Growing up, I’d heard my mom and dad talk on occasion about how much of a pain I was to deal with when I was a baby. I didn’t think much of it and often laughed it off as just parents who, well, didn’t want to be parents.

  Now, though?

  “Please go to sleep, Ruyah,” I pleaded, barely higher than a whisper. We’d been at this for at least a few hours, maybe longer, and the high that I’d experienced during the Defiled attack had long expired. I felt like death, and if not for my daughter’s sudden wails, I would’ve fallen asleep within minutes. “Daddy needs his sleep.”

  “Guuu?” Ruyah murmured. “Gu. Waahhhhh!”

  I groaned and rose to my feet, then bent over and gently guided the nub of the bottle to her mouth. She gripped the bottom half with her feet, cooing as she sucked. I had to be extra careful since the bottle wasn’t made of plastic like they were on Earth. This one was made of glass, and that made me nervous. The last way I wanted to end this night was with a piece of broken glass in my daughter’s skin.

  “Is that better?” I tried to keep my voice chipper. I’d heard that babies responded well to high-pitched voices, smiles, and hugs. Not sure how much truth there was to any of that, but it made sense. “Can Daddy sleep now?”

  Putting the issue of my delirium and quickly dissipating sanity aside, I still enjoyed every minute that I spent with Ruyah. There were plenty of times growing up when I wondered if true love existed. I’d gotten so used to being ghosted or coddled or told that I was “such a great friend” or “you’re like a brother to me” that I’d convinced myself that love was a fairytale.

  While this was a different version of love, I knew now that I had been wrong. I’d just met her, and already I couldn’t imagine life without her.

  When I remembered that I’d have to leave her behind to do what Cailu does, I grimaced.

  “Oh.” I pulled the bottle away from Ruyah’s lips when I saw that her eyelids were growing heavy. She smacked her lips and lapped up the remaining formula with her tongue. “Easy does it,” I whispered, pulling the blanket up to her neck. She smiled, and I returned the gesture. “I love you.”

  Now it was my turn. Oh bed, how I have missed you. I had to remind myself not to swan dive onto the bed out of fear of a squeak or a whine or something making enough noise to wake Ruyah. So I was very careful, slipping under the sheets and pulling the blanket up to my waist. Even if it’s just an hour, if I can just—

  A knock came at my door. “Matt, are you awake?” Sam’s voice.

  Nooooo. Whyyyyy?

  I rubbed my eyes and rolled to my side. Sam knocked again, and this time I threw the covers off and walked to the door, dragging my useless feet the entire way over. I set my hand on the doorknob, then cracked the door open, wincing when it squeaked. I glanced over my shoulder, relieved that Ruyah was still asleep.

  “Good morning, Matt,” Sam said with the same of kind of shit-eating grin that Dennis the Menace wore. “Did we sleep alright?”

  I narrowed my eyes. “How do I do it?”

  “Do what?”

  I opened the door the rest of the way and pointed to the tiny banshee in baby form. “Take care of that. Do I ever sleep? Does she ever sleep? I thought babies needed eighteen hours of sleep, so why did she keep me up for—”

  Sam raised her hand and stifled a laugh. “Wanna see what it looks like?”

  I blinked one eye after the other. “See what what looks like?”

  “Come on,” Sam said, flicking her head, “let’s get…ah.” She waved the air between us. “You need a bath first.”

  I sniffed my armpit. Yep, I smelled like a garbage bin. “A bath would be great. What about Ruyah?”

  “I can bring her to a nyanny. We’ll go together afterward.”

  “Alright.” I had another thought, and I hoped it didn’t sound too forward. “But, uh, is there a chance someone could watch me or something? I didn’t sleep, and I don’t want to fall asleep in the bath.”

  “Sure,” Sam said as she nodded, “so long as you don’t mind sharing a bath with the ladies.”

  “All I can think about is sleep. I don’t mind.” Nyarlea’s version of Girls Gone Wild could run through the halls, and I couldn’t care less.

  “Alright, come with me.”

  Sam carefully lifted Ruyah from her cradle, then guided me through a series of corridors that led to a pair of ornate doors depicting two women pouring large vases of water into the basin below them. Sam pushed one of the doors open and poked her head in, looking to her sides. “Hm. Lucky you. Bath’s empty right now. Just you and your nyanny.”

  I chuckled. “That’s kind of a relief.” I walked past her when she tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around. “What?”

  “To your left is the changing room. You’ll find towels and sundries in there.” She looked me up and down, then frowned. “I’m not gonna tell ya how to live your life, but your [Civilian Mode] outfit is kinda beat up. I could arrange for a tailor if you like.”

  I wanted to tell her that my clothes were fine. But they were not fine. The jacket was speckled with stains, and the shirt I wore beneath it was thinning. Holes pocked my jeans, and the soles of my shoes were coming apart. Maybe it was time for a change.

  “That… thanks, Sam. Please. That’d be great.”

  Sam smiled and nodded. “Think nothin’ of it. I’m gonna get a nyanny to keep an eye on Ruyah, and I’ll be back in just a minute, alright?”

  “Sounds good.”

  She turned to leave, hand on the knob, then added, “Oh, and don’t get in the bath just yet. Still need your own bodyguard.”

  Sam shut the door, and I immediately made my way to the changing room, frowning the entire way there. As much as I hated to say it, I had a feeling I knew where this was going. The truth was, I was in no mood to share a bath with anyone, hot woman or not. I was deprived of sleep, exhausted, smelled like the devil, and had a kid to worry about. I was in no mood to get horny.

  I hope I’m just imagining it.

  I opened the cabinets beside me to see several shelves of white towels. I reached forward and pinched one, eyes widening at how soft they were. I grabbed three of them and closed the cabinet.

  The changing room was sectioned off into several private rooms. It reminded me a lot of the changing rooms in department stores, with simple latches to provide privacy to whoever was inside. Each of them had a toilet, and there were four running faucets a little farther up to my left. I took one of the rooms and threw the latch over, divesting my clothes and putting them in a pile behind me. Throwing one of the towels around my hips, I tucked it in and made my way back out with my stinky clothes in my arms.

  When I exited, Sam was there, hand on her hip, waiting. “Oh hey! There ya are!”

  I offered a casual wave as I approached. “You were quick.”

  “We have a few nyannies on duty today, so it wasn’t hard to find one.” She looked me up and down and smirked. “Anyway. There are a few rules to the bath. Our queen is a San Island native. Are you familiar with their bath houses?”

  I shook my head. “The only ones I’ve been to are on Ni.”

  “Okay, then come over here.”

  She beckoned me with her finger and led me to the wall across from the entrance, where a long row of faucets was stationed. Beneath the faucets was a long grate that stretched from one side of the room to the other, with a step partitioning the section away from the rest of the room. She retrieved a wooden bowl from a stack in the corner and flipped it over, kicking it close to the faucet.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Sam pointed at the bowl and said, “Take off your towel and sit.”

  I swallowed the building lump in my throat. “Erm, okay.” I sat down and hid my erection between my legs like a dog. So much for not being in the mood. “Can’t you just tell me what to do?”

  “Well, yeah, but it can be confusing. I’m almost done. See these?” She pointed to a few glass bottles with golden-yellow liquid. “These are soaps. Use them as you need. When you’re done, make sure you get every bit of soap off of your skin and out of your hair. The bath is strictly for those who are clean. The queen will not be pleased if she comes in here to find soapsuds. Questions?”

  “No soap in the bath. Got it.” The exhaustion was setting in, and I could feel my eyelids grow heavy. The sooner I could finish this, the better.

  Sam smiled. “I’ll go get ready then.”

  I frowned. No. No, no, no. “Get ready?”

  “Yeah, I’m gonna take a dip with ya. Still need a nyanny of your own, yeah?”

  Well damn, she’s not shy at all. “I-I guess I did ask for someone to watch me.”

  “You did!” she said as the shuffling of clothes and removal of armor sounded behind me. “Who else did ya think it was gonna be?” She laughed, and her footsteps echoed against the walls on her exit into the changing room.

  It is way too early for this. I washed off as quickly as I could in hopes that I could beat Sam to the bath. Best-case scenario, she’d be getting in just as I was getting out. I finished in record time, and as I got up to enter the bath, she exited the room, a towel whipped over her shoulder. I kept my gaze firmly attached to the bath water, glancing only once. Damn, was she stacked. Stop it, Kelmer. This is not the time.

  I settled into the bath and the tension left my limbs almost instantaneously. Sections of my back that I didn’t know existed popped, and the joints of my fingers and toes relished the steaming water. This was just what I needed. My head lolled back, and I closed my eyes and breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Feels good, huh?” Sam called from across the room, causing me to flinch. The sound of splashing water and a bowl hitting the ground echoed against the yellow stone of the bath house.

  “Feels great!” I silently cursed myself for asking for someone to keep an eye on me. I drummed my fingers along the bath’s rim, then opened my eyes just as Sam entered from the side opposite. Oh, come on. “Thanks for helping me out.”

  “Aw, think nothin’ of it!” She hummed and leaned against the wall until the water came up to her neck. She’d placed a towel on top of her head and shut her eyes. “So, how was your first night with Ruyah?” She snickered.

  “Hell,” I admitted a little too quickly. “I-I mean. Er, I hadn’t expected her to keep me up like that.”

  “I think that’s the part most mothers struggle with, and what ends up being the reason they hire a nyanny. I know my mom did.”

  I grinned. “Were you a brat?”

  “Saoirse’s tits, let me tell you…”

  To Sam’s credit, she filled the air with banter and quips while I flailed like a, well, kitten. She talked to me like I was her friend the entire time, and despite the fact that we were both strangers, naked in a tub, talking about children and [Battleguard] training, she made the experience a lot easier than I’d expected. So much so that she was the first to get out.

  “Alright, I’m gonna get dressed.” She shook her thick tail free of the water and dried herself off before heading back to the changing room.

  I followed her moments later, just as a pair of fair-skinned beauties had walked in. They clapped their hands to their mouths, and my embarrassment returned in full force. Part of me wondered if I should’ve just stood there like one of those Greek statues and cocked a grin. No. No way. Even thinking about it makes me cringe. I rushed to the changing room, and I’d never been happier to be away from naked catgirls in my life.

  The nurseries of Nyarlea were a whole different beast compared to those found on Earth. The one that Sam had taken me to was a few houses down from the castle’s front gates, and it towered over the other homes around it. The inside reminded me more of a church or a schoolhouse than a nursery, with several desks and chairs neatly lined before a chalkboard.

  “Is this how they usually look?” I asked, taking note of one of the support beams. It was made of white marble and decorated with hints of gold and black.

  Sam shook her head. “Not this, ah, extravagant usually.”

  “Play with me!” one girl—she couldn’t have been any older than five—said as she hopped up and down at my feet. Long blonde hair framed a face of fair skin and eyes so big and blue they looked like marbles. She wore a pink dress that frilled at the cuffs and settled into a long skirt that rose a couple of inches above her ankles. “Please?”

  “Where did you get that outfit from?” another asked me.

  “It’s so brown!”

  “I like the pattern!”

  I plucked the scarf from my [Combat Mode] attire and rubbed it between my fingers. “Feel it,” I said, “it’s super soft!”

  A few of the other girls took notice and began making escalating requests. I was wishing so badly that I had the [Energy] to deal with this. The warning notification that I’d become so familiar with rang a few times in my head, and I asked Ai to refrain from notifying me again today. I had a few [Energy] spices from my adventures on San Island, so I was ready to wolf them down and plow through the day.

  “Now, now, girls,” Ariel said as she approached, “let’s give him some space. He and Sam are our guests, remember?”

  Ariel was the head nyanny, and looked the part. At least, as far as Nyarlean customs were concerned. She had black hair tied into a bun and wore a long white-and-gold dress that came down to her ankles. Several sapphires were clipped to her hair, matching the color of her eyes.

  She bowed her head and urged the kittens to her sides. “I’m so sorry about this, Matt.”

  I smiled. “It’s okay, they’re just excited.”

  I looked down at them and was surprised at how different the ages were between them. The first girl I’d looked at had to be about five, but a few others looked closer to ten, while the youngest was still in a cradle.

  “This is nothing like the nurseries from my old home,” I said to Sam.

  “Wanna give him the tour?” Sam asked Ariel.

  “I would be happy to.” She curtsied, then gestured to each object in the room as she explained its purpose.

  I kept my mouth shut for the most part as I listened to Ariel, asking questions when I was unsure about something. There was a lot to this system. For starters, it wasn’t frowned upon for a catgirl to leave her daughter with a nyanny full-time. No two nyannies were alike, but most of them required an upfront fee before taking the child. Not just temporarily, either, but until they were young adults. Once a catgirl attained her First Class, usually around the age of thirteen to fifteen, they were given one month’s worth of financial assistance, and then they were no longer part of the nursery.

  I didn’t like that.

  “Until they leave, what do you do here?” I asked.

  Ariel’s smile widened. “We feed, clothe, and educate each kitten in the ways of Saoirse so that they may each grow into ideal catgirls.” I didn’t like the way she phrased that either, but I nodded. “Outside of that, we teach them proper etiquette, how to fight Encroachers and Defiled, and other essential skills.”

  Private school, courtesy of Saoirse. Blessed be thy name.

  There were plenty of things that rubbed me wrong, but I had to admit, it was a good system. There was a strong chance that catgirls who were impregnated had the Bells to afford a nyanny. If they wanted to become full-time mothers, that was still an option. They could pick up a craft while raising their kitten, or if they wished to answer the call to adventure, they could give their child to a nyanny.

  I can’t just hand Ruyah away like an unwanted object. It doesn’t feel right.

  “The nurseries in Ronona are some of the best,” Sam supplied as she twirled one girl on the ball of her foot. “They’ll be adored and taken care of, of that I can promise you.”

  “Thanks, Sam.” I drew a deep breath and thanked Ariel before turning around to leave.

  “Going already?” Sam asked as she jogged to catch up.

  “Yeah, I need some air.”

  Sam hummed with a hint of disbelief in her tone, but kept to my side as we walked out. As soon as the door was shut behind us, she grabbed me by the shoulder. “You’re quiet. What happened?”

  I gently pried her hand away from my shoulder and turned around. “I don’t like it.”

  “Ruyah will have more attention in the castle’s nursery than here, if that makes ya feel better. The queen’s nyannies are obviously the best in Nyarlea. I wanted ya to see a nursery more like you’ll have on Ni.”

  “No. That’s not the problem.” I looked up at the building. It consisted of points and arches with several rows of stained glass depicting various states of Saoirse and her followers. “It feels too…transactional.”

  “How do you mean?”

  “I pay a nyanny to watch my kid until she can fend for herself?” I shrugged. “That feels wrong.”

  Sam smiled. “You’re a charmin’ one, ya know that?” She put a hand on her hip. “Ceres was right about you.”

  “I don’t know if I’d go that far.” I shook my head. “There’s a lot I still need to do before I’ll believe even half of what she says about me.”

  I rubbed the back of my head as I racked my brain for what to do with Ruyah. There was no way I could entrust her to a stranger, and as much as I wanted to be in her presence at all times, the bleak reality was that this world needed me. I couldn’t be there for her. Not in the way I wanted to be.

  “You look pensive,” Sam said. “Can I offer a Bell for your thoughts?”

  I shook my head and quickly regretted it. My head felt like it weighed a hundred pounds, and it was hard to keep my balance if I stayed still too long. “No. I’m fine.”

  “No, you’re not. Come on, talk to me. We’re gonna be buddies for a while, so you’d best get comfy and come clean with me.” She leaned forward. “What’s botherin’ ya?”

  I sighed and met her eyes. “I’m worried about Ruyah. I don’t want to entrust her to a nyanny.” I expected Sam to say something about my training, but she didn’t. She just kept listening. “I know what my role is, but I’m having a hard time coming to terms with the idea of leaving my daughter behind with a bag of Bells and without either of her parents. It feels—”

  “Transactional,” she answered.

  I nodded. “Yeah. That’s right.”

  “Is there no one you can trust her with? You’re Ni Island’s man. Is there someone there who could care for her?”

  I gaped as her words landed on me. “Of course! You’re right!” I not only knew someone who would take her, but someone who would want her. “I got an idea. Can you help me write a letter to a friend on Ni Island? Cailu left me notes, but I’d feel a lot better if you helped me with it.”

  She blinked, then smiled. “Of course, Matt. Let’s go to my office.” As she marched up the steps, the warm feeling I’d experienced the night prior returned with renewed vigor.

  This was going to work out just fine.

  I know just the person.

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