A young, small borrower was hiding behind a barrel of discarded tools, watching as a strange man with white hair and two swords on his back came into town. It was late and most people were asleep, save for some guards, geese and this man. She was wanting to try and scavenge for food but not with this guy wandering around. As she watched, another borrower came up beside her, a boy that was a little older. "Who is that? " The young girl asked in a low whisper, causing him to tilt his head before the boy moved into further view and less behind the barrel to try and get a better look. "Hey, mommy said not to go out in the open if new people are here! " She loud whispered to her brother, her little heart fluttering with worry as she saw the man pause.

Surely he couldn't hear them right? They were across the street and the size of mice. Both of them froze in place, waiting and watching until the man reached to pull a paper off the board. Of course he didn't hear them, he was just reading, which was a load off their worried minds. They both sighed in relief before the boy smirked back to his sister. "See? Nothing to worry about. " He boasted, then focused back on the man to try and figure out who or what it was.

The girl waited with worry, hiding behind the barrel further as the massive white-haired male read over more papers on the board. A few moments felt like forever and she was sure that somehow things would take a turn for the worst, even more so when she saw her brother's face pale a moment, before quickly scurrying back. She never had seen him afraid of anything before, while she herself was afraid of everything, they sort of completed each other. "W-what? What's wrong? " She asked with hesitation, her mind running wild as to what could cause her big brother to be scared.

"He's a Witcher Zoey... I saw his eyes, like a cat's, just like in mom's stories. " He informed her, ducking behind the barrel with his sister as the Witcher started to walk by, having taken what papers interested him. Zoey blinked in confusion, a Witcher? Here? Why for? She never heard of any monster problems in the area. Then it dawned on her that her brother could be lying and he wasn't a Witcher at all. "Uh huh, sure he is. " She said, hands on her hips with a tone clearly sounding like she didn't believe him.

Her brother's eyes widened a little, shaking his head. "I'm not kidding, we should go before he hears us or-or smells us. " It was said that a Witcher's sense of smell was incredible, and their hearing unparalleled. So good, in fact, that they were enough to track down borrowers due to their mutations. It was certainly not something they'd want to tangle with, but Zoey still didn't believe her brother, being siblings they often messed with each other a lot so it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility. "You can go, I wanna see what he does, but I'll stay hidden don't worry. "

The brother looked nervous still surprisingly enough, shifting on his feet. "I-if you get caught, he'll eat you ya know! " He called, hoping that would convince his sister to reconsider. She paused and had a bit of worry in her, like before when she first saw the man. But then she went back to not believing him, shaking her head at her brother. "Witchers take children to make them into more Witchers, they don't eat us. " She pointed out, mostly from their mother's stories and tales of the order. "Only boys are taken to be Witchers, what do you think they do with girls, Zoey? It was you that keeps saying girls are made with sugar and spice and everything nice. Besides we're borrowers, we can't be Witchers. "

Everett had a point there, all the stories were about human and elven, maybe dwarven boys but borrowers were far too small to slay any monster, plus the stories never did say what became of girls.... Maybe they were all eaten up. This made her start to get nervous again, realizing it might not be worth proving her brother wrong to risk so much. "What are we gonna do for food then while he's here? " Zoey still didn't believe it was a Witcher but just in case she supposed it was better to be teased later by her brother than be a warm treat.

"Mom will probably want us to just wait, Witchers don't stay in villages long. C'mon let's get back home and get some shuteye. "Everett suggested, gesturing back to a pile of crates covered in cloth. Zoey liked that idea and nodded in agreement, turning and following her older brother back. With them talking they lost track of where the white-haired man went, but that was probably for the best. Empty-handed they scurried back under the box cover, hiding back between three boxes was their home. It was simple, three beds which were mostly scraps of flat wood with cloth stacked for a decent bed. They had a few woven baskets around holding their belongings and a few small rocks as chairs, a larger rock as a table and a small wooden box with a sliding lid as their pantry, which was currently empty.

Their mother was asleep so they decided they would talk to her in the morning about what happened. So the brother crawled into his slightly bigger bed with blue covers and cloth, while Zoey had a smaller bed with a pink and white cloth. The two children yawned and snuggled into their beds, the boy falling asleep quickly but the girl stayed up, her mind filled with thoughts about the possible Witcher, what did his eyes look like? Was he as bad as people say? Maybe worse? And what would they tell their mother, what if she didn't believe them? Just as her little mind started to wind down and sleep was soon up ahead, she snapped out of it from the sound of light footsteps. They sounded big but also seemed like the owner was trying to be quiet, or at least not stomping around carelessly. She hid under her covers as whatever or whoever it was stopped right in front of their boxes.

Instead of anything being pulled away from their home though, there was some heavy shifting, two light thuds and then silence... The wee borrower watched the shadow with wide, worried eyes poking over the edge of her covers. She expected the shadow to start moving again at any minute, though it was so big she couldn't tell what it was and what position it was in. Zoey assumed that it was a human or worse... that Witcher. But after easily five minutes and what felt like an hour, the huge thing didn't move an inch since settling.

The child was still afraid, but curiosity nagged at the back of her mind... So finally she slowly crawled out of bed, looking to her mother and brother to see they were still asleep. Confirming that she crawled under the box cover and peeked around one box to see the giant thing. Turned out it was the Witcher, or well the white-haired man that her brother claimed was a Witcher. But he was oddly very still... sitting on the ground, knees bent, feet tucked under him and hands in his lap. She couldn't quite see his eyes but she expected those were closed. It was all very odd and she wasn't sure what to think of it.

Zoey was curious, awfully curious, he looked so docile just sitting there in such a weird yet relaxed position, but she knew looks could be deceiving and he still looked scary with his armor and swords. But the child wasn't sure if she'd be able to sleep knowing he was there, able to snatch her out of bed anytime he wanted if he knew where to look. Soon curiosity won her over and the little one carefully crept closer, walking around in front of him to get a better look at his face. He had a white beard to match his hair, a big scar over his eye and a few other smaller scars around his face. Despite the color of his hair, he didn't look that old at all, in fact, he had a rather nice face, though very intimidating to a wee tiny kid.

Still all he did was sit there, eyes closed as she suspected, it was like he was sleeping sitting up. Part of her wanted to see those eyes of his, but that would mean waking him up and.... well, she didn't want to be a midnight snack. A closer look at him, in general, wouldn't hurt though she figured since he was asleep... so little Zoey reached up to grab the leather on his legs, grabbing onto metal studs, stitching and laces, anything her tiny hands could grasp to climb up his leg. It was a slight struggle but she tried to stay quiet, flopping on one of his knees with a huff, not too far from one of his hands.

The girl took a few moments to catch her breath, before looking back up at the man's face, seeing he was still asleep or... whatever state he was in. She thought about what to do next, that is until she saw his arm was like the perfect ramp up to his shoulder, or so it looked anyway with all those leather plates and edges to grab onto. Zoey stood up carefully on his leg, before walking up onto his gloved hand, scrambling and climbing up his wrist, forearm, then nearing his shoulder, which did give her a little bit of trouble due to gravity and his breathing was making everything shift slowly. But after a few squeaks and attempts to get her first leg up, she finally made it.

Little did she know, was while her squeaks would be nothing to a normal person... she wasn't dealing with a normal person, plus climbing up onto his shoulder meant she wasn't far from his ear. Predatory yellow eyes opened, at first ready for a fight, muscles tense for a moment, until it sunk in that he was actually just dealing with a curious tiny borrower... must have been a child. He was no longer meditating, but not wanting to scare her away, much like someone would for a hummingbird he decided to keep as still as he could. So he closed his eyes again and acted like he was still meditating, but listened closely to figure out what the little one was doing.

Zoey smiled with pride once she was on his shoulder, looking around at her new vantage point, she could see so much more now than she could before, totally missing that she had disturbed the Witcher already. Now that she was up here though and admiring the view, she wasn't sure what to do now... causing the curious one to look around, thinking... Until her eyes laid on his long, free-flowing white hair. The child loved braiding but often didn't have much time to do it besides to herself, but he had plenty of hair and seemed to still be... whatever he was doing. So grabbing tiny fistfuls of soft, white hair that still felt strong and healthy, the child began to make a small braid, reaching up as high as she could and working her way down.

It took her a little while and the Witcher couldn't help but have a small smile on his lips, eyes peeking open for a moment to try and look in her direction, but she was just out of his view without turning his head and obviously he wasn't going to do that. Normally he didn't like braids but... it was the idea and thought that counted really. For understandable reasons borrowers stayed far away from people but especially Witchers, given people could hire them to remove borrowers as they could be classified as a pest. So he found it nice to be around one even if he had to do so without her being aware he was conscious.

This went on for a good ten minutes or so, however long it took the little girl to finish the braid. She admired her work with a soft, happy giggle, finding it to be rather pretty. Zoey decided that it'd be fun to do the other side now, so it'd be even. She peeked around at his face again, his eyes closed at the moment, so she felt confident that he'd stay that way. So she walked to the edge of his shoulder, where she got up at... but looking down made her feel dizzy, the little one whimpering with worry as she backed away, holding her head and trying to shake the feeling off. She never climbed anywhere up high before like this and she was having regrets.

Much like climbing a tree but being too afraid to get down, she tried again to climb down but feared she would fall, her tiny heart hammering in her chest each time she neared the edge, trying to step down but it was so steep... If she fell it would, at best hurt a lot. Small whines came from the child, afraid and now stressed over not being able to get down from here. She knew if she didn't get down he'd wake up with her up here and that'd be bad, really bad. Zoey didn't know that all she had to do was ask and he'd let her down.

The Witcher heard all the sad, scared sounds from the girl, faintly hearing her tiny heart hammering away... She needed help, his help, but if he moved she'd be frightened for sure. His eyes were open now, looking down as he debated on what to do... That was until he noticed the girl was very still on his shoulder now, not seeming to be trying anymore. Frowning he listened close, for any sort of noise cluing him in for what was going on with her. What he ended up hearing was a little heartbreaking, for he heard wee sniffles and the occasional sob, the young one was upset and scared of the situation she got herself into.

Geralt decided he shouldn't just sit here. Slowly with his other hand, he reached over his chest and up to his shoulder to tenderly scoop up the little ball of frightened curiosity. When he did so she yelped, flailing a little in his hold as she didn't expect him to come alive so soon, nor so quickly. But he was gentle yet firm with her, cupping her against his chest, not too far away from the wolf medallion he wore. "Easy now. " His deep, powerful voice rumbled from his throat and even a little in his chest.

The two words had her letting out a startled squeak but stopped in trying to get away, mostly because she didn't want to fall. Zoey had no idea what to do really, nor what to expect, but looking up at that grizzled, scarred face with those eyes... her brother was right, he was a Witcher, through and through. the little braid in his hair felt like an accidental insult now, having no idea he actually kind of liked it. The small girl nervously gulped, trembling as she tried to think about what she should say. "I'm... s-sorry mister Witcher. " She decided to apologize, not exactly sure for what but she could think of two things he could be upset for.

He wasn't upset about anything though, if anything he was concerned for her and understandably couldn't handle leaving a tiny child crying and afraid on his shoulder without doing anything about it. "Don't be, you alright? " He asked, though his tone of voice and expression didn't really clue her in on how he felt, one could hope it was genuine concern. He was trying to be nice but he wasn't heavily experienced in it, especially given how tiny and frail she was there was only so much he could do emotionally. Physically, being gentle with her was actually pretty easy, treating her as he would a delicate plant, except minus the grinding into a potion part.

Zoey was surprised by the question but found herself nodding hesitantly, finding that oddly enough she was okay at the current moment. "A-are you going to e-eat me? " The child asked worriedly, it being what was on her mind in various places ever since she started climbing him. Geralt frowned to that, shaking his head a few times, not seeming to understand why she'd ask that but then again he supposed her size had something to do with it. "Don't plan to. " He answered, before looking away from her to glance around the village roads, checking for anyone looking their way. It helped it was dark, most people were sleeping and the guards couldn't care less unless it was something big.

The girl was happy for that, relaxing a little though she was a bit on edge still. "What-what were you doing earlier? " She asked, referring to his meditating no doubt. He looked back to her and debated about telling her he was awake for most of it, but he figured that wasn't her question really. "Mediating, don't feel comfortable sleeping in unfamiliar places. " The position allowed him to swiftly defend himself, plus he took a contract but the one who posted the notice wasn't awake so he decided to wait until morning to talk to them.

Curious but still nervous eyes watched him as he spoke, noticing he wasn't a big talker.... it kind of made her wonder why besides his voice sounding like he wanted to eat her all the time it didn't seem that bad at all. Maybe he was secretly shy.... the thought of a big strong Witcher being shy made her less afraid of him, whether it was true or not she couldn't be sure but she had no other reason in her mind for it. "Are you here to kill a monster? " She asked next, knowing that's what Witchers usually did especially in villages. She never heard of any monsters in the area but they never left the village either so it didn't mean anything.

Geralt was unsure of her questioning and whether he should answer or not, but he knew children couldn't help their curiosity and it seemed that being the size of a finger didn't change that. "Yes, not sure what it is yet though. " Hence why he wanted to talk to the contract giver, get as much info as he could for it. To him though he felt it was only fair if he asked a question or so in return. "Why did you climb up me and braid my hair? " He questioned, not really being able to wrap his mind around why she'd do that if she was so afraid of him. Besides surely at her young age, she had family somewhere, she should have stayed with them.

Zoey looked away sheepishly, the reason sounding silly now that she had to admit to it out loud. "W-well... you are right outside our home, I couldn't sleep and... was curious. Your hair is nice and-and I thought a braid would be pretty... " She explained, wringing her hands and shifting nervously in his hand. The Witcher looked around them, probably trying to figure out where their home was... his eyes focusing on the boxes he wasn't far from. "Should get back to your family though. I'll move if you want. " He didn't want to be putting a family of little folk on edge, though truth be told with a Witcher nearby no one else will want to come close which could be some good protection.

But the young girl wasn't sure if the Witcher was fully trustworthy, sure he was nice thus far but borrowers were taught to be careful, very careful. He could turn on them in an instant and it'd be over too quickly for them to react, especially since she heard that Witchers were really fast. "If-if it wouldn't be too much trouble... ? " She asked, looking up at him, hoping that she wasn't asking too much for him to move. Geralt didn't mind though, giving a single nod before he moved to put her back on the ground. She watched in awe while holding onto one of his gloved fingers as his hand moved to the ground, laying flat.

Everything was going so well for her, but she paused, looking back up at him which now that she wasn't held to his chest he looked a lot more intimidating from the ground. "Wait, what's your name mister Witcher? " She asked, hoping he could hear her even though she wasn't so close to his ears anymore. Thankfully for his keen hearing, he heard her just fine. "Geralt of Rivia. " He responded, not minding in the least of sharing his name. To her, it was unfamiliar but not a bad name "I'm Zoey! " She happily piped back, before giving his thumb a hug, glad that he so far seemed nicer than any human they met. "Thank you Mister Geralt of Rivia, good luck getting the monster. " She said to him nicely, trying to shove any dark thoughts of him turning bad on them to the back of her mind.

The corners of the Witcher's mouth twitched in a faint smile as he watched the tiny girl eventually let go, slide off his hand and scurry back under the cover of the crates. As promised the Witcher stood up, casting his shadow over the crates and thus, the little one's home, but he turned away and walked off to another nice spot that looked out of the way enough for people to leave him alone while he meditated. He took one glance back at the crates, able to see it from where he picked, before kneeling down and getting back into the correct position. With a deep breath, he soon slipped back into a peaceful state of meditation.

Little Zoey was quiet as she slipped back into bed, feeling the faint chill she got from being outside being chased away by her warm bed. Both her mother and brother were still asleep so far as she knew, she had her little meeting with the Witcher secretly. The wee girl felt better meeting him and knowing he kept to his word, seeming to be harmless or at least gentle to her kind. She didn't understand now why the stories claimed Witchers ate borrowers unless he was an extra nice one or something. She thought about this for a minute or so before her thoughts slipped away from her, calmly falling asleep to rest up and get ready to try and find some food in the morning.

However it seemed the small family used up all their luck, as come morning the crates they were hiding among had to be accessed by the village. As they slept through the early morning, the cover was pulled away and some boxes were carried off. No one noticed them that time, but as the peasants came back for the rest of the boxes they saw the little makeshift home. As the group of three men stared, the family slowly woke up, or well the mother and brother did anyway. Unlike the humans the borrowers didn't spend any time staring and turned tail, darting off between two remaining boxes but not stopping there. The two had assumed Zoey woke up with them, but because the girl went to bed so late, she was more deeply asleep.

"Ehhh it's those blasted little thieves. " One said, disgusted while the other spoke up next. "More like vermin, or pests. " Then the third pointed at Zoey still in bed. "One's still here, let's get rid of it. " The other two nodded and the second one raised his foot, getting ready to stomp down on the just now waking up little girl, stirring from her slumber probably from hearing voices. Zoey felt a lump form in her throat preventing her from screaming as she looked up and saw the looming danger above her, her limbs frozen in fear and stopping her from sprinting away as she should, instead her life flashed before her eyes, ending with glimpses of the Witcher from last night.

Speaking of the Witcher, right when she thought she was done for, his deep voice spoke out, firm and not happy one bit. "Stop and step aside, now. " As if she thought his voice was scary before, when he was upset he was ten times more terrifying. It seemed the child wasn't the only one who thought so, for the peasants did just as he told them to, nervous looks on their faces as they backed away. "It-it's nothing Witcher, we were just getting rid of a pest is all. " One of them said, voice a little unsteady as Geralt gave him a threatening sideways glance, before kneeling in front of the very much terrified girl. Everything was happening so fast, she thought she'd be dead one minute and then the next a familiar face was looking down at her but she wasn't entirely sure what to do.

Geralt was tempted to just tell her to run, but something told him that the three would just track her down once he left. He didn't like it but he knew he had to help her better than that. The Witcher glanced over his shoulder at the peasants, making sure they were not getting any funny ideas with pitchforks involved before he reached down to gently scoop up the tiny child. She was still a bit in shock so it didn't take much, she didn't fight against him or anything as he held her in his palm, then slowly lifted her up to his face and away from the ground.

Zoey wasn't exactly sure what Geralt had in mind, mostly she was just trying to calm her racing heart and be thankful she wasn't squished. She stared into those big kitty eyes of his, as unnerving as they were she was also happy to see them at this point since she knew the Witcher wasn't going to squish her if he did want to he would have done so way before now. Unable to help herself, she got up and hugged his nose since she was close enough to do so. "Thank you Mister Geralt of Rivia. " She mumbled, trembling faintly from the scare and lingering fear in her from being around so many big people that could hurt her with ease.

The Witcher was taken aback by her sudden affection, feeling tiny arms grasping his nose. He knew the peasants were still there but he decided there was no reason he couldn't find some content in the moment, closing his eyes and gently leaning his nose into her. He figured it was the least he could do for what he planned to do with her next. Zoey meanwhile was surprised but grateful, a faint happy giggle escaping her as the warmth of his face chased away what slight chill she had from getting out of bed in the morning.

Geralt didn't say a word, knowing that nothing he said could soothe her and instead just held the hug for a little longer, for one not being used to getting them but also for her sake. Eventually, though he pulled away, eyes opening to watch the little one curl up in his palm again, smiling sheepishly at him. His eyes probably still made her a little nervous, but he needed them open to see. He didn't like what he was about to do and felt guilty for it but... he felt that if he didn't she'd be in worse danger than she'd be otherwise. So the Witcher brought her closer to his mouth then, jaws opening up just wide enough for her as his tongue slipped out, gently but quickly lapping the little one up and out of his hand in one smooth motion.

The little borrower didn't really see it coming, one minute she was content and happy with his gentleness and the hug they shared. The next minute however she watched in confusion as he brought her close to his mouth and opened up, warm breath washing over her. She was confused but not afraid, not clicking together what he was doing until his slimy, soft tongue scooped her up. But by then it was too late. "W-wait!" She squeaked out, trying to slide off but she was too slow, the tip of his tongue just gently pushed her back while most of her was already in his mouth. Worried about getting her limbs bit off she pulled her arms away from his teeth, legs curling under her as the tongue drew her in the rest of the way, her head now softly resting on the tip and safely clear of his teeth.

His breath didn't smell all that bad, probably because he hadn't eaten in a while which... could be a good thing, or perhaps it was why he was making a snack out of her. Either way, the poor girl didn't understand, he was being so nice and sweet before, what happened? She watched with a worried whimper as he closed his mouth, teeth gently clicking shut around her and sealing her up inside. It was rather warm in his mouth, the tongue was like the softest thing she ever laid on but it was little to comfort her from being in another being's mouth.

Geralt, however, felt bad, he did, he didn't want to frighten her or make it seem he tricked her but he had to protect her. He heard gasps from the peasants as they watched him, probably surprised as well at the sudden turn of events. Zoey was still in his jaws while he gently licked her, mostly to cover her in saliva so she'd go down safely and not get stuck. She was rather boney he noticed as his tongue lapped over tiny, frail limbs, faint giggles escaping the girl as he apparently licked ticklish spots by accident. He was tempted to repeat the motion but decided not to, the longer he waited the more time the three humans could pull something.

So once she was covered in a thick layer of drool, he tipped his head and nudged the girl to the back of his throat with his tongue. He felt Zoey shift, though not in a panicked manner so he took it as his queue to gently swallow. Powerful muscles flexed and shifted, engulfing the child in a warm, snug embrace as she slipped down his gullet. She was curled up but thankfully still small enough to keep him from choking. It had that almost painful feeling though of swallowing too large or too hard of a piece of food, almost painful that is but not quite. Zoey made a small lump in his neck, almost invisible to the untrained eye, but Geralt could feel it as she slipped past his collarbone, vanishing behind layers of muscle, armor and skin.

A deep but quiet hum escaped him, content that at least now the little one was safe from harm, she couldn't get much safer than in the presence of a kind but fierce Witcher. He knew she must still be a bit nervous, but there wasn't much he could do about it now as for the main reason he gulped her down would be ruined if he declared it safe for her. "You-you monster! " Geralt heard one of the men say, sounding horrified about what they witnessed. The Witcher looked at him then, eyes narrowed slightly but enough to be noticed, his stare was icy cold despite the warm yellow color they were. "You were about to crush her under the heel of your boot while she slept, who's the monster? " he questioned them in a stern voice.

Meanwhile, inside of Geralt little Zoey stayed curled up as muscles flexed and kneaded her down his throat, hearing the powerful swooshing in and out sound of his lungs as he breathed at a even, steady rate. When he spoke to the humans his voice rumbled around her like thunder, almost rattling her to her core if it wasn't due to his quiet way of speaking. His heart was also slow and steady, showing how calm he was about all this, which was totally reverse of her little heart fluttering a mile a minute. She had no idea what awaited her in his belly, all she could think of was how foolish she was for thinking he wouldn't devour her. But she was confused as well, he was so gentle about it and picked a rather odd time to do it. He could have done it while they were all asleep or when he had her in his hand before.

The humans shifted nervously at the unpleasant stare and his question. "At-at least we were not going to eat her! " They exclaimed, a hint of mortification in the tone which Geralt found minorly irritating. He wasn't going to harm the little one of course but it was reasonable in a sense that humans were not used to seeing such a thing, even if what they were going to do was actually worse. "You were going to just leave her there, this way her body won't go to waste. " The Witcher said, not giving away his true intention of keeping the little one safe entirely. The peasants hesitated, being so hard up for food most of the time they could understand the value of not wasting but still... They couldn't help being unsettled.

Geralt wasn't entirely sure what to do with the little one now, he supposed first thing was to get a private moment to comfort her and let her know she's alright. First, he had to get that private moment and with the peasants now quiet, he assumed they were done here. So the Witcher turned and started to walk away, waiting for them to call back to him to bug him further. After a few tense moments, they didn't call back to him, instead, they went back to moving boxes. It was a relief they didn't push the subject, though Geralt could understand that many humans, though not all, disliked borrowers. It was hard for the more.... simple-minded to realize something so small could be just as much of a person as they were. It didn't help that the less.... moral Witchers took jobs on them for easy coin, which meant they had every reason to fear them. Granted it wouldn't help much for one being frowned upon by the general public to explain why they shouldn't frown upon another species of beings they frowned upon. Which meant relocating the borrowers was the nicest thing to do, though the most hassle and the riskiest to one's reputation if the same humans found them again.

Meanwhile, Zoey was currently huddled up against the nearest wall of the Witcher's stomach, not being entirely sure whether this was her salvation or her doom. It was pretty soft in here at least... but dark, too dark for her liking but she also wasn't sure if she wanted to be able to see either. It wasn't exactly comforting to hear his words but there was a slight glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe he was lying, do Witchers lie? Could they? Well, they were people... so it seemed like they could. But that meant it could go either way, he could have been lying the whole time up until now. That image had her swallowing nervously again, pressing her back further into the fleshy wall behind her, squishing to her form.

Each second waiting for him to say something felt like an eternity, but the faint swaying of his belly showed he was walking... somewhere, to where she did not know but she could only hope it wouldn't be too much longer until he would just say something, anything to confirm her fate. "Sorry about that, you okay? " She finally heard his deep voice rumble around her, assuming the words were directed to her, though it was hard to tell. Zoey felt her heart soar though, he was asking if she was alright! That must mean he wasn't going to harm her and must just be holding her in here. She didn't answer right away, too relieved that she wasn't about to perish. Finally after a minute or so she found her voice to speak up while looking at the roof of the stomach. "Y-yes! I'm okay... W-will I be okay? " She couldn't help but ask, just to have solid confirmation.

Geralt was beginning to worry a little when she didn't answer, but after giving her a little bit she spoke up, understandably nervous. He walked outside the village and was leaning against a tree, his right hand on his stomach with his left holding his map, for just in case any curious village folk came by, he could brush off what he was doing as reading the map. "Yes. Where did your family go? " He figured that the best thing to do would be to simply return the child to her family, she'd be safe then. Maybe... just maybe the big white Witcher could be convinced to help the family move to another village, but he'd have to know where her people were first as it wouldn't be really good for her to just drop her in a new village all alone. She'd be safer nestled in his belly at that rate, not that his belly wasn't safe, just not the best place for her if he ever had to drink or eat something. Plus the thought of such a young, tiny girl being separated from her family was a sad one... something he hoped to keep from happening.

Zoey was still quite overwhelmed with all of what was going on, but she tried to focus, trying to remember what happened before she... she was devoured. Her mother and brother ran when the humans showed themselves, where would they have gone? They probably figured she was dead, but they still had a special place for all of them to go to in case they got separated. It was outside of the village, but that didn't help much... As she dug in her thoughts, she began to tell him what came to mind. "Outside of the village... there's a spot w-we picked to meet up at if we lost our way... There's a big lake with pretty purple flowers all around it! It's not far, you can still see the village buildings from it. " Geralt listened to her closely, smart, something like that was a wise thing to do for a family of people generally prone to having to flee at a moment's notice, as long as no one knew of this spot. However, there was one... pretty big hiccup in her explanation. "There isn't any lakes that are that close by. " He informed her, hoping she had some insight on why that is. He didn't think she would lie to him, so it was probably just simply a misunderstanding or mistake.

The girl frowned, what did he mean? She just saw it yesterday, she opened her mouth to protest, but then it dawned on her what the issue was. "... Oh, well... It's a lake to me... " She gulped nervously, glancing around at the soft, fleshy walls around her, a reminder of the massive size difference between her and Geralt, she was small enough to fit in his stomach like a little morsel. "It's... probably just... like, a puddle for you... But you'll see the pretty flowers still! " She hoped he wasn't annoyed by the oversight.

The Witcher didn't mind at all though and just smiled faintly, imagining for a moment what it'd be like to see things from her view, everything being so much larger and grand. "That makes more sense, I will go search for this puddle. " While, of course, being careful where he stepped in case the brother and mother were still trying to get there. So with that, he closed his map, since that wouldn't help him anyway and there was no need to pretend any longer, before he started to walk around the outskirts of the village in a clockwise manner, looking for any signs of water with flowers around it. He did find a few puddles, but he couldn't see the village houses, nor did he see any flowers, so he moved on.

After walking about halfway around the village, he finally spotted a pond behind the tavern at the edge of the village, with a circle of small powder purple flowers around it. Sun was shining down at this area through the trees, which possibly explained the flowers. He looked around carefully after he crouched down, but didn't see anything... or anyone, either they were hiding well or they were not here yet. "Found it, but no one's here. " He told Zoey, unsure if she perhaps had any ideas on what to do. If they saw him, they might not come, yet.... he wouldn't know about it unless Zoey told him. The wee girl huddled up against one of the walls as he walked, the sensation was weird but... not bad, especially now that she knew it was safe, unlike the first time. She had the chance to relax and enjoy it, and even found herself drifting off by mistake. But when he spoke up about having found their little meeting place, she stirred from her half-asleep state, looking around and shaking her head to get back to her senses. "Oh uhm… " She paused to yawn, gosh, the warmth of his stomach was... luring. " They might be nearby... If you let me out, maybe they'll see I am okay and come over? " Part of her didn't really want to leave the comfortable area she was in, but she wanted her family to see she was okay.

Meanwhile, Geralt was being watched, from just beside the hut near the puddle. The mother and Everett were surprised and horrified to see the Witcher at their meeting spot. They were hoping that... by some miracle, Zoey got away... Even though they saw Geralt swallow, it was hard not to have hope and they wanted to give her a chance. Just as they were about to turn and, flee the scene, however, Everett nudged his mother. "Wait, look he's talking to someone? " He muttered, confused. The mother paused and forced herself to look back, all the while fighting between being angry and being heartbroken. Sure enough, they listened as he talked to Zoey, though they couldn't hear her answer him back.

"What if... what if Zoey is alive in... inside of him? How else could he have found this place unless she told him? " Everett asked, which.... he had a good point really. He was obviously here for a reason and didn't just stumble across it. It was risky and... they likely should accept that their daughter and sister was now gone, but... Understandably, as a loving family, they didn't want to give up so easily. Not knowing that Zoey suggested leaving his stomach and there was a good chance he would agree, they came out of hiding before he could answer her. His sharp, golden gaze spotted them almost instantly, catching onto the movement mostly. "No need, I see them. " He told Zoey quietly, keeping very still as they approached. He tried to appear non-threatening and allowed them to come over at their own pace. Which was slow... but he couldn't blame them, they were likely debating about whether this was wise or not. He had no clue on how much they saw, whether they saw him swallow little Zoey or not. He hoped they didn't, but there was a pretty good chance they did.

"Are you Zoey's family? " Geralt asked once they were close enough, or as close as they felt comfortable, which still had the puddle dividing them. Of course, he could just step in the puddle and snatch them up so it was a weak security blanket, but they felt comfortable having it between them. The two looked to each other as if debating if they should answer, but he already pretty much assumed they were so it wasn't needed. "Yes... yes we are, master Witcher. " The mother answered first, her voice was a bit unstable, as if she wanted to curse his name. He could understand why... she probably suspected he had killed her child.

The brother spoke up then, getting straight to the point. "Where is she? Is she okay? " He asked, trying to keep his voice stern, but the Witcher was intimidating, he scared him long before any of this... now it was even worse. They watched as Geralt moved one hand to his middle, delicately, as if there was something precious inside. "In my stomach... only way to keep the peasants from hurting her. " He admitted and explained, hoping they'd believe him.

They watched how he behaved, trying to spot any deception or malicious intent, but it still made them nervous and horrified when he confirmed Zoey was in his belly. "And.... she's okay in there? She's not in any danger...? " It was hard to imagine that it was safe inside of him, but still they hoped by some miracle, that it was. The Witcher's hand then softly patted his middle before answering. "She's safe. "They expected him to say more and it almost looked like he wanted to, but then he looked down.

Zoey meanwhile, tried to call to her family. "It's okay guys! It's safe in here! " She called, hoping they could hear her. But they were still some ways away from him, much less his stomach. "I don't think they can hear you. " He muttered to her, sounding apologetic. Perhaps he should let her out, as a sign of good faith and to show she was okay.

"Who are you talking to? " The mother asked, almost a bit accusatory, To the boy it was obvious, the question of the matter was if she was trying to warn them, or confirm his story. It could be either way and one meant safety, the other meant their doom if they failed to heed it. "Zoey, she was trying to tell you it's alright. " He told them but knew his words probably didn't mean a lot to them.

Everett glanced to his mother then, wondering if they should trust his claims or not. "Everything leads to him telling the truth... besides the most obvious. " He whispered, just loud enough for her to hear. That being said, eating people was generally not a safe thing to do, stomachs were not safe. Then again, there was a lot about Witchers that people didn't know, especially borrowers... Borrowers didn't really have time to be curious or study things just to do it if they studied something, it was out of survival, well this was the majority anyway. There were one or two more curious borrowers, but usually, they didn't live very long. So most of what the race knew was documentation written by other races. Even then, that was a feat in itself to find and read these documents.

In the end, the two borrowers decided that living without Zoey wasn't really living much at all as it was, so it was more than worth the risk to believe him. Besides, it would be pretty awful if he was telling the truth and they left her behind anyway. The mother took a breath, an idea coming to mind on what they could do to prove it though and it wasn't asking him to cough her up, if she was alive then she rather not make them go through that just to show proof when there were less extensive ways. It was risky for her and her son though, but so was just being here so... "Could... could we possibly hear her? If we were... closer? " She stepped forward and asked the Witcher.

Geralt really expected them to ask to see her, but he would rather not if he could avoid it, just because the process was not exactly the most comfortable thing in the world, having to force his throat to work in reverse and all. Sure it was fine to let them out for long term periods, but if there was another way to prove it, he was glad for it. "Possible, want me to... pick you both up? " he was unsure if they meant that or not and he certainly didn't want to get them upset by assuming.

They hesitated again, they could try from the ground but... it probably wouldn't be close enough. "Let's... let's try just getting closer to you... alright? " The mother interjected before Everett could say anything. Understandably she didn't want to take a needless risk, but Everett had his doubts they could hear each other. "If you try anything, we got needles coated in poison, Witcher, we will use them. " Everett decided to add onto. It wasn't wise to threaten a Witcher, especially with empty threats, as they had no weapons, they didn't believe in them really working against humans. Sure you could get them to let go, but either you'll be crushed from the clench that could happen from pain, or the fall would kill them anyway, so it didn't make much of a difference. But Everett hoped the threat of poison would keep the Witcher behaved, unknown to the fact that Geralt could very well have a natural resistance to most poisons.

Geralt suspected it was a bluff anyway, he didn't see any needles and they were not exactly easy to hide for someone their size. But he went along with it anyway. "Come over then, I'll be still. " He answered, keeping relaxed, hands on his knees in a docile manner.

The two carefully walked around the pond then, eyes locked onto Geralt in case he moved or showed signs of tricking them. But he remained still as promised and they came up until they could almost touch him if they wanted to. "Zoey!? Can you hear us?!" Everett called first before the mother cupped her hands around her mouth and called too. "Zoey, dear, please say something if you're alright!" Once they said their peace, Geralt looked down at his middle, hoping Zoey heard.

Zoey perked up, she faintly heard their voices, her family's worried, hopeful voices. She pressed her hands against the front stomach wall and tried to call back. "Yes, mommy! I'm okay! Mister Geralt is just protecting me! " She called as loud as she could, with any luck the sound could go both ways. She wouldn't mind not being coughed up either if they could make it work and all, she was very much okay with just staying nestled in him.

However, while sound entering his belly was pretty easy, sound escaping wasn't quite so easy. Everett and his mother turned to each other, trying to see if each other heard anything. "I... I thought I heard her? " Everett said, but he couldn't quite make out what she said, the mother though, with her aging ears, didn't hear it and shook her head. "We're too far away... Perhaps we should ask him to pick us up? " The boy suggested, knowing neither of them wanted to go that far, but he was sure he heard her, if only they were closer, they could hear her words and maybe even get to talk to her.

The mother looked up to Geralt again, debating her son's words before speaking. "Can you pick us up? We... we want to hear her better. " She admitted, which also clued Geralt in that they did hear something, at least one of them did, enough to continue to trust Geralt. If she was still alive then that was already pretty much confirmation, but they still wanted to hear her voice, if nothing else, for sentimental reasons.

The Witcher gave a gentle smile, for a moment looking like a gentle, humanoid version of a cat. He then lowered one hand to them, but instead of scooping them up, he just laid his hand, palm up, beside them, allowing them to climb aboard in their own time.

They were surprised by his thoughtfulness, expecting to just be snatched up, but it seemed he had better manners than that for their kind. They both smiled to him before Everett climbed onto his hand first, before helping his mother up onto the gloved surface. They have never been held nicely by a larger person before, so the gentleness was refreshing, even if it was weird that his hand was covered in armored leather. Once on his hand, they sat down, so they didn't risk tumbling off.

Once they appeared to be settled, Geralt lifted them up and held them at about stomach level, which was a wall of chainmail and more leather. It at least wasn't a threatening sight, if anything it was sort of like a fortress, which gave it that... protective, safe feeling. "Okay Zoey... we're right here, can you hear us? " Everett asked in a more normal voice, not wanting to yell if they didn't have to.

Zoey slumped down in the soft flesh when she figured out they couldn't hear her, but she brightened up again when she heard her bother, closer, not yelling. Geralt must be holding them now, against his stomach, or at least close. "Everett? Yes, I'm okay, it's very soft and warm in here, mister Geralt was also very gentle with me... He just wanted to make it seem like I was gone so the humans wouldn't come after me. " She answered, getting more detailed since it seemed they had to hear her now.

They both could hear her now, it was a bit muffled, but they fully understood what she was saying and it was a huge relief, tears of joy welled up in the mother's eyes. "Oh, my sweet baby... I thought we lost you... " She said, both happy but obviously had quite the fright. For comfort, Everett hugged his mother and Zoey herself snuggled closer to them through the stomach, still divided by a wall of muscle, armor, and skin, but it was still a comfort to know they were right there. "I'm okay mommy, don't worry. " She said sweetly, wanting to assure her mother that everything was okay.

Geralt felt his chest full of... happy feelings, like warm and fuzzy feelings to hear them speak to each other and be so glad to have one another still. It was rare for him to see in this dark, harsh land. "You all shouldn't stay here though, the village. " He announced, feeling bad about interrupting the family reunion, but it was important for them to know. Besides, if they lingered around here too long, the villagers may get curious, especially if they heard him talking to someone.

The mother wiped her face, he was right, she already knew deep down they had to leave... It was going to be a difficult journey, even harder without their Zoey, at least they thought they would have to go without her, before they found out she really didn't become Witcher food. "I know sir... we were going to leave, but we wanted to give Zoey one last chance, in case.... in case she got away. " The mother said, kinda feeling bad for saying that to his face, but he seemed humble enough to not be offended.

"Could help you shorten the travel time. I was done here anyway and wouldn't mind visiting the next village over. " And he certainly wouldn't mind bringing them along, they were so small that he could share some food with them and such and it wouldn't be a problem. The biggest thing was he had to keep them hidden from human eyes, but beyond that, it was no trouble. He just hoped they would accept the offer, the trek was far too dangerous for them to go alone, especially on foot... Just about every animal was a danger to them, while very little was a danger to a trained and careful Witcher.

They blinked... the family didn't consider getting such a protective escort there and.. really, it was a huge thing to think about. It would save them massive amounts of time and keep them much safer than they would if they rode on a wagon, someone's horse or even a human without them knowing, which is what they usually did. it was a risky method and having a willing and aware escort would be a lot safer. "Would you... would you really be okay with taking us with you? Where... where could we safely ride? " Everett asked. They could stay in his packs, but Witcher often carried all sorts of weird and dangerous things so he wasn't sure if that was a good idea.

Geralt, of course, had an idea... He just wasn't sure how the family felt about it. "My stomach could hold all three of you safely... At least, until we stop to eat, then you all could come out. " He explained, after all he wasn't immortal and needed to eat real food himself, so they had to at least come out then. It was soft, safe, even padded if he got into a fight, but it also required a lot of trust on their part.

Zoey wouldn't mind that, but she was already snuggled up in his tummy, so for her, it would just be her family joining her in this soft, cozy belly. Everett and his mother, however, would have to agree to be swallowed alive. They both shuffled nervously, the image of sliding down the Witcher's throat was not exactly a comforting one... But Zoey did just go through it and she seemed fine. "Well... Zoey? What do you think? is... is that a good idea? " They mostly wanted to know if the process hurt, such as the muscles squeezing too hard or something.

The girl liked it, she would love to curl up and snuggle with her family in Geralt's belly and from what she remembered, even in their rushed, uncomfortable situation Geralt still managed to not hurt her. "It's not that bad, it was scary because I... I didn't know he was saving me, but I wasn't hurt at all. It's all soft and squishy, a bit slimy and dark but... that's okay! " She assured, hoping her family would accept Geralt's offer. She knew he meant no harm and only wanted to help, it'd be so nice to finally not have to worry about being found by humans and harmed, at least until they got to the new village that is. It would be a nice break after having to leave behind their home.

Zoey's words helped, she sounded happy and calm, but were they really about to agree to be eaten whole? Everett looked to his mother, wanting to hear her opinion because he wasn't quite sure yet. "If Zoey trusts him, then I trust him. " She responded, though her body language showed she was a bit wary still, Everett didn't doubt her words being true. He supposed she had a point, Zoey spent more time with him then either of them did and she was still alive and well. "Alright then, we'll do it. " Everett told the Witcher.

Geralt was in no hurry, so he gave them the time they need to decide and once they came to a conclusion, he gave a soft nod. "Be still, it won't take long. " It would only take probably two gulps, one for each of them. He planned to try and make it quick so they wouldn't be separated long, knowing they were probably pretty close. The two expected to have to be swallowed separately though, so they mentally prepared themselves for that. "Okay. " They both said at the same time.

If elevators existed in the time period, that would be how the two described being lifted up to the Witcher's face, but as it stood, they really had no words for it besides the fact they were secretly hoping it was over soon because it was an uncomfortable feeling, mostly due to the fear of being dropped. They got their wish, as Geralt didn't waste any time, though he didn't rush either as he opened his mouth, just wide enough that they could fit inside.

They got a decent look of where they were going, warm, humid breath washed over them while they spotted the soft pink tongue just sitting there between his rows of massive, to them, powerful teeth. To Everett's surprise, the Witcher didn't have fangs or anything, which was a mild comfort and made him seem a bit less scary now. Before they could think of much else, his hand soon began to tip, fingers curling slightly to keep them from falling the wrong way. They gently slipped off his glove and slid down into his jaws, safely past his teeth with a light plop onto his wet, warm tongue. By the time the mother looked back, his hand was already lowering and pulling away, letting them see the outside world from the strange angle of his mouth, framed with teeth and his lips.

The warmth was welcoming though, being so small and all, borrowers got cold easily so any bits of safe warmth was something they cherished. The two huddled together, watching as the light slowly vanished as the Witcher closed his jaws, the tip of his tongue coming alive to gently nudge and feel around, seeming to be making sure all their limbs were out of his bite before closing entirely. The thoughtfulness was a comfort to them, even if they were already wise enough to keep their limbs close. It showed that Geralt did care for their wellbeing and that was an important thing to know.

Geralt, on the other hand, was just doing his best to be gentle with them, they put their lives in his hands and it was his job to make sure they didn't regret that choice. Both of them individually were bigger than Zoey was, but he just had to be careful and everything would be fine. He didn't much like it, but he did have to gently lick the two, to coat them in a layer of saliva for a safer and easier trip down his throat, especially since he was not rushed now, he could take his time. He heard them let out a surprised yelp but otherwise didn't fight against him or protest.

It was over pretty quick anyway and he soon tilted his head back, not by a lot, but enough to encourage them the right way. The Witcher let out a slow steady breath then to prepare, before he took two soft swallows, one right after the other, as he gulped down the mother first, then her son. They were only about an inch apart from each other as warm, powerful muscles engulfed them. It was a strange sense of tightness in two areas in his throat as they slid down, but he kept himself relaxed so that the muscles wouldn't squeeze too hard.

Inside of the Witcher, it was pretty engulfing, soft flesh kneaded them down deeper and deeper inside. They couldn't really see each other, but they knew each other were close by, just by how quick he swallowed the second time, which they didn't expect but it wasn't unwelcome. As Zoey had said though, it didn't hurt, it was a little cramped in his gullet as they slid down, but it wasn't enough to really cause injury or anything. They heard his steady heart beating just beside them as they passed by, giving the whole thing a surreal experience. They couldn't see anything, so what they heard and felt was the best sort of idea on what was going on that they had. As the heartbeat then started to grow distant again, they knew they were close.

Soon the mother felt her feet hit a wall, or what seemed to be a wall, before the ring of muscle relaxed, allowing both her and her son to slip past and down inside of the Witcher's stomach. It was still dark, too dark for them to even see each other, and the floor was much too squishy and unstable to really stand up. "Z-Zoey? Can you hear me? " Everett spoke up first, both him and the mother kneeling since standing was pretty close to impossible.

"Yes! I'm right over here! " The young girl said happily, still peacefully snuggled against the front stomach wall. They both heard her voice and moved in that direction, moving carefully so they didn't fall on her. Working together, the three huddled together in a safe, happy little bundle, cradled by the soft, gentle wall and floor of the stomach. They were also still able to hear his heartbeat, beating calmly and steadily above them. Despite it being so dark, they had to admit that Zoey was right, it was quite comfortable and cozy in here. The whole place gave a sense of security that none of them were used to feeling, it was a safe, secure haven from the dangers of the world, something the tiny humble little family yearned for. There were only a few minor drawbacks, such as how moist and slimy it was in here, the occasional gurgling or groaning of his digestive system that was a little unnerving and the darkness. But the overall safe, snug feeling made up for it.

Geralt didn't say anything, but he rested a hand on his middle as he felt and heard the family reunite and snuggle up, safe and sound in his warm, squishy belly. It was hard to fathom that he had an entire family inside of him now, but he did.... And it gave him a sense of carrying precious cargo, which he basically was. The Witcher had this warm, fuzzy, soft feeling in his chest as he gave his belly a tender rub. his yellow eyes holding a soft gaze with a faint smile on his lips.

The mother was so grateful to have both of her kids now, having feared she lost Zoey for sure when she saw her vanish into Geralt's jaws, but here they were, three precious little morsels snuggled up in the Witcher's belly, with a promise of being taken to a new home. At this point, she fully believed him, there was no reason to keep being nice to them at this point and yet, she felt the gentle rubs outside and the general peacefulness of his soft innards, "I didn't say it before but.... I'm saying it now, thank you sir Witcher, for protecting my child, and now all of us. " She said to him, hoping he heard her. At this point, both of her children were quickly falling asleep, with their mother and each other back, plus being so warm and cozy after all the stress of today, they needed a rest.

"Welcome, was no trouble really. " He answered as he stood up fully, taking a quick glance around to make sure no one was watching him and planned to follow him before he turned and began to walk. He would ride Roach, but he was worried the bouncing would disturb the family, plus there was nothing wrong with walking. He didn't get a response from the mother, but it was very likely she went to sleep alongside her children, after all, it was a pretty rough day for her too. He was going to do his best to find a nice, safe home for the little family, or as safe as their kind could be, at least, when not nestled away in a safe, squishy stomach. Even if it took a little longer than planned, it was worth making sure they will be okay when it was time for the Witcher to leave them.