With Angus’ help, it didn’t take very long to unload the wagon and get everything stashed away. Ginelle used the extra time to make something for supper but made sure that only the wolf’s portion was enchanted to fill his larger gut. Angus ate his portion rather quickly and was actually shocked by how amazing her food was. After the meal was finished, the young man helped her clean up which was rather nice as Ginelle was used to doing that by herself. To be fair, she was tempted to summon a mirror but didn’t want to scare the man with her advanced magic so she did the cleaning with him herself. After supper was taken care of, Angus wanted to get settled in himself, so he needed to know how accommodations were going to be made.

“What room are you residing in?” he openly asked her.

“I’m sorry,” Ginelle said, as she could tell what he was really trying to ask. “I already took the main room upstairs. I took it because the windows were facing the front yard. Is that alright?”

Angus had paused for a moment to ponder what might be the right answer. There was a part of him that wanted to remind her that this was his house, something that was handed down to him. Yet he also understood that exerting that kind of authority might be counterproductive and even make him look like an ungrateful jerk. The room she was also occupying was also the room that his uncle used to reside in, so he wasn’t exactly that eager to claim it because he wasn’t that close to the old man. So, to Angus, his hesitation could also be seen as generosity, and he could win a few brownie points while also avoiding something he never wanted in the first place.

“It’s alright,” he told her, “I prefer to stay in the room I used to sleep in when I visited as a child. It’s all good.”

“Oh, thank you.” Ginelle said, impressed by his maturity. She had honestly expected a fight for the bigger room but was surprised to see that Angus had no interest in it whatsoever. Rather than question it, she decided to make it up to him by doing something nice in return at a later time. Before she could say anything else, there was a loud roar and a swooshing sound as Ruki had returned from his hunt.

“Is that what I think it is?” Angus asked.

“It is,” Ginelle answered, “Let’s go out and introduce you to him now so that he won’t think you’re something he needs to protect me from.”

“Is he that possessive?” Angus asked.

“Not really,” Ginelle replied, “But it might be wise to avoid any potential confusion as he’s been rather protective of me over the last few days. Last thing we want is for him to attack you accidentally.”

“I would prefer to avoid that,” Angus agreed, “Let’s get this over with.”

Ginelle took Angus’ arm and walked him outside of the cabin, and the red dragon was sitting there, looking rather proud of himself as he seemed to have had a rather good day hunting. There were two large carcasses on the ground before him this time, which was a pretty good haul. Ginelle could tell the dragon was a little confused when he noticed the young witch wasn’t alone.

“Ginelle,” Ruki called out, “Who is this you fellow beside you?”

“Did he just say something?” Angus asked, as all he could hear from the large creature was a rattling growl.

“He did,” Ginelle said, “Just let me do the talking.”

“Alright,” Angus replied.

“He’s a friend,” Ginelle called out, “Turn out this house wasn’t as deserted as we first assumed. Angus is the new owner, but he’s letting my stay here as long as I want which is very generous of him.”

“Indeed, it is very kind,” the dragon agreed, “Please give him my thanks, and he can keep one of the creatures I have captured this day.”

“What did he say?” Angus asked.

“He’s thanking you for being nice,” Ginelle whispered back to him, “And he said you get to keep one of his catches as well.”

“That’s actually very nice of him,” Angus admitted, “Can you ask him if he could let me skin the animals before he tries to cook or eat them. The furs from these animals actually make very warm blankets that we could both use in our respective bedrooms of course.”

“That’s a wonderful idea,” the dragon answered, “I don’t need them myself, but I can see how you could benefit from that.”

“He agrees with you,” Ginelle translated for Angus, “He agrees to your terms. I can actually butcher and salt the meats so they can last longer too.”

“You know how to do that?” Angus asked.

“I was taught how at the logging camp,” Ginelle explained, “It would also be wise to build a supply of foods for the winter, when it will be harder for any of us to find food after the snow falls. I can only assume it will be worse up here in the mountains.”

“Yes,” Angus agreed, “I remember the snow can tend to fall quite a lot during the winters here.”

“No need to worry, little ones.” Ruki assured then, “I can melt the snow rather quickly to prevent the house from collapsing under its weight. I can also burn away snowbanks up at the top of the mountain to prevent any avalanches from coming down. Dragons are good at doing that to protect our nests from being ruined and lives being lost under the snow.”

“I didn’t know that,” Ginelle admitted, “Thank you.”

“Did you use the well yet?” Angus asked her.

“As a matter of fact,” Ginelle replied, “I found it very helpful when I was cleaning up the house. I like that it’s also not that far from the house.”

“Well, I’m surprised there’s anything in it.” Angus confessed, “Usually my uncle had to get his water from the streams below because the well would often dry up. It wasn’t very reliable whenever I visited with my family.”

“Let me show you something,” Ginelle said, before turning to Ruki, “Ask Garrak to bring the carcases into the kitchen and we’ll take care of them.”

“Yes, little one.” Ruki replied making a small bow.

“And thank you,” she said again, “Your efforts are appreciated. There are leftovers from supper waiting for you at the house.”

“Excellent,” Ruki said, even licking his chops. “I am a little peckish.”

“I’ll be right back to get it for you,” Ginelle said as she grabbed Angus’ hand and led him to the well which was so close to the house, less than fifty yards from the front door.

“You see?” Angus told her as he looked inside, “Dry as a damn bone.”

“For now,” Ginelle said, as she started to wave her hands above the opening of the well. There was a blue light emanating from her hands and that light slowly descended into the well and then in a flash was the sound of water splashing about. A few moments later, Ginelle opened her arms up and backed away from the well to complete her spell. The blue lights finally faded away and whatever magic she was conjuring up had expired.

“What the hell did you do?” Angus called out.

“Just a little conjuring,” Ginelle admitted, “Water happens to be my major element. Every time the well goes dry, I can fill it back up at any time.”

“Are you kidding me?” Angus asked, pulling up a bucket of full water. He quickly scooped his hand in and tasted it. “We’ll never have to go to the stream at the bottom of the hill to fetch any water. This is amazing!”

“I’m glad to hear you say that,” Ginelle confessed, “Usually people I’ve encountered were scared of witches and even wanted them to be banished. It’s an attitude I’ve had to tolerate most of my life.”

“Where I come from,” Angus countered, “Witches are treated with respect and cherished for the contributions they made in the great wars as healers. My dad wouldn’t have survived without their aid. Not everyone is as scared as the royals that hunt you down where you came from. As long as we help each other out and treat each other with respect, you’re welcome to stay here as long as you need to. I for one will actually enjoy the company. I thought I was going to be out here at the house, cleaning and fixing it up all fall and winter on my own. I will actually appreciate the company as you three will actually be the saviors of my sanity.”

“That’s a nice thing to say,” Ginelle said, “And I appreciate your hospitality, especially considering how we arrived uninvited.”

“While you were unwanted,” Angus countered, “I can assure you that you are not unwelcome. It will be nice to have someone to talk to and even share the chores with. My sister will like you even more knowing that I won’t be up here talking to myself and doing all this work on my own.”

“You mean the sister that lives in town?” Ginelle recalled.

“Yes, the very one.” Angus confirmed, “I’ll take you to meet her again the next time we go to town for supplies.”

“We don’t have much money for that,” Ginelle said, feeling rather ashamed about that.

“That’s not a problem,” Angus assured her, “I have some money, and that will hold over until we can get some more revenue coming in here. I have a few ideas that might help us out.”

“Really?” Ginelle said, curious about that. “Such as?”

“Well, the skins from the animals your dragon is catching are a good commodity.” Angus told her, “Once we have our own blankets, we can sell the extra skins to people in town. As long as your dragon can keep bringing them in, it can generate a lot of income for us.”

“That’s a great idea!” Ginelle said, “Is there anything else we could do to make some extra money?”

“Your cooking might be an option,” Angus said as he put the bucket back into the well. “The town will be a great clientele if you can make something they cannot make themselves. Considering that you traveled from a far-off land, I’d think you know a few recipes that are unknown in these parts.”

“You’re just full of good ideas,” Ginelle said, rather impressed.

“I have my moments,” Angus said, looking back at the house as they started to walk back. “But what I really wanted to do when I came back here was expand the house and upgrade the property for that matter.”

“In what way?” Ginelle asked.

“Well, I was thinking of putting up a wall.” Angus answered, “To keep people out and secure things within it, like the well for example. Since a lot of the land up here is owned by myself, I was hoping to make it a keep rather than just a house in the hills.”

“I like that idea,” Ginelle said, thinking about it herself. “And you planned do that by yourself?”

“I have the skills,” Angus informed her, “My father was a carpenter and a hard worker. I inherited both of those traits from him. I can do the work; it’s just going to take a lot of time for one man to get it finished. We’re talking more than a few years here.”

“Maybe not,” Ginelle said, grinning at the young man. “I might be able to help with that.”

“Is that so?” Angus said, looking at the grinning witch. “How so?”

“I’ll tell you later,” Ginelle teased him, “Let’s get back to the house. You have some carcases to skin, remember?”

“As yes,” Angus said, “That I do.”

As the two young people walked into the house together, Garrak was sitting outside watching them as Ruki slowly walked up behind the big wolf. The dragon was also watching the two of them interact.

“What say you, wolf?” Ruki asked him.

“I like him,” Garrak confessed, “He’s a nice young man, and if he’s telling the truth we no longer have to worry about someone coming here to kick us out of this house. I was a little worried about that.”

“As was I,” Ruki confessed, “I am thankful I didn’t have to burn that little man to a crisp. I don’t like doing that unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

“Fair enough,” the wolf said, “I’ll keep an eye on him for now, and make sure he doesn’t do anything to harm the girl.”

“Good, but if he does, I want a piece of him too.” Ruki added.

“Deal,” the wolf agreed, “Good hunting today, I see.”

“I found a lot of them in a mountain several leagues from here,” Ruki admitted, “I will have no trouble suppling them with furs to help them raise money to use in town. I also have something else to donate at a later time.”

“What is that?” Garrak asked.

“That is private,” Ruki replied, “A secret dragons often do not reveal to any creatures not our own. You will see in time, but for now I’ll keep that to myself, thank you.”

“Fine,” the wolf said, “Good night, dragon.”

“Good evening, wolf.” Ruki said before opening his wings and making the very short flight back to his cave which was the same distance to the house as the well was, just behind the house rather than in front of it.

It wasn’t a very big cave, but Ruki like it because it was just right for a dragon his size living on his own. He also liked how close it was to Ginelle and the house, which he wanted to remain within reach to help the young witch whenever she might need him again. Seeing those troops try to take her away from him was very upsetting, and Ruki never wanted something like that to come close to happening again. So, he preferred to live in the smaller, cozier cave so that he could be close enough to help whenever a dragon might be needed. He nestled into his cave, used his fire breath to heat the area up before curling up into a ball and falling asleep rather quickly. Ruki was very eager to rest as he wanted to hunt again the next day in order to gather more carcasses and skins for the humans.