Author Notes:
For the past few weeks, I started another fic just to take a break from this one while I thought of ideas. I felt that the quality of my fics was steadily, but still significantly, decreasing in quality the more and longer I wrote.
I then had an epiphany. No one is truly expecting greatness from me so why should I put such a burden on myself by default? Wouldn't that itself be detrimental to my writing?
I've decided that I'm going to go full throttle with this one just for the sake of enjoyment. I'm just going to write what comes to mind and ignore all of that negative talk in my head. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did and, even if you didn't, I hope you have a brilliant day.
But seriously, what are you waiting for? Scroll down and read!
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You did it…
The two girls stared at the man in the middle of the room as he continually repeated the phrase above as if in a hypnotic trance to which could only be broken by a strong force. The girls were, at first, cautious of the man as they were scared that he may have been a butler of the mansion and had caught them in the act of doing something they weren't supposed to do. It was clear on both of the girls' faces that neither wanted to be grounded when their mother learned of this.
However, Naoko did not take a liking to the repetition of phrases of the man and cried out aloud a very powerful and somewhat dramatic 'shut up!'
The action knocked the man out of the imaginary prison that was the entirety of his mind and snapped him back to the supposed reality. He couldn't believe what he saw in front of him. His throat hurt quite badly as he hadn't talked in around a decade since being sealed and his body ached as his bones were in desperate need of more calcium and nutrients.
His eyes were the same but the man's unlimited supply of determination, fueled by the two faces in front of him, allowed him to open his eyes. He was bombarded by the sun's blissful beams while his eyes continued to scour the room with an intense curiosity and wonderment at his new predicament.
He was aware of his current situation, yet he wasn't fully aware at the same time. Throughout the many years of his life, he was subject to a consistent barrage of nightmares. He remembered the many nights spent with his spirit where he either scratched himself like there was no tomorrow or cried himself with increasing sorrow.
Each night, in a way, was spent drowning in despair or wallowing in defeat. Despair towards the fact that his suffering and trauma may never disappear and would forever haunt his already broken soul. And defeat towards the sad state in which he was stuck within the Shadow Garden, realizing that the state of his family and the source of sorrow permeating outwards from those within the mansion were mainly due to his disappearance.
Many people knew Natsuki Subaru had died that final day. After all, why would his corpse be so clearly laid out in the cathedral during his funeral? Why would a tombstone be dug right behind the Mather's Estate in honor of the boy who made countless lives greater in their purpose and status?
But though the sorrow would forever remain, the feeling of defeat and inadequacy would not remain any longer as his chance was right in front of him. His chance, his hope had taken the form of two little girls as his eyes dilated to the proper size and allowed him to properly see the two children.
No comment was made in the first few seconds in which their eyes locked on one another. Naoko's head was filled with thoughts on the question of why the man's figure and body looked oddly in accordance with the silhouette of her dreams. Fortuna similarly was worried by the man's presence but still questioned why her heart felt a tad bit warmer in his presence.
But then the two girls noticed a few significant and paramount details about the room and the man. The door was still shut fully closed and, considering the door's enormous squeak once opened, the two girls were sure that the man couldn't have opened the door without them being immediately wary of the sound produced.
Perhaps he had gotten through the window. But that too was unlikely. The Mather's Estate was very adamant about providing top-notch security and it was unlikely that the windows would be unlocked or would be able to be unlocked from the outside had he truly gotten in from the outside.
However, the man himself provided some clues towards why he randomly appeared almost out of thin air. He wore a tracksuit which was splashed with black with little orange outlines. His appearance within the room also directly coincided with the phrase engraved on the ring. 'Return by Death' it was.
Had the two summoned him? They squealed at the thought. The idea that the two of them could have summoned a spirit was something that delighted them to the core!
A brilliant deduction from the two children convinced them to ask a similar question placed upon the man.
"Mister, are you a great spirit!?"
The man's eyebrows furled up as if in bewilderment then his face quickly changed to one of glee. He laughed and laughed and laughed as if the girl's simple question was funny in essence. The girls sweated nervously as their minds questioned why the man was so amused.
No… No, I'm not a great spirit. Sorry… for getting… your hopes up.
He chuckled again, or perhaps it was more of a coughing chuckle as his speech pattern and dry voice made it apparent that his throat was in need of serious hydration. The girls inherently worried for the man and grabbed his hand. They led him out of the room in search of a beverage to ease the man's throat pain. The two siblings most likely learned it from their mom, the idea that a good deed always comes around. He was a complete stranger to them and yet they seemed to want to help him. He'd be lying if he said that it didn't warm his heart up a little.
Naoko remembered the first time she had gotten sick. She remembered speaking to her mom in a crackly voice as her mom smiled and treated her with bitter-tasting medicine. The palace's greatest healer, Felix Argel, supposedly had created the medicine through inspiration and with help by none other than Natsuki Subaru. Naoko didn't want this man who, as of the moment, had done nothing wrong to go through that same pain. She also didn't want him to go through tasting that medicine either. It was disgusting.
It was, however, shocking to the two girls how their dad, despite being nowhere near proficient or even interested in the field of medicine, could still have a significant impact upon it. Their dad had done so much for the world and they subconsciously wished that he could have said that he was proud of what they have become.
Their priorities were set, however, on giving the man behind them a nice clear glass of water.
As they walked out of the room, the man gasped in bewilderment. Was he shocked at the 'fanciness' and elegance of the mansion? Fortuna rejected that idea as no one except residents of the mansion could have entered considering the tight security and careful maintenance in the mansion. If this man truly was a resident then he couldn't be shocked by such elegance as he would have experienced before. That didn't shut down her curiosity towards the man's actions though.
Perhaps the man had truly snuck in through some unknown but brilliant means. Naoko was worried about that assumption. For all they know, they could be giving an intruder a tour around the mansion! Yet their hearts felt different. It felt as if his mere presence demanded that you liked him, it felt as if they knew him and yet didn't at the same time.
For Naoko, it reminded her of her dreams and the silhouette. The silhouettes figure and actions in her dreams were oddly reminiscent of this man. He walked the same way and his body was the same shape oddly enough. She questioned, albeit for only a second, if she was actually dreaming this whole situation. After all, it all sounded quite bizarre.
Your names are Fortuna and Naoko, correct?
The two continued to walk on with the man's hands in grasp, guiding him to the entrance of the building where a glass pint of water was located. They answered the man with a certain readiness.
"Yes, Mister," responded Naoko. "Your voice sounds like you're choking and talking at the same time. You need to really take care of yourself, Mister."
Was he being…
"I agree with sister, Mister," chimed in Fortuna. "Our mom says that staying healthy and making sure you exercise is one of the most important parts of life."
Was he seriously being teased?
Mien Gott! Is this how Otto feels every time he has teased him? He almost felt bad, but Otto was still so much fun to tease so, in the mind of the 'revived' hero, his continual teasing was somewhat justified. Either way, it is still a perfectly friendly dynamic, correct?
Arriving at the front of the mansion, the girls were shocked to notice that Beatrice was not there anymore. At first, they believed that once getting out of the sight of the spirit after losing her, she'd immediately investigate in the maid quarters in search of the two rascals.
It seemed that, considering that they hadn't run into her and that she wasn't at the entrance, that Beatrice had given up her search for some apparent reason. The man with them too reached the same deduction as the two girls. Fortuna let go of his hand and rushed to the table to which they once stood by to greet guests.
Fortuna got a glass of water and poured the pint into it, giving it to the man in order for him to quench his thirst. 'Hydration is an important part of life' said their mom.
That feels good. Thank you so much, you adorable little two really come in handy.
Naoko and Fortuna's faces beamed with smiles as their good deed resulted in a wholesome award: the man's bright and beaming smile.
AH! I feel so energized right now, I feel like I could run laps around this mansion with one single breath!
The girls were amused by his goofy nature and allowed themselves to give off a chuckle of childish delight and humor. It was the signature style of Natsuki Subaru, a man whom kids just couldn't resist laughing with and having fun. It was always a wonderment to the other members of the Emilia camp on how Subaru had the inherent ability to be liked. He even got through to the great spirit who had, for years mind you, been extremely adamant on little contact and interaction.
.
.
But it was then with Naoko's next sentence that injected a few tears into Subaru's eyes.
It was something that Subaru missed so much, something on the equivalent level as mayonnaise and Emilia-tan.
.
.
"Hey… mister," hesitantly stated Naoko. "Since you're all energized now, would you like to do some radio calisthenics with us?"
Subaru hid his tears quite well from the two children not because he felt the need to keep up the facade in which he had worked so hard to maintain but rather because those tears of sorrow were being overpowered by the growing happiness in his heart.
His sweet, amazing Emilia-tan had to keep his tradition intact in some format, didn't she?
Perhaps she even introduced mayonnaise to the two but the simple exercises that consumed his days once before were enough to bring a smile onto his face.
Sure… I'd be overjoyed.
"Cheers!"
The many glass cups smacked against each other furiously as the many members of the Emilia Camp celebrated considering they had just finished all preparations. Once the Queen arrived, she'd be delighted to see the amazing status of the mansion. It shined brighter than the knighting ceremony of Subaru and that was something extremely hard to contend with. Paintings littered the walls, tables were set elegantly with food and plates, a nice dance area was constructed, and a simple, cut, and clean podium was set in the middle of it all where the Queen herself would give a speech to commence the next anniversary of her knight.
"Nee-sama, all of that made me so tired. Are we sure that we won't be tired during the party tonight?" asked the blue-haired oni, drinking a tad bit of alcohol in order to rest her nerves from the back-breaking work.
"We'll be fine. After all, my precious sister can party a tad bit longer, right?" responded Ram.
"It still saddens me that this party and all the hard preparations we did is for disgusting Barusu," dramatically sighed Ram.
"Hey! Cap'n deserves i-"
"We know, Garf. Ram-san just enjoys teasing anyone and honestly, I don't think we can ever stop her from doing so," responded Frederica, happy that the hours of cooking food were finally finished and she could just have a nice cold drink with friends.
"We have guests, I suppose," said the ever adorable Beatrice as she guided members from previous camps inside the lit up ball-room.
"This is gorgeous! Big sis is going to love it!"
"I agree Felt-sama, she will"
"I Agree, my grandson"
The spirit walked in with a sense of assurance and pride. She made it clear that if the hero's own contracted spirit was feeling well then this celebration would be perfect as well. In contrast to the first celebrations, this one was surely going to be an easy victory over them. All those present remembered the first few celebrations in honour of Subaru.
At first, not too many people attended the celebrations as many believed that their mere presence was undeserving to properly honour the fallen legend. Once thought to be a Subaru only trait, many people of the many camps self-deprecated in an effort to cope with being unable to pay back the kindness of the boy.
Crusch, for example, was one whose circumstance prevented her from repaying the boy. After being infected with the black dragon blood, her ability to help during the Priestella incident decreased significantly. Even with Subaru's taking of some of the blood, her body was still unable to regain all proper functions.
It was only until after the Vollachian incident that Subaru absorbed all of the blood from her veins and arteries. She remembered her tears, how her heart pounded when her very own feet were able to touch the floor and stand without the fear of immediately crumbling under pressure and pain.
But not all endings ended happily.
Many did not attend the first celebrations, many didn't believe they deserved to be there. It was a miracle, however, when Garfiel and Otto's speech, the speech that once echoed throughout the walls of the cathedral, made its way into everyone's heart slowly but surely. Trauma would not cease to ruin one's life and it would never wither from their memory but the comfort and assurance by another can make all the difference.
Crusch decided that wallowing in her room in inadequacy would not get her anywhere and, as a result, was one of the first people to ever attend the celebrations followed by Garfiel, Otto, Ram, Frederica, Wilhelm, and Al.
One by one, others joined in on the frolicking and partying. Once thought to be a day of mourning for the hero turned into a day of appreciating his life and making it ever more apparent of his greatness, humanity, and personality.
"It's what Subaru would have wanted," stated the great spirit whose first few visits to the celebration were filled with loneliness and now of delight.
You know, it was partly why Meili stayed with the spirit. Don't misunderstand the spirit's intentions, she didn't hate the half-elf's children but Meili was the only one who truly knew Subaru before his untimely death. Meili wasn't like one of those occasional weird Subaru-researcher-fanatics that they'd occasionally meet during their travels, Meili was a bonafide Subaru enjoyer. After all, she was his daughter, biological or not.
Meili was the person, alongside Emilia and Petra that is, who comforted Beatrice during the first few celebrations and was what led Beatrice on her slow recovery journey. Could the spirit, forever grateful to her first contractor, forget him? No, that was not how trauma and memories worked. One couldn't simply forget but Meili made it clear to Beatrice that others could certainly make the situation better than it would be had it just been her dealing with it.
As the rest gulped down the drinks at hand, Meili barged into the ballroom with a confused expression.
"Beako, we got some guests," said Meili, moving her hand to show the others entering the room.
Frederica put on her maidenly attitude once more, to which still held a sense of friendship and familiarity, and greeted those who were just now entering.
"Ah, welcome to the Mather's Estate ladies and gentlemen," bowed Frederica.
In front of them were the rest of their guests: all the other members of the other camps. Even Julius, despite initial hostility towards Subaru, proved to be a good friend with his consistent attendance at the celebrations.
Beatrice, however, still looked at Meili's face as her face held something that Beatrice was all too familiar with. Meili was hiding her worry and unsureness. Beatrice grabbed her hand with reassurance and guided her a significant distance away from the others. Beatrice had gotten better at addressing personal problems over the years. It was as if she became the unofficial therapist of the camp.
"Why are you worried, I suppose?"
"Our new guests said that they were greeted by no one at the entrance and Julius said that his spirits detected someone with a high spirit affinity in the mansion."
'Where are Naoko and Fortuna,' was essentially Meili's hidden question behind the panicked expression and quick speech.
"The girls went to the room they talked about going to last night, I suppose. The maids should already know of their presence. But the purple-haired knight said he detected a high spirit affinity, I suppose?"
"Yeah. At first I thought it was mom, you know Emilia, but she hasn't even arrived yet. Do you think it can be one of the girls?"
Beatrice blinked her eyes a few times and she, though she would never admit it to anyone's face except maybe that of Subaru's, was excited on the prospect that one of her contractor's children may have a high spirit affinity. Was a future spirit-duo meant to be? Could Beatrice become a spiritual teacher?
It made sense, of course. Naoko and Fortuna were the daughters of two people with abnormally high concentrations of spiritual affinity and contractors of two great spirits nonetheless. It was clear that the probability of at least one of the children being a spirit user was high.
Meili's expression got calmer as she slowly got reassured, but then she started shaking her head sideways out of… instinct?
"What is wrong, I suppose?"
Meili felt the hairs on her body slowly rise, reminding her of a story that her dad told her about a certain spider sense.
"This reminds me of how dad acted. He always said that he occasionally got impulses that something weird might happen."
Meili's eyes darted across the room, she felt something.
"Maybe you're just sick, I suppose. Let's go and greet the others, I supp-"
Beatrice's words halted in formation and her eyes too darted around the mansion.
"What the…"
Beatrice grasped her chest as she felt a familiar yet odd feeling enter her heart. It was mysterious and unpredictable yet it felt so warm and cozy as if she had been with it for years.
Beatrice didn't notice it at the time but it was a feeling extremely characteristic of a spirit… and their contractor. The feeling of a bridge between two peoples being built, a connection beyond that of holding hands and beyond that of simply knowing each other. Beatrice grasped her heart again in the hopes of identifying the feeling.
The spirit wandered outside the ballroom as if she wanted to find the source of this feeling.
Meili grabbed Beatrice, thinking that the spirit may have hurt herself.
Then the doors of the ballroom opened once again to reveal that the blue-haired oni may have felt the same sensation. The oni closed the door behind her to let the others celebrate the completion of the preparations while also speed-walking towards the spirit and Meili in the hopes that they'd have the answers to her questions.
"Beatrice-sama, I smell something very off!" retorted Rem, once again forgetting the speech patterns that she had before having her memory erased.
Beatrice, having recovered from the heart aching feeling a few moments earlier, looked up to notice that the oni was correct in her primitive deduction. Beatrice, perhaps not having smelled like the oni did, still detected a rather abnormal presence within the mansion.
It then clicked in the oni's mind as it was a smell that she was very familiar with, a smell that meant one of two things. However, with one of those things already made impossible due to Subaru's death… it was safe to assume that the other assumption must be true.
"Beako, you don't think it's…" hesitantly said Meili.
"The witch's miasma, I suppose?"
"A cultist?"
Then a loud noise made itself clear.
"-RY!"
Meili's eyes dilated a bit as she recognized the source of that voice as one of the girls. My god, were they being attacked by this cultist? Was this final act of hostility their revenge towards Subaru for having ruined all of their plans!?
Beatrice's eyes widened and she brought her arms up towards Meili in a way to command her to carry the spirit and immediately jolt towards the source of that scream. They needed to get there before they got hurt or worse.
In essence, it was with that scream that all three of them began sprinting towards the entrance.
They spread their arms in an almost T-like posture and stretched them the most they could, reaching behind their back as they listened to the cracking sounds it made.
Then one arm went over the other and one's body leaned that direction fully to get a real nice and effective stretch, scientifically proven to be extremely effective.
After that, one brings their arms to their waist and then slowly brings their arms up to an almost V-like shape above themselves to which then the final stage commences.
According to Fortuna, the last part of the exercise was the most important part as their mom constantly mentioned it being the most exciting part that all energy had to be put into. It was the moment that signified the exercise's success.
One must breathe in, breathe out, and yell one word with the might of Zues…
"VICTORY!" they yelled simultaneously.
A shockwave of sound may have been generated by the force produced by the trio performing the sacred exercises.
Subaru's legs were aching; he hadn't practiced those exercises in literal years. In the Shadow Garden, there was very little need for physical activity. At least it wasn't a full throttle olympic exercise and rather just radio calisthenics meant for people of all backgrounds and ages. Right?
Only one thought really remained in Subaru's head... Jesus Christ, what the hell did Emilia-tan do to it?
His version consisted of a few stretches and jumping to wake up the body in order to get off to a good and exciting start. However, it seemed that Emilia had added an extra sequence of moves to the beginning of his calethestic exercises. It wasn't just stretches that the everyday man can do, it was splits, jumps, running in place, and… holy crap!
Subaru knew the second he married Emilia that elven strength was not something to be viewed as 'just a joke.' Their endurance and strength were on a plane of existence beyond and unknown to the almond-eyed and mischievous man.
However, it seemed that with the final gesture of victory, Naoko had almost tripped herself and bumped into a table on the side of the hallway. As an object from said table crashed onto the floor with a relatively quiet but still noticeable thud, Naoko yelped in response and immediately tried to pick it up as if such would reverse the damage done.
It seemed to be a painting and as Naoko picked it up to gain a closer look… she noticed that the painting subject was a man doing radio calisthenics with a girl of purple hair and of an extremely bright smile. Is that Sister Meili?
It was, however, the man in the painting that caught the most of her attention. With a few looks back and forth in between the painting and the man, Naoko quickly identified the man in the painting as the man right beside her who looked exhausted from the exercise.
"So you are part of the camp!" yelled Fortuna in excitement as they met yet another person who was part of the legendary Emilia camp. Perhaps they could learn more about their father and what he was like! He also seemed to spend much time with Sister Meili... how come she never mentioned him before?
Yeah, I am. How'd yo-
Subaru's eyes darted around to soon spot a small little painting in the hands of the young Naoko. Subaru couldn't help but chuckle a tad bit as Naoko looked like she was giving her dad a precious artwork that she worked very hard on. It was something deserving of being either framed or hung on the refrigerator for eternity.
Though it wasn't Naoko's precious artwork, Subaru was still aware of who exactly painted it. The painter was someone who Subaru could trust with everything.
I remember that painting, my sweet Beako made it for me. She never liked exercise but she did get into the habit of doing other stuff while I did it.
Fortuna's head tilted a bit to the side as if contemplating the word choice of the man.
Beako? Isn't that the same nickname that Meili and her father supposedly used for the Great Spirit?
The question now is... who was the first person to teach you radio calisthenics?
"It was Meili, sir. It was nice and easy then, but our mom told us that our dad really liked doing them a lot and so she made us do it everyday!"
You sound like you don't like them. Your dad would be so sad if you don't like them... trust me, he really would.
The man said that in an almost comical and saddened fashion, raising his hands to make a boo-hoo gesture and gaining a quick laugh from the girls.
"Stop teasing us, mister! We like them but it was sooo annoying to have to do them everyday. We also have to do them outside where all the guards and maids can see us!"
Maybe you should get them to join too. Nothing gets your-
"-blood pumping better than radio calisthenics," continued Fortuna, finishing the phrase that Meili too had said the first time they had done the sacred practice.
"We know mister, Meili and our mom says that… a lot" annoyingly stated Naoko, was everyone in the previous Emilia camp addicted to those exercises? It must have been their dad that led to this apparent addiction.
The trio smiled at each other.
"You know sir, I've been meaning to ask you… How did you get in that room?"
Subaru's smile continued to be plastered on his face and he decided to tell the full truth.
Well, you summoned me with that ring of yours.
He said while booping the nose of Fortuna in a playful manner.
"But we couldn't have summoned you mister, you said you're not a spirit!" argued Naoko.
"Wait, Naoko… he could be an artificial spirit like Beatrice! We might have found a unique spirit. Mom would be so proud of us!"
And it was there that a floodgate that was a child's imagination opened.
Wait wha-
It was too late for Subaru as the two children ran up the stairs and towards the ballroom in the hopes of notifying the great spirit in the effort to confirm their discovery. Their minds were clouded with a multitude of thoughts ranging from whether or not the ring was a magic ring or just some wedding ring with a unique and unknown power.
'Fortuna and Naoko, the spirit wielders' was the title that resounded in their minds.
Subaru raised his hand in an effort to stop them but the youth of the present day seemed to have far more energy than he ever would have. Or perhaps it was just their elven genome that allowed all of this energy to appear. What the hell did he know though, he wasn't a doctor.
He wasn't going to let his children spread rumors about him being a spirit though. Subaru ignored his exhaustion, grabbed another glass of water, gulped it with an intense urgency, and rushed up the stairs to meet his daughters once again.
The other trio consisting of Beatrice, Meili, and Rem dashed through the hallways towards the source of the disgusting miasma. It smelt as strong as an archbishop and could potentially pose an enormous threat towards the daughters of Betty's contractor.
And then they saw Naoko and Fortuna running towards them with bright expressions imprinted onto their faces. What they held were faces of joy rather than that of fear and danger as expected by those with experiences with the cult.
Rem stopped in her tracks but still remained vigilant in the scenario of an impending attack by the detestable cultists.
Meili, however, kneeled to see the girls and hugged them as they came barreling in.
"Sister Meili, you're breaking our back!" yelled Fortuna, playfully remarking even though her elven endurance could have never allowed for such damage in the first place.
But it was Beatrice who was most shocked of all for she saw an orange thing glisten from within Fortuna's hand.
"Where did you get that, I suppose!?"
"The painting?" questioned Naoko, still grasping onto the painting that the great spirit supposedly painted ages ago.
"That ring, I suppose. That's Betty's Subaru's ring," said Beatrice, pointing towards Fortuna's left hand.
Naoko looked towards Fortuna in confusion only to realize that Fortuna was holding the ring in her left hand the entire time. Finally holding it out for all to see, the two rascals were amazed that what they discovered in that dusty old room was actually their father's ring.
Their minds then raced with more curious questions and imaginations. Fortuna wished and more so pretended that perhaps their father enchanted the ring was some magical spell that summons a spirit to help the user as if it was all some fairy tale storyline. Naoko desired something similar and her excitement was apparent as she fidgeted around.
Beatrice, however, was perplexed by the ring's presence. While Meili took the painting from Naoko to reminisce on the good old times, Beatrice remained confused as to how the girls actually gained the ring. After all, when Subaru died his ring was to be buried with his corpse as a symbol of eternal love even in death between the half-elf and legend himself.
The ring would be unretrievable by normal circumstances unless the two girls dug Betty's contractor's grave. It was clear that two innocent, albeit troublesome, children could not have done that physically and clearly could not be that insensitive to have done such a thing.
"Father must be soooo cool! His ring even summoned a spirit for us!"
.
.
.
.
Meili took her eyes off of the painting in her hands and her eyebrows scrunched up in a similar pattern to that of Subaru's.
"The ring… what?" said Rem, though wanting to stay vigilant, all her attention was now on the conversation that the two children instigated.
"That's impossible, I suppose. Subaru's ring does no such thing," refused Beatrice. She was there the day it was given to him and it was clear that Subaru could do no such thing even if he had wanted to.
"Yes, it does! See, there is this phrase on the ring and when you say it, the spirit guy appears!" exclaimed Naoko, desperately wanting her wishes to be true. The man they 'summoned' seemed to be a nice guy and was proven in the painting to be part of the camp before. Maybe Beatrice just didn't remember him because they hadn't given her a proper description yet. They could surely trust him, right?
"Spirit guy? What does he look like, I suppose?" continued the spirit.
"Well, he's right there in that painting… see?" said Fortuna, pointing towards the man doing radio calisthenics in the painting clutched in Meili's hand.
"I'm sorry guys but… what you're saying just doesn't make any sen-" retorted Meili before being interrupted by the sound of footsteps.
Beatrice looked up with a pose as if ready to cast a quick Minya towards the threat, Rem looked up with a pose as if ready to summon her morningstar and banish the cultist for even daring to hurt Subaru's precious children. Both of them were shut down the second they identified the man walking up to them.
Meili connected the dots quite early and upon looking up to see the man in the tracksuit lined with orange and black, she had fully let go of the painting in her grasp. The painting fell to the floor with an even louder thud and landed face-first into the floor.
Naoko yelped once again as the painting was dropped again. Looking at it, one could see the back of the frame and a noticeable engraving made onto it. Naoko quickly deduced that it was the painting's title. Her face was priceless as she poked Fortuna's shoulder so that she too could witness the discovery.
The painting's title was: Natsuki Subaru's First Excursion With His Daughter
The hallway was as silent as it could be. The two parties stared at each other for a good minute before one from the larger group couldn't hold the pain being held within their hurt heart.
Beatrice skedaddled quite hurriedly toward Subaru and upon reaching him, had immediately touched him in the attempt to affirm his existence.
And once their skin contacted one another, Beatrice knew that Subaru was in front of her. The miasma pulsated around him just like it did before, a multitude of authorities flashed inside of him just like it did before, the contract that was now a decade old was also just like it was before, and the beaming smile, the contagious smile that made the estate so much more joyous to be in was on his face and just like it was before if not brighter and more sincere.
The spirit had her arms wrapped around the man as far as she could and whimpered his name as if begging for him to never go again.
Subaru understood his Beako's pain and relieved some of it by bringing his hand to her hand, slowly rubbing it as if he was a mother comforting their child who recently had a nightmare.
It's me, Beako. Don't try to understand but rather feel. I missed you guys so much, you know that?
"Missed us!? We missed you!" cried Meili, her heart had simultaneously been shattered to billions of fragments and then reattached perfectly in a matter of seconds.
This couldn't be possible, this couldn't be happening. Subaru was dead, the legend that everyone believed to be an invincible strategist was dead and it was damn near impossible to revive someone when excluding the Immortal Kings Sacrament.
But even then, Felix had already tried using the sacrament upon seeing Subaru's lifeless corpse next to a crying Emilia, begging him not to go. The sacrament hadn't worked and it was one of the main reasons why Felix felt guilty even to this day.
It might also be why Meili felt that way as well. She felt incompetent, she felt scared towards the fact that her lack of ability was what led to Subaru's death. Perhaps if Meili played a more active role in her father's life, perhaps he'd still be alive. It was as illogical a deduction as could exist but unbelievable moments don't call for the most structured of thoughts.
But Subaru just walked towards Meili and also gave her a playful pat on the head. As she looked up, Meili could see it quite clearly present on Subaru's face. His eyes were red but not due to wrath towards the one in front of him but rather as a normal result of having cried too much.
His smile was faltering and though it could be seen turning into a frown, it was a frown desperately trying to hold the man together, trying to prevent him from completely breaking down at the sight of one of his greatest accomplishments. After all, was this not what he fought for?
He thought that all these years, he fought for Emilia and that was that. He couldn't have been more wrong. He fought for all of them, not because of their relationship or connection with Emilia but because he genuinely cared for them. He also 'super-genuinely' cared for his amazing daughter in front of him, the one who was the direct proof of all of his work and the apotheosis of recovery, proof that everyone deserves a second chance if they have the capacity for it.
"D…dad..?"
Yeah?
And the two broke into tears and chuckles as they embraced each other with the spirit lodged in-between.
I guess your amazing dad just got bored of sleeping in that dirty old casket, huh?
"Whatever, you old man!" proclaimed Meili, as she hugged tighter and tighter in the effort to ensure that he'd never go away again.
Aw, I can't be that old. Do I have grey hair yet? Please say no.
"Do you have any idea how much we all miss you!? If Emilia was here, she'd call you a dunderhead but since Betty's here, I'll call you an idiot, I suppose!?"
I've been insulted by my Beako, I might just die again before greeting everyone!
But I did miss you too, Beako. I was selfish, I thought I could save everyone and, with or without me, everything would be fine. I was wrong about that and I can see it clearly on your faces that life didn't go the way you dreamt it to have gone.
Beatrice, for what seemed to the two daughters to be a rare occurrence, gave the man a soft smile as if in pride. After all, the contractor had somewhat accepted just how important and awesome he was. Was it extremely subtle? Yes. But was it there? Also yes.
Natsuki the goddamn Subaru is back and he still wouldn't trade you for anything in the world! Who could even imagine trading these adorable honeybuns for anything, only a psychopath would do that!
Subaru lifted both of them up regardless of the back pain making itself more apparent. He swore internally to himself as a cramp showed up and he truly felt old.
"Dad, I'm not a kid anymore, you can't just pick me up and not expec-"
SCADUMP!
And they all fell on the wooden flooring. While Beatrice was crying with tears of joy alongside Subaru, Meili was rubbing her head as if she'd experienced the biggest boo-boo in history. It may have been worse than stepping on a lego. No, that was impossible. Subaru may have been the only person to ever experience such a thing but falling down with two girls was certainly less painful than that.
"Subaru-kun… is… I must have gotten really drunk…"
Heh, Rem? You look exactly the last time I saw you! Your hair seems to have gotten a tad bit longer though.
"The party must have already started and I probably drank a lot and something must have happened. I'm drunk, I'm drunk, I just need rest," said Rem as she quietly, or perhaps not-so quietly, stepped away from the wholesome commotion in front of her and denied reality.
Rem, you're not drunk… I think?
Seeing himself getting nowhere, Subaru tapped her shoulder and gave a reassuring pat on the back.
Rem, in her new tsundere format due to the previous memory loss, would never admit it under normal circumstances but Subaru meant more to her than anyone else. Rem was conflicted when she was invited to attend the celebration this year but if his presence wasn't due to an abhorrent amount of drinks like she imagined then perhaps it was worth it in the end.
The happy atmosphere was then halted by the realization of the two daughters witnessing the commotion.
That guy was their dad? How come he'd never visited ever? They knew for a fact that their dad couldn't have been a spirit so then… where was he this entire time?
"Natsuki Subaru? He's our dad?" asked Fortuna, the question directed to no one really.
Subaru looked at his two daughters.
Sorry for not telling you the first time we saw each other.
"What are you apologizing for?" asked the two as if in synch.
Subaru chuckled at the similarities between them and Emilia in terms of saying sorry and thank you's was laughable.
But Subaru was all too familiar with what they were actually feeling for he experienced the same thing growing up. Perhaps he'd give them a short and nice lecture.
You know the most beautiful woman in my life said to me once that a single thank you is much more satisfying than a billion sorry's. I think I'll rephrase it.
Thank you for being my daughters, you two were what made me move on-
I know that you can feel it, that sensation in your heart.
It was true, the two of them did indeed feel something building up within them.
How'd he know though? Their dad couldn't be an empath right?
I know you feel it too because I'm feeling it right now as well.
Subaru looked at Beatrice and Meili, both giving him a nod of determination. The both of them let go of his hands and allowed him to step forth towards his biological daughters.
I'm sure you've heard lots of me and I'm sure you've felt lonely. To prove my point, how has my Emilia-tan been doing?
Fortuna, always wanting to protect her mom and sing praises of her, opted to say that she was doing fine. But in the midst of doing so, she stopped. Naoko looked at Fortuna as if confused why her sister had stopped and it was then that the both of them knew that Subaru would know that they would be lying if they said anything else other than 'bad.'
His glare wasn't that of a harsh father, simply that of a concerned husband who desperately needed information on the current status of the things he once left behind. They decided to trust him on that.
She isn't doing well, is she?
"No, she's not," responded Fortuna, looking downcast as a series of memories played themselves in her head.
Those memories were quite similar to that of Meili's first time seeing Subaru have a nightmare. For Naoko and Fortuna, it was the first time they saw their mother have a mental breakdown. Knights and maids charged into the room as they were scared that the Queen had been attacked.
It was untrue as her cries indicated that the pain was mental rather than physical. On this day though, Naoko and Fortuna fully understood where all of that hidden pain inside their mom came from now. They questioned why Subaru was apologizing to them but the real question they were seeking to ask was if he should apologize.
If that ring, with whatever properties it has to have brought their dad back into the realm of the living, was found years earlier… their lives would be more father full rather than fatherless and their mother wouldn't need to cry herself to sleep in the depths of the night while her kids curled up and cried right next to her.
Subaru, in a totally unintentional way, put his daughters into the same position as Beatrice. Perhaps they weren't subject to the suffering directly but they still were subject to the aftermath of it all. Their lives may have been filled with specks of joy and happiness as they spent time with their uncles, friends, and their mother but, as said earlier, trauma like that would never fade and simply doesn't naturally either.
That is why Subaru didn't reveal his identity sooner because he was fully aware of the mess he created. It reminded him of him and Kenichi. Kenichi never intended to do many great things in the hopes of making his son's self-esteem stoop down astronomically. Rather, Kenichi did those things because that is what Kenichi does. That's just his dad and that personality seemed to just be ingrained into him. Either way, his dad's accomplishment inadvertently had a negative effect on Subaru.
Subaru never intended to do anything but he still inadvertently did it either way and confessing like this seemed to be the only way to truly clear his mind.
"She really is not. Mom only sleeps well when we hold her hand or on days where we had a really nice playdate. We try to make every day amazing because of that. Just before coming to this mansion, we decided to make cookies with her, for example," explained the eloquent Naoko.
Let me guess, you guys are not the most professional of chefs?
The two had smiles slowly forming on their faces…
"No, no we weren't. Lu-Lu, the head maid of the palace, got mad at us because the entire kitchen was filled with flour and dough."
That is quite funny. But I suppose I really should speak out huh?
There is this rock called pyrite in my hometown that people call "Fool's Gold." Emilia-tan is an actual piece of gold in a bag of pyrite.
She's kind, careless, and smart, and, despite that, she still has the audacity to think that some unsavory or sad things are her fault.
Oh, I'm not mad at her. I'm just sad that she thinks that way. If anything else, it was really my fault for thinking so narrow. She'd probably call me a dunderhead if she was here, right?
"mhmm" responded Fortuna and Naoko in complete agreement.
Maybe today is a lucky day, a day where we both can get her to realize that and lift her up on her feet. What do you say?
The two daughters whose mood seemed to decline significantly will all of this talk about the sad state of their mother now seemed to rise in hope. It was an odd feeling that seemed to pop out of nowhere.
I'll be honest, every day I think of you two and how much I just want to give you two rascals a hug. Today is the first day I'll ever be able to do that and I just can't contain just how proud I am of you two for being amazing and keeping Emilia-tan safe. You are everything I ever wished for and more. Dodge if you don't want it.
As Subaru finished his fluffy speech, the two daughters were bewildered as their father abruptly hugged them with outstanding force.
But it was very clever of him to mention how proud he was of them after so much explaining. Unbeknownst to the two daughters, they were in desperate need of approval. Their mother constantly praised their cuteness and greatness but their mother's deteriorating condition shoved those compliments to the side and undermined all said praises.
But Subaru's praise truly lifted their spirits up as it affirmed just how much they wanted their mom to be 'okay.'
They returned the hug and cried for the mother they wanted to cure and the father that they always had wanted to see.
The ballroom door opened and everyone who was still celebrating seemed to stop as they noticed the tear stains on all of the eyes of Beatrice, Rem, Meili, Naoko, and Fortuna. Furthermore, said tears looked extraordinarily sincere.
"What the hell? Did someone bully the Cap'n's daughters? Who are they, I'll beat them up!" yelled the 'ever-in-control' Garfiel.
"No, it's not that. Nee-sama, you won't believe it but I think I'm sober," claimed Rem, looking directly at her sister who seemed to hold a look of very… very deep confusion.
"Heh whatever, the Queen's going to be here soon so we all gotta get ready and greet her with as many hugs!" proclaimed Otto, trying to get everyone in the mood to celebrate and have yet another party to honor their amazing friend.
Unfortunately for them, they should have remembered that though it was rare for a dead person to attend a party, the possibility was never 0%.
And in my case, I can grant her as many kisses as she wants, right?
The room was dead silent.
It was a man known for being the lolimancer knight
A man of only good timing
An amazing contractor
An S-tier role model
And a man who is known for being a straight-up amazing and, according to Garfiel, a straight-up badass person had come in the room.
Natsuki Subaru walked inside and pointed to the roof and proclaimed something with all his heart…
But a million lap pillows are fine too!
Author's Notes:
Hello guys, this time I actually do, in fact, have an excuse. You see I have, no joke, a bee infestation in my house that so happens to be located near my room. As a result, I couldn't quite type on my desktop without the fear of being assassinated by bees. It was around a few weeks later (3 or 4) that I got a laptop and wrote on that instead.
We couldn't get an exterminator until 4 or so weeks after the incident because the only guy in the area had… you guessed it… Covid (and a busy schedule afterward). He's fine though so don't worry.
I've written another fanfic called 'Inexorability' for Re; Zero on this profile and I am also really proud of that one as well. The reason why I started that fic was because I wanted a break from this one and a way to gain ideas for this fic through writing another one. I, however, feel quite guilty for not adding onto this one for quite a long time but I was still very hesitant on what I should actually write for this chapter.
One night, however, I was writing a story that wasn't fanfic (just an actual story entirely created by me) and I realized that the main reason that I wrote was for fun rather than one's approval. After all, it's not like I was going to share my 'non-fanfic' story online. I realized that as long as I enjoyed it, writing that is, and it didn't hurt anyone then it didn't really matter whether or not they personally approved of it.
I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I hope you have a great day.
I'm Yorelis and I'm signing out.