Lupine Love

Chapter Thirty Eight

Key:
(Y/N)- Your name
(F/C)- Favorite color
Italics- Thoughts
Bold- Me! iCatburray
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Garroth's POV

   A few days ago we had celebrated Christmas, and we're now getting back into the normal swing of things. Aphmau had locked herself into her house and hadn't come out at all since (Y/N) and I came back from Irene's Dimension. I sighed and looked at the patches of dead grass, no longer covered by snow. I stopped wandering around the old village ruins and decided to do something useful. Not knowing what to do, I continued to walk, looking around for inspiration. I came to the the crossroads by Aphmau's house and paused. To my right, there lay the ruins of what were once a dock. Knowing what I wanted T do now, I went to gather some wood, nails, and tools before getting to work.

*~*~*Time Skip to the Afternoon*~*~*

   I wiped my brow. I looked at what I had completed, about ten feet of dock, and noticed (Y/N) standing at the edge with a basket. She held it out to me and smiled nervously.

   "I noticed you working here earlier and decided to make you some food. I thought you might be hungry," (Y/N) explained. I nodded and took the basket peering inside it. My stomach growled and (Y/N) giggled. I smiled.

   "Thanks." I pulled out a wrapped sandwich and noticed how much food there was. "Do you want to eat with me? There's a lot of food here" (Y/N) hesitated, her (F/C) ears quivering slightly. She nodded.

   "Sure. Thanks Garroth." We both sat down and I handed her a sandwich before grabbing one for myself. I unwrapped it and bit into it. We sat in silence for a bit, but it wasn't awkward.

   "So, what have you been doing today?" I asked, finishing my sandwich and grabbing an apple.

   "Nothing much. I tried to check in on Aphmau, but she didn't come out again so I made her some food and left it outside her door. I noticed you when leaving so I decided to make you some lunch. I know it's a little late...." (Y/N) trailed off, staring at the ocean. I followed her gaze, and tried to imagine things from her eyes. She had spent the majority of her life in the Nether, and another sixteen years of the Overworld in the Irene Dimension. She hadn't seen water, or an ocean, in a long time.

   "You know, the ocean is truly magnificent," I said. (Y/N) just nodded, mesmerized by the waves. We spent another half hour watching the water and occasionally saying something. Nekoette came and spoke to us.

   "Miss (Y/N)~Chan, mama wants you. She wants help with some baking." Both (Y/N) and I stood up. I hugged her and thanked her for lunch. She smiled and left, following Nekoette. I turned back to the dock and sighed, getting back to work.

*~*~*Time Skip to a Few Hours*~*~*

   I dusted off my hands and admired the newly completed dock. I turned around and Aphmau was standing there. I jumped. She didn't look good. Her eyes were red from crying and she had dark bags under her eyes from getting no sleep. She looked as though she hadn't eaten in weeks, but like she tried to look okay. She smiled sheepishly.

   "Aphmau, are you-"

   "I'm fine Garroth. I've decided to try and- and pull myself together to be the best mother for Lilith. I'm going to try, Garroth."

   "That's great Aphmau. Right now it's late, so would you like to get something to eat and then go to bed?" I asked. Aphmau nodded.

   "Can we get something from Kawaii~Chan?" Aphmau asked quietly. I nodded and led her to the meif'wa's house. We knocked, and (Y/N) opened the door. Her face lit up when she saw Aphmau and her tail wagged. She led us to the small kitchen where Kawaii~Chan and Nekoette were cooking and baking.

   "Hey Kawaii~Chan, Garroth and Aphmau are here. Do we have enough food for them?" (Y/N) asked. Kawaii~Chan nodded.

   "Yes, wait, did (Y/N)~Chan say Aphmau~Sempai?!" Kawaii~Chan exclaimed, turning around. Aphmau waved slightly and gave a tight smile. Kawaii~Chan squealed and hugged Aphmau before ushering us to sit at the table. We did, and Nekoette placed plates at each spot. Kawaii~Chan then placed the chicken in the middle of the table, and (Y/N) set the potatoes next to it. Kawaii~Chan gave everyone a decent sized portion and we started eating. As we were eating, the topic of Aphmau and Lilith came up. Aphmau became incredibly uncomfortable, and (Y/N) changed the subject. I mouthed a thank you to her and she smiled. We continued talking until Nekoette brought out an apple pie. She put it next to the plate that used to hold chicken and cut a slice. She put it on a plate and held it out to Aphmau. Aphmau nervously took it and Nekoette continued cutting slices for everyone. Aphmau took a bite of it and dropped her fork on her plate. Her eyes welled up with tears and she pushed back from the table. She ran outside, and I went to follow her. (Y/N) stopped me and went after Aphmau, saying something about how it was a girl's issue and something else. I sat back down and waited for either of them to come back. Twenty minutes later, (Y/N) came back. She sat at the table and continued to eat her pie like nothing had happened.

   "This pie is really good, better than last time," (Y/N) complimented, causing Nekoette to smile. "Oh and Garroth, Aphmau wanted to talk to you about something tomorrow. She is asleep right now, so I wouldn't bother her." She took the last bite of pie and put it in her mouth. "Thanks for dinner Kawaii~Chan, and thank you Nekoette for dessert. Have a nice evening," (Y/N) said as she set her dishes in the sink and left. I watched her leave and soon followed suit. I thanked Kawaii~Chan and cleared both mine and Aphmau's plates. Once again in the cold night air, I walked around the village, admiring how the friends who had stayed worked so hard to rebuild Phoenix Drop. I stopped in front of the tree and looked around once more before ascending the steps.

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Yay chapter. Sorry it was late. ^^; See you guys next week. Bye!