From Real to Realm

It had been almost a week since Val walked out of her home. Lynesia had insisted on going with her, but Val decided against it. This was something she needed to do on her own.

Before long she saw the front of her home. It had been her home for roughly half a year, but it felt longer when she thought about it. The majority of those six months were spent inside surrounded by her family and Lynesia.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Silence.

Val pressed her ear to the door. At first she couldn’t hear anything. Then the faint sound of footsteps approached before the sound of locks flipping.

Slowly the door opened revealing her little sister, Celestia.

“Hello?”

Val didn’t respond. Instead she stood there waiting for her sister to react. And react she did.

Without hesitation Celestia rushed Val and hugged tightly around her waist. “We’ve been so worried! It’s been almost a week since you left!”

Val gently rubbed her back. “Sorry about that. A lot has happened. Are mother and father home?”

Celestia released Val and shook her head. “No, they both went out early this morning. I don’t know when they’ll be back, they wouldn’t tell me what they were doing.”

Val walked inside as Celestia closed the door behind them. After everything that had happened, it felt like forever since she’d been back.

“How’s adventuring been?”

The question was earnest. If only Celestia knew just how loaded it was.

Val didn’t know how to broach the subject properly. Celestia wasn’t a child. She at the very least knew it was a dangerous career path.

“Not good,” Val finally said. “I lost a party member four days ago. Almost lost a second one too.”

Celestia froze, eyes wide. “Like they left? Or… died?”

Val took a seat on the staircase. “The latter.One of them is still in recovery at the moment. It happened on the same delve, I myself barely made it out as well.” Memories of barely being conscious after pushing through the doors of the dungeon came flooding back. “I was hurt, but was healed back. I ended up being out of it for a few days. My other party member is still being healed as we speak.”

Celestia sat down next to her as she absorbed everything. Val gave her the time she needed.

“So we weren’t worried for nothing?” Celestia asked, turning to face Val. “You really did get hurt…”

Val rested her arms on her knees, nodding. “I did. More than the little scrape you all saw the evening I came home in my gear.”

Celestia glanced down at the side where those gashes were that night. “But they healed you up, right? There’s nothing wrong with you anymore?”

Val shrugged. “Physically, I’m fine. Emotionally, I’m still struggling some.”

Celestia swallowed. “What do you mean? Did your amnesia get better? Worse?”

Val chuckled. “If only. No, that hasn’t changed. I just meant that I don’t know if I can keep going. Not after losing a friend like that…”

Celestia scooted closer, leaning her head against Val. “I can’t imagine what you went through.”

Val sighed, clenching her fists and releasing over and over. “I have nightmares about it now. I see them dying in front of me every night and it’s tearing me up.” Val took a calming breath as tears threatened to fall. “I think I should stop adventuring.”

Celestia sat up straight. “But you love it!”

The sudden outburst caught Val completely off guard.

Celestia didn’t give her a second to reply. “Looking back now, those nights when you came home dirty and exhausted? You always looked so happy and excited. If you ask me, it was the happiest I’d ever seen you before.” She looked into Val’s eyes. “Not only that, but you worked so hard to get into shape. Now it all makes sense on why you pushed yourself so much. You planned on this long before we ever found out.”

Val was surprised at Celestia’s deduction skills. “You’re right… I had considered it early into my rehab.”

“See?” Celestia poked Val’s bicep. “You planned for it so long, worked hard to get into even better shape than before, and made the jump to join. Even if we didn’t like the idea of you doing it, we all can see how hard you worked to get there.”

“But I watched one of my friends die,” Val said shakily. “How do I keep going after that?”

Celestia hugged Val from the side. “I wish I could tell you big sis, but you have us to lean on. Don’t forget Lynesia too.”

Val smiled, returning the hug. “I still need to think on it. But you’ve helped m—“

The door opening cut Val off mid sentence.

Vesperia and Volde both walked in. Each of them froze in place as their eyes landed on the siblings hugging.

Val’s heart stopped for a moment as her eyes widened.

Vesperia was carrying a small crate. The top was off, but Val could see hints of hardened leather inside with rivets along some of the seams. It was impossible to tell what was in it without taking whatever it was out.

Volde was carrying the most eye-catching item, though. In his hands was a tall halberd made of polished steel. The front blade was long and almost wicked, adopting an s-shape curve to it. The spike on top glinted in the light showing its sharp edges. The back side of the head had a crescent-shaped blade with sharp points on either side. The haft looked thick and well made, a solid deep brown wood with a slight shimmer to it.

Volde cleared his throat. “This is a… surprise.”

Vesperia looked like she wanted to drop the crate and hug Val, but was resisting the urge. “A big surprise indeed.”

Val stood, walking closer and pointing at the halberd. “Why do you have that?”

Her parents exchanged a glance.

“We worry,” her mother finally said. “So we talked it over.”

Volde picked up from there. “If we can’t stop you from putting yourself in danger…”

“Then we wanted to give you the gear to protect yourself,” Vesperia finished for him.

Vesperia set the small crate down and pulled what was inside out. In her hands was a hardened leather top. The leather was thick. A little bit of cleavage would likely show, but that was likely due to Val’s bust. There were gaps for her armpits, to allow freedom of movement. The collar and pauldrons were the thickest parts, though. Each piece was multiple hardened leather layers held together by solid rivets. A belt was also wrapped around the waist, something she could affix whatever she needed to it. The hem was split into four flaps, creating essentially a short skirt that would allow her to move however she needed.

“There are matching gloves and boots as well. They’re made of the same leather,” Vesperia said, setting the armor back into the crate.

When she stood back up, she froze again.

Val was standing there, tears rolling down her cheeks. Celestia was already standing, not sure what to do right now.

Volde turned, leaning the halberd against the wall. When he turned back around, Val rushed her parents. She desperately pulled them into a tight hug as she cried. After everything she’d been through, this was too much to hold back her tears.

It took a lot longer than Val would likely admit to get her emotions under control. When she did, they all moved their reunion to the dining room.

Val was standing next to the table, taking in the view of the gear her parents bought for her. “I’m so sorry I left…”

Vesperia smiled softly. “While it hurt, we understand what it’s like for the heart to yearn for something.”

Volde reached over and gently squeezed Vesperia’s hand as they exchanged a wistful glance.

It was obvious there might be some backstory to that, but right now, Val was too busy admiring her new gear.

Volde stood up, stepping to Val’s right. “The halberd is made of shadow steel. I don’t know the details of how it’s created, but it’s stronger than normal steel. It’s why the face of the blade is polished and the rest is a bit gray.” He reached down and ran his fingers along the haft. “The haft is equally as durable. You might notice a slight shimmer, that’s an enchantment to increase its durability. Last thing you need is the haft breaking on you during a delve.”

Vesperia walked up to Val’s left. “The armor is made of Tree Boar fur. It’s the thickest fur in the surrounding lands. The collar and shoulders are multiple layers held together by shadow steel rivets. The rest is double layered to give enough protection without sacrificing ease of movement and freedom.”

Val chuckled. “It sounds like you’re reading from a sales pitch.”

Both of her parents chuckled as the sound of someone stuffing paper into their pocket echoed.

“We don’t know what you could be talking about,” Volde said, trying to look innocent and failing horribly.

“In all honesty, we commissioned both of these,” Vesperia said, running a hand along the armor. “It came out even better than I expected.”

Val gulped. “How much did all of this cost? It couldn’t have been cheap.”

Volde shook his head, turning to Val. “Your safety is worth more than all the coin to our name. We would never cheap out on gear we intended for you to wear.”

Val had no clue how much something like this would cost. The halberd alone likely took up most of the cost, especially considering the enchantment on the haft.

Then again, Tree Boar were hard to find and kill. They weren’t rare by any means, but she saw some of the postings in the guild hall. Finding and hunting them down was recommended for a party of at least five people. It was recommended each of them be at least level ten as well.

“I won’t pry on the cost, but are you sure this is the right choice?” Val asked.

Vesperia and Volde shared another glance. Neither spoke for a moment.

“You came home so dirty and tired,” Vesperia finally said. “We didn’t know why, but there was one more thing we could see.”

Volde nodded. “You were extremely happy. It’d been a long time since we’d seen you smile like that. Whatever you were doing, we didn’t want to stop you if you were that happy.”

Celestia was sitting across the table from them, just smiling. “Exactly. It’s like I told you earlier. We don’t want you to quit doing what makes you happy.”

Val raised an eyebrow. “Did you know about this? That they were buying me gear like this?”

Celestia looked away sheepishly. “I didn’t know everything, but they had mentioned they had a plan to show you their support.”

Vesperia and Volde placed a hand on Val’s.

“We both want what’s best for you, but you have to promise to be careful,” Vesperia said. “We don’t know all of the details, but we know the dungeon is dangerous.”

“You were trying to become strong so you didn’t worry us, but no matter what, we’re always going to worry,” Volde said. “You’re our daughter, how could we not worry?”

Val ran her fingers along the steel of the halberd. This gear was leagues better than what the guild gave her. Just the thought of using it made her feel more confident. Then again, she was confident the last time she went down there. Look how that ended up.

“Sweetheart, are you okay?” Vesperia asked, squeezing Val’s hand.

After taking a calming breath, Val looked up. “Before today, not really. But right now, I’m feeling much better.”

Vesperia and Volde smiled softly.

“You should stay for dinner!” Celestia suggested, jumping up from her chair.

Her parents lit up at the idea.

“Absolutely! I could make a big meal to celebrate you coming home,” Vesperia said, already mentally checking off ingredients.

Volde nodded, content just to smile in agreement.

“I’m not coming home…” Val said softly.

“Why not? You’ve made up, why not come live with us?” Celestia asked, looking back and forth.

“Well…” Val started, rubbing the back of her neck. “I kind of have a girlfriend now… and I think some privacy would be nice?”

It was as if all air within the room had been sucked out. It was so quiet a pin drop could be heard as her family digested the news. Honestly, it was so quiet, Val worried that she had said something forbidden or something.

“W-we weren’t aware you preferred women,” Vesperia said, swallowing slowly. “Do we know her?”

Volde was rubbing his chin. “I’ll admit I’d pictured your grandchildren someday.” Then he shrugged. “But as long as you’re happy.”

Val paled for a moment. Technically, children are still very much a possibility with Lynesia.

Wait… why does that thought give me butterflies?

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost, sis, are you okay?” Celestia asked, giggling.

Val nodded. “There’s actually something I need to discuss with our parents—do you mind giving us a moment?”

Everyone shared worrying glances, but Celestia did as she was asked. Of course, Val couldn’t be sure she wouldn’t be eavesdropping in the hallway.

“What’s wrong?” Vesperia asked. “We didn’t say anything to upset you, did we?”

Val waved her hands in front of her, shaking her head. “No, not at all. It’s just, dad mentioned something about children and I remembered I needed to tell you both something. Something… important.”

Volde stood up quickly. “You aren’t pregnant already, right?!”

Val couldn’t help laughing at the outburst, which only seemed to worry her parents even more. “No dummy!” Val said between laughs. “I’m not pregnant, I’m still a virgin.”

At least on this world.

“You both remember my illness?” she asked, then continued after getting nods. “Well… I don’t really know how else to explain this…”

Suddenly her mouth was dry, hands clammy, and her heart was racing. Turns out telling your parents you have a dick isn’t easy.

“Go on…” Volde said, eyebrow raised.

“Well… you see… I have a thing now…” Val said, blush quickly creeping across her face.

Volde and Vesperia exchanged a confused glance.

“A thing?” her father asked, still clueless what she meant. “What thing? Do you mean a thing for women?”

“You just told us you had a girlfriend. We know that now, right?” Vesperia asked, looking to Volde.

Val huffed, running her fingers through her hair. “Not that…”

Why is this so hard?!

Val took a few calming breaths, mustering up whatever courage she had. “I have a male appendage now…”

All color drained from her parents faces.

“What?!” Celestia yelled, poking her head through the door. “Did I hear that right?!”

Val turned in her chair, eyes wide, jaw tense.

I knew she’d eavesdrop. Little shit.

“You’re surely just pulling our legs, sweetheart.” Vesperia said finally.

Volde nodded. “Such a thing isn’t possible, right?”

Celestia had entered the room now. “Right. If you did, then someone would’ve found out somehow.”

Val hid behind her hands. “It’s not a joke, I’m not being funny, I’m serious. I have both, male and female. So yeah… kids aren’t exactly off the table.”

I wish my chair would swallow me…

The sound of Celestia taking her spot back at the table was the only noise in the room. Val didn’t dare look up from her hands. She was scared to see what kind of expressions her parents would have. Disgusted? Alarmed? Rejection?

“Have you spoken to a channeler? To see if it’s something that can be cured?” Volde finally asked.

Val slowly lowered her hands. Neither of her parents looked any different, aside from their thoughtful expressions.

“I hadn’t considered it. It was there when I woke up from my coma…”

Vesperia’s face lit up in realization. “Now I know why you were so insistent on always bathing without my help…”

Val nodded. “Right… I didn’t know how you’d react if you saw something like that…”

It took a while for everyone to come to terms with Val’s new announcement. Questions were asked and answered in turn. She eventually promised to get a channeler to see if it was curable, even though she knew it wasn’t. Even the thought of asking a channeler to do something like that was enough to embarrass her. It was hard discussing such a sensitive matter with her family. Val was just thankful Maxwell wasn't home at the time.

“So who’s your girlfriend?” Volde finally asked minutes later. “Do we know her? Or did you meet her at the guild?”

Val shook her head. “If it’s alright with you, I’ll go get her. We can all have dinner together.”

Vesperia poked her head in from the kitchen. “Introducing us to her this soon? Don’t you think that’s a bit fast, sweetheart?”

Val chuckled. “I think it’ll be fine. I’ll be back in a little bit, promise.”

With that, Val headed back outside. She felt better than she had in a while.

“Time to get my girlfriend.”

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