Susan dragged Micky to the only pub or inn in the village. Bob’s mother owned the place, so if there was one place you would not find Bob it was the pub. Which was ironic since Bob loved to drink himself stupider. It was hard to drink in excess when the only watering hole in the village was the one place you avoided. So Bob had to resort to stealing to get it. Which of course inevitably got him caught. Which inevitably led to a light scolding from his mother. Was it really a wonder Bob turned out the way he did when stealing from family led to a light scolding? Micky thought.

“Alright let me see it.” Said Susan

“See what?” Micky said with a confused face.

“Where he hit you silly. Show me.” Susan.

“What? No!” Said Micky.

“Ooh show and tell count me in!” said Bella, a waitress.

“Oh now you’ve gotta show it off!” said Mrs. Williams

“Show it off! Show it off!” The people in the pub started chanting.

Micky had turned a color he had never seen before. He even thought he was glowing. He started removing bone buttons from his shirt. This earned him catcalls from the rubberneckers. When his hands stopped “Alright alright, let the boy finish before you do that. Look at him, he’s nervous, it’s like he’s never done this before!” Another round of laughs. “Come on Micky if you want a job doing this you gotta be faster. People are waiting an’ that’s bad for business!” Said Bella. This earned so catcalls to which Bella yelled “Shad-up!”.

Micky got quite a bit faster after all the catcalling. And finally, took off his shirt. Susan inspected him like a mother hen, putting her face straight into his chest like she was going to see the ill humors if she just looked close enough. “Bob hit you good, alright. That’s going to be another good bruise to go with your collection from your last adventure.” *Ergh* Micky groaned.

“That was just what I needed, more bruises. Why couldn’t he have given me a broken bone or something new! Why always bruises, I’m tired of bruises.” Micky said

“Here here!” Announced the crowd of looky-loos.

“What’s this crock of bull I here you maken’ about my son!” The mama bear screamed.

“Now that’s speakin’ from yur arse if I eva heard it, and you know your son is shite!” said a buzzed patron.

“My son is better than all you combined and don’ think I don’ know it! You bastards can all get!” Said Mrs. Marcia.

“Now don’ be like tha’, we all buyin’ nother roun’ righ’ now!” Said another slightly more buzzed patron.

After making sure that each and every patron minus Micky and Susan got a full on glare. And Micky got a bit of motherly wince. Mrs. Marcia went back into the kitchen, but not before a “Don’t you think you’ve heard the end of this!” came floating out.

Apparently this was not the first time a kid that got wounded from Bob had come in here. Nor while it be the last. And it won’t be the last time Mrs. Marcia has heard the end of it. Even if she was doing the threatening.

Micky felt bad for Mrs. Marcia and Mrs. Williams. They both lost their husbands and had to raise kids alone. They weren’t the first, the only or the last. Nor were many of the husbands raising kids with their wives. But, it was probably why Mrs. Marcia and Mrs. Williams were such good friends. They even shared a room sometimes. The way they looked at each other, you just knew there was something there that they found in each other.

“What’ll it be darling?” Mrs. Williams said one table down.

“I’ll have a slice o’ you!” One patron said getting pawsy.

“I’ll put you down for a meal, no beer, and it’ll cost you a silver. No excuses now.” She said. Micky laughed to himself, that was ten times what it usually cost and you could get a beer too!

Micky decided he wanted a beer. He never had one, but he was never here, so this was his chance. Besides Susan brought him here so she was paying. Then Mrs. Marcia came back out and Mrs. Williams skipped their table. Micky got nervous, were they not going to be served cuz they were kids?

“Here, I’m sorry ta’ hear you got hurt. Take this an’ feel better now.” Mrs. Marcia said and placed a meal of chicken mixed vegetables and thick stew on the table. She put two plates for the kids to help themselves. Then she put two watered down Meads on the table. Micky was depressed, he wanted real beer not the kid stuff. You didn’t drink water except well water or fresh from the creak and upstream of the village but… You couldn’t taste anything with the kid stuff, it was just to get rid of the ill humor.

“See Micky, no need to get worried.” Said Susan

“Micky, as in the boy that stole my sons [Achievement]?” Said Mrs. Marcia with a glare.

“Ye.. yes ma’am.” Micky said. Mrs. Marcia realized who she was talking to and turned her glare down to a sympathetic worried look.

“Tell me your tale son.” She said gently like a mother. The first time she spoke softly in a while. Of course, when the bar got quiet to hear the tale themselves the glare returned in force.

“Well, ...” So Micky told her his ‘heroic’ tale of his time in the dungeon. He started with when Bob ‘invited’ him out leveling and left nothing out. Not out of spite, just that Micky didn’t think too. At the end Micky found himself on Mrs. Marcia’s lap with his face buried into her bosom and tears streaming down her face. Susan looked jealous.

“Here here, a heroic tale indeed.” Said the nosey pub goers, who had started paying attention again when Mrs. Marcia wasn’t paying attention. Even the waitresses had stopped working to here about the most exciting thing to happen in the village since, well the village. There was nothing exciting happening in the village ever. The most exciting thing was some so and so dude that might be dropping by, but nothing like this.

“Told you that boy of your’s was right shite!” said another.

“I’ll hear none of that. And a round for you all to forget this horrid tale!” Mrs. Marcia said. She would get no argument from these drunks… of course she would get no agreement from them either. By sundown today it’ll travel back and forth around the town till people will think it is a [High Dungeon] with [Dragon]s as [Mob]s.

Susan and Micky ate their meal in good cheer. But when Susan tried to pay Mrs. Williams said “On the house hun’.” and wouldn’t take no for an answer. Eventually, Mrs. Marcia weighed in and Micky and Susan had a free meal to walk off.

On his way back to his house he met Bob again. “I’m gonna kill you!” He screamed a battle cry and ran toward Micky. “No one touches my mom! Nobody! She’s mine!” He yelled before he reaches Micky. And before he reaches Micky he gets kicked in the balls again and laid up, this time harder. Of course, Susan still held back, don’t wanna pop those pustules even if she really did.

Of course this time he did have backup. He brought his whole gang with him, minus Pinky of course. They were still friends but it might never be the same. So there was Jeremy and Trevor, but also Littlefoot and several other kids that palled around with Bob when he was out and about.

Micky didn’t know what to do, but when Susan started manhandling the other kids, Littlefoot by the hair in one hand and tossing the other kids with the other, he decided. He started enraging Susan, which worked well with the amazoness. And charming the other kids at opportune times. They, of course, broke the [Charm] before it really set in, but it interrupted them enough to give Susan the time she needed to toss a sucker and move on to the next. The only kid here that gave her trouble was Littlefoot. And every time Bob got up he would get a swift kick to the balls, even if he defended the precious jewels.

Micky was busy stacking the [Enraged] Buff on Susan which added to her impressive [STR] stat. But he decided to stop when she started getting a little too violent. He decided to bring the stack down a little bit and keep it there. Meanwhile, the kids had changed targets from Micky to Susan pulling all the agro. Even if Micky was down he couldn’t do anything. Even if he was up he couldn’t do anything. He was just a [Pink Mage] and Susan was a giant [Monster]. She was tossing kids into hay bails across the street and flinging them 10 paces easy. It didn’t matter how they ran up, or how many showed up she was invincible.

Eventually, they dragged off Bob again and with a promise of return, vengeance, and not to forget this beating and the pain they will bring again, they left.

Susan turned to Micky then with her eyes red and hungry. She reached Micky before he could get away and hugged him. “This feels Amazing!” She screamed. “Oh god, Micky you have got to do this to me again. Every woman needs to feel this!”

Micky was happy she was happy? He was also sad for his back, he thinks it died in the fighting, or to Susan. Either way, he was pretty sure it was dead and those sounds he heard were its death cries.