Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

???: “No…”

Subaru: (I only wish for her safety—)

???: “No.”

Satella: “—Baru?”

Subaru: (I feel like I hear a voice… like the chime of a bell… I’m beyond the point where I could even differentiate my senses, so I probably just imagined it. Despite that, even supposing it wasn’t real, I find it extremely comforting. So—)

Satella: (A short scream, and then the carpet of blood welcomed yet another person.)

Subaru: (She had fallen right next to me, exactly where my arm is. Her fair hand dropping powerlessly to intertwine with mine—Probably just a coincidence. I could feel her fingers move slightly… as if squeezing my hand?)

???: “NO!”

Subaru: “...ait.” (I force my disappearing consciousness to return for just a moment. The pain and heat, everything was fading away. It’s meaningless… A waste of effort… Nothing but a loser wasting time… Even so—! ) “I will definitely—”

???: “ NO.” 

Subaru: “—Save you!”

???: “ NO! ” ( This isn’t how things were supposed to go… HE WASN’T SUPPOSED TO DIE! I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM,  I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM, I LOVE HIM— )

Subaru: (At that moment… I died.)

~~(??????????)~~

Satella: (Time paused, the ebbing blood from my beloved’s wounds closing…) “🅸🆃 🆆🅰🆂🅽’🆃 🆂🆄🅿🅿🅾🆂🅴🅳 🆃🅾 🅱🅴 🆃🅷🅸🆂 🆆🅰🆈.” (I kneeled by my love, oh my love, love, love, love, love, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE—FOCUS. Focus… He asked for something… A ‘cool power’? ‘Cheat Skill’? How—how—how—how—how—HOW do I help him? My love. Love… Love…)

(I kneeled in the inky abyss, my eyes piercing the veil. THERE?)

~~(Underneath a Dark Overpass, Japan’s 20th Ward)~~

???: “Aaa~ahhh, delicious! Oh my—Hah?”

Subaru: “Huh?” (I blinked my eyes curiously.) “What?” ( What just…? I stared into the eyes of a woman I didn’t know. She was just a few inches shorter than I, with long, beautiful red hair. She was wearing a long white dress with dark purple sleeves hiding her slender arms. But it wasn’t her beauty that drew my attention… Her eyes, they were… the whites weren’t white—they were black? More than that, was that blood on her mouth?)

Rize: “What? Where did—” (Her hands shoot up to her mouth as her lips curl in a gloating smile.) “Oops. You saw? I’m not sure where he went, but—” (She takes a step forward.)

Subaru: (Shit. Satella! Where is Satella?! My eyes whip around the area, its empty, just me and the crazy woman. No Satella in sight. What???) “Where is she?”

Rize: “I have no idea what you're talking about~” (She takes a step forward, her face rippling with unadulterated glee.)

Subaru: (Shit. That is definitely blood on her face. Wait a minute. My eyes flick around once more, this—this isn’t the isekai world? What the fuck?! This—My eyes scan the area, there’s a light pole, and tall buildings—this is Japan!) “B-back up, ma’am! I’m not sure what’s going on, but—”

Rize: “Sorry~” (She takes another step forward as an odd ripping sound rings out, thick red tentacles sprouting from her lower back.) “You saw. I’ll find Kaneki soon enough~”

Subaru: (I turn on my heel and run, sprinting as hard and as fast as I can in the opposite direction. I’ve gotta find Satella!)

Rize: “Hahaha! Wait~” 

Subaru: (She sends a jagged tentacle forward, snatching at my heel, making me stumble and collapse into the pavement, my arms thrown up to protect my face.) “HELP! SATELLA! PLEASE—!”

Rize: “Shhhhh~ Got you <3” (She clamps a tentacle over my lips.) “I’d love to take my time but—” (She slips her eyes up to look around.) “I’m not sure where my real prey went so~ Forgive me!” (She claps her hands together, like shes about to plead for forgiveness. The cutesy demeanor is sickening…)

Subaru: (My eyes widen in horror. What the fuck is happening?! I need to get out of here— My hand had loosely fumbled around the floor as she came closer, my grasp finally landing on something sizable—I slammed a rock hard into the side of the tentacle, loosening its grasp just enough to crawl back as a second tentacle slammed into the pavement where my crotch had been. Yikes!)

(I stumbled up, my feet pounding the pavement before I could even think, I need to get out of—) “GHHK!” 

Rize: (A tentacle slammed deep into the boy's lower left back, piercing his body with such force that it rocketed out of his front right side, slamming his body into the sloping wall of the underpass. He had barely even made it twenty feet.) “Oh my~”

“Did you die?” (She took slow, casual steps forward.)

Subaru: “AAAgGH!! AAAaaA” (I threw my hands around my torso as I collapsed on the floor, red hot pain searing through my guts. This feels familiar, too familiar—Wrong—hot hot hot hot! OW.) “Ghhhkkk….fhhmmm!” (I rolled onto my back, my eyes staring up at blinking stars.)

Rize: “Hehehe~” (She giggles happily, standing tall over his body.) “I loooo~oovve humans with body types like yours… They have the proper amount of fat, but not too much muscle. They’re soft and easy to eat~ I can’t linger too long. Wherever that boy went, he’s sure to have got help by now…” (She frowns for a moment, watching as he twitches and groans. His eyes laced with a primal fear as blood ebbs from his body.) “Well, no need to waste food~” 

Subaru: (Her mouth waters, a coiled tentacle snaking through the air towards my chin. This is it… Satella… where are you?!)

Satella: “No.” (Metal groans and creaks.)

Rize: (Her gaze flickers upwards.) “Oh?”

(Several metal beams rain from the sky, and a massive clash rings out across the empty streets.)

Rize: “WHY… You… nghh…” 

Subaru: (Shit.) “Sss… Satella…” 

(My mind… Is fluttering… I feel so light, and so hot. Like a dying star… I hope Satella is ok…)

???: “GET AN AMBULA—”

Subaru: (...)

(...)

(...)

(...What…?)

???: “His abdomen…” 

“Lost…”

“Intestines shifted—”

“He…!!”

“Transplant her organs into him.”

Subaru: (Organs? What…? Where…)

???: “The operation was a success!”

~~(A Comfortable Bed)~~

Subaru: “Hey… I don’t know that ceiling?” (I blearily open my eyes, staring at the clinical drop ceiling just above me. The one you’d find in any major hospital or school. I slowly sat up.) “...Satella?”

Satella: (The girl eagerly nodded, holding a… smile on her face.) 

Subaru: (It looked exactly like Satella, but this wasn’t Satella?) “...How?” (I lifted my gaze to look around… This was definitely a modern hospital. The wires hanging from my chest onto the monitor thingy confirmed as much.) “Satella, what happened, wh-where are we?” (I shifted, pulling the blanket over me more. Her gaze is so… unsettling, far from the cute girl he had known before this. She was tinged with… an impure air.)

Satella: “I love you.” (She stared straight into my eyes, her manic gaze unnaturally focused. Her clothes were definitely different as well. A dark black dress, a sort of black mist clinging to the fabric. It was like a twisted wedding dress, the veil obscuring her amethyst eyes.)

(Time slowed, the steady beep of the heart monitor freezing.)

Subaru: “H-huh? Wait wha–” (And in that moment, drowsiness consumed me.)

~~(???????????)~~

Subaru: (My mind was a swirling vortex of chaos. That is the only way to condense whatever hell I faced into words. For what felt like weeks, Not-Satella’s words rang through my head. She loved me. She loved me enough to say it for every fraction of time I had some semblance of lucidity. And whenever I did gain my mind back, it was the only thing I had. I had no body, no real features, just a mass of thoughts. It reminded me far too much of one of those dystopian novels, like ‘I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream’.)

(So now, here in this… this place again, things felt weird. Things felt really weird.)

Kadomon: “Hey kid, buy this fuckin’ apple!”

Subaru: “Wh-what, sorry?” (I wave my hand in front of my face.) “I uh, already said, didn’t I? I’m broke beyond compare?” ( Plus… I’m pretty sure that apple is rotten… I slap a hand over my nose as I back away. That thing is definitely not ripe! )

Kadomon: “...Seriously, you’re just browsing? Get outta here! I’m runnin' a business here, I don’t have time for window shoppers.” (The stern older man waved me off, and I obeyed.)

Subaru: (Slipping away, I immediately noticed something new. I popped into a nearby alley quietly unzipping my tracksuit and lifting my shirt and…) “Ah…” (There was a massive gash down my lower right side, surgically sewn shut.) “So…” (My mind reeled, desperately trying to process everything that had happened. I didn’t have long though—)

Chin: “Hey,” (Three men blocked the alley's exit.) “Hand over everything you got. Now.”

Subaru: “What? You guys again?” (My eyes flitted over the three of them. Man, were they fodder villains! But I’ve learned my lesson this time.)

Kan: “Ehhhh, Again? You have any idea what this freak is talking about?”

Ton: “Nah, I’d remember someone like this…” (The large, darker man grinned with anything but good intentions.) “Look, just hand over everything you got, and I’ll let you walk away.” (He cracked his knuckles menacingly.)

Subaru: (I sigh. I don’t need this junk… I hold up the bag staring at its minimal contents.) “Yeah, yeah, everything I got—” (I loosely tossed the bag on the ground in front of me.) “Let’s leave it at that, I need to be somewhere.”

Kan: “Hey, hey! Not so fast—Now act like a dog! Crawl around on all fours and beg for help.” (The tiny mugger sneered.)

Subaru: “Don’t get so cocky!” (My sudden burst of anger made their expression turn to shock. Perfect opening ! I rushed forward, darting at the one in the middle. Take out the one with the knife first! )

(I grinned as I slammed my fist into the gut of the first guy—WHOOMF.)

(...)

(I sent him flying, I threw him so far with one punch that he skidded out of the alley onto the sunlit pavement.)

Kan: “Rachins!” (The small one ran after his friend.) 

Ton: (Ton looked nervous as he raised his fists and began to back up.) “Keep your stuff, man, I don’t need it!”

Subaru: “Eh?” (I stared at my fist, mildly dumbfounded as they ran off in fear, picking up and dragging an unconscious Chin away.)

Chapter Text

~~(The Royal Capitals Slums)~~

Subaru: (I open and close my fist as I go to knock on the door of the loot house. It’d be pretty bad if I broke open the door with too much force or something… I closed my eyes, prepping to blow the door open as I rapped my knuckles on the door… Nothing? I opened my eyes nervously, looking at the large wooden door. Nothing.) “Maybe that bout of strength earlier was a fluke? Or maybe I'm stronger in this world when I want to fight? Haaa! Man, this is confusing!”

(I rubbed my head nervously, clicking my tongue as I looked around. It all looked about the same as yesterday when I first met Satella; maybe all that was was a fever dream. No, it was way too real. But then, where’s Satella? I knocked on the door again, this time a little harder and louder. Still nothing! Not even a response.) 

“Heyyyy? Helloooo!” (I knocked again, keeping my force light but reasonable.) “Anyone homeeeeeeee?” (Just as I was about to knock again, the door burst open. Standing there was a dead man.)

Rom: “Oh, for Od’s sake, kid!” (The giant, dark-skinned older man threw the door open, a green glass bottle in his hand as he stared down at me with irritation.) “Trying to break my door down when you don't even know the signal or the password!” (He leered down at me, flashing a toothy grimace.)

Subaru: “I wasn’t trying to break down your door—If I was, I’d be inside already!” (I backed away from the man, crossing my arms in a defensive X.) “Look, I need to talk to you about a ah…” (I shifted my gaze around, hushing up my tone and placing a hand by my mouth animatedly.) “A recently acquired item?”

Rom: (The older man raised an eyebrow and scoffed.) “Come on in then, I guess.” (He lumbered back inside, going to sit behind a bar and pour whatever he had in the bottle into a shot glass. He then downed it instantly before doing that hiss of pleasure that one does with a strong drink.)

Subaru: (I followed in quietly, taking a look around the dark but visible insides of the house. The floor was clean, and there weren’t corpses littered about… Maybe Satella ran away, and they brought the old guy back to life? I wasn’t sure how powerful magic was in this place… )

(I came up to the bar, sitting on one of the rickety stools. I’m not sure if it's the bottle he’s carrying, but something smells delicious… Gah–no time! I rubbed my nose before I spoke up.) “Hey, ah… Odd question, but… have you had your arm cut off recently?”

Rom: (The old man who was pouring himself another shot paused, looking dumbfounded.) “Gahahahaha! What nonsense are you spewin, kid?” (He slapped a hand on his head, looking bewildered before letting his chuckles die down. He set his heavy arms on the bar.) “Does it look like these are gone?” (He grinned with muffled chuckles before returning to his drink.)

Subaru: (I sighed, scratching the back of my head.) “Ease off for a moment! If you haven’t lost an arm, then have you seen a girl with silver hair recently?”

Rom: “Ehhh, Silver-hair? Nope, haven’t seen anyone that suspicious around.” (He ended his speech by taking a swig from the bottle directly.)

Subaru: ( What? Damn… Was it really a dream? Or a hallucination? But those guys in the alley were real, and this guy is too… Err! Gah, this is all so confusing! What happened to that red-haired girl, too? The one with the weird ecchi tentacles? I thumbed my chin in thought.)

Rom: “Hey, snap out of it. Are you gonna badger me with more questions or get that item you wanted?” (He nudged me with the butt of the bottle.) “Don’t tell me ya barged in my midday drink for nothin!”

Subaru: “Haaa–Midday drink? Keep up that kind of habit and you’ll die young!” (I leaned back in my seat. Might as well get to the point. ) “Anyway, I’m looking for an Insignia. It’s a silver-haired girl, and I’m gonna get it back to her, she helped me out, so y’know, pay it back. She said it had a jewel in the center, I think?”

Rom: “A jewel in the center? Hmmmm… Sorry, I ain’t got anything like that.”

Subaru: “Are you sure? Don’t tell me you’ve gone senile!”

Rom: “If I can’t remember when I’m at my best with booze in me, then the only explanation is that I don’t know it. But, I do have someone bringing in some goods later.” (He grinned greedily.) “I’m told it’s some fine loot, maybe what you want is there?”

Subaru: “Ah! Is the one bringing it the blonde girl? Felt?”

Rom: “Oh? You even know who swiped it? Well, if you can afford it is another matter.”

Subaru: (The man flicks his eyes over me, no doubt checking out my state-of-the-art tracksuit! Verifiably gold compared to the rags he’s wearing…) “Ha! No use trying to size me up–I’m flat broke!”

Rom: (The man immediately frowns as he raises his bottle.) “Ah? Then what’ve you been wasting my time for? Get lost!” 

Subaru: (Just as he begins to shoo me away, I stick out a hand and click my tongue.) “Tch tch tch! I may not have any money, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have things worth money!”

Rom: “Ehhh?”

Subaru: (I began reaching into my plastic bag when I paused. Huh? Inside were all the things I bought, yeah, but also a weird brown package? It was wrapped in butcher's paper, thick and layered in plastic wrap. I was gonna grab it, but negotiations first! I snagged the chips I bought, bringing them out and holding them up like some holy relic.) “Behold! An otherworldly snack, the taste damn near divine!” (I handed the bag to Rom, who looked befuddled.)

Rom: “Eh?” (He grabbed the bag closer to himself, squeezing it until it popped, spewing a good amount of chips on the counter as his eyebrows raised in surprise.) “Ehhhh?” (He grabbed a fistful, sniffing it before stuffing it in his mouth like a gorilla.) “Wow this is a damn good bar snack.”

Subaru: “Gah, don’t just eat it all!” (I watched in horror as most of the chips fell on the floor or went in his mouth.) “Grrr! Just taking a guy's snack like that?!” (I snagged a chip off the counter for myself, popping it in my mouth as– EW .) 

“Bleghhh!!” (I spat the mush out of my mouth, the overbearing flavor of crusted barbeque sauce dragged through rotten spuds making me gag.) “What the hell?! Did those go bad?”

Rom: “Go bad? Whadda ya mean?” (He raised an eyebrow and popped another chip in his mouth.) “Tastes fine to me? What are ya tryin’ to poison me, boy?” (He leers over the counter.)

Subaru: “Huh?” (I clutched at my throat, staring at the lump of chewed spud I had spat onto the floor.)

Rom: “Ah, look what you’ve done!” (The old man clasped a hand to his head with a frustrated sigh.) “No point in trading with me till Felt gets here anyway, so…” 

Subaru: (The old man rises from his seat, coming around the bar to grab me by the scruff of my neck.) “Hey?!”

Rom: (He brings me right up to his face, looking annoyed.) “You’ll wait outside till she gets here. I’m not having you make messes in my shop!” (He then unceremoniously tossed me onto the porch step.)

Subaru: “Hey!” (I turned around to protest, but he just shut the door in my face.) “Haaa, grouchy old man!” (I shook my fist at the door with a low growl of frustration before slumping down on the steps of the shack, the rough thorny wood digging into my butt.)

“Haa… Whatever.” (I grabbed the plastic bag, pulling it open to rummage inside.) “Now to the mystery package~ Oooo, is it some super food to make me stronger?” (I grin, my mind flicking to the monster hunter cooking animations of thick-cut bacon.)

“O-K! Mystery package~” (I grab the package and begin to peel back the plastic wrap when I pause.) “Ehhh, A note?” (I pull what appears to be a sticky note off the package, the thin yellow paper holding some basic kanji…)

???: ‘Mix these in coffee for your hunger my love <3 - S̴̢̹̙͍̮͋̃̕ą̶̧̘͎͓̿̃͂́̃t̸͓̱̩̂ȅ̷͎̬͆̔̈́̚ľ̴̫̺̟͔̩͘l̸̟͉̼͂̽̇͠͠á̸̢̙̟̆\

Subaru: “Huh?” (I squinted at the name, but then- FWOOM) “Gah?!” (I flicked my hand as the note crumpled and burst into black flame.) “What the?? Gah, just when I think I get a grip on the world!” (I huff and hesitantly pick up the package.)

“Well… Let’s see what's inside…?” (I nervously begin to unwrap it only to reveal…) “Sugar cubes?” (I pick one of the cubes up, inspecting it, it's dark in color, a deep reddish-brown, each cube roughly the size of my thumb.) “Ehhh? Maybe they’re power inducing?” (I hesitantly bring one up to my nose to sniff.) “Hmmm–Not bad! Ohh damn, it smells like a ripened fruit!” 

(I shift hesitantly, licking my lips as I look at it.) “Gah! The damn smells around here have been driving me mad! These things are supposed to be for when I get hungry, yeah?” (I peer at the cube a few moments longer… Hesitating.)

“Now or never!” (I pop it in my mouth and instantly relief washes over me, the soft cube melting in my mouth. Oh my god.) “I feel like a thirsty man in the desert stumbling upon an oasis! Delicious!” (I savor the taste, lifting my chin as I let the dregs slide down my throat.)

(My hunger isn’t gone but at least now that damn smell isn’t the only thing on my mind.) “Hmmm, the note said something about coffee… As much as I want to eat another, I think having too much sugar like that is bad for me, plus I wanna eat it at its best!” (I gently repackage the rest of the cubes, maybe a small handful left, a dozen at a glance. I neatly seal the package and place them back in the bag.)

“Welp… Nothin but time to kill now. Haaa~” (I sigh and fall onto my back, staring up at the shifty wooden beams above me, my eyes honing in on the tiny details of the wood.) “Man, my senses feel wayyyy stronger as of late. Maybe this new world with air that isn’t like polluted is an attack on the senses? Hmmm…” (I fold my arms in thought, beginning to ponder many of the things that occurred.) “...”

~~(Some Hours Later)~~

Felt: “Oy! You’re in my way.” (A tiny blonde girl who left me for dead came up and put her hands on her hips expectantly.)

Subaru: “Ehhh? Oh, Felt!” (I quickly sit up, grabbing my jacket and tossing it over my arm. It was nice to sunbathe a little, god knows I hadn’t had this much sun on my arms in forever…)

Felt: “Haaahh? Hav’we met before?” (She tilts her head like a dog staring me down with a glare that could make a grown man shiver!)

Subaru: (I look at you distastefully.) “Glad to see you alright!”(I hop up from my seat, giving a big stretch as I yawn.) “Took ya a while!”

Felt: “Hey hey, don’t go gettin overly familiar! Who are ya and whadda ya want?” (She backs up a step, raising her arms offensively.)

Subaru: “How rude of you! Don’t you know a prospective customer when you see one?” (I grin and put a thumb to my chest.) “Natsuki Subaru, here to see about an insignia?” 

Felt: (Instantly her demeanor shifts, a sly grin sliding on her face.) “Ahhh, that’s what you’re here for?” (She pauses.) “Wait–You aren’t the one my client sent to pick this up?”

Subaru: “So it was targeted?” (I put my hands on my hips and cast my eyes down at her small figure.) “Well… We thought as much. Y’know a good thief wouldn’t reveal that information so easily.” (I gave you a disappointed look.)

Felt: “Ghh!” (I looked guilty before glaring at you.) “Whatever! Now, you’re probably some other noble, right? Those clothes are far too fancy for some run-of-the-mill Joe. Little fancy bidding war?”

Subaru: “Again, wayyyy too much info in that. So, some other noble put out the hit?”

Felt: (Her eyes widened in surprise.) “Ghk! Will you just say what you want?!”

Subaru: “Well, you got part of it right. I would like to bid for the insignia thingy.”

Felt: “Perfect, then why don’t we discuss inside, huh?” (She casually strolls past me to the door, knocking in a musical tone.)

Rom: “For a rat?”

Felt: (The girl sighs and looks back at Subaru, the revealing too much jabs making her grimace.) “It’s me, old man! There’s someone else out here, wouldn’t be a good code if we let it be seen, would it?”

Subaru: “Wow, you learned!” (I give a few mocking claps as she slips a glare at me so fierce I jump back in surprise.) “Ok, I got it, I’ll shut up!”

Felt: (Felt grumbles something quietly before turning back just as the older man opened the door. She pushes past without saying anything, choosing to hop onto one of the stools grumpily.)

Rom: “Ay! Nothing to say to me, you ungrateful brat?” (He huffs and turns to face her.)

Felt: “Oh, be quiet, old man!” (She grabs a nearby glass, jutting it out to the giant.) “Just grab me some milk!”

Rom: (The old man glares back at her.) “Why you little–Grrr!” (He snarls, lumbering over and pouring her milk anyway.)”You better appreciate this, you little brat!” 

Felt: (She takes a swig and sets the glass down on the bar, a fluid motion that looks almost exactly like the older man. It’s cute.) “Disgusting!” (She barks out as she wipes away a milkstache.) “What is this? Spoiled milk?!” 

Subaru: (I quietly walk in, taking a seat beside Felt as they bicker.)

Rom: “I’m insulted you think so low of me!”

Felt: “You! Smell this!” (She shoves the glass my way, the liquid sloshing against the sides without spilling.) “It’s spoiled, isn’t it?”

Subaru: (I pick the glass up, sniffing it myself only to set it right back down as my stomach lurches. Urghhh that's bad.) “Jesus old man, are you trying to kill her? That smells foul!”

Felt: (Felt raises an eyebrow but quickly recovers, crossing her arms to stare smugly at Rom.) “Ha! See? Even this weirdo knows it!”

Rom: “Haaa?! Why I don’t trust a word outta this boy's mouth!” (He jabs a finger distrustingly at me.) “He can’t tell good food from bad! Spat out his own snack earlier, saying it went bad when I thought it was the best thing I had with booze!”

Felt: “Haaa? You met?” (She flicks her eyes to Subaru.) “Man, I really did forget you huh?”

Subaru: “Yes! You did!” (I point accusingly.) “And I’d think I made a lasting impression considering you watched me get mugged!”

Felt: “Ah? You were?” (She claps her hands together apologetically.) “Sorry about that, bro! I'm a busy gal, must’ve slipped my mind.” 

Subaru: “It happened yesterday!”

Felt: “Ehhh? For real? Man the slums really are going to shit… I didn’t even remember. You sure it was me?” 

Subaru: “Are there any other blonde-haired, red-eyed girls acting as thieves in the slums wearing… even less than a shirt?”

Felt: (She opens her mouth in shock, covering her chest with her arms as she goes to defend herself, only for Rom to slam his fist down on the bar with a roar of laughter.)

Rom: “Hahahahah! Ahhh–” (The man pours two shots of alcohol, sliding one to me.) “Here, have a drink, kid.”

Subaru: “Ahhh, I don’t drink, but can’t you see I’m not of age anyway?”

Felt: “You aren’t?!”

Subaru: (I raise an eyebrow.) “I am only seventeen?”

Rom: (The old man scratches his head.) “You’ve spout nothin but nonsense since I met you, boy… The drinkin’ age is fifteen, when you become an adult.” (He slides the shot forward.) “Here, it’s not good to turn down a kind offer!”

Subaru: “Fifteen?!” (I look at him in surprise and hesitantly hold the shot.) “Ehhh, knowing what you like to eat, this could well be rat poison…”

Felt: “Gyahahaha!” (Felt slams her own fist on the bar before downing the last of her milk and wiping away the stache.) “Ok, ok! Enough joking around.” (She digs around inside her… jacket? Before placing an insignia on the counter, just as Satella had described.) 

Subaru: “Perfect! That’s exactly what I–” (I had unconsciously begun to reach out when Felt’s hand collapsed over it.)

Felt: “I’ll need to see some coin first, buddy.” (She grinned expectantly, licking her chops like a mutt about to feast on a fat bone.)

Subaru: “Ahhh, well then you’re all out of luck. I’m broke as can be, not a coin on me!” (I shrugged.)

Felt: “What?! Why are you wasting my time then–” (Behind her, Rom grinned, having had this pulled on him as well.)

Subaru: “Tch tch tch! Don’t be so close-minded.” (I stuck my hand in my pocket, as i had practiced for some time earlier,) “I may not have money… But that doesn’t mean I don’t have things worth money!” (I grinned and pulled out my phone, taking several rapid photographs, the flash firing off rapidly.) “Behold a moment-freezing device! Able to capture time in a glass!”

Felt: “Gah!!” (She threw her arms up defensively, Rom blinking away the brightness behind her.) “What’re you tryin ta kill me?!”

Subaru: “Behold!” (I flipped around the phone, showing the image of the two of them looking bewildered.)

Rom: “Ouuhhh!” (The old man gingerly reached out to take the phone, inspecting the image next to Felt.)

Felt: “Is that supposed to be me? I’m wayyyy cuter.” (She glances up dismissively as Rom takes the item and begins to inspect it a bit more.)

Subaru: “Well, that girl in the photo has as little clothes on as you, so forgive me if I see a resemblance.” (I raise my eyebrows mockingly.)

Felt: “Quit focusing on my clothes, perv!” (She covers herself up with her arms again, going a bit red in the face.)

Subaru: “You mean your lack of them? “(I give a smug grin as you begin to growl.)

Rom: “Felt.” (The old man's tone is serious.)

Felt: “Eh, Yeah, Rom?” (The girl quickly turns back, her tone now also serious.)

Rom: “Am I right in assuming this is one of them metia, those new-fangled mana receptacles that can communicate over long distances?” (he places the phone on the counter expectantly.) 

Subaru: “Oh? It does have those properties.”

Rom: (The man keeps a serious gaze on me…) “Well then. This here metia is worth no less than twenty holy gold coins if I say so. It’s probably more valuable than everything in this shop.”

Felt: “FOR REAL?!” (The blonde shoots up in her seat, slapping both hands on the counter as her eyes fixate on the device, absolutely star-struck.)

Subaru: (I give a devilish smile.) “Yep! Now you can buy an actual shirt!” 

Felt: (She barely spares a glancing glare as she picks up the metia, kissing it.) “This is my goddamn ticket out right here! Hahahaaaa!” (She pauses, a greedy smile creeping onto her face…) “If this insignia is worth so damn much to ya… I wonder how much the buyer’s got!” (She reluctantly hands the metia back, taking the insignia.)

“I’ll choose to wait for them, call it a professional courtesy as well. I can’t just go and give this away before they even get here.” (She sticks her glass out to Rom, silently asking for more milk, to which the old man obliges.) “They should be here soon anyway.” (She eyes the window where the sun starts to set.) 

???: (Speak of the devil, and he may arrive. A knock raps on the door.)

Felt: “Ah! That must be them, I never told them the code…”

Subaru: “Of course you didn’t” (I sigh and place a hand to my forehead as she throws a glare back while Rom chuckles.)

Felt: “shuddup…” (she mutters before heading to the door, popping it open to reveal a woman even more scantily clad than herself.) “I was right, it was for me.” (She smiled, welcoming the girl in.)

Elsa: “There appear to be several outsiders here…” (She eyes Rom and me, her eyes… shifty.)

Subaru: (I don’t like her. Something is off. It’s like my body is screaming, BE ON ALERT. I can’t help but feel my muscles tense, a weird tingle in my back as I stare her down…)

Felt: “Well, I’d be in a bit of trouble if you chose to bilk me, so the old man here is my help. The other guy.” (Her eyes flick to me, her relaxed attitude pausing as she sees me glaring the woman down.) “Is your ah… Competition. H-he also wants the insignia, so it’ll be a bit of bidding war.”

Elsa: “...I see.” (She gives a sultry smile, casually walking over to me, close. Too close.)

Subaru: “...” (I don’t lower my gaze, not even for a second. Her eyes seem to be challenging me, but I don’t even flinch. I’m not sure why, but it’s like everything in me is begging for her to try it.)

Elsa: “Have we met somewhere?” (The tension in the air is so thick it might as well be the same consistency as the spoiled milk Rom poured.)

Subaru: “Maybe. Maybe not.” (I stood, heading to the table where Felt had placed the insignia.) “Not that it matters. Let’s just bid on this like civilized people, yeah?”

Elsa: “I see.” (She pauses, taking a breath before following, sitting opposite to me.) “Let's.” (Her smile, so serene, feels like an attack on the senses. Like at any moment she could lash out and just… kill me.)

Felt: (Her eyes shift nervously between the two of us.) “Well, ah, Subaru here put up a metia.”

Subaru: (As she mentions it, I pull out my phone, slowly setting it on the table without moving my gaze. My nasty eyes intently focused.)

Felt: “Its value is estimated at roughly twenty holy gold coins. What do you have to contest this?”

Elsa: (Following my lead, she also refuses to lower her gaze, slowly grabbing a hefty pouch to dump a pile of gold coins in front of Rom.)

Rom: (The giant silently begins to count the coins, neatly piling up four stacks of five. Twenty holy gold coins exactly.)

Subaru: “Correct me if I’m wrong, Rom, but you estimated my metia at no less than twenty holy gold coins, right?”

Rom: (The man nods, his eyes steely as he warily watches the two of us.) “That I did.”

Elsa: “I see. That’s a shame. Seems my employer underbid, his loss.” (She casually stands up, her gaze keeping steady as I rise the same.) ”If you don’t mind me asking, what exactly are you going to use this for?”

Subaru: (I neatly fold my jacket, placing it on the table. The second you asked that, it's like my nerves were hit with a hot wire, a jolt of electricity filling my body and telling me to lie.) “Ah, nothing much. Just… adding to my collection. Thought it looked nice.”

Elsa: “I see…” 

???: (Suddenly, a rapt knock on the door occurs, causing Felt and Rom to turn unexpectedly.)

Chapter Text

Felt: “Ehhh? Who could that be? You invite anyone else, Rom?” (The tiny girl nervously backed up some, her red eyes nervously flicking between the two people still having a stare down.)

Rom: (Rom himself was staring hard at Elsa, his gaze wary as he backed away from the table as well, placing his back on the bar.) “...Can’t say I did, no.” (He slowly places a massive hand on the flat top of the bar, almost as if reaching for something. He keeps his gaze focused on Elsa, flicking his eyes momentarily to Subaru.) “You two can take the back exit. We’ll handle anything that goes on with this new person.” (He gives a soft grunt.) “Your deal is done now.”

Felt: (Something is off. Everyone can sense it… So Felt starts to walk to the one who looks calmer, getting ready to smile sheepishly and point them to the back door. At least until a hand grabs her shoulder and protectively tugs her back.)

Subaru: (I moved almost on instinct, grabbing Felt by the shoulder and pulling her behind me as I stared Elsa down. Beads of sweat forming on my forehead.) “Leave first.”

Elsa: (Her smile is disgusting, natural from her but unnatural in its origin. Like seeing a butterfly drinking blood…) “I don’t seem to remember you. I don’t think we have met… Yet when I walked in, you were on your guard right away!” (She cheerfully smiles and calmly laces her fingers together as the door is beaten on again.)

Satella: “Hello…?”

Subaru: (Ehhhh?! Satella? B-but it’s   stilllight out, why is she here so— ah… If she didn’t have to save me she’d have made it here way faster huh. A single tear welled up in my eye. Damn…)

Felt: (Felt went rigid as the voice rang out, her face clearly displaying a mix of annoyance and uncertain fear…)

Subaru: (I steeled my nerves, refocusing on Elsa.) “You’re right. I don’t think we’ve met…” (I slowly raised a hand to my chest, clutching my black tee to stare her down as my heart beat a million miles a minute.) “And yet… Something tells me to get away from you. To leave… Or…” (I narrowed my nasty eyes, giving the meanest look I could that would make little kids cry.)

Elsa: (Her eyes slowly drifted to the door. Pausing before responding.) “Or? …You must be quite cocky you know.”

(She slowly slid her eyes back onto Felt.) “...Open the door.”

Subaru: (I forced myself in front of Felt, though it was clear she was deliberating following the order.) “...Felt, don’t.”

Felt: “I–” (She flicked her eyes up. This was weird, very weird. Not to mention a bit terrifying… something was wrong from the moment that woman entered…) “I’ll do it.” (She shoved past him, moving to the door and getting ready to yank it open. Standing there was the last person Subaru wanted to see.)

Subaru: “PUCK, SHIELD HER!”

Elsa: (As the door opened to show the silver-haired half-elf, Elsa leapt forward with insane speed, her curved black blades striking down on solid ice. She leapt back from the door, hopping onto a table in the middle of the room, her eyes flicking back to Subaru.) “...”

Satella: “Ah?!” (The girl shrank back as the screeching blades bounced off the ice, a miffed-looking kitten floating up from her shoulders. Felt had luckily been pulled under the shield by the elf as Subaru's call rang out.)

Puck: “That was cutting it a bit close…” (He flicked his gaze to the elf for a second, his eyes softening for a brief second as he saw she was ok, if shaken up. The tiny girl she was holding was glaring back at Elsa. Knowing everything was ok, he turned a serious gaze to Elsa.) “Haaa, you really saved us there, thanks for that.” (The tiny cat spirit gave a thumbs up with a cheeky grin in Subaru's direction)

Subaru: (I kept my eyes glued to the hired gun, wary of her next move. I could see her eyes swivel a bit, flicking from me to her left and right. On her right, Rom blocked the path that led to the back exit, on her left, Emilia and Felt blocked the door. Behind her lay only a wall, and I stood in front of her, in the main section of the loot house. She was surrounded, and she didn’t even seem bothered. Only wary of me.) “Nice one, Puck! Hahhhh, we’re lucky you’re on until five.” (I shifted my stance… Now that a blade was in the mix of things, I wasn’t so eager to provoke her. Not to say I was scared… I just felt tense… a sort of… boiling rage in me? I’m not even sure why I’m so angry, her face just makes me want to lash out.)

Felt: “H-hey, what do you think you’re doing! Y-you were gonna cut through me!” (The blonde pushed the elf away, slightly moving back into the loot house. She looked a bit nervous but more mad than anything, raising and shaking her fist at the woman.)

Elsa: (The woman paused, looking deep into me. No, not in me, through me. Her gaze was like a lion on a gazelle. She just happened to be full, but she could come and take a bite.) “A spirit…” (She raised a blade at me, aiming the curved kukri at my chest as she turned her head ever so slightly to slip her gaze onto Emilia, looking past Felt, who flinched at the movement.)

“That is a spirit, right~?” (She gave a sultry smile, eyes widening in almost self-pride as she giggled.) “Fufufu~ How wonderful. I’ve never split open a spirit's stomach before.”

Felt: “H-hey hey! What’s the big idea here?!” (Felt cowered back, her hand slipping to the tiny blade she carried.)

Elsa: “Well… I believe you were hired to steal the item my boss requested, not drag the owner along here with it. We can hardly negotiate with her here, can we?” (She let slip a sly chuckle, licking her lips as her eyes focused again on Puck.)

Felt: (Felt by this point was right next to Satella, who, for her part, looked incredibly confused but ready. Felt flicked her gaze to pausing in fright as she realised just who she was next to.) “N-no way? S-silver hair? P-pointed ears?!” (As she began to stumble away, Satella spoke up.)

Satella: (Satella closed her eyes in mild frustration for a moment before letting out a cool, collected message.) “No, no, I just resemble her… It causes me quite a lot of trouble actually.” (She raised a palm, a shard of ice forming in front of it.) “We can discuss your actions and my appearance later, I feel that we have a more pressing issue.”

Elsa: “Mhmhmhm! (Elsa giggled with delight, seeing the faces of her soon-to-be victims, raising the kukiri in her right hand to aim at Felts' head.) “Her appearance changes things. It seems I’ll have to slaughter everyone here.”

Rom: (As the words left her lips, so too did her feet from the table. She leapt into the air, dodging the massive wooden club Rom had just slammed into her stage. The wood splintered into a thousand pieces, making me and the girls jump back.) “NOT IF I CAN HELP IT YOU MONSTER! RAAGHHH!” (Rom dashed forward, hitting broad wild swings with his club that Elsa easily dodged.)

Elsa: “Fufufu~!” (She danced around the spiked club as if it were simple child's play; she was barely taking him seriously, and it showed.) “You’re quite boorish, you know?”

Satella: (Satella didn’t just dodge, though; she sent shards of ice to each place the assassin touched, making the assassin's heels barely even grace the ground before she bounded away.)

Rom: (The older man slammed his club into several items when he missed her, splintering the cheap wooden chairs and stools around his own place. His wild strokes were clumsy and easy to evade. So when he pushed the woman towards the wall at her back, he accidentally put himself between Satella and her, losing his covering fire with his blind swings.)

Elsa: (Elsa danced back effortlessly, giggling like it was all some game.)

Subaru: (As the other two battled on, my eyes finally left her, looking for—There!) “Felt!” (I rushed forward, snagging the small girl by the arm and pulling her away from the battle area. I may have newfound strength, but I didn’t know its limits or strengths just yet, and I wasn’t willing to die to find out.)

Felt: “Hey! What the hell?!” (She tugged her arm free, panickedly looking up at me.)

Subaru: (I balled my jacket up around my fist, looking at the window I had dragged her to. At least my strength would be good for this—I channeled my power into my fist and slammed it into the glass, cracking the dusty window into a million shards, swiping away any shards at the edges.) “You’re fast, Felt. I saw you run back in that alley,” (I rapidly unballed my jacket, tossing it over the windowsill for added protection against any remaining glass.) “Get out of here, run and get help.”

Felt: “Ehhh?!” (The girl seemed enraged at the thought of leaving, her tone shifting as her thoughts honed in on her priority.) “I’m not leaving old man Rom.” 

Subaru: (As she began to protest, I ignored her, grabbing her arm as she backed away and pulling her close to the window. She looked up at me nervously.) 

Felt: “G-get off!”

Subaru: “Is that what Rom would want? Would he want you to stay here in this? You're a better help, getting help .” (I leaned down, getting face to face.) “Get—” (Suddenly, I felt my eyes drawn back to the battle. Elsa had drawn Rom towards his bar, goading him into a wild swing with his club that slammed it down into the floorboards. Even from here, I could see it was stuck, and she looked ecstatic.) “GO!” (I shoved past Felt, moving towards the fight.)

(It was like seeing things in slow motion, almost story-tale like. I didn’t even know what I was doing; I simply moved forward on instinct, as dumb as it was.)

Elsa: (She started to swing her strike, the odd blade arcing horizontally for the old man's neck as his eyes widened. Every motion she made slowed considerably in my eyes, like her strike was sinking through molasses.)

Subaru: (WHAT AM I DOING?! I ran forward, leaping up with surprising speed and distance to slam my right foot into one of the few remaining tables; it creaked and groaned under my weight. I swung my right fist out far overextending it, but it was pretty clear I wouldn’t hit, she was at least another few feet ahead of me… yet I kept moving?)

(I fully extended my right arm out, raising my left leg parallel to the floor to counterbalance the weight, my left arm tucked into myself as–) SHRRRIPP– (My own eyes widened as as I felt a thick weight sprout from my back, a long black tendril flowing forward just over my right arm to slam into a surprised Elsa.)

Elsa: “Oh?” (Her eyes widened as she was caught by the tendril. She was too deep into her attack to change, especially considering the speed of the tendril.) FWOOMF “Gah~!” (She let out a feminine gasp of pain as she was pummeled in the left shoulder by the meaty part of the tentacle, flung through the splintered remains of the remaining furniture before stopping as her body slammed into the wall.)

(She jumped up, immediately locking eyes with me… and licking her lips.) “mmmmhmhmhmhmh~” (Her slow hum turned into a slight giggle, making me more furious than scared… She casually began to stalk forward with increased interest.) “A spirit, and some kind of demi-human?” (She giggles maniacally.) “Seems I was right to take this job~” (She raised her kukiri up by her chest, flashing the blade's edge towards me.)

“Now… Just what are you?” (Her eyes slowly move over my figure, and my own do the same...)

Subaru: (The thick tentacle that had sprung forth to hit her coiled back like a loosely tightened corkscrew, wavering in the air just over my right shoulder as I pulled back my arm. My eyes were incredibly wide as I realized not only was it there, but it wasn’t the only one. My eyes sped behind me to my left as I felt a twitch in my lower left back, another sprouting and arcing down to connect me with the ground, stabilizing the new weight of the first tentacle by penetrating the floorboards.) “I–I uhm, I–”

Elsa: (Her eyes widened as she seemed to draw a conclusion.) “My my, are you a many-armed?” (She flicked her blade up, tracing the arc of the tendril sprouted from my back.) “I haven’t been lucky enough to meet one, but that’s the best I’ve got hmmmm~”

(However, as her gaze went over him, her eyes narrowed...) “Mmmm… No… That eye of yours isn’t a trait of the many-armed, and I believe those arms are an oddity as well. The many-armed arms look like arms not… whatever those may be… fufufu~ Are you perhaps a rarer demi-human?” (She waves her blade around, vaguely gesturing across the body.)

Subaru: (My eyes trail to where she points, tracing the odd black tentacle that had sprouted from me… I could feel its origin from my middle-lower back. The coiled tentacle was a dark purple, almost black, and EXACTLY LIKE THE RED-HAIRED WOMAN! My eyes widened as I connected the two dots, my mouth struggling to keep up as I fumbled out my words.)

“Ah–I-I, I’m not sure? Wh-what is… am…” (I squinted as I felt my stomach grumble, the sweet scents all around me seeming to grow stronger. I felt overwhelmed, my mind, my gut, the situation, so I didn’t even notice as she coiled like a snake.)

Elsa: “Fufufu~” (That sweet, sultry laugh sang out as she flew forward at blinding speed. An ice shard slammed into the bar as it swirled past her feet, not fast enough to snag her as she pulled back the kukri in her left arm, slamming it across my gut.) “Ah~ How lucky am I to get to see a rare demi’s guts~?”

Subaru: (eyes wide, I flung back, the slam of her blade making my insides feel like they had been stirred by a hand mixer.) “BU-GAH!” (I spat out a frothy mix of spit and bile as I flew back hard, crashing through several pieces of wood. My back slammed against the wall, the tentacles meatily smacking against the wall as I slid down it.)

Elsa: (Her eyes glinted with bloodlust, but before she checked on her prey's innards, she chose to spin on her heel, flicking up her left arm at a wide-eyed Rom who raised his arms to shield himself.)

(Nothing came.)

(The assassin's eyes widened as Rom stayed intact, her gaze drifting up her arm to the hilt of her blade. Because the hilt of the blade was the only thing that remained.) “Eh?” (She danced back as several icicles slammed into where she stood. Her feet gliding effortlessly across the battlefield of splintered wood to land in new spots only to dance away again as Puck sent shard after shard after her.) 

(She flips back onto the bar, taking a wide stance as she deflects the last icicle out of the air with her intact blade. Throwing the hilt aside, she snags her back-up blade, flicking her eyes left to look at Subaru.) “How did he…” 

Subaru: (Two more tentacles sprouted from my back, sprouting slightly higher than the other two. They snaked up, their tips slamming high up into the wall and helping draw me up as the lower ones acted as canes of support. I let out a slow hiss of pain…) “Tssssssssssssss… Gaaaahhggghhhh…” (I slowly lifted my gaze to meet her… That demon… It felt like my guts were on fire, my innards swirled around a goddamn water slide... My teeth were gritted in pain, frothy spit mixed with blood that had come from me biting my own tongue and a bit of bile that had shot up my throat as I slammed into the wall.) “Gahhhghhhfffhmmm…” (I groaned as I staggered forward with a dry heave… A frothy mixture spilling from my lips in wet, bubbly drops across the thorny wood scattered about the floor.)

(I felt my brows furrow, my nasty eyes filled with venom as I stared at her. Her words had reached my ears as the pain subsided ever so slightly. My entrails felt warm and wet on the inside, they always were, but now I could feel it alongside the dull ache of pain.) “Y-YOuuuuUUuu” (I snarled, my face contorted in rage.)

Elsa: “Fufufu~! Isn’t that quite the look~?” (She giggled and stepped off the bar, tossing aside the hilt of her broken blade as she did so. Her heels clacking against the wooden floor.)

Subaru: (I flicked my sight behind the assassin, looking to Satella… I could see her look of deep concern and fear for me, she must’ve been as confused as me. Puck disappeared in a small burst of light. I smiled, nodded with a stupid grin, and flicked my eyes to the door with a little nod. She could leave, no, she needed to leave… Her time limit had hit and it was better she stay safe while we duked it out.) “I… Won’t let you… Touch… One damn hair… On that girl's head…”

Satella: (Satella’s eyes widened as she heard my words. She paused, looking confused as I wanted to defend her. Yet, her gaze steeled as she focused back on Rom.)

Elsa: “My my~” (She let out a pleased giggle, leveling her blade at my chest.) “I’d love to see that happen! It’s a shame I can’t see your guts, but that look of yours makes it all worth it!”

Subaru: “Tch!” (I clicked my tongue as my face contorted deeper in its rage. That hurt… But it didn’t kill me… Clearly the isekai gods gave me a chance at least… a CHEAT POWER!)

(My arms had been cradling my gut, but as I began to feel better, I let them drop… My shirt had a clean horizontal slash right across the stomach. My eyes drifted down.) “Wow…” (My mind was a mix of fear and smugness. She can’t hurt me.) “Ha…Hahahah…HAHAHAHHAHAHAHA” 

Elsa: (The assassin paused in her approach, standing a small distance from me.) “Oh? What might be so funny?” (Her smile was emotionless now, all the damn crazy this bitch had focused deep in her eyes. She cocked her head to the side, like a dog staring questioningly.) 

Subaru: (I didn’t bother to respond to the sweet-smelling succubus; I simply raised my glare at her.)

(I darted forward, raising my upper tendrils over my shoulders like harpoons wavering in the sea. My body leaned forward as I moved, automatically accommodating the shifted weight my extra limbs gave, I slammed the first two tendrils at her feet.)

Elsa: (She danced back, a sly smile slipping onto her face as she roared forward, slipping between my lower tendrils as they darted out. She quickly raised her blade, slamming it down–)

Subaru: (I darted my upper-right tendril forward, my eyes widened at the close call, the blade skirting the scales of my new arm, sparks flying off as a loud–) SHIRRRRRRRRKKKKKK (Resounded from the clash. She leapt back as my tendrils quickly converged on her.) “GRRRAH. LUCKY THAT TIME!” (I snarled with rage, pulling my tentacles back to glare at the assassin, her ripe fruit scent wafting off her sweaty body to make my nose twitch.)

Elsa: (She didn’t bother to respond, her sultry giggle burning in my ears instead. She stalked around the room, her feet expertly avoiding the various furniture debris on the floor. Then—)

SPRKKKKKKKKKUKK!

Subaru: (She sped forward, her hands a blur as she danced around me effortlessly.) “Dammi–!” (My tendrils swirled to keep up, smacking her blades away just in the nick of time, each clash a spray of sparks as the blades slid down my scales.)

~~( At The Door )~~

Rom: (The older man had watched the fight but knew he wasn’t capable… His old bones ached just from the club swinging, and that had done little to help the youngsters. His new job was taking care of Felt.)

(The giant staggered to the door, heavily panting, the exhaustion of his wild swings evident. His gaze swept the area, desperate to find her. Find Felt.)

(There! She was cowering behind a suit of cheaply made armor, her tiny body trembling as she watched the assassin corner Subaru… Rom wasn’t sure exactly who she was scared of, though… The assassin, or the wild boy who looked more devilish than the half-elf… maybe both.)

Satella: “Hey!” (The half-elf girl rushed forward, staring with steeled, wary nerves at the giant, but it was clear he was no threat. She softened her gaze a smidge as the older man shakily looked her way, his gaze growing set as he looked upon her.) “You stole something from me, and I intend to get it back.” 

(She flicked her eyes to the battle, looking concerned.) “But I think it’s clear you aren’t on that woman's side, so the bigger problem will take precedence. We can resolve our issue later.”

(She quickly flicked her eyes to Felt, then back to the battle. It was clear that if Felt rushed out now, there would be several opportunity attacks for the assassin. Even an untrained eye like Subaru’s could figure as much.) “I’ll cover you. Grab the girl and get out.”

Rom: (The giant's eyes widened as she gave the suggestion.) “That’s awfully kind of you. Odd for someone Felt robbed…” (Rom’s eyes glinted with suspicion.)

Satella: (Satella flicked her head to the left as she was looked at.) “Well, I need her alive so I can question her motives, of course!”

Rom: (Rom paused, his lips parting slightly in surprise before he let out a dry chuckle.) “Grahahah… I see.” (His eyes have a slight glint of nostalgia as he sees her so obviously lie.) 

Satella: “No matter, we need to get her now–” (Satella stepped out a bit from the doorway, raising a hand at the assassin while shifting her aim slightly left. If need be, she could line the floor with ice shards, blocking off Felt, but the goal was mana conservation, so she hoped she wouldn’t need to.) “Go!”

Rom: (In an instant, Rom was off. He dashed to the side, extending an arm towards Felt with a reassuring look, like cooing a kitten from its hiding spot.)

Felt: (The small blonde nervously flicked her gaze to Elsa but did as asked, speeding forth with her divine protection to smack into Roms chest.) “Old man!” (Her voice was shaky and nervous. She had watched him nearly get decapitated after all.)

Elsa: (The woman's eyes barely flicked off her main opponent, her body forced to dodge and leap back from various attacks of Subaru. Even still–)

Satella: “El hyuma!” (Satella's gaze intensified as she shot off two crystals at the assassin, completely throwing off Elsa’s movement so that—)

Subaru: THWICK (My left tentacle slammed into her as she staggered away from the ice crystals, throwing her body into the back wall of the loot house and knocking down several assorted goods.)

Rom: (The older man’s eyes focused in on the destruction, his hands unconsciously stroking the young girl's hair at the reunion. As he looked at the battle, his mind did rapid calculations, only pausing when he heard the building creak and groan... Subaru was engaged in all-out warfare against the woman, and it was making more than a few dents.)

“We gotta get out now,” (He spoke gruffly, snagging Felt by the shoulders, lifting her up with just one arm. He strode to the door with renewed energy, the safety of his granddaughter invigorating the older giant.) “C’mon, miss!”

Satella: (Satella followed suit, a bead of sweat on her temple as she did so, never taking her eyes off both combatants.)

Rom: (The giant stumbled a good distance from the loot house, collapsing against the weak cobblestone foundation of a nearby shack, his eyes flicking back to the house as the battle raged on. The clang of steel and an occasional yell ringing out.) “Felt, get out of here.” 

Felt: “Wh-what?” (The girl was shocked, more than outraged, her fear dissipating to stare at the older man in disbelief. He wasn’t fragile by any means, but he was older and had nearly died twice in the span of mere minutes. It’s enough to make anyone feel drained. He couldn’t possibly expect her to lea–)

Rom: (The old man shoved her back.)

Felt: “Old man Rom! What are you doing?!” (The girl looked at him with annoyance, trying to get closer only to be held back at arm's length.)

Rom: (Slowly, the older man rose, leering down at her with solace in his eyes.) “Felt, get out of here.”

Felt: “I-” (She began to start, but Rom refused her.)

Rom: “You aren’t capable of beatin’ her, and you're easily the fastest among us. So get out of here while you still can.” (The giant kept his tone level and even, despite the scream that ripped out from the loot house, making the young girl flick a concerned look back.)

(Rom gently placed a palm on her shoulder, pushing her to face away from the house before swatting her on the back.) “Go on, you ain’t doin' us use here. Better for you to go get help.”

Satella: (Satella, who’d been keeping her eyes on the loot house, chimed in.) “Without Puck, this will be a hard drawn fight… You were able to evade me earlier; you’d be the quickest to go fetch the guards.”

Felt: (Tears welled in the poor girls eyes but… she broke into a sprint.) “Dammit! You better not die till I come back, old man!”

Rom: (The old man grinned, watching her activate her divine protection and–)

BOOMMMMMMMM

~~(Several Moments Prior)~~

Subaru: “HRAAAHHH!” (I wildly struck out with the tentacles, my upper set doing most of the leg work, darting in and out as she easily weaved between the blows. I was damn lucky the floor was so weak, had my tendrils got stuck for even a moment, I’m not sure the fight would be going the same.)

“NN-RAH!” (I leapt forward, dodging a downward strike from her blades as my tentacles whirled to get her.)

Elsa: (The woman easily dodged the tentacles, not a scratch landing on her perfect skin as she deftly leapt from point to point in heels. Her freaky smile contamination her whole face as her eyes bore holes into me with unadulterated glee.)

(Seeing the tentacles were dispersed, she dove in.)

Subaru: “AH!” (My upper tendrils were fully extended, diverted out by her blades, sparks skimming off the scales with a sickening ring of metal.)

(Shit.)

(SHIT.)

(She was coming right down the alley I had created, one of my lower tentacles firmly planted in the ground as a stabilizer, the other shooting out to attack, only to be misdirected by her curved blades.)

(She slowly raised her blade over her head, the sadistic smile widening as she got her chance.)

(THERE!)

(I threw my arm up, my forearm accepting the blow. My gut had taken the blow before so maybe my arm might—) CRACK 

“GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!” (I screamed as I felt the bones inside my arm snap with the blade smacking down, the loud, sharp crack piercing my ears as I reeled back, recklessly whirling my recovered tentacles at her.)

(I took shuddering gasps, raising my tentacles into a netted ball around me as I stared out in fear.)

“You broke my aaAArrrRmmmmmmnNNnghHH!” (I gasped and sucked in air through my teeth as I began to hyperventilate. Dammit dammit dammit! Aggghghghghghg! I can… God… IT BURNNNnnnnsssnsnsnss.) 

Elsa: (The cat-like assassin cartwheeled back with a fit of giggles.) “Fufufufu~” (She raised her blade in front of her, the side parallel to the floor. Casually flicking it up and down tauntingly.) “Was that little nick enough to send you crying?”

Subaru: “Sh-shut up!” (I gagged on my own spit as I ground my teeth against one another… It burns… It burns so bad… This isn’t normal, what did she do? Was it laced with poison? But my arm wasn’t cut–)

Elsa: (The assassin let out a sigh of disinterest.) “Well, it’s rather unfortunate, but it seems we must cut this short.” (She tilts her head down slightly, the once perverse eyes turning cold and disgustingly intent.)

Subaru: “E-eh?” (I shakily stumbled back, my foot hesitating, my body trembling… My arm shaking worst of all… The bone inside had clearly been splintered, my forearm sprouting out to make a small obtuse angle. Sweet sugary syrup flowing through my mind as my nose drew in the scent, the burning heat slowly causing me to slobber a good bit…)

(I snarled and lifted my head to meet her gaze. She tensed.)

Elsa: (Elsa had been readying to strike until he moved his head to meet her gaze. She flinched. Then, she shot forth. A whirlwind of slashes and strikes, she was no longer merely toying with prey; she was going in for the kill.)

Subaru: (It’s hot…and hungry—so damn hungry, whyamIthishungry? Didn’tIeatjustbeforethis, Where’sthefood?—Ineedthatdelicioussmell–thesmelliscomingtomeitscomingtomefood, thefoodiscoming–i need to eat, it.)

Elsa: (The assassin easily dives through his defences, darting past shooting tentacles to launch forward, even getting behind him and—) QAK (She slams the hilt of her blade into the back of his skull and graces the floor with her feet for a few moments before—) STRIIIIK (The blunt of her blade curves around his ribs flinging him a few feet but–)

Subaru: (I simply punch through the shoddy plywood walls, my body smacking against the dirt ground and rolling a few feet before I finally stand.) “Heeegegggghhhhhthhhhh…” (I took a short raspy breath… the taste of metal running through my bottom teeth onto my tongue.)

Elsa: “You’re resilient…” (The assassin casually walked forward, heels clicking against the floor.) “It’s annoying.”

(Her left cheek was missing, a large chunk of flesh shredded off her face. Thin tendrils of flesh and blood twisting and writhing from the wound as the gap quickly began to reseal itself.)

Rom: “BACK OFF YOU MONSTER!” (Rom raised his fists by his face, ready to join Subaru but–) 

Subaru: (My new body writhed, my tentacles reeling back before arcing out to shoot into the ground… my body slowly lifted into the air as I stared at her.)

Elsa: (Her eyes widen.) “Fufufu~! I see!” (She raised her blades to the heavens, spreading her arms wide.) “You’re not resilient! You’re just like me!” (She shot an arm out to point her blade's tip at Subaru's newly reformed arm.) “I see your-Hah?”

Subaru: (I throw myself forth with reckless abandon, the tips of my second arms slamming into the dirt right where she was, then again, and again. I launch myself after her giving her little time to toy with me, instead I simply run after her—tentacles kicking up dust as I speed toward her, my pace matching her own due to the hunger, oh the hunger, the hunger, the hunger, th eh unger, t heh unger, humnhegr, tH̴͖̘̼̤͛͗͗̚͘͜e H̴͖̘̼̤͛͗͗̚͘͜µ̶̧͕̖͖̘͑̃̈́̎͝ñ̸̟̺̘̮̹̑͐̍̿̾g̵̨̮̺̯̟͑͗̑͝͠ễ̶̹̥̳̮͚̉͌̅̈ŗ̴̜̞̪̫͂̌̓̍̐, hunger, thehunger, hungeehrt. thehunger, thehunger,thehunger,thehungerthehungerthehunger, I’msofuckinghungry.)

Elsa: (Elsa is forced to dance back, each foot that hits the ground quickly launching her back, just as a tentacle slams down where she would've been.) “So you were holding out on me~? Fufufufu~ I didn’t take you for the noble type to regard me as a lady!” 

(She dances back near a shoddy shack and at the last moment throws her delicious self to the right.)

Subaru: “RYYYYAAAHHH!” (Barely forming a conscious thought, I lob myself forward, catapulted by sheer will. My body slams into the thorny wooden hut, my tentacles darting forth to redirect me immediately as I crumple the wall, making the building fall into itself with a resounding slam.)

Satella: (The half-elf ekes back as the fight rages on. Subaru doesn’t even seem to acknowledge the blows Elsa throws his way with each step back. She launches hidden blades at him, tosses dirt towards his face with a brush of her feet, and even slashes at him, yet he parries it all or accepts it as he drives himself forward. Pink foam bubbles from the corners of his lips as he single-mindedly charges forward. Spit dribbles down his chin as he groans and pants like a mad dog.)

(It’s disturbing to say nothing else… but–) “El Hyuma!” (She slides her arm forth, calling on the spirits around her as a crystal forms in her palm, stabbing into the dirt right where the assassin was about to step.)

Elsa: “My my~ aren’t you troublesome?” (She launches herself right to dodge the ice, but Subaru sees it.)

Subaru: “FRAHAHAHAHA!” (The left tentacles lash into her side, slamming the woman into a nearby shed, the building denting under the force with which she slams into the building.)

Elsa: “hAH–!” (Her body crumples in the dent, her hands scrambling at the floor as she attempts to launch herself away.)

Subaru: ( FOOD .)

(My tentacle lashes around her ankle, forcibly dragging her back as her blades dig into the dry dirt.)

Elsa: (The assassin twists herself in an act of desperation, launching one of her blades right at Subaru's skull, only for it to slam full on into his head. It flings past him, yet leaves a good bit of damage. His nose drips blood, the structure completely broken as he snarls and surges forward.)

Subaru: (His tendrils shoot forward to seize the opportunity, snagging around her right wrist as the left darts for her armed left hand.)

Elsa: “Hmph~” (She bounces the pointed tip of the incoming black worm off the flat of her blade and in one swift motion, brings the blade niceeee and highhhh. Flicking the sharp edge down to face her body and–) SCHWING (Her hand and lower leg came loose as she used her intact left leg to propel herself away.)

Rom: (The old man's eyes widened in surprise at the cornered move, the girl stuffing all of her stamina into her leg to shoot herself up and onto the shards of the loot house.)

Satella: “HYUMA!” (Satella throws several ice shards out, but–)

Elsa: DINK DINK DINK. (Elsa readies herself for him, her eyes flicking to him as she kneels. Her leg was rapidly regenerating, but if he launched himself then—)

(...)

(He wasn’t moving.)

Subaru: (Have you ever felt your insides burn with hunger? True, unfiltered hunger? The raw burning and the yearning for food that drives you to madness? A deep rumbling in your guts, the aches throughout your whole body as your muscles burn, and you feel every individual bead of sweat drip down your face. Your eyes bulging at the sight of what was your first meal in days. Your mouth frothing with delight. Your dry tongue snaking out to touch it first…?) 

(The subtle scent of a delicious red velvet cake wafted up to my nose. The rich, creamy batter was softly baking in the oven, the piping hot tray coming out and clattering against the stove as the steamy cake wafted its scent through the whole home. A thick smear of cream cheese was spread over it to make a beautiful flat surface, a first meal for the ages.)

(So of course I took a bite.)

(I felt my eyes roll into the back of my head as the thick, syrupy batter flowed down my throat, the chewy bread stuck between my canines as I tore a particularly fluffy piece of cake off the bone. The heavenly sent icing soft and sweet against my tongue, each individual flavor combining to make a god sent meal. I grin and giggle like a kid having his first cake because that's what it feels like. My maw prying open for a second bite, thick, goopy tendrils of meat and syrup connecting me to the joint of the cake.)

(But I pause.) “Ah! I’m sorry! How rude!” (I grinned and drew my tentacle out, offering the smaller, dainty slice of cake to her. The beautiful girl who helped me!)

Satella: “...Mmngh.” (She retched, throwing a hand up to her lips as she stumbled back in horror.)

Subaru: “Huh?” (I paused, reaching out a syrup-covered hand in confusion.)

(...)

(That’s…)

(That’s not syrup.)

(I slowly swallowed the wet lump of cake. My eyes slowly met what I had taken several ravenous bites from…)

(Her calf... Now oozing thick, bloody drops onto the dirt. Skin shredded across the back of her meat, goopy strands of meat and muscle hanging down… My entire front caked with the thick, syrupy blood.)

(I… My… My tentacle quickly drew back with the leg still entangled in its grasp.)

Satella: (The poor silver-haired girl simply stared at me like I was a wild beast.)

Subaru: “W-wait, Sah—”

Elsa: “Fufufufufu!!” 

Subaru: (My eyes whipped to the right to see the assassin standing on the splinters of the Loot house.)

Elsa: “My~ my~!” (Her leg had managed to… grow back? The freshly grown legs bare foot tip-toeing the uneven ground, smooth, pale skin trailing up to where her torn and tattered tights remained… a clean cut at the hem, small tears and rips laid across the rest of her outfit, however.) “...you truly are a beast, aren’t you?”

(She smiled with a wicked grin, her lips curled in a grotesque display of violent revelry.) “I suppose we’ll have to see whose hunter and prey, though won’t we~?”

Subaru: (I continued to flounder like a fish as I stared up at her, so much so that all I could manage to mutter was–) “Wow… That’s really corny…”

Elsa: (The woman's brow twitched with irritation, her body tensing for an attack.)

Subaru: (She paused as I got myself ready, upper tentacles coiling over my shoulders begging her to come close as I planted my lower limbs into the dirt. I won’t let her move me this time!)

Elsa: (Then,) FWOOM (It was off.)

(She flew forward at a blinding speed, darting off to my right as she lobbed an assortment of debris at my face, forcing me to fling up my arms or be blinded.)

(My upper right tentacle slamming into the coarse dirt of the slums as she darted at my back.)

Subaru: (As if on instinct, the bottom right tentacle shifted its arc up to have her blade scrape against its thick skin, diverting the blade from hitting me.) “GO CHEAT POWERS!!”

(Not one to miss an opportunity, I snapped my upper left tentacle back like the crack of a whip, but I only managed to send it blurring over her head.)

Satella: (I-I…)

(I took a step back further as I watched the female assassin dart and weave between the blows o-of… of h-him…)

(The monster…)

(He… He said he was going to protect me… b-but why? Why was th-that thing on my side? Why did it… Why did it offer me… fl-flesh?)

(Questions swirled in my mind, but the world had other plans.)

(As I took a step back, I was roughly shoved to my right by a large hand, a small shard of wood snapping by my face to lodge into the building right behind where I had been.)

Rom: “Get your head in the game, Miss—This ain’t the time to panic!” (The older giant took a shaky breath as he directed his gaze at the battle, his haggard, uneven breathing a temporary focus to distract from the chaos of battle.)

“I don’t know that kid, and I don’t know what the hell is going on.” (The giant paused and took a deep breath.) “But I do know the only thing holding that real monster back is the kid. She didn’t hesitate to swing her sword at my granddaughter and you.” (He turned to focus his wisened gaze on me, those sunken, tired eyes shocking some sense back into me.)

Satella: (He turned to focus his wisened gaze on me, those old eyes shocking some sense back into me. I paused… The look reminded me a bit of another wise person I knew…)

Rom: “Good, seems to have gotten some sense back.” (The grizzled older man gave a sharp grin.) “Now, as you said, the bigger problem is more important.”

Satella: “That’s right…” (I steeled my gaze and looked back at the battle.) “Please step back, I need to concentrate on my magic and can’t afford to focus on your safety. If possible, try and clear away any civilians.”

Rom: (The giant nodded sagely.) “You got it, little lady.”

Satella: (I stepped towards the battle, raising my arms.) “El Hyuma.” (Shards of ice began to crystallize around me, wavering in the air like bees on the alert.)

(My eyes widened in shock at the way things were going.)

(It was clear from the beginning that the boy lacked combat experience, he was swinging far wilder than even someone with the most basic training, but… To see the way he fought when things got serious was much more concerning.)

(Each blow was either taken in full or poorly deflected, the extra appendages he had sprouted doing very little to be of help. Each clash with the woman's blades resulting in a shower of sparks that made the boy wince and fight to keep his eyes from shutting at the possible danger. Instead, he seemed to whip his tentacle-like limbs about, hoping he’d hit something.)

(The woman, on the other hand, was far faster and stronger. I was forced to watch as she slammed a blade into his thigh, bouncing off his skin as he let out a cruel gasping shout.)

Subaru: “GRAAA-HAAA–KK!” (I threw my head to face her, slamming my upper left tentacle into the ground, blinding speed only tp kick up dust in a place she once was.)

“DAMMIT!” (I steeled my nerves for another blow but–)

SWW! SWW! (The wind whistled as thick chunks of ice glided through the air, slamming into where the woman had gone to attack me from.)

(My face still wrought with pain and smeared in blood… I could finally crack even a semblance of a smile.)

(I threw myself back via my cheat power, accidentally going a little too hard to dent the side of a nearby shed-like building, my body making the building crumple a tad as it folded into itself.)

Satella: “Ah! A-are you all right?” (I called out from a small distance… The boy looked badly hurt, even choosing to throw himself into a nearby wall just to get away from her.)

Subaru: (I let out a small groan as i staggered up.) “Ahhh… yeah… yeah, I’m fine. You all good Sah–”

Elsa: (The woman snarled and darted towards me, casually lobbing a smaller blade at Satella.) “Don’t lose focus!” (Her eyes were mad with glee, her frenzied smile wider as she neared.)

Satella: “Oh, no you don’t!” (I shifted to the side, letting the blade whiz past me.) “El Hyuma!!” (I shot a row of icicles into the ground, smashing the dirt between the two into a frozen rink.)

Elsa: “Stupid mutt!” (The woman snarled and leapt back to avoid being frozen.)

Subaru: (In anime, they love to call out their attacks, and I would! I really would, I just don’t have a name yet so–) “EAT THIS!” (I jumped forward, slamming my lower tentacles through the ice to vault myself over the gap, wavering upper tentacles shooting at Elsa.)

Elsa: (The woman didn’t even flinch, smacking away the upper right tentacle with her blade and jumping back from the other.)

Satella: (But I wasn’t out. I readied several crystals as the boy pushed her back and–)

(Now!)

(I shot them forth in a small concentrated burst, flying right to where she stood.)

Elsa: (The woman's eyes narrowed in annoyance as she saw the projectiles fly her way. Her weapon in her left hand, leaving her right side completely exposed to the blow.)

(She tensed and—!)

(They hit.)

Satella: (I steeled my gaze as the woman was enveloped in ice and a flash of smoke, the boy relying on the things he had planted in the ground to pull himself back over the ice pond I had made. His shoes hit the ground with a resounding thud, his eyes focused on the cloud.)

Subaru: “She’s alive! Launch another volley!”

Satella: “El Hyuma!” (More crystals began to materialize as I sent forth the last of my other volley. I could tell they were beginning to get slower, the draw of mana had been severely limited.)

Elsa: SCHWING 

Satella: (My eyes twitched with focus as i watched the crystals be blown into smaller shards of ice.) “GO! We just need to hold her off till the guards get here!” (I started forward, circling the outside of the arena.)

(The smoke just meant she had a good chance to throw projectiles without being seen.) 

Subaru: (I nodded and surged in.)

(For some reason… I closed my eyes. I sniffed the air, the woman's sweet, icing-like scent revealing her place.)

(I shot my tentacles forward at her and–)

(I got a hit!)

Elsa: “Fufufufu~!” (Elsa launched forth, trying to slam her blade into my gut, but I was ready.)

Subaru: (I had kept my lower tentacles free just for this, sliding the bottom left one vertically up my front, causing her blade to bounce off the wall of scaly skin.)

“Not this time!” (I gave a grin probably just as devilish as hers.)

(I launched my bottom right at her, but–)

Elsa: “I see~” (the woman raised her bare foot up and onto the tentacle shield I had done, kicking off at such potent speed that it made me stumble back, nearly tripping into the dirt.)

Satella: “Hyah!” (I shot a crystal down into the dissipating smoke, forcing the assassin to twist in the air to dodge the blow hitting her vital spots.)

Elsa: (She simply gave a dead smile as the ice collided with her bare heel, freezing the foot in a block of ice.) 

(She dropped to the ground, landing unevenly on her damaged leg as she was forced to face the half-elf, ready to deflect incoming ice.)

Subaru: (NOW!)

(I launched forth with reckless abandon, hooking my arms around her upper right shoulder and below her left arm, wrapping around her like a seatbelt.)

Elsa: “Eh~?” (She stumbled under the new weight, flinging an arm back to jab me in my face.)

Subaru: “Gah! Heeeyyyy! You’re not supposed to–Gah! You did it again!” (I scowled and tucked my face into her neck as she slammed her fist into my cheek again. The blows were weaker… Why I couldn’t pinpoint, but they felt more like… a regular punch and not bone-shattering like before.)

“W-Woooaah!” (I wrapped my legs around her gut indian style as she bucked like a bull to get me off.)

“Waahhh!” (I only clung on tighter as she wildly flailed, turning her back to Satella to force her to stop.)

Satella: “Wh-what are you doing?!”

Subaru: “Stalling! Your m-magic is—WOAH—D-down! Get the guards!” (I wildly smacked at Elsa’s front with my tentacles, but that only seemed to make things worse, having her leap backwards and nearly slam me into a tree.)

Elsa: “Perhaps you're not the gentleman I thought you were fufufu~” 

Subaru: (She wildly hacked and stabbed at the bit of exposed collarbone, making me grit my teeth in pain. I was taking a whole hell of a lot to stay on her, each turn and thrash nearly tossing me free. The slick blood on my front not helping in the slightest.)

(She wildly struck out behind me, even reaching a hand into my hair and tugging hard enough to pry the damn skin from my scalp. I screamed, manly-like of course, and flung my tentacles at her legs, forcing her to trip and fall onto her back.)

(I gasped as I felt a slight crunch from where my tentacles had sprouted; they were fine, but that hurt…)

Elsa: (The deviless flailed and sort of did the worm, lifting me an inch or two off the ground before violently slamming me back down like she was having a seizure.)

Subaru: (No!)

(I growled and punched her across the face with my tentacle, using another to push at the ground and attempt to roll over.)

(There!)

(I managed to twist her over onto her back, her flailing weaker than the strength my tentacles could muster.)

(Sweat dripped heavily down my brow, my forehead slick with it and tossed dirt from earlier, my eyes stinging with the coarseness of everything thrown in it.)

“Q-Quit it dammit!”

Elsa: “Fufufu! Do you expect a ulgarm to roll over and show its belly?” (The woman snarled before looking back with a creepy smile, nearly bucking me off in the process.)

Subaru: (I was beginning to grow weaker, my grip feeling lighter as she rained blows down on me… each hit slowly growing stronger as my tentacles wrestled against her strength.)

(No.)

(I slammed my upper left and lower right into the ground, snaking my upper right around her parallel wrist and my lower left around her same ankle. Her leftover limbs struggled back, smacking and hitting me as I used my actual arms to try and pin down her left arm.)

(It took both hands to even get a grip, and each movement she made was a struggle…)

(I knew what I needed.)

(It called out to me from her every pore.)

(From each glistening movement…)

(Each ripe scent floating up to my nose…)

(I needed another bite.)

(The very thought made me want to vomit… I couldn’t—I can’t, How could I–?)

(She… she was my enemy, and she smelled oh so sweet but…)

(...)

(Her neck was open.)

(Her raven black hair slipping over to the left of her neck.)

(The clean pale skin of her exposed throat like a golden bite.)

(My heavy lips were sealed tight.)

(Yet…)

(When you can feel your own body grow weak. When your on your last leg. When your every sense is flooded with the thought of ‘just one bite’. When you know a single bite would help so much. When a single bit could slow her thrashing body down. When a beautiful girl was relying on you.)

(That's when you make the decision you might regret.)

(When you’re at your weakest… your lowest… your hungriest… your most desperate… your most vicious… under someone's influence.)

???: “Just do it~”

Subaru: “...” (My lips parted slightly. My mouth dry, even as stringy strands of spit connected my palate to my molars.)

???: “Isn’t a little indulgence fun~?”

Satella: (I stumbled back… He was… He was going to do it again.)

Subaru: (I lowered my mouth, her writhing body grunting in anger.)

???: “Yes~!”

Satella: “...”

Subaru: (I froze.)

“...No.”

(My lips trembled, her body just within reach.)

“I’m—I’m not that.”

???: (I could feel a presence frown as another gave a hopeful smile. One disappointed, another reassured.)

Satella: (And another unsure.)

Subaru: “I–”

???: “That’s enough.” (What is possibly the manliest voice I have ever heard rang out from my right—) KER-THWWOOOOOM

Subaru: “GAA-HAK!” (I felt a slam in my ribs and—)

(I blearily opened my eyes from a pile of rubble, shattered wood chips falling from my hair.)

Reinhard: (A vibrantly red-haired man stared down at me with very mild distaste.) “You’ve made quite a mess here… It seems I’ve arrived a tad later than most would hope.” (The man closed his eyes in thought as I gasped for air.)

“Now… I shall end this.”

Satella: “R-Reinhard!” (The half-elf burst onto the scene, making the red-haired knight momentarily flick his gaze to her. He didn’t even seem surprised.)

Reinhard: “Ah, Lady Ehm—”

Satella: “St-stop! He’s not the threat, it’s her!” (I nervously shot my arm out to point in the direction of the woman, but–)

Elsa: “Fufufu~ I was lucky it seems~” (The assassin had already made her way off. Standing far off on the city walls.) “The next time we meet I won’t play again, you shouldn’t either~”

(She turned on her heel to face away and spoke one line.) “Keep your guts safe until then–Fufufu~!”

Reinhard: (The knight barely seemed to care that she was getting away, staring up at her more like an awestruck child.)

Subaru: “Ohhhh…” (I groaned in pain, causing Satella to look my way, darting over with concern strewn across her face.)

“Heh… Of course, you’re more worried about me, huh?”

“I–”

“I’m just gonna—”

(My head lolled back, slamming against a wooden beam.)

(And that’s he last thing I remember…)

Chapter Text

Ram: (I silently cracked the reins over the ground dragon Lady Roswaal had supplied. The large beast grumbled as its massive legs traversed the cobblestone road.)

(I… I wasn’t sure what to make of things.)

(The destruction was something to behold, even seen through the eyes of various insects and avians. Several of the slums' buildings were either left lying in rubble or severely dented from the impact of magic, bodies, and whatever this demi-human feature was that Lady Emilia described…)

(On top of that, there was Lady Roswaal…)

~~(Some Days Ago, At The Mather Estate)~~

Roswaal: “Ra~a~am?”

Ram: (I paused as I watered one of the various potted plants inside Lady Roswaal’s study, basic work that my sister delegated to me in order for her to focus on crafting another excellent meal for our Lady.) “Yes, Lady Roswaal?”

Roswaal: (The woman casually looked up from her desk, pointing a quill at me.) “On this trip with Lady Emilia, I’d like you to keep an eye out for a special Demi-human.”

Ram: (I waited for more information, but the gap in her speech indicated she wanted me to press for details.) “I see, what do you mean by a ‘special’ demi-human, my lady?”

Roswaal: “W~e~ll” (She paused, looking like she was choosing her words carefully, which made me knit my eyebrows in slight attentiveness.) “You’ll know what I mean when you see it… It’ll be like no Demi-human you’ve ever heard of.”

(She slid a gloved hand over her documents, flattening out one of them before tapping at a specific line in the letter.) “I’ve received q~ui~te a few reports about them and they’ve managed to draw my attention. I’m of the personal belief that should you venture out into the capital, you may h~av~e an encounter with them~” 

Ram: (She lifted her gaze with a sharpened look, making my heart rapidly flutter… Her serious eyes always made me nervous…) “I see…” (I paused as I thought it over… A unique demi-human? I set the watering can on the edge of the end table that held the potted plant, turning at attention to properly face my Lady.) “Might I ask what you’d like me to do should I meet this demi-human?”

Roswaal: (My lady slowly shut her eyes and nodded twice.) “Y~e~s… If you were to meet them, I’d like you to formally invite them to my estate. I have quite a vested interest in meeting… That person.”

Ram: (The way she chose her words nearly made me raise an eyebrow in surprise. It’s as though she didn’t actually know who ‘That person’ was… more like a legend, or a myth…) “I see. I will follow this order to the best of my abilities, Lady Rosawaal.” (I gave a slight bow, watching her casual wave of dismissal and consequential return to her documents.)

(As I picked up the watering can yet again, the idea seemed to stick in my head… A unique demi-human… Why would they meet me?)

(Well… No matter. I continued watering, leaving the room once I was done.)

~~(Present Day, On a Carriage Ride Back to The Mathers Estate)~~

Ram: (There wasn’t a doubt in my mind… The boy sleeping inside the carriage simply must be ‘That Person’... There is no possible way he wasn’t.)

(Yet… The details Lady Emilia had given were… Unique.)

(...)

(I gently opened the slit to view inside the carriage, giving a small;) “Ahem” (To capture Lady Emilia’s attention.)

Emilia: (Her gaze had been slightly focused on the boy, her eyes dark and slightly worrying. As she looked up, though, it seemed to subside if not disappear.)

Ram: “Lady Emilia, if possible… I’d like you to recount the events one more time.” (I turned back to look at the road, choosing to converse without eye contact. Lady Emilia’s eyes were just… Empty, in a way.)

Emilia: (Though I couldn’t see it, I felt the girl frown behind me.) “Again?”

Ram: “Yes, Lady Emilia.”

Emilia: (She sighed, a small squeak coming from her seat as she readjusted her position.) “...Alright.”

Ram: “...”

Emilia: “After I was separated from you, I wandered around the merchants' district. As I was walking around, I had my insignia swiped.” (The words became slightly mumbled here, but picked right back up at normal volume after.)

“As I attempted to follow the thief, I unfortunately lost her trail. Through some investigation via the spirits and locals, I was able to track down the thief's location. Upon arrival, I met the thief again and was simultaneously attacked by a third party, the buyer who commissioned the insignia stolen.”

Ram: (I listened in silence, but I must say, Lady Emilia’s formal language has improved significantly, and though tedious, it was good for her story to be repeated.)

Emilia: “I-In the ensuing battle, this boy here revealed his demi-human form and fended off the assassin. He…”

Ram: (I heard the poor girl take a small breath as she spoke… If what she said was true, I wasn’t one to bash her for it.)

Emilia: “He sprouted four tentacle-like arms from his back, and one of his eyes turned red and black. Using his demi-human form, he was able to hold her off, and even harm her… At one point in the fight, he managed to force her to cut off her own leg and hand to escape, but he… He ate part of the leg mid-fight.”

Ram: (I shivered… The carnage of the area showed me just how hard the two were fighting. The least of the damage was caused by Emilia, a magic wielder… One can only imagine the beastly nature of the boy.)

Emilia: “He even offered me part of her leg as he ate… And uhm… He continued fighting with me after that. Eventually, working together, we were able to pin down the woman. But at the time we did, Sir Reinhard arrived and mistook him for an enemy.” (I heard her pause…)

Ram: (It was obvious why the knight thought the boy was an enemy… Ram herself was unsure whether he was actually on their side…)

(I looked back into the carriage at him… His clothes soaked with dried blood, massive gashes leaving the strange garbs hanging off of him in rags, and crusted blood still pooled around his lips…)

(I forced myself to look back at the road.)

Emilia: “Since Sir Reinhard mistook him for an enemy, he accidentally released the woman, allowing her to escape. Then, you arrived.”

Ram: (Yes… Then I arrived.) “Thank you.”

(I arrived just in time to see Reinhard holding the small blonde and the boy in hand, intending to take them to his  estate and clear up whatever it was that happened.)

(It was only thanks to my quick thinking that I was able to get the boy from him, explaining that it should be the Margrave who determined his status, as it was her candidate that the boy saved.)

(Ram wasn’t sure she made the right choice.)

“I apologize for the disturbance, Lady Emilia. I shall allow you to rest.” 

Emilia: “Thank you, Ram.”

Ram: (I silently slid the slit shut, focusing on the sounds of crickets and animals alike as the cart rattled.)

~~(The Mathers Manor the Next Morning)~~

Rem: (Rem gently dusted the tops of the kitchen cabinets, small dust bunnies gently swept away by her feather duster, early morning light streaming in through the various sun-angled windows in the space.)

(It had been several days since Lady Emilia and her sissy set out to the capital, and while Rem did feel a bit lonely, it had certainly allowed her to catch up on some much needed finer details of the manor. While things were always impeccable at the surface level, there was no denying that sometimes Rem neglected the finer details to aid in her sisters' greatness.)

(She slowly began her descent of the small step ladder, ready to tackle the other side as several—)

(She gagged hard, slapping a hand over her lips as that disgusting smell filled her nose.)

(Standing upright, she went stock still before daring to take a few more sniffs, and—)

(She gagged again. It was that foul witch’s scent. The one burned into her memory all those years ago. The putrid stench of that twisted cult, so impure and heinously disgusting that even the slight scent of it made her want to vomit.)

(But, the thing was, she didn’t know where the smell was coming from.)

(For her to smell it, it either had to be exceptionally strong, or close enough to have the source identifiable.)

(And, whatever it was, it was only getting stronger.) “I need to find Lady Roswaal–!”

(Rem darted from her station, completely abandoning the feather duster as she ran through the halls. She made it to Lady Roswaal's study in a matter of moments, rapidly knocking on the door before hearing her Lady’s voice.)

Roswaal: “H~m~mm? You may enter.”

Rem: (The blue-haired Oni barged in immediately, rushing to an appropriate distance from her Lady's desk as she stood at attention.) “Lady Roswaal, I have urgent news to report, the smell of the witch has appeared and rapidly grows stronger with each passing second.”

(She staggered, nearly dry heaving as she dared to take a single whiff of the air, the filthy scent only becoming stronger.) “I fear this is the strongest it has ever been for me, I—”

Roswaal: “A~h, was that it?” 

Rem: (Rem froze, growing silent.)

(The Oni had used a severe tone as she spoke… perhaps speaking a bit angrily. It wasn’t proper but… Perhaps her Lady misunderstood.) “Lady Roswaal–”

Roswaal: (Her Lady silenced her with a raise of her open palm, the mysterious clownette slowly rising from her seat.) “Do n~o~t worry, I have an inkling as to what you may be referring to.”

(The clown gave a soft smile, slightly cocking her head.) “It is of no concern.”

Rem: (Rem stayed silent for a moment, sucking in a breath through her lips, the only way that made it bearable to breathe… Though even through her mouth she could taste the vile odor.) “... But… Lady Ros—”

Roswaal: (Roswaal slowly gave a bone-chilling look as Rem chose to speak up, making her rethink her choice.) “I believe I made it clear not to be concerned.” 

(...She paused, letting the silence hang in the air for a moment.)

(And it was only after several seconds that she chose to move, walking out from behind her desk to a large display case.) “...Unfortunately, I am unable to explain at this time exactly why I will be taking the actions I do, but ,” (The woman slowly reached up to a higher shelf as she spoke, quietly taking down a small polished box.) “I hope you can trust me, Rem.”

(The woman slowly turned back to face Rem, giving a small but reassuring smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.)

Rem: “... Of course, my Lady.” (Rem’s eyes quietly went down to the box.)

(It was a deep, dark brown, perfectly square, and maybe the size of an appa if she had to give a comparison.)

Roswaal: (The woman gave a soft smile, silently taking a few steps to close the gap between them. The soft click of her gentle heels on the wooden floor. She got close, a bit too close to be honest. Her larger chest was maybe a foot from the Oni, the rest of her body not much farther.)

(She slowly drew the box between them, quietly opening it as she focused her gaze on the item inside.)

Rem: (The Oni stayed silent as Lady Roswaal moved, watching as she opened the box to reveal an odd-looking necklace.)

Roswaal: (The clownette quietly picked up the thin gold chain around her fingers, slowly lifting it up to reveal a blue tear drop at its center, a slight bit of light liquid inside it.) “I’m aware that the scent may be a bit,” (Lady Roswaal gave a slight pause, choosing her word carefully.) “...Overbearing.”

“How~ev~er,” (She gave a wink.) “I think you should find things much more tolerable with this item on.”

Rem: (Rem nervously looked up at her Lady…) “I understand, my Lady…” 

(Rem pursed her lips slightly, her face going to an almost passive look after just a few seconds, though.) “... If I might ask, would I be allowed to know the source of this smell…?”

Roswaal: (The woman smiled down at the girl, quietly lowering herself slightly to be at her level.) “I will tell you, b~u~t I need you to understand something first.”

Rem: (The girl stayed silent, her face completely serious and emotionless.) 

Roswaal: “The source of the witch's scent is of high interest to me. Unless it actively becomes hostile, I’d recommend you learn to tolerate it.” (The woman gave a soft smile, but it was far less reassuring, more… worrying.) “Is that underst~oo~d?”

Rem: (The blue-haired maid gave a slow nod, causing the woman's smile to deepen ever so slightly.)

Roswaal: “Wonderful.” (The woman quietly took a step back, rising to her full height as she did so.)

“... The scent's origin is that of a unique demi-human I’ve been looking into. Though the scent is no fault of his own, it certainly lies quite heavy on him. I believe it may be a racial trait, but I have yet to identify the exact source.”

(The Lady paused, bringing forth the necklace. She smoothly opened the clasp, holding each end in hand and carefully opening it invitingly.)

Rem: (The Oni stepped forward as prompted, perhaps doing so hesitantly, but she took the step.)

(Lady Roswaal quietly got close again, setting the necklace around her nape as she stared down into the smaller girl's eyes.)

Roswaal: “This charm should help dampen the smell he emits. I hope you find it helpful.” (She gently lays an upturned open palm out in the air, beckoning the maid's hand into her own. Ever so slightly leaning forward, she makes herself just the slightest bit shorter and closer to the maid.)

Rem: (She slowly does as silently asked, laying her hand over her master's.)

Roswaal: (The woman gently cupped Rems hands between hers, giving a smile that barely managed to reach her eyes. But while she was looking at Rem, she wasn't looking AT Rem.) “My master helped me get this, so I need you to promise me you'll take care of it. Can you do that?”

Rem: (The maid's face went a bit stiffer than before, yet she nodded once, a sharp gesture that carried weight behind it.) “Of course, Lady Roswaal.”

Roswaal: (There was a slight pause before she responded. Her eyes were lukewarm as she seemed to calculate something.) “... Excellent.” (Her voice but a hushed whisper.) “I'd…” (she slowly rose to full standing yet again, towering over the smaller maid who remained unflinching, gaze steady and pointed.) “Hate for something to happen.”

(Seemingly satisfied with the oni’s behavior, she steps back.) “You may take your leave. Do your best to ignore the smell. Our guest is to be treated with the respect that's expected of a Mathers affiliate.”

Rem: “Of course, Lady Roswaal.” (Rem took a short bow, dipping her head with refined grace for several seconds.)

(Then, in silence, she turned and walked away from Lady Roswaal's study.)

(And, after several strides from the door, she froze. Her fingers come up to toy with the pendant on the necklace. The light liquid silently slides from side to side to keep perfectly level.)

( What… What was that? Rem has never seen Lady Roswaal act so… Oddly. Lady Roswaal may have her eccentricities, but… )

(Rem paused, looking back down the hallway as if expecting the woman to appear behind her. Yet there was… not a soul nor hide of one.)

( And yet… she seemed grossly intrigued with something. She wasn't conversing with me; she was speaking to me. That's… )

(Rem gripped the pendant slightly harder as she moved to look out the window. A carriage arriving.) 

( ... Nothing. )

( It's nothing. )

(But Rem couldn't stop the way she looked at the carriage. How could someone smell of that foul woman, and have it not be of their own action? Who would be granted a witch's love without earning it?)

(As the Oni gritted her teeth, she forced herself to look away.)

~~(Two Hours Later, The Mathers Manor With Settled Occupants)~~

Ram: (The pink-haired maid quietly sipped the tea she had stewed. The tray and pot sitting on one of the bedside tables beside the newest guest of the Mathers household.)

(A demi-human boy with jet black hair, nasty eyes, strange clothes, and so much more intrigue behind him.)

(Was this boy even worth the resources it took to bring him here?)

(...)

(I wasn't sure.)

(...)

(All I know is that the way Lady Roswaal looked at him was with… gross intrigue.)

(The boy cannibal.)

(Eating women in broad daylight…)

(Ram shivered with disgust.)

(When she had Emilia first recount the story, she hadn't been quite as skimpy with details.)

(The vivid mental picture of the boy weeping tears of joy as he pulled a chunk of raw red flesh from…)

(It was too much.)

“Ha. My hands never shake.” (Ram spilled a bit of tea on the saucer plate as she brought the cup to her lips.)

~~($0!3 5/!3 @&0)~~

Kaneki: “AHHHHHH!” (The boys' scream rang out as he fell to the ground, collapsing onto.)

(Collapsing onto?)

(Kaneki’s eyes, already widened in horror, began to flick around in absolute terror.) “R-Rize? Is this a dream? A-a nightmare?”

(Beads of sweat formed on the poor boy's temple as he scrambled back, his shoulders bumping into something. He shrieked like a little girl before rolling to the side and covering his head.)

(Like a little kid ducking under his covers for safety from a monster, he laid for several seconds before he opened his eyes.)

(And, while his terror did, in fact, lessen, his confusion didn't.) 

(He slowly staggered to his feet, drawing near to the thing he had bumped.)

“Is this…” (he drew a hand out towards… It.) “A TV screen?”

(His hand flickered through the light, making it flicker with static, warping the image.)

(It was an image of a boy, lying in a hospital bed. Jet black raven hair, orange, white, and black tracksuit folded by his bed, and tubes sprouting from his lips as a surgeon began to open his chest.)

(As Kaneki’s hand waved through the—)

FWOOMPH!

“HU-UGHH!” (Kaneki flew back, suckered punched in the gut.)

(The boy gasped, cradling his abdomen as his sneakered feet reflexively kicked out at the floor, trying to flail himself away.) 

???: “I love him.”

“I love him.”

“I love him.”

“Ḯ̺͈͗ ̩̙̔͝ļ͎͔̔̎̋̾͜͝ͅo̮̯͊͐v̹̿e̬͈͎͆́̑ ͔̳̿̈̑͟h̜̗͓͂͋͌͜͝i̧̼̖̱̓̆̉͗m̞̑”

“\̦̩̲̐̒͐ ̫͐✓̧͍̹͔̽̓̏̄0̛̺͉̅^̰͠3̼̖̌̔͡ͅ ̟̟̟̼̲̒͊͗͗̂=͇͎̗̭̈̅̇̋͟͡\̝̭͒̃!̪͋”

Kaneki: “I-I—”

(Kaneki tried to crawl back but–)

???: (The woman stopped, looking up in realization. She slowly turned to look back at the image of the boy.) “Oh… He’ll need food.”

(She shifted her gaze back to the boy.) “You're food.”

Kaneki: “I–, What're you—?”

Chapter Text

TW: This Chapter is going to contain some heavy BODY HORROR. If that is of concern to you, please be aware and prioritize your mental/physical well-being over my story. I hope everyone enjoys. Thank you for reading!

Subaru: (Being a man of the twenty-first century meant a level of knowledge and interconnectedness that previous generations had never known. That a person on one side of the globe could hold a casual conversation with another on the complete opposite side!)

(Now, I did squander most of my time playing visual novels and watching anime… but that doesn't mean I wasn’t afforded some of those things. For example, space!)

(A vast, empty infinite with thousands of little stars dotting the night sky was all that man knew for thousands of years. The modern man, however, knew just a little bit more of that ever-expanding emptiness, that those stars dotting the horizon were solar beings similar to our own sun. That surrounding those stars lay multiple rocks that could possibly be just like our own!)

(It was a grand thing of which no one could fully understand the scope of. Sure, people may toss around words and phrases like a ‘light year’ or that it was like a kajillbillion miles long or whatever… but no one really understood just how big it was.)

(Another thing about space was its edge. When all those stars stopped and just stayed off into a big empty blackness…)

(Now, why does any of that matter?)

(Well, it's what first came to my mind when I opened my eyes.)

(If I even had them.)

(I was… floating? Existing? Dying? In… a vacuum? Hell? Space? The dark? The very concept of the abyss? And… the only thing I was sure of. Was that I was looking at… a woman… maybe.)

(She was a giant… easily the size of a small high-rise building… her arms spread wide and snagged down by sharp chains of some kind, their ethereal looking appearance casting off waves of negative black aura.)

(But it wasn't that which caught my eye. No, it was… her.)

(No– It was HER!)

“YOU!”

(I shouted and, suddenly, she shrank down to half my size, the figure thrown to my feet by kneeling. Her pathetic frame was the complete opposite of how I remembered her…)

Rize: “Wh-who’s there?” (She snarled, head whipping around with ragged breaths, eyes wild and crazed.)

(She looked… different, and not in a good way.)

(Her cheeks were sunken in, features now highlighted by her gaunt, near anorexic build. Her once vibrant red hair sat at a patchy dull red and light gray, the kind that comes from age…) “Is it you…?”

(Her eyes widened, but she kept her gaze at my feet, her body trembling.) “You're that freak!”

Subaru: (I felt a twist in myself, my body breaking and reforming all at once… like a dying star, sucking into myself only to push outwards.) “GAHHHGGGHHHH?!”

Rize: (The woman flinched, hanging her head deeper as she bowed.) “...”

“What the hell do you need…?”

(She raised her gaze a smidge, looking… not at me but towards me. More capable of sensing my presence than seeing me.)

“You stole my body… my freedom… you won't even have her kill me…” (she snarled…)

Subaru: “Wh-what? –I–I, yo—uuuuuu” (I tried to speak, but my voice was a warped mess, like my vocal cords had been woven into a knot… it felt like a lump in my throat… like I had nearly swallowed a frog.)

(But after a moment longer of speaking, my voice seemed to warp and expand to normal… normal-ish.)

“What are you talking about, crazy woman?!”

Rize: “What am I–?!” (She snarled, thrashing her wrists forward, yanking on the only black chains that smoked with a purple hue.) “What the hell are you talking about?”

Subaru: “Uh, I have no clue what you're talking about… I'm me, I don't have your body–And I didn't put you here, nor do I know who ‘her’ is??” (I tried to reach out, but the space seemed to bend around my movements, forcing the kneeling woman to slink back into the dark before I nervously pulled back.)

Rize : “... Oh…?” (She shifted in her posture, back deeply arched so that her gaze consistently stayed at the floor.)

(And… I started to notice a bit more about her appearance.)

(Aside from the obvious stuff, there were small signs of damage all over her. Her knees were riddled with thin slits, each gently dribbling blood into the space, only to fall through whatever floor she was kneeling on.)

(Her wrists bore deep scratch marks and indents from around the cuffs, every shift she made making them wince and grasp at the air in pain.)

(But the worst was easily her face. For the entire conversation or, whatever this could be called, she has kept her gaze downcast, letting her hair gently filter in front of her face. And, upon looking past the thin, deteriorated condition of her hair, it was easy to see that the beauty she once had was completely gone.)

(Her face was… twisted, or burned in some horrific manner, the raw pink flesh looking poor enough, but it was far from the worst bit. Along her once smooth and clear chin lay several pustule bumps, each filled with a disgusting yellow, purple, and red mixture that would occasionally begin to bubble and swell up from her face. The puss dropped onto her collarbone, sizzling and rending the flesh continually burned to be the same twisted pink as the parts of her face not covered with pustules.)

(Her dress was the only feature that made it clear it was her. That, and her hair, frayed as it might be…)

Subaru: (I didn't have the capacity to be sick, or to smell… and I counted myself lucky for it.)

Rize: (Her breath rasped for a moment, her thoughts hanging in the air. Literally.)

(A slight aura seemed to swirl above her head, originally blending in with her hair thanks to the red and purple hues, but now it turned more of a teal mixed with purple.)

“You must've realized by now at least… How could you not?”

Subaru: “Realize…?”

Rize: “What else… you're a ghoul.”

Subaru: (I paused… uh.) “Sorry…?”

Rize: “Whose tentacles did you think those were…? You didn't exactly have them before she took mine, did you?”

Subaru: (It was about now that it clicked. Ah. AH!)

“W-wait, so I took your powers?”

Rize: (She pauses, her silence carrying a heavy weight. The aura clouding around her mind turning a gentle pink.) “That's… an odd way to phrase it.”

Subaru: “Well how else am I suppose to say it?” (I attempted to strike the classic thinking pose of putting a hand under my chin, but all I managed to do was give myself a headache, the warping movements feeling like I sent different parts of my body on a roller coaster, each going in different directions.)

“Eurgh… ahm… s-so you're like a ghoul-human thing?” (I sigh.) “Hmmm, you must be rare, I mean no one seemed to know what I was, even the assassin thought I–”

Rize: “... Where are you from?”

Subaru: (I paused, slightly caught off guard.) “Eh? Ahm… Japan, Earth.”

Rize: (I could feel her eyes narrow, her pink hue deepening and mixing with teal.) “What ward?”

Subaru: “Eh? Ward? Like ah… oh! Do you mean prefecture?”

Rize: “Oh… Oh! Oh!” (She rattles her chains as she lets out a harsh bark of laughter.) “You have no idea! That's why you're so calm! You don't even know.”

(For the first time, she cast up her gaze, smiling lewdly as she pointed her eyes at me.)

Subaru: (If I had been able to hurl, I would have…)

(Her face was far, far worse than what I had seen. The twisted, melted flesh seeped off in heavy chunks, flaps peeling down her eyes and hanging over her lips, a fat, moldy-looking piece that must've been her nose even falling off her face to splatter down her dress and roll off her thigh onto the ground.)

(And… it was reforming. Each piece that moved didn't just flap; they moved . Thin tendrils of flesh worming their way around the loose pieces in a weak attempt to pull them back… like putting Elmer's glue on a welding project…)

“Know?? Could you please at least try and explain?” (I sighed with exasperation, casting my gaze to the side so I could only see her in my peripheral vision.)

Rize: “You're a ghoul~!” (She let out a raucous cackle, like a witch long past her prime…)

(Then, she seemed to smile, pointing her gaze at me.) “When you met me that day, I'm not sure what happened. All I know is that since I met you, you little prick, I've been forced to be here…” (she giggled manically.) “I watched them take my guts and put them in you~”

(She leered and leaned out on her chains, tugging them taut against her trembling wrists.) “Oh, how delectable~!”

(She squealed with seemingly insane ecstasy and reeled back, pointing her eyes to the heavens.)

Subaru: (I'm… disgusted, if nothing else… This has all been one hell of a fever dream…)

“... Could you maybe explain what a ghoul is, ah, not everyone paid attention in school…” (I gave a nervous chuckle…)

Rize: (She paused. Freezing mid-laugh to take a shaky breath. Her smile deepening into a maddened grin.) “Why not~” (Her hair glowed with an orange aura, flickers of red and yellow cast of the whisps of her grey hair.) 

“A ghoul is a human-like individual with three distinct features that make us different from humans. Those three things are our diet, Kagune, and physiology.”

(She lowered her face to stare at me, making me wince in disgust.) “You've already seen all three.”

Subaru: “What…?”

Rize: “I've been watching you, y'know… It's one of the only things she'll let me do. She loves watching… watching and watching and watching…” (she cocked her head like a dog.) “So I got to see your little scuffle~”

“Hehehe, beat like a true novice.” (She laughs, but I'm not bothered by it… she's clearly  kind of insane…)

“You don't think you just tanked those blows naturally, right? If it weren't for our tough skin, you'd probably be mince meat right now!” (She giggled and shifted her body from side to side, forcing even more of her face to melt off and reform…)

“Even then, she easily broke your arms! She even made you eat in public! Ohhhh, what trouble for you~”

Subaru: (Eat…) “W-wait–”

Rize: “... I was hoping she'd get your guts the whole fight…” (she licked her lips, dragging the thin film of flesh off of them as she did…) 

Subaru: (I shivered with disgust, or rippled, I guess, but I pushed on.) “Wait!”

(I saw her flinch, looking up angrily…) “Sorry, not sorry!”

(I forced myself to look at her disgusting, puss-dripping face.) “What do you mean ‘eat in public’?”

Rize: (Her face seemed to light up at the question…) “Oh, I'll explain. Just real quick~” (She smirked.)

“We can hear your thoughts in here, you know, and it was really annoying to hear you call a Kagune ‘tentacles’ so that's the name.”

(She leaned back on her chains, pushing her arm out to point towards my space.) “It's called a Kagune. Not tentacles. Got it?”

Subaru: “That's an odd hill to die on… but yeah, sure.”

Rize: “Now… eating.” (She bared her fangs, sharp teeth flexing out as a large chunk of her face gave way, slopping onto her thigh to meld with the clothes. Pustules bursting from the tightening of her skin.)

“A ghoul can only eat two things.”

“Ghouls…”

“And humans~”

Subaru: (I gagged… both from the sickening appearance and glee with which she said the words, but… also because I understood them.)

(I understood that hunger.)

Rize: “Ghehehehehe~” (she giggled, lowering her head back to her lap.) “I bet you're not taking that one well, are you~?”

“Disgusted with yourself, huh~?” (She shifted to the side.) “Well… such is life as a ghoul, eat or be eate—”

(She froze.)

Subaru: (I gasped, trying not to retch and send my mind rolling around the space like a bunch of marbles.) 

(Then I froze.)

(The dark…)

(It grew.)

Rize: “N-No, not again you vile bitch, I—” (A physical manifestation slammed into her jaw, splattering puss and blood onto the ground, or whatever Invisible space held her up.) “HGGHH!” 

Subaru: (Rize lifted her gaze of terror, eyes wide and fearful, but that's not what my eyes were drawn to…)

(Her jaw was gone. Lolling tongue swirling around the empty space as tears welled in her eyes, begging me for help.)

(And I froze. I watched in horror as the shadows began to pummel her, reeling back in shock.)

(Her form moved to return to a larger one, towering over me by at least three feet, her sides pummeled by small dapples of shadow, each jabbing into her side and making her heave and retch.)

“ST-STOP! STOP IT!”

Satella: (The shadows froze mid-motion, leaving Rize gasping and retching as the silence dragged on.)

“I love you.”

Subaru: (I froze again.)

(That was her.)

(That was the voice that swirled around my head as I blinked in and out of hell.) 

( What the fuck is going on?! I don't understand any of this! )

(I was about to shout, when a shadow slammed into my… being, and I felt ripples on my vision as–)

~~(An Unfamiliar Bedroom)~~

Subaru: (I woke with a gasp, coughing and drenched in sweat. My eyes shakily bursting open to look around.)

“H-huh…”

(I gulped in a breath of fresh air.) “I don't recognize that ceiling…”

(I took a few more deep breaths before I worked up the courage to move… sitting up to look around…)

(I was in some kind of really nice bedroom, the type you'd maybe see in a fancy hotel. I was also no longer shadow! My hands, as shaky as they may be, were there. Fleshy and all…)

“M-man, I've really gotta stop having dreams like that…” (I flexed my hand and let out a shaky sigh.) “Well…”

(I shifted myself to the edge of the bed, sliding my feet out onto the carpet.) “Eh?” (I parted my body down a bit…) “Where's my tracksuit?”

(I looked around the room but had little luck… my trusty orange getup gone for now… instead replaced by a light blue robe and pajamas.)

“Well…” (I sighed and closed my eyes in deep thought…)

“If that isn't enough reason to explore, then I dunno what is!” (I sprang up from the bed, tossing the sheet loosely behind me as I made my way to the door.)

“Let's find some NPC’s!!”

(I stepped out in the hallway and had to do a double-take…) “Woah…”

“This is like… a mansion, huh?”

(I grinned.) “Hmmm, if I had to guess, this is Tella’s place!!!”

(I looked left and right, each one a tempting option, but… As my nose twitched. I knew what direction to go.)

(I marched down the right hall.) “A random encounter must be in the kitchen!”

~~(The Kitchen)~~

Subaru: (Ten minutes or so later, I was right!)

(I pushed open the kitchen door and saw…) “Maids spotted!!” (I grinned and gave a double thumbs up.) 

Blue Maid: (The blue-haired girl looked out at me with a furrowed gaze, much harsher than her sisters.)

Pink Maid: (While the Blue Maid looked mad, the Pink Maid just looked surprised.)

Blue Maid: “Sister, sister, it seems our guest has woken.”

Pink Maid: “Indeed, he has, sister.” (The Pink Maid paused. Rinsing the potatoes, she had to stand up a bit straighter, wiping the water off on a towel.)

Subaru: “Wo~ah! Twin maids! Who’d’ve guessed! I'm Subaru Nat–”

(I gasped, a sharp pain hitting me in the gut, making me cringe forward slightly.)

Pink Maid: (The Pink Maid flinched back as I cringed, her hand darting up to cover her chest, looking slightly nervous.) “... Are you all right?”

Subaru: “Y-yeah, ah sorry, just ah, just a bit hungry hehehe…” (I nervously scratched the back of my head, righting myself up.) “A-ah, if it isn't too much trouble, could I trouble you for a–”

Blue Maid: (The Blue Maid started to walk around the island in the middle of the kitchen, walking to a second door.) “Sister, sister, I will go get Lady Roswaal, she asked me to alert her when the guest woke up.”

Pink Maid: (The Pink Maid hesitates for a moment… but ultimately nods.) “Of course, sister sister.”

Blue Maid: (And like that, she leaves.)

Subaru: “Ah.” (I turn back to face the Pink Maid.) “Sorry, I didn't mean to cause you two trouble...” (I scratched behind my head again) 

Pink Maid: (She gives a sort of… annoyed and wary look.) “It is no trouble for us to speak with a guest of the Mathers estate.” (She steps away from her table to give a short, curt bow. It's honestly rather elegant.)

Subaru: “Sheesh, no need to be so cold! Call me Subaru– you are?”

Ram: “Ah, how rude of me.” (She straightens herself up.) “I am Ram, my sister is Rem, we are maids to the Mathers estate.”

Subaru: “Matching names, huh? You two really are just out of an Isekai…” (I smile and step a bit into the kitchen, just peeking round. And as I do, I smell something wonderful… there's only a bit of food out, but the scent of ripe apples permeates the air.)

Ram: “An… Isekai?” 

Subaru: (The girl steps back slightly, right as I start to lose the scent.) “Ah, ignore me, you wouldn't really get what I mean…”

Ram: (I can see the girl's eyebrow twitch, her face forcing a smile as she gives a slight sigh of annoyance.) “I see… is there anything I may do for you then? I'm in the middle of prepp–”

Subaru: “Actually—yes, there is!” (I straighten myself up, striking a ~classic~ Subaru Natsuki pose, as I give a big grin.)

Ram: (Ram flinches back in surprise, but regains her annoyed look back almost immediately.)

Subaru: ( Jeez! So cold… )

“Well, see, I'm a little hungry, so I—” (my stomach growled loudly.) “was hoping to ask for a little snack… to hold me over.” (I give a sheepish smile and gently scratch the back of my neck.)

Ram: (She paused for a moment, looking… wary. Or maybe scared? Either way, she gives a short nod.) “Of course, just give me a moment.”

(And with that, she sets to work.)

Subaru: (I smile and step into the kitchen a bit more, finding and sitting on a small stool as she works. While the first few seconds are silent, I can't leave it for long.)

“So, ah… how long have you been working here?”

Ram: “... My sister and I have been working here our entire lives. Lady Roswaal took us in as children.”

Subaru: (Ah… short, curt, and a little annoyed. Maybe don't push that one…) “Your sisterhood is clear as day! Is there any other staff here in the… Mathers Estate?”

Ram: (She hesitates at that question, pulling open the oven to pull out a tray of steaming hot material.) “...”

“... At the moment, it is just me and my sister.” (She pauses, turning to face me.) “Are you with any others?”

Subaru: “Eh? Others?” (I cock my head questioningly.)

Ram: “A… community? I heard of your affairs in the capital, and I've not heard of any demi-human race like yourself.”

Subaru: “Ohhhh, that's what you mean!” (I smirk and slip my hand under my chin, my fingers in a check mark shape.) “No, no, I can't say that I am. And uh… for a race…”

(I hunker down a bit, thinking deeply as she gives a bit of attention to the food.) “I was told I'm a ghoul… does that mean anything to you?”

Ram: “A ghoul?” (She pauses, slathering the… potato with butter?)

“No, I can't say it does.” (She takes the potato, placing it on a plate and passing it to me.)

Subaru: ( Ah man… so much for a unique and vibrant cuisine… not sure what I was expecting though… I sigh and take the plate anyway.) “You… didn't even bother to cut it open and… could I have a fork?”

Ram: (She narrows her gaze at me.) “Yes, allow me to get you a fork… Subaru.”

Subaru: “Warming up already, huh? Well!” (I set the plate down for a moment.) “I'm a ghoul then! Maybe one of the only ones here?”

Ram: (She extends a pale hand with the fork, letting me take it from the hilt.) “I wouldn't doubt as much. I've certainly never heard one that matches your description.”

Subaru: “Heh… me either.” (I eagerly grab the plate again, pulling a chunk of steaming white insides off the baked potato. The buttered spud steaming as I blow on it.)

Ram: (Ram seems to pause at that.) “...” (Quietly turning to continue washing the potatoes.)

Subaru: (I remember the dream.)

(I remember it…)

(ALL of it…)

(Including what Rize said.)

(So… It really made my hand tremble…)

(That as I brought the potato up to my lips…)

(All I could smell was moldy filth.)

(A disgusting, putrid mix of compost and rotten dairy slathered on top of it. A smell that made me want to hurl.)

(But…)

(There was no way.)

(No way.)

(None! None! NONE! NONE!!)

(She was lying… she was crazy… anything… anything just… just take the bite–)

(I put the spoiled spud in my mouth, having let it cool down enough to–)

“Hrghk–”

Ram: “Eh?” (Ram turned around to look at me, a curious and annoyed expression on her face.)

Subaru: (I opened my mouth, letting the chunk of potato slide off my tongue to hit the plate with a wet smack.)

(I brought a hand to my lips. Looking visibly grossed out.) “Jeez, that tastes terrible! How can you mess up a baked potato?”

Ram: (She reeled back in shock, her lips parting in a disgusted shape as she let out a little–) “Hah?” (She huffed, placing her hands on her hips.)

“I am not entirely sure what you mean, Sir. That potato was cooked by my highly skilled hands. I assure you, I did nothing wrong.”

Subaru: “Y-you sure?” (I slid the potato over to her.) “Maybe you used a bad potato…?”

Ram: “Ram surely would have noticed if she had… but if it soothes the mind of an esteemed guest. I shall.” (And with a small huff, she set off, taking a freshly washed potato and inspecting it very carefully, with heavy sarcasm.)

Subaru: “Ok, I apologize, I'm just ah…” (...) “I'm hungry. And…” (I search for the words to say what I want to say but…) “I want to be sure if something is all.”

Ram: (She gives a perplexed look back but shrugs. Continuing to prep the potato.)

Subaru: (If she's right… and I need to eat… h-how? I doubt there's crazy assassin women everywhere… and it's not like I even wanted to eat her…)

(M-maybe if I seek out criminals and evil doers I can—Oh what the hell am I?! Kira!?? I don't go around eating people who do bad…)

(But… what the hell am I gonna–) 

(I freeze.)

(The cubes!)

(I was never a coffee guy, but—)

Ram: “Here is your snack, esteemed guest.” (She rudely places the potato in front of me. She hands me back my fork while holding a second one.)

Subaru: “E-eh? Ah—Th-thanks!” (I grin and nervously rub the back of my head as I take the plate.) “Also, you can call–”

Ram: “Actually, there is no need to thank Ram yet. Perhaps she messed up your baked potato, and that would bring terrible shame on the Mathers estate. So…” (She places two fingers on the plate, quietly pulling it a bit back from me to have it between us.) “... Would you mind allowing me to test the dish, Sir?”

Subaru: (...)

“Awwwhhh~ if you wanted to share a meal with me, you could just say so you know~” (I batted my eyelashes and turned my face away. Fanning myself with my free hand.) “Gosh I'm so embarrassed, you see my heart already belongs to a certain someone name–”

Ram: “That is not what Ram was implying at all.” (She gives me a look of disdain while crossing her arms.) “She simply wants to assure the quality of your dish, Sir–”

Subaru: “Ahhh, embarrassed, huh?”

Ram: “Haaaahhh?” (She makes the noise with such a deadpan glare, I freeze for a moment.)

Subaru: “Onnn second thought, I don't mind at all! Please, test the dish… You made it after all.” (And with that, I gently pry a piece of the fluffy white insides from the rind, letting it steam in the air as Ram does the same.)

(...)

(...)

(...)

(... It still smells the same.)

(...)

(...)

(...)

(... Even as we each blow away the steam, letting it cool in the air. I know.)

(I know the moment I put it in my mouth what the reaction will be.)

(...)

(... I hesitate, but as she takes her bite, so too do I. A small smile on my lips.)

(...)

(... It's disgusting.)

(It's more revolting than Rize looked.)

(It's absolute filth.)

(Scum off the back of my shoe.)

(Something I wouldn't even feed a stray dog.)

(But I chew and swallow anyway.)

“Ahhh yeah… Are you sure that batch of potatoes isn't bad…?” (I give a sort of knowing look which makes Ram's annoyance only clearer.)

Ram: “Ram is sure.” 

Subaru: “Welp, there's nothing I can do then! Ah, why don't you have the potato, and I'll just ah, wait for lunch?”

Ram: “Breakfast—”

Subaru:  “Breakfast then!”

Ram: “...” (She pauses but does as asked, sliding the baked spud her way with a curious expression.)

“Breakfast should be ready soon, my sister will arrive short–”

Rem: (The blue-haired maid reentered the room from the door which she previously exited. Her gaze immediately flicked to me.) “Esteemed guest, Lady Roswaal requests your presence.”

Subaru: “Eh? Lady Roswaal, not—?”

Rem: (The maid glares at me, her gaze even more annoyed than Ram’s.) “Lady Emilia will be there as well. Please, follow me.” (And with that, she abruptly turns on her heel and looks back at me, like she's seeing if a mutt will follow her.)

Subaru: “Jeez… Maids are mean…” (I clicked my tongue and made my way over, my still bare feet walking along the cool tile of the kitchen to get to the grand, carpeted hallway.)

(Rem wasn't the talkative type… I didn't bother to try, just based on how obvious her disdain for having to be with me was…)

( Maybe she's worried I'll steal her sister~ Hehehehe… )

( Yeah… no… )

~~(The Dining Room)~~

Subaru: (After just a few minutes, we make it to the dining room and–)

“Hey!! There you are!” (I smile and rush in to the table, flicking out my hand in a finger gun motion.) “You got your insignia back safe and sound, right?”

Satella : “E-Eh? Ah!” (Tella cutely rummages around her pocket, her face slightly confused and… wary?)

Subaru: ( Jeez, is everyone really that nervous around me? I know what I… ah… did… )

( But… Tella should’ve vouched for me, I mean, we were looking for her insignia for nearly a full day before that. )

Satella : “Here.” (She holds out an extended palm with the insignia, letting me check it over.)

Subaru: “Woohoo! Isn’t that perfect!” (I grin and give a huge thumbs up like Vault Boy from Fallout.) “Glad to see it back with you safe and sound.”

Satella : (This seems to ease her down a bit, her wary gaze softening slightly.) “Ah… Thank you. I wouldn’t have been able to get it back without your help if I’m being honest…”

Subaru: “Ah! It was no problem at all!” (I move myself to be behind the chair that sits opposite to her, just leaning on its back.) “I mean, you know I have to do at least one good thing a day, after all.” ( I smile and give a wink… which she doesn’t seem to get at all.)

Satella : “I… Do?” (She pauses, fidgeting in her seat.)

Roswaal: “O~hhh How it saddens me to be ignored…” (A louder feminine voice calls out, drawing my attention to my right to see… A large clown woman??)

Subaru: (I was about to say something, but the fact that Rem stood behind her, glaring daggers at me, and that she was sitting at the head of the table made me think better.) “Ah–My apologies!”

(I quickly moved away from the table, hitting a deep bow as I looked to the floor.) “My name is Subaru! Nice to make your acquaintance!”

( I’m not entirely sure why I bowed so deeply… No. I did. It’s because that blue-haired one looks like she wants to eat me! )

Roswaal: “Ahhh, it’s of n~o issue. Please, raise your head.” (The clown woman gestures for me to rise with her hands.)

Subaru: (I comply, resuming my position behind the chair, while facing her.)

(She’s… Something. That’s for sure.)

(To start, she has a full face of clown makeup, with colored shapes over her eyes, and purple lipstick. Her outfit is… all purple, and incredibly unique. Some kind of pinstripe suit that even a carnival would reject… and then there was the biggest feature on her…)

(I had noticed a small difference in the maid's appearance, aside from their hair, of course. That being that… one of them was a bit fuller in a certain area. Well… If Rem was fuller, this clown lady was bursting. I could see the buttons goddamn straining on her suit, nearly about to pop off and kill someone…)

Roswaal: “M~y, m~y, you’re aware I can see where your gaze is, r~ight~?” (She subtly winks, bringing a hand up to her gently parted lips.)

Subaru: (I flick my gaze away immediately, my face going cherry red as I look off at a window.) “Ah, s-sorry ma’am!”

Roswaal: “Fufufu~ please, call me Roswaal. I am the lady of this estate.” (She closes her eyes slightly, gesturing towards the chair.)

“Please, take a seat. I’d like a better introduction from you.” 

Subaru: “O-of course,” (I give a sheepish smile and pull out the chair, sitting down on the velvety cushion. I turned to face Satella, giving a wide smile.) “Ahhh, I’m sure you’ve already introduced me though, right~?”

(I gave a flirty jest, my cheeks turning a rosy color as I exaggeratedly swooned.) “Hard to forget me and all right~?”

Satella : “Actually… I must’ve forgotten your name…” (She sheepishly looks away.)

Subaru: “Forgetting me already?! Such a cruel woman!” (I feign dying by clutching my chest as my heart begins to shatter into a million little pieces.) “S-surely Puck must remember me at least?” (I looked up at Tella’s hair, but the little cat didn’t burst forth.) 

Satella : “Sorry.” (Tella gives a sheepish smile.) “Ah, you know Puck? He didn’t let me know that… He’s currently off playing with another guest in the manor, I can summon him if you like, though.”

Subaru: “Ah, there’s no need.” (I smile and wave it off, rising from my chair at the same time.) “Plus, I get another chance to introduce myself!”

(I grin and give a wink as I raise my hands up to either side of my chest, like thumbing invisible suspenders.) “The name is Subaru, no last name! I’m a passionate boy from an eastern nation. I love long walks on the beach, late night dinners, and I can’t wait to write our love story together!” (I smile and point at Tella, who looks rather taken aback.)

Roswaal: “Fufufu~” (The clown woman gently raises a hand to cover her lips as she laughs again, her sultry eyes gently placed on me.) “M~y, m~y, what an introduction~”

Satella : (Satella, for her part, looks a bit mortified, gently placing her hands up in front of her chest.) “A-ahahah… Yeaaaahhh that’s quite an introduction.” 

(She sits up a bit more.) “Still… I’m confused on why you seem so…” (She blushes a tad.) “Interested in me…”

Ram: (It's at that moment that the pink-haired maid quietly pushes a cart out from the kitchen, gently placing a yellow brothed potato stew in front of each person. Going in order of Lady Roswaal, Satella, and then me.)

Subaru: (No one seems to acknowledge her, which might be customary, but I still find it rude. So I smile and give her a little wave, which she glances at but ignores. Ouch… Harsh… )

(I then flick my gaze back to Satella, giving her a deadpan look.) “How could I ever forget you??? You saved me from dying in a back alley! That’s not the kind of thing a person just forgets!” (I cross my arms and look at her with confusion, now it’s my turn.)

Satella : “I… Did?” (She pauses, looking incredibly uncertain.) “I’m sorry, but I re~ally don’t remember that… Even still, I’m sure I wouldn’t have asked you to risk your life for me in the way that you did.” (She raises an arm across her chest, looking slightly concerned.)

Subaru: (I raised an eyebrow, looking slightly bemused.) “I know that—”

Satella : (She narrows her gaze.) “If that’s the case, then why did you go out of your way to do all that for me?!” (Her eyes are wide with concern, looking slightly fearful as well.)

Subaru: (I sigh.) “Geez… You still don’t get it…”

(I smile and scratch the back of my head as I look up at her.) “Are you serious? I could never just abandon you or forget what you did for me! How could I ever do that to you, Satella?!”

(...)

(...)

(To say the mood in the room shifted would be an understatement.)

(It was as if everyone had frozen in place, each person's gaze lit with an intense emotion.)

(I paused, my gaze sweeping the room as my mouth fell slightly ajar.) “Hah? Did… Did I say something—?”

Chapter Text

Subaru: (I slid my palms along the course dirt, letting the rocks dig into my palms as I shifted uncomfortably. The floor wasn't the best place to really sit, but… where else could I go…?)

(I silently hung my head, looking down at my slightly scuffed shoes. A small nick from the battle has been missed by the twin maids…)

(I gently tugged at the hem of my shirt.) “At least they fixed this…” (I muttered to myself.)

(I gave a long sigh, shifting to rest my back against the wooden fence post, adjusting my rucksack as I did so.)

(And… I shut my eyes for a moment.)

(... Just a moment.)

~~(Earlier that Morning)~~

Satella?: “I-I-... You're one of them?” (The silver-haired woman forcefully scooted herself back, defensively raising her arms to her chest.) 

Roswaal: “STAND DOWN.” (The woman shouted so loud I could hear her voice echoing off the massive room's walls… standing just behind her was an even more enraged-looking Rem.)

Rem: (If the blue-haired maid was annoyed with me before, she wants to see me burn in hell now… that fury in her eyes is…)

(It's worse than the way the shadow woman looked at Rize…)

Subaru: “H-hey, what's going on? Wh-what did I say?” (I raised my hands placatingly, my eyes wide and nervous.)

“I mean, I know I'm a bit forward, but it's not that bad? R-right Satell–” (As I looked to Satella, I froze.)

Satella?: (A look of deep, concentrated ire was burned into her visage.) “You dare to invoke the name of the witch?”

Subaru: (I froze, staggering back as my mouth gaped uselessly, like a fish out of water.)

Satella?: (She shut her eyes for just a moment, exhaling a deep breath.) “Are you a member of the witches' cult?”

Subaru: “A cult?! What are you talking about??” (I wildly looked around the room. Surely I'm being pranked, right? H-hazing the new guy, right?)

(I looked off to the right again and—)

Ram: “Tch…” (The pink-haired maid silently looked down on me with pure and utter disgust, like some filthy roach she spotted…)

Rem: (The blue-haired oni let loose a snarl, her upper lip peeking back in open hatred.)

Roswaal: (The clown had a deep frown on her face, looking disappointed at me…)

Subaru: (I stiffened and looked back at Satella…) “Hey… C-cmon? You're joking, right?”

Satella?: “Joking?” (The beauty's eyes darkened, her beautiful face twisted with hurt and disgust.) “Who jokes with the name of the witch?”

(She lifted from her seat, staring at me… measuring me.) “I'd honestly like to believe what you just said was a poorly tasted joke, considering what you did for me… but.”

(She shut her eyes for a moment, and I was able to see deep lines of fear and disgust on her face. She lifted a hand to cover her mouth as she gave a huff through her nose.)

Subaru: (Even though she was mad, I still couldn't help but be entranced by her ethereal appearance…) “S-Sah–Er, M-Miss. I… I don't understand? When we met, you told me to call you that–”

Satella?: (Her eyes shot open and narrowed intently.) “I'm not sure what your aim is, but I would never name myself as the witch. To even suggest such a thing is reprehensible.”

Subaru: (I staggered back and froze, a lump forming in my throat.) “B-but–”

(I looked around and… I took another shaky step back.) “I-I–”

(I…)

(I don't know what to do.)

(What did I—? H-how did I—?)

(A sudden jolt came to my mind.) “THE LITTLE GIRL!”

Satella?: (Satella took a step back herself, raising her arms in an all too familiar stance. Now aimed at me.)

Subaru: (I pressed on, she has to remember! I nervously clutched at the hem of my robe, gripping the soft airy fabric while driving my nails into my palm.) “There was a little girl on the side of the street! W-we went over, I calmed her down, and we helped her remember? Put her back with the apple guy?”

Satella: (Her eyes lightened for a second, her hand wavering slightly—)

Rem: “Miss Emilia, do not fall for this man's tricks!” (The blue maids' snarl deepened as her feet shifted slightly, her stance stable and… aggressive.) 

“This man could've easily left a spirit to track you, or perhaps another foul member of his cult fed him information!”

Subaru: “A cult?! What cult! I don't know about any–”

Rem: “DONT LIE!” 

Subaru: (I staggered back, my eyes getting a bit wide and nervous.) 

Rem: “How dare you… TO ENCROACH ON THE PLACE WHERE MY SISTER AND I CALL HOME! SPOUTING OFF THE NAME OF THE WITCH, HOW DARE–”

Roswaal: “Rem.”

Subaru: (The woman's word called forth a chilly aura to the room. One that made every hair on my body stand on end. I wasn't alone either.)

Rem: “Hghk–!” (The oni nervously adjusted her stance, her head dipping slightly. Her eyes slipped to the clown with a look of repressed anger bubbling just beneath the surface.)

Subaru: (I staggered;  were they all really that mad? B-but for what! I-I just said the wrong name, it can't be that bad, right?) “I-I–”

Roswaal: “I'd implore you to save your breath, young man.” (The woman sighed with a heavy breath.)

“Whether by ignorance, stupidity, or malice, I simply can not overlook this transgression in my manor.” (Roswaal calmly shifted her stance to face me better, eyes laced with disappointment and disapproval that I knew all too well.)

(She calmly lifted an upturned palm to gesture at Satella… or, whatever her name was…) “To address Lady Emilia, a half-elf, by the name of the witch is unacceptable, and as the person who invited you to this estate, I take full responsibility.” (As she started to hang her head, the words had already begun slipping from Ram's lips.)

Ram: “Lady Roswaal, I simply cannot accept blame falling only on you; It was I who–”

Roswaal: (The woman calmly raised a hand, silencing Ram immediately.) “I will not have my words tested anymore, Ram. Your sister has already upset me quite a bit with her outburst.”

Rem: (The maid visibly stiffened, her eyes narrowing in a mixture of bubbling rage and self-justification. Something else I was far too familiar with, this time giving.)

Ram: (The pink maid was much better at hiding her emotions, returning to that emotionless, doll-like state the maids seemed to have.)

Subaru: (Lady Roswaal then lifted her gaze to me with a deadly calm… like a lion staring into the face of a mouse. It made my legs quake like jelly.)

Roswaal: “As my guest, it is my duty to take responsibility for your actions. As such, I will have you leave the estate this afternoon, and then leave my domain in its entirety. I shall arrange for you to stay in Arlam awaiting a carriage arrival to bring you back to the capital.” (Anticipating a reaction, she firmly shut her eyes and raised a hand for silence.)

Subaru: “Wh-wha—B-but, I-I–” (I looked from the clown to the maids to her.) “but… wh-what did I do wrong? I-I didn't mean to offend everyone–”

(A voice rippled from behind my back, more a snarl than speech.)

Puck: “You dare to portray ignorance before me and my daughter?”

Subaru: (I whirled around to face the tiny floating cat, only to freeze. Gone was the cute, playful look, instead replaced by the face of a vicious wildcat.) “P-puck—W-wait! You can explain, d-don't you remember talking to me? You let my head rest on your lap!” (I have a feeble, shaky smile, a cold sweat dripping down my brow.)

Puck: (The spirit wavered in the air a moment, looking like he was deciding between eating me or slicing me…) “I remember no such interaction.”

(He raised his gaze to Roswaal, his eyes narrowed and firm.) “I've been insulted by this boy Roswaal. I'm glad you're taking action, but I can't help but be a bit dissatisfied.”

(The cat drifted downward and to the left, coming above the beautiful half-elf's right shoulder.) “However, it is not my right to dictate whether this punishment is enough.” (His gaze softened as it flicked to ‘his daughter’)

Emilia: (The silver-haired beauty was quietly hunched over, nervously looking between her ‘father’ and Lady Roswaal. After a short deliberation, she looked up and quietly spoke.) “I… I think Lady Roswaal is correct. You should leave now, Subaru…”

Subaru: (I stood up, ready to defend myself when an Icy chill slipped through my whole body.)

Puck: “Roswaal.” (Puck's tone was laced with fury.) “Take him away from here.”

Roswaal: “Of course, oh great spirit.” (The woman gave a curt bow before striding towards me–)

~~(The Outskirts of Arlam)~~

Subaru: (So here I was. My back resting against a fence post back in my standard tracksuit. Roswaal had given me a pack with some basic rations, and a pouch of coins, but… Fuck.)

(I quietly hung my head as tears began to stream down my face.) “Dammit! What did I do? What the hell did I do wrong?!”

(I swiped my sleeve across my face, mopping up tears and snot. As I did, I felt a small hand gently touch my elbow.)

???: (The orange-haired girl nervously skittered back after the light touch. She looked left and right on guard and nervously spoke.) “H-hey mister, are you ok?”

Subaru: (I grinned and wiped up my face,) “Ahem!” (I cleared my throat and gave a thumbs up.) “I-I’m all good! Just a bit sad I missed out on something. You shouldn't talk to strangers, you know!”

???: “Hgh!” (The girl gained a nervous look before looking off to her left.)

“Yeah, I know… You looked sad, so I just…” (she shyly held up a freshly plucked flower; an orange petunia the same color as her hair.) “H-Here”

Subaru: (I slowly took the flower and gave a warm smile.) “Thank you, Miss! And what might your name be? I'm the great–” (I added a sort of circus-y accent) “Subaru! No last name!”

Petra: (the girl giggled and stepped back a bit more before pointing to herself.) “I'm Petra! Nice to meet you, Subaru!”

(After a few more giggles, she quietly looked off to her left.) 

Subaru: (I smiled quietly.) “Go on, I'm sure you have to get home.” (I vaguely posted to the sky, a gradient of pink and orange under the setting sun.) “And no more talking to strangers!”

(I smiled as I playfully chided her. Standing up and dusting myself off.)

Petra: (she laughed but paused before moving.) “Uhm… do you have anywhere to stay, mister?” 

(She nervously piddled from side to side, antsy as most kids are.)

Subaru: (I grinned and gave a thumbs up.) “Don't worry about me, kiddo! I got a date with the cold, hard outdoors!” (I shoved my arms out to the sides, taking a deep breath of the fresh air.) “There's nothing better than sleeping under the stars!”

(I chuckled as Petra giggled along with me, a soft smile creeping up on my face.) “Now go on, I don't want your parents getting worried and thinking you're in trouble.”

Petra: “B-But–”

Subaru: “No! Go on, shoo shoo!” (I waved my hands at her, and reluctantly, she trotted off. Her little legs speeding away down the dirt path of the village.)

“Haaaahhhh… I should probably find a spot to set up… I don't know how to make a fire, but it's warm enough not to need one.” (I shifted and looked to a more open spot a bit farther from the village.) “I hope.” 

(I sighed and nervously scratched the back of my head, walking over and sitting on the grass.)

“Okay… This probably isn't paltry chicken feed, Lady Roswaal was pretty generous with it…” (I sifted through my bag… I didn't have much, but it isn’t as bad as when I started this whole thing. I still had most of the convenience store stuff, minus the chips, which had been eaten. Lady Roswaal gave me some coins, a bit of food that smelled rancid, and basic navigation stuff like a map and other items I wasn't keen on messing with in the dark.)

“Not the worst hand, I guess…” (I sighed and looked out on the village. The place was cozy and exactly what you'd expect of a fantasy village.) “Hm… If I head back to the capital, maybe I could find work as a merchant?”

(I flopped back down onto the grass, turning to face the village.)

(A scrawny-looking girl walking up the street towards me. She appeared to be either a late teen or a very young adult, and she was pretty small. She kind of looked like Felt in a weird way? Though her clothes were a bit nicer.)

(As she saw me, though, she stiffened and took a sharp turn out of sight. No doubt rumors were starting to circulate already about the weirdo in the village…)

(I sighed and rolled onto my left side.)

(It might be better to sleep…)

Chapter Text

Subaru: (A certain darkness seemed to gently cradle my soul into the depths of a weightless water, thick and deep and warm. My eyes watered with tears almost reflexively, a deep sorrow filling my soul as I longed for something I could never have.)

(But that was just the issue.)

(There was a piece, a concrete part of me missing that I simply could not gain… and I was unable to do anything. My mind simply sank deeper and deeper into the warmth…)

Satella: “I love you.”

`°£√ √°| ¥÷®}??!?!: (I scattered like a million rolling marbles, fragments of my thoughts scattering through the only depths of this unknown to leave me… as… I… I don't know. I don't know what's happening. Where am I? Satella? Emilia? Mom? Mom?? Mom? Please, I-I don't know, I’m–please. Please. PLEASE. PLEASE. WHERE AM I? WHAT DID I–

~~(A Dream a Million Miles Away)~~

Subaru: (My eyes were wet with tears as I opened them. Or, they should have been. I don't know why?)

(I…)

(I paused, looking around, only to flinch back.)

Rize: “Back again, hm-hmhmhmh~” (the woman gave a hum like giggle, her garbled throat distorting the noise to be… wet.)

Subaru: (I moved to wipe my eyes, sending my consciousness scattering across the void only to call it back in. It was as if I was a glass sculpture that shattered and reformed for every pose I took.)

(It was headache-inducing more than anything else, and left me with a nauseating pain in my head that made my temple throb.) “J-jesus, you again?”

(I sighed, or I at least made the noise of a sigh.) “I'm getting real sick of not being able to understand anything!”

(Aware of my own movements, I angrily huffed and dropped my arms to my sides, making the hot sting in my temple flare momentarily.) “Will anyone tell me what the hell is going on?!”

Rize: “Ohhh-ho-hoooooooo… I wish I could, I wish I could.” (Rize tried to carry a sort of flirty tone, but… well, it was hard to watch.)

(Watching her try to be flirty was like seeing a heavy addict or chain-smoker try and use their… sex appeal, except it was ten times worse than that.)

(Each movement caused her face to swell and sizzle with pus, or at the very least, gargle and leak blood. It was to the point that the yellowed crust seemed more solid than her actual bone, so overlaid one another that it was forming a new, absolutely repulsive face.)

“Buttttt~” (She smiled, peeling back, and I mean in the literal sense, her lips. The cracked and rotting muscle around her mouth strained the unpopped cysts to near bursting, thick yellow crust crackling under the strain as she bared rotted crooked teeth.) “Even I don't have all the details, you know.”

(She sighed, a small trickle of some thick, clumpy liquid the color of old soda dripping down the right corner of her lip.) “All I know is that when you go to sleep, we meet.” (She grins.) “You haven't realized it each time, but it does happen! Best I can tell at least…”

(She slowly reaches out with a disgusting grin, her yellowed fangs reminding me just what she was. Just what she had made me.)

“I can't see you.” (The woman extended a hand out to the empty space in my direction, the slow clinking of her shadowy shackles echoing throughout the endless void of dotted stars.) 

Subaru: (...)

“HAAAAA!”

Rize: (The woman flinched back, defensively raising her arms in fear.) 

Subaru: “...So… what you're saying is…”

(I narrow my eyes.) “...In my restless dreams.”

“...I see that town.”

(I tried to shut my eyes, but only ended up giving myself a headache and worse vision.) “Silent Hill.”

Rize: “...Eh?”

Subaru: “You too! Awwwwhh man! I thought you would seriously know that!”

Rize: “...Eh? Know what? You're annoying me.”

Subaru: “I mean, c'mon! You totally looked into that when I saw you! You're one creepy chick, you know, I mean, you were all crazy with the blood–a-and the glasses and the dress! Silent Hill is totally your vibe!”

Rize: (She narrowed her eyes with annoyance.) “I honestly have no clue what the fuck you're talking about.”

Subaru: (I sighed.) “Iiiiiiiiiii knoooooooowwww…”

I shifted slightly, making my shards ripple and wave…) “I just…”

“It…”

“Gaaaahhh!!!!”

Rize: (The deformed woman seemed intrigued and bored at the same time. Like a lion staring up at the people watching it in the zoo.) “...”

Subaru: “... You're the only one I know now.”

Rize: (The woman slightly cocked her head, the chains gently snaking to adjust to the movement, their soft clatter letting the base of where she sat, though invisible, ripple as though a stone had been tossed in the water.)

Subaru: “Emilia is scared of me… The twins hate me… Lady Roswaal can't help me… Puck hates me… everyone hates me… Felt was already terrified of me… I-I… I don't know what to do.”

Rize: (Rize pauses, looking… empathetic?)

(She gave a soft, reassuring smile, slowly placing her broken hands on the ground to lift herself up, slowly staggering up to about four feet of her height, slightly hunched over thanks to the length of the chains.)

(She pushed her arms forward as far as they would go, the weak muscle she managed to retain straining against the smoking chains.)

“I understa—”

~~(√°| ]£[§•)~~

Subaru: (I gasped and wrought open my eyes… to… see… a familiar ceiling?)

“Eh?”

(I sat up, unsure if I was still… I don't even know. I don't care–)

(I sat up straighter, laying my hands on the linen sheets, the soft blue matching perfectly with the robes and pajama pants I had on…)

(I was back?)

Chapter Text

Subaru: (I quickly patted myself down, my eyes wide…) “How… but…?” (My head swiveled to look around the room, my eyes nervously flicking from wall to wall, each with the same gold trim and minty color that… Lady Roswaal's manor had.)

“E-eh…?”

~~(The Kitchen)~~

Subaru: (I nervously eked open the door to peek my head in. Even without a good memory of this place, my nose picked out the maids pretty easily, so it wasn't hard to find them at all.) “Uhm… Hello?”

Rem: (The blue-haired maid sharply turned with a furrowed gaze, her face clearly irritated before she was able to quickly placate her expression to a more normal one. As her face deadpanned, she spoke up in a fake cheery tone.) “Sister sister, it seems our guest has woken.”

Ram: (The pink-haired maid, in much the same way as before, looked slightly surprised.) “Indeed he has, sister.” (She then simply turned back to the potatoes, rinsing them off as she had been… as though I…)

Subaru: “Eh…?” (I nervously looked around the room. They… they weren't mad? B-but? I-I?)

(I clutched my head in my hands, my breathing getting heavy and labored as sweat dropped down the sides of my head.)

Ram: (Ram quietly looked up from what she was doing with mild intrigue.) “Honored Guest, might I ask if everything is alright? Did you perhaps need assistance?”

Subaru: (My eyes fluttered open, looking up at the pink-haired girl in confusion.) “Wh-what? Ram, what are you talking about?”

Ram: (Rams eyebrows quickly furrowed, knit in confusion.) “... How did you know my name?”

Subaru: “You… you said it to me? Wh-what are you guys playing at here??”

(I took a few shaky steps back, pointing in confusion.) “I left! Why are you two playing games with me?! Was it not enough that you cast me out for nothing!”

Rem: (The blue-haired maid had a much colder expression on, stepping forward with a gaze lowered at my chest.) “We have no idea what you're talking about, Honored Guest. As far as we are aware, this is our first time meeting you.”

Subaru: “What?”

(What?)

(What??)

(WHAT?!)

“GAH! Fine! I'll go find Emilia!” (I shifted left, scratching my head and smoothing my hair back as I walked off to the left. The dining room wasn't very far after all. Emilia should be in there–I can smell her. A firm hand gripped my elbow, making me stagger and look back.)

Rem: “My apologies, honored guest, but I can't allow that.”

Ram: “Sister–” (The maid's voice carried a warning tone, her quiet steps up to Rem making her stern gaze falter only slightly.) 

Rem: (She hesitantly stepped back, giving a very curt bow.) “I apologize for my conduct. Honored guest, however, I'd like to know exactly how you learned my sister's name.”

Subaru: “Jeez! What the heck are you two talking about?? Is this all some sick game to you?”

Rem and Ram: (The maids quietly glanced at each other. Rem, in particular, looked extra confused.)

Subaru: (I pointed at Rem.) “You're Rem,” (I shifted the finger to Ram.) “And you're Ram.” (I grit my teeth as I spoke, nearly hissing the words.) “You both told me your names yesterday. When I came to the kitchen that morning.” 

(What is wrong with these two?! They couldn't just let me leave in peace? I was gone! I slept in the village on the ground, just like they wanted me to! I did it all, just because Emilia asked me to! If they want to play mind games, then–then… then…?)

(My gaze fell on two very confused faces.)

Ram: “My apologies, Honored guest, but… I have no memory of that.”

Subaru: “...Huh?”

“Wh-what’re you saying?” (My face tightened into a smile, my mind spinning with a thousand thoughts.) “You… you think I'm making it up?”

Rem: (The girl glowers, her eyes sharp and hiding her anger very poorly.) “I would believe as much… if you didn't know our names.”

Subaru: (I stiffen.)

(I.)

(I…)

(I don't know.)

(I slowly draw my right hand up to my head, scratching the side of my face.) “Hahahahah!”

Rem and Ram: (The girls nervously step back, looking a bit surprised by the sudden burst of laughter. Rams face is far more concern–no, not concerned… fearful.)

Subaru: “...I.”

Rize: {She's scared of you~}

Subaru: (I flinch like crazy hearing that woman's voice, my eyes darting around to look for where she is, but she's not there.)

(And it only seems to make me look worse.) “D-didn't you hear that?! Rize?? Wh-what? But?”

(I dropped to a crouch, clutching my head.) “Goddammit! Why does nothing make any sense?!”

(I loosely smacked the butt of my right palm against my temple. I could feel the sweat on my skin, my brow furrowed in–in annoyance? Anger? Fear? I can even tell how I'm goddamn feeling!)

Ram: “Rem, please go fetch Lady Emilia, and Lady Roswaal…” (the pink-haired maid took a tentative step towards me, the worry mixed with fear on her face.)

Subaru: “Ghhhhh…” (I turned on my heels as I sprung up from the crouch, running down the empty hall as my hands clutched my head.)

Ram: “Honored guest!” (The pink-haired maid called out to me, but I didn't look back.)

Subaru: (I kept running.)

~~(Somewhere…?)~~

Subaru: (I had run decently far, losing myself in the maze of hallways and doors… I was too fast for Ram to catch up, and she stopped her sister from pursuing me. I could tell, or, my nose could I guess?)

(They all had their own scent… Ram was a sort of honey-glazed pork, very sweet and meaty. Her sister, Rem, was similar but… less fatty? Like teriyaki chicken, or something similar.)

(I wiped away the drool pooling at my mouth, reminding me just how hungry I was.)

“Dammit…”

(I push my back to the wall, sliding down its length to sit on the ground. Curled up like some infant…) “Why does nothing make sense?”

(I slammed my palm into the side of my head a few times, not in a damaging way, just a frustrated one.) “Nothing is making any goddamn sense?!”

(I hung my head between my knees… when…)

( Sniff… sniff… )

(My nose picked something up? A sweet scent, not meaty like the others… more like… sugar water? Or, syrup, I suppose?)

(I let my nose twitch, my body staggering up.)

(It was to my right… on the right side. One of the doors…?)

(I trundled forward, yanking open the door and…)

“Woah.”

(It was a massive library, the towering shelves stretching to the ceiling as they were piled high with varying books.)

“Woahhhh…”

???: “And who are you to barge into Betty's library, I suppose?”

Subaru: (I flicked my gaze down, looking at a small little girl sitting in the center of the library. She was–a drill loli?!)

“Ehhh? I could ask you the same thing! What are you, Roswaal's Daughter?”

Betty: “Roswaal's Daughter?!” (The spirit looked so appalled at the idea that the shock overtook her pouty demeanor.)

(It returned just as quickly, though.) “Hmph! As though Betty could be a child of that woman!”

Subaru: “oh, so… you're not?”

Betty: “No, I am not!” (The angry little girl glared at me down like scum on the bottom of her shoe. A look I was getting used to in this mansion.)

Subaru: (I slowly brought a hand up to my chin.) “So uh… Your name is Betty?”

Betty: “That's Beatrice to you! Hmph!” (The bratty girl turned her head sharply to the right.) 

Subaru: “Awww, no nicknames for me? Why not Beako~?” (I pretended to be mock hurt, fake swooning, and clutching my chest.)

Beako: “Becau–What did you just call Betty?” (The girl narrowed her eyes, setting down the book on her lap to walk towards me.) 

Subaru: “Oh! You mean Beako?” (I grinned,) “Well, you said not to call you Betty, so I found something that fit better!”

Beako: “I did not give you permission to give me such a name!” (Beako huffed, puffing out her cheeks in the cutest way!)

“What a profoundly irritating man you are!”

Subaru: (I tilted my head curiously as I kept my smirk.) “Well, what are you then? I don't remember… ah! Wait, could you possibly be that person?”

(I smacked my fist in my palm, in a gesture of understanding.)

Beako: (Suddenly, the little girl froze.) “That person…?”

Subaru: (I cocked an eyebrow at the sudden shift in tone.) “Yeah! The one Emilia mentioned? You must be the person who was playing with Puck, right?”

Beako: (Her face fell rapidly, before returning to its irritated state.) “Yes, I am the one who was ‘playing’ with bubby as that girl puts it, Hmph!”

Subaru: “Bubby? That's a cute nickname, Bubby and Beako!”

Beako: “I said not to call me that!” (The girl huffed and stomped her foot.)

(Then, with a sigh, she began to take steady strides forward.) “Betty's interactions with Bubby were actually cut short thanks to you.”

Subaru: “Eh? Ah, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, ah, end your playdate.” (I sheepishly scratched the back of my head, watching as your face nearly turned red at the word ‘playdate’.)

Betty: “Betty does not have ‘playdates’ like a child! Betty was convening with Bubby on important business!”

Subaru: “Ahhh, a rebellious phase!” (I grinned proudly, standing up straighter as I put a finger up to rub my nose in a superior gesture.) “You should hold onto your youth, you kno–”

Beako: “Hmph!” (The girl angrily strutted right up to me, placing a hand in the center of my diaphragm.)

Subaru: “Hm?” 

Beako: “Hahhhh?” (The girls' brows quietly began to furrow.) “This is odd…”

(Her hand began to slide up and skew slightly to the right, placing her hand over my heart.)

“Your gate…” 

(She furrowed her brows, knitting them with confusion and looking up.)

“... Just what might you be?”

Subaru: “Well, I'm glad you asked!” (I grinned and stuck my right thumb to my chest, placing it near her hand while still giving space.) “My name is Subaru! Just Subaru! I'm a total shut-in NEET who lived entirely off his parents!”

Beako: (The intro doesn't make her gaze change… the only noticeable reaction being a small sigh that puffs from her cute little cheeks.) “You are awfully proud of that fact, I suppose.”

(Then, she slides her hand back down to my gut, seemingly searching for something…)

Subaru: “Hey ah, I think you're a little young to be–”

Beako: “Stop assuming Betty is a child! I'm four hundred years old, I'll have you know!”

Subaru: “...”

“Ahhhh! A case of chuunibyou! That makes sense!”

Beako: (The girl's eyebrows faintly twitch with irritation.) “Hmmm…”

“Betty simply can't understand this at all. By all of Betty's accounts, you should be dead.”

Subaru: “QUE?!??!”

(I took a solemn stance…) “I see…”

(I gulped, falling to my knees and clutching my heart, making her stagger back.) “You have no need to kill me… for I am already dead…”

(And I slumped to the ground.)

“...”

Beako: “...”

Subaru: “...”

Beako: “Oh, will you please get up?”

Subaru: (I grinned and looked up from the floor, laughing as I rolled onto my back.) “Was my performance good, Beako~?”

Beako: “BETTY TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL HER THAT, HAHHH!” (The small girl took a few steps back, sticking out her arm and–)

WHOOSH.

~~( The Hallway , The Window , The Garden.)~~

Subaru: “Eh?” (I could only manage the noise of confusion as I was going out of the door, my body slipping through an open window before my trajectory began to aim downward.)

“W-W-WAIIITTT?!”

SHUNK.

“Ooooooooohhghhhh…”

(I groaned, my body aching in the green bush.)

Emilia: “S-Sir Guest?!” (As the voice of an angel called out to me, I struggled to look up at the window, her cute face peeking over the windowsill, laced with concern.)

Subaru: (I groaned but sat up with a thumbs up.) “Ahh~ Emilia! Your beauty can make a hurt man raring to go again! Don't worry, now that I've seen your face, I am but completely fine!”

Chapter Text

Subaru: (I rapidly bounced my leg as I balled my hands in front of my mouth. I took a short breath, my eyes shut in concentration.)

(Nothing makes sense.)

(Nothing…)

(So how? How…?)

(Ok…)

(Ok.)

(Let me think…)

(This has happened twice now. After I first came here, when I met Emilia, and then fought the assassin—my powers kicked in there. After that, I came here. I met everyone… )

(Got kicked out, and then I woke up, and was fine…)

(So, it's always happened once, after things went bad…)

(I gasped in shock.) “A time loop? Precognition?”

“Hmmm…” (It's gotta be something like that, because the information is based on reality… the loot house existed, and Felt was the thief in both. When I woke up, I met the twins and heard about Beako… then I met the twins in the same place and met Beako. Clearly, this is some kind of loop thing. If it were precognition, I would see information, but those were more like living things out…)

(Maybe it's like…)

(A second chance? I'm new to this whole isekai thing, so it makes sense. Maybe to make up for the lack of a goddess or whatever, I got Rize and the second chance?)

“Gah!” (I stomped my bouncing foot as I ruffled my hair. My hands came back down so that I could gnaw on the nail of my right thumb.)

(But there's still Rize! What the hell was that shit in the dark world? I was transported back to pseudo-Japan for no reason?? That doesn't make a lick of damn sense!)

(My eyes silently darted from side to side…)

(Maybe… that's a fluke? I'm an isekai expert, maybe the gods or whatever got me mixed up…)

(Could it be that I got pulled into another isekai thing in a mix-up and…)

(But that doesn't explain my powers…)

(They are Rize’s. That's clear…)

(It just doesn't make any sense!)

(As I furiously rubbed my palm into the side of my head, a soft knock rang out from the door, making me jump nearly a foot in the air.)

Ram: “Honored guest, Sir? I have your clothes here. Would you like me to leave them by the door?” (The girl's soft voice was so obviously placating and forced… It made me sick.)

Subaru: “y-yeah, that would be nice, thanks…” (I sheepishly smiled even though she couldn't see me…)

(Even though I was a total loser, I could still feel embarrassed when I made a fool of myself! These girls had no idea who I was, and I burst in and freaked out on them, then ran away!)

(To make matters worse, they were now clearly scared of me… Emilia no doubt told them what happened with the assassin, and it's not like meeting me helped. I acted damn near derranged…)

(As I heard the pattering of her footsteps in the hallway, I got up and trudged to the door myself.)

“Well… at least I got my tracksuit.” (I grumbled my words as I put it on.)

(Free from my muddy robes, I quietly opened the door.)

Ram: (The pink maid looked at me with clear apprehension, and a level of assessment I hadn't felt since I stepped out of the house in the daytime…) “Thank you for your patience, Honored Guest Sir.”

Subaru: “I-it's fine, really, and uh–you can call me by my name. I'm Subaru. It's… nice to meet you.”

(I sheepishly bowed, and she raised an eyebrow.)

Ram: “I… see.” (She turned and began walking.) “Alright, Subaru,” (she stressed the word, making me flinch as she said it.) “The Ladies of the Manor would like to see you for breakfast. You've already seen Lady Emilia, but Lady Roswaal was busy during your earlier… event.”

Subaru: (Her disapproval was so laced with disdain that, at her words, I felt like a scolded puppy.) “Yeah… sorry about that,” (I push to a more cheery tone.) “I don't know what came over me! Haha…”

(Yeah. That didn't work.)

~~(The Dining Room)~~

Subaru: (As I walk into the room, I immediately feel the gaze of everyone, including two more people than the last time… or, in my vision? I'll figure that out later!)

“Hey there, Beako! Good seeing you again!” (I grinned and gave a thumbs up, but the girl only grumbled.)

Beako: “It’s Beatrice to you, I suppose! Hmph!” (The girl shunted her head to look back at the tiny purring ball of fur in her hands. Puck quietly purring between her delicate palms.)

Puck: “Aw geez, Betty! Can't you ease up on the poor guy? You did throw him out of a window! Hahaha!” (The grey tomcat nuzzled its chin into Beako's finger, which got a small happy giggle.)

Emilia: “H-hello, Sir, I'm glad to see you're all right.” (The beautiful girl tilted her head slightly, looking a bit nervous but still oh so beautiful…)

Subaru: “Ah~ If it isn't a lovely angel come to greet me! If I weren't so sore, I'd believe I'd gone to heaven!”

Emilia: (Emilia gave a nervous giggle, more pleasing than actually laughing.)

Roswaal: “M~y, m~y, aren't you quite the charmer, young m~a~n? Fufufu~” (The elegant clown woman sat at the head of the table, her arms nearly folded in her lap as she kept an eye closed. Her other eye, covered in its own eccentric shape makeup, stayed open and directed at me.)

Subaru: (I quietly smirked as she said as much, pulling up a chair to sit down.) “Thank you for that, Ma'am, and uh, thank you for letting me into your manor.”

Roswaal: (Roswaal paused for a moment, her demeanor stiffening slightly.)

Subaru: (Note to self, don't address people as Ma'am… especially if you can't tell their age.)

Roswaal: “W~e~ll, it was no issue at all, dear,” (the clown gestured to Emilia, who looked a bit confused herself.) “Aft~e~r a~l~l, you did help our dearest Emilia~” 

Subaru: (The slight flair to her words made my gut bubble with anxiety… it was like gazing into the eyes of a very hungry lioness…) “Ah, really, it was no trouble,”

(I turned to face Emilia with a casual shrug.) “Who wouldn't want to save such a beautiful maiden?”

Emilia: “Eh?!” (The half-elf quickly blushed and tried to shrink into her seat.)

Roswaal: “Fufufu~ my my… aren't you a lovely one~?” (The clown gently licked her lips in a way that sent a shiver down my spine. Slowly sitting up to gesture around the table as the twins moved around behind her.)

“You have already met our resident spirits, Beatrice and Puck, and it seems you're familiar with Miss Emilia–” (The woman flicked her eyes to me, continuing on.) “But I have yet to give myself a proper introduction, it seems~”

Subaru: “Ah, me either…” (I nervously hung my head a bit lower, scratching behind my neck.)

(For some reason… being around her just felt so nerve-racking.)

Roswaal: “Fufufu~” (the woman calmly stood up, her massive chest contrasting her slim waist and thicker set lower half so painfully obvious, I could nearly feel my eyes melting as I looked at her.)

Subaru: (Doing my best not to repeat the mistakes of last time, I made an extra effort to stare up at her face, but it didn't stop me from seeing that button at the peak of her breasts, straining with effort to keep her blouse closed.)

Roswaal: (With a deep, long bow that let a particular set of melons hang ohhhh so low, she spoke.) “My name is Roswaal L. Mathers, Margrave of this manor and Court Mage of the Royal Lugunican Kingdom.” (She flicked her eyes up in her bow,) “And y~o~u?”

Subaru: (I smirked and shot up from my seat, slamming a hand on the table as I did, making the girls jump and Puck look at me with a slightly startled expression.)

“I'm glad you asked…”

(I closed my eyes for a moment, sucking in a breath before rapidly opening my eyes and raising one hand in a classic striking pose.) “My name is Subaru Kaneki! I've got zero clue where I am or what's going on, and nothing to my name!”

(I grinned and pointed to Emilia.) “But I can tell you one thing… I love beautiful half-elf girls!”

(...)

(...Goddamit?! Did I do it again? In reality, this time! Shitttttt–)

Puck: “HHHHHHIYYYYAHHH!” (The tiny grey cat suddenly flew from the blonde girl's palms, slamming his furry paw into my nose with absolutely no effect.)

Subaru: “Eh…?”

Puck: “Just who do you think you are, hitting on my daughter like that right in front of me?!”

Subaru: “Eh??” (I shifted to the side, focusing my eyes past Puck to see Emilia.)

Emilia: “I-I see… S-Sir.”

Subaru: (I felt my face flush red as I grinned like an idiot.) “Hey! None of that Sir business now, it's Subaru!” (I stuck out a thumbs up.) “No need for formalities with me!”

Puck: “Hey! Don't ignore me and keep hitting on her, you big jerk!” (The spirit sent a rapid fire attack of his furry little paws against my face, making me flinch back and giggle.)

Emilia: (The girl's face quietly brightened as she watched her father pummel my poor cheek, her soft giggles like an angelic melody straight from the heavens!)

Subaru: (I playfully put my hand up to shove away the tiny cat spirit.) “Hahaha, ok–ok! I got it, father, I won't–”

Puck: “Hey!” (The tiny cat grumbled and balled up his fists like a 1940s cartoon character.) “I never agreed to that, you haven't earned my daughter yet!”

Subaru: (I smirked, doing an over-exaggerated fighting pose myself.) “Just you wait, father!” 

Puck: (Puck quietly put his hand up to his eyes before rotating it towards me.) “I'm watching you, Subaru!”

Beako: (The drill loli quietly raised her hands with an expression of adoration, gracefully tugging down her ‘bubby’ to pet and play with him.)

Emilia: (The graceful half-elf hid her mouth with her hand, trying to muffle the angelic giggles that spilled out. Noticing the focus shift, she quickly cleared her throat and sat up.) “I-I see. W-well! Ahm,”

(She quickly stood up, giving a deep bow.) “I have to thank you for saving me, Si–Subaru.” (She quietly lifted her gaze just a bit to peek at my reaction.)

Subaru: (And I just raised an eyebrow.) “Again, don't worry about it, Mili!” (I gave a bright grin as she mirrored my previous expression.)

Emilia: “Mili?” (She rose from her bow, cocking her head like the cutest puppy in the world with a lovely baffled expression.)

Subaru: (I grinned and gave a thumbs up.) “Yup! Mili, it's a nickname.”

Roswaal: “Fufufu~ You're working your way in already.”

Subaru: (A bit caught off guard, I shifted my gaze to the female clown. Clowness? Clowness.) “Eh?”

Roswaal: (The woman quietly folded her hands below her chin, resting her elbows on the table with closed eyes and a relaxed expression as she spoke.) “W~e~ll, you may not view your actions as heroic, but some c~e~rtainly w~i~ll.”

(She opened one eye, watching me carefully…) “As such, I’d love to make you an offer.”

Subaru: (I paused. She dropped the tone, so it must be a bit serious. I felt a drop of sweat begin forming on my brow as I nervously shuffled back a bit. An offer? If I mess up again I-I… I mean… gah, just get it over with!)

(I slapped my cheeks and looked up, my eyes firm even as Emilia and Beako glanced up with shock and… mild amusement.)

“Hit me with your best shot!”

Roswaal: (Roswaal raised an eyebrow, her purple-covered eye still watching carefully.) “Don't w~o~rry, I won't force your hand, it's simply an offer.” (She smiled and closed her eye, gesturing towards the seat I’d been out of for a hot minute.)

Subaru: (I took the seat without thinking about it, following her gesture, just feeling more natural. I noticed Emilia following suit.)

Roswaal: (Once everyone was seated, she opened her eyes and laid her hands out on the table, the palms upturned to the sky.)

“My offer is simple. Without bogging things down with fancy language, I’d like you to come under my wing as a knight in training for Miss Emilia here.”

Subaru: “I accept one-hundred percent!” (I grinned and gave a double thumbs up.)

Emilia: “E-eh?!” (The girl quietly flicked her gaze from the clowness to me, and then back again.) “B-but…?”

Roswaal: “Fufufu~!” (The clowness gently held a gloved hand to her lips, laughing in a refined manner.) “S~u~ch an enthusiatic r~e~sponse surely tells of his qualities in dedication, doesn't it?”

Emilia: “I-I suppose that's true, but–”

Roswaal: (The Margrave shifted her gaze to the half-elf in a reassuring look.) “This is not a decision I have made on a whim, Miss Emilia.”

(She turned her gaze back to me…)

Subaru: (I brought a hand up to rub the back of my neck nervously… It feels like she's gonna bite me every time her gaze comes my way.)

Roswaal: “Beyond Subaru's clear dedication, there is also his intentions and his ability. Both of which have been clearly seen.” 

Subaru: (Now it was my turn to look confused. Huh??)

Roswaal: “Fufu~ you need not have such an… amusing expr~e~ssion on your face. After all, you have accomplished quite a lot, have you not?”

Subaru: “I… have?” (I cocked my head in much the same way as Emilia.)

(I really hadn't done all that much. Any decent guy would've stepped in for a girl in need! Not to mention I er… lost.)

Roswaal: “Yes, you have.” (The clown smiled and raised her hand, a closed fist.) “Pressing your intentions, if what my servants have said holds true… You fought a highly trained assassin to protect a little girl,” (she brought up one finger.) “An old demi-human,” (she raised another.) “And a half-elf?” (She raised a final finger.)

Subaru: “Well, wh-when you phrase it like that–” (I brought my hands up trying to dismiss the praise. Old demi-human man? Rom was a goddamn giant! Literally! And Felt, little and a girl she may be, but she wasn't some shaky little flower—and what's so special about Emilia being a half-elf? I mean–)

Roswaal: “Hmm… Not only that, but you seem to dismiss your actions as no big deal.” (She tilts her head slightly.) “That appears fairly noble to me, wouldn't you agree, Lady Emilia~?” 

Emilia: “E-eh? Ah! Uhm, y-yes, Subaru has been uhm…” (she shrank down further in her seat her eyes staring right at my chest as her super cute ears gently wiggled and turned a light pink.) “very heroic…”

Subaru: (I squealed like a schoolgirl, bringing my hands up to my chest and pursing my lips to put on a girly voice.) “EEEEE! EMT called me heroic!”

Ram: (I couldn't help but notice the deadpan glares from Ram and Rem. Not fans, hm?)

Roswaal: “Fufufu, well, as you can see, Mr. Kaneki…” (She gently leaned herself forward, deepening her predatory look…) “you may not view yourself as very noble, but to me…”

(She gently picked up a cup of tea that I hadn't noticed before, taking a long sip with her eyes kept trained on me…) “It seems you have a quality a lot of the knights these days seem to lack. You protected people; they never would.” (She gave a warm smile, her gaze flicking to Emilia.) “I'd say that's a fairly good quality to have as a knight, wouldn't you agree, M~i~ss Emilia~?”

Emilia: (Put on the spot yet again, Emilia simply squeaked out a noise of nervousness before shakily nodding her head.)

Subaru: “I…” (I grumbled and slouched in my seat. It was true that, well, the last time Emilia and I were in the slums, I hadn't seen a single guard anywhere… They likely stayed out of the area completely.)

(And well, hearing it straight from this woman's mouth? It kind of irked me.) “If you say so, then.” (I crossed my arms and leaned back in my seat, making a pouting face that made the twin maids cringe.)

“I just wanted to help EMT.”

Roswaal: “Fufufu~ how n~o~ble.” (She smiled and changed the way she leaned on her hands, instead draping her left arm across the table while having her cheek rest in her right arm, which propped her up.)

“Moving on from your intent, there's also another key part of your moves… your ability.” (The mage casually flicked open her palm.)

“There's only one other person I can think of that rivals your durability, and he's still far too young and immature to be at your level.” (The clown's eyes widened with a hungry look that made me shift back in my seat, my gaze sharpening.)

“I'm already hearing the rumor mill start up in the capital, you know… It's not every day that a random young man is able to fight someone like the Bowel Hunter. Fufufu~”

Subaru: “The Bowel Hunter…? Ahhhh, is that what she calls herself?” (I crossed my arms with a disapproving glare.) “That does make sense, she did try and make me spill my guts a fair amount…” (I grumbled and shifted.)

Roswaal: “M~y, m~y? You mean to tell me you charged into battle unaware of your opponent's reputation, just to leave without a scratch?”

Subaru: “Eh?” (I blushed nervously… jeez, all this praise—I feel like a kid again!)

“She can't have been that strong, I mean that knight dude kicked me off her like it was nothing—”

Roswaal: “Yes, the Sword Saint did kick you into a wall did he not? And yet all he managed to do was make you faint.” (She licked her lips before letting out her maternal laugh that made me feel like a gazelle in a lions den…) “You truly have no idea just what you've done, hmmm~?”

Subaru: (Unsure what to say, I just looked at Emilia and the maids, all of whom did look at least mildly impressed… or angry.)

Roswaal: “Now that you're over your little show of humbleness, why don't I make your situation very clear…”

(The clowness slowly stood from her seat, slowly folding her hands behind her back to show off her purple-clad body, which was bursting at the seams in that poor suit…)

“You came to the capital as an unheard-of demi-human…” (She took a slow, deliberate step my way.)

“Defended a half-elf.” (Another step…)

“Beat the Bowel Hunter, a feat that our knights struggle with.” (She came closer.)

“Destroyed a large part of the slums in the process…” (and closer.)

“And then took a near full power kick from the Sword Saint.” (So close…)

“Only to get taken in by the royal Margrave.” (She leaned down, her face less than a foot from mine.)

“I'm not sure what your intentions were when coming to Lugunica, but I can tell you that you've made quite the impression, you know. Even if you reject our offer, I'd be more than willing to pay for the damages you incurred to save Miss Emilia… However, after you leave this domain, I won't be able to guarantee your safety. You've drawn a lot of attention… Mr. Kaneki~”

Subaru: (I nervously opened and closed my mouth like a fish out of water. S-seriously?! What was her deal?!)

(Is she like a female Hisoka or something????)

(I nervously smiled.) “Well… you got my answer!”

(I grinned and looked at Emilia, making a heart with my hands before thrusting it her way.) “I'm all yours!”

Emilia: (The cute little angel's ears twitched as she looked at me with clear lust! (Her face was very clearly confused and flustered.))

(...)

Ram: “Hh-choo!”

Chapter Text

Subaru: (First off… BEING A KNIGHT SUCKS. I mean, I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but having to study all this Lugunican junk is way too hard! I mean, I can still barely read the language, so…)

(I nervously eyed Ram, my recently appointed language teacher, who was hovering over my shoulder.)

Ram: “Are you even listening, Barusu? I told you that the character goes straight before curving up to the right.” (She impatiently tapped the little chalkboard she had me use.) “Have you been mentally deluded by another one of your perversions?”

Subaru: “I am not having any ‘perversions’! I’m simply just…” (I sighed, quietly slouching in my seat.) “I’m just tired, Miss, we’ve been doing this for like two hours now! Can’t a guy get a little break? Pretty please~?”

Ram: (The maid gave a visibly disgusted look before drawing a hand up to massage her brow.) “First of all, if you ever address Ram in that tone of voice again, I will make sure you never sleep with how much work I assign. Second, it’s only been twenty-five minutes, Barusu. Is your devotion to Lady Emilia so weak you’d give up after a mere half hour?”

Subaru: “TWENTY-FI—?! I call B.S! There’s no way that it’s—”

Ram: (The pink-haired maid then quietly pointed at the sifting sand of the hourglass she had set up in the corner of the room.)

Subaru: “W-well, I’ve done a lot of other work for—!”

Ram: “You started the day by tripping while changing and have since spent the last few hours doing excessive physical training, taking a bath after said training, and then delaying this lesson as long as possible.” (She wagged a finger right in my face.) “If you want a break, you must tell Miss Emilia what you’ve done today, and then ask if she thinks that's deserving of a break.”

Subaru: (I quietly and slowly shifted my gaze back to the tablet, erasing my erred character.) “Yes, Ma’am…”

(Several minutes of intense drawing later, I completed the alphabet with only three minor errors. Doing it from memory made the slip-ups a bit easier, but overall, I was at least improving. As I worked, I did focus, I really did! But… well, my mind did wander a bit.)

(Learning this wasn’t all bad after all… those fairytales I got to read before were way more interesting, and… concerning.)

Rize: “Oh~? Thinking about—”

Subaru: (NOPE.)

(LALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALA IM NOT LISTENING LALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALA.)

Ram: “Baru–”

Subaru: “Yes, yes, I know.” (I sighed and scrubbed away the shaky line I had put on the sixteenth letter.) “My bad…”

Ram: “Hmph…” (The maid silently moved to sit on the edge of the desk, watching my work intently.)

Subaru: (That had been happening way more the last three days. Anytime I got even a little unfocused, her words would break through and try to make me uneasy. It was like having schizophrenia or something. I mean, I’m pretty sure Rem saw me talk to Rize… I swatted at my head and muttered to myself, and there she was! Looking at me like I was a psycho…)

(I dragged the chalk down on the twentieth letter as I let out a little sigh. Honestly…)

(Who’s to say I’m not?)

(For the last three days, the only way I knew I wasn’t losing it was by getting confirmation that my weirdo tentacles were actually real and seen by EMT and the rest… Roswaal had touched them a lot. Maybe she had a tentacle fetish and that’s why she was—)

Rize: “My~ My~ What a theor–”

Subaru: (NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO SHUT UP, NO NO NO.)

Ram: (The maid shifted her legs and parted her lips, ready to correct me, but I already did it myself.)

Subaru: (I brushed the mistake away with my thumb, completing the last diagonal and horizontal lines on the twenty-sixth letter.)

Ram: “Hm. Perhaps even an old dog can remember what it's told if you give it enough treats.”

Subaru: “So I did it?” (I looked up at her, careful not to show any optimism…)

Ram: “Yes, you have.” (She silently assessed me, her eyes staring at my shaky hand.) “Hm. I suppose you may have that break you wanted earlier; it’s nearly time for Lady Roswaal to have her breakfast anyway. Appreciate her grace, Barusu.”

Subaru: “Thanks, Miss!” (I swiftly scooted my seat back, moving to the door immediately–)

Ram: “Barusu, I believe you forgot something?”

Subaru: “Ah, sorry, Miss.” (I quietly and calmly turned towards Ram, giving a curt bow. I didn’t lift my head until I heard her dismissal.)

Ram: “Good. You have fifteen minutes.”

Subaru: “Thank you, Ram!” (And I dashed out before she could correct me.)

~~(The Manor Halls)~~

Subaru: (Finally!) 

(I quietly dashed up to the double doors of the dining room, steadying myself before I entered.) “Be a knight…”

(I straightened my back to look more regal, puffing my chest up to not look so small. I leveled my eyes, keeping, as Ram said, my gaze from being ‘perverted’. She was, ah, kinda right on that one. Looking at a downward angle means you look at people's chests more than their eyes. Well… Maybe she was just jealous of how much I smiled around everyone else!)

(Anyway!)

(I opened the doors calmly, striding into the room with all the practiced confidence I had built over the last few days.)

Emilia: “Ah, Subaru!”

Subaru: (I then launched myself forward, arms open.) “Emilia-tan~!” (I charged forward and threw myself at her feet, looking up at her while praising her like a goddess.) “Emilia-tan~! I managed to write out the whole alphabet and worked majorly hard on my PT today!”

Emilia: (The angelic half-elf giggled and cocked her head questioningly, nervously scooting her seat back so I wasn’t right beside her beautiful feet.) “That's great, Subaru, you’re making progress so quickly.”

(She outstretched her hand, ruffling my hair.) “Good boy.”

Ram: “Wow, Barusu, already lapping at the heels of another woman? You truly are as lowly as a mutt.”

Subaru: (I quickly whipped around.) “R-Ram?!”

Ram: “Surprised?” (The crazy oni gave me a wicked glare, taking slow, angry steps towards me while keeping all of her refined grace.) “I apologize for our mutt's rowdy behavior, Lady Emilia. It seems Barusu was in such a rush to see you that he lied about good behavior. You see, Subaru just forgot some very important manners of his.”

Emilia: (Emilia, looking mildly concerned yet as breathtaking as ever, looked up at Ram and then down at me.) “Subaru, is this true? I’m gonna be r-eeeee-ally upset if you lied to me, you know.”

Subaru: “It’s not! It’s all lies!!!” (I threw my head at the ground in a proper dogeza bow.) “I worked hard, my angel!!”

Emilia: “H-hey, calm down—”

Rem: “Your koff is ready, honored guest Sir.”

Ram: “How considerate of you, sister. Unfortunately, Barusu here may be losing his breaktime.”

Subaru: (I was left with no choice…)

(I ROLLED OVER ONTO MY BACK WITH MY LIMBS IN THE AIR. The ultimate display of devotion!)

Rem: “...”

Ram: “...”

Emilia: “...”

Roswaal: “My~ My~, you sure are lively this morning S~u~baru~” (The clowness silently walked out from some door in the back of the dining hall, pausing as she saw me.)

(I could almost see her face fall in real time as she went through the five stages of grief.)

Ram/Rem: (The twins just looked like they wanted to spit on me… and then kick me out. Possibly in reverse order.)

Emilia: “Please get up, Subaru.”

Subaru: “Yes, Emilia-tan!” (I then flipped around and stood up and at attention.)

Ram: “I have nothing to say. I don’t even want to look at you right now. You get your fifteen-minute break, just…” (She moved to the door.) “Don’t come back early.” (And then she left.)

Subaru: “YESsssssssssssssssssss!” (I quickly fist pumped as I hissed out my excitement.)

Emilia: “Subaru…” (The cutest girl alive spoke in a tone that let me know she felt disappointed.)

Subaru: (I could feel my heart start to shatter as I nervously turned around to face her.) “I’m Sorry Emilia-tan, I-I just, ah–”

Emilia: (The dazzling beauty of her angelic grace stunned me, her head slightly cocked with an elegant and sad expression.) “It’s ok, Subaru.”

Subaru: (I silently shuffled around the edge of the table, making my way to the seat opposite Emilia-tan.) “Thanks, Rem,” (I looked up with a warm smile to the blue-haired maid, but her cold gaze made me flinch.)

(I sat anyway, taking the cup of hot coffee and taking a slow sip.)

(Mmmmm delicious.)

Emilia: “U-uhm, Subaru, are you sure you don’t want anything more? I haven’t seen you do anything but drink koff since you got here… it can’t be good for you.” (She nervously put her divine hand near her elegant mouth, looking so dearly concerned for me.)

Subaru: (I nervously sipped my coffee myself.) “Nahhh, I’m fine! I’ve got some food in my room, I just er…” 

(I looked down at the plate Emilia had before her graceful figure, two over-easy eggs with sausage and some light veggies fresh from the garden. It looked delicious.)

(So why did just looking at it make my stomach churn?) “Well, I just have a hard time keeping the kind of food you guys eat down.”

(I nervously laughed even as Emilia cocked her head in confusion. Rem, looking less confused and more irritated, stood a smidge off to her right, where Roswaal had moved to her seat.)

Roswaal: “W~e~ll, Subaru, you should know that my esteemed house is quite willing to cater a~n~y dietary restrictions. You m~a~y h~a~ve.” 

Subaru: “Ah, I really don’t want to impose or anything. I know what I can eat is a bit hard to watch. I’ll just stick to coffee, thanks.”

Emilia: “...” (Emilia looked at me less with concern now, and more fear…)

(Something her eyes had been laced with for some time now.)

Subaru: (I took a sip of the warm coffee, the sweet taste helping it go down.)

(I had given Roswaal the sugar cubes for it, which is mostly how I was keeping my hunger down. I’m not sure what they are, but they sure do help…)

(Only issue is they leave you with that feeling you get when you’re just shy of being full… It’s been driving me nuts, but well, I… I don’t want to think about that.)

(Emilia and I have been getting along at least… She still gets a bit nervous around me after the whole… assassin thing, but she seemed to see I’m not that bad!)

(In fact…) “Hey Emilia?”

Emilia: (The heavenly angel paused her fork movement, a jiggly piece of egg white hanging off the end of it as she looked up, her ears tinged a slight pink to show that she was a bit embarrassed.) “Yes, Subaru?”

Subaru: (I calmly set the cup down, leaning back in my seat. This should be a good way to break that awkward tension!) “Well, I was kinda wondering if you could summon Puck? I realized somethin’, heh.”

Emilia: “Hm? I can, but might I ask why?” (The irresistible beauty sat up a bit straighter.)

Subaru: “No, you may not! It’s a surprise.” (I smiled and winked, doing a casual finger gun.)

Roswaal: “M~y, m~y, how intriguing.” (The clowness giggled in her creepy clown way before taking a sip of her morning tea.) 

Subaru: “Yes, it is actually!” (I smirked and turned to face her, pouring on my Nat—GAh)

(I put a hand to my head. Wh-what the hell? Kan… I… uh.)

Emilia: “Subaru? Are you alright?” 

Subaru: “Ha–yes, I am! Just got a little headache, is all!” (I smirked and turned to Lady Roswaal.) “Sorry for the interruption, m’lady! I was just gonna ask…”

(Gotta lay that Kankei charm on!) “Could I please have magic lessons with Emilia?” (I closed one eye in a pose that tried to look cool.)

Roswaal: (The clowness paused, looking at me like some interesting curiosity she just found under her microscope. Then, super casually, she just started laughing at me!) “Of course not, fufufu~!” 

Subaru: “What?! Aw, come on, why not! Emilia is–” (Lady Roswaal gently pressed a finger to my lips, making me blush as she silenced me.)

Roswaal: (The large clowness casually leaned over the table, her large chest clearly hanging down under her purple suit.) “Why, Mr. Kaneki, I said you couldn't learn magic with her, I said nothing about with me.”

Subaru: “Ah…” (My eyes nervously shuffled between the jewel of a gal in the room and the… more obvious parts of Lady Roswaal that were pressed against the table as she leaned over to me.) “I er, I'd prefer to learn with Emilia if that's alright? I er–I think I'll be good with the cats!”

Puck: “Oh yeah, Subaru! You're purrrrfect for us cats, heheh!” (Puck casually flew out from Emilia's dazzling hair, smiling and waving.)

Subaru: “Y-yeah! What Puck said!” (I sheepishly grinned and pointed to them.) “C'mon, Ma'am, isn't it good for us to get to work together?”

Puck: “Yeah! C'mon, Roswaal, I owe Subaru here a big favor. At least let me teach him the basics of magic, since he's so insistent~” (The cutesy cat casually flew right under my chin, curling his tail under it in a ticklish way.)

Roswaal: “Hmm…” (The clowness seemed to… deflate more than look sad. Just… reverting to a normal state.) “I suppose that, for this one lesson, you may do as much.”

Subaru: “Aw, c'mon, Lady Roswaal, you can teach me next time, ain't that right?” (I smirk and give her a thumbs up, hoping I didn't sour her mood.)

Roswaal: (She pauses, looking a bit surprised. Then, just as quickly, she puts on a smile.) “Of course, Subaru. Next time.”

Emilia: “H-hey, I don't mind teaching since Puck wants to, but don't you still have your lesson with Ram?” (Emilia's kissable lips set into a firm expression, making it clear that I had to do my work…)

Subaru: “Gah! NOOOOO! Not more work!” (I clutched my head and dramatically fell to my knees, tilting my head back to let out;) “NOOOO! Noooo! noooo!” (Letting my shout fade into a mock echo.)

Rem: “Are you done, Mr. Kaneki?” (Rem coldly glared at me from behind, staring with more disdain than usual…)

Subaru: (Jeez, even a shut-in like me knew that maids weren't like the cafes, but would it kill her to be a little nice…?)

“Almost! Just gotta—” (I stood up and quickly snatched my coffee off the table, chugging the dregs in a few gulps before outstretching the cup to Rem, who very gingerly took it with a cloth she had pre-prepared.) 

“Thank you, Rem!” (I gave my biggest grin and started to walk backwards towards the door.)

“Ah! Right,” (I nervously shuffled right as I got to the door, turning around and quickly giving a bow to Lady Roswaal and EMT real quick.) “It was a true pleasure to bask in Emilia-tan's presence!”

Roswaal: “Fufufu~ that's a unique flair. You may be dismissed.”

Emilia: “Yeah…” (The loveliest of the ladies quietly blushed and sipped her tea, looking quite nervous.)

Subaru: (and with that, I finally bowed out.)

~~(The Hallways)~~

Subaru: (I know, I know, go right back to Ram and do the lesson, but…) 

(My eyes shifted, darting across the many doors of the mansion. Nothing… time to try the trick!)

(I slowly shut my eyes, tilting my head back slightly and sniffing the air.)

(Ever since this… power-up, I’d been able to smell things way better… including…)

“You!” (I snagged the door and yanked it open–)

~~(The Forbidden Library)~~

Subaru: ( —to reveal the library!) “Heh, hey there Beako!”

Beako: “How irritating, I suppose. I believe I told you to call me Beatrice, did I not?”

Subaru: “Jeez, y'know every time I come in here this place just seems bigger and bigger.” (I strolled towards the cent—)

Beako: “Who said you could wander into my library, I suppose?!” (The haughty little girl snapped her book shut, setting it aside as she turned her full attention to me.)

Subaru: (Ok, perhaps she wasn't a little girl but… well, she looks like one, and she definitely acts like one… so is it so wrong for me to treat her like one?) “Oh, c'mon Beako! I thought we were close enough to come over now! You know my door is always open.” (I smirked and gave a thumbs up.)

Beako: “Be–”

Subaru: (Uh oh.)

Beako: (She raised her palm in a swift motion.) “Gone.” 

(A flurry of wind burst from her palms, slamming into me at Mach speeds!)

Subaru: (I crossed my arms to block most of it from hitting my face as I crouched into a ready stance, digging in my heels and kagune. Once the flurry ended, I simply smirked and stood up.) “You're gonna have to do better than that to get rid of me!” (I smiled and shifted my stance a bit, having my lower two kagune help ground me from the wind. Apparently, the wind blades can't break my skin, meaning they just give me blowback. So if I just plant myself down–)

Beako: “HOW DID I GET STUCK WITH SUCH AN INSUFFERABLE MAN I SUPPOSE?!?!?!” (The drill loli stomped her feet and angrily looked my way.)

Subaru: “Oh, come on, Beako! I thought you looked so lonely in here! I just can't help but wanna be around you,” (I sarcastically yet dotingly walked over to her, crouching down to be on her level as I made pinching gestures towards her cheeks.)

Beako: (Her eyebrow twitched oddly, irritation and something else written on her face.)

Subaru: “I mean, how could I resist pinching the cheeks of such a cute–

Beako: “Don't, I suppose.” (The expression on her face was clear. She wanted to be alone, and even I knew not to push it too much.)

Subaru: “Yeah…” (I backed off, giving a sheepish smile.) “Sorry, Beako… I er, I do have some questions if you'd be willing to help?”

Beako: (She crossed her arms with a huff.) “And if Betty should help you, would you leave her library?”

Subaru: “I promise, and! I'll even put in a good word with Puck later, he's gonna be working with me today.” (I smiled more naturally, placing a hand over my heart with a smile.)

Beako: (Her face twitched again, seeming hopeful, though it quickly fell back into her unmovable mask.) “Hm. Betty shall help you, I suppose. What is it you need?”

Subaru: “Well… I want to impress Emilia by being all knowledgeable! I was hoping maybe you could tell me a little about magic’s stuff and well… spirits? I've still got no clue about you guys.” (I smiled and sat on the floor, Indian style.)

Beako: “‘Magic’s stuff...?” (The young girl sighed, taking a few steps back into her book throne while crossing her legs.) “You are truly a complete novice, I suppose. Betty is surprised you truly know nothing.”

Subaru: “Yeah, well…” (I paused, thinking about telling her I was from beyond that ‘great waterfall' mentioned in a few fairy tales, but… Her reaction could be uncertain, and I don't want to end up like my practice run…) “I didn't exactly have much chance to learn.”

Beako: (Her expression seemed unreadable for a moment, and then she sighed and put out her hand, pointing at me.) “Fine, I suppose. I'll start with the fundamentals since you are a true novice.”

“As you should know, there are six types of magic. Fire, wind, water, earth, light, and darkness.” (She casually pointed at my gut.) “You are able to use dark magic, similar to Betty, I suppose. I was able to tell when I read your… mana.” (Her eyes looked a bit concerned, or maybe confused? It was hard to tell.)

Subaru: “Oooo! Cool, so what am I able to do then? Am I like a ninja? Can I teleport through the shadows and stuff?” (I mimed karate chops with added sound effects.)

Beako: (The girl gave a haughty smile.) “No, actually, dark magic allows the user to hinder the senses, manipulate space, and other such things, I suppose."

Subaru: “Aw…” (I hung my head.)

Beako: “Well, I suppose you could use spirits, us dark spirits are very rare, however. You're lucky to even meet Betty, I suppose!” (As I flicked my gaze up at her, she brought a hand to her chin, looking like some old wise wizard.)

Subaru: “Spirits?”

Beako: “Yes, spirits.” (Her voice carried a slight twinge of irritation.) “You wanted to learn about them, did you not?”

Subaru: “Yep!” (I smiled and sat up, trying to use some of that refinement Ram-ram taught me.)

Beako: (The spirit quietly shifted her posture.) “Well, spirits are easy enough to be understood by mere children. Spirits are ‘born’ with one of six of the affinities, and can be on varying levels. Lesser spirits, Quasi spirits, spirits, and Great spirits.”

“As an example, I am a great spirit. I have a physical form that I can retain for extended periods. Not all Great Spirits can do this, in fact!”

Subaru: “Ohhhh, I see, I see.” (I hold my chin, humming in thought.)

Beako: “Is there anything specific beyond that you'd like to know? Or could you please leave my library!”

Subaru: (I smirked and stood up, casually walking up to Beako.) “Yeah, yeah, I get it, I'll get going, alright?” (I looked down at her, extending a hand to pat her head.)

Beako: (She glared fiercely but seemed to accept the headpats…)

Subaru: “Sorry for bugging ya, Bea—thanks for the help!” (And with that, I walked out.) 

Beako: “It is Beatrice to you! Now be gone, I suppose!”

Subaru: (I giggled to myself as I left. She might act all high and mighty, but she still comes off like a kid with chuunibyou.)

Chapter Text

Subaru: (I yawned and stretched my back out, much to the huff of my irritated teacher.) 

Ram: “Barusu—”

Subaru: “I know, I know~” (I spoke in a sing-song tone, my right hand casually reaching up to rub the tiredness from my eyes.)

(Fun thing about living in a fantasy world, they get up at dawn, and expect you to work till dusk. And…)

(A stole a glance at Ram, who had only gotten stricter since my shenanigans in the morning.)

(...They will gladly abuse that if you irritate them. At least, Ram will…)

Ram: “Hmph.” (The angry maid slid her bottom off the desk, slowly walking towards the hourglass in the corner of the room. The sifting sand at the top was near its end, with less than ten minutes left on the hour timer.) “I suppose it is time for you to meet with Miss Emilia, isn't it?”

Subaru: (I smiled, setting my chalk down–)

Ram: “I don't believe I said to stop.”

Subaru: (I opened my mouth–)

Ram: “...” (Ram raised a single eyebrow.)

Subaru: (...I shut my mouth, silently turning back to the chalkboard, my hand snagging the chalk.) “nnf… I know.” (I grumbled.)

Ram: “Hmph.” (The maid smugly smiled behind me, even if I couldn't see her I'd spent enough time as her pupil to know how much she liked getting under my skin.)

“You know Barusu,” (the click of her footsteps rang in my ears.)

Subaru: (Another thing I had noticed, my hearing was way better than usual, no doubt a part of my ~luxurious~ power upgrade. So I was able to hear her sit on my bed.)

Ram: (I could hear her hands gently flatten out the bottom of her skirt as she set herself on my covers.) “I am not as foolish as you may think.”

Subaru: (I paused my scribbling, perking my head up to look back at her.) “What?” (I felt a twinge of sweat form on my brow… had she noticed me talking to myself?)

Ram: (She gave a clear glare, her eyes showing her distrust.) “I don't believe what you've been saying, no matter how much you say it.” (Seeing the clear confusion on my face, she continued.) “Your origin.”

Subaru: (...Yeaaaaahhhh. How the hell was I supposed to remember that in the first practice run, Emilia told me about there not being an island nation to the east?!?!! I was so focused on trying not to get kicked out, so it just sort of slipped my mind. And well, now I was stuck with this.) “I'm telling the truth, I mean, I showed you the Japanese, didn't I?”

Ram: “Hm. You did.” (She crossed her legs, casually leaning back on my bed.) “I said I didn't believe you, not that everything you've shown is a lie.”

“As your teacher, it's my responsibility to teach you the proper skills of a knight. That extends beyond language and etiquette, Barusu.” (She narrowed her eye at me.) “If you want people to believe you, to be as dearly devoted a mutt to you as you are to Emilia, then you'll need to tell the truth.”

Subaru: “H-hey—! Listen, I'm not Emilia's—Well… actually, I wouldn't mind it too much but–”

Ram: “Stop.” (She spoke loud enough to stall me in my tracks.)

“hahhh…” (she put a hand to her head, sighing with annoyance.) “You're missing the point, Barusu.”

(She slowly set her hands down on her lap, her eyes no longer glaring at me, but looking at me with clear seriousness.) “I am asking if you intend to keep lying to me. To Lady Emilia, and to Lady Roswaal, both of whom have been so very kind to you?”

Subaru: (I changed the grip of my chalk, tightly holding it to my palm.)

(I'm not an idiot, y'know!)

(Seriously.)

(I mean, I know all of what Ram told me, it's just…)

“What if…”

“What if the truth is less believable than a lie?”

(I didn't look back. I stayed focused on the space in front of me. My desk is cleared.)

Ram: “...” (She stayed silent for a long moment. Then, tentatively, she spoke.)

“...Well, I'd be inclined not to believe you. If I didn't know you. But I do know you, Barusu. A mutt as loyal as you should know better than to lie to his trainer. I know your master would be very upset if you did.”

(She smirked.) “I'll believe you, Barusu. You make a good mutt.”

Subaru: “That's not–” (I looked back with a slight blush. Gah, this was weird, whatever.)

“Well, if you say so.”

(I spun myself around, dropping my chalk, looking to face her. I placed my palms on my knees, grabbing them best to stay steady.) 

(I just…)

(Just say it.) “I er. I think I'm from behind the great waterfall.”

(I looked up with a nervous smirk, keeping my eyes shut tight.)

Ram: “Hm. I…” (through my shut eyes I could hear her shuffle and look concerned…)

“I find it hard to believe… but, for a mutt like you, it makes sense, I suppose.”

Subaru: “I am not a—Oh, whatever! The point is that I'm like seriously from beyond there!” (I nervously shrugged, bringing a hand up to scratch my shoulder.) “I mean, people like the ones out in the Capitol all sounded like tall tales to me–Elves, beast people, and magic, none of that existed where I came from.”

Ram: “...Ah.” (It was like a light popped up over her head.) “That. Hm.”

“I… Hm.”

Subaru: “Oh, come on! Say something more than that, would ya’?!” (I clasped a hand to my head.)

Ram: (She calmly put a hand to her chin, shutting her eyes for a moment.)

(Then, she looked up, briefly catching me off guard.) “...I believe you.”

Subaru: (I felt a sort of numb tightness in my chest.)

(I smiled,) “Thank you.”

(I turned to look at the timer, the sand finally sitting out.) “Uhm, may I go, Miss?”

Ram: “...You may.”

Subaru: (I stood up and bowed.) “Thank you for your time today, Miss.”

(And with that, I exited, striding to the door and quickly walking out.)

~~(The Hallways)~~

Subaru: (Yes, yes, yes!!!!)

(I silently fist pumped a few times, my stride keeping fast.)

(It was finally time! And it was gonna be so romantic! I can't wait to see Emilia's angelic face!)

(I had left my jacket in the room on purpose. I wasn't sure how the magic stuff might go but in case I had to pull my kagune out, I didn't want to shred the thing.)

(Fun thing about the kagune, it would slip out of my back. Aka, completely tear through shirts.)

(Luckily, when I was fighting the assassin, my shirt had ridden up enough that my kagune only skimmed the hem, making it a little rough but not unwearable. In my first practice though…)

(The scolding Ram gave me for destroying a shirt I had been given still sticks with me. I’d been training to avoid it, but most days I just did my PT shirtless. It did get a bit uncomfortable when Roswaal was around, but it was whatever.)

(She was more eccentric than really interested in me, I think. Maybe that's just a rich person thing…? I mean, the clown makeup alone is–)

Rize: [Gonna shut me up again?]

Subaru: (I stopped in my tracks, whipping my head around to look behind me. Then, when it caught up that it was Rize, I moved to smack my head.)

Rize: [Oh, why bother?]

Subaru: (I paused… and, against my better judgement, I ‘tuned in’.)

(It was a bit hard to explain, but… well, I guess it was like a walkie-talkie. Sometimes, while I was focused on my thoughts, her voice could bleed through when I got unfocused. I could listen to her, but well… She's not fun to talk to.)

[Fine. What?]

Rize: [Finally, you listen to me! You know, you've been blathering on and–]

Subaru: [Jeez! Will you get to the point? I've got a really awesome date with a really awesome gal! Hurry up!] (I leaned against a wall, closing my eyes to better focus on her. Sometimes, if I spoke to her too long, my vision would get these black static-y spots, and I'd get a headache. I learned that pretty quick.)

Rize: [Aw, someone cranky? Well, I'm here to tell you, you need to eat. Those sugar cubes ain't cutting it.]

Subaru: [Gosh dangit! If you called just to talk about killing someone again, I'll tune you out!]

Rize: [You think I'm telling you for no reason? You're hungry, you fool! You can feel it. I know you can.]

Subaru: [No, it's just–]

Rize: [You can't lie to your stomach, boy. Nor can you your eye. It's getting harder and harder to keep your eye human, isn't it?]

Subaru: [...It's fine.]

Rize: [It's not.]

Subaru: [Say’s you–!]

Rize: [You've never been hungry.]

Subaru: [Jeez, what are you talking about? You already know I am–]

Rize: [No, you AREN’T.]

Subaru: (At the sudden jump in volume, I felt my core tense in the real world, making me pop my eyes open for a quick scan… the coast was clear, thank God.)

(Tuning back in, I decided to let her speak.)

Rize: [You are peckish right now, you feel hunger, but it's only slight. You don't feel true hunger. You've lived a good life. An easy life. You have no idea what it's like to starve. To know that your only option for a meal is flesh.]

Subaru: (I quietly shifted… I… I can't refute her. I really, really tried. I sincerely did. But… the thought of trying to hork down another potato, or a bit of meat that stank like the smell of rot and tasted worse than shit…)

(I really, REALLY, did try to eat. But anytime I did, I ended up gagging or hurling into a sink. And the only damn thing that smells good around here is…)

(I can feel that growing pit in my stomach. And I find myself closing my right eye more than I'd like to admit…)

(But…)

(I brought a hand up to my mouth. My thoughts raging on, how the hell could I eat a person? What monster does that!)

(I've barely built any trust with Emilia, let alone Ram and Roswaal, if I come out and ask to eat people, they'll look at me like I'm fucking deranged! I mean, Rem already caught me gagging up her meal like a cat with a hairball. I already look pretty fucking derranged.)

(It's not like I have piles of flesh to–)

Rize: [You don't get it.]

Subaru: [Gah, right, you can still… hear me.] (I slipped a finger between my front teeth.)

Rize: [The reason I'm telling you is not because I want you to eat. It's because you will eat. You're so worried about trust, you neglect to consider how they'll feel when you're so blind with hunger, even the elf girl looks like a tasty meal.]

Subaru: [I would never–!]

Rize: [YOU ARE.]

Subaru: (I flinched.)

Rize: [You are already doing it, you damn fool. You can barely control your eye, how long until you can't control your teeth? Your hands? Your movements? I know you smell how delicious they are.]

Subaru: [Shut up. Don't talk about them like that, they are people–not some twisted fucking meal!]

Rize: [Want to keep them that way?]

Subaru: [Keep them that way? You mean–] (Even I felt the red hot anger in my tone. This vile bitch made every moment I spoke to her impossible. I know I'm hungry! I can feel it just as well! I don't need reminders driving me fucking nuts!)

(I felt a small gush of blood, my finger spilling the crimson—)

(That's… not crimson?)

(Jesus, it's dark. Like… like the color of dried blood?)

(I sucked the liquid off my finger, darting my hand down and wiping away the sweet nectar–BLOOD. It's MY BLOOD. BLOOD.)

(Not nectar.)

(...My eyes practically bored a hole into the wound, the silence of the night in the manor absolutely deafening.)

Rize: (Her voice went back to the sweet, alluring tone she tries to use to get my attention. Yeah, sweet like poisoned Kool-Aid.) [Are you ready to listen or not?]

Subaru: [...]

Rize: (I felt her lips brush my ear, making my entire body shiver.) [There's a village down the way. You were left there, remember?]

Subaru: (I felt my whole body go cold. No. I can't, I won't!)

Rize: [How long do you think you'll say that before you sink your teeth into the face of the maids? Hmm? You know damn well you've had the thought.]

Subaru: (I clasped my hand over my lips.) “Shut up, shut up. You're making me sick.”

Rize: [Hm.] (Her tone sounded pleased with herself.) [Is that why you're drooling?]

Subaru: (I wiped away the saliva around my mouth, closing my eyes.)

Rize: [You won't last more than a few days now. Head to the village tomorrow. Until then… enjoy your date~ hahahahah~!]

Subaru: (I clasped my hands over my face, taking a deep, shaky breath.)

(I… I just have to go. Emilia-tan… here I come!)

Chapter Text

Subaru: (Slipping out the front door of the manor, I took in a deep, long breath. The cool night air of the Roswaal estate was far fresher than anything you’d ever breathe in Japan. It’s… nice.)

(For a moment, I just attempt to clear my mind. Closing my eyes and breathing in.)

(Emilia.)

(I am going to Emilia.)

(I am gonna have a good time with Emilia.)

(Emilia is gonna teach me magic.)

(I ball my hands at my sides, my nails slightly digging into the flesh of my palm, before I smirk and look slightly up to the night sky.)

“Here I come, Emilia-tan!” (I shot a balled fist up to the sky, pointing my finger.)

(I kept my grin, hopping down the steps, putting some eager energy into each step as I slowly carried myself southwest to the meeting place.)

(Sweet Emilia-tan had passed along a note for me while I was working. It was a bit long and formal, but the general gist was this: She’d be waiting out by the gazebo in the front with Rem. She was so damn sweet, she was worried she might not be enough to teach me magic! That’s why Rem was along.)

(It might be a bit awkward since the maid thinks I'm some schizo from the /x/ board, but hey! Maybe it'll be an opportunity to get to know her…?)

(Maybe…?)

(Well, either way, I had managed to get to the place before I knew it. My steps traced down the cobbled path of the front garden area, just bordering the neat clearing the gazebo sat on, giving me a view of—)

(I sucked in a breath at the absolute angelic beauty ahead of me.)

(Emilia was surrounded by low blue lights humming all around her. Spirits, if I remembered correctly. She did the same thing back in that first practice run before I got my powers.)

(And man, it was still so damn pretty!)

(I held back for a few moments as she spoke with them, waiting for her to be done. When she was, I smirked and ran up.) “Emilia-tan~!”

Emilia: (The cutest gal in the entirety of Lugunica turned to face me, looking surprised and a bit nervous, shuffling back while tense.) “Subaru!” (She paused, letting a smile slip on her face as the momentary scare washed away.) “You silly boy. You r-eeeee-ally scared me,” (She giggled nervously before delicately setting herself down on the cushioned bench of the gazebo.)

Subaru: “Ah, sorry Emilia-tan, I just didn’t wanna interrupt your little chat there.” (I smirked a bit wider, slapping my hands on my hips as I leaned back and cast a glance around.) “Where’s Rem?”

Emilia: (Emilia tensed slightly at that. Embarrassed to be alone with me?!) “Ah, she must be on her way. Rem should be here soon enough…” (She slid her gaze away from me, looking off and to the left before scooting that way, casually patting the seat next to her.) “Come, sit.”

Subaru: (...Maybe this was planned from the start! Perhaps Emilia orchestrated an extra minute with me!)

(I gave a gentle whiff of the air just to confirm it, but—yep! Rem wasn’t even close by. All I could smell was Emilia’s lovely scent and the cool night air…)

(Smirking, I sat down next to her. This was good anyway, ‘cause well…)

(I had something to fess up after all…)

(It’d probably be better to hear coming from me. Ram was right… If I am to be Emilia’s knight, there is some junk I have to confront. A lying knight isn't a rep I want! I want to be the finest knight!) “Well, ah, Emilia, it's nice to have a moment to ourselves, isn’t it?”

Emilia: (The dazzling beauty next to me shifted slightly, her voice clearly nervous. Maybe I was more dead on the mark than I thought!) “Y-Yes, nice.”

Subaru: (I shuffled my hands in front of me, feeling my own face grow red.) “Actually, it’s kinda–er, convenient?”

(I looked over to her with a short, nervous laugh.)

Emilia: (Emilia turned to face me, shrinking back slightly as her face looked mortified with embarrassment.)

Subaru: (I looked back down at the ground, her elegant face too much to look at.) “It’s ah…”

(I paused, closing my eyes before steadying my tone.) “I lied to you, Emilia. And—I’m sorry for that. I know it’s er, not super great to lie or whatever, but I just… It’s complicated, y’know? And hard to believe too…” (I shuffled my hands, turning them over one another and occasionally picking at the slight bit of frayed skin on the edges of my nails.)

Emilia: “Oh. I see.” (Her tone was surprised, but it slowly morphed to be more… gentle. Her graceful demeanor is absolutely glowing. She leans forward slightly, mimicking the way I was more hunched over my knees, almost to encourage me like a mom with her kid...)

Subaru: (Encouragement from the girl I liked was more embarrassing than anything! I was blushing like a goddamn schoolgirl…) 

(I felt my brow twitch. Nut up or shut up!)

(I sat up straighter, turning to face the ethereal woman next to me.) “There’s no easy way to explain it, I guess, just gotta say it. I’m er, I’m not from Lugunica, or some Island to the east, or anywhere you’ve heard of, really. I’m, uh, I’m…”

Emilia:  (She backed up, slightly wide-eyed, before pausing and tentatively coming back a bit.) “I-It’s ok. You can say it, Subaru.” (She gave a smile so pure with heavenly aura that it made this shut-in's heart melt!)

Subaru: (I fidgeted with my thumbs for a few more seconds before I spoke.) “I’m, or at least I think I am, from beyond the… great waterfall!”

(I snapped my eyes shut as I said it. So, once the deed was done… I nervously opened an eye to glean her expression. And… Her face was in full shock.)

“J-jeez! Am I that unbelievable?!” (I nervously huffed.)

Emilia: (Her eyes widened, her irresistible lips parting slightly before she flew into consolation mode.) “N-No! Not at all, I was just surprised—”

Subaru: (I gave a dead-eyed look and smirk. She didn’t believe me. Well… I wouldn’t much either.) “I get it. It must be pretty hard to believe from where you are and all.”

(I scoffed and leaned back, letting my shoulder blades hit the banister with a slight sigh as I looked up at the night sky.) “You don’t need to believe me at first. I wouldn’t either. Just er, think about it for a sec.”

(I raised my right foot, showing off my earthy sneakers, top fashion for the latest NEET’s in town!) “My clothes, slang stuff, and y’know, general standing?” (I nervously looked back up at her, her jewel-like eyes stuck on my sneakers.)

Emilia: “I…”

Subaru: (I felt my eyes get a bit more nervous, giving an almost pleading look to the kind lady before me.)

Emiia: (She hesitated for a moment, her lovely lips pursing for a moment before she slowly spoke.) “...I believe you.”

(And…)

(She smiled.)

Subaru: (I felt my heart beat a million miles a minute.)

Emilia: “You’re awfully silly, Subaru, but…” (She looked nervous, her eyes darting to the floor.) “You’re the real article.”

Subaru: “Jeez, who even says ‘the real article’ in this day and age?” (I chuckled as I saw her mesmerizing eyes narrow and her cute cheeks puff up.)

Emilia: “Jeez, I was being nice, you know!” (She crossed her arms playfully before her expression slipped, morphing into a smile as she truly and unapologetically smiled.)

Subaru: (I smiled and said the only thing on my mind.) “Yeah, I’d never be anyone else's knight.” 

Emilia: (The noble beauty gasped, her face bright red as her otherworldly ears wiggled.) “Wh-what made you say that?!”

Subaru: (My ears suddenly picked up the crunch of gravel, making my nose involuntarily sniff the air like it was muscle memory.) “Ah, that’s Rem. I suppose we'd better start this practical lesson, hm?” (I smirked and gave Emilia a wink, casually standing up and giving my arms a quick stretch.)

Emilia: “Wh-Wha?! Rem, n-now—here?” (Emilia stood up, looking off to the right to confirm what I already knew.)

Rem: (The blue-haired maid slowly walked up the beaten dirt path, her demeanor as cold as ever.) “My apologies, Lady Emilia. Rem was caught up in the ladies' room.”

Subaru: “Double flusher, ay?” (I solemnly nodded.) “I've been there.”

Emilia: (The red-faced noblewoman looked at me with what can only be described as utter confusion.)

Rem: “...”

(Rem turned to face Emilia.) “Are you sure he is able to grasp the concepts of magic? I believe they require trace amounts of intelligence.”

Subaru: “Hey! Geez, lighten up a little! I was only joking!”

(I looked Rem dead in the eye before quickly flinching away from her glare.) “...Don't make a big stink about it.”

(Honest to God, I think she wants to kill me.)

Emilia: “Ah-ahm, so uhm, Subaru! Why don't we start with the basics?”

Subaru: “Yeah… I could use a refresher.” (I nervously sidled away from Rem, doing my best not to look at her because I'm pretty sure that looks can kill in this world.)

Emilia: (The otherworldly beauty beside me clapped her hands, her stuttering tone giving away her nervousness.) “W-well, to really start at the fundamentals, there are six different elements of magic. Fire–”

Subaru: (I smiled at her, feeling sweat drip down my temple due to the heat of Rem's look.) “Wind, earth, water, light, and dark, right? I'm a dark type!”

Emilia: (Momentarily stunned, the prettiest girl in the manor widened her eyes and spoke a tad easier, the weight of Rem's current look shifted off.) “Oh, you were familiar with the concepts, Subaru? But I thought…” (her eyes flicked to Rem, and I caught the message.)

Rem: (Rem shifted her stance behind me, her feet shifting to be… I can't tell, but it's not as angry!)

Subaru: “I am new, but Ahm… I wanted to impress you, so I asked Beako to tell me the very basics… hehehe…” (I nervously scratched behind my neck as the quintessential beauty let a soft smile slip onto her face.)

“But!” (I raised my right hand up at the elbow, pointing skyward as I tilted my chin up slightly, shutting my eyes as I spoke. I would've straightened my posture, but Ram had already drilled that into me seven times over.) “I did save the best for you, of course, m’lady.”

(I cracked a smile, opening one eye as I slightly leaned forward and flipped my pointed hand to be palm up in an offered extension.) “I'd love for you to teach me the ways of spirits, Miss Emilia.”

Emilia: “Hahaha, Subaru, you silly boy!” (Emilia's radiant smile blessed my eyes, her giggles a serenade on this lucky NEET’s ears as she took a slight step back.)

(Emilia's tender gaze caressed me in a way no one had ever looked at me. She saw me. She… saw me.)

Subaru: (I could almost feel my heart melt inside of my chest, the butterflies in my gut bouncing around and begging to be let out.)

(And then Emilia's face contorted into shock and fear.)

Emilia: (The unforgettable look on her face was gone, replaced with wide-eyed open terror, her body flinching back and her arms raised.) “Subaru, y-your eye, are you–?”

Subaru: (I flinched back reactionarily, my hand coming up to cover what I let slip.) “Sorry, sorry, sorry!” (I stumbled back, covering my eye as Rem slipped past me.)

Rem: “Is everything alright, Lady Emilia? Rem is willing to deal with any unruly dogs.” (The maid stepped between us protectively.)

Emilia: “Ah-ahm, yes, it's fine—I was just surprised! That's all, I'm peachy!” (Emilia shuffles up to Rem's front, making the bristling maid cool slightly.)

Subaru: (I looked away, my eyes cast down.) “Aha, s-sorry about that, ladies! That can just er, pop up with high emotions.”

“It's… it's ok, promise.” (I dropped my hands, keeping my eye closed as I turned to give a soft smile.)

Emilia: (The vibrant jewels Emilia had as eyes still carried that warmth with just an inkling of hesitation, her smile not fully reaching her eyes even as it bled in.) “I see… Uhm, while you collect yourself, Rem and I shall head to the more open space.”

Rem: “Yes, you should come to us when you recollect yourself, Sir Subaru.” (The maid sidestepped out of the way between us. Emilia gave a tiny wave before turning and skittering off.)

Subaru: (...)

Rize: [You know they're scared of you.]

Subaru: “Shut up…” (I blinked my eye several times as I forced her out.)

~~(Open Grounds)~~

Subaru: (It didn't take long to get my eye under control. It's pretty damn annoying, but wishing it away tends to work. I just have to be conscious of it. It's like holding a button down to keep my cool. Sometimes my vision clouds a bit with darkness, but… It's my only option.)

(After a few moments, I walked over to the gazebo, making my way to the open grassy plain Emilia had us meet in.)

(The girls were maybe three meters ahead, talking to one another…)

(I perked up my ears while keeping my distance.)

Emilia: (As Emilias unforgettable voice rang out I stiffened. She was already speaking when I listened in, so I just…) “H-He was eating her. Taking full bites out of the woman as she screamed, a-and screamed…”

Subaru: (I clutched my head in my hands, covering my eyes as I slumped onto the benches in the gazebo. I-I knew she was scared, but–)

Emilia: “He looked like a monster…”

Subaru: “...” (Yeah, I did, didn't I?)

Rize: [I told you. Eating that woman allowed you to hold out a lot longer, but those were mere table scraps compared to what you need.]

Subaru: [...] (I rubbed my eyes, pushing her back.)

Rem: (Speaking back to Emilia, Rem chimed up.) “I understand, Lady Emilia. That man… he is surely with ‘them’. Sister wouldn't allow me to hear her suspicions, but I knew–”

Emilia: “No–Subaru isn't with them. He's too kind, too–”

Rem: “You think they can't be nice?” (Rem's tone was just borderline scathing, her tone only kept intact thanks to her role as a maid.)

Emilia: “I-I…” (Emilia was practically trembling.)

Subaru: (I was, too.)

Emilia: “I… I still don't think so. Subaru is a good boy.”

Subaru: (I almost laughed into my hands. Yeah, that's one way to talk about me.)

Rem: “It seems Sissy's dog comparison was accurate.” (Rem huffed, turning away.)

Subaru: (As the uncomfortable silence burned between them… I felt relieved. Emilia…)

(I smiled and stood up, walking over to them.) “Sorry, guys! Hope I didn't take too long with my little accident, it seems we've both had one today, huh?” (I looked at Rem before quickly flinching away.)

Rem: “...”

Emilia: “A-ahm, that's okay, Subaru—Why don't we start your training now?” (I could see the hesitation in her step, and the nervous look on her face.)

(...But, I could also see the bravery it took to face me.)

Subaru: (I saw it so clearly…)

(Mostly because I was trying not to look at Rem, but hey, it's the thought that counts.)

(I then realized I was staring mystified at Emilia, the vibrant color on her cheeks absolutely mesmerizing.) “Oh–ahm, y-yes, yeah, let's ah—lets do that.”

(I awkwardly smirked, shooting my arm out with a thumbs up.)

Emilia: “Yes. Let's.” (Emilia moved away from Rem, cautiously walking to the center of the open field, where the grassy hills sloped down into a miniature valley.) “First things first, I'd like you to sit down here, please.”

Subaru: “Yes ma'am!” (I grinned wildly, doing my best not to lose focus staring at the wild beauty beside me. When I sat on the ground Emilia pointed to, though, I quickly lost any and all focus on the task at hand.)

Emilia: (I heard Emilia crouch down behind me. Her cute little breaths right by my ear as she placed her dainty hands on either shoulder.) “Ok, Subaru,”

Subaru: (My entire body stiffened like a board.) “Y-yes?” (My voice squeaked out just slightly too high…)

Emilia: “You need to relax, feel the flow of your mana in your gate.” (Emilia's hands slowly trailed down my shoulder blades to the center of my back. Her kind, soft hands gently cupping over the very center.) “Just try and feel it.”

(I couldn't see it, but I could feel her smile as her gentle words carefully caressed my ears.) “Can you?”

Subaru: (I closed my eyes, my eyelids twitching…)

(HOW THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO FOCUS LIKE THIS?!?!)

(Either way… I let out a deep breath, focusing my thoughts on what Emilia was touching, and–)

“...I do?”

Emilia: “Good.” (Emilia gently backed away, her soft, careful steps deliberate in the way they trampled the grass. No doubt trying to avoid any flowers or spooking me.)

“I'm aware you want to speak with spirits, but it's first important to get a sense of your mana and your gate. Using it will really help with spirit contracting in the future, ok?” (Emilia smiled and sidestepped until she was ahead of me.)

“Rem and I are going to go back to the pavilion. When we do, you'll say the spell name and try your best to use it, ok?”

Subaru: (I nodded softly.) “Oh–uhm, what's the spell name exactly?”

Emilia: “Oh! Uhm… Hmmm, I believe it’s shamak for dark users.”

“Right, Rem?”

Rem: “...That would be correct, Lady Emilia.”

Subaru: “Got it!” (I smiled, looking in the direction of Rem now that my eyes were closed.) “Thank you for your help, Rem-Rem!”

Rem: “That's not my name.”

Subaru: (I made a kissy-pouting face.) “Aww, aren't we close, Rem-Rem? I thought we were!”

Rem: “...I will head to the pavilion with Lady Emilia.”

Subaru: “Boooo! Ah-wait, why are you guys backing up so far?” (Despite my question, I heard Rem continue to walk away, only Emilia pausing to speak to me.)

Emilia: “Oh, uhm, new magic users have a hard time controlling their spells. You won't be hurt, I don't think, but uhm, we are just backing up as a precautionary measure! It'll be fine, done lickety-split!”

Subaru: “H-hey?! You don't think I'll get hurt? And who even says ‘lickety-split’ nowadays??!”

Emilia: “Ah-ah, I'll be with Rem now!” (And with that, my embarrassed teacher ran off.)

Subaru: “Hey!” (I heard their footsteps turn from soft patted grass to wood. Aka, too far to speak with. Oh well…)

(I paused, relaxing my body for a moment and taking in that cool night air.)

(It was still nice and fresh.)

(The soft sounds of nature buzzing around us… a cricket… an owl… a dog bark… and a few other small noises.)

(I started to focus on my gate.)

(The sharp stinging flow of mana spiking through my body. Like when your leg falls asleep, ‘cept all over.)

(I let out a deep, long breath.) “Shamak!”

(And suddenly, I felt all my strength leave me as a massive cloud of smoke erupted from my body.)