#chilaois

-0-

 Soulmate populations varied among the various races. Elves all had soulmates, with Dwarves having about a ninety percent average. Gnomes were about eighty, then Ogres with seventy-five. Humans were fifty/fifty there.

 Then Half-foot with ten percent. 

 Like they didn’t get enough shit already.

 It was bad enough that they got treated like eternal children thanks to their size and looks, no, they had to have the lowest population of soulmates within their race, and on top of that, Half-Foot were the only ones without physical signs of their soulmates.

 Elves had intricate designs on their arms that, if touched, would glow. It only kicked in after maturity, and Chilchuck had to wonder how the fuck Falin neverhad skin contact with Marcille before but to be honest it would be that hard if they both wore robes all the time. 

 Dwarves had matching marks, while Gnomes had the words their soulmates would say on their wrists. Ogres had names written on them, lucky assholes. 

 Tallmen were weird, having completely white eyes until they said their soulmate was someone out loud. Then, not only did their eyes change colour, but they could see it.

 Half-Foots had the Gathering and Nesting. 

 The urge to find things perfect for your soulmate and the desire to make a home for them. They were subtle. Very fucking subtle, and unless they realized what was going on, it would be easy to miss. You had to say it out loud, like Tallmen, who your soulmate was. Then you’d know. 

 Most people didn’t know. Oh sure, the knowledgeable ones knew Half-Foot could have soulmates, but most didn’t. That was why rumours of half lives, soulless, greedy, permanent children persisted. Usually, it was worse among Elves. 

 Tallmen weren’t always bad, but even then… well, Chilchuck had met too many who seemed to think that having no soulmate meant you were a monster. 

 If you did, it meant you were somehow saved from whatever awful afterlife they imagined people went to. 

 A load of fucking shit.

-0-

 With Falin and Marcille officially soulmates, Chilchuck put ten gold down that Shuro would leave the party.  Namari disagreed.

 “He won’t. Overheard him asking questions about if women are allowed to be together as soulmates.” Namari rolled her eyes. “That type.”

 “… wait, Tallmen do that?” Chilchuck asked in shock. “I thought that was bullshit.”

 “Some do. Less so when they live around other races,” Namari said. “Or well, the families like his do. He’s big time got money.”

 “Duh,” Chilchuck replied. He glanced over to where the Tallman was watching the newly found soulmates. He didn’t look disgusted, more sad. “Or he’ll hope they break up.”

 “What?” The horrified words from Namari made Chilchuck pause.

 Right.

 “It’s not uncommon for Tallmen soulmate bonds to not work out,” he hedged. Nor was it uncommon for Half-Foot bonds either.

 “But-but-“ Namari shook her head. “I can’t even think about it.”

 “Think about what?” Laios had approached them and overheard the last part. 

 “Your soulmate bond not working out,” Namari said.

 “Oh, yeah, it’s not uncommon.” Laios shrugged. “Mostly it’s the people who assume a bond is all they need; they don’t even try to make it work.”

 “Oh,” Namari blinked. Chilchuck shook his head. 

 Of course, it would be a stupid reason like that. 

 “Other times, they just aren’t compatible. Or not allowed to be together,” Laios mused. 

 “Who wouldn’t allow them?” Namari asked. “Other than idiots who think that gender matters.”

 “Usually them or nobles,” Laios admitted. “I knew two couples who got around that. Two men, two women, both soulmates of the same sex. One of the men married one of the women, and the other two got married. Lived together as a big group, had kids. Got caught and stoned to death, kids raised by the Temple.”

 “What the fuck?” Chilchuck asked in disgust. Namari didn’t look better.

 “It happens a lot in Northern communities,” Laios said, his face crumpling as his shoulder slumped. 

 “… wait, you said not compatible,” Namari said, trying to turn away from the topic. “What’s that about?”

 “Oh well, sometimes they just don’t like each other. Sometimes they’re already married when they find a soulmate and love their spouse more,” Laios pointed out.

 “What? Why would you marry someone not your soulmate?” Namari said.

“Not all Tallmen have soulmates,” Laios reminded her. “Some people get married thinking they never will or after they fall in love.”

 “Yeah, and I suppose the partner feels good about it, worrying about your spouse finding their soulmate,” Chilchuck couldn’t help the bitter comment. Both of the others paused and looked at him. He didn’t answer, finishing his drink before pushing away from the table with a wave goodbye. 

 He didn’t look back.

-0-

 Chilchuck had been twelve when he pulled a stupid stunt and got Jaylatch pregnant. They’d been careful, but teenagers are idiots. 

 Jaylatch went through the three-month pregnancy, and they got married a month later. Chilchuck had been… well, he hasn’t hated it. He liked Jaylatch, and the two were good friends. It developed into more, and seven months after Meijack was born, they welcomed in Flertom. Then, about nine months after that, Puckpatti came about. 

 They were happy, Chilchuck liked to think. 

 He didn’t notice how he bought things randomly. He didn’t notice himself stashing away fabric and random books. How he seemed unsettled in their home, how he kept arranging things.

 Jaylatch did. At first, she thought it was wanderlust, especially when he began adventuring for coin.

 But then she saw how things had a pattern—books on monsters, fabric in certain colours, and, for some reason, a dog training manual.

 Jaylatch insisted that Chilchuck go to the temple, and he did, confused. He didn’t understand her concern until he received a test from the priest. 

 He had a Soulmate. It wasn’t Jaylatch.

 It was the beginning of the end.

-0-

 Shuro, at least, didn’t try anything. He stared at Falin with a sad expression, but seemed willing to let it slide. 

 Chilchuck kept an eye on it. Interpersonal party drama was always awful, and he didn’t want to lose the only party he had so far that didn’t try to con him or get around his contract. 

 “He won’t do anything,” Laios suddenly said one night. Chilchuck jumped, turning to the younger man. “I… didn’t realize it at first, but Falin told me that Shuro asked for her hand in marriage.” Laios frowned as he said it, obviously not sure what to think. “I thought you had to ask family for it.”

 “Do you guys have any other family?” Chilchuck asked. Laios’s frown deepened. 

 “None that I would want him to ask,” Laios said simply. “Falin is more fond of them, so she would be willing to… but with her soulmate being a woman…” Laios sighed. He didn’t continue. 

 Chilchuck knew Laios wasn’t stupid. Naive, gentle, a bit oblivious, yes. But the guy wasn’t stupid. Yet he hadn’t ever pieced together that Laios was aware of things around him. Sorta. Guy still had no idea Shuro wasn’t his biggest fan. 

 “Your family wouldn’t approve?” Chilchuck asked.

 “Where we grew up, you either never admitted your feelings to the same sex, or if you di,d you’d end up in a camp to correct you. Your eyes would be ripped out as punishment for your sin if you had a same sex soulmate.” Laios said. His hand went up to touch his scar under his eye.

 Chilchuck’s blood ran cold. He stared in shock at the Tallman.

 “You should tell her. Tell her your family…” he hesitated, unsure how to continue. 

 “If I do, it’ll shatter her world,” Laios muttered.

 “But she’d know.” Chilchuck pointed out.

 “She would,” Laios agreed, shoulders slumping. 

 “Did… your eyes are still white,” Chilchuck tried to articulate his thoughts.

 “A boy I spent time with reported me when he heard me muttering about him being my soulmate. He was scared.” Laios said. “I got out and joined the army. They found out, and I ran.”

 Laios said nothing else, but Chilchuck saw Falin’s teary face later. And the horrified glint in Shuro’s eyes. Marcille seemed about ready to murder someone herself. 

 Namari learnt about it later, and the cursing she gave about it made Laios seem… calmer. Chilchuck stopped to ask about monsters a bit more, the Tallman beaming. Some of it was vaguely interesting, and when Laios mentioned a book that’s one of the better options for monster hunting, Chilchuck had to stop himself from saying he owned that book.

 He has it for his Soulmate. 

 Chilchuck hated that book.

-0-

 With such a low population of Half-Foot with soulmates, there were rumours and various reactions abound. Out of the response, there were three distinct types.

 Awe, disdain or neutrality. 

 Jaylatch once waxed poetic about Soulmates, believing that their way of finding their soulmate by gathering things they’d like to make a home was a much better way than any others. 

 Chilchuck’s father had always likened those with soulmates to traitors, reasons why the Half-Foot race was despised. 

 His mother had believed it was just something that happened, a quirk of life. 

 Chilchuck always followed her point of view. It was just another fact of life. He had a soulmate, but that didn’t mean he had to be with them. Hell, few Half-Foot did find their soulmate. It shouldn’t matter.

 But it did. 

 The minor dungeons around their home were drying up, so they had to move. It was nice for Chilchuck to move like that, with his need to find a new place, but Jaylatch wasn’t a fan. She saw how excited he was, and she got a bit angry. 

 That’s when the fighting started. Or well started in earnest.

 Chilchuck hadn’t been the most open guy before that. It was hard discussing his feelings with anyone, shame deep in his gut at the idea of telling people anything of how he felt. They’d been fighting a bit before, but it got worse when they had to move to the Island. 

 Then, when he found out how awful Half-Foot adventurers were treated, he began the Guild. Jaylatch seemed pleased initially, but became angrier as he kept going into the dungeon.

 “You have us, a steady job! Why do you keep going?!”

  “Because if I don’t, I’ll be treated like a traitor. That I set this up but don’t put in the work to make it happen!” 

 “O,h so it isn’t for whoever you’re drawn to then? Hoping to meet them?”

 “I love YOU! They don’t matter, I have you!”

 It was a mess, and it just…

 Chilchuck hated his soulmate.

-0-

 The new mage they picked up set all of them on edge. 

 Her name was Asivia, and right away Chilchuck pegged her for a Hubby Chaser. A girl who only joined the adventuring parties looking for a sucker to marry who’d keep her in luxury. 

 She wasn’t a bad person outside that, Chilchuck had thought. She was just… selfish—expected special treatment. 

 Luckily, she didn’t last, and it turned out Chilchuk had been a bit wrong about her.

 “She said what about Falin?” Chilchuck asked in complete shock. 

 “Mhm,” Namari snarled out, eyes narrowed at nothing. Then again, hearing Falin being called that because her soulmate was a woman…

 “Fucking Tallmen,” Chilchuck muttered.

 “Are Half-Foot like that? You have a shorter life than they do,” Namari asked.

 “Nah. No one gives a fuck, life is to short. You’re expected to have kids, but you can just donate that,” Chilchuck shrugged. “Or if you’re a male couple who want kids, a woman is willing to offer her time up. We have short pregnancies.”

 “Similar among dwarves,” Namari mused. She tilted her head and waved at someone. Laios was approaching with Shuro. “Hey, Tallmen are weird about same sex couples. Do they do anything about those couples who want kids?”

 “I don’t know what you mean,” Shuro said.

 “Marcille talked about it.” Laios’s turned red as he remembered the conversation. “Said she knew we had issues with it, but she was curious about our thoughts. Explained everything elves do.”

 “What do elves do?” Namari asked. Chilchuck rolled his eyes. He did not care.

 “Elves will ask family members to donate sperm,” Laios said. “Or their womb, I guess. Marcille can’t have kids, so she was checking if Falin was good with that and making it clear if my soulmate wanted kids, she was okay with Falin doing that.”

 “Huh.” Namari blinked.

 “We do that as well,” Shuro offered. 

 “Wait…” Chilchuck frowned at Shuro, who shook his head. 

 “I was told that the Northern areas do not allow it, hence my confusion before,” Shuro said. “It is allowed. Yet for some marriage is more for joining families than love. A woman pair is less advantageous than a man and woman.”

 “We don’t have that at all back home,” Laios said. His hand touched the scar under his eye, and Shuro gave him an apologetic look. He heard too. Then again, they’d all become horrifically aware of what that mark meant. “You guys don’t have that at all? Marriages being for the betterment of the family and stuff?”

 “No, marriage is for soulmates only,” Namari said firmly. 

 “Half-Foots don’t care about that. We worry about dying out with our short lives, so it’s expected to have kids as soon as possible, but for most of u,s marriage is just… nice.” Chilchuck trailed off, thinking of Jaylatch. 

 “Ah, you don’t have soulmates,” Shuro nodded. Chilchuck’s hand clenched around his tankard.

 “Actually, we do,” he said through clenched teeth. “It’s just very rare, and there isn’t a physical sign.”

 “I heard about that,” Namari said. “An old party member from before I joined Laios. She had a soulmate and Gathered things…”

 “It’s termed Nesting, but the Gathering is part of it,” Chilchuck sighed. Might as well tell them this. It wasn’t a secret or anything. It might even help them understand Half-Foot more. “Only about one in ten of us have Soulmates, and even then it’s not likely. We are drawn to things for our partners, books, objects, anything our soulmate might like. Sometimes we feel the need to move constantly, and sometimes it’s to dig our roots deep in where we are. Most people say that’s deciding whose home you move into.”

 “Without physical signs, how would you know you’re doing it?” Shuro asked.

 “You go to the temple and they check,” Chilchuck said. “Or you voice it like you Tallmen do, and feel the connection.”

 “Huh,” Laios blinked in surprise. 

 “Wait, so you might never know if you have a soulmate? What if you get married to someone else?” Namari asked.

 “You stay married if you want, divorce or whatever,” Chilchuck said. His voice snapped out, and he gripped the tankard in his hand. 

 The group blinked at him, and then Namari’s eyes widened.

 Nope.

 “I have to do paperwork at the guild,” Chilchuck said. He finished his drink and left.

 His hands itched as he passed the merchant stalls, and he felt himself drawn to a bookseller who had a book about leadership that Chilchuck had picked up.

 The experience left a sour note in his mouth.

-0-

  “I wouldn’t go with them, Jay! I wouldn’t abandon you!” Chilchuck was yelling. 

 “Am I supposed to believe that? Your soulmate is out there!” Jaylatch was yelling back.

 Chilchuck wanted to scream, to shake her and make her listen.

 He loved her. He’d loved her for so long, and she just couldn’t stop worrying. He wouldn’t leave her.

 “You never talk to me, you never try to stay, how could I not worry?! " Jaylatch yelled, and he didn’t know how to respond. 

 “Because I love you!”

 “Do you?!” Jaylatch’s eyes were full of tears. “You barely show it! You’re never around and you don’t talk about anything!”

 Chilchuck’s words were caught in his throat. He didn’t like talking about work. Didn’t like talking about how Tallmen sneered at him, didn’t like talking about how he’d been set up to die too many times because no one cared. 

 He didn’t like talking about how sometimes they would leer and make offers for more cash, how he’d had to comfort a young Half-Foot girl barely 14 who had been forced to the bed of a companion.

 Chilchuck couldn’t bring that darkness into his family. 

 A scratching noise made the two jerk their faces up towards the roof. Fuck.

 “I’ll…” Chilchuck looked at Jaylatch, who’d turned around, refusing to look at him. “I’ll talk to them.” He let out a sigh. 

  Going upstairs, he looked at the doors, finding only one ajar. Meijack’s. The others are still closed, and a quick check reveals that Fler and Patti are fast asleep. 

 Heading into Mei’s room, he paused when he saw her holding a book in her hands. She was shaking. 

 “Mei…” Chilchuck said softly. “Did you hear us fighting?”

 She didn’t answer. Chilchuck entered the room to sit on her bed. That’s when he noticed the book. A cookbook for elves. He frowned. 

That wasn’t her usual reading material.

 “I… I had to buy this today. Something told me to,” Mei said out loud. Chilchuck blinked, and then it hit him.

 Gathering. 

 A rush of joy, the idea that his girl has something like a Soulmate, hit him.

It was followed by a deep bone chilling cold that made his stomach drop.

 She heard them arguing about his. 

 “Mei, baby,” Chilchuck scooped his daughter into a hug. She was getting big, so damn big. Probably inherited his height. “This is… this is good, honey. This isn’t a bad thing.”

 “You and Mom argue about yours!” Meijack sobbed. 

 “Because-“ Chilchuck stopped, holding the accusatory your mom thinks I’ll run off with mine behind his teeth. “Because she isn’t mine, and it’s scary for both of us. I love you so much,” Chilchuck promised. He held his daughter as she shook in his arms, damning everything around him. 

 When he got back downstairs, Jaylatch was holding the kitchen sink edges with white fingers, shaking.

 She heard. He forgot to close the door.

 They both know how this ends.

-0-

 No one said shit about Chilchuck and his reaction to talking about soulmates, though obviously Falin and Marcille both knew. Marcille almost burst into tears seeing him, and Falin quietly asked if he would like them to hold hands less. 

 He told them it was fine.

 It was… fine. They knew, it was fine, and it didn’t fucking matter. 

  Except it did,

 Shuro seemed more friendly to Chilchuck, and he couldn’t quite figure out if the kindness came because the guy thought Chilchuck lost his love to a soulmate or if they just tore them apart like the Tallman felt he lost his. 

 Namari was a bit more willing to pick up the tab. She even bought him some pretty damn good ale, the expensive kind he can’t ever justify to himself to get.

 Laios was just damn kind. Asking if he was okay, and talking about going through area with more traps to up his rate.

 Chilchuck wished they’d stop. The actions aren’t cruel. Just awkward. No one actually asked and he never offered up the info. It’s this sort of unspoken, their assumptions.

 They think his whoever, spouse probably, left him for their soulmate. 

 Chilchuck found that the idea they knew even a fake story didn’t bother him much, which unnerved him. Normally, he would be furious. About to rip someone’s head off because they found out. He kept his personal and professional life separate for a reason. 

 Except he wasn’t.

 It wasn’t good. 

 Honestly, the more Chilchuck thought about it, the more he was at ease with the party. He’d been working with them for long enough to grow attached.

 He remained professional. He rarely talked about himself, kept things close to the chest, but he… he felt he trusted them. Which he couldn’t do.

 Getting close to a party never worked out. Chilchuck wanted to say he trusted them (another sign of how bad this is), but he can’t. You can’t trust anyone as a Half-Foot. You just can’t. 

 Luckily, the three-month grace period before registration as Soulmates was up for Marcille and Falin. They would receive a break, paid by the Island Lord as was law among most nations. After the break, they’d be offered way more jobs with a bonded pair. Conventional wisdom said that Soulmates fought harder together, so it would be a bonus.

 Some time away from the others would be best for Chilchuck. He’d catch up on stuff with the Guild and argue over the new clauses they debated in the contracts. Take time around the people who’d fallen for the ‘you can trust me’ routine, only to get burned. 

 He wouldn’t stop working with Laios and the others. But he’d… well, reminding himself of the dangers would help. 

 As soon as they were in town, a group of Guild members ran up to Chilchuck. He froze, recognizing them.

 “Chilchuck! Chilchuck!” Merrythought, a young lawyer, huffed. “Berrybrim is back! Her parents broke contract, but they’re refusing to pay! And keep demanding her return!”

 “What? If they broke contract she doesn’t have to!” Chilchuck snapped.

 “They fucking refused to feed her,” snarled Primdrop, the fighter baring her teeth. She had Dwarf in her that gave her way more muscle than most Half-Foot, which was why she could be a fighter compared to others. Chilchuck remembered a few Half-Foots who wanted to make it as fighters who ended up heavily disappointed when they failed hard at it. You needed the bulk of people like Primdrop had. “Said it was too expensive for a Half-Life to eat.”

 “What?” Laios asked in horror. Primdrop shot him a look to shut him up and turned to Chilchuck.

 “The local magistrate is listening to the party, Chilchuck. They’re saying they’re right. Please-“ she didn’t need to ask anything else. Chilchuck ran right towards the Guild Hall. 

 Outside of it was a group of Tallmen, and a local magistrate Chilchuck knew was dirty. He gritted his teeth and barged through the crowd.

 “Oi!” he shouted. Everyone turned to see him. Relief coated the faces of the guild, but the party and magistrate? That group looked at him with disgust. “You broke the contract, I heard.”

 “It’s too expensive to feed an extra mouth,” the tallest of the party (a red-haired Tallman who carried a giant axe) said.

 “Bullshit,” Chilchuck said. “You broke contract, where it is clearly stated as a basic need that all party members are allowed to eat, no exceptions.”

 “We needed her skinny for the traps,” another of the party (a woman, healer given her staff) said primly. 

 “I’m the tallest Half-Foot around and I don’t need to starve myself,” Chilchuck said. A half lie. He did need to keep himself at a certain weight, but he didn’t need to starve himself fully. A little less in the dungeons was fine. Besides, dungeon food was trash anyway.

 “He’s right!” A new voice shouted. Chilchuck jumped and turned to see Laios there. “We barely made fifteen gold last time, yet we still nade sure he got food three times daily. What’s your excuse?”

 “Indeed,” Shuro was there too, frowning. “There is no honour in starving a party member.”

 “I’m not surprised you're here,” Namari crossed her arms as she glared at the magistrate. “I thought you ran off when my father did.”

 Chilchuck stared at his party, eyes wide as they glared. All looked out of breath as if they had come running after him. Marcille and Falin were right behind them, pushing through.

 “You have a soulmate pair in your party!” Marcille said, pointing at two of them. “Just like us. And yet you can’t afford it?” She scoffed. “Maybe your bond isn’t as strong.” She taunted. 

 That got the pair (a blonde woman and a black-haired man) to draw themselves up and glare.

 Chilchuck did not expect that. Not from Marcille. Going after a bond was… damn rude. Cruel in its messed-up way. Attacking the strength of a bond, saying it was less was… damn. Just damn. 

 “Pay the fucking rat and let’s go,” the man snapped at his leader. “We can hire someone else.”

 “Our bond is plenty strong,” the woman sneered. “Your money-grubbing ways cannot taint that.” The leader looks pissed but he’s not about to drive off a soulmate pair in his party. 

 He tosses a pouch at the Half-Foot (Berrybrim, a kid basically. Fourteen, her first fucking job) and stumps off.

 “My fee-“ the magistrate begins.

 “It’s illegal to take a fee,” Chilchuck replied coldly. “You get paid by the Island, and you know it.” The man glared but left. He knew that any rumours of fees would result in him losing his job. Chilchuck watched him go and turned back to his party.

 “We’ll meet up later,” Laios said, looking around at all the staring Half-Foots around him. “Have the return dinner tomorrow?”

 “… yeah. Sounds good.” Chilchuck nodded slowly. Laios smiled and waved, leaving. The others departed with their own gestures.

 “Did… did that just happen?” Primdrop asked.

 “Yeah,” Chilchuck swallowed. “Yeah, it did.”

 What the fuck?”

-0-

 “I can’t,” Jaylatch told him as she held the papers. “I can’t stay and wonder if you won’t come back. It was bad enough when you were just adventuring, but…” she sniffed.

 “You don’t trust me,” Chilchuck couldn’t stop the words. They fell like grenades from his mouth, his hands tightening. He had been sitting while working on his gear when Jaylatch entered the room. 

 He had wanted to finish it quickly to take the girls out for a treat. 

 “I… I do.” Jaylatch argued. “But…”

 “No, you don’t, otherwise you would believe me!” Chilchuck snapped. He tried to keep his voice level. Tried not to scream like he wanted to. “I LOVE you, Jaylatch. I don’t want anyone else!”

 “Your Bond literally is making you create a home for someone else!” Jaylatch sobbed and fuck.

 He couldn’t argue against that.

 “It doesn’t mean anything. It could be platonic! He’ll maybe we’ll hate each other, “ Chilchuck said, but Jaylatch just shook her head.

 “We haven’t been good since before this,” she said brokenly.

 And wasn’t that a stab to the heart? 

 Jaylatch left the papers on his desk. She left him to finish fixing his gear. Chilchuck took the girls out for a treat and then came home to drink for a few hours.

 He signed the papers the next day.

-0-

 It’s not common but not uncommon for soulmates to be across different races. When it happens, a spell is used. 

 Called ‘Shared Life’, it would bind the person with the shorter life span to the elder, so they could not die of old age. 

 Chilchuck heard about the guy who created it—the same guy who figured out that Half-Foots did have soulmates, given that his was one.

 This asshole also produced the idea that most Half-Foot were soulless monsters or demihumans who were only given souls when around other races. 

 Dick.

 But it did allow for races to share their lives.

 Usually. 

 “I hope it takes,” Laios said to Chilchuck as the two sat in a tavern. After a week of paperwork, Chilchuck had to unwind, and Namari was busy running a job. Shuro was off doing something, with Laios the only one available to go drinking. 

 This was not a good idea since Chilchuck’s plan was to remind himself that you couldn’t trust your party. 

 “You’ve heard the stories?” Chilchuck asked. 

 “Yeah. I don’t… I don’t think Marcille or Falin would take it well if it doesn’t take,” Laios admitted. 

 “Probably not,” Chilchuck agreed. He sipped his beer. “Shuro still with us?”

 “You know, I just found out his name is Toshiro?” Laios frowned. “He finally told me.”

 “Really?” Chilchuck paused in surprise. “Why didn’t he say anything before?”

 “He said he tried to signal that I was wrong, but I never picked it up. Marcille said she noticed him being like that at times, but not how or why. Falin even got confused.” Laios slumped his shoulders, head lowering. “Toshiro apologized for that. He said he’d been thinking a lot since we went to the Guild Hall and thinks he’s been operating under a wrong impression of things. Marcille pointed out we’re from different places, so we’d have different customs.” 

 “Ah,” Chilchuck hesitated. “Did he talk about other stuff?”

 “That he feels uncomfortable with me sometimes? Yeah. I wish he had told me sooner; I don’t get that kind of stuff,” Laios admitted. “I don’t understand how this stuff works with our social cues. I don’t know how he thought I’d pick up his.”

 Chilchuck frowned. He had noticed how Laios just didn’t get things others did easily. It was annoying as hell, at least until you got to know the guy and realized he was basically a big puppy. Chtilchuck didn’t like explaining stuff to him, but it wasn’t difficult. Or that annoying. 

 “Do I make you feel like that?” Laios suddenly asked him, a worried tone in his voice.

 “… Sometimes. You’ve been good about listening.” Chilchuck snorted. “'Cause I yell.”

 “You were mean at firs,t but you kinda just yell now,” Laios said. “I don’t want to be like those guys.” He scowled.

 “Laios, you’re not like the other parties or like the guys from before,” Chilchuck assured the guy. “I’m not always comfortable around you, but that’s a thing I’m just dealing with.”

 “SinceI’m a Tallman,” Laios said. Chilchuck just gave a nod. “I hope to show you that you can trust me.”

 Chilchuck drank his beer. Laios was an oblivious nitwit at the best of times, but he wasn’t stupid.

 That night, Chilchuck was pulled to Gather a book about the various types of monsters in Eastern Dungeons. He was honestly somewhat curious himself now. Maybe he’d read it.

-0-

 Jaylatch took the kids. They were still young and needed someone home with them. Chilchuck couldn’t stop adventuring. He was to damn busy with everything to stop. He had a purpose as a Guild leader. He couldn’t give it up.

 Felt like shit admitting it though.

 He sent letters and kept in touch as best he could. He tried to visit when he had the time, but the girls didn’t understand it well. 

 Except for Meijack. The girl actually got sick because she was refusing to Gather, and that caused her parents no end of worry. Chilchuck had to remind her firmly that her Gathering was a good thing. It wasn’t anything to be ashamed of. 

 “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Jaylatch sobbed later. They’d gone out to a bar, leaving the kids with Jaylatch’s parents. They were the most accepting about the whole thing. “I didn’t mean to hurt her, I…”

 “Do you think we’d have lasted?” Chilchuck asked. “If I didn’t…”

 “I don’t know,” Jaylatch replied.

 It would be years later that Chilchuck could admit they wouldn’t have. Reflection, time, growing up, call it what you would. He just finally admitted he’d been a shit husband. Jaylatch had tried to talk to him, but he’d just shut down when it got too in-depth. 

 He supposed his soulmate being a looming threat to her did them both a favour. Chilchuck could only imagine the fuckery that would occur with his head if he didn’t have something concrete to blame that wasn’t himself. 

-0-

  With their bond recognized, the offers to jong other parties came rolling in for Falin and Marcille.They refused each one, and instead the party got more difficult and well paying jobs offered to themselves.

. Chilchuck was pleased with that. He had enough money he could splurge more for his kids while paying the shipping fee. 

 It also let him buy better ale, which was nice. 

 “Toshiro,” Laios called out from up ahead. “You recognize this from last week?” The Easterner moved to stand beside Laios, looking at something. 

 The rest of the party slowed, waiting for a sign.

 “Hydra?” Toshiro asked.

 “Too small for Hydra, even a baby,” Laios disagreed. “Falin?” His sister wiggled over and looked at whatever they were checking. Probably a print of some sort.

 “Hmm… I think it’s a fire lizard,” Falin bega,n then shook her head. “No, there’s no ash residue.”

 “Some kind of lizard. Look, there’s some dampness here…”

 “Water-based? We're far away from any lakes or the fourth level.”

 “Hm,m a pond could have appeared recently.” Falin mused. “I’ve never heard of anything like this.”

 “The Aqua Volt Lizard,” Chilchuck said right at the same time as Laios. Laios jumped and turned around to stare in surprise at Chilchuck, who flushed. “It’s in a book I read recently.” One he picked up while Gathering but decided to read to brush up on lesser-known monsters. 

 “That sounds so cool!” Laios beamed. “It could be. They’re an amphibious monster that produces electricity.” 

 “How?” Falin asked curiously.

 “Specialized muscles in their body,” Chilchuck said. “The book had a diagram.” He shrugged at their looks. 

 “That is so cool, can I read-“ Laios cut himself off before he could finish. “Uh… is it… umm… I did research on Half-Foot soulbonds. Is it…” 

Guess Laios decided it might have been Chilchuck who ruined his marriage.

 Chilchuck stiffened and glared at Laios. “None of your buisness,” he said through his teeth. 

 Half-Foots never let anyone touch what they Gathered unless it was their children or Soulmate. The idea of Laios touching what Chilchuck gathered was-

 The idea of Laios…

 Chilchuck felt a cold sweat cover him, though luckily, the years of remaining stone-faced around annoyances kept his face in its glare. Laios babbled apologies, blushing as the others looked between them in confusion. 

 The group moved forward, Chilchuck’s mind whirling.

 The idea of Laios touching the Gathered items didn’t feel wrong. In fact… it felt thrilling. A tinge swept through him. He wanted it to happen. 

 Chilchuck felt cold. 

-0-

 “How do Half-Foots know their soulmates?” Chilchuck asked the priest who’d done the test, bewildered. “I know that everyone else has some sort of physical response.”

 “It’s sort of like Tallmen,” the priest (a Gnome who initially treated Chilchuck like trash before changing tune as soon as the test returned positive) said kindly. “You have to say their name before it happens.

 “Thank you,” Chilchuck said with a nod of his head. He slipped out of the temple and let out a breath. “Jaylatch Tims is my soulmate, " he said softly.

 Nothing. 

 Chilchuck closed his eyes and prayed that nothing would change, that it would be okay.

 He knew it wouldn’t. 

-0-

 In the dead of night, Chilchuck was keeping watch, staring into the fire embers.

 “Laios Toudan is my soulmate,” he breathed. A rush of warmth filled him, and every inch of his soul screamed yes, as his entire world centered on that thought.

 His soulmate was Laios.