Subaru was lying on his bed. His arms wrapped around the woman he loved. Her beautiful green eyes and long brown hair made him feel safe and happy. Her arms were wrapped around his waist and her head was resting on his chest.
Subaru: "Morning sleepyhead"
Shaula woke up and looked up at him with an adoring smile. She moved her head up and nuzzled against his neck.
Shaula: "Good morning Subaru"
Subaru: "Come on. It's time to get up"
Shaula: "I don't wanna. I just want to lay here with you all day."
Shaula tightened her grip on him slightly. Subaru tried to get up
Subaru: "Come on Shaula. There's a big day ahead of us and-"
Shaula wasn't having any of her husband's excuses. She pushed him back onto the bed and swung one leg over his waist, straddling him. Subaru blushed, seeing as he had a thing for strong women, he felt excitement. Both of them smiled. Subaru tried to sit up, but Shaula pushed him back down. She brought her face down to his and their lips came together. Shaula wrapped her arms around Subaru's neck as he put his arms around her waist.
Their lips finally parted, foreheads still touching. Both were blushing profusely. Shaula brought her left hand to his face, caressing his cheek. Subaru took her right hand in his and intertwined his fingers with hers.
Subaru: "I love you Shaula"
Shaula: "I love you too Subaru"
And the two kissed again. Enjoying the warmth and softness of each other's lips.
Subaru remembered, a long time ago
Many years ago…
Subaru was lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He had decided to go straight to bed after dinner. He let out a depressed sigh.
Subaru: "Guess you are worthless huh"
Why was he depressed? It had been two months since Subaru had returned from Vollachia after being transported there against his will. After everything that had happened there with being hunted by Todd, those horrifying ten seconds of hell and what happened on the gladiator island, his number of deaths had piled up.
Is that why he was depressed? No. The Emilia camp had infiltrated Vollachia to save him and Rem and had ultimately managed to return to Lugunica with little consequences. Ultimately, Vincent agreed to a peace treaty with Lugunica and after helping him regain the throne, they were awarded for their efforts in the war. And another crazy bit of news was that Otto and Frederica were dating! Now that's news that he wasn't expecting to hear. Apparently, they started dating after the group returned to the mansion to pick up Frederica and Petra to infiltrate Vollachia.
Subaru laughed to himself
Subaru: "Those two are really cute together"
Also on top of that, Louis- sorry "Spica" had been taken on as a new maid for the Roswaal Manor and she had been placed in training with Rem. Everyone was a bit cautious and nervous about taking a former archbishop into their camp, but she had saved their lives on many different occasions, proving she wasn't a threat.
If news of Frotto made him happy for his best friend, why was he so depressed? Why was he so miserable?
Simple.
Because after a year and a half, Emilia still hadn't given him an answer to his confession. No acceptance, no rejection, nothing. He had hoped that after everything that had happened could have been enough to get her feelings sorted out. But even after Pristella, the Watchtower, and the ordeal in Vollachia, she still couldn't give him an answer.
Subaru and the Emilia Camp alongside Julius and Anastasia had retrieved the Dragon Blood from Volcanica, and Felix had engineered it to try and undo the effects of Lust and Gluttony's authorities in Pristella. And even though the blood was able to undo Lust's authority and restore all those transformed back to their old selves, the most that could be done for Gluttony was to wake up those who had been stricken with the sleeping beauty sickness.
The blood awakened people who'd had their names and memories eaten, but their names and memories never returned. That meant that the same thing applied to Rem who had awoken from her slumber over a year ago. Since she'd had her name and memories taken away, she remembered nothing about anything, not even her love for Subaru.
Meaning it's possible he'd never hear Rem call him 'Subaru-kun' again.
Emilia even after a year and a half still couldn't give him an answer to his confession, and Rem had lost her memories and may never get them back.
Subaru had tried to take his mind off how he felt by training, and spending time with Beatrice, but none of those things worked.
The door creaked open. He looked up to see his contracted spirit standing in the doorway.
Beatrice: "Are you alright? You seemed very distant during dinner, I suppose."
Subaru: "Hey Beako. No, it's nothing really"
Subaru sat up to greet her
Beatrice: "Don't say that. It's obvious something is bothering you, in fact."
She closed the door behind her, walked up to the bed and sat on Subaru's lap.
Subaru looked away, not wanting to say anything to her. Beatrice closed her eyes and sighed.
Beatrice: "It's Emilia, isn't it?"
Subaru: "U-u-uhh no, it's–"
Beatrice: "Betty isn't stupid I suppose! It's clear that her not giving you an answer is bothering you in fact!"
Subaru sighed. Beatrice got up from his lap and looked at his face. He saw his eyes were slightly red. He had been crying. Beatrice was furious. She cared about Subaru deeply and only wanted him to be happy. And since she knew that Emilia still hadn't been able to come up with an answer after a year and a half, she was not happy with her. So, she had left dinner shortly after Subaru left, to check on him. And as she thought, all the time Emilia had made him wait was starting to get to him.
Subaru: "Beatrice, it's ok. Emilia's just…taking her time. It's not fair to force her to give me an answer and put unnecessary pressure on her. Especially when she's dealing with the Royal Selection."
Beatrice let out an annoyed sigh. She did not like the fact that her contractor had such little self-respect, that he allowed Emilia to treat him the way she had. She swallowed her annoyance and sat back down on his lap.
Beatrice: "You really are an idiot, I suppose"
Subaru: "Yeah, I love you too my sweet Beako!"
Subaru changed his tone and hugged her. Beatrice pouted.
Subaru then stood up and spun her around.
Beatrice: "SUBARUUUUU! PUT ME DOWN I SUPPOSE!"
Meili: "Looks like you've perked up, Onii-san"
Subaru and Beatrice turned around to see Meili standing in the door. She had her hands behind her back. She was hiding something from them.
Beatrice: "Who gave you permission to come in here, I suppose?"
Meili: "Don't be so uppity drill-haired nee-chan. I'm here to cheer up Onii-chan."
Subaru put Beatrice down as Meili walked up to them.
Subaru: "Hey Meili. Sorry for leaving so abruptly. What have you got there?"
Meili: "Well. You were looking pretty down Onii-chan. So I brought you something to cheer you up. Or…"
Meili brought her hands in front of her to reveal…
Meili:"...I should say someone."
A small red scorpion.
Subaru immediately recognized the scorpion as Shaula, the sage's apprentice he had met in the Pleiades Watchtower. Subaru smiled warmly and held his hand out. The scorpion crawled from Meili's hand over to Subaru's hand. Subaru petted the scorpion on the head with his other hand.
Subaru remembered when he first met Shaula. He got annoyed at her clinginess and how she constantly made advances on him. He regretted how he treated her, she may have been clingy and obsessive, but could you blame her? She had been isolated in the Watchtower for over 400 years! Of course, she'd be clingy! And then what happened next was painful to think about. When the rules of the Watchtower were broken, she transformed into her scorpion form and became a ruthless killing machine. He had died quite a few times before she had finally been beaten.
Her last words before she disappeared broke him
"Master, I love you"
"I waited for you, now it's your turn to wait for me"
Subaru: "Sorry Shaula. I should have been better. You'd still be human if I had been stronger"
Beatrice and Meili saw a few tears slip down his cheeks.
Meili: "Hey, come on Onii-chan. What happened to naked Onee-san wasn't your fault. I don't think she'd like it if she saw you like this."
Meili's words caught Subaru off guard.
Beatrice: "That clingy girl became the way she is because the rules forced her to be that way, I suppose."
Subaru sighed. He remembered seeing Shaula in her last moments, turning to dust, and a small scorpion emerging from the dust. He sat down on the bed, still petting Shaula.
At that moment, he had an idea. He thought it sounded a bit strange but…
Subaru: "Hey Meili, Beako. I've made a decision. And I need you to hear me out."