Re: Zero: A Hell of His Own Making

Everyday Chores

The sound of footsteps made its way across the pervasive tranquility of the corridor, followed by the distinct shutting of a door.

As the young man's steps began to echo across the floor, they stopped almost as quickly as they began.

He was simply standing, staring down at the petite spirit who had been holding her head low for the largest part of his waking moments from the start of this morning.

From the height of his initial pose, his frame lowered slowly, but steadily, placing his right hand over the girl's left shoulder.

While perhaps not immediately apparent, the motive behind his gesture was sprung by something that he did not anticipate, up until this day: on any usual day, she would follow his steps across the mansion, even if just for a short while. But this time, she stood almost completely still in the middle of the corridor.

For as unusual as it was, he easily understood the cause, which caused something within the back of his mind to stir.

"I... apologize, but Betty won't be around for most of today, I suppose..."

Beatrice's voice cracked as the words flowed out from between her lips.

In a manner akin to her voice, Subaru's mind felt a blunt pressure crashing down on it.
"...Beako, are you sure that it's alright? I-"

He stopped himself in the middle of the sentence, for he had realized that any further questioning would have only accentuated the semblance of distrust that his behavior was draped in.

Instead, he opted for something far more direct than a mere slew of words, as he held her in a warm, tight embrace, with his left hand caressing her blonde hair.

There were quite a few moments of silence between his gesture and the spirit's surprised reaction, which came in the form of a muffled gasp, after which she returned the favor by wrapping her arms around his torso, as much as her size allowed her to.

"There is no need to worry, Betty will ensure that you are safe and protected no matter what, in fact."

If her previous sentence had kicked up a storm, this one served to quell it.

Breathing in through his nose, and out through his mouth, his tranquility was restored, although it would perhaps be more accurate to say that his facade of it was.

Which was good enough for him, and far more than what he felt he had the right to ask for.

Before he knew it, and most definitely before he wished for it to ever come to pass, Beatrice had slipped out of his arms, and was now taking her leave.

But as she did, Subaru couldn't help but notice the faintest hint of a smile finding its way upon her face.

Quite clearly, a sign of relief, of calm and understanding.

For the first time since he woke up that day, he too felt his lips curling into a smile, a genuine one, not one that he had to put on just to reassure those around him.

Not one he needed to show to ensure those around him wouldn't suspect that something could be wrong.

But he did not have so much time to dwell and dawdle, so after his spirit disappeared behind the corner, he turned and began to walk towards the mansion's lower floor.

And yet, there was still something, that something which had been stirring, tugging at the corners of his head.

From it, a series of inescapable questions manifested itself: