This Healer Is No Saint (03)

"Uhh...shouldn't you be eating breakfast, dear?" From a fierce, hot blooded warrior to a sheepish dad, the transition was so fluid that Alban had memorized that as well! He thought that it would come in handy in the future, foreseeing a time where he'd have to pretend to be awkward and pitiful too. Nimral looked so dejected, it was as if the burly old man was a baby who had just gotten stolen it's candy stolen. The thief probably licked it right in front of the baby too, what a crook!

"Um, well. Oh yeah! I came out here because there's NO MEAT IN OUR STORAGEROOM! Absolutely none! This isn't even the first time you've done this, dad. You don't even work. All you do is sit up in the house III made, eat the meat that ME and the VILLAGERS brought, and break shit! Who do you even think has to fix all of the stuff you bend, hah? Answer me!" The grey girl was not having it, her thin tail whipping across the ground in a vicious fit of rage. The baleful irises the shade of camomile tea bore straight onto Nimral's hulking figure, veins popping out the sides of her head.

"I don't have an excuse for anything but the first! The meat wasn't me, it was him!" Nimral pointed at Alban with his thick tail, his hands outstretched as a sign of peace. And there they would stay, not wanting to make any sudden moves to set her off.

"Oh. Then it's okay I guess..." Nimra fell deep into thought, before accepting the losses Alban inflicted on her poor storage room. He had just saved her dad, and possibly all of the village yesterday, so his appetite was justified. It was the most comprehensive and constructive answer she had in her mind, the other rationalizations sounding a bit...shallow?

Although Nimral was surprised that Alban didn't get instantly assaulted, he drew in his disbelief and made a solemn expression. He would have to abuse this to it's fullest extent, right here, right now! He might not get the chance!

"Nimra, your dad here was just...training the boy. I can tell you don't want him to be hurt, so unfortunately, I have to hold back. If the surroundings get broken a bit, it's only cause I avoided hurting Alban."

'Deadbeat! Traitor! Pushing it all on me, what kind of bullshit is this so called healer pulling? Aren't healers supposed to be saints? Okay maybe not all but not this shameless!' Alban just wanted to get one good punch on the old man. Just one. It wouldn't even have to be a hard one, he just wanted to push his fist into the shameless nimm's eyeball a bit. He was fully expecting to get grilled, and yet what transpired next left even him in shock.

"Yeah...I guess. I'm gonna get something to eat, so...I'll see you a bit later, dad." A deflated, confused feeling was all that was left of the previously cruel Nimra. Her ire was completely gone as she gripped onto her bow and walked off into the town. She couldn't hear a thing, separated into her own little world.

"You...are a bastard." Alban's deeply aggrieved voice broke the silence the dazed girl left. Although there was hesitation in his voice, it was only because he was deciding if even talking to the man was worth it. Why waste his time on a dog that could barely learn new tricks? He didn't even have a sentimental or emotional value either, the old man absolutely useless!

"Yeah well, you're a weakling. How are you afraid of my daughter huh?? You could easily beat her." Nimral hastily retorted, not wanting to be one upped by a whippersnapper with sand still on his shorts. He was just a bit ashamed that he couldn't outright deny Alban's claims. He was definitely trying to save his own hide there, and in no way would he even apologize for it.

"The same as you. Don't tell me your weathered ass couldn't feel it." Through gritted teeth, Alban spit out these words laced with admonishment and resentment. How could that old bastard even attempt to play with his life like this? There weren't many memories floating around in his headspace, but at least his past self didn't seem to be a complete idiot. That intense anger would've eaten Alban up alive.

"Yes...it was my instinct kicking in. Never piss off a woman so close to you...she's certainly shown me that hell is just a four letter word compared to her anger."

"Is that why you tried to push it on me, you deadbeat? You sure are irresponsible..."

A back and forth soon ensued, a young man and an old one both bickering on which one was in the wrong. Alban was clearly the victim, there was no doubt about it. The only reason he had even eaten all the meat was because Nimral had smacked him awake at the crack of twilight and told him to finish all the meat before walking off. Bringing this to Nimral's attention, Alban was sure that the thick faced old man had nowhere to hide!

"Kid. Would you believe me if I said...it was a joke?" An honest sounding query.

"No." A resolute answer.

"Well, shit. But hey! We can train all we want after a lunch break!" Nimral could tell that the direction of the conversation was steering for the gutter. Not wanting to be condemned and have his works carefully dissembled for adduction, he quickly changed the subject.

"Were you not even listening to her? She said there's no meat left!"

"As your teacher, let me give you another lesson. A man's gotta have his hiding spots."

'You are so full of shit-'

—-

Nimra walked around the village of Nimrod, everything looking new and foreign to her. If it wasn't for the fact that she literally belonged there, she would've stuck out like a sore thumb. As townsfolk went about their various jobs and chores, she greeted them like always. Nimrod was always so busy in the morning, the idle noise of people working refreshing her spirit.

"Yo. How's it going starstruck?" A husky yet euphonious voice of a woman snapped Nimra out of her revelry. It was Chiyo, but...why was she still here? Shouldn't the monoya have left by now?

"Um, hey Miss Chiyo? If you don't mind me asking, shouldn't you and your tribes people have left?"

Her question was met with a snort. "I can't leave without thanking my benefactor. It goes against my code of ethics. Besides, I'm not gonna lead those guys much longer, so..."

"What?! Then who will replace you? You're not even old, why are you retiring...?"

"Uh? Cause I'm not old. I like this town here a bit more than back over there so I'm staying here. Of course, I'll ask permission first, but you don't have to worry about my tribe. There's a suitable replacement going through the little ceremony right now." Nimra's outrage was quelled in an almost record time. She already had one deadbeat to deal with...she would prefer if there wasn't two skulking around.

"Oh, wait. If you're gonna ask permission, I need to bring you to my dad. Follow me, okay?" Nimra extended a more friendly attitude towards the new villager before walking back to where she had first caught Alban and Nimral fighting. Right in front of her house.