Isher Notra

Chapter 3 - The Yule Lads!

In a cozy, regular-sized cave, Stella and Lien are currently waiting for their fish to be properly roasted. The human girl insisted that it was more nutritious (and less susceptible to diseases) if they do it that way. Lien didn't protest, though. 

Weirdly enough, the Wolf adopted a more reserved tone since they climbed down the tree. Stella picked up on that change of behavior, but she brushed it off, thinking that her companion was just tired. She did put the vast majority of the physical effort in escaping Jólakötturinn, after all.

But what truly solidified the idea that something was wrong, other than tiredness, was that Lien was sitting a fair distance away from Stella. In fact, the Wolf waited for her to pick a place to sit, next to the bonfire, for her to sit in a distant spot.

Stella wasn't oblivious. Lien was avoiding her. But the real question is: Why?

Was it something she said? Maybe Lien wasn't as comfortable talking about her blindness as she appeared to be. Only one way to find out.

However, before the girl could say anything, a huge tremor was noticed by them both. It wasn't a strong one, but they could feel it just fine, almost like those massage chairs Stella found in a shopping center once. The girl actually tried to use that as an opportunity to bring levity to the situation.

"Talk about shaking things up!" It was a terrible attempt. But it was one, nonetheless.

Unfortunately, Lien barely reacted to the girl's words. She only slowly nodded and muttered a "Yeah..." Not ideal.

Stella couldn't take this anymore. She had to ask.

"Is something wrong?" She elaborates. "I mean, you've been less cheery than usual ever since we climbed down that tree. And..." She tried to elaborate more, but she failed to find the words. Then, she decided to go in a different direction. "Are you tired? Hungry? Missing your parents, perhaps?"

Lien quickly shouted. "No!" Then, she backed down. "I mean, yes. But..." As Stella was struggling to find the right words, so did Lien.

The two girls entered an awkward pause of pure silence. Both of them wanted so badly to continue the conversation with each other, yet they are kinda stuck in a situation where neither of them knew how to properly progress.

Stella decided to just pay attention to the roasting fish. Maybe they could break out of that awkwardness with their bellies full. However, it seemed that Lien had something that she really wanted to let out, but was stuck for some reason. The Wolf finally relented.

"I... need to ask you something."

"What is it?" Asked Stella.

"Well..." Lien was very careful with the words she would use going forward, which made Stella kinda feel uneasy. "You didn't come from the forest. You have this weird smell that is unlike any Monoke I have ever met." After listing the two factors that are the root of her uneasiness, she finally concludes. "Are you... a Human?" The last word came like a whisper, but Stella could hear it just fine.

Stella simply nods. "Yeah. I am a Human." The implications of Lien whispering that word didn't make the girl at ease, but she still asked. "Why?"

Lien paused for a while, as if she needed some time to process what her companion had just said. "Oh!" She finally snapped back. The Wolf started to shake uneasily. That didn't bode well.

"It's that... I've heard stories..." Lien was trembling. And while Stella had the urge to comfort her  companion, something inside her discouraged that course of action. Besides, she was the reason for the Wolf's distress. "Stories about the creatures that exist outside the forest. They say that humans... Do some things that are... not very nice..."