Two Crows Watch from the Gallows Tree (part 5)

Gaius listened to all this in silence, eyes flicking to the knife whens he threw it down and her arm when she showed it to him. None of the books he'd read, none of the stories he'd heard said anything about a kind Marrow Man. He'd always imagined him as a misunderstood creature, sympathetic in some ways but still a beast transformed by his mistakes. He'd tried to foster that same image in his children and they'd eaten it up eagerly--they were obsessed with the Marrow Man now. But Gaius had never imagined him to be kind, let alone helpful. Bitter, maybe. Her details were too specific to be lies. She believed herself, and he wanted to believe her.
"Why is he bringing you this bear skin?" Gaius asked after a long pause. "And he never hurt you?"

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “He was only wearing this thin, thin cloak he said was a gift and that he cared about it but didn’t want an actual coat and that I should have it because he thought I… I don’t know why he thought I should have it, honestly.”

Was he actually believing her? Wild.

“I think he knew I wasn’t going to be able to carry it back myself, with how heavy it is and how it’d smell like blood and attract things to me. I don’t know. But he said he’d clean it and bring it in five days and that he’d leave it by my tent and it’d be better if I didn’t come out to see him again.”

She hesitated.

“But, no, he didn’t hurt me. Never. He said that he hasn’t talked to anyone in hundreds of years and he was full on the bear — well he said he’s always, always hungry, but could eat the bear so he didn’t have to kill me. He said I’m too nice.” She wrapped her hands in her own furs, not making eye contact. “Said that Tomhas is too nice for his own good and that he’s rubbing off on me and making me too nice.”

Gaius rocked back slightly, huffing. This was a lot--a lot to take in. It would explain the fear in the wolves, though, and why the spiders hadn't taken her. They'd been hiding. "Well then," was all he said.

She looked at him, then back at the fire, flushing. Right. Of course he didn’t believe her. She couldn’t blame him.

“If he’s telling the truth you’ll see. In five days.” She looked at him, firm in her belief that he was going to follow through on his promise. “… I wish I could give him more medicine. His hooves hurt him terribly.”

Gaius was silent for another moment, then said, "I want very much to believe this. It's....well, it's difficult. But I'd like very much to see this bear hide in five days' time. Did he say he would meet you to deliver it? Isn't that...well, he's always going to need food. If he hasn't eaten since the bear..."

“He told me not to come out,” she murmured. “So I guess he’ll be hungry. He said the bear is only gonna last him two days. But he can’t come in if there’s a fire, right? He said he’s only allowed to be by fire if he made it himself…” she wrapped her arms around her legs. “He roasted some of the bear for me. Said I reminded him of his son, I guess. He said he’s going to ask Builder — builder?” She hesitated, furrowing her brow as she doubted herself. “I think that’s who he said. Said he was gonna ask him to let him die to go he with his wife and son. He misses them terribly. He can’t even remember his own name. Said he’d tell me that, too, if he remembers. I think that’s awful. I don’t like being called ‘slave’ and he shouldn’t be called ‘Marrow Man’ either,” she said firmly. “He can’t help that he’s hungry. It’s the gods’ fault, not his. He doesn’t want to kill people, or he would have killed me.”

Gaius once again had to take a moment to unpack everything she'd said and formulate an answer. "So first--he can have guests at his own fires but can't be a guest himself?" That was something new, though he supposed it wouldn't be common knowledge. "And Builder...that would be Fjori, an aspect of the life god. The one who cursed him. And he can't recall his own name. That's understandable, I suppose. Six hundred, seven hundred years alone must mess with your memory." He ran his hair through his hair. "What do you propose he be called, then?"

She flushed a deeper shade of red. “… I was thinking of calling him Mark. The first three letters are the same… I hope he remembers, though. He said he’d tell me if he does.”

She hesitated, contemplating what he said. “I don’t think he makes a fire often, though. I think he just knew I was cold and hungry. He didn’t seem cold. And he only cooked meat for me; he just…” she made her hand into a claw and made a ripping motion, wrinkling her nose. “He didn’t even need a knife. He just… ate it.”

"Ah." Gaius gave a small nod. "I suppose one would stop feeling the cold after long enough. And if you can't die, why worry?" He looked down at their own fire. "What a life he must lead," he mused.

“I feel bad for him,” she said. “The gods were even worse to him than they were me… us…” she supposed she shouldn’t be trying to pretend she had it worse than Gaius, when they both knew it wasn’t true. “He’s like…” she did some quick math. “Like… 47 times older than me. And only three of mine were bad.” She kicked at the knife, leaving it unspoken that it’d been three years too many. “I can’t imagine what he’s been through.”

It certainly put his own life into perspective in a way Gaius wasn't sure he liked. Was six hundred years starving and alone worse than almost twenty years of physical and emotional torment? Perhaps so. Probably so. But given the choice, Gaius wasn't sure he wouldn't turn down the starvation. He was starving himself anyway.
"I expect you made his life better, even if it was only for an hour or so," Gaius offered.

“I hope so,” she said earnestly. She looked into the fire and sighed deeply. “I wish it was safe to be friends with him. I liked him a lot… even if he did call me stupid a lot.” She gave a half, grim smirk. “I guess he wasn’t wrong, though, given how he found me.”

"He called you stupid?" Gaius's eyebrows shot up. "That's a bit bold, considering he didn't know you."

“I mean… I was wandering around in the middle of the wilderness in the dead of night in a blizzard.” She shrugged. “A pretty reasonable conclusion.”

"Fair enough." Gaius nodded. "I can't say it wasn't foolish, but I've been in that mindset a few times. I understand why you did it." He glanced toward the tent; he was cold but he didn't want to maneuver himself back through the hatch and jostle his leg. "I'll give you some poultices to leave for him, if you like."