This one's for Wombat. Love you my man, and enjoy the femboys.
The carriage wheels drummed against the paved road, shaking the wagon as each turn of the wheel shook the cabin. Inside the carriage was a purple-haired young man, who was comfortably lazing on a crimson sofa. He tightly held a white envelope in his gloved hands.
A small smile graced his face as he thought about the envelope and the letter it held inside, but more importantly, the man who sent it to him. Turning his head he shifted his attention to the window to his right, enjoying the sights of the lush forests outside as he began to drown in deep thought.
Closing his eyes he softened the grip on the envelope, letting his mind rest as he reclined onto the couch. Heaving out a sigh his mind began to drift as a head of black hair moved into his thoughts. With a slight smile, he straightened his body and opened the envelope. He had already read the contents of the letter and memorized it by heart, but seeing it with his own eyes soothed him.
A few minutes later, the sight changed from a forest to a well-kept garden. Bushes were perfectly trimmed and the road leading to the mansion's entrance was in pristine condition. The carriage stopped yet the man didn't move an inch. He waited until the driver opened the door.
Stepping outside, Julius Juukulius was welcomed by a blonde maid.
"Welcome, esteemed guest Julius Juukulius-sama." She bowed. "Subaru-sama is awaiting inside."
"Oh… I was expecting Subaru to welcome me." Julius' tone had a slight tint of disappointment. "Please, guide the way." The maid straightened up and turned back to the mansion's entrance, but then the door was flung open, revealing a petite spirit.
"Subaru won't welcome you, I suppose." She said with her arms crossed. "Subaru is too much of a soondere to invite you." Julius was taken aback by the great spirit statement. Subaru did not want to see him? Despite making peace with him during the hunt for Sloth… And what was the meaning of the word she had used?
"I see you want to ask something. Subaru is too shy to invite you, so Betty asked the half-elf to do it for him. Check the letter you received, I suppose." Julius obeyed the spirit's instructions.
"My friend, Julius Juukulius.
As you must know by now, I've been gifted the title of becoming Emilia's knight. I wish to hold a celebration party with my friends: You, Reinhard, and Felix.
The party will be held at the Miload mansion on the 18th of August.
I'll be waiting for you.
Your best friend, Natsuki Subaru."
After Julius took his eyes off the paper, Beatrice continued.
"The half-elf wrote that letter. You didn't notice anything wrong with it? Subaru isn't so formal, I suppose." Julius was left stunned by her words. After some seconds, Julius let out a dry laugh.
"I was so excited about this meeting that I didn't notice something so obvious… Subaru would be more rude, wouldn't he?" In response, the spirit nodded.
"Betty's Subaru would be more rude, in fact. But that's part of his charm, I suppose. It's why Betty chose him." She kept nodding with her arms crossed, eyes closed, and a smile on her face.
"Now go and give Betty's Subaru a surprise. He doesn't know you're here, in fact." She turned back and walked into the mansion, turning right into a hallway and disappearing from sight.
"Please forgive the intrusion of Beatrice-sama." Julius turned to face the maid. "We thought that since Subaru-sama was conflicted about inviting you, we should do it ourselves. Now, if you please." She held her right hand to the side, silently asking the knight to go inside.
"Now, welcome to my humble abode!" With a gracious bow, Natsuki Subaru welcomed his two friends wearing his iconic tracksuit.
"I see you haven't changed, Subaru." Said Reinhard, standing in front of Subaru's room and right next to the demihuman healer. His lips were curved in a smile and his blazing red hair was a perfect contrast to his casual attire. Felt insisted that he should wear a white plain t-shirt and jeans instead of his typical knight uniform.
"I haven't changed? Oh, how blind are thee. For a knight of the highest calibre such as mineself, this behavior is to be expected." He closed his right hand into a fist and put it in his chest as he declared: "A sound soul resides within a sound mind and a sound body, after all."
"It's 'caliber', Subaru-kyun." In contrast to Reinhard, Felix was wearing his familiar outfit: A blue dress with white stripes, black thighs, and blue striped leggings.
"What a thought-provoking phrase. A sound soul resides within a sound mind and a sound body…" Reinhard put his fist to his chin, deep in thought. "It perfectly defines all the ideals a knight must follow."
"It does?" Subaru took a step back with his eyes wide open. Then he scratched the back of his head as he let out a chuckle. "I heard it somewhere and I just felt like it fit in there. I actually don't know what it means." He took a step to the side, allowing entrance to his companions. "Now come here. Frederica-san and Petra-chan prepared some snacks while Ram-san prepared some drinks."
Subaru's room had suffered some drastic changes to accommodate his friends. A short wooden table at waist level was in the middle of the room. The desktop was nowhere to be seen, though the traces of it ever being there had been completely erased. The bed was decorated with tons of pillows.
Subaru took one of them and put it on the ground, sitting on his knees. Reinhard and Felix soon did the same. On the table were a wide variety of wines, juices, sweets, and other snacks, all prepared by the servants of the mansion.
"This is a Kararagian custom, is it not? Is that where you're from?" Asked Reinhard as he served himself a glass of Granhiert.
"Uhm… Kind of? I told you where I come from when we first met. It shares some of Kararagi's customs." He grabbed a jar full of orange juice and poured it into his glass. "For example, people aren't allowed to drink until they're 18. Even though I can by Lugunica's laws, I still won't."
"That's commendable of you. Following the laws and customs of your place of origin despite being far away from it. But where exactly is it? You said it was an island to the west, but-" Subaru cut Reinhard off.
"Don't worry about it. Most importantly, let's do a toast first."
"A toast? But Subaru-kyun, there's no bread here." No matter how much Felix looked around, there wasn't anything remotely similar to a loaf of bread in the room.
"Not that toast. It's one of the customs of where I live. At the start of every party, everyone gets their drinks and clinks them together." As a demonstration, Subaru grabbed two empty cups and clicked them together.
"Oh…" Now understanding what his friend was referring to, Felix had one question in his mind. "But shouldn't we wait until Julius arrives then?"
Subaru was speechless for a second. Thanks to his Divine Protections, Reinhard noticed something going wrong. Subaru's shame had spiked.
"Well… you see…" Subaru averted his gaze from both of his friends as he fidgeted under the table. "I'm not sure what to think of Julius so… "His voice diminished in tone. "I didn't invite him." Until it was nothing more than a whisper.
While Reinhard wasn't sure what to make of the reveal, Felix was furious.
"Argh, you two will drive me insane!" He shouted as he grabbed his head. "Julius for humiliating you even further, you for breaking the gate, and both for not making peace and forgetting that!"
"We did make peace…" Felix stood up and pointed at him, loudly exclaiming:
"Then why didn't you invite him!"
Seeing Felix so heated up, Reinhard attempted to calm him down. He opened his mouth to speak, but shut it as he heard footsteps approaching the room.
"Alright alright I'll explain! So, Julius and I made amends during the hunt for Betelgeuse. When I was writing the invitations for you two I thought, what if Julius doesn't think the same as I do? What if he still doesn't like me for what I did back at the castle?" Reinhard and Felix paid full attention to him.
"Eventually I decided to forget about it and think later, but didn't remember at the end until yesterday, and it was too late to invite him by then." Subaru finished with his head hung low, not daring to look at his friends.
"I had no knowledge of you thinking of me like that. Do not fret Subaru, you are my friend just like Reinhard and Ferris." Next to the doorframe stood Julius with Frederica behind. Just like Reinhard, he decided not to wear his knight outfit, but instead a shirt matching his hair color.
"Julius!" Subaru stood up and walked next to him. "How did you know about the party?" He looked behind him, noticing Frederica. He scowled for a second before waving his head. "I guess Frederica did something behind my back. Well, it doesn't matter now, just walk in, there's space for you." Subaru moved to the side, allowing entrance to Julius.
"It would be my pleasure." As he entered, Frederica bowed and silently returned to her duties.
Julius saw both Felix and Reinhard following Kararagian's customs and followed them as well. He picked up one of the many pillows still remaining in the bed, carefully put it on the ground, and sat on his knees on top of it. He was facing Reinhard, Subaru was to his left and Felix to his right.
"Now that everynyan is here, we can start, right Subaru-kyun? Ah, Julius, do you prefer wine or juice?" Said Felix as his feline ears twitched slightly. In answer, Julius grabbed the same bottle Reinhard had opened before and poured himself a glass full of it.
"Alright, now we can officially start!" Subaru picked up his cup, holding it above the center of the table. Felix and Reinhard followed, with Julius hesitantly doing the same, unsure of what the action meant.
"Kanpai!"
"Kanpai!"
"Kanpyan!"
"Kanpai?"
As Subaru started the toast, everyone repeated the word they couldn't recognize and clicked their vases together. The party had started.
"Let's begin then!" Subaru rose his fist high in excitement.
"First, there's some things that must be said." Replied Julius.
"Indeed." Followed up Reinhard.
"You need to hear this Subaru-kyun."
"W-What?" Asked Subaru, blinking a few times in quick succession, confused.
"Congratulations." Replied the knight trio in unison. Subaru was left speechless for a moment and his mouth went gape.
"Oh, I-I didn't expect this. I mean I invited you to this but…" He drifted off, not finding the correct words to finish.
"Are you surprised? After your… mistake at th-" Julius stopped as Felix softly kicked him under the table while doing his best at putting on a scary gaze. "We were rooting for you. Your dedication to your lady is commendable."
"Julius is correct, Subaru. Your loyalty was more than proven."
"Thank you guys. I knew this would happen but… I don't think I deserve all of this."
"Don't be like this Subaru-kyun!" Said Felix as he lunged to his side, throwing Subaru to the ground and poking his cheek with a grin. "Don't be so embarrassed~~"
Subaru stood there withstanding Felix's teases until Reinhard loudly coughed and Felix reluctantly returned to his seat as Subaru stood up again, blushing red.
"Subaru, I'm interested in knowing this. Are the rumors of the Great Hare's demise true? In response to Julius' words, all the color drained from Subaru's face. "Subaru?"
Subaru recovered from his shock and waved his head.
"I'm fine. Just some… unpleasant memories. Beako and I defeated the damned rabbits. You can be sure of that. They're gone, forever."
"I apologize for making you remember that." Julius hung his head low. Felix patted his back while giving him some cookies with his other hand.
"Subaru, by Beako you refer to the spirit we saw earlier, right?" asked Reinhard as he cut himself a small slice of cake.
"Yes. Beako and I contracted two weeks ago."
"So both you and I are spirit knights too? And with a far superior spirit than mine. Nes was fawning over her before." In response, Subaru grinned as he picked up some cookies Petra had made.
"A superior spirit huh? So I'm your superior now? Can I teach you how to become a proper knight, Sir Beat Down?"
Julius and Reinhard frowned while Felix gulped down as fast as he could, paying no attention to the conversation. Seeing their reactions, Subaru realized his mistake.
"Ah, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that."
"As long as you understand it's fine Subaru. As a knight, you are expected to always act in the right way and learn from your mistakes."
"Yeah yeah I get it Julius. Now hand me a slice of cake before Felix devours it all."
"Whatcha talking about!?" Slurred Subaru, looking at Reinhard and Julius in the corner of the room.
"It's nothing Subaru. We're discussing something about our job as Royal Knight's, that's it."
"Is that sho…? Hic."
Turning back to Reinhard, Julius continued with their secret conversation.
"How could Subaru end up drunk? He said he would drink juice due to the laws of his home."
"I have no idea Julius." Reinhard looked behind Julius, observing Subaru's antics. He and Felix were fighting over the last slice of cake, with Felix seemingly unaware of Subaru's state. "But we need to stop it."
"Subaru-kyun!" Felix fought over the last slice, doing his best to keep it to himself. "You're drunk, just lie and rest! Let me eat this, it's for your sake!"
"I shon't want to! You've eaten ish all, give me shome!" He protested.
"Julius, Reinhard, help me!"
"Coward! Hic. Don't call foshelp!" In their fight, Subaru knocked some of the contents of the table, dirtying the ground with sweets and spilling and breaking some glasses. Worried about Subaru's safety, Julius rushed to his side and picked him up so that he didn't step on some shards.
Understanding Julius' actions, Reinhard started picking up the various shards while Julius dropped Subaru on the bed as Felix enjoyed the cake he had won.
"Yer a killjoy Julius! I hate shu! You and your knishtly attitushude, it pissesh me off!" He then pointed at Reinhard, still busy cleaning the ground. "Yer sho strong! Ish not fair!" Finally, he did the same to Felix, who had finished eating and was currently laying in the ground. "And yhe don't know how to wear a dressh!
The room became silent. Reinhard stopped picking up the last shards remaining in the ground and stared at Subaru, unsure of how to reply. Julius' mouth went gape. Felix stood up, now sitting on his knees, and looked at Subaru as if wanting to say something.
"Wha'? Did I shay shomething weir'?"
"No Subaru-kyun. I… We never expected you to talk as if you knew." Deadpanned Felix.
"Why not!? Ive crosshdreshed tonsh of timehs!" He started counting with his fingers. "My fisht day of shool, in the manshion… Sho is a lot right?"
"It's certainly more times than usual." Answered Reinhard. He carefully put all the shards of glass in an empty cup. The ground was impeccable, shining even more than after Frederica had cleaned it for today.
Felix approached Subaru while grinning. Julius shivered as one thought popped into his mind.
"Felix, you don't mean to-" However, he was cut short by the demihuman.
"You know so much Subaru-kyun~~ Will you show me how to wear one?" He asked in a cutesy tone, begging Subaru with puppy eyes.
"Shure!" The bait had worked. Subaru stood up all pumped up and dashed out of the room. Reinhard and Julius frowned at the actions of his friend.
"It wasn't that bad! We're here to nya've fun, after all." Julius rolled his eyes but didn't oppose him. Even if he wasn't in the best of mental states, seeing Subaru in a dress would certainly be a sight to behold.
The knight trio awaited for Subaru to return. One minute passed. Then two. And finally, Subaru came back a whopping 20 minutes later. As the door opened the chit-chat was stopped. Behind the doorframe stood a tall brunette woman with long hair tied in a ponytail. Her jet black dress covered her entire body and she wore heel high boots. Her face was blushing red.
Julius and Reinhard were left speechless. They couldn't believe the… 'lady' in front of them was actually his friend. Meanwhile, Felix analyzed every single detail about her. He tempted Subaru to crossdress as a joke but didn't expect him to be so good at it. The illusion was broken as soon as Subaru stepped forward.
As he did, he tripped and fell head-on to the floor. As he stood up once more he saw a pale blue light coming from Felix's hands, who rushed to his side to heal any injury he might have. Observing him from a close distance, the healer noticed some errors that would have made his disguise easily recognizable.
The wig didn't cover his hair, leaving some strands exposed. He had mistakenly used two different shades of lipstick and his clothes were messy and full of wrinkles.
"See, Felish? Tish is how you wear a dressh. That top you have loosh so bad. You need some padssh." He grabbed Felix hand and made him grasp his stuffed chest. "Your top needsh shome stushing." Felix clenched his fist and looked at Subaru like an excited student wishing to learn.
"How did you do this Subaru-kyun?"
"Felix, no! Stop inciting him!"
"Felix needs to learn, Julius!"
"He's drunk, you won't learn a thing! I have trouble understanding what he's saying, and we don't even know how he ended like this to begin with!" Protested Julius. In response, Reinhard picked up one vase from the table.
"He's been drinking from my vase." Julius, Subaru, and Felix turned to him. "This is my vase, yet it's where Subaru was sitting. Did you drink from it?"
"Yesh." He answered, earning a sigh from Julius and Felix. "It didn't tashte good but I was thishty. So I ended up drinshing the bottle. Hic."
"You need to rest Subaru. Julius, take the drinks away before Subaru ends drunker."
"Resht…? I shon't wanna. I crosshdreshed so why don't you do the shame?"
"Felix. No." Seeing Felix grin, Julius instantly turned his offer.
"Why not-nyan? Subaru-kyun already did and we're here to have fun! We can't leave our friend all nyalone." Felix begged Julius with his best pleading face. If he could get Julius to accept Reinhard would surely follow.
Seeing his friend so excited, Julius sighed before finally accepting.
"Ugh, my head…" Subaru woke up in the messiest room he had ever seen. It took him a few seconds to recognize it as his own. Pillows were all over the floor, though luckily the bottles that used to be on the table had been properly stored.
With one hand on his forehead, Subaru examined the bed. There lied a figure he had some trouble recognizing. A red-haired… girl? boy? He wasn't sure. It was wearing a black dress with a fluffy coat on top. Its long red hair was adorned by a small golden hairpin with a shining emerald on it.
Not knowing who he or she was, and with a headache that made him want to throw up, Subaru left his bed. As soon as he stepped on the ground he was met with the sight of yet another beauty.
She had short purple hair with golden eyes. She wore a short white dress that ended in a skirt too short for anyone with standards to wear. Her long, slender legs were covered with black stockings.
Unable to recognize her, Subaru scratched his head. He was still in a daze, trying to remember what happened last night. Thankfully, someone called out to him.
"Subaru-kyun? You're awake?" Said the feline healer, sitting in one corner of the room.
"Felix?" Thanks to him, Subaru managed to remember last night's hijinks. His eyes widened and he looked at the two sleeping beauties, now knowing who they were: Julius and Reinhard.
"The fuck!? Felix, did we actu- Ouch!" Subaru's words cut off as he hit his toe with the leg of the table. He lost balance and fell head-on into Felix's lap.
As if Od Laguna himself was against him, the door was blasted upon by a wrathful pink-haired maid.
"Barusu." She said in a neutral voice, doing her best to repress her wrath. "You did not tell us this would be a sleepover. Nor that you would… borrow Frederica's wardrobe."
"Ram I can explain this!"
"Explain what, Barusu? How you got drunk despite promising not to? How you forced my coworker to dress you and your companions up? How you're a sexual deviant toying with Emilia-sama's feelings despite swinging the other way?" Her gaze pierced Subaru's soul. It was as if she was talking to the Devil herself.
"I-I can explain." Said Subaru, lacking the courage to look at Ram straight in the eyes, instead deviating his sight to the ground.
"Take your mouth and hand out of your friend's crotch and then we'll talk." She disappeared as fast, slamming the door shut.
Unsure of what to say, Felix attempted to cheer his friend up.
"Hum… congratulations?"
"Congratulations my ass. What happened yesterday? I remember drinking and…" He froze as if an idea had just crossed his mind. "Oh god, did I get drunk and crossdress? AND YOU DID THE SAME!?"
"Calm down Subaru-kyun, you'll wake those two up. First, yes you did. And second, yes we also did. It's… a long story."
"Explain. From the start. My memory is hazy and I don't remember a thing." His fierce gaze and determination made Felix tremble for a split second.
"Alright. So, after you got drunk…"
I'm going to take this chance to update everyone in my other fics. Satella's Champion, as you can deduce, it's on permanent hiatus. I'm working on Stars that form the Future chapter 4, maaaaaybe it's ready next week. Brainstorming future arcs for Maiden's New Life (we had to scrap three arcs...). I might write random smut prompts at some point, though they'll either be private or compiled onto a single story with no connection between chapters.
And I also need to write the second chapter of this hahahahahahahahahahahahaha I have way too many things to do.