I Woke Up In A Completely Different World!

Nathan: "It"s been a h.e.l.l of a time, hasn"t it?"

Steven: "It has, you sure you don"t want to stay and celebrate?"

Nathan: "My celebration is going home to my family while I"m still on leave. Besides, I could always use a potion or two."

Steven: "You"re welcome anytime."

Nathan: "Or you should come and visit, my mother has the best cakes, unlike that one bakery."

Steven: "I might surprise you."

Nathan: "You just might."

We share a laugh before finally shaking hands.

Nathan: "Take care of yourself and your girlfriend, Steven."

Steven: "I will and she"s not my girlfriend, Nathan."

Nathan: "You should ease up too. You"ve been tense since I"ve met you."

It"s a shame he couldn"t stay, we had a big party planned in the town square thanks to Cynthia. I don"t know how she did it, but she did, and it looks like it"ll be a big one, almost everyone knows about it.

Steven: "Livia, we should head back."

She was at the stable nearby, petting the horses. She didn"t hear me, so I went towards her to get her attention.

Steven: "Hey, we should get going."

Livia: "I"m sorry, were you waiting?"

Steven: "No, not really. Do you like horses?"

Livia: "Yes, I used to ride them when I was little."

I must be seeing things, she"s smiling. I"m even pinching myself to make sure it"s not a dream. It"s true! She"s actually smiling!

Livia: "What"s wrong?"

Steven: "L-Livia, you"re smiling!"

She notices and begins to blush.

Livia: "N-no I"m no-not! Let"s go back!"

The first place I wanted to go was home. I haven"t been there for a good month or so and I haven"t had contact with either Kanna or Yuuna. I"m worried about what they might do to me, I"ll take their punishment, but I don"t want to get kicked out.

Livia: "I"ll wait out here."

Steven: "You don"t want to come inside?"

Livia: "Not really."

Steven: "Alright, I"ll try not to be too long."

I was about to enter when Cynthia came running. It took me by surprise, but now that she"s here, I feel a little more confident about going inside.

Cynthia: "Steven! You"re finally going home?"

Steven: "Yeah, it"s the first thing I want to do now that it"s all over."

Cynthia: "That"s nice, but they"re not home."

Steven: "Are you serious?"

She wasn"t lying, the door was locked and looking into the window, no one was there. d.a.m.n, and I really wanted to see them too.

Cynthia: "I tried earlier and waited, but nothing."

It"s Sunday, they"re likely at the marketplace, buying groceries. Looks like I have to wait if I want to see them. I had something important I wanted to tell them.

Cynthia: "You look all b.u.mmed out."

Steven: "They"re not home."

Cynthia: "You really care for them, do you?"

Steven: "I do, I love them both."

Cynthia: "Aww, you"re such a sweetheart! I wish I had a servant just like you!"

Steven: "Look, I"ll come back later."

Cynthia: "Wait."

Steven: "What is it?"

Cynthia: "You don"t mind that they"re Nekomata?

Steven: "I never did, they were the ones that dragged me from the beach after all. Why?"

Cynthia: "Well, it"s just that Kanna doesn"t have many friends and I can"t keep an eye on her all the time. At first, I thought you were taking advantage of her until I learned that she was your master."

Steven: "What?"

Cynthia: "All I"m trying to say is, please keep looking after her, for both her and me."

Steven: "You mean together? You are her best friend."

Cynthia: "Yes, together."

It"s nice to see that Cynthia can be serious. I thought she"d go back to her usual childish and playful att.i.tude that she usually has.

Cynthia: "What are you going to do now?"

Steven: "I don"t know now, so much has changed, I can"t do my usual routine."

Livia: "I have an idea."

Cynthia: "What is it?"

Livia: "Let"s get something to eat at the bakery."

She"s speaking sheepishly, still outside her comfort zone. It looks like she still has a long way to go. I"m happy, either way, she"s trying.

Cynthia: "That"s a great idea, let"s go!"

I thought it would be tense at first, but I"m relieved to see them actually get along. I wonder if she"ll get along with Kanna too. It shouldn"t be too hard, she gets along with just about anyone from what I"ve seen.

Cynthia: "What"s your favorite cake?"

Livia: "Ostroven Chocolate."

Cynthia: "Oh, you like chocolate? I"m a fan of carrot cake. What about you, Steven?"

Steven: "Obviously cherry!"

Cynthia: "That"s because Kanna made you eat it."

Steven: "Yep."

I haven"t been at the bakery in a long time. I went there all the time with Kanna after cla.s.s, but after getting moved into independent, everything became distant. I really do miss her. We"re at the bakery, waiting in line as Jesse is taking orders and preparing cakes at the same time. That really is a tough job.

Jesse: "Steven? Hey, where have you been?"

Cynthia: "He was moved over to independent, could you believe that?"

Jesse: "No dude, you have to come back to remedial. You say some pretty funny things at times."

Steven: "I do?"

Jesse: "Yeah, like making lamps without magic."

Steven: "Electricity."

I should prove him wrong but I don"t want to disgrace this world by bringing the knowledge from another world. I love the way it is, simple, yet, content. We order our desserts but we can"t eat them here, the tables are being replaced.

Cynthia: "Where do we eat?"

Steven: "This is the square, let"s find a bench."

Livia: "What about my house? It"s not too far."

Cynthia: "Are you sure?"

Livia: "Yes, I"m sure."

Steven: "If it"s fine with you, I don"t see why not."

Her home was really close by so it wasn"t too much of a ha.s.sle. Besides, I did want to stop by again. It"s really peaceful there. When we entered Cynthia was surprised at how similar it was to Kanna"s home, much to our humor.

We ate our desserts, enjoying casual chat, relaxing. This place hasn"t changed since the last time I was here. I mean, the futons are still rolled up in the corner from the last time I stayed the night. Livia leaves the room for a moment to collect mail, returning with a letter and a worried look.

Steven: "What"s wrong?"

Livia: "Nothing, my dad"s coming home in a couple of weeks."

Steven: "Really? That"s good, isn"t it?"

Livia: "I guess."

She"s really worried. Cynthia and I quietly a.s.sume that it"s because she wants to impress him but we"re still a bit clueless. The sun is starting to fall and we decide to leave. Livia chose to stay home and we headed back to Kanna"s. She has to be home by now.

Cynthia: "Wait."

Steven: "What is it?"

Cynthia: "I don"t know what might happen but I want you to know that I"ll be here for you."

Seriously, why is she all mature now? This is throwing me off. I nod silently, she"s right about one thing, neither of us will know what"ll happen. Nervous, I open the door and we enter.

Yuuna: "Steven? Oh my— Steven?!"

Yuuna drops what she was doing and embraces me. A familiar warmth of a beautiful alchemist. She"s sobbing gently in my arms.

Steven: "I"m sorry, Yuuna. I should"ve said something before I left."

Kanna: "Mom, what"s all the noise?"

Kanna comes out curiously. She recognizes me and slowly walks to me, not saying a word and in disbelief. I was about to speak up when she jumps in and we"re in a group hug.

Cynthia: "Aw, I feel left out."

Steven: "I"m sorry, girls."

Kanna: "I thought you left forever!"

Steven: "I"ll do whatever to make it up to you, master."

Kanna: "I told you a lot of times, call me Kanna."

She"s fighting back tears, as am I. I"m home, with Kanna and Yuuna. They"re going to scold me later on but I"m fine with it. They can"t be too severe, right? We all move to the living room. It was clean, but not the way I had it cleaned.

Yuuna: "We"ve been all over the place since you left."

Steven: "I"ll start cleaning."

Yuuna: "You should cook first. Like that pizza you made when you first showed up through my door."

Cynthia: "Steven can cook?"

Kanna: "Yeah, he"s the best! Even better than the restaurants!"

Cynthia: "I"d like to try some!"

Steven: "Everyone go relax while I cook."

Kanna: "Can I help?"

Steven: "Of course you can."

Home. I"ve made the right choice by choosing her for a master. I"ll gladly die with a sword in my hand for her and Yuuna. I really do love them both. Memories of the time we spent on Feles Isle are coming in. The Elder, Esmond, Yasuhiro. Even the people here in Everhand, Cynthia and Livia.

Kanna: "Steven, what"s wrong?"

I was staring into s.p.a.ce. I look at Kanna and pet her, to think that her ears were fake at one point.

Steven: "Nothing, now let"s cook!"

Together, like always, we cooked. Night rose and I put my heart into their dinner. Before I set the table, I remembered something. I almost forgot about the sword! I draw Nikitis and show it to Kanna, who looks at it in disbelief.

Kanna: "You found it?"

Steven: "I know how much it meant to you."

Kanna: "To us…"

I really am home! Like always, we ate dinner, caught up, and turned in for the night. Cynthia wanted to stay over and she was in Kanna"s room. I"m in my room looking out the window, thinking. I don"t know what"ll happen in the future but I know one thing for sure, I"m home.