'Well, he seems cheerful enough. I'm glad' Smiling back at the man, Viltez nods and finishes his final checks before heading to the door. Holding it open for Aryx he closes it behind them, the sun above warming his skin and calming his nerves a bit. He knows the heat can sometimes be a problem with his furry tail, but the light means being able to see his work better. Better view, faster work gets done. “Well then, I'm off. I hope you have luck Mister Aryx.” He flushes lightly, wondering if he should still be calling the man 'Mister' now that they've. . .
Shaking his head he waves, smiling with a faint flush as he heads off into town. The people who see him coming smile and wave and he returns the gestures. His skin dances a little, wondering if anyone suspects anything. He can't recall being too loud, or sounding inhuman or anything, but away from his new friend the beastman's old fears and nervousness arise and are given voice, making him far more alert than he normally is around the visitor to their small, quiet village.
A man calls him over, a full basket of apples in his arms. He asks Viltez to test them for flavor. “Sure Mister Willus.” He replies, his usual chipper face in place. The smile isn't exactly false. He doesn't hate this man, and to tell the truth, he kinda likes him. But the fear, the fear always there, waiting to consume him, keeps him from ever being truly happy. “The apples are great sir!” he chimes, the note of enthusiasm making the grower smile. Back on his path moments later, he wonders how many can actually see through the mask. How many of them pity his just enough to not call him out on his false nature.
His mind drifts back to the forest. Running around, laughing, his tail relaxed and zipping about with ease and precision. 'I had fun out there, just being myself. . .' A shiver runs through him however as he approaches his first job of the day. A chill runs up his spine as he recalls almost getting caught by someone out there. In all his enjoyment, in all his foolishness, he knows he could have been caught. He knows that all these smiling faces could have been transformed in an instant if someone saw, reported back to the village. 'The price of fun. . .Is it too high? Is fear the only thing keeping me alive?' He almost wishes that he could regret his actions, but then Aryx's face passes behind his eyes.
“Hello Miss Tarsha!” he calls, waving at the middle aged woman sitting on her porch. She waves back and calls for him to make sure the fence is done up right this time before going back to her knitting. He'd done it right, every time he's repaired this fence, she simply has a little problem involving grand kids, and horses. 'Mister Aryx looked so happy too. Like we were sharing something special. I mean, it was just a romp in the woods, but the way he smiled. . .' His hands feel warm as he picks up the tools for the job, and a soft smile plays on his lips the entire time he works. He can't imagine denying that many any smile he can provide. His skin flushes under the heat of the sun, but he knows very well that it's not the sun making his cheeks pink as he takes his pay from Miss Tarsha and moves on to the next task of the day.
He works hard, and earns some relaxation time with the man who likes to simply spend time playing games and talking off a patient ear. Viltez listens, smiling, playing the board game with his usual poor skills. He's not exactly bad at the game, but the sooner he loses, the sooner he can move on and maybe get some shopping done before heading off to the mill. Unfortunately, the man is in a particularly talkative mood and he actually has to excuse himself to head to the miller for his afternoon job. He gets a little extra for the chatter however and smiles in true gratitude as he takes his coins.
The work at the mill is hard, and occasionally Viltez finds himself simply staring off towards the forest. The mill rests atop a hill, giving him a good view of the dark treetops dappled with the occasional flash of color in the form of birds. He wonders what Aryx is up to. If he's been successful. If he will come home and want a bath or have any other needs. Humming softly, he decides to get everything ready for the man once he gets home. 'Maybe. . .Maybe if I make the place inviting enough, he'll. . .he'll stay a little longer. . .' He turns his eyes back to his work, his own muscles beginning tom complain from all the lifting and twisting.
The sun sets the forest ablaze with it's fiery light giving it a brilliant hue as sundown comes over the village. Still working hard, the beastman finds himself thinking once more about getting some food to add or replace the elk, depending on how the hunt turns out. He asks for a short break to grab some things from the market and is shooed off, the miller knowing that everyone is packing up at this point. Racing down the hill he lets himself go at full speed until the market comes into view where he slows to a trot. Not completely sure, but he has a good idea that humans aren't normally so fast, or sure on their feet.
Indeed, everyone is packing up, but with a few well placed smiles and a good amount of flattery, he snags some good cheese and some of the apples from the morning, along with a couple old sweet rolls that would have been tossed had Viltez not asked for them. The baker insists on baking things fresh each day, but Viltez has no problem with hours old rolls dripped with honey. Once he has his food secured he makes his way back to the mill, working an extra half an hour at the end to make up for the break.
He gets home just as the last orange glow begins it's retreat from the sky and is both nervous glad to see that Aryx isn't waiting outside. He would never want the man to have to wait on him, but the longer he goes without seeing his face the more he worries that he never will again. Not ready to panic yet however he heads inside and lights his lamps, putting the food in the kitchen before heading to the bathroom to prepare a nice hot bath. It takes some doing, but eventually the water is just right, the fire beneath the tub keeping it just the right temperature, and he's even laid out some clothes for Aryx should he need them.
'The forest can be rough, and depending on how he went about hunting. . .' He looks around and notices the bow gone, smiling and nodding as he heads to the kitchen to organize things a bit while he waits. His body cries out for the bath in the next room, but he simply ignores it, reminding himself over and over that it's for Mister Aryx, not himself. He doesn't have to control himself long as soon after he settles into the kitchen he hears a knock at the door. 'He doesn't have to knock, but I suppose I've never told him that' It never even crosses his mind that it could be someone else coming to call. He just knows, it must be Mister Aryx.
Smiling he opens the door. “Mister Aryx, welcome ba-” He stops mid sentence. The look of the man sends a slight fright through the beastman and without another word he reaches out to pull Aryx inside. Taking the bow and arrows away, he sets the rope atop them and begins looking his guest over worriedly. “What happened Mister Aryx? You look like you we chased or fell into some brambles or something!” He Reaches up tot try and remove some burrs from the man's hair but stops himself as his mind snaps back to the tub waiting in the next room. “Come, I got the bath ready for you. We need to get these scratches cleaned up and burrs out of your hair before things get worse!” His voice is clearly worried, his tail sneaking out to wrap around the dragon's arm and he gives the wild looking man a swift hug. His hand slides into Aryx's and he turns to lead the man to the bath, hoping nothing too horrible happened. That something isn't going to chase him off.
