Once again, the pace of their lives fell into a pattern.  The potatoes came in two different plantings leaving them with extras for the market.  They packed their belongings into the cart and harnessed Bunny for the trip to the village.  Since the weather was getting cooler in the evenings Karl began to wear a jacket and hat in the morning, but Okake said that she didn’t feel the need, but he spent some time before they left making her a modest top.  The last few visits had been a little uncomfortable as the locals stared at her with unbridled lurid curiosity.  He had thought it was because she was an Orc, but it finally sunk in that they were staring at her chest.  So, he made a more comfortable top out of canvas that covered her better, but it didn’t really hide the outlines as much as he hoped.  She was still an inspiration in his book.  

They got to the village later in the afternoon and started taking care of business after eating a quick meal of jerked venison and hard bread.  The nice thing about being in the village was that they could have cold beer with their meal making it way easier to consume.  The store and market both bought all of their potatoes leaving them with a healthy amount of coin.  Karl hoped this meant he could make some improvements to the house before the weather got really bad.  He had all sorts of ideas, now that Okake had taken on so much labor.  

Since they arrived so late in the day, he knew they would have to take a room at the boarding house, but the last time they were there the lady running the place told them not to come in.  She had shouted that they didn’t allow her kind, pointing to Okake.  

That was the visit that Karl took her over to the headman’s building where they kept all the records.  Karl was having a difficult time dealing with people's views on Okake and decided to make things formal.  If anything ever happened to him, he wanted Okake to have a clear title to his place and land.  So now, they were, in a way, man and wife.

This visit had more of the same mixed reception of the last visit which made Karl tired of people in general, but he was determined to make a good evening for Okake.  The next day they could get some shopping done and head back.  

Okake said, “I would like to have more of that beer.  It was such a nice change.”  

“Let’s check in at the room first and then we can head over to the bar.”  

After asking around on the last visit Karl found a local that had a spare room/house in the back of his place that his wife set up as a fancy rental.  Since it was the only place that would take them, he paid the premium and they got a vacation.  He felt it was worth it.  The place had sheets made of spun wool that felt like a sheep's ear and a bed frame worthy of their lovemaking.  There was a small stove to keep the cold at bay.  This was also the first place where he had seen an indoor outhouse.  Apparently, the owner’s wife didn’t like being cold, so they converted a closet into a toilet room and figured out a way to wash away the waste.  Karl definitely wanted to figure this out at his place.  No more stinking containers of waste under the bed for the night waiting to be disposed of the next morning.  

Okake interrupted his musing.

“Husband, let us eat and drink.  I have hunger and thirst!”

Their stop was one of the two places to eat for travelers.  They went into the Broken Arm after they made their way around horses in the front of the heavy timber building.  It looked like it had been there for hundreds of years and probably had been.  Everything in the village looked that way though.  

Karl and Okake walked over to two seats at the bar near one end where they would be out of the mainstream traffic.  After previous visits they determined it was better to stay out of open view.  Most of the regulars knew Karl and now Okake from previous visits, but other travelers had difficulties with them from time to time.  

One of Okake’s favorite pastimes was to drink beer.  Karl’s distilling needed a lot to be desired and was too strong.  It was like being punched.  Whereas the beer in the village was just right.  Not too strong and very refreshing.  

As they began drinking while waiting for their food the topic of the various scars came up.  Karl was fascinated by her numerous markings.  Orc skin didn’t seem to scar in the same way men did, but against the green tint of her flesh it showed as a white mark.  

Karl did not particularly like beer over his distilled spirit, but he appreciated what it did to Okake and himself.  They talked way more than did while they worked and he found her funny, interesting and interested in him.  The various stories of her combat exchanges were punctuated with humorous facial expressions and acting out specifics with her hands.  He couldn’t get over her change in demeanor from just five months ago.  Not even the same person!

As the evening grew longer the bar filled while they dug into their meal.  Okake’s new favorite meal was turkey.  She found it to be unusual and sometimes gamey but loved the legs most of all.  She ran her lower tusk through the meat and stripped the bone cleaner than Karl could ever manage.

At the other end of the bar three men pointed at them from time to time and whispered conspiratorially.  Karl ignored them since it seems regular to them at that point.  However, as the night went on, they seemed to be gathering some momentum.  He gently nudged Okake and side-eyed in the direction of the men.   She nodded and continued her story with less animation when she realized Karl wasn’t listening with all his attention.