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"A ghoul?"

He stopped in his tracks and looked over his shoulder at her.

"Freya, why? A ghoul punched Freya?"

He stared at her as he waited for her answer. He got the feeling it hadn't been a spar, but he wasn't going to call her a liar. She must be hiding the truth for a good reason. Right?

Herryk paused, crossed his arms over his chest and turned to face Freya.

His brows lifted expectantly.

"Herryk is not mad at Freya. Why would Herryk be mad at Freya? And... why would this ghoul hate Freya enough to punch her? Tell Herryk who it was, and Herryk will have a conversation with this ghoul."

He looked confused.

"There is a misunderstanding, hmm?"

The guilt etched on Freya's face was not registering in Herryk's mind. She wanted to be held, so he would hold her because he loved her and she seemed upset. The rage that was building in him settled temporarily. It wouldn't do any good for him to be upset, especially if it was causing Freya further upset.

Picking her up with ease, Herryk figured they'd be most comfortable on her couch. Shoving aside any and all pillows that took up space, Herryk flopped onto the L-shaped couch with a large grunt. He settled her against his chest with a relaxed sound and simply waited for the ghoul to speak.

Herryk was silent for a long time. A long, long time. The muscle in his jaw clenched and relaxed as he mulled over her words. He must have mulled the s**t out of them, because a good ten minutes passed before he finally spoke. His voice was laden with anger, but he didn't shove her off of his lap so that he could search out this ghoul. He would ask a few more questions, and then maybe he'd go look for the ghoul in question. Just to talk. Maybe yell. He wouldn't lay a finger on her because she was a ghoul, but...

"Why does this student think that Freya is hurting this Kettil? This is the owl-keeper?" Herryk's eye twitched. "And why was Freya yelling?" There were things that Herryk didn't understand and while he wanted to, he was convinced that the ghoul in question must be a terrible ghoul. Freya would not have yelled if she was a nice ghoul.

Well, that was explanation enough for him. His sweet Freya, always looking out for others. He reached up to pat her hip with his hand, realizing that he'd yet to give her the present he'd brought along! With a grunt he dropped the bag in her lap. With his now-free hand, he rubbed the dimple in his chin with his finger.

"She sounds like a very terrible ghoul," he said sourly with a shake of his head. "Does Freya wish for Herryk to go yell at her?" Herryk pulled back and peered down at her. "Herryk promises not to hurt her, but maybe after Herryk yells a while this ghoul will apologize."

The draugr squeezed Freya against his chest.

"Herryk will always cuddle his Freya," the draugr assured her, squeezing her tightly in his arms again. His tone suggested that he thought her silly for even thinking that the bruise on her face would deter him from cuddling his beloved. Never cuddle Freya? That would be both horrible and ridiculous.

"Yes," he continued in response to her question. "Herryk had some help in choosing these gifts. Herryk's first choice was the pink one, but Zurine thought that it was too bright? So Herryk picked out the other one, and then decided to buy them both." He grunted.

Herryk narrowed his eyes at the owls.

"Zurine is a ghoul Herryk met at the maul. Zurine helped Herryk pick out these owls and so then Herryk took Zurine --"

He shook his head at Freya's squealing, almost wincing at the pitch. It was so loud, but Freya seemed pleased and that made Herryk feel pretty good. He cleared his throat once she'd settled into making adorable sounds at the owls.

"Herryk loves Freya. Do these make Freya happy?"