Whoop! Well here's another Rune Factory oneshot. Sorry if this one isn't as good. I haven't played the game in a long time and I'm way out of practice with my writing. Hope you'll enjoy anyways! Also a little background for the story in case some of you may get confused: This particular oneshot is set after Ethelberd is defeated and Venti is gone.

Although night was a more peaceful and quieter time for Porcoline's Kitchen, there was almost never a night where there wasn't someone shuffling up and down the steps to the kitchen. Usually, Dylas could almost always tell that it was Porcoline going to find himself a midnight snack—or two—before returning to his room and sleeping. Arthur was also an offender to staying up until ungodly hours but he rarely seemed to wake up Dylas in the middle of the night.

Arthur, Dylas assumed, was the one currently creeping up the steps quietly as he lay in his bed. Or at least he assumed from the soft steps he was hearing.

Dylas rolled onto his side and closed his eyes, even as the steps crept nearer to his room. It didn't occur to him as strange until suddenly the door to his room was opened and the person in the doorway let a very un-Arthur-like sob.

Dylas glanced at the doorway and recognized the mint pigtails and sniveling face almost immediately, and his initial shock was replaced with concern as he suddenly sat up in his bed. "Frey? What happened?"

Normally, he would find himself embarrassed by his girlfriend visiting him at this hour in her night clothes, but he didn't even think of it as Frey bounded to him and flung herself into him. She fisted her fingers in his robe and buried her face into the crook of his neck as a few more choked sobs came out.

"H-hey—" Surprised by the sudden contact, his cheeks tinged pink, but he quickly steeled himself when he felt the wetness of her tears against his skin. "Frey? What's the matter? Why are you crying?" He pulled away from her enough to look at her seriously, a deep-set frown etched into his face. "What happened?"

Frey's eyes met his, and her lip trembled, "She's gone, Dylas… She's gone…" Dylas' face softened and he pulled her closer, resting his chin on her head. His embrace was awkward and stiff, like they usually were, but it was something that was totally him. And that was exactly what Frey needed right now.

Him.

As he held her, he slowly ran his hand up and down her back as she sobbed about the loss of Venti; wordlessly comforting her as her shoulders slowly stopped shaking. He listened to how her breaths started become less and less labored and soon she sat calmly in his embrace.

When she finally pulled away to look at him, he saw she was no longer crying, but instead a labored smile on her lips as she removed herself from his lap and laid next to him. She kept her grip on him, letting him fall back with her and she burrowed her face into his chest and he wrapped an arm around her.

"Thank you," She whispered after a few moments of silence, and her voice wavered slightly. He paused to see if she would start crying again, but as her breathing became more normal, he relaxed.

They lay like that for a time, and once Dylas thought for sure that Frey was asleep she surprised him for the second time that night as she pulled away from him to look in his face again. Her hand came up to his cheek. "Dylas, I love you." She had whispered, but he heard her loud and clear.

"Frey—I-I…" He felt himself stumbling over the words again and he hated himself for it, even more so for doing it during a time like this. "I… I love you, too, Frey." And, Gods, did he mean it.

Frey gave him another smile, and this one wasn't as forced as the one earlier as she leaned in and kissed him. Dylas froze up like he usually did when she kissed him, but this one was different. She didn't pull away immediately, and her hands found his robe as she moved closer to him.

Dylas could feel his cheeks heating as he suddenly pulled away from her, "F-Frey?!" When Frey saw the look of shock on his face, she doubted her actions for a moment, but it only took her a few seconds more before she mustered up her confidence and slung a leg over Dylas' hip. With one successful roll, she ended up on top of him. Dylas stiffened underneath her, eyes wide and cheeks flushed as he watched her. "Frey—what are you doing? We're—"

Before he could say another word, Frey leaned down and sealed his lips with hers. Her hands twisted in the collar of his robe as her mouth moved slowly across his, but it didn't last long before Dylas tore his lips away from hers once more. "Frey, please, what're you doing? Porco's next door and—"

"I trust you, Dylas." She smiled at him, puffy eyes and all, and his eyes widened in response.

"Frey, you don't mean it." He frowned at her, and when she tried to caress his cheek he caught her hand in his.

"I do," When his stare did not waver, Frey sighed. "Please, Dylas… I trust you, I swear it."

Dylas' brows furrowed, as he weighed in the options and their consequences before he finally met her gaze. "I don't want to upset you, Frey."

Dylas was surprised when he heard her giggle suddenly, and she leaned down to press her forehead to his. "I came into your room crying in the middle of the night and you're worried about upsetting me?"

Frowning, Dylas stared at her, "I'm not the best around people, alright?"

Frey smiled, and slid off of him to settle herself into his side. She felt content with her head on chest and listening to his heartbeat when the thought struck her, "What will Porco do when he sees me coming out of your room in my night clothes in the morning?"

"…You're not going home tonight?"

"Do you want me to?"

"….N-no."

Frey giggled and kissed his cheek, and he grunted as his arms wound their way around her once more. "I like it when you hold me," She commented, and he felt his face get warm for the umpteenth time that night. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight."