Return - An Aphmau Fanfiction
Chapter 9
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The thoughts pounding against my head left me with a sleepless night. I managed doze off for 2 hours at most. At one point I actually stood and peeked my head into the other room to check on Garroth. He was still asleep, his back turned to me, and I couldn't help but smile. I quickly returned to bed, careful not to wake Lilith as I passed her. The sun's dim glow soon crept through the window, giving everything an ominous red aura. I stood and, to my surprise, Lilith started babbling nonsense, reaching up for me. I held her gently against me as I slipped through the doorway to where Garroth was resting. He was still in a light sleep, the sun's light giving his blonde hair a reddish tint. Celeste was resting on her bed beside him, her ear twitching as she heard my foot steps. She lifted her head and stood, limping sleepily to my side. I opened the front door as quietly as possible, and shutting it silently behind me. Lilith squealed in excitement when Aaron came into view. He quickly turned his head at the sound, clearly startled. "Morning." I said, struggling to keep Lilith in my grasp. She pulled hard towards Aaron, and he took her before she fell from my grip. "Is Garroth awake?" He asked, and my only reply was to shake my head. Before a silence could overcome us, Katelyn came up from behind another house, followed by Travis. She didn't look happy and her face was red, and Travis looked like he was in pain. I already had a sneaking suspicion of what happened. "Um, are you two ok?" I asked, nearly falling as Celeste shot past me to Katelyn. "No! Travis-" She said the name with vemon in her voice, "-managed to catch me off guard and kiss me!" I watched as the smallest hint of a smirk appeared on Travis's lips. I rolled my eyes. "And you punched him, I assume?" "Of course! You would have to!" She wasn't wrong there. I probably would have, if not, anything worse. But for a reason I couldn't explain, I gave a quiet laugh. "What, you think this is funny? You're on his side?" "I don't agree with it, but it's kinda funny." I laughed more and Travis joined in. "You, be quiet." Katelyn snapped at him. "Meep! Aphmau, help!" He said, running behind me. "Oh, no! Not after last time on the boat!" I said between laughter, stepping out of his way. Katelyn gave him an evil smile and rushed toward him, but he managed to avoid a blow and take off, Katelyn hot on his heels. I continued laughing for a minute, and I could see the slightest smile on Aaron's face. When I finally regained my composure, I took a deep breath to return air to my sore lungs. "When is he going to learn?" I sighed, turning to Aaron. "I don't think he will." He said bluntly. "Agreed." Lilith was staring at me, wide-eyed, her smile bright as she reached a hand for something behind me. I spun around to see Garroth headed our way, and it brought a smile to my face as well. "Wow, Zane really tired you out, huh?" I laughed, and he shook his head, smiling. "I guess." He through a polite nod in Aaron's direction, which he returned. "I feel like I haven't slept in a year." He winked at me. "Oh my Irene, that's way to soon!" I snapped playfully, unable to hide my childish grin. He laughed, shrugging. "Heh, it was worth it." He chuckled. "Anyway, I feel I should start looking for a place of my own. I can't sleep on your couch forever." I nodded. "I'll come with you. I need to check on everyone anyway." I said. I turned to Aaron, about to ask him if he would be ok with Lilith, but before I could say anything, he said, "I'll be fine. Go ahead." I nodded in thanks, and me and Garroth started off to find him a permanent house. There were a few around my little hill that were vacant, and of course he wanted to start there. as we walked around, I made a few stops to check on some people like Laurence, Isabell, Chad, and Vylad. As we walked, we came upon one house that wasn't massive but not to cramped either. It also happened to be one of the closet to my house. "This one is nice." He said. "If you want. It's not my decision." I said. He nodded, his gaze drifting around the room we were in. "Alright. I think this is the one." His words triggered something in me; a realization I hadn't thought about earlier. Garroth was here, picking a home. A permanent home. He was here to stay, and I hopefully wouldn't have to deal with the lament of losing him again. The thought made me smile. "Well, you could start settling in? I'm going to see how Aaron is doing with Lilith and if Katelyn hasn't killed Travis by now." I laughed. He cocked his head slightly, and I remembered he wasn't present for the display. "I'll tell you later. You can start settling in." I opened the door before he could respond, but my name froze me before I could shut it. "Aphmau, I..." he said gently. I turned to him, standing in the doorway. "Yes?" He didn't say anything, just shook his head. "Nevermind. Just go." I hesitated, curious to know what he wanted to say, but I didn't push him. I shut the door behind me, not before glancing through the crack left open. Finally, I parted with the door and slowly scanned the area, looking for any sign of Katelyn or Travis. I was only about 5 minutes into my walk before I spotted Katelyn alone near one of the merchant booths in the plaza. "Please don't tell me you killed Travis." I joked, and she laughed. "I would have if he hadn't begged me to leave him be. I gave him a good graze of course, just to scare him." I joined in her laughter, imaging a threatening Katelyn towering over Travis who was down on his knees. The image made me laugh harder. "Well, that's good. I can't afford to lose any guards." "Not even one who would rather fawn over women than work?" She teased. "He's not all that bad. He is a powerful fighter, and clearly has determination, since he hasn't given up on you." I laughed. "And what is that supposed to mean?" She snapped jokingly. "Nothing! But you clearly aren't interested." I said between trying to catch my breath. She shrugged. "Eh, true." I smiled, shaking my head. "Where is he anyway?" "I think he went to the river." She said. "But then again, I don't really care. I think I need a long break from him." I nodded. "Ok, I'm going to make sure you're telling the truth about not hurting him." I laughed. We said our goodbyes and parted ways, and I headed to the river down by the edge of the Capital. I did see Travis there, but something ominous came from where he was standing. I quickly ran down to his side, but the image before me buried my happy mood and replaced it with horror.
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Thanks for reading chapter 9 of Return! I hope you all enjoy this story as much as I do writing it. And, we might be coming to the end of the story soon! It will probably end on ch. 12! Of course, I will be starting another story before that happens so you all have something to read. What does Aphmau see when she reaches Travis's side? Find out in the next chapter!
