A/N: Big shoutout to Thanette for catching the smaller grammar problems in the last set of uploads. I hope you enjoy this new chapter!
Chapter 26: Hot Tatoes
Lyra's mind is filled with cloudiness. From what she could tell, she was slipping in and out of consciousness many times. The first few times she had, she had heard voices, frantic ones at that. Without being able to discern what the voices were exactly saying however, Lyra could form no opinion or thoughts on the matter. Still, with her occasional momentary bouts with being conscious came pain, but it seemed with each time she came to, the pain was a little less.
At times she could feel her hand being held. Throughout the experience, these hands seem to have changed. Lyra could tell at one point Rem had been one of these hands, as she felt the ever-so-slightly weathered hand of a hard-working maid. The next thing she had felt was a larger hand, not by much, but with much-softer skin. Not as warm, but also not holding it as confidently as Rem would have. A few semi-conscious wake ups later another hand held hers, this time much smaller in size. With these few times, Lyra had noticed most of her pain had subsided during this time. Finally, one last hand held hers, although only briefly. Lyra had felt the initial grab and let-go, letting her know it was only for a few moments. At first, Lyra had believed that this hand had belonged to Rem, but it was just softer than hers. It also did not conform to her hand like Rem's always did.
Lyra was woken up by her own breathing. Her throat was dry. She had been mouth breathing, but the way she was able to take in the cold fresh air was extremely satisfying, as if she hadn't been able to do so for a while. Trying to wet her own throat, Lyra felt the tingle of sunlight on her eyelids, prompting them to open.
Fully expecting to see her own room or perhaps even the guest room, Lyra at this juncture was nonetheless confident she hadn't died. What caught her off guard, however, was the ceiling above her. Rather than the ornate, decorated ceilings adorned with crown molding, whitewashed to a near-blinding bright shade of the mansion, Lyra was instead greeted by wooden rafters and the underside of a slatted roof.
Noticing the unexpected change of scenery, Lyra also felt the bedding.
Gone were the smooth, freshly-washed sheets and plush pillows of the mansion. Lyra quickly discerned that what was covering her, while soft, was much more coarse, as they were hand-weaved blankets of considerable age. While still clean, they smelled not of fresh laundry, but rather that of a recent, warm sunny morning, capturing the smell of the day it was last washed and left out to dry on the line.
Mustering her strength, Lyra sat herself up. With a quick look around the room, it was clear she was not at the mansion, but was rather in the bedroom of a quaint cottage.
Wood furniture, ornate rugs, and tiny knickknacks covered the room as she looked about. The sun's light that had woken up Lyra had found itself through the many moth-eaten holes in the thin white curtains that hung over the window. Before she could finish scanning her vision across the room, a voice called out to Lyra in a hurried, hushed tone.
?: Oh! Good morning, Lyra.
Without being given a chance to turn and face the direction the voice came from, a vestige of gray filled Lyra's morning eyes.
Puck: You seem to be feeling much better!
Lyra's vision came to focus on the little gray floating cat before him.
Lyra: Ahh...uhh... yeah... I guess—
?: Lyra. Goodness, I didn't expect to see you up so soon.
With another voice coming from the direction Puck's had, this time a loud whisper, Lyra was finally given the chance to look over and see.
In another bed across the room, Subaru was sitting up in a position similar to that of Lyra's. Next to his bed though was a slumped over silver-haired half-elf sitting in a chair.
Raising a finger to Emilia, Lyra pointed at the sleeping girl, trying to also be quiet.
Lyra: What's Emilia doing—?
Puck: Lia got so worried late last night after the three of you hadn't returned for hours that she insisted that she and Ram come to make sure you were all okay.
Lyra: O-oh...
Puck: It's a miracle she did too. After Rem dragged you both out of the forest, she only had enough mana to stabilize Subaru's injuries before Lia was able to stabilize yours.
Turning to look again at the half elf as she slept, Lyra couldn't see her face, but she could tell by the way her body was slumped up against the wall she was next to in her chair that had been rather exhausted before doing so.
Lyra: W-wait...Subaru's injuries'?
Going to scratch the back of his head, Subaru gave a weak smile before answering.
Subaru: Yeah... The mabeasts got me pretty good after you were nearly buried alive, but ...uh... Emilia-tan patched me right up, good as new.
Lyra Emilia saved both of us, then, huh?
Crossing his little gray arms and shaking his head, Puck answered.
Puck: Not entirely. While Lia IS a skilled healer, she was only able to keep you from bleeding out, not heal you up entirely. Subaru's injuries were also pretty bad, but she has just enough skill and mana left after stabilizing you to fix him up completely. That's why Lia is so zonked out. She worked herself down to her Od.
Lyra looked back at Emilia, who was sitting still and leaning up against the wall as she was, chest and back rising with each breath.
Wrapping his arms around himself, Subaru flopped about.
Subaru: Ooooohhh! Emilia-tan is just so cute when she sleeps!
Puck: Shhh!
Bringing a paw up to his mouth, Puck shushed Subaru in a loud whisper.
Puck: You won't be able to watch her cute sleeping self if you wake her up!
Also bringing her voice to a whisper once more, Lyra posed the question that was on her mind.
Lyra: So, if it wasn't Rem because she was out of mana, and it wasn't Emilia because of the severity of the wound, just how BADLY was I injured and WHO was it that healed me?
Puck: You were so banged up that we needed to drag Beatrice out of the mansion to come down here and heal you herself.
Subaru: B-Beatrice left the mansion for THAT?!
Lyra Puck: Shhhh!
Subaru: S-sorry...
Turning back to each other after scolding Subaru, the two continued.
Puck: Lia was able to slow down a lot of the internal bleeding, but there wasn't a thing she could do about the broken ribs you had.
Putting a hand to her chest and abdomen area, Lyra felt her ribs and took a deep breath. Nothing felt out of the ordinary.
I'm going to have to find a way to thank everyone for what they did!
With nothing more being said at that moment, Subaru moved the blankets on himself to the side and put his feet on the floor.
Subaru: Well, now that everything has been said, I'm going to go check on the village children and make sure they're all doing alright.
Stretching out his little gray arms and yawning, Puck replied.
Puck: That's a good idea. I'll think I'll take a bit of a catnap till Lia wakes back up. There's no point in staying out and wasting mana, right?
Turning to Subaru, Lyra gave a reply.
Lyra: I'll come join you in a bit! Just give me a little bit to wake up a bit more and maybe do some stretches!
With a thumbs up, Subaru responded.
Subaru: Sounds good. Later.
Shutting the door gently behind him, Subaru was out, and not a second later did Puck materialize back into the crystal that hung from Emilia's neck.
Leaving out the front door of the cottage that she had been healed in, Lyra looked up to the bright late-morning sun that still hung in the sky.
Lyra: The fifth day, huh? This is my first time making it THIS far...
Reflecting back briefly on her past attempts both with and without Subaru, Lyra shook her head.
I just HAVE to make this run count! I won't let there be ANY more setbacks! I— no... WE'LL ALL get a good ending out of this!
With that, Lyra set out to look for Subaru. Lyra had no clue how far Subaru had gotten from the cottage. After Subaru had left, Lyra had done what she said she'd do and stretched a few times. It wasn't done so much as a routine or health benefit, but rather Lyra wanted to see if there was any pain that had gone untreated.
Without finding any bot of remaining pain, Lyra had made both hers and Subaru's beds so as to not be rude to their unknown host. Having done this, Lyra realized she hadn't paid attention to how much time had passed since Subaru departed and now had ZERO clue about what sort of radius she should search in to find him again.
But to Lyra's luck, as she stepped down from the porch and onto the street of the village, a familiar pink sight rounded the corner towards Lyra.
Carrying a basket of steamed tatoes, Ram saw Lyra as she was leaving the residence.
Lyra waved as a greeting, smiled, and walked up to Ram as she made eye contact with ber
Ram only stood and stared while Lyra came within talking distance, not wanting to unnecessarily raise her voice over the quiet morning neighborhood.
Lyra: Good morning, Ram. Have you seen Subaru running about anywhere?
Ram continued to quietly stare at Lyra for a moment before quietly talking to herself.
Ram: Beatrice-sama's magic really IS that good...
Hearing Ram just fine, Lyra was perplexed as to why Ram would say such a thing, as it was uncharacteristic of her to voice her thoughts out loud.
Lyra: Hm—?
Ram continued to look at Lyra, her bangs swaying slightly in the small breeze in which the narrow streets of the village permitted the wind to have.
Suddenly regaining her composure, Ram closed her eyes and spoke in a manner of smugness in effort to regain her perceived loss of social capital.
Ram: Ram sincerely thought that Raly would be dead by the next time she saw her.
Deducting what Ram's initial hesitation on her response to her greeting was caused by, Lyra realized that the last time Ram had seen her was when she was still incredibly injured.
Lyra: From what Puck and Subaru told me, I was pretty roughed up. If not for Beatrice, I probably would've ended up dying or something...
Ram: Yes, that is correct.
With her response leaving no extra room for continued conversation on the topic, Lyra asked her initial question again.
Lyra: Did you see Subaru wandering around, then?
Ram responded with a finger pointing over her shoulder. The direction in which she had pointed her finger led down the road and opposite from the cottage to the street that led to the town's merchant square.
Ram: Barusu was making the rounds of the village checking on the children who were rescued last night. He's currently in the town square with most of the adults getting praise for deeds that are not entirely his own and more than certainly making a fool of himself. Ram was on her way to keep him in check, as his boisterous reactions could reflect poorly on the rest of the staff.
Laughing lightly in response to Ram, Lyra spoke.
Lyra: Well, we better go stop him, then!
With Ram turning to head down the street as she originally intended, Lyra went up next to her and they walked together.
Lyra: So...is that what the tatoes are for, too?
Ram kept her gaze facing straight forward. Her bangs hid her facial expressions as Lyra looked at her.
Ram: Ram must unfortunately compensate the villagers for tolerating Barusu... and Barusu is also entitled to one of these as well for his actions. Speaking of which—.
Keeping her vision straight and not saying another word, Ram grabbed two of the tatoes from the basket with one hand and passed them to Lyra. The aroma of the cooked tatoes immediately reminded Lyra that she hadn't eaten in a while now. Lyra gave Ram a look of surprise at first before smiling and thanking her.
Lyra: Oh—! T-thank you, Ram!
Looking at the tatoes in her hands now while still walking, a great amount of guilt grew in Lyra.
I haven't even been able to thank ANYONE for saving me last night yet... and I'm still just receiving things from them out of their pure kindness when I've done NOTHING! How worthless AM I—?!
Looking downward, Lyra stopped. This caused Ram Ram to also stop and turn a pace or two ahead of him.
There was silence between the two as they both stood in the quiet, empty street.
Taking a deep breath, Lyra bowed towards Ram.
Lyra: I... I—
Taking another deep breath, Lyra steeled his nerves.
Lyra: I'm really appreciative of everything the mansion has given me— er, you, Rem, Roswaal, Beatrice, and Emilia have given me, with the opportunity to work and prove myself to you all.
Expecting Ram to say something, Lyra continued to bow in silence until continuing again.
Lyra: I-I'm sorry I haven't done anything worthwhile for all the effort given by you all for having to deal with my injuries last night. Please forgive me for the burdens I troubled you all with!
There was more silence between them, Lyra continued to bow until Ram finally spoke up.
Ram: Lyra.
Straightening her back, Lyra rose from her bow. She was confused as to why Ram hadn't used her curse-sounding pseudonym she had given her.
Ram: Do you not value Rem as much as Ram had thought?
Lyra: —hk!
Lyra couldn't respond to that.
What does she mean by that?! How does that relate to anything—
Ram: Well?
Lyra: W-what do you mean by "not value as much as you thought" ?
Still giving Lyra her usual expressionless stare and tone of voice, Ram responded.
Ram: You said you hadn't done anything "worthwhile". Was risking your life to save Rem's from the mabeasts meaningless to you,then?
Lyra: No! Not at all...
Ram: Then the combined efforts of the mansion's residents o save you should he an even trade, is it not?
Sighing, Lyra finally understood what Ram was trying to get across.
I guess this is just Ram's way of saying "thank you" and "you're welcome", isn't it? "Don't worry, we're even", maybe...even?
Nodding, Lyra answered
Lyra: Y-yeah! I guess it is!
Returning to how they were previously, the two walked together again, reaching the market square shortly.
Lyra: I'm going to guess he's over there among the crowd of people?
Ram: It appears we may be too late to save face. Certainly, Barusu has ALREADY tarnished our reputation with his foolish actions.
Walking up, Subaru noticed the two familiar faces approaching.
Looking back to the group of parents he was conversing with, Subaru spoke.
Subaru: Oh, excuse me. I have to talk to these two.
Slipping past a few more of the parents, Subaru made his way over to Ram and Lyra. With Subaru now occupied, many of the parents either started to disperse back to their homes or talk among themselves group-by-group.
Separating from Lyra, Ram headed directly to Subaru.
Subaru: Hey, Ram! Glad you made it down— MMHMM!
As the two had come face-to-face, without delay, Ram reached into her basket and shoved what might have been the hottest tatoe she'd made straight into Subaru's mouth.
Whether it was the heat or the force of the application, Subaru was knocked clean off his feet onto the ground where he had begun to roll around in pain at the scalding-hot tatoe in his mouth.
Subaru: MMMHHH MMMHHH—!
With the person whom the villagers were just praising now subdued by a simple steamed tatoe, everyone eyeballed the group now.
Using the attention to her advantage, Ram put on her kind and sweet maid persona and made her announcement to them.
Ram: Would anyone like a freshly-steamed tatoe? They're still warm!
Hearing her mock him, Subaru sat up and slapped the ground with his palms in protest as Ram brought the tatoes over to the villagers. He was still unable to speak with the tatoe halfway in his mouth.
Ram: It is not Ram's fault that Barusu is a wimp when it comes to hot food.
With that, Ram walked off as she passed out her steamed tatoes to the villagers.
Villager: Wow, these are good!
Villager: Yeah! They're the perfect temperature for eating,too!
Lyra could see the frustration and embarrassment growing on Subaru's still-stuffed face as she walked up to him.. As he turned towards Lyra, Subaru was met by a hand meant to help him up. Extending his own hand to take Lyra's, his hand quickly turned into an accusatory finger-point.
Lyra was taking a bite of her last tatoe. Hers, just like the rest, was not scalding-hot.
Lyra: Hey, don't give me that. I'm not dumb enough to go for a piping-hot one like YOU.are!
With Subaru's eyes telling Lyra "Not you, too?!", Subaru's expression changed to that of one of defeat. Changing his hand back to one to receive Lyra's, Subaru was helped up.
Finally taking the half-tatoe out of his mouth with a bite, Subaru chewed and swallowed.
Subaru: The villagers are right... It IS really good... Too bad I can't taste it now that my whole mouth is burned to a crisp!
Lyra: Oh, calm down! You're fine!
The two walked a short distance over to a bench that faced the market square, it was in fact the same one Lyra and Rem had sat on coming to the village just yesterday.
Subaru: Uhh...speaking of "fine" , how are you holding up?
Lyra: — ?
Subaru: You WERE pretty banged up after saving Rem...
Shaking her head, Lyra tried to recall what had happened after being buried by the mabeasts' attack. Not getting anywhere with her memory, Lyra shrugged off the thought.
Lyra: I can't remember anything after that...
Leaning back on the bench, Subaru answered.
Subaru: That's probably because you were out like a light...
Lyra: What happened after I was out?
Subaru's expression turned to that of second-hand embarrassment and sighed before sitting back up.
Subaru: After Rem got back up, I think the first thing she saw was you getting dragged away by the landslide...but I don't think she got to you before you passed out...
A vision of blue was the last thing that Lyra could remember seeing along with the feeling of someone caressing her face. Subaru continued.
Subaru: I think once she saw your injuries, she started to panic at that point, so she tried to dig you out. I set that girl we saved down and went over to help, but a few mabeasts blocked me from coming over...
Looking down at the ground, an air of frustration emanated from Subaru.
Subaru: With Rem busy helping you, I tried fighting off the few that were attacking me using Shamak...but they got the better of me. I thought I was going to get mauled to death... if we weren't so close to the village, I don't think they would have heard all of the screams and come to help...
Lyra was puzzled at the order of events.
Lyra: "They" ?
Subaru nodded forward to the crowd of parents still conversing in the market square. They were staying around mostly in part to Ram passing around her steamed tatoes to everyone.
Subaru: Either the landslide or the yelling got their attention... so, they came to help...
Looking closer at the villagers, Lyra could see bandages on some of their arms or legs, possibly covering wounds sustained from the attempted rescue.
Leaning back again on the bench, Subaru continued.
Subaru: They might not seem like much, but they WERE able to get the mabeasts off of me. After that, we all booked it back to the village and inside the barrier with the mabeasts not far behind.
Subaru looked over to Lura with a sympathetic expression and went on.
Subaru: I think the villagers were so caught up with trying to save me and bring back the girl with the braided hair that they forgot about you and Rem...
Lyra: —?
Lyra didn't know what Subaru had meant by that. Seeing this, Subaru sighed in response.
Subaru: I was barely conscious by the time the villagers helped me back inside the barrier before I realized that you and Rem weren't anywhere to be seen. In fact, the next time I saw you two, I was already in the cottage house bed with one of the elders bandaging me up.
Lyra: What? I thought Puck said Rem dragged us both out of the forest? So then, where were Rem and I in the meantime?
Crossing his arms in, Subaru's tone became more serious.
Subaru: I think with the villagers grabbing me and the girl bringing the mabeasts close to the village in pursuit, it cut off a safe route for Rem to carry you back to the village immediately.
Lyra: So it forced her to have to take the long way around? Couldn't she have just fought her way through and—
Cutting off Lyra, Subaru shook his head.
Subaru: At that point, Rem had no mana left. She was physically and mentally exhausted.
Lyra:If she didn't have any mana left, how did she stabilize your wounds?
Subaru rolled up his tracksuit sleeve and rubbed his other hand along the freshly-healed scars of bite marks along his arm before answering.
Subaru: *Sigh* The truth is... I wasn't all that injured. I WAS pretty messed up, sure, but it wasn't life-threatening, I wasn't gonna die, not like you were...
Looking back out to the villagers, Subaru was quiet for a moment, watching as they slowly began to wander off, lessening every minute in number, the groups getting smaller and smaller.
Subaru: After getting bandaged up, Rem practically kicked open the door to the cottage, carrying you in both arms and plopping you down in the bed across the room.
Shaking his head again, he continued
Subaru: I tried asking her what happened, why she took so long to get back and where she'd been, but she was so frustrated that I don't think she could even hear me...
Lyra: Frustrated?
Lyra had a hard time imagining Rem getting so frustrated that she could zone-out from someone trying to talk to her, even after seeing the oni-side of her come out.
Leaning forward on the bench, Subaru cupped his hands and looked down at the ground.
Subaru: She was down on her knees by your bedside trying her hardest to cast a healing spell.. and just... couldn't. She tried and tried and tried, getting more frustrated each time until she finally just gave in and cried...
Subaru's mind recalled what he had seen. Rem trying in earnest again and again to cast a spell with no mana at her command while being forced to watch Lyra slip closer and closer to death as she was powerless to do anything to stop it.
Subaru: I could hear her mumble about things like how she was blaming herself for being careless with her mana in-between her sobs... *Sigh* I can't tell you how much I wanted to be able to leave the room and give her privacy, so I did the next best thing I could and pretended to be asleep.
Lyra looked down at her hand, the one that had been held while she was asleep.
Rem was REALLY THAT upset, huh? Was she just upset with herself out of a sense of duty or was she upset about ME?
Learning that Rem had been so emotional in regard to herself, Lyra really didn't know how to feel. Was it self-centered or cruel to feel good knowing someone had been so concerned for her..or was that just part of being acknowledged by a good person? Lyra really didn't have time to ponder the morality of her feelings until Subaru continued.
Subaru: It wasn't really soon after that Ram and Emilia came by...
Subaru's memory replayed the scene in his mind as he recounted the events.