-Shannon L. Alder

Author's Note: Hey everyone! Just wanted to let you know we've started up a "Best Waifu" poll for this story. We do this occasionally but I've never plugged it in my branch; since I know a lot of you don't get on Discord, I wanted to link it here. There are two parts - the top section is for your favorite waifu of all time between all branches, and the bottom one is multiple-choice for you to select all the girls you like, no limits! Please give the authors of this story some feedback by taking a minute to fill out the poll, and show your favorite waifus some love! Poll can be found right here.

When their embrace finally ended, neither John nor Seras seemed to have anything else to say. Perhaps there was nothing that needed to be said. They stood there for a time, alternating between looking awkwardly away from each other and even more awkwardly at each other. Occasionally, one would raise a hand or open their mouth to speak, then fall silent again as they went over what they wanted to say or do in their head again and found it lacking. That continued for almost a full minute.

"I, err, I should go back. Don't wanna leave 'em wonderin' what we're gettin' up to out 'ere, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, that's probably a good idea. Rumors spread like wildfire around here," John replied absently. "I'll be back soon, just going to stay here and think for a bit."

"Um… thank you, Master."

Seras gave an awkward bow, adorable both because of the blush coloring her cheeks and how appropriate it felt for her not to curtsy. Then she was off, walking perhaps a little faster than she needed to. John watched her go until she was almost out of sight. To his surprise another figure entered his vision then, stepping out from behind a tree. John jumped a little but quickly recognized Moira, a troubled look on her face and her arms crossed as she stared at John. She didn't look angry, which was a surprise and a blessing. She seemed confused, if anything, but in a contemplative way. As her eyes traveled over John, she seemed to be having trouble with what to think of him. Just as John was getting ready to greet her - anything to break the silence - Moira finally spoke.

"Have you come up with an answer, then?"

"I, uh… remind me what the question was?"

Moira gave a sigh, crossing her arms and rolling her eyes as if the answer were so obvious.

"I asked you what these creatures meant to you. What they are to you. How important they are."

"Ah… right, that," John said, blushing as he realized there was no doubt Moira had been listening in on that conversation. "Hey, why did you follow us here anyway?! I was trying to get some privacy."

"I do not think you want to get into an argument over whose voyeurism is more deserving of scorn, John Newman," Moira cautioned, eyes as fiery as her hair for just a moment. "But if you must know, I wanted to see how you handled yourself and what you had to say to her. I asked you before what they were to you, but you didn't answer. I wondered if you knew yourself, so I wanted to see what you had to say to her and how exactly you said it. I'm starting to get the impression you value these… people more than a normal summoner would."

"What gave you that idea?" John asked dryly, fighting the urge to roll his eyes so hard they'd be lost to the back of his skull forever.

"Shut up," Moira replied, punching John in the shoulder. To her credit, it only barely stung - barely. The Warden seemed to have at least some sense of how powerful she was.

"No, but seriously, Moira, I’m as baffled by all this as you are. Remember that, a week ago today, I didn't even know that magic existed. Now imagine that in the span of time most people spend planning their weekends, I learned that magic is real, most of it wants to kill me, a real-life Paladin spends her weekends playing Dungeons & Dragons, and I have the power to do things that an actual fucking wizard finds ridiculous.

"I wish I could say that I understood everything I can do or that all these abilities were as natural for me to use as yours seem to be. But I don't, and they aren't. So this has all been a week-long journey for me, finding out a lot about myself and the others as we went along. I didn't know what they were to me because a lot of the time I literally didn't know what they were. But I think I'm starting to get an idea.

"As my creations, they're my responsibility. I need to build this world up and give them a suitable place to live. But it's more than that - they're not like having a pet. Well, the Nekos kind of are. But that's not the point, because they're so much more than just pets. They have intelligence, feelings, and the ability to learn, all to a degree that any normal animal can't match up to. Maera couldn't even speak when I first Purified her; now she can almost hold a conversation. So I can't just make sure they survive; I want them to have a chance at life. I brought them into this world; I won't hide them in ignorance or keep them in this world like a bunch of… bunch of…"

"Fetishistic sex slaves?" Moira suggested as John fumbled with words.

"No, actually, I'm starting to think they'd like that," John said with a sigh. "Well… maybe not Seras, but you saw how friendly the Nekos can be."

Moira blushed furiously, turning back toward camp, stomping loud enough that John heard each impact of her feet on the forest floor.

"Come along, John. We still have several hours, and it'll be almost morning by the time we return, if time even flows properly in this strange world. Does the sun even set?"

"Uh… it kind of sets whenever it wants to. I don't really know how to fix that; it wasn't in the menus. It's been day most of the time I was here."

"Menus? Menus for wh-" Moira stopped herself mid-sentence, pausing her steps, letting out a heaving sigh and rubbing at her temples as though the world's largest migraine had suddenly set upon her. Judging by the tone of her following words, it may actually have.

"I have many questions about you, John Newman, but none of them are ones I'm qualified to find answers to. Can you find a reason for more than one person to come over to your house next time? We will need to come to this world again."

"Actually, I can come over if you want," John suggested, shrugging. "I can access this place from anywhere - I just have to return to the same place I left."

Moira's eyebrow twitched as she very obviously fought back the urge to ask yet more questions, but she made no other comment besides to turn around and continue stomping away toward the camp.

"I don't- what?! Is that weird too?!"

The rest of the night was blessedly uneventful; though by the time all was said and done, they didn't have even close to a full night's sleep - and after the day that they had been through, including a near-**** experience for Moira and more emotional turmoil than John had expected out of his whole lifetime, it was all they could do to **** themselves awake when John's cooldown was finally ready.

"I seriously am not ready for this," John muttered. "It's gotta be what, five in the morning back home?"

"It's late enough that I should be returning home. I should never have left, but you seemed quite eager to have me here. I think I understand why now."

John in his half-asleep state could muster no reply. He gathered Seras and Moira close, hoping to get home and immediately get back to sleep after seeing Moira out of the house. The fracturing of the world left all of them standing awkwardly in John's living room. Glancing out the window, he saw that his mother was still gone, which was both a blessing and concerning. He hoped she wasn't really out of the state by now.

"Seras, go upstairs and head to bed… I need another power nap before we go shopping for clothes. Moira, I guess I should see you out since you need to get back."

John got an affirmation from both and quickly escorted Moira back toward the front door. He caught a glimpse of the clock on his way by - just a little after six. The mall wouldn't be open for at least two hours, and he had no intention of being conscious until well after that.

"Anyway… I realize I kind of dropped a lot on you in one night, but thanks for coming over, Moira. I don't know how much other new crap is gonna pop up, but I'm going to be more open with you. You can get your scientist or whatever and tell your father anything you want. I don't…"

John's mind flashed back to his Deception skill, how he cringed every time a success notification popped up.

"…I don't want to hide anything anymore."

"I appreciate your honesty, John Newman. I have been rather harsh on you, but if you understood the severity of your abilities, I think you might have a better idea why. That said…"

Moira clasped her hand on John's shoulder, and he felt the immense strength of her grip even in the friendly gesture. Her lips twitched upward, and for the second time that night, he saw a genuine blush creep across the young Warden's cheeks.

"You have a good heart. I think even where you have made the wrong choices, you have done so for good reasons. The Abyss is a depraved place, filled with selfish and unholy monsters that were once men. Too much evil exists in this world for me to look past the worst someone can be at times, but I… would be proud to call you a friend, John Newman."

Quest Completed: "I Fell in Love With the Paladin's Daughter (Part 1)"!
Reward: +250 XP, +Belt of Bonding

"Thanks, Moira," John said, smiling and trying not to stare too long at the pop-up.

"I'll see you on Monday."

With a last goodbye Moira was off, headed toward her bike in the early morning light. John waited until her motorcycle was blocked from view before he let out a yawn and stumbled back inside, barely remembering to lock the door.

"This was… an eventful day. Not too bad, considering my best friend almost died."

"Best friend," John repeated in his head, remembering the quest reward he'd just received. "That's really cool, but Moira still just got over thinking I was a rogue mage. She barely trusts me; she just thinks I'm a decent enough person that I'm probably not lying. Regardless of relationship, if I already completed the quest… how many friends does she have?"

That slightly troubling thought followed John up the stairs until he shut his door behind himself, managing to effectively lock all thoughts of anything but sleep out.

"We'll go shopping in the afternoon tomorrow, Seras," John groaned out, opening his inventory with one eye already closing, removing his shirt and equipping a pair of pajama pants. He'd left them abandoned more often than not, but with Seras sleeping in his room, he'd taken to not fully disrobing at night.

"Yes, Master."

"Gah!"

John leaped a good four inches into the air as the bed spoke to him - or rather, Seras did. To John's immeasurable surprise, she was curled up on one side of his bed, now upright as his startled shout brought both of them to full alertness.

"S-Seras, what are you doing?"

"Um… y-you told me I could sleep in the bed if I wanted, didn'tcha?" Seras asked innocently, hiding part of her face behind the sheets. What little John could see was a red that contrasted beautifully with the cold blue of her eyes.

"I, uh," John stumbled, trying to remember. It had only been a few days, but it felt like a lifetime, and his sleep-addled mind was not the best at recalling information. Still, that did sound familiar, and he thought that on the first night Seras had insisted on returning with him, he'd been rather indifferent to her sleeping accommodations.

"I suppose I did. Why did you decide to take me up on that now?"

"Well… I just really didn't want to be alone tonight," Seras said quietly. She didn't add to it or elaborate, but John didn't particularly need her to. Beneath the embarrassment was a fear he was now a little more adept at noticing - the same fear she'd shown since he revealed her origins. It was lesser but still there. John couldn't say he was surprised; no matter how high his Charisma stat, a fear like that wasn't something anyone could escape with a single reaffirmation.

"I understand, Seras. There's plenty of room, I don't mind. I could use the company anyway." John peeled the blanket back enough to slide in, enough to reveal Seras' figure. He wasn't very surprised to see that she still had all of her clothes on, and although they were somewhat damaged from the day's activities, they were enough to preserve her modesty in the otherwise awkward situation. Despite only losing his shirt, John felt suddenly naked.

"R-right, lotsa room, inn'ere?" Seras said shyly, scooching as close to the wall as she could fit while John slid under the covers. John did his best to hug the opposite edge, but despite his reassurances, he only had a full size mattress. Their arms and sides rubbed any time one of them made a move, and it was quite a while before John or Seras found sleep.

John awoke what could've only been a few hours later to a voice, one he was familiar with but that his sleepy brain took a moment to process.

"No, stop… I'll… I'll kill you."

John's eyes widened, but despite quickly scanning the room, there was no sign of intrusion or danger. Turning his eyes back toward the other side of the bed, he saw Seras, her back toward him, mumbling into her shoulder. He was only able to catch a few words, not enough to tell exactly what she was dreaming about, but it was enough to know that it wasn't pleasant. Whether it was about her memories, the events of the day, or some nonsensical nightmare brought about by her general stress the past few days, John's reaction would be the same.

Slowly, gently, so that he didn't agitate her in her sleep, John turned over and dragged himself to where Seras slept. He snaked an arm under her elbow, a more difficult task than it seemed considering how tense the sleeping woman was. John wrapped her tightly around the hips and pulled her to himself, feeling her supernaturally cool skin against his own as their bodies met through varying layers of clothing. Seras continued murmuring incoherently for a few moments, but eventually, she stilled, and her breathing began to become more rhythmic. Slowly, over the course of a few minutes, her muscles began to relax, and she eased herself into John's warm embrace.

"Poor girl… you've been through so much," John said with a beaming grin. "I'll do anything to protect you. I'll give you the life you should've had. I promise."

John reached up as quietly as he could and combed his fingers through Seras' short golden locks. Despite the lack of proper amenities, her hair was soft and not at all oily. It funneled between his fingers and tickled his palms as he stroked the vampiress' head with all the affection he could muster. It was too dark to tell for sure, but - perhaps optimistically - John thought he saw a calm smile come across her face before he let his tired eyes close and the peace of sleep finally overtake him.