I am in quite a troublesome place at the moment, and it is because I cannot decide on what to do, should I help and get involved in business far from my own? business which's resolution I cannot forsee, or even if any exist I cannot tell.

you see, long have I studied the humans, I often peer from the shadows and look. While most of us Crocotta see them as prey I have been intruiged by them. I eat my fill at the woods, and from their livestock when I feel like it but the humans are more like, what's the word?... interestnment? no, intertainment. that's the one! They use their speech and have names, how quaint. one human I like to follow, the silly boy, he is yet young but following him and listening carefully has granted me far more knowledge in the language of humans than most could boast, even amongst their kind.

The silly boy's mother... Net was he name, yes, young miss A Net reads to her silly boy books at night, he quite often requests interesting stories with plenty of words, some with rhymes too, it is much more enjoyable than a bite sized meal, a good investment for sure.

This is precisely why I am in such a terrible conundrum at the moment, it seems that the creatures of the night have decided to invade this human settlement and are killing off all of the humans. Either way I will be forced to leave to feed off in a different area, until the paladins come from the stories. But I don't believe I will have another chance to learn so much again...The doors to the noble house are banging, the ghouls slam their limbs at the reinforced door, and the banshee's cry can be heard in the night all around, as if originating from all the horizon.

Human guards in their metal armors stand at the ready, saying last prayers and preparing for a fight. From the dark corner of the terrace above I can clearly see, they must already know that they stand no chance against the horde of the risen. In the silly boy's room he and his mother sit silently, she strokes his hair and reads him a story he knows well, one with rhymes, even what he can hear beyond the knocking on the door doesn't seem to come through to... relax him? alleviate his stress, that's better. If I will do something, I must do it now... and... I think I will.

"Little silly boy..." I say, silly and his mother look toward the darkness of the terrace. "Silly boy, come with me." I say as I come out of the shadows. They likely find my stature impressive, as I am as tall as the mother even when on four legs.

"Mommy..." little silly boy sounds... distressed. "Mommy, I'm scared, the creature sounds like me, it wants to eat me." ohh how unkempt of me, I had used his voice. perhaps his mothers voice will sooth him better.

"Silly boy, Come with me, the rest will die but you can live with me" I try again, but it seems the change in voice only farther starteled him and made him dive into his mother's bosom. I peer into Miss Nets eyes "They boy can survive with me, I want him to survive." this is a face I did not see her make before, startled and scared.

BANG! a huge slam came from below. The door to the house must have been breeched and it means little time remains. Net takes silly boy in her hands and places him on my main, he seems to struggle and whimpers. "Do not worry, Mister liondog is Mommy's friend from long ago, he will take care of you." it seems to have calmed him down.

"Can you come, mommy?" He asks her, while clinging on to my main.

"No." I answer. "Your mother needs to stay, I only need you." she reluctantly agreed, turning around and facing the door. "Planning to fight them head on? like the paladins in the stories? you should probably hide, the time you will win me will be insignificant." Perhaps she may survive if she's lucky.

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"Hold tighter than that or you'll fall off." I tell silly boy before jumping off from the terrace window down and swiftly escaping to the woods. But the danger is only beginning, keeping a human in the forest is like waving carrots in front of pigs, soon enough we will be surrounded, this forest it home to many dangers, wisps and curdoks just to name a few.

Speak of demons and they come, a snake monster crawls by, no doubt from the blood of silly boy, but I can smell her coming, "Stop in your tracks, snake, this boy is mine." I tell her in the language of humans, as I am sure she can understand. Even though I guard the boy, separating the ravenous crawler from the tired sleeper, she peers right through me and looks to silly boy.

"Yet you do not eat it, do you plan to sssmoke it or just ssaving it for later?" She hisses at me, as snakes do, hissing. From what I remember in the stories told to silly boy this monster is a lamia, or an ajatar, or some monster of the sort.

"I use him for other things, foolish lizard, the knowledge of human speech, and if he refuses I will learn of his flavors." She immidietly laughs, with a screechy voice. I prepare for a fight but she backs away, turns around but right before she goes she says.

"Trying to learn from a child!? without his parents he is as dumb as a troll. Soon enough you will sound like a stuttering goblin." She walks away into the- slithers! she slithers away, isn't that right? oh, right silly boy is asleep. regardless, she slithers away into the night with her laugh fading until it is indistinguishable from the noise of the wind running along the branches.

But is she right? Although I have always followed Silly boy, it was always his mother or father who read the books for him, is it possible that he really is as dumb as a troll? and I would seek education from him? no but after all these years he must have learned something. Or maybe not? I pull closer to his face, perhaps eating him now will win me less trouble and a small reward? I open my mouth.

"What are you doing?" he wakes up.

"I was... looking for some conversation."

"Oh, ok... what about the weather?" is he really suggesting that as the topic?

"Oh, I guess it's quite dreary and gloomy, in the forest no doubt. But at least the temperture is nice. temperture, right?"

"Umm... it's temperature actually... are you warm? I think it's cold and-" I quickly wrap myself around him, my fur should keep him warm, I also lick his face a bit, he nearly froze it seems, I might want to warm him up like this every so often so that his nose won't fall off, like in the stories, It looks as though he likes it, giggling and using his hands to brush my main.

"He haha ha, that tickles, what are you doing? stahp, ha ha." finally his face is warm enough to continue conversation. "Hehe he, your fur is so soft... what's your name?"

A name? I never needed one, I was also never given one. Outside of the manlike races the only dialogues that arise are most intuitively deduced, either 'Go away', 'It's my food.', or 'you're my food.' I never even needed to learn the language better that what I required to hunt, misleading cattle and errant humans. After a small pause he asked "do you have one?" yo which I had nothing to do but say "No, I do not."

"Mr liondog... I'll call you Zanter, because you saved me like Zanter saved his friends." He brings the story from one of his mother's tales. "Are you alright with that?" I recall that tale, Zanter was a knight who rode a horse and helped his friend escape an evil wizard. "I like that name, but if I was pressed I think I would like a different name, I think something more akin in meaning to that of the Symposium."

"Symposium?"

"Yes, do you recall? the Symposium from which leaders would talk and argue with language skills of masters."

"Yeah, I do remember mommy telling me something like that, in the stories I was read at night some times, how did you know?"

I was infatuated with humans before Silly boy was even born, but when I first saw silly boy I must admit I was craving a meal. I cannot extend the story that much without him losing his mind. "I am... a friend of mommy, remember?"

"Ohh, yea... Ooh! what did mommy use to call you?"

What did she use to call me? if she saw me she would scream 'beast' or 'monster' or ... 'Varmint' hmm, that sounds almost...

"Varm" I answer after long last, "My name is Varm, and you, silly boy, You are a my new loyal companion. We will continue to talk after the sun will rise, sleed well, "enter a face licking sesstion again, he needs it. Hopfully he lasts till morning.