A/N: All you need to understand is that this is a yandere Ram AU. So, she may be slightly OOC here. For convenience's sake, let's say her love for Roswaal never formed. You'll see why that's important, later. Prompt by Writing Pupil.
Hand me my Natsumi x Subaru, Pupil...
Cover art by talented artist sayo. Feel free to search them on Gelbooru or Pixiv, their art is amazing. I take no credit for it.
A Pink Dream
Recently, every time he closed his eyes, Subaru was incapable of easily drifting off to sleep. He wasn't exactly a heavy sleeper, but he wasn't plagued by the usual nightmares that kept him awake.
No, whenever he drifted off into the land of dreams, he was not tormented by his failures, by the visions of his past that continued to haunt him...but instead, he would dream of pink.
A pink that filled his vision, blooming like the most vibrant Sakura petals smoothly falling from a tree.
Every time he saw it, the same question came to his mind.
'...Who are you?'
He didn't know why, but he was just aware that that pink represented a person. A person who his mind refused to show to him...a person that always seemed out of grasp, shrouded in that ever-elusive facade of pink.
Yet, every time that question came to mind, he was never able to speak it. Mesmerized, frozen in place, he could only allow the pink to fill his vision, never allowed to look past what it was veiling.
This time seemed different. As with every night, Subaru's eyes were filled with that beautiful pink, yet...he was slowly becoming more coherent. More aware.
And for the first time, he spoke the question that had been resting on the tip of his tongue.
"Who are you?"
There was a muted silence, then–a response.
"...I am-"
Subaru woke with a start, jolting up in his bed. He held a hand to his head, a dim pain buzzing on his forehead.
"W-What?! Geez, man, I...I was just gonna find out what that weird dream meant!"
The raven-haired boy turned an annoyed gaze upwards, his nasty-looking eyes meeting the gaze of an annoyed-looking pink-haired maid, standing at his bedside with her fingers retreating from the flicking motion.
It was obvious who the culprit was.
"What the heck, Ram?!"
Said maid sighed, bringing a hand to her forehead and shaking it in some obvious display of disappointment. She looked down at Subaru with pitying eyes.
"Speaking such utter gibberish as wishing to know the meaning of your dreams...you really are such a hopeless man, Barusu. Have you already forgotten the importance of tonight?"
"Huh? The importance of tonight?" Subaru's anger faded into thoughtfulness, as he took in the ever-insulting maid's words. His eyes suddenly widened, as he remembered just what they implicated.
"Oh crap, oh crap!" He practically threw off the covers, getting to his feet. "That's right, I forgot that weird banquet thing was being held!"
"It's truly just like you to forget such an important event...you do remember that it was created specifically for you, correct?" Ram deadpanned, clearly exasperated at Subaru's lack of seriousness.
"Man, I know, but, well…" He chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. A nervous sweat had started to form on him as Ram's words once again made the importance of this event set in. "It's still hard to believe, you know? I really think I don't deserve something that big. I'm just...I'm just a nobody, yknow?"
"No, I don't know. All I've heard is your pathetic whining on not wishing to accept an accolade that you clearly have earned. Stop hiding from your rightful achievements, and accept that you are not a simple nobody, Barusu. That is all that you can do, now."
Ram's blunt, yet uplifting words made Subaru pause, shock clear on his face. He gave a slight laugh, scratching a finger to his cheek.
"...Man, you really have changed, haven't you, Ram? A while ago, you would have just agreed with me on being a nobody."
"Ha!" The maid huffed, turning away from him. "I have no idea what you are talking about. Ram has always been a cute, adorable lady whose mere presence would uplift someone. You were simply too blind to notice it, Barusu."
Those words made Subaru snicker, almost fully bursting out into laughter as all the tension seemed to ease out of his shoulders.
"Haha, haha...man, you really don't change, do ya, Ram? I still have to say, I like this slightly nicer older sister version a little bit better, though!"
His ever-upfront words, were only met by with a huff, with Ram not even turning herself to face him. What he would not see...was the rosiness that had tinted her cheeks, a smile coming to her face more radiant than that of the sun…yet, one that seemed to hold some crazed emotion behind it, something dark and unreadable-
"Anyways, guess that means we gotta get the morning kicked off right! Well, minus the fact that I already got a Ram-brand finger-flick to the head."
"You should count yourself lucky. I am aware of just how much of a masochist you truly are, so I am sure that you are simply thinly veiling the true enjoyment you received from Ram's fingers."
"Oi, don't make it sound so dirty-!"
Ram turned around now, bearing her usual blank expression…however, a small smile formed on her lips. This in turn made Subaru smile, as both of them enjoyed this casual conversation that they always shared.
Their banter had become a lot more lighter like this, ever since the battle against the White Whale. After...Rem's existence in everyone's minds had been wiped from this world.
Subaru had of course, been broken down about it...but Ram was even more hurt than he was. No, it was more correct to say she had become broken over it.
Almost overnight, the pink-haired maid lost something that had made up half of her identity...and she couldn't even remember what it was.
No, only Subaru did...and while that brought some comfort to her, she still could never truly shake the feeling of emptiness she had.
With nobody else in her life with nearly that much importance, the ever-strong Ram crumbled like a pile of bricks. After all, even the most durable, strongest buildings still required a foundation. She was no different.
Not a single person could help her. As Roswaal's machinations moved them to Sanctuary, Ram was out of it the entire time. Garfiel, an old friend, seemed the most worried for her, but even he couldn't do anything. Even Roswaal, supposedly the greatest magician, and the holder of the book that told of the future and past, forgot about it.
To Ram, their words were like torture. The fact that these people would not even acknowledge this missing piece that she just couldn't get out of her head made her feel even further disconnected from them.
And so, that day, when Subaru came to her, asking her help, she initially turned him down. Yet, Subaru insisted that he needed her help no matter what...that Ram wasn't just a maid, or a friend, but someone he needed. In the place of the sister she had lost...Subaru promised that no matter what, he would do his best to support her – regardless of the cost, and all he wanted was for her to believe in him, and help him.
She'd found it funny. In her despair, Roswaal's gospel had practically slipped her mind. Hearing Subaru declare that he could beat the man she unwillingly called her master would have usually been comical to her.
However, something about it just made her unable to ignore him. His sincere words, the clear and focused look in his eyes, the hand he had held out to her, and the void which he promised to keep from tearing away at her soul – even if she thought he was silly, with all of those...there was no way Ram could turn him down.
Together with Otto, they took down Garfiel and Roswaal, and Ram, for the first time, experienced that Subaru was not merely a man with simple good timing...but a too-good, kind-hearted, truthful idiot, that was willing to put anything on the line for the people he truly cared about...and Ram was one of those people.
To Subaru, he had simply strengthened his relationship with Ram.
To Ram, she had immediately grown more attached to Subaru than she could have ever possibly fathomed. He became the one thing in her life that truly was constant. Unaffected by the curse that plagued the memories of the world, so earnest and determined...Ram began to grow closer and closer to the boy known as Natsuki Subaru. She became completely dependent on the time they spent together.
Months and months passed by after Sanctuary was freed, and Subaru and Ram had only grown ever closer. She took to checking on him and Beatrice in the mornings, reminding him of appointments, taking care of his clothing – she was honestly acting more like his own personal maid than a maid of the mansion.
Subaru still never minded it. Looking into Ram's eyes, and seeing the hurt that still resided there, he could never confront the behavior she had taken on. Unlike Rem, Ram was very good at putting a strong front on – but that meant nothing in the eyes of Subaru, who already knew what she looked like when she was at her darkest.
In that loop, where Rem had died, Subaru promised that he would save the two of them. Now, it was up to him to save them once more. Rem may be sleeping, but he knew she would never forgive him if he let her sister break down like that.
Not to mention...as callous as their interactions had been, deep down, Subaru knew how good of a person Ram was.
So, Ram and Subaru took on rather interesting roles towards one another. Subaru became her one and only support, while she supported him the best she could.
Sometime down the line, Roswaal had even informed him of how to properly share mana with Ram to help her recover it well. Subaru's broken gate and lack of mana capacity meant that this usually took extra-long, but Ram never seemed to mind.
Honestly, it was tough juggling always being around Beatrice and Ram, but Subaru somehow managed to have time for both.
Of course, he didn't know that in secret, both Beatrice and Ram had long since grown closer through swearing a pack of sisterhood to protect only Subaru.
"Well, Barusu? Are you just going to continue staring at Ram's beautiful face with your perverted gaze, or are you going to get a move on?"
Ram's voice broke the comfortable silence they both had fallen into, reminiscing on past events that had made them grow closer together than ever. Her voice was as rough as always, yet it held a certain palpable softness to it…staring at her beautiful hair, and the smile on her face, Subaru was for some reason reminded of the dazzling pink in his dream.
"Hmm? It seems you truly are interested in seeing more. Well, I do hate to give in to a pervert's desire's like this, but-"
The boy desperately held out his hands, his cheeks turning a deep crimson at Ram's forthright tendencies. Seeing his embarrassed face brought no end of pleasure to Ram, but she would never say so, or let it show on her face.
"Stop, STOP! Geez, you really never stop teasing, do ya, Ram?" Subaru sighed, moving past the maid to head for the door. "Let's go for breakfast. Emilia-tan is probably waiting! Last thing I'd want is for her to walk in on a joke like that, huh?"
He laughed, happily making his way out to move down the hall, towards the dining room.
"Yes...a simple joke."
Subaru would never turn around to see the absolutely frightening, murderous scowl that now resided on the pink haired Oni's face.
"Emilia-sama...I am truly beginning to become tired of you getting in the way." Ram muttered to herself, proceeding forward with eerily slow steps. She closed the door behind herself, a creaking echoing throughout the empty room as it clicked into place.
Ram watched with a blank face as Subaru and Emilia sat at the dinner table together, chatting happily with each other after finishing their meals.
She looked over the interaction with darkness clouding her crimson eyes.
'Right now...right now, I could simply utter a single word, and cut straight through Emilia-sama's throat.'
Her thoughts were cold and methodical, reflecting her methods. Even when it came to murder, Ram did not let impulsive feelings get in the way. She watched the two with a cooled gaze, standing by for Subaru and remaining just out of sight of Emilia.
"So yeah, uhm...you're coming to that banquet thing, right, Emilia-tan? Honestly, I've been pretty nervous about the whole thing, and it would be really cool if you came along. I think you'd look real beautiful in a dress, too!"
Emilia giggled, bringing a hand to cover her lips. That soft, angelic laugh, almost like silver bells gently swaying...grated on Ram's ears to no end.
"Of course, Subaru. Geeeez, you're reeeeally so silly, aren't you? There's no way that I would ever miss something so important. You're my knight, and there's nothing else that I would rather be doing. Okay?"
The half elf gently slid a hand atop Subaru's, giving the top of his hand a squeeze, as she interlocked her fingers with his. For her, it was a comforting gesture, but for Subaru, he couldn't help but almost pass out in embarrassment at this kind of closeness.
Ram narrowed her eyes, the silence that filled up the room filtering like static throughout her ears. Watching Emilia lay her hand atop Subaru's, watching their fingers press together and wrap around each other so perfectly...Ram was almost unable to control herself.
'He may be your knight...but to Ram, he is the one who continually affirms her existence...the one that validates her memories, the one that was truly able to reach a hand out to her when everybody else simply seemed ignorant of her pain…he is not perfect, but he is Ram's sole most important thing in this world, now. Ram should be the woman to stand at his side...not you.'
Her thoughts overtook her brain, her body almost twitching as she grit her teeth, in further attempts to hold herself back.
"Okay?" After this short silence, Emilia repeated her last words, using the same English word that Subaru had taught her, with a bright smile on her face.
"...Okay." He squeaked out, red on his cheeks. Honestly, in a way, Emilia's ability to be so blunt, without even meaning it romantically, was something that destroyed him almost as badly as Ram's straight-up flirting.
"Good!" She gently disentangled her hands from his, and got up from her seat. "Well then, I'll see you later tonight, Subaru. Don't forget, we're supposed to be leaving together!"
"Y-Yeah, later tonight…" He called after her, almost in a trance-like state.
Emilia hummed happily to herself as she passed through the exit of the dining room, blinking in surprise as she looked to her left to see Ram, who gently bowed to her, her ever inexpressive face on her.
"Good morning, Ram!" Emilia greeted happily, raising a hand to the maid. "Honestly, your cooking was amazing as always! You've reeeeeally improved a lot!"
'I improved those skills for Subaru, not for you.'
"Of course. Though Ram feels her tatoe dish was already sufficiently delicious, it was the least that she could do for Barusu. Of course, I am appreciative that you enjoyed the meal as well, Emilia-sama." Ram ignored her encroaching thoughts, giving the half-elf a fake smile.
"Yeah, honestly, I'm really happy that Subaru has people like you and Beatrice to look after him, when I'm not around. He can be a handful a lot of times, can't he?" She questioned, looking back in the room at the still-flushed boy.
'To Ram, Subaru could never be a handful, not after what he has done for her…'
The pink-haired maid let out an equally fake chuckle, giving a shrug of her shoulders. "Barusu, as always, will remain so hard to take care of. He is lucky that he even has people to properly look out for him."
Emilia giggled at these words, her eyes filling over with some sort of glimmer…as her gaze towards Subaru deepened ever so slightly.
"Yeah...but no matter how much of a handful he can get, I'll always be happy to spend time with him."
To anyone else, her words would simply seem like a happy declaration of her deep bond with Subaru.
To Ram, it was an obvious conclusion. The sparkles in her eyes, the way her voice rose ever so slightly, the way her breath seemed to slow, and her hands subconsciously moved to her heart...Emilia was a maiden in love, even if she didn't realize it, yet.
'It needs to be tonight.' Ram's thoughts were instant, and precise. This banquet could be dangerous...if she allowed Subaru and Emilia to be alone, then Ram could possibly lose her chance, forever.
The source of light in the life, the only one that was capable of dragging her from the darkness, her Subaru, forever connected to another woman.
She needed to make a move, and now.
"Emilia-sama, you know that at most of these occasions, the guest of honor must be properly accompanied by a well-dressed servant…"
Subaru looked in the mirror, grinning to himself as he looked over the outfit he was wearing. It was a simple suit, but Subaru figured it looked pretty good on him. If there was one thing Roswaal and his family never seemed to skimp out on, it was good clothes.
There was a knock at his door. Subaru looked up expectantly, a big smile on his face. Maybe Emilia had come to show him her outfit a few moments before they were due to go?
"Come in!" He replied, trying his best to keep the excitement in his voice from sounding too obvious.
The door, opened, and Subaru held his breath...only to let it go as soon as he saw the twinkle of pink hair entering in through his room.
"Maaan, you really got my hopes up. It's just you, Ra-"
Whatever he was saying got caught in his throat, as Ram fully entered the room. Her appearance completely overcame any smart words he could say.
She was wearing some sort of skintight red dress, one that seemed to almost stick to her body. Ram wasn't exactly 'voluptuous' by regular standards, but her body had an alluring sort of curviness to it...and what she was wearing accentuated all of those curves.
It had floral markings covering it from top to bottom, wrapping all the way around the clothing. She folded her arms, her arms pressing together her chest tightly, even more clearly seen through the fabric.
And lastly, there was a slit to both sides of her thighs, teasingly leading up to where he could almost see beneath...but running just short.
"Hmm…~" Ram's smug hum drew Subaru from his thoughts, his cheeks turning red despite Ram not even saying anything. "I suppose that it is only fair that a pervert like you would be left speechless, Barusu. I can practically feel your lecherous eyes running over my body."
She smirked, almost purposefully pressing her slim thighs together to tantalizingly tease what was beneath. Subaru gulped, his imagination running wild.
Still, it was odd..if he remembered right, that was a..."China dress? Uh...w-where would you find something like that, Ram?"
The girl tilted her head at his question, taking a seat right down on his bed. "I'm not aware of the odd name you use for it. I simply asked Beatrice-sama to assist me in creating something similar to your desires for a more 'casual' dress code. She suggested this."
Subaru looked away, holding up a shaking fist.
'D-Damn it, Beako! You're supposed to give that sort of misleading advice to Emilia-tan, not Ram!'
He could almost tell that this was just one huge joke being pulled on him by his contractor. And knowing that Ram was far from naive, he had no doubt that she was enjoying this, too.
Sadly, he would never know that Ram and Beatrice were, indeed, deep partners in crime.
The maid lightly chuckled. "Seeing your flustered reaction, I can truly say that wearing this outfit was much too worth it, Barusu. Not to mention…" Her red eyes scanned over him, chills running up Subaru's spine that immediately made him stand straight.
A satisfied smile came to the face of the Oni. "Surprisingly, you don't clean up too badly. If only you would put aside that tracksuit, and dress like this more often...perhaps people would take you more seriously?"
"Psh, no way! Besides, you, uh...you know how important that is to me, right, Ram?"
The way his voice slightly faltered made Ram pause, her eyes taking on a momentary dimming. She realized she had gone too far...she had hurt Subaru. She had hurt him.
"Of course. Ram was simply playing around with your feelings, as usual." She slowly and sensually made her way up from the bed, her dress once again distracting Subaru. "At the very least, you should allow Ram to work on that hair of yours from time to time. It is a true disaster."
Subaru's shoulders slumped at those irrefutable words. He huffed and turned to the mirror, murmuring something about how he was handling it just fine.
"...By the way," He finally spoke up, looking back at her with a curious raise of his eyebrow. "Just why are you dressed up? If I remember right, only Emilia-tan and I are supposed to go."
Hearing the name of the girl she was beginning to despise, Ram's smile imperceptibly faltered for a moment, before reverting back to it's usual self.
"...Emilia-sama granted me the opportunity to officially accompany you as your servant. You may not be a noble, but as the guest of honor of an entire event, it would be rather unsightly if you did not have one, correct?"
Subaru gave her a blank stare, pointing a finger at her. "Oi. You really just took advantage of Emilia-tan's innocence to hitch a free ride to come along, didn't you?"
"Ram has no idea what you could be talking about. It seems your delusions are as strong as always." Ram resisted the urge to let her smile grow ever wider.
Truly, it was only Subaru who could understand her so well...Roswaal saw her as nothing but a tool, and she was distant friends with Frederica and Garfiel, at most. In the nearly full year Subaru and Ram had spent bonding, he'd become closer to her than anyone in the mansion.
There was no way she would let him go to such an event alone with that...witch.
"Well, whatever." Subaru sighed, a small smile coming to his face. "That's fine. You've always got my back, and I've always got yours. That's what we promised, right?"
"Yes. It is a promise that Ram shall never forget...frankly, Barusu needs to take responsibility for making Ram this wa-"
"Okay, okay, teasing over! We need to keep in mind that we gotta get to the dragon cart, soon. Emilia's coming with us, after all! I'm sure she's waiting for us already. Hehe, I'm honestly curious to find out just what she came up with to wear…"
Seeing Subaru so quickly divert his attention away from her, Ram began to feel those instincts of hers ready to take over again...the voice in her head which told her to simply grab Subaru, and take what was hers – no, give him what she knew he wanted...what she knew they both wanted.
'I won't let you think about that girl so easily.' Ram thought, slowly making her way over to Subaru, who seemed to be self-consciously making some last-effort fixes to his hair in the mirror. 'Your thoughts should always be on Ram...and I will remind you why.'
Ram made her way over behind the distracted Subaru, her hands slowly moving up along his back, to rest on his shoulders. He froze, his entire body going rigid as he felt Ram's soft hands on him.
"A-Ah, miss big sister, just what are you doing, there?"
"Ram noticed that your suit was adjusted rather sloppily, as is to be expected of you, Barusu. I could not bear to watch it, so I'm fixing it." She explained simply, her body pressing against his back as her hands snaked down towards his collar.
The raven-haired boy was unable to reply, almost like putty in Ram's hands, eyes closed as he felt every single curve touch against his back. If he thought looking at her body through the skimpy dress was bad enough, this was almost like a purposeful test of his courage.
'Subaru is so cute when he's flustered like this...I truly can't get enough of teasing him.'
"Hmm..truly, Ram can't leave you to do anything on your own. I sometimes wonder how you would function without her and Beatrice-sama. Especially knowing how quickly your eyes can wander...Ram knows that you must be imagining what is below this dress..."
Ram's words carried with them a certain playfulness, her warm breath tickling his ears as she spoke her sultry words. Subaru shivered in place, but was unable to move, as Ram's hands slid further down his suit, her hands properly adjusting it further on his body.
He could practically smell whatever scent she was wearing coming off of her, a light smell that reminded him of something like freshly plucked roses.
'Can you smell it, Subaru? Ram made sure to pick out this special scent, just to catch your nose...I even made sure to give you a little show…' Ram let out a short exhale, her soft body pressing even further against Subaru's hard back. 'Ram wouldn't even object to you taking her right here and now...just like you belong to Ram, Ram belongs to you...Ram is yours…'
Ram's breathing grew hot and heavy, as these thoughts rolled over in her mind. Subaru was now sweating, his hands trembling as Ram moved her hands to rest atop his, giving them a squeeze, as if trying to override the touch that Emilia had previously given him.
"There. Ram is finished." The Oni simply announced, as she pulled her hands away from the boy, taking two steps back.
"H-Huh?" Subaru opened his eyes, seeming almost surprised at the sudden ceasing of Ram's touch. He looked back at her. "U-Uh, yeah...thanks, Ram."
He felt dazed as he looked into the mirror once more, checking over how well Ram had fixed his clothing. His eyes widened, as he looked himself over with a double-take.
"Oh, geez! You really did get good at stuff like this, didn't you, Ram? This looks way better than when I put it on!"
"But of course. Ram was already perfect, but she has only become even more perfect, with the honing of her skills. Frankly, you should endeavor to keep up, Barusu."
The boy let out an exasperated smile. "No thanks...I'll help where I can, but I'm happy to not be working as a servant anymore. That was real tiring. Makes me admire what you guys do even more."
Ram gave a pleased smile. She wished to tell him how she had practiced all of that just to help him, just to be of more use and help to the man who meant the most to her in the world...but she knew she had to hold it in. Just as she kept her true feelings hidden behind her unique nickname for her, and her mask of insults and playful aggression.
But tonight, that would all change. Tonight, Ram would finally seize her chance.
She would completely and utterly destroy her single true rival, and claim the love of the man she wanted so badly for herself. No...soon, she would be the only one he would have to turn to.
"Now then, we should get going to the carriage, Barusu. If we leave earlier, we can avoid any unfortunate consequences. Considering the bad luck you seem to harbor, Ram would rather be safe than sorry."
"Hey-! My luck's pretty good! Or, maybe, more like decent...more like...hey, stop giving me that smug grin-!"
"Just for that utterly unbelievable attempt at lying, I'm going to have to punish you by adjusting your clothing once more, upon our arrival."
"Oh come oooon!"
Subaru's dismayed cry echoed out through the mansion, with Ram giving no other reaction but amused laughter.
The trip to the party was rather uneventful. Because they had left during the morning to save time, they were scheduled to arrive at night, approximately during the beginning of the event.
And so, they walked in. Subaru, with Ram trailing behind him, and Emilia, who (regretfully, for Ram) received the privilege of walking side-by-side to him due to her status as his master, along with her status as a Royal Candidate.
It was a rather extravagant occasion, to be honest. There were people from all noble classes, royal knights, Ram was pretty sure she even saw some people from the other camps, but wasn't exactly sure. Or, moreso, she didn't truly care.
The entire time, her eyes were on Subaru. He shined brighter than anything inside of that room. Ram couldn't look at anything besides him..and it made her so proud to see him living up to his reputation, and being recognized for it.
Once he had been properly awarded for his achievements, it was on to the 'party' portion of the whole debacle. Here, Ram would walk around with Subaru by his side, as he attempted his best to make his way to find Emilia, who had gotten lost in the huge crowd of people.
To be honest, this was more annoying than anything else. First, they had to deal with the annoying stuffy nobles, who seemed to wish to curry favor with Subaru, more specifically, wishing to receive favor from the man behind the camp.
Ram found them incredibly cowardly. They were too afraid to approach a silver haired half-elf like Emilia about such matters, so they crowded her Subaru en-masse. It took all she had not to slaughter each and every one of those slime bags on the spot.
The next was the most annoying group...the women who were interested in the hero that was Natsuki Subaru.
She truly had to stay her hand, as the urge for genocide rose in her soul.
"Excuse me, Natsuki-sama!"
"Natsuki-sama, please allow me a moment of your time."
"Natsuki-samaaaa, please dance with me!"
Of course, Ram's jealous imagination was likely only exaggerating how they truly sounded, but she did not care. They were annoying, like mosquitoes that wouldn't leave her Subaru alone. Ram would take greedy, cowardly bureaucrats over these women, any day.
'They're not even worthy enough to speak his name. They want him only because of what he's done, not because of who he is. I'm sure some are even thinking of using him to force their way up to the top. The worst type of women.'
As much as she disliked Emilia, she could at least tell that the half-elf was earnest in her love of Subaru.
What was even more annoying was the times when her contractor's attention would actually wander, and he seemed to get taken off-track by some of those temptations. Seeing the lust in his eyes, even if she knew he would not act upon it, irritated her.
Still, it gave her a rather useful tool – it gave her the opportunity to slip away.
'This is the moment.' Ram muttered, her eyes trailing to the side. In reality, she had been keeping an eye on Emilia's location the entire time. The half-elf's location was always being tracked right at the edge of her vision. Purposefully, she had been leading him around in circles.
'Forgive me for any temporary pain this may cause you, Subaru...but I promise that Ram is only doing this for our future together. While well-intentioned, Emilia-sama cannot bring you the happiness that Ram can...and this is simply for insurance.'
Upon seeing Emilia dip into an empty room, Ram began to walk forward, stealthily leaving the side of Subaru and disappearing into the crowd.
"S-Sorry, I wish I could dance with you, but I've got someone I'm looking for right now. You're a really nice girl, though!" Subaru held both hands up, as he rejected one of the interested girls.
"Very well then...I do hope you keep me in mind, Natsuki-sama." The most recent girl departed with a courteous bow. As she disappeared, Subaru let out a relaxed sigh, looking to his side.
"Man, they really just kept coming, eh, Ra-...Ram?" He blinked, noticing that the usually ever-present maid was now nowhere to be seen. "Ah, dang…" He rubbed the back of his head. "She must've gotten lost in the crowd, like Emilia-tan…"
Emilia let out a sigh as she sat down on a bed. She had ducked away into a guest room, one she figured was usually used for, the residents of this mansion when it was not in use for events such as this.
Frankly, she had been getting overwhelmed by the crowd…a few people came up to her, but most people were either enjoying the event, or crowding around Subaru. She could barely make any space to get to him.
"I didn't even get to see Subaru after he received his praise...I wish I could have at least told him congratulations, or danced with him…" The half-elf looked down dejectedly, a small pout on her face.
At the very least, she could use this time to catch her breath, and get away from that large crowd.
'I wonder if he would have complimented my dress again...it did make me reeeeally happy when he did it in the carriage.'
Just as she thought that, however, the doorknob twisted to the side. Emilia breathed in deeply, as she expected some sort of stranger to enter in...but it was only…
"Ram?" Emilia's voice rose as she noticed the pink-haired maid, who entered with a small smile.
"Yes, it is me, Emilia-sama. I saw you stowing away into this room, and thought to check on you. Barusu can handle himself for a few moments, it's quite obvious that you're not too used to these sorts of large social events." Ram slowly walked in, sitting down besides her. The half-elf gave a guilty smile.
"Yeah...I wanted to come here and have a fun time with Subaru, but, it seems like I haven't really gotten over that shy part of me, yet."
"There's no need to rush it, Emilia-sama. Subaru is a patient man, I'm sure that he wouldn't blame you for it. I believe we both know that."
Emilia gave a bright smile, nodding slowly at Ram's words. "That's right. Subaru is really forgiving, isn't he?"
"Sometimes, too much so." Ram agreed.
The two girls shared a heartfelt laughter...or at the very least, that was how it appeared to Emilia. However, in Ram's heart, the darkness that she had kept buried for the past few months began to rise again…
Her hand brushed over a hidden pocket in her seemingly pocket-less dress, a smile growing on her as she was able to reaffirm that the contents of it were still there.
"Emilia-sama...it truly has been a long time since Barusu came into our lives, has it not?"
"Mhm. He really changed everything...he changed all of us...he...he means so much to me." Emilia admitted truthfully, an unabashed smile coming to her face.
'And he means even more to me. More than he could ever mean to you.'
Ram put her thoughts aside, her smile slowly forming into a thin one. She reached into the hidden pocket and pulled out some gloves, silently sliding them onto her fingers.
"I know. Ram feels the exact same way, after all. It did take me quite a bit to warm up to him...but once she did, Ram realized one thing…"
"What's that?" Emilia looked up, curious at just what Ram was going to say next.
"There is no possible way that Ram could ever share him with you."
"...What? H-Hrk!"
Emilia didn't even have time to react, as something sharp and thin, yet sturdy, wrapped its' way around her neck, and began to choke her, cutting into her neck.
"G-Grgh.. .r..g…" Nothing but gargled noise escaped her windpipe, as she choked on her own spit and blood, that had began to flood her throat.
She flailed her arms around desperately, trying something, anything to live. She tried to fire off magic spells, but for some reason, she couldn't use magic. Her physical strength seemed to be completely failing her.
"Die! Just die, already! Ram doesn't want to drag this on for any longer than she needs to! Stop holding Ram back from returning to her Subaru's side!" Ram's voice barked from behind her, words yelled as if she was in a frenzy. Emilia could feel that the Oni's foot was planted firmly into her back, used as leverage to drive the item choking her even further into her neck.
Hearing those words, Emilia's brain, slowly becoming more and more oxygen-deficient, recognized that voice as an entirely different person. It didn't sound like the calm, confident, somewhat brash Ram she knew...it was like a monster was controlling her.
Some thing that wanted nothing more than to reap her life.
Emilia realized it at that point – she had walked into this room, to her death.
'S-Subaru, please...pleass..e.s..e…Su...baru….'
Her arms fell down at her side, as she lost control in the rest of her body. Everything was becoming numb, and disconnected. She could feel her consciousness slipping away.
Everything was becoming cold...everything was becoming dark...no, no, she didn't want to die!
"Rg...g.h.g..h…" Her frantic attempts at screaming now turned into low, barely audible grunts. Her movement was now reduced to nothing but short bursts of twitching.
This was it. Emilia's body was on the brink of death.
As she sat there, falling into the great darkness, Emilia's brain could only form one more question -
'Ram...why?'
Ram was hyperventilating as she felt Emilia's body go limp, dropping her handle on the thin wire she had been using to choke her to death.
"Haah...hah…" She stared down into Emilia's eyes, which seemed to be confused...as if she was asking her a question, even in death. She stepped off of the bed, throwing the gloves she had been wearing into the air. "Fula."
With that simple chant, the gloves were torn into shreds, reducing every single piece of them into nothingness.
Breath by breath, Ram calmed herself down, straightening out her clothing, hair, and making her facial expression.
She had done it. She had killed her. Emilia was dead, now...she had fed the void inside her with a corpse, all for the sake of chasing the love of the man who had been trying his best to stop her from having such thoughts, in the first place.
"I'm sorry, Subaru...I'm sorry, Emilia-sama…" Ram looked down at her hands. "...But I simply couldn't control myself."
She had let it consume her. The void had taken her over, and now she walked a path which would inevitably doom Subaru to having a similar void open up in his soul…
Discarding those thoughts, Ram made her way to the door, stopping only once more to look back at Emilia.
"...Don't resent me for this, Emilia-sama. I am simply trying to protect the little that I have left. That's...that's right. That was all Ram did."
For the first time in her life, Ram sounded unsure of herself.
"R-Ram?! Ram, where the heck are we going?"
Out of nowhere, Ram had returned to Subaru's side, looking ever-so-slightly disheveled. But instead of keeping her snarky, sly attitude, she had simply grabbed his wrist, dragging him along somewhere.
They got further and further away from the party, into a hallway with a bunch of rooms. Ram looked to the left, and seemingly shook her head, then turned her gaze to the nearest door on the right. She walked the both of them inside, locking the door behind the both of them.
Subaru affixed the girl with a worried gaze.
"Geez, why did you just drag me inside here like that? Did you need to talk, or something?"
His eyes stared at her with confusion. Those small, intimidating eyes, focusing right on her. Those eyes, filled with worry, and care...those eyes, that had been filled with love for the girl she just killed.
Without warning, Ram threw Subaru down onto the bed, easily pinning him down by his shoulders with her superior strength. He looked up at her, his worry changing into full-on-panic.
"R-Ram?! What the heck are you d-"
"Subaru…" Ram's voice came out low, her crimson eyes staring directly into his dark brown eyes. "I need this right now...I need you."
Her words left him in utter shock. Not only did she forego her usual nickname for him, but even for Ram's forward nature, this was something beyond her simple teases.
The girl was panting, and he could feel the warmth of her breath, and her body pressed right against him. She was quite literally laying on top of him…
"Wh, I...I mean, I'm really happy to know that you feel that way, but, you know, Ram…Emilia…"
"Can't you just forget about Emilia-sama for one night?! Ram is here for you...Ram is the one here right now!" She yelled, clearly agitated by his words on a dead woman. Her outburst further shocked Subaru, bu he didn't flinch this time. He took a deep breath, feeling his usually unwavering determination shaking.
The boy had to admit, he did feel lonely. Emilia hadn't really said anything to him after he confessed to her, and it wasn't like he wasn't a growing man, with his own needs…
Ram was right here...looking into his eyes, tears dripping down her cheeks. It was the first time he had ever seen her so torn up, so emotionally broken since...since Rem.
"Ram…"
"Ram needs this...please...Ram can feel it trying to consume her again...Ram can feel it, like she's about to fade away, like she can't find what it means to be in this world again…" She murmured, hands gripping tightly onto her chest. "Please...Subaru...please...stop turning Ram away...please...fill Ram...be Ram's heart...don't leave her empty..."
Ram's lips brushed against the bottom of his chin, the touches of their bodies together producing a heat that drove away any deeper rational thought in their heads.
Subaru was getting lost in the heat of the moment. It, it wasn't really wrong, if he just gave into it for one night...it wasn't as if he and Emilia were officially dating anyways, and he could just keep this as a...as a one-time-thing.
"Subaru…" Ram's voice broke him out of his thoughts, as she brought her lips closer to his. Subaru did not fight back, instead gently wrapping his arms around Ram's back as she closed the distance between them.
Once their lips pressed together, as soon as Subaru felt that perfect sensation of their lips melding together, as if being melted into each other by the heated that their bodies were producing...it was a passion that overtook any resistance he had left.
Subaru knew that this would not be a 'one time thing', as he desperately attempted to rationalize.
He had fallen into the temptation that was Ram, and he could already tell, he would become hopelessly addicted.
The sounds of their hot, brief, and explosive passion filled the room, muted out only by the sound of the party going on outside. Their bodies melded and mixed, as they explored every single inch of one another. Ram filled up Subaru's heart more and more, as he only magnified the large spot that he already occupied within hers.
That day, Ram and Subaru did not return to the mansion.
Emilia's body was found the next day. The death was called to be strangling, and there was no possible culprit that could be identified.
Subaru couldn't save her. The save point was that morning. Emilia was gone from the world, forever.
Natsuki Subaru's heart became empty. And every night, Ram would fill it with pink. Filling each other's hearts, day by day, that was the only way either of them could afford to live anymore.
Recently, every time he closed his eyes, Subaru dreamed of pink.
It was a beautiful pink, a pink that took over his life, a pink that enabled him to live, a pink that was all he had left.
"Who are you?" He would ask.
"I am your heart. And you are mine."
Ram's crimson eyes would look right back at him.