the end of the day, a beautiful woman had taken an interest in him for reasons no one understood, and she never offered a clear explanation beyond the fact that she liked something about him.

  He asked his friends, but none of them could figure it out. Except for one, who suggested, “Maybe she thought you were cool to talk to?”

  There were some bold assholes. Some seemed pretty chill, but still, confessing love to a man’s wife right in front of his face was insane. They brought flowers to her, acting like Caren was nothing more than a bug. Insignificant.

  If she said, “I already have a husband,” they would respond, “But you hate him.”

  And if she replied, “I have two kids,” they would say, “I’m good with kids.”

  Natasha was stunning. Beautiful enough for some to call her a mountain fairy, a type of fairy that lured men and women deep into mountains because of how beautiful they were.

  Or a cloud maiden, spirit-like beings said to be mirages of the most beautiful people in history, returning to land.

  All that beauty, with no makeup. Impossibly beautiful. Unnaturally beautiful. Vlandos-like beauty.

  And yet, she chose to be with a man who was below average in everything except height. He was five foot ten. Some people even thought she was a monster in disguise and that for some reason she wanted to eat Caren.

  The fact that she had human children disproved that fear. So people just thought she was very stupid, and Caren promised her great deeds.

  And Caren heard it all. From his friends, brothers, sisters, cousins, and even his parents.

  “What the hell does she see in him?”

  “Does he have a rich father or something? Is she trying to get some of that family’s money?”

  “Maybe she likes her men ugly?”

  “Probably thinks he wouldn’t cheat. Well, uglier men cheat more.”

  “Ha. He definitely has her hostage.”

  Vernisha remembered a time when Natasha and she had slept by the sea bay, about a year ago. There, Natasha had told her about the first time she met Caren’s parents.

  They hated her because they were convinced she wanted to use Caren. Use him for what, they did not know. Maybe for some ritual.

  The sound of a moving carriage interrupted Vernisha’s thoughts, and she stood up, trying to peer through the darkness. The lamp was not bright enough.

  Palia and Marvin turned their attention to it.

  Marvin said, “I think that’s Bahmos. Took them long enough.”

  Palia was not convinced yet. “I hope so.”

  It turned out it was them. A massive, horse sized green lizard pulled the carriage right up to them. Natasha and four men climbed out.

  Vernisha recognized them all.

  Bahmos looked around and said, “Why is the blu-fire so dim? I can barely see anything.”

  Julan replied, “Must be Qura ones.”

  “Doubt it. Qura quality is okay at least. This one’s absolute trash.”

  Natasha jumped off the carriage and said, “Those two are asleep.”

  Bahmos squinted at Caren. “He’s bleeding?” He turned to Natasha with a sly smile. “What the hell did he do to make you so angry?”

  “Just get them into the carriage. Please.”

  Bahmos gestured to Caren. Julan and Merkerthy grunted as they walked toward him.

  “I already got fucking back issues.”

  “Damn, same.”

  Vernisha picked up Ulah and handed him to Natasha. “Why did you take so long?”

  “He had to prepare some stuff.”

  “I see.”

  “What did you think?”

  “No idea. Maybe you got lost or something?”

  Natasha looked at her for a while, her expression blank. “I see. Either way, did you get everything that’s needed?”

  “Yes. Residence papers, money for the city gate’s foreign entrance, extra clothes, and a couple of fruits.”

  “Fruits? Why?”

  “I don’t know. Why not?”

  She half shrugged.

  “Step aside. We’re coming in.” Julan and the other man held Caren by the leg and back, moving like crabs, grinding their teeth as they tried their best to get him into the carriage without their intestines popping out.

  Vernisha and Natasha stepped aside. The two men switched strategies several times to lift Caren into the carriage, but kept failing.

  Then another man, Tom, the oldest Tom in the village, came to help them.

  He was tall and skinny, maybe six feet. His face was covered in acne scars. Unlike most men in public, he did not cover his black hair. Instead, he had a rag like scarf draped over his shoulders.

  It looked weird to Vernisha, but she did not comment.

  He removed the cigar from his mouth and stuck it in his shirt pocket. “Jul, get in the carriage. Me and Merk will push him up.”

  Julan nodded quickly. “Got it.”

  Palia tried to get Marvin to help, but he responded with, “I’m an old man. What the hell do you want me to do? Break my back trying to help?”

  The good news was they eventually got Caren in. Once they were done, they all basically collapsed on the ground, gasping for air or wiping sweat from their faces.

  Tom tried to call Natasha, but every time he got half of her name out, he had to take another breath.

  He stopped and recovered. Once his breathing returned to normal, he turned to Natasha. “No disrespect, and I know I’m out of line for asking, but…” He glanced inside, frustration evident. “But how the hell do you be fucking that?”

  Julan muttered, “That’s rude, man.”

  Natasha responded coolly, “None of your concern.”

  “Damn. Sorry,” Tom muttered, his gaze dropping.

  Julan nudged him with his foot. “This one of those love don’t discriminate kinda things?”

  Tom rolled his eyes. “Sure.”

  Vernisha could not help thinking Julan had some kind of fetish for Julioes. She had overheard him and his friends talk about them a few times, and his enthusiasm had been noticeable.

  It usually went the same way. He would talk about how Julioes women were better, sexier, with pink skin and soft skin. He would brag about things human women could not do, like stretching their bodies in impossible ways. He wore the insult gum fucker like a badge and laughed about it, saying he was happy while others dealt with nagging women.

  Bahmos came over and checked on Caren. Then he said, “Let’s go.”

  They all climbed into the carriage. Palia waved them off. “We’ll be waiting for you!”

  Natasha waved back, her smile warm. “Stay safe.”

  The moment they were out of sight, her smile dropped and was replaced by a neutral, focused expression, like a student deep in concentration.

  She laid Ulah down beside her, and Vernisha sat nearby.

  The men were up front.

  Tom asked, “What happened to them?”

  Vernisha replied, “They ate some bad bread, basically.”

  He nodded slowly, looking a bit concerned. “Did your father fall or something?” he asked, eyeing the blood.

  “Yeah. A lot of falls,” Vernisha said, keeping her voice level.

  The others asked a few more questions, but the conversation fizzled out. They began chatting among themselves about things Vernisha did not care about.

  Bahmos eventually spoke up, saying the trip would take about eight hours. Vernisha did not like the sound of that, but there was nothing to be done.

  Natasha tapped Vernisha’s shoulder. When Vernisha turned, Natasha pointed at her bandaged left hand.

  Vernisha looked at it. She knew what Natasha meant. “Need a new round?”

  “I know. That’s why I pointed it out,” Natasha said, pulling a roll of bandage from the backpack Vernisha had packed.

  She took Vernisha’s left hand and ripped the old bandage off, adjusting her palm so it was not visible to the others.

  Julan spotted them and asked, “She got hurt?”

  Natasha replied, “It’s just the same left hand.”

  “Ah. Is the disfiguring any better or the same?”

  “Same,” Natasha said with a quick glance.

  Bahmos, who had been lying down, suddenly sat up and stared at Julan, clearly confused. “Did you just ask if the disfiguring got any better? The disfiguring?”

  Tom chuckled, shaking his head. “That’s why I tell these guys to get their asses into school. A bunch of dumbasses.”

  Julan shot Tom a glare. “Dude, shut up. You see anyone here who can afford school?”

  “If you start working hard, you might be able to,” Tom responded, lighting his cigar.

  “Fuck off.”

  Natasha finished wrapping Vernisha’s hand, inspecting it several times before nodding in satisfaction. “Once we’re in the capital, try your absolute best not to wear it out.”

  “Got it,” Vernisha replied.