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Chapter 25: Sleepless Night

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Going back at the manor should have been seen as a chance for Subaru to regain some bearings over himself, or even find peace in the notion he was in a safe place once more.

Yet none of those feelings were met even as he found himself in his room. It was night, Roswaal had already known of the Whale situation and had handled praise where it was due for holding the defense against the mabeasts. Despite his positive outlook, something had troubled the Margrave, that much Subaru could tell on the spot as he knew who was to blame.

The child that was now slumbering in the bed, right beside him- a responsibility he wanted to take care of but not for the reasons many would expect him to do so. Subaru was always taught to help those in need, especially if those were children. Between his mother teaching him to be a good person, and many ads giving him a sense of urgency to be some sort of 'saviors' of hopeless people, this time he felt that nothing mattered to truly fuel his good conscience in helping this case.

Dora was Pandora. Actually no, she was part of Pandora.

The innocent child that was within that deception that was the little witch before something happened with the whale which caused her to 'break'. Puck's explanation on the matter helped in soothing Emilia's glares over the notion that this child was indeed his daughter- it was amusing to even imagine as Subaru hardly gave off that sense of 'infidelity', yet Emilia had been on the edge for some time in this regard, mostly because of how 'limited' their interactions had been within the aspects of intimacy.

Yet, the explanation was what really mattered the most at the moment: Dora was a shard of a person, one that bore a 'close to human' resemblance yet held a degree of magic that went beyond the limits of normal humans. The familiar summarized her as 'mostly human with some facets owned by spirits'. Magically-gifted, but extremely naive and innocent due to her current stage of existence. Her youthful appearance mirrored her state of mind, especially when she truly held limitations within some elements that were baffling to say the least.

She had to pee at a certain point, but she wasn't able to muster the awareness to seek the bathroom herself. Subaru had to walk her to the nearest toilet and hold her hand, wipe her off once she was done while also not freak out at the familiar face, a mixture of his and Pandora. The sight was horrid to someone that was stressed out and still recoiling from the happenings that led to the situation he was quite upset about. N-No, not just upset- there was more- more he couldn't just bring himself to words about.

Sleeping was impossible as his attemps to proper rest were tainted by the sight of him doing it with Rem. The poor girl wasn't aware of what was going on, the urge to do it may have felt normal to her, enticed her to take him on, but Subaru felt himself in deep turmoil as he remembered all details. He was quite sure Pandora did it for the sake of harming his psyche even further with this act.

He remembered the feeling of his hands being out of control, same for his legs, his mouths and then his sexual hunger. It all had felt so wrong to pursue it and he felt that, in the end, he hadn't been given a choice. To an extent, he was glad he looped. He could try to ultimately rule out that experience as it was- forced, and wrong. On her? No, on him. As it was intended by Pandora. The pain of being forced into a distraction that made him want that intimacy, his boyish urges indulged in a way that were not of his own decision.

While many wouldn't see the issue, Subaru had one- and it was the fact he didn't get to say no as he had wanted to. And that this no-choice ended up forcing him to see another death, this one unpredictable and so sudden that even now he flinched at the final moments. Which is why he wasn't sure how to handle Dora.

He hated Pandora, so should he hate Dora too? His mind said no, his experience said hell yeah. Both were not helping in giving him an answer and... as much as resting with his eyes open and staring at the ceiling while thinking about his trauma was something 'refreshing', Subaru decided that lingering in bed wouldn't do it.

He needed a fresh air to breath and some lone time to ponder without being constantly reminded of how good this world was in trying to either damage his mind or murder him.

Dora was deep in her slumber, so she didn't notice that her 'Papa' was now out of sight. Subaru didn't expect to find anyone around this late hour, but he was shocked to find out Ram out of bed too, walking around to clear her own mind of recent matters.

Things just end up going... pleasant from that point onward.

To say that Ram was annoyed at her own sister would be an understatement.

Rarely Rem got to the point of irking her to this point, but her sister was somewhat well-meaning with her own plans despite how stupid those were. Being angry at Barusu for just not being there to tend her lustful needs when she was just trying to capture him with her lewd charm? That was a risky idea and one that backfired in a positive manner as far as the pinkette could really care of.

Rem took a chance, the chance failed and her integrity lasted through this whole mess. Was she to not feel angry for this failure? Obviously not, but Ram said it all to her in a rather simple manner: take notes of your failure and don't try to take a man's interest for granted. After all, Rem had been distant enough to Subaru to actually be unable to establish a connection. Ram had been around him more than his sister and had entertained chats with Subaru so that she could establish an understanding with him.

Heck, even the bathroom debauchery that soon will probably resume gave off that sense despite the intimacy it remarked. But what really frustrated her is that Rem's own plight was not a matter of proving herself to anyone, but of her urges manifesting now that she knew her sister was active around a man in particular, thus a trustworthy man in her mind.

To Ram, that was... flattering, for her sister to pick a man from how she behaved around him, but for Rem to look into trying to get together with htat same man without much of a clear grasp of what seduction was all about was as concerning as jarring. Part of her wanted to teach her how to do it right, but strongest voice in her mind told her to not do that. Not just because Rem had to learn her own way into romancing and lusting, but because Ram was not willing to exactly bring her sister in what was clearly going to be a 'make or break' situation between her, Subaru and Emilia.

An occasion came right by the night they returned. Subaru was wandering the halls, clearly restless and seeking some private time to entertain heavy thoughts. Differently from the more light-stepped pace he would follow, his steps were heavier as he seemed more reluctant to end the walk at the time he would usually do. It was also quite late, and Ram was pondering over her own dilemmas when he stumbled on him.

It was clear as she got quite close that Subaru was deep in some troubled thinking, and he even hesitated to bring up what it was about. It took Ram some convincing probing to ultimately draw him out of his shell and... his answers barely gave her anything to work with.

"I have been having some dilemmas over the Whale situation and... I think I know where Dora comes from."

The child? Why would she trouble him so much? It wasn't related to children in general, or that wouldn't explain his usually jovial attitude towards Meili and Petra. No, it was something centered around Dora herself. Something that made her raise an eyebrow in pure intrigue as it was clear that, whatever had gotten into Subaru, it was something so important over Dora's identity that should shock others.

"You do?"

"To an extent, yes," He admitted. "And I have reason to believe that she is... indeed tied to this person I had problems with. Bad problems."

The way he used the generic 'bad' term felt somewhat wrong. He was restraining himself, hesitating on his steps even now that it was about verbal chatting.

"How bad?"

He bowed his head, and he looked absolutely tired. "Quite."

The next scene was quite amusing, yet no smile adorned her face as they both found an unused living room. Ram sat by one side while Subaru rested his head on her lap. Had this been the case months ago, Ram would have been frustrated by the disposition while complying with the request, yet this was now a normal expectation. And Subaru's hair was soft.

There was much to say about Barusu, but to see a man this full of energy be this gloomy and downtrodden by what felt like guilt or regret sure made her wondering what had gotten to him. Much to her surprise, a certain shadow decided to tag along in that room and Elsa was soon leaning by the doorstep.

"I have been wondering if he was going to seek someone to talk to. Did he mention what he was troubled with?"

It wasn't concern that Ram heard, but rather curiosity. Reasonable considering that an assassin would be perplexed by Subaru's shift in attitude just like that, thus urging her to seek the truth without being too direct about it.

"Dora may be connected to a troublesome person. Enough that Subaru is genuinely frightened by them."

"To this extent? Very interesting," Elsa hummed, stretching a bit and resting on that usually-uncomfortable setting. A very bizzarre sight for sure, but one of vigilant guarding which made Ram even more at ease for tonight. "Anything else?"

"No."

That silenced the assassin for the time being, but Ram knew that just giving a lap-pillow wouldn't do to solve Subaru's own plight. Yes, the pinkette had in mind a solution to this, but first she had to discuss this with Lady Emilia. There was no doubt in her mind the half-elf was going to accept this plan, knowing that it would forward her situation while also gaining an ally in her quest of love.

In return, Ram would be secured a firm seat as part of the couple's life. And, who knows, maybe she can drag Rem into this too if she managed to get things done right...

Yes, tomorrow is going to be quite an important day.

AN

While Rem is a bit blunt with her plans, Ram is a cunning genius. Her big PP plan will be so impressively successful that she may end up carrying someone else into the lewdness of next chapter.