Birthday finale

"Hey bring over that whiskey orc" Jasper commands, my breath catches in my throat knowing that it was showtime. "No, get it yourself!" Quinara barks back, I see Jaspers face drop "control your beast" he says to me assuming this is a shocking disobedience and not the ambush that it actually is. I take a long sip from my pint, "I would if I could" I lie I absolutely wouldn't stop this even if I did have full control of my wife. Flint begins to laugh "he's fucking with us" however his laughter turns from confident to nervous as Quinara approaches each heavy step eroding more of his confidence. "Haha man you got us call her off..." Jasper says while Quinara continues closer "call her off" the urgency now prevalent in his voice. Quinara arrives at the table and slams her hands onto it causing all three men to jump the fear of the gods put into them. "You three are pathetic excuses for orc hunters if you think I can be controlled, you can't train an orc we're not a fucking dog!" The anger seeping into her voice, it was a terrifying sight to see such an imposing figure so angry.

Flint goes to reach for his sword but I stop him reaching over and putting my hand on his "you really think that's gonna work out for you?" I ask, now obviously we could handle them if they drew swords but ideally if swords could stay sheathed this would avoid any accidental injuries. Flint looks into my eyes and for the first time in my life I see someone look directly at me with fear in his eyes, it was a sobering moment in which I felt powerful and haunted in equal mix. I understood why people could enjoy the feeling of making others afraid but I also didn't want to be seen like that he was looking at me like... well like how people look at my wife... How I once looked at my wife. I gain a new appreciation for Quinara's strength of will because being feared didn't feel good and there is no doubt in my mind that it would be easier to submit to the feeling of power and become the monster that everyone sees you as, however Quinara never did that she always tried and for the first time I was understanding how hard that must be. "N-no" he stammers letting go of his sword, "good man" I say sitting back.

A second of heavy silence falls over the room, Jasper looks at me "before you do this just tell me why?" He says with the resigned fear of a man about to die, "because you insulted my wife. A lot" I say telling him how it is, Jasper looks at me confused "w-what we didn't, we've never said anything about your wife" he splutters in defence. Now a smarter man I feel would have picked up on the context and figured it out from that but these three confused looking guys certainly weren't smarter men. "I am pretty sure you have said plenty about me" Quinara says and instantly I see the recognition hit them as hard as one of Quinara's punches. "You married an orc!?" Jasper says in disbelief, "no I married the love of my life, and I don't appreciate how you have spoke about her" I say firmly.

They all look terrified, like men who knew their time had come. Jasper speaks first "I..W-we d-didn't mean t-to" Quinara holds her gaze towering over them as they shift in their seats and stammer meaningless platitudes about how they never meant any offense. It is Lucian in the end who makes the most coherent statement simply squeaking "please don't kill us Quinara" this was the first time I think any of them had appealed to Quinara as a person instead of to me, to be honest it might have been the first time any of them had even said her name instead of calling her my pet or simply orc. A fact that certainly wasn't lost on Quinara as she finally ends their suffering "well since you said please" she answers before sitting down all hostility lost from her voice. The three are left stunned looking like they just soiled themselves in fear they take a second to recover their nerves, all the bluster and bravado they had was gone Quinara had stripped them of it and shown them they weren't these brave warriors they were just scared men. I hoped she had shown them that orcs are smarter and far more civilised than the imagined in their preconceptions, I also hoped they could recognise the restraint she displayed given how easily she could have actually hurt them.

The trio get up on unsteady legs, my hopes that Quinara got through to them seems uncertain. "We're going to bed" Jasper finally says visibly rattled, it was clear they weren't staying in our presence for another second. A shame as a chance to have an actual conversation with us all considered equals would have been long overdue, but we had made them fearful for their lives so it was understandable that they didn't want to stay and chat. Right now me and Quinara could only let them leave and pray to the gods that a night of self reflection would take place for them. "Sweet dreams" Quinara says, the look of disdain in Flint's eyes tells me he didn't seem likely to learn anything from this but the other two didn't seem so obstinate.

We watch them leave up the stairs in silence the mood shifted, the hostility ended the fear gone just the two of us sat side by side at a table in an empty tavern, chairs placed atop the other tables; the candles burned down to dim light from dying wicks. "Do you think we did the right thing?" Quinara asks her eyes focused on her empty cup, "too late to worry about it now" I say trying to lighten the mood but Quinara remains pensive looking at that empty cup. She didn't say it but she didn't need to we were in a place openly hostile to orcs based on a lie, a lie that she just exposed for the sake of giving some people what they deserved. It felt good to take down their egos and teach them a lesson but it had always been a risk we knew that. I reach out and grab her hand intertwining it with my own "hey I think we did the right thing, I trust you" I state, she grips my hand firmly leaning into my reassurances. "Let's go to bed my love" I whisper standing up and giving her a kiss to her cheek "it won't do us any good staying here dwelling on it." Quinara rises to her feet "you're right Huck" she lets go of my hand and begins to walk up, I lean down and blow out the dying candle plunging the room into the darkness of night.