I closed the door to Emilia’s room. I stood there, staring at the white door, just trying to get my bearings straight. I let out a long sigh. What an insane day today was.
“Betty is still here for Subaru, in fact.”
I turned around and smiled at her, patting her head. Her little crown wobbled with the motion, but stayed firmly attached.
“What is this crown made of, anyway? How come it never falls off?”
“That is part of Betty’s body, I suppose. All of Betty’s clothes are just constructs made out of my very being, I suppose.”
I stared at her, investigating her neckline. “So you’re telling me, there’s no skin under any of that?” I leaned down and touched the fabric of her tights, trying to find and pitch the fabric between my fingers. Though the surface felt like cotton, I couldn’t distinguish where the gap was between her clothes and her skin. “Beako, am I looking at your naked body right now?”
“Don’t put it in that vulgar way, I suppose!!!” Her face blushed as she scolded me, scandalized. She crossed her arms and huffed, “Betty could make skin if she wanted, I suppose! This is just convenient, and takes less magic to maintain, in fact.” Then, she stared down at the tile below her feet, holding both hands together and fidgeting her fingers, “Betty could make all the necessary parts, I suppose.” She almost-whispered, the blush returning.
“Well, can’t say I’ve ever been so boldly propositioned by a drill-loli before.”
“Betty doesn’t know what a loli is, but it sounds weird, in fact!”
“So you do know what drills are, then?” I tilted my head at her.
“It is, in fact, Betty’s manner of hairstyle. Betty figured that one out from context alone, I suppose.” She shook her head, “Don’t try to change the subject, in fact! Betty loves Subaru, you know?”
I crouched down so we could be at eye level. “I love you too, Beatrice. But, let’s take things slow, yeah? We’ve got all of eternity waiting for us.”
“Betty would be happy for that, in fact. Very well! In that case, Betty will do some more research tonight, in fact!” Then, she marched off into the corridors, entering a random-seeming door and disappearing.
I was still standing right outside of Emilia’s room, in the bedroom wing of the Sweet Home. Since my room was just right across the hall, I made the few steps forward required to reach it and opened the door.
I had half expected to see Rem in the bedroom, waiting to sleep with me again tonight, but it was empty. I tried not to be disappointed, I knew how important it would be for Rem to stay with her sister tonight. Though I tried to convince myself that was for the best, and I was glad that Ram had company, I couldn’t help but feel slightly lonely. My other head also protested the situation.
Regardless, I stripped to get ready for bed and lay down in the giant California king-sized bed at the back of the room. It was surrounded by very basic-looking modern furniture. All in whites: two bed-side nightstands on either side, a dresser along the wall, a body-length mirror, and a tall wardrobe. Honestly, I felt like I was standing in some kind of luxury hotel, one that had gone all in on modern design to the point everything felt uncomfortably sterile. At least the sheets on the bed were soft, and the mattress gave way just the right amount underneath me when I slept on it.
I pulled the covers up to my chin, ready to go to sleep and let the stresses of the day wash away. The lights went out in accordance with my will. My mind couldn’t help but race with thoughts, unfortunately. In this state, I knew I’d be lucky to fall asleep within the hour. My mind wandered to the events of the day— how Roswaal’s actions derailed us from Canon. Even if he’d killed himself, and regardless of the protestations of Subaru’s phantasm inside of me, I really didn’t particularly care if Roswaal was dead. Honestly, I felt it was a good riddance. He was an evil bastard, more than willing to kill everyone in the village and manor just for his own gain.
I most certainly did not intend to return by death to reset the situation. I still didn’t know if Satella would consider me to actually ‘be’ Subaru. If she didn’t, well, death would probably be the least painful among the litany things I was sure she could do to me. It was a good omen that she hadn’t done anything to me, yet, though. Maybe she couldn’t tell the difference? It was hard to say, and I didn’t intend to intentionally find out.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
A knock at my door interrupted my thoughts. I opened my eyes, but the lights were still off, and I didn’t really want to turn them on since it would hurt my eyes. My room had perfect darkness, just the way I liked it when sleeping. It was so dark, that I couldn’t tell the difference between my eyes being open or closed.
“Come in!” I called out without bothering to sit up.
It was likely Rem or Beako, and in either case, they could just slip into bed with me. No need to move out of my comfy position.
Sure enough, I felt someone climbing into the bed on my left and disturbing the sheets. I had to hold onto a bit next to me so they didn’t get moved away from me. Soon, a warm body pressed up against my bare back. I turned around so I would face the mystery person, so I could wrap my arms around her and pull her tight into my chest. I moved one hand up to her head— she had short hair, so it must have been Rem.
My heart filled with warmth at the thought of it. I really did love Rem, even if I’d only been here for less than a week. I’d had an entire lifetime to love her character from afar, even if that sounded creepy. The way she threw her entire self into love, supported those she loved, the way she maintained absolute loyalty, and she was the sweet kind of girl to always be gentle. Those were the things I loved about Rem. I held her just a little bit tighter into my chest.
“Goodnight, love.”
She nodded her head into my chest, and we relaxed into the night, peacefully.
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Morning light streamed into the room, my foggy brain beginning to wake up naturally. The windows on the far side were covered by thick white black-out curtains, but they couldn’t stop the full force of the sun. Sunbeams snaked past the gaps between curtains, as well as the top and bottom, putting just enough gentle light into the room to stir me into wakefulness.
I felt great, comfortable, even. Moving around a bit more, I felt the wonderful softness of a girl in her pajamas in my arms, so I gave her a gentle squeeze. I could feel her slightly tickly hair brushing against my chest in gentle rhythm with her warm breaths. This would be the perfect romantic moment to kiss Rem. We had gotten things a bit out of order, having spent the night together, but I just wanted to kiss that cute face of hers.
I moved my eyes down to see a mop of pink hair. Pink hair. I put my finger on her chin, moving it up so I could see her face.
“A wild Ram appears,” I said.
She opened her eyes, staring at me deadpan. “Barusu.”
“So, last night?”
“That was me.”
“I see.”
“Isn’t Barusu going to act on his instincts?” Ram said, still with a deadpan face and tone.
I moved my head down and gave her a light peck on the forehead. “In that case, I won’t.”
“Just like Barusu, to get a lady’s hopes up before crushing her dreams. Pervert.”
“How am I the pervert!?” I said with mock outrage, “You climbed into my bed, by the way,” I quipped back.
“Just like Barusu, to seduce a lady and make her join him in the bed. Pervert.”
I dramatically clutched at my heart, “So evil!”
“Indeed, Barusu is evil.” She nodded her head but then reached out to my arm. I had moved it away from our embrace so I could gesture, but she pulled it back over and around her body, placing my hand on her upper back.
I pulled her back into a warm embrace, her small chest gently pushing into me. In all honesty, it was sublime.
“Ram, in all seriousness, let’s keep it to just this, for now.”
Ram nodded her head, “Just like a Scumbaru to toy with a maiden’s heart.”
I pecked her on the forehead again, “Can we be serious for now? Not that I don’t enjoy our playful banter.”
She nodded her head again, but this time I could tell she was properly listening.
“I like you a lot, and I have a lot of fun with you, too. But I know right now you are hurting. This isn’t the right time to advance our relationship.”
I could see her face drop, in shame or disappointment I couldn’t tell.
“You need some time to heal, to come to terms with everything that happened with Roswaal.”
She flinched at the name.
“See?” I pointed out, “If even his name is enough to give you such a powerful reaction, you still need more time. I feel like I’d be taking advantage of your emotional state if we became any more physically involved right now. You’re here, right now, because you are hurting, and want comfort, right? That’s not what I want our relationship’s foundation to be built on. Relationships need love, trust, and respect. Not just comfort, though that should come too, of course. The point is, comfort and easing of pain can’t be the way we start our relationship. Let’s take it slower, get to know each other romantically first before we engage in ‘bedroom activities’, how does that sound?”
Ram looked into my eyes and nodded her head. “That is surprisingly mature for a Barusu.”
I frowned at her quip, not sure if she was really getting what I’d been saying or if she just never left the ‘insulting jokes’ mood from earlier.
“But you are right.” She admitted with a sigh. “I’m sorry for using you in this way.” Then she looked down, no doubt in my mind she felt ashamed.
I tickled her back with sweet gentle motions of my fingertips. She shivered and then melted wholly into me. “It’s ok. I like you, and I’m insanely happy you joined me in bed. We can talk about furthering our relationship later, yeah?”
She pushed away from me, not aggressively or upset, but just letting me know she was ready to be done. I let go of her easily. She wrapped one arm over the blankets, pulling them against her chest and preserving her modesty.
“Thank you, Subaru.”
I smiled at her using my name. It showed me that she was being serious.
“Can you get out of bed first? A lady shouldn’t be seen unduly in the morning,” Ram asked.
“Of course.”
On one hand, I felt insanely happy-- Ram clearly enjoyed spending time with me. On the other hand, I had rejected her for now, telling her we should take things slow. I couldn’t help but feel a bit annoyed at myself...