Chapter Three #3
It was futile to try and get them to go away, so I just kept driving us back to the farm in the hopes that they’d get bored and go off on their own. But even after I silently sent the shard to head back to the barn, they still shuffled behind us.
When I finally reached the entrance to my farm, the gates remained closed, as if it could sense unwanted visitors behind us. But that gave me an opportunity to weigh my options.
I turned around one last time and looked at the Emberhorn goats patiently staring at me like I was their mother.
“You don’t owe us anything, you know?” I called out to them like they could understand. “You’re free to go. No strings attached.”
One of the largest of the shadowy goats bleated and took a step forward before it craned its neck up and nodded toward the large gate in front of us.
“You want to come inside here?” I asked.
A chorus of bleats followed, and I sighed at the realization that we weren’t going to shake these guys so easily.
I had the room, and if they could survive in any weather conditions, that meant I wouldn’t have to turn them in for the winter like the other animals.
I still didn’t know their temperament around other creatures, and the last thing I wanted to wake up to was a massacre on my farm at the horns of these unfamiliar goats, so I’d need to keep them separate for now.
The numerous grazing pastures were beginning to freeze over, which meant most of my animals needed to be moved into the barn and fed hay and feed from now on. But I could leave these guys out in one of the pastures where they could melt the frozen grass around them and still feed normally.
“You said farmers keep these animals in the colder parts of Mystica, right, El?” I asked my wife, who turned to me with a small smile.
“That’s right.” She nodded. “Their insides are a lot warmer than most other animals. That’s why they can withstand the cold. It also makes the milk they produce super warm and free from any bacteria.”
“Look at you, learning from my pasteurizing,” I teased. “Is it worth a lot?”
“Oh, definitely,” the pale-haired elf confirmed. “A lot of people use it for health potions. It sells for a much better price than normal milk, but I suppose with your pasteurizing, what you sell now has a similar effect.”
“Well, it sounds like they might not just be freeloaders after all,” I said before I turned my attention back to the expectant goats. “Alright. Come on in. You can stay in one of the pastures.”
Another chorus of bleats followed, and now that I had accepted them into the farm, the vine gate finally unfurled itself.
I guided the goats like a shepherd with his flock toward one of the pastures and hopped out of the side-by-side to open the gate for them.
One by one, they all filed in, and they immediately started grazing on the grass that was thawing beneath their feet.
Once the last goat was finally inside and happily munching, I locked the gate behind it and drove my Gator back to the front of my house.
We each jumped out and headed inside, and the first thing I did, other than greeting Nelly with a soft pat to the head, was strip out of my wet clothes and throw them in the laundry basket.
Raeth did the same thing after taking off her armor, while Ellyn fished out some spare clothes for her and the rest of the girls to slip into.
I was so exhausted by the time I reached the bed that I couldn’t even think about taking a shower.
The goats had warmed me up significantly, so I wasn’t freezing cold anymore, but even the grime still coating my body from the fight earlier wasn’t enough motivation for me to abandon my very comfortable-looking bed.
I collapsed onto the mattress face-first, stark naked, and already half-asleep.
I felt the bed dip around me, and it wasn’t long before I felt three bodies pressing against some part of me.
“G’night,” I mumbled into my soft pillow that felt like it was eating my face.
A chorus of ‘goodnight, Noah,’ followed, and after that, I was out like a light.
When I woke up the next morning, it felt like I’d only been asleep for a matter of seconds, but I could tell my body had rested well. The ache that had been bone-deep was gone, and as I sat up in bed and stretched my arms above my head, my muscles sang in blissful harmony.
My girls were still fast asleep all around me, so I carefully slipped out of their grasps to creep to the bathroom.
The warm water rushing against my dirty body felt like heaven, and I made sure to scrub every inch of grime and blood away with a shit ton of soap. A brown puddle formed beneath my feet, which was quickly sucked down by the drain, and after ten long minutes, I finally felt clean enough to jump out.
I dressed for the day in a pair of jeans, a white undershirt, and a thick sweater that would keep the cold out. Then I attached my gun holster for safe measure, and I quickly brushed my teeth in the sink before I headed to the kitchen.
Breakfast was a quick batch of French toast, which I left a few extra portions of for the girls underneath a kitchen towel, but after I’d wolfed my own down, it was time to start the day. And I had only one thing in mind to tick off my to-do list.
I was going to milk an Emberhorn Goat.