Board Thread:Roleplaying/@comment-25828117-20190925195201/@comment-5583506-20190926230618

"Who is my little cub? Who is my little cub?"

Though Kashya knew that Baijan meant well, she didn't like when she babysat her. The old Khajiit smelled funny and used to both rub and pinch her cheeks.

Kashya hissed and flailed with her arms in an attempt to be free. "Not this one!"

"Oh, but you are!" Baijan purred and kneaded Kashya's cheeks like dough. "You are Baijan's little cub."

Kashya growled and struggled to be free, but Baijan held her where she was. How could such a frail old cat be so damn strong?

Baijan just chuckled as she watched the Khajiit girl try to escape her grasp, placing a big wet kiss on her forehead. "There there", she said. "This one will prepare you dinner."

"This one doesn't like your dinner", Kashya moped.

"Oh?" Baijan laughed. "That's one surly cub Baijan's got there. Maybe a belly rub would cheer her up?"

"N-no!"

The old Khajiit cackled like a witch. "This one thought so. Now, sit there and Baijan will prepare you some stew. It's going to be a long night after all, now that your father is working late."

Kashya crossed her arms in surly defiance and sat back in the chair. Baijan was grizzled and suffered from slight dementia. She believed that she treated her as she would have her own daughter or grand-daughter, if she even had any. While she was kind, she was also annoying. Still, she reckoned that it was better to be here than back at home where she would be ignored. She got the idea that Baijan knew of her father's harsh treatment, and as such tried to make amends for it in her own old-fashioned way in an attempt to make her feel better. It was not very effective.

"Why don't you have any cubs of your own?" Kashya asked as the old Khajiit prepared some spices out in the kitchen.

"Oh, this one would have loved some cubs of her own back in the day", Baijan explained. "Sadly, it was not meant to be. Baijan's mate and her tried many times, but it simply was not meant to be." The old woman entered the room with some vegetable stew, pinching Kashya by her cheek. "Still, this one has you, hasn't she?" she chuckled.

Kashya grumbled something incoherent and began to eat reluctantly. She did not know what Baijan had meant with "tried". Wasn't cubs given to adults by Mara or Azurah or something like that?

She then looked at the old Khajiit man on the opposite side of the table. He was just as grizzled as Baijan, but still with a discernible in his fur. A bleak golden brown with dark grey stripes. He eyed the two cautiously and smiled warmly.

Kashya had never learned his name, but she knew that it was Baijan's mate. She had seen him in the house on multiple occasions, and other times he simply wasn't there, which made her believe that he sometimes got just as sick and tired of Baijan as she did and crept away to somewhere where he could be left in peace. Or maybe he was just as demented as his wife, as they didn't seem to take note of each other presence. It was both kind of amusing and sad to watch, and Kashya couldn't help but wonder if this was what it was like to grow old.

"Why don't you 'try' having a cub again?" Kashya asked curiously?

Baijan blinked, then she began to laugh, showering Kashya with kisses. "Oh, you little silly cub, you", she purred. "This one is too old for that, and Ma'riq, he is well ..."

''Ma'riq? So that's his name.'' She still did not understand why it would be too late due to old age. What kind of excuse was that even?

"You are not that old", Kashya said. "And Ma'riq doesn't look all that old either."

"Oh, sweetness", Baijan said, stroking Kashya over her head. "You are so kind to say such things. But we all grow old eventually. Some faster than others. And Ma'riq, well ..."

"This one thinks he looks plenty healthy."

Baijan blinked again, this time out of concern. "What are you saying, cub?"

Kashya suddenly got the feeling that she had said something that she shouldn't have. Was she in trouble? She didn't like getting into trouble. She got enough of that back at home.

She swallowed hard. "This one meant no offense, but she thinks that your mate doesn't look that old or healthy." She motioned over to Ma'riq. "See?"

The old Khajiit on the other side of the table said nothing, but just observed the two, still with a warm smile.

Baijan had a worried expression on her face as she looked in the direction Kashya pointed. "What are you talking about? This one can't see anything?"

Maybe Baijan's mind was truly going. Kashya felt ashamed all of a sudden and felt sorry for the old woman.

"Ma'riq is right there", she said and pointed at the man before she continued to eat.

There was a moment of silence before she felt Baijan's hand on her shoulder. "Oh, sweetness", she said softly but steadily. "That cannot be."

Kashya blinked. "How come? He is right ..."

When she looked back at the other side of the table Ma'riq was no longer there. Had he left to be on his own again?

"Huh? Where did he go?"

"Kashya", Baijan said. "Ma'riq is not there because he is no longer with us. He has been gone since long before you were born."

The Khajiit girl did not understand. "But ... he was ..."

"Ma'riq has been dead for twenty years", Baijan said, smiling sadly. "Though this one appreciates that you tried to cheer her up. It does get rather lonely out here."

"B-but ... he was right there! He was rather gaunt, he had golden fur with grey stripes! This one saw it!"

Baijan's expression turned into that of an ice block, as she warily eyed over at the empty end of the table, looking intensively on as if she expected something to appear out of the nothingness. "T-this one will ... kitchen ... spices. Would you like some more stew?" She stumbled on the words as if something had spooked her. "Your father should be home soon!"

It was a lie. Baijan had already told her that her father would be working late. Kashya wasn't perhaps old enough to understand what had gotten the old woman so scared all of a sudden, but she knew when she had overstayed her welcome...