Persona Non Grata Part 2

“But… why?”

“Why? Shouldn’t that be obvious? After what happened, why would I want to stay near you or Planeptune? Uni is my universe, not you.” He answers with a sly smile as he glances over at Uni. “So I came here. After our… misunderstanding… my business in Planeptune was finished.”

I can’t believe what I’m hearing… He… used me? Onee-chan was right?

“U-Uni. What’s the meaning of this?”

I looked over at Uni, who averted her gaze. She was holding her baby and turned her back on me and walked away. Another blow to her heart. She turned back toward her former lover.

“I *sniff* thought you loved me.”

“I’m sorry if that’s the impression you got, but I had no desire to ever stay with you. Now, don’t be a homewrecker. Leave and never come back.”
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

“Please, no!”

She was in her room and it was the dead of night.

“Oh… I see…”

That same dream… No, not a dream. It was the same conversation she had with him that day she found him at Lastation. A memory. The memory haunted her frequently…

Slowly, she got out of bed.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

*Knock Knock*

“Hmm? Come in.”

I sat up in my bed, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.

“Roy, I’m sorry to wake you…”


A crying Nepgear came walking into my room. A common occurrence since I started working here a month ago. She comes to my room a couple times a week during the night.

“Not at all, Nepgear. Let me guess - you had that dream again?”

She nodded.

“Alright, come, sit down.”

I beckoned her to sit next to me in bed. When she gets like this, she usually has to talk out some of her thoughts or she’ll break down again.

“Would you like me to make us some tea?” I asked as she sat down.

“No… I just… I don’t know…”

She huddled her legs up to her chest, and began sobbing more. I placed a hand on her back and began rubbing it gently.

“I... *hiccup* I just don’t know if I did something wrong… *sniff* I think about it constantly…”

“You did nothing wrong, Nepgear. He even admitted to it, did he not?”

She nodded her head, but still wouldn’t calm down.

“... Tell me, Nepgear. Are you really blaming yourself?”

It’s been a month since I’ve started living here, but I have come to realize that Nepgear isn’t the kind of girl to get angry at others. She’d assume that she did something wrong prior to thinking it was someone else’s fault. So if she ever did get angry at someone, I don’t quite know if she’d realize that’s how she felt.

“I… I just…”

“Let me rephrase it: Are you sure the feelings you’re feeling aren’t anger for what he did to you?”

Her head perked up a bit.

“No, I would never…” she trailed off as she began to think more about the question.

“I understand that you still have feelings for him. I know what it’s like for someone you love to suddenly leave your life; it’s happened to me before, too. I blamed myself for a while, but after finally hearing an explanation, while it did hurt, it helped me see that it wasn’t my fault. She just didn’t want to be around me anymore. That was all there was to it. Some people are just like that.”

“You mean… you know what I’m feeling right now?”

“Well… not exactly. First off, I wasn’t left with child…”

We sat in silence for several minutes before Nepgear finally spoke up.

“Did you have nightmares like these?”

“At first, I had some bad dreams. But, the more I thought about her, the more I realized I was just preventing myself from moving on. She screwed me, literally and figuratively, so I was conflicted between being angry at her and wanting to love her. I understand it’s hard to let go when you first find out someone no longer loves you. But you have to accept that that person is no longer in your life. So instead of being sad for yourself, just be happy for the people that are still by your side.”
“So… you just overcame your feelings just like that?”

“Not quite. The anger was a little bit harder to get rid of… After my feelings for her left me, I just got angry every time I thought of her for how she treated me. But that has it’s own problems. I pretty much gave her a rent-free room in my mind and it didn’t exactly help my mental state. She was out living her own life, but I still couldn’t quite get over it. I suppose, I wanted an apology, though I knew I’d never get it, which just further bred negative emotions.”

“So... what did you do?”

“I forgave her, in a manner of speaking anyway. I guess you could say I just decided she was no longer worth the time and effort to worry about… It’s hard to explain. I guess… I released her from my mind?”

“I… don’t know if I’d be able to do that… Forgiving might be easy, but to just stop thinking about it… That doesn’t seem possible to me.”

“That’s fine, Nepgear. The wound you received cut a bit deeper than mine. And had a physical impact. Everyone reacts to things differently. I just want you to realize that you aren’t alone. Your sister, IF, Compa, Histoire, and I are all here to help see you through. We aren’t going anywhere. I know this struggle seems insurmountable, but we will help you and prove otherwise.”

Nepgear had stopped crying sometime during my story, but still seemed a bit shaken.

“...”

“I know I’m not very good with words, Nepgear. So it’s hard for me to convey my thoughts properly. But I do hope you understand what I was trying to tell you.”

She sat quietly for a few more minutes.

“...Thank you.”

She began to shift herself to get out of bed, but she still seemed a bit sad, so I grabbed her hand, which caused her to recoil slightly.

“Ah, sorry. I just… um… wanted to stop you. I wasn’t trying to shoo you out of my room or anything. You’re welcome to stay here longer if you need more time. If you just feel more comfortable with someone right now, then we can stay here as long as you want. We don’t need to say anything…”

Nepgear thought to herself for a while, but then relaxed a bit and repositioned herself in the bed.

Several minutes passed… then a few hours… Eventually the sun came up. To be honest, I might have dozed off a couple times, but we held hands the entire night. The sound of crying came from down the hall, so Nepgear let go take care of her baby, but I stopped her.

“You should rest. I’ll take care of Neph,” I said with a warm smile. She nodded.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

“Come on! Read to me!”

“Calm down, get in bed and I’ll finish up the book.”

“Yay~!”

I tucked the now 4 years old Nephillim into bed. Her mother was busy fixing a toy her child had broken in her workshop. So it came down to me making sure she didn’t stay up too late playing games with her aunt. I began to read to her a children’s book about a Hobbit and his adventures with several Dwarves and a Wizard a few weeks ago which she seemed to love. I was a bit unsure if it was okay for her age group, but she's a bit brighter than most kids her age. She actually had started telling her mother she wanted me to put her to bed so I would read to her. I had done it before, but never with a book as long as this, nor did she seem too interested in those picture books. Nepgear seemed to appreciate my helping her with Neph, too. There some days I'd spend all day with her, such as taking her to the zoo or aquarium. Nepgear still had some anxiety issues going out in public, but they weren't as bad as a few years ago. Most people seem to have forgotten why they were so mad at her to begin with, almost as though hating her was just the newest fad that already ran it's course. Now everyone finds Nephillim to be incredibly cute and they want to see what kind of CPU she'll become.

“The end. How was that?”

“That was it!? I want more! More!”

“Haha, I'm sure you'd enjoy it, but the sequel is for an older audience. I'll read it with you in a couple years. Then, we can take turns reading it to each other, okay? But for now, you must go to sleep.”

“Hehe, ‘kay. Good night. I love you, Daddy.”

“!”

Did she just… call me her father? I never thought about her thinking our relationship was like that, but if I think about it, that's a logical train of thought for her. She doesn't know what happened to her biological...

“Daddy? What's wrong?”

“Wha-? Oh, sorry, sweetie. I was just thinking to myself. I love you, too, so get some sleep.”

“Oka~y.”

I need to speak with Nepgear…
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

“Hey, uh… Gear, can we talk?”

“Hm? Oh, Roy! Certainly. Though it's weird that I'm not the one asking you that question,” she answered somewhat playfully. As good a sign as that is, this is a rather serious matter.

“Well, the thing is… well, it's Neph.”

“What about her?”

“She just called me her ‘daddy’.”

Nepgear gasped and covered her mouth.

“I don't exactly know how I feel about it. Well, I mean, it made me happy she thinks of me that way, but…”

“You aren't her father.”

“Exactly. I just… don't know what I am, really.”

Silence. Neither of us really knew how to proceed. Even if we told her the truth, she would be too young to understand.

Finally, Nepgear spoke, her voice shaking a little bit, “Let's talk to her in the morning.”

“As you wish. Good night, Nepgear.”

She didn't respond immediately, pausing a second before saying, “Night, Roy…”
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

She didn't know why, but upon hearing what her daughter had called him, her heart beat fast and it made her uncomfortable. It was different than when she goes out in public though, so what is it?

The picture of another man came to her mind, Neph’s biological father.

That was it. Hearing Neph call Roy her father made her anxious because she was so used to thinking of Neph’s father as the one person she actually ever hated, just assuming that Neph would hate him as well. But Neph doesn't even know him. In her mind, Roy was her father and she loved him. She was happy her daughter had a father figure. She was happy it was Roy. But she still couldn't stop this terrible feeling she was having.

“What if he does the same thing…”
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

“Hey, Roy, can we talk?”

Nepgear entered my room early in the morning.

“Hmm? Something wrong Nepgear? It wasn't that dream, right? How long has it been, over a year, right?” I asked as I brought myself out of bed.

“It wasn't that. I… have something I need to ask you.”

“Yes?”

“Why are you still here?”

“Pardon? Where else would I be?”

“You took the job because you needed employment. You've worked here long enough to find another job and to have a really good recommendation from Histoire, which any employer would hire you with just that by itself. Yet you still stay here, working at the Basilicom. So, why?”

“Well, I did promise I'd stay by your side since I was your friend.”

“For as long as I needed you. But you know better than anyone that I'm pretty much over all that. So, why are you here?”

She has improved a lot. And she's definitely emotionally stable now. So, why am I still here? My job is finished…

“I need an answer, Roy.”

“I just… I don't know if I have a real answer.”

Nepgear was on the verge of tears and she grabbed my hands, “I need one, Roy.”

Something in my heart pained seeing her in this state and reflexively put a hand on her head.

“Because I want to, Nepgear. This job lets me take care of the people I care about the most and I can get closer to them with it. No other job would let me do that.”

“But you're so intelligent and creative. You could excel and become famous if you joined a real company.”

I smiled.

“Fame? That doesn't concern me. Especially if it ended up hurting my relationships with others. Nothing is more important to me than you, Neph, Neptune, and all the others. I wouldn't leave this job for anything… Does that answer your question?”

Nepgear had been crying, but with that, she buried her head into my chest.

“Thank you…”

I put my arms around her to comfort her as she let out a plethora of tears she must have been pushing back for a while. What happened with Neph must have pushed all these hidden thoughts to the forefront of her mind and forced her to deal with them.

Nepgear finally pulled her head from my chest and looked up at my face.

“I was thinking last night… you said it made you happy to hear Neph call you her father, right?”

“Y-yeah,” I said with slight embarrassment.

“Then, I have a request: please be Neph’s father. Don't ever abandon her.”

What she asked and the look in her eyes as she plead for me to do this sent my heart aflutter. I hugged her again.

“Of course, Nepgear. I'm glad you give me permission to be your daughter’s father. I already feel like she's my daughter and I promise I'll never abandon her.”

“Th-thank you!”

Nepgear began crying again as she hugged me, burying her head in my chest again. After several moments, she pulled her head back and smiled.

“Sorry for ruining your shirt,” she tried joking, hiccuping slightly in the delivery.

“It's alright. I'm used to it by now,” I replied with a warm smile. “I'd sacrifice all my shirts if it would make you feel good. However, it is kind of drenched now. I should probably take it off so I don't catch a cold.”

I began to take off my shirt.

“W-w-what the goodness are you doing!?”

“Um… changing my shirt? Like I said, I don't want to catch a cold.”

“Let me leave the room first!”

“Come now, it's too dark for you to make out details. Also, it's just my shirt. More skin would be exposed at the beach.”

I went ahead and removed my shirt, which caused Nepgear to turn around in embarrassment.

“All done. See? That wasn't so bad, right?”

“I-I suppose so.”

She was too embarrassed to face me.

“*sigh* Was it really that weird? I'm not from Gamindustri so that wouldn't be considered strange where I'm from.”

“I-it’s not that it's weird, but… it's just that… I don't know!”

She ran out of the room due to embarrassment.

“Hmm. I guess she still has a bit of innocence in her. Oh, well. Maybe I shouldn't have done that.”
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Nepgear had ran out of the room and made it back to her room. Her heart was pounding harder than it ever had. Even when she was naked with that other man she once had feelings for. So what was going on? Him taking off his shirt just meant he was comfortable enough around her to do something like that. That made her really happy that her heart couldn't stop beating at the thought of it.

“Why?”

She began to grow uncomfortable again. After all, what was he to her? Just her best friend who she trusts to be the father of her daughter. That's all there is to it, right?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

 “Daddy, Mommy, why don't you two sleep together?”

I spat out my tea. Nepgear had a similar reaction with her coffee.

“Wh-why do you ask?”

“In all the movies I watch with Aunt Neptune, they show parents sleeping in the same room, usually in the same bed. Unless they're angry with each other. Then, someone runs away until they love each other again. Though, sometimes they fight for no reason and stay in the same bed. They just wrestle then. It's kind of weird since they're fighting but look so happy.”

Goddamnit Neptune, what have you been watching with our daughter!?

“Are you angry with each other? You must have been angry for a really long time. As long as I can remmeber. Why don't you and Mommy just wrestle with each other. It makes all the other Mommies and Daddies really happy.”

“You shouldn't believe everything you see on TV, sweetie. We aren't fighting, right Nep… gear?”

Nepgear was staring down her coffee mug, her face completely red. But she was also shaking. I placed a hand on her shoulder to get her attention, but she swiftly recoiled back away from me.

“P-please take care of Nephillim today, Roy!” she yelled as she bolted out the door.

“Nepgear!” I yelled after her, but didn't follow since I had to take care of Neph and make sure she ate all her breakfast.

“That seemed pretty interesting.”

“Neptune! Just what on earth are you watching with my daughter!?”

“Yikes! What do you mean? We were only watching a movie and Lil’ Neph was asking questions like she normally does. She was wondering why all these parents in movies were sleeping in the same bed and such so I told her that was normal.”

“And then she told me how Mommies and Daddies expressed their feelings with each other!”

“H-hey! I told you not to tell them about me telling you about that part!”

“You had… the talk with my four year old daughter?”

“She's too young to understand anyway. No harm done.  Would you have rather me tell her why you two don't sleep together? Now THAT might have some serious repercussions.”

“Fine, I get it. I suppose she didn't really understand the bulk of that subject matter anyway.”

“Daddy, why do you and Mommy sleep in separate rooms? I even see you two go into each other's rooms at night sometimes and you stay together for hours. So why not just share a room? It would make that easier, wouldn't it?” Nephillim asked innocently.

“Yeah, why don't you just cut out the middle step?” Neptune repeated the question.

“You know well why!”

“Do I? Because I asked Compa, IF, and Histoire the same question and none of us can come up with a good answer.”

“Because we aren’t…” I glanced at Nephillim and continued, “because we aren’t together.”

“Aren't you? You both claim guardianship over Neph. You confide in each other everything. I've seen you two sleep in each other's rooms occasionally. So tell me, why aren't you and my sister ‘together,’ as you say?”

“B-because we aren't… I mean, I don't…”

“Love her? Then please explain exactly what your relationship with my sister, your daughter's mother, is.”

“Nepgear is… she's my…”

Is this what this feeling is? Did staying with her so long and learning all about her, taking care if her, and the development of our friendship over these last few years really go further than just friendship? I love Nephillim as my own. I thought maybe that's why I felt like this, but…

“What is she to you?”

“She’s… the woman I love!” I shouted in reply

Neptune smiled.

“About time you admitted that. You already have my blessing, it's something I gave you long ago when you first saved her. I knew what kind a man you were then. You didn't disappoint me. So do something about those emotions of your’s.”

I see. Neptune had this whole thing planned out, didn't she?

“Watch Neph for me, please.”

“That's why I'm here and why I came down so early today.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it, bro.”
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Nepgear had ran to her room, crying into one of her pillows as she laid in bed. She had once asked herself why she didn't just sleep in Roy’s room so Nephillim would think they were a real family. But sharing a bed with him every night… the mere thought if it excited her! That's when she realized, she loved him. She wanted him to hug her all night, not just hold her hand. She wanted him to give her hope by whispering in her ear every night that everything would be fine as long as they were together. But it also filled her with fear. She was fine with her love being unrequited. She didn't want to tell him and he get grossed out and abandon her and Neph… Just like that man. What's worse is what if he accepted her feelings and then disappeared later? It wouldn't just be her to suffer this time, but Neph, too. For the good of her family, her feelings could never be made known, and she couldn't risk a relationship if he did happen to love her. Their relationship must be maintained at it's current state. Even though it hurts her so much not having his warm embrace keeping her calm at night; what she yearned for every night since her nightmares finally left her.

*knock knock*

“Nepgear? Are you in there?”

He's here! What should I do?

“Hey, if you are in there, I'm going to come in, okay? If you don't want me to, speak now. I have something important to say, so please excuse me.”

Oh, no! He's coming inside!
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

I opened the door to Nepgear’s room slowly to give her time to respond if she needed to.

“Nepgear… you're crying.”

I rushed over to her side.

“Is it what Neph said?”

“No… yes… maybe a bit of both?”

I chuckled a bit.

“Sorry about that. What's the matter?”

“It’s nothing, Roy. What did you need to tell me? You said it was important.”

“Are you sure? What I have to say has no meaning if you aren't feeling up for it.”

She wiped the tears from her eyes.

“No, no. I'm fine. Really. I just… was thinking about some things. You know how I get every now and then.”

“Well, I feel like you're improving. You've been building a lot of nifty gadgets and tools lately. It's been really fun building stuff with you. You don't really get like this anymore. Not for a few months anyway.”

“I guess… A relapse, maybe?”

“Heh. I see. Well, do you want to talk about it?”

“No, it's okay. You're really good at getting me to open up to you, but today, I want to hear what you want to say that's so important. Im always the one asking you to lend an ear so it makes me feel good to have you tell me important things,” Nepgear replied, somewhat cheerfully.

“Ah, right. Nepgear…”

I tried to calm my now-racing heart.

“What I wanted to say is… that I… I mean, that is to say, I believe that maybe Neph might have had the right idea.”

“Wha- what do you mean?”

Nepgear’s face looked shocked.

“What I mean is, Nepgear, I love you.”

The look of shock was quickly replaced with the look of fear.

“No, you can't!” she cried out.

“Nepgear, what's wrong?”

“Please… no… don’t do this to me…”

Is that… a rejection?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

I wasn't expecting her to reject me. I mean, I was a bit nervous, but something told me that we both had feelings for one another. Was I wrong? Her reaction definitely wasn't a normal rejection. And now she won't even talk to me. And it seems she didn't want Nephillim to be around me either, though Neph wouldn't have any of that, saying “Daddy has all the right to be with me as you do!”. Though, legally, Nepgear could force the issue. I'm glad she hasn't though. I don't want to lose both the woman I love and my daughter…
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

I don't know how much longer I can go on. I never actually expected him to confess to me. Our relationship is over. I have to avoid him so I don't have to worry about him breaking my heart. Poor Nephillim… I want her to be with her father, but I'm so scared he'll hurt us both… I have no one to talk to anymore, either. Onee-chan told me I was reacting in a completely unfair manner. IF, Compa, and Histoire as well… Why? Why don't they see why this is necessary? Roy told me they'd support me always, so why… wait, why am I using him as a justification for my thoughts? No! I need to work more to get my mind off of this!
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

How many weeks has it been since I last had a conversation with Nepgear? I guess ‘months’ might be a better word. Neptune and the others have convinced me that Nepgear does have feelings for me… it's just that she still has some sort of PTSD that had remained dormant until now. I have to find a way to help her overcome it.

“Nepgear.”

I knocked on the door to her lab.

“Go away. I'm busy.”

“I know, but… *sigh* Nephillim is really worried. She says she wants us all to go on a picnic. I've been trying to tell you for the past few days, but…”

“I'm busy.”

“Right… our daughter's going to be disappointed.”

“That's fine. She'll understand when she's older.”

“I pray the day comes when that will no longer be an issue,” I mumbled.

“If that's all, can you please leave me be?”

… I will not give up on her…

I continued to stare at her. I noticed that her eyes seemed void of life.

“You're still here.”

“I won't abandon you.”

For a second, she paused what she was doing. A flicker of light also appeared in her eyes for but a brief moment. However, she quickly went back to her former state.

“I need no assistance. Letting me do my work will not be ‘abandoning’ me, as you say.”

“Let me rephrase that. I will save you. From yourself. Even if it causes my death.”

“Your… death?”

Her eyes began to tear up, but she shook her head and replied, “You won't die. And I have no idea what you mean by anything else you said.”

“What I mean is I’ll-”

“Roy! Ge-Ge! Nephy’s ran away!”

Compa came running in, cutting our conversation short.

“What!? Where to? What happened!?” I asked in shock.

“I was cooking. Iffy was in the restroom. When we came back, we found a note that said she was running away until you two had a picnic with her.”

“Neptune ran out after her and we came to-”

I was already running past them to join Neptune. I WOULD find my daughter. I ran out of the Basilicom and began searching.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

“Gear! What are you doing!? Your daughter is missing!”

“As long as I don't leave this workshop, everything will be fine.”

“Dammit, Gear! Listen to me!”

“Ge-Ge…”

“Everything will be okay…”

“Planeptune is a huge city! We need more people to search for her! What if she gets hurt! She's just a child!” IF was walking up to Nepgear as she yelled at her. “Every second we waste here is another second something bad could happen to her! So why are yo-”

She cut herself short. Nepgear's eyes were streaming tears as she continued working on her latest project.

“Everything will be fine. Roy will find her. Roy will find my daughter!”

“Ge-Ge…”

“If I may,” Histoire appeared. “Roy helped you a lot, Nepgear. He's giving his all for both you and Nephillim right now. It is time you stopped this nonsense and give your all to both of them in return.”

Nepgear layed down her tools.

“I… I…”

“Look, Gear. I understand you were hurt. But that was one man. ONE! Is Roy really like that bastard at all? In any respect? He needs your help! Go! Get your ass in gear and search for your child together!” IF said.

“Oh, Roy! Nephy!”

Nepgear finally came back to her senses. She transformed into her HDD form for the first time since her daughter’s conception.

“I will bring my daughter back home, AND her father.”
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

I'm glad so many of the citizens know what Nephillim looks like. It's easy to ask around for her. A group of people told me they saw her walking  toward the forest at the outskirt of town. I ran as fast as my legs would let me to get there in time.

“There!”

She was staring over the railing of a bridge, watching the water flow by.

“This gives me a weird feeling of déjà vu.”

I made my way to her, but when I got closer to her, I realized something was approaching her on the other side of the bridge. A monster!

“NEPH, GET AWAY FROM THERE!” I screamed as I charged toward the bridge.

Too late. The monster, a giant wolf, began to charge at Nephillim. I made it in the nick of time, but took a mighty thrust into my gut. At least it didn't hit my daughter…

“I may not have a weapon on me, but I will give my life to save my daughter, you fiend! If you wish to meet your maker, then I will oblige with your wish!”

I threw my arms out.

“Daddy!”

“Neph, stay back! I will hold it off, you go back to town!”

“But Daddy!”

“No but’s! You have to-”

The wolf charged again, but this time, Neph ran past me to try and block it for me

“NEPH, NO!”

I picked her up and spun around, taking the blow to my back. It sent us flying over the railing and into the river below.

“Daddy! Help!”

This was the first time she’s been in water, so Nephillim doesn't know how to swim. The current began to pull her under, but I quickly swam to her and brought her to the surface. I began pulling her to shore so we could get out of the water, but, as we got into waist deep water, the wolf suddenly pounced at us. I pushed Neph fiercely with my legs towards the shore as the wolf dug its fangs into my left arm causing me to fall back into the river.

“Daddy!”

I struggled with the wolf. I was completely outmatched. However, that final push got Neph to shore. She's safe. All I need to do is make sure this wolf doesn't get to her and it'll all be fine.

I wrapped my right arm around the wolf’s neck and grabbed on to its fur. With as much force as I could muster, I did my best to keep the wolf’s head submerged. I felt a sharp pain in my left arm, but I didn't let that stop me. I was going to protect my daughter.

However, a large boulder in the river decided to silence my thoughts prematurely. My head smashed into it and I lost consciousness.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

I woke up, staring at a bright light.

“*gasp* He's awake! Everyone, he's awake!”

I heard several footsteps coming down the hall.

“Roy! I-Im so sorry! This is all my fault!” Nepgear said as she ran to me and threw her arms around me. I tried returning her hug but for some reason my left arm didn't make it to her. I glanced over and, instead of an arm, I saw air.

“Wha-? Nepgear? Wait, no, what happened? No, Neph! Where is she!?”

“This is all my fault! You lost your arm because of me! I'm so pathetic!”

“Nepgear, focus! I can live without my arm. Where is Neph!? Is she okay?”

“What? O-oh, yes. She's one room over. She didn't seem to have any injuries, but the doctors wanted to run some tests to make sure.”

I let out a sigh of relief.

“Thank goodness. Now, please tell me what happened.”

“I was in my HDD form, flying around and saw a commotion at the outskirts of town. I saw the wolf jump at you and immediately flew to save you. I got there after you lost consciousness… and your arm. I'm so sorry! This is all my fault!”

“No, Nepgear. I don't blame you.”

I placed my remaining hand on her head and stroked her hair.

“An arm is an acceptable loss if it meant saving my daughter.”

“No, I mean it's my fault she ran away.  My fault you lost your arm! Everything!”

“An arm us an acceptable loss if it means you'll finally talk to me again, Gear.”

I smiled at her, though I won't lie that I was in quite a bit of pain.

“I'm glad you're back to normal, Gear.”

“I… I'm such a fool. About everything. I know I can't be forgiven. And you probably don't want to be with me anymore, but… I will forever be your personal maid after this!”

“Wha-!?”

What was this development?

“Not good enough? Then, slave?”

“Um… you don't need to do anything like that.”

“Then, please let me at least be a lowly concubine! I'll take care of Neph and any other children you may have!”

“Gear, stop.”

She quieted down.

“I don't accept any of those.”

She looked at me with great sadness.

“I see… I'm not even worth having as an object…”

“That’s not what I’m saying. After all the years that I've been with you, that I've listened to your problems, that I became the father of your daughter, and that I lost an arm for, do you think I'd accept having you as just a maid, slave, or concubine?”

“I-I see… Then, I will see if Neptune will give you Planept-”

I cut her short by placing a finger upon her lips.

“Even Planeptune isn't enough. In fact, what I want has no tangible value. So in order for you to give it to me, I must give you something of equal value to balance it out.”

Nepgear looked at me with deep confusion in her eyes. I smiled.

“Nepgear, be my bride. My wife. The mother of my children.”

“Eep!”

The others all gasped at the proposal.

“What do you say, Nepgear?”

“But… why? After all I did…”

“The answer is simple: because I love you.”

I pulled her head close to mine and we shared a kiss, the first of many.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

“Excuse me. Miss Kei?”

“Ah, Nepgear. It's been a long time, hasn't it?”

“Yes… um… I don't really know how to say this, but…”

“You wish to see Uni? Histoire informed me that you, your husband, and your daughter would be arriving at our Basilicom today. Uni’s waiting in the next room over.”

We made our way to said room. When we came inside there was a girl about Nepgear’s age and another about Nephillim’s. Nephillim and the girl her age, named Vita, began playing with each other. I watched over them while Nepgear had a private chat with her former best friend.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

“...”

“...”

“...”

“Look, I don't know where to begin, Nepgear. But please let me say this: I'm truly sorry.”

She gave a deep bow.

“Uni… what I want to know is why you didn't say anything all those years ago even though you knew everything that man did.”

“The truth is… I didn't know what he did. It was wrong for me to listen to his side of the story without listening to your side, my supposed best friend's. He told me that you misinterpreted a gesture of kindness from him and then kept trying to get him to marry you. Finally, you snuck into his room at night and raped him thinking that he'd stay with you if you got pregnant with his child… The story fit so well and… well, I knew him from the times I came over to your Basilicom. He was handsome. And charismatic. I just fell for his lie. I'm so sorry, Nepgear.”

Uni bowed again. Nepgear was shocked.

“Then, you mean, you didn't know…”

“No. Neither did Noire. I know Neptune came over a few times after that to ask why we'd keep scum like him safe in our Basilicom, but it was because we didn't know the truth. We thought we were doing what was right and that you guys were trying to cover up your mistake…”

“I see… what happened to him?”

“Kei wouldn't let him have a free lunch here. All tax funds were property of the people, not for the CPU and Candidate to raise their children. He was forced to pick up a job, but questing didn't pay enough and no decent white collar jobs paid enough for us three. He walked out on us long ago without as much as a goodbye.”

“I see. I'm sorry to hear that.”

“The next time Neptune came over, Noire asked her what really happened between him and you. I was so ashamed. I thought for sure you'd never want to see me again… yet here you are. I guess if anyone could forgive someone like me, it'd be you. That is, if you forgive me.”

“If course I do, Uni. I hope we can come to become best friends again. Our daughters look like they're hitting it off pretty well.”

They both looked at their daughters playing together.

“Did you bring her here to meet her father?”

“No. As far as  concerned, Roy, that is, my husband there, is her father.”

“I see. I'm jealous. He seems like a nice guy…”

“Yeah, he is. That's why I'm okay with him being the father of my children.”

“Well, I'm glad for- wait. ‘Children?’ As in, plural?”

Uni stared at Nepgear in disbelief. Nepgear just smiled, looked down at her slightly bulging belly and began to rub it.

“Yep. Our children.”