Home Sweet Home

Epilogue

Becoming king was everything I expected it to be. Mamodo's from all over recognized me, and always made it a point to bow down in respect. I loved the feeling of having power over the mamodo world and being known as the strongest in all the land.

Whereas I liked making myself known, Zatch likes to make himself known in a slightly different manner. Though he should be swelling with pride also, he tells the mamodo's to treat him as their equal. He said he gained more respect that way. I didn't look at it as such. Many mamodo's probably thought he was stupid to lower himself from royalty.

He hardly spends any time in or near the castle, so he wasn't too much of a bother. He once asked me if he could bring a mamodo from the village to come live with him in the castle, a girl his age named Kolulu. I gave him permission, mostly because I figured she would be able to keep him occupied.

As it turned out, she wasn't ready to leave the village, thus the reason why Zatch was hardly around the castle. He said he had many friends there, and didn't want to abandon them. He also joked about how it would leave Sherry and I more alone time.

Speaking of which, Sherry grew quite accustomed to the mamodo world. She seemed happier here than she ever did in her own world. She liked to walk through the castle's large garden where many flowers that were not found in the human world grew. She changed her style slightly, wearing much shorter dresses due to the almost constant heat.

I often watched her from the highest window. She would sit on the stone railing surrounding the pond and dip her fingers into the cool water. She would laugh when she chased the fish in circles, her long golden hair framing her face nicely.

During the first couple months, her hair became much longer. I remembered back in her world, she would sometimes get it cut, or trimmed as she put it. I liked how it was now able to grow as it pleased.

Sherry always seemed to sense me staring at her, for it wouldn't take her long to tilt her head up and spot me in the window. She would smile, sometimes waving and sometimes motioning for me to come join her.

When she was inside, I swear it was a hobby of hers to wander through the castle and get herself lost. She discovered many secret passageways that made it much easier and quicker to get from one place to another.

I told her she was permitted to walk outside the castle gates, but she said she wasn't ready. She wasn't sure if all the other mamodo's out there accepted her in their world, and wanted to enjoy herself in the castle where she felt safe.

"Besides," she said, "Just looking out my bedroom window is a thrill in itself."

I didn't push her. It was nice having her always around anyway, just like I was used to.

Somehow, she got me to become more talkative. She said that now that the mamodo battle was over, I wasn't so tense. I assumed she was right, though I still treated everyone else with silence or very few words.

It was obvious how much Sherry liked it when I settled myself down in front of the fireplace when the nights got cooler than usual. Every time, she would always sit on the opposite end of the sofa and make small talk. She would stare deeply into the fire, but I could tell she no longer feared it. In fact, she said the controlled flames were soothing.

I found myself getting closer and becoming more attracted to her. Maybe I was finally able to see the real her and not the one that was afraid or looking for revenge. Maybe it was the way she began to look untamed and not so proper. Maybe it was because she was now living in the mamodo world and I saw her as one of us.

I wasn't about to give her the satisfaction of making the first move, however. She would come to me when she felt both of us were ready. I wasn't sure if I'd ever be ready for a strong commitment, though it would be easier to crown the next king if I had an heir. The reason the king before me announced the great battle in the human world was because he never claimed a mate and had offspring.

My future was determined on one of the coldest nights the mamodo world has ever faced.

I sat on the left side of the sofa in front of the fireplace like I always do, wondering how the mamodo's in the outskirts (it got much cooler there since it was closer to the mountain region) were holding up. Though, if there was urgent trouble, word would spread fast until it reached me. I would then take action, but as of yet, I heard no complaints.

It didn't take Sherry long to join me by sitting on the right side of the sofa. She folded her knees up to place her feet on the sofa, getting comfortable in the corner as she stared into the fire.

I began gazing at her, amazed at how the fire made her hair more of a strawberry blonde and her eyes a golden-blue. She was wearing a blue robe over her nightgown, only her feet poking out of the restraint.

I couldn't help but think of how far away she seemed. The sofa was a good ten feet long, and though the distance between our two corners never bothered me before, it did tonight. Not only that, but ever since I became king, she didn't touch me as much. I used to always complain about it before, but I would only admit to myself that I didn't mind it as much as I said I did.

She sensed me staring at her and slowly turned her eyes toward me. I should have looked away, but I didn't. She smiled, but not uncomfortably.

"The fire's dancing more than usual tonight…like it knows it's colder out," she commented, looking back at the fire for only a second before turning back to me. "What do you think?"

I glanced to the fire, watching the blue sparks fly higher and all the reds, yellows, and greens mix together. I nodded, "The flames are burning more passionately tonight."

She did a quick double take at my choice of words, confusion and curiosity in her eyes. She then laughed gently, "You sure do have a way with words, Your Highness."

Every now and then, Sherry would call me that. It started off as a joke (or, at least to her it did), and from then on she would sometimes bring it up.

I smirked, "Only stating the facts," I said before leaning my head back against the sofa.

Were went silent for a few moments, simply enjoying each others company. Before I knew it, she was speaking again and was slowly crawling closer to me.

"I love it here, Brago," she said, sitting on her knees beside me. I glanced away from the fire again, taking note to the odd look in her eyes, "I don't think I ever thanked you for bringing me with you."

I grunted lowly, "There's no need for you to."

When she turned around, I put my one hand on the armrest and raised the other one slightly so she could lay her head on my lap. She grabbed my hand that was in the air between her own and brought them down to her stomach.

Sherry continued to stare at the fire as she ran her fingers up and down the length of my nails, sometimes sliding further down to caress my hand. Before long, she lifted our hands to her chest, turning her head to look up at me.

"I love it here," she said again.

I nodded, "As you have said before."

She looked down at our hands for a moment, and I also noticed how she gently bit her lower lip. I could tell she wanted to say what was on her mind, but didn't push her. We had all the time in the world.

"Not just in general. I do love the mamodo world, but…" she looked up at me again, her eyes shining, "I wouldn't love it half as much if I wasn't with you."

I closed my eyes and rested my head back again. She shifted her head, "Brago?"

"Hm?"

There was a long pause before she slowly asked, "What do you think of me?"

I sighed. I hated it when she asked questions like that. They were basically impossible for me to answer, for the answer was too broad to respond simply. I looked down at her, noticing how nervous she looked, "What do you think? I brought you here, didn't I?"

She seemed to like this answer a lot more than I expected. She smiled brightly and sat up. She once again went to her knees. She leaned toward me slightly, a deep blush covering her cheeks, "Brago…have you ever been kissed?"

I wanted to look away from her. I would be an idiot if I didn't know what was about to happen. Still…she was looking at me with such strong force, it was impossible for me to put an end to it.

"Kissing isn't really my thing," I said, wondering if that would satisfy her.

Sherry only laughed gently, "I've never been kissed either." With that, she leaned even closer to me, her blush going as far down as her neck. I felt my own heart speed up despite how hard I was trying to remain calm. But knowing us, I couldn't help but think of the endless possibilities of how this night would end.

She stopped right before she took any real action. Her lips were parted slightly, making it hard to look away. I hated myself when I murmured out: "Are you going to do it or not?"

At this, she giggled before pressing her lips to mine. She closed her eyes tightly as she did so, mine (of course, since I watched her) remaining open. She pulled away soon after, keeping her eyes closed. Blindly, she turned herself around to sit on my lap and lay her head against my shoulder.

I couldn't help but smirk. Who knows how long she built up the courage to do that, and now she was getting shy. I nudged her, succeeding in making her lift her head and look at me. When our eyes locked, her blush returned.

"Why are you so nervous?" I asked, which only made her blush brighter.

"I guess I was never in this sort of situation before and…" she trailed off, but before she could say anymore, I interrupted.

"I thought you would take full advantage of this situation, though," I said with a frown, "who knows when I'll allow you to do this again."

Her eyes widened at this, "Is that some sort of threat?"

I lowered my eyes to her lips, then to her neck, before I had to stop since the rest of her was covered in the large robe. Reaching my hands up, I grabbed the robe and slowly slid it down her shoulders. Her nightgown's straps her thin, so I was able to get a nice view of her shoulders and the top of her chest.

"It's hardly a threat, Sherry," I whispered harshly in a voice that made her shiver involuntarily.

"Brago…?" she whispered also, amazement in her voice and eyes. Truthfully, I was just as shocked by my words and actions as her. Since when did my desire for her grow so large? I heard her swallow when I got the robe down to her waist where she was able to free her warm, bare arms.

When my hands roamed down to her hips, she lifted herself so she could straddle me. This made it easier to hold her, loving how shocked she looked as she stared down at me. Her hands came to my face, her eyes shaking, "You're really not going to throw me off?"

To answer her, I untied the knot she made to hold the robe closed before pushing it onto the floor. Again, I had to ask her, "Why are you so nervous?"

She let out a low breath, "You mean you're not?"

Scared out of my fucking mind. "No."

It was amazing how she could always see right through me. Before I knew it, she was smiling and kissing me again, loudly telling me how big of a liar I was. All too soon, however, she backed herself away from me and stood up. I rested my hand on my legs since I was no longer able to reach her hips.

She picked up her robe, "You don't know how long I've been waiting to be with you, Brago." She said, which only confused me. She seemed to be doing the wrong thing for making such a proclamation. She kneeled down in front of me and put a hand on my knee, "Which is why I don't want this to be over in one night."

I'm still not sure if I completely understood her motive, but I accepted and respected her decision to do things her way. My craving for her was bound to only grow stronger. Maybe that's what she wanted. She wanted us to explore each other a little further, causing our want to continue to build. It wasn't exactly the way I would have done things, but in the end, I knew her way would be well worth the wait.

I didn't tell her I figured out her little plan. Most likely, she already knew I knew. I stood up beside her, standing as tall as her now. I thought about lifting her "bridal style", but instead turned around and kneeled down. She giggled softly, "Just like old times, huh?" She climbed onto my back, hooking her hands together in front of me while I grabbed the back of her thighs to support her.

I carried her to my room, only then realizing that it was her first time being in the king's suite. I kicked the door closed behind me before walking over to my bed. I turned around and slid her onto the bed. She dropped her robe to the floor and crawled up the length of my bed to lay her head on the pillows. I took all my excess clothes off before crawling into bed next to her. This time when she automatically molded her body close to mine, I wrapped my arm around her.

"You've matured, Your Highness," she mumbled. I didn't bother to comment.

"Can I tell you something?" she asked.

"No," I said quickly, having a little more than a hunch of what she wanted to say.

"Well, I'm going to say it anyway. I've been wanting to say it for awhile."

"Then why did you even bother asking my permission?"

"I wanted to see what you would say."

I sighed. She always said that for some reason. I didn't see why she always wanted to know how I would respond, but I never bothered to question it.

She cradled my cheek in her palm, making me look directly at her. Her eyes shined with confidence and purity, "I love you."

I didn't flinch, nor did I hold her closer. Sherry seemed to expect nothing less and only smiled before closing her eyes. She mumbled a goodnight to me.

After that, I felt my face soften. Of course, I knew she felt that way for awhile now. It was obvious, but I never let it get to my head. We were both ones to often hide our emotions, however, so to hear her finally admit it to me, was a little bit of a pull. I knew no one would ever know me the way Sherry does. It was hard to tell if someday I would be able to return her confession, but she didn't need to hear them. It was both our philosophy to think that actions speak louder than words.

Soon, she will no longer think of me as silent, but as one of the most outspoken mamodo's she has ever come across.

The glory of being king keeps getting better and better.

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And this, my friends, is the real ending. I decided to give you all the fluff that I basically hid from you during the whole story. Also, in case any of you are gonna ask: NO, there will be no sequel. I simply do not have as much time to write it.

July 13th has come! I am now 18 years old! Thank God…yeah, just thought I'd spread my good news.

Once again, thank you all for reading and reviewing! It made writing this a lot more enjoyable.

Enula