Book Four – Chapter Three – Part One – The Joy of Assisting Others

The day after having dinner at Claire’s house was lackluster. At some point through the night, a ravenous thunderstorm roared to life, cascading Canary in a torrential downpour. Momo was bolted from her dream by a ferocious bout of thunder. The dark, puffy rain clouds hid the early morning sun behind a curtain of darkness. That extended to her room, which was as black as night. Momo couldn’t even see the ceiling above her.

The abruptly woken-up Singi just rolled over and rubbed her head against her soft pillow. The temperature did drop by a few degrees, and a shiver merrily made its way up Momo's stomach. With the pace of a snail, Momo rolled out of bed, pulled back the covers, and slid under them.

She had drifted off to sleep laying above her golden blanket because she worked up a sweat when cleaning her room. That, she realized, was a mistake, but it wasn’t her fault. The nightly atmosphere was calm, peaceful, and serene. No one realized a storm was fast approaching.

As the warmth enveloped her naked body, Momo tried her best to go to sleep. She yearned to go back to that pleasant dream, which consisted of her and Servi laying on a giant flower while holding hands. The power of imagination came in handy. In only a few short seconds, Momo felt the smell of Lilies enter her nostrils. Her cheeks felt the sun’s warming rays, and her hand suddenly had something soft in its grasp. She only needed a few moments to be transported back to her inner wonderland.

Another crack of thunder jolted her eyes open, and Momo realized the storm wouldn’t let her go to sleep. She audibly groaned her frustrations and leaned up. Her body was full of tension, and her mind was clouded by a blockage of stress. She kicked her legs to the side and danced them off her bed. A pair of arms raised up, stretching to loosen them up. After that, Momo dressed herself in pants and a t-shirt, forgoing her sword since she knew she wouldn’t leave Warden today.

“Yep… It’s gonna be one of those lazy days,” Momo said upon walking to the small window she had. The rain rhythmically rapped against the glass. She stayed there for a few moments, choosing to stare at the growing puddles on the road below her. A few early morning rises were out and about with umbrellas. “Since that’s the case, it has to be around 6 or 7… Wait, what time did Servy and I get home?” Momo sighed, yawned, and rubbed her sleepy eyes. “If I’m already up, I might as well do my workout and take a shower.”

The last time we had lightning this bad was when Servy attacked the slave markets… I slept through it then, but I’m wide awake… I guess it is good I’m learning how to be a lighter sleeper.

After a quick stretching session, Momo found herself going above and beyond what Dineria taught her. She started to add squats to the docket of what to do after waking up. Truth be told, Momo was a bit embarrassed about missing her nightly workout. Her regiment was supposed to be done twice a day. The Singi said a quiet word of apologies as she squatted down. The pain in her legs roared alive, but Momo just didn’t want to give up yet. She kept going for another ten reps, then switched to doing sit-ups. After a while, she transitioned to push-ups before ending with a handstand.

Momo fell to her butt in a sweaty mess when her workout was complete. She panted like a dog and went for her canteen but forgot it was with Itarr. Another groan later, Momo grabbed her bag, locked the door, and went to the shower rooms. She entered the first available stall and sat her bag on one of the two tables provided. Her bare feet skidded along the tile flooring, and she stared at the tiled walls. Each of the shower rooms at Warden had a different design, which was odd. One could be all wooden, with wooden flooring, walls, and a wooden pole for the Wash Stone. Another could be all tile and have a shower curtain, like the room Momo was in. A third could be a mix of both.

As she stripped down to her bare skin, Momo’s tired body yearned for sweet relief in the form of hot water. But first, she used the Wash Stone to produce a flowing stream of cool water to satisfy her thirsty mouth. The naked Singi shivered when the stream touched her tongue. Cold and refreshing, she stood there with her mouth open, catching the clear liquid.

Momo gulped down mouthful after mouthful until she started to feel a bit bloated. It was then she realized that she had been feeling weird all morning.

Come on, Momo! Just calm down, take a deep breath, and wash yourself. You don’t have reason to be feeling like this because life is good. It’s going very good, and you don’t have to keep thinking negatively. It’s okay to miss a workout once in a while! Just think of it as an extra day of rest because you have to look after Servy!

“I’m right… Momo, just do your best to see the light and not the darkness. Stop thinking that you can’t be happy or whatever the reason you were sad and stressed this morning. Just think about Servy. Rely on her, use the feelings you have for her, and just think about her. Going to her room like this would probably only make things worse, and you can’t have that. Besides, nothing bad happened,” Momo said to herself. She was just unblinkingly staring at the drizzle of cold water.

Like that, Momo convinced herself to greet the water with a smile as it warmed up. “A hot shower, a tasty meal, and a fluffy, warm, soft Servy are what I need for a rainy day!!”

“Hey! Servy! Are you awake?” Momo asked, knocking on her neighbor’s door. She waved and smiled at the group of three Dwarves walking past her. Momo waited a few more seconds and just let herself in the room with the key. With a silent creak, the door was pushed open to reveal Servi. She was still dressed in her ‘farmer’s daughter-esque’ outfit.

Servi’s piercing red eyes stared out of the window, intently gazing at the passing people. She saw families and friends, husbands and wives, and brothers and sisters rushing point A to point B to avoid getting wetter than necessary.

Momo walked in, setting her bag on the ground beside the door and closing it behind her. Once it was locked, she skipped over to her darling best friend and hugged her from the back.

“Good morning, Servy!” Momo chirped. Since she was shorter, she had to stand on her tippy toes to balance her head on Servi’s shoulders. Her hands were right on Servi’s stomach, pressing against the coarse azure overalls. “Do you like staring out the window?”

Momo stayed there with Servi for another ten minutes, and the two just stared while being connected. “Did you sleep well? I didn’t. That dang thunderstorm woke me up. It was like, ‘I’m gonna snap really loudly and wake everyone up just because I’m a storm, and that’s what I do. Muwhahaha!’” Momo did her best impression of a sinister laugh, but it only came out adorable and unthreatening. “Um… Servy, do you wanna lay down? Do you… Do you wanna take a nap with me?” Momo asked. After she said that, she buried her head in Servi’s back and just waited.

Ten seconds, twenty seconds, even thirty seconds after asking, Servi didn’t respond in any way. Her mouth remained shut, and her arms stayed by her side.

Wait, will she follow me? Momo kicked her plan, which really wasn’t a plan at all, into action. Like a farmer leading a horse to water, Momo led the girl she loved to the soft bed. When she sat down, Momo’s skirt briefly showed off the tops of her thighs. Her short-sleeved shirt stopped at her elbow, showing off a set of arms that were just a bit flushed with heat.

Momo’s other hand went to her hair, and she timidly curled her pink strands around her fingers. “Servy, do you wanna take a nap with me?” Momo asked again. She scooted backwards, unknowingly sending her skirt higher and higher until her cute, pink panties were on display. Then Servi placed a hand on the wooden frame and guided herself down until she laid on her side. Of course, she had to face towards her guardian Singi.

Momo squeaked in delight and also laid down. She unhooked her fingers from Servi’s hand and took a second to reconfigure herself, using the time to straighten out her skirt. Next, she kicked off her shoes and rubbed her pink-socked feet on the golden blanket.

“Now then, Servy, I’m gonna hold your hand, okay? Once our souls are connected, we can drift off to sleep. Since it’s a rainy day, I’m sure you don’t want to get wet and soggy. And I don’t want to get dirty, either. Like I said to myself earlier, there isn’t anything wrong with a lazy day. And right now, I wanna spend that lazy day with you…” Momo reached down and grabbed Servi’s left arm. She pulled it closer until she was practically hugging it. “Sweet dreams, Servy,” Momo whispered.

Her eyes gradually closed, blocking her bright blue orbs from being seen. Servi motionlessly stared at the sleeping Singi. If she had any thoughts about the situation, she didn’t make them known. Even as Momo hugged Servi’s arm between her chest like a kitten clutching their mother, the black-haired girl just didn’t move at all.

The storm clouds soared across the sky, bringing rain, thunder, and lightning for all who lived in southeastern Lando. The numerous farms received more than enough water for their crops, and the maintained wells and healthy aquifers filled right back up. On the surface, it seemed everything was going well.

And it was, for the most part. Fisher Jin had his own investigation to take care of, but he refused to involve Servi and Momo in it. He thought they had suffered enough, and he wanted to give them the rest they deserved. Protecting Canary and its residents would fall to him as Captain of the Guard.

Momo, the lovable, adorable Singi snuggled and wiggled against Servi until her forehead touched her arm. After that, she unconsciously marched forward until she was stuck to her friend like a bad cold. In a move unlike her, Servi brought her free arm over and placed it on Momo’s head. Then it went back and worth, rubbing her with the gentleness of a lover.

As suddenly as it happened, Servi removed her hand from the field of pink hair and dropped it by her side. Then she closed her eyes and fell asleep for the first time since becoming like this. When she and Momo camped out, Servi was just lying there on her side with her eyes open.

But now that she had finally dozed off, it only cemented the utter trust she had for Momo. If the adorable Singi was awake, she’d probably gleefully squeal like a pig. But as the hours passed, neither the former Mad Dog nor the cat-eared girl woke up from their extended nap. It was as if time kept their souls locked together in a world of happiness. But all things had to come to an end. In Momo’s case, it was her tummy violently rumbling her awake. It growled with the force of a tyrannical monster because its owner had ignored it for the sake of her friend.

Her lazy eyes crawled open, and she realized her lips were touching Servi’s shoulders. A cautionary glance upward revealed Servi’s nose was deep in a field of pink hair. Momo couldn’t see a smile, but she knew it was there. She struggled long and hard against her inner-self to ascertain if she wanted to at least kiss Servi’s shoulders, but it ended in a loss. But Momo didn’t want to leave without showing her affection, so she nuzzled her cheek on her Servi-pillow just hard enough to wake her.

Fortunately for her, Servi had woken up in one of her happy moods. She mimicked what Momo did and rubbed her cheeks into a blissful hill of pink hair. The embarrassed cat girl blushed hard, and tears nearly leaked from her eyes.

“Servy!!!” Momo said in a singsong-like voice.

“Servy!!!” Servi repeated. She added an adorable laugh and wrapped one arm tightly around Momo.

“Bwha!!!” Momo exclaimed. Servi had started to rub her hand up and down Momo’s slender back, inadvertently putting her in an excitable mood. She began to say a word of protest, but it was like she was about to melt. Servi’s touch was just that much. Maybe an amnesiac Goddess was looking out, but Servi abruptly raised her arm. Momo rolled out of bed, landing with one knee touching the floor. She stood up, wobbling just a little bit, and landed her butt back on the golden blanket.

It took a few seconds for her body to reset, and that hastily-filled chalice needed time to evaporate. Once Momo’s heart had stopped, she twirled around to face Servi, who remained on her side with an innocent grin. Momo smiled at Servi, and she laid back down. Her skirt had drifted upward, which showed off more of her thighs, but it was better than when she flashed her panties by mistake.

“Servy, you gotta give a girl warning before you run your hand like that!” Momo said, raising a finger and wagging it. I did rub her back a few times… Since she likes to copy me, I guess I had it coming.

“Warning!!!!” Right as Servi repeated that, her palm closed around Momo’s finger, enclosing it in her warmth.

“Yep! Just like that. Ah—” Momo was distracted by a lovely crimson glow, which filtered through a rain-stained window. It seemed the storm had come and gone, leaving Canary with an hour before the falling of darkness. “We slept right through that storm, didn’t we?”

“Storm!!!” Servi said. Her smile became even brighter, which was something Momo didn’t think possible.

“I love you!!!” Momo said that as a joke in hopes of having Servi repeat the whole sentence.

“I love you!!!” It was like Servi read Momo’s heart, but that couldn’t be possible. She didn’t have that power to begin with, and the Servi present wasn’t the same person Momo knew. Similar? Yes, but it would be imprudent to say the two were one and the same.

For a brisk moment, Momo started to lean in. She had never kissed anyone before, so she didn’t know what she had to do. It involved the lips, that much was sure, but she didn’t know what came after. Was there a noise involved? Did her breath stink? What if her lips were too dry? A million problems swarmed her mind, but Momo trekked along. Servi wasn’t so much as taken back as she was confused. She didn’t lean forward, but she didn’t lean back.

Momo knew it was wrong to take advantage of someone who couldn’t consent, but she thought Servi would forgive her. Her heart had been taken over by affection and longing for another’s tender touch.

It probably would have gone all to plan if the Singi had done one simple thing: eat breakfast. Since it had happened to her so many times, Momo just accepted the fact she would never have the chance to be the ‘cool one’ because her stomach would always interrupt with a mighty growl.

But upon further analysis, maybe it was a good thing such a moment was interrupted? Surely it wouldn’t be good to stain the priceless first kiss with such controversy of one taking advantage of the other. Even surviving a near-death scenario couldn't circumvent the almighty beast known as consent. It just didn’t give her the right. The spunky, affectionate Singi would just have to wait.

Momo groaned and rolled back and forth with her hands gripping her hair. She stopped when Servi started doing the same thing, and Momo laughed off the situation with a cute chuckle. She leaned up, pressing her left arm down to support herself. “Servy, since we skipped right through breakfast and lunch, let’s go grab us some dinner. After that, we can have some more fun, okay?”

“Fun!!! Fun!!!” Servi started hopping around the room. Evidentially, she associated that with the word ‘fun.’

“Yes, we can hop around like bunnies if you want to,” Momo said. She rolled off the bed and grabbed her bag. As Momo slipped her shoes back on, Servi walked over and placed a hand on her head. Servi’s hand scratched, rubbed, and tickled the Singi’s head as if she was petting an animal. Before she knew it, an odd sound like that of a purr rumbled from her throat. “Ah… Servy, I think I learned something about myself today…” Momo said, with a face full of red embarrassment. Her grandpa taught her the best he could with his advanced age, but some things, understandably, had to be skipped over. Love, and the subject of what it was, couldn’t be taught. Rather, such things were best experienced firsthand to remove any sort of bias that might have been imparted to her.

If Sumo had a chance to properly lecture his granddaughter on all things related to romance, she would’ve learned that Singi purred when being shown special attention by the one they fancied. But even though he skipped that, he made sure to tell Momo of something she had to do. It was really non-negotiable, but it was something almost required of her when she found the person she wanted to give her heart to. It was a little piece of information that was locked away, and only now did it rear its uncomfortable head since she was distracted by something else at the time.

Why did I just now remember that? Does grampy really want me to… Bwha!!! That’s even more embarrassing than simple kissing!!! But… I love Servy, so I have to do…that… But not now! I caught myself when I was about to kiss her. Err… My stomach did, but still… I’m supposed to be her guardian! I can’t betray her trust and do what I want to!!! I know Servy loves me… So that’s why I have to wait until she tells me herself! She already did tell me, kinda, but it needs to come from the real her! But… I’ll do it…

“Okay!!!” Momo tied her shoes, stood up, clapped her cheeks, and turned to Servi, who had stopped petting her. “Like I said before, you gotta give a girl a warning first! But that felt wonderful… Servy, if I asked you to rub my head like that, will you do it?” Her big, blue eyes stared fondly up at Servi.

“Do it!!!” she replied, petting Momo for the second time. She spent a few minutes rubbing her head against Servi’s hand. Suddenly, her stomach rumbled, and she internally groaned.

“I’ll take that as a yes. Now, let’s go grab us some grub before my tummy eats me alive!”

With the crimson glow in the sky having less than half an hour of life left, Servi and Momo journeyed down to the restaurant portion of Warden and ate dinner. The Singi wanted the flash-fried salmon with a generous helping of corn and peas. She put in an order for a glass of milk, but was told they didn’t have any. Dejected, Momo asked for water and received it. Servi couldn’t order for herself, so Momo did that for her. She requested the grilled duck with noodles, mashed potatoes, and a cup of water.

The actual dinner went by without a hitch. Momo did all of the talking, which seemed weird to the group of Dwarves sitting around her. They oddly stared at the girl more than once, but Momo didn’t let it get to her. In her eyes, the only people who existed were her and Servi. She knew that constantly talking about her dreams, the food, and their friendship were the keys to bringing Servi back as soon as possible. It was a long stretch, but Momo believed every word knocked off another minute of how long she needed to wait.

After their meals were devoured and drinks drank, the pair of potential lovers returned to Servi’s room. Since she was in her happy mood, Momo sat on the bed and watched her friend bounce like a red-eyed, black-haired bunny, which was totally adorable. The Singi plucked out her diary and started to pen an entry. She only managed to get through half of it before the sleepiness attacked at full force. A quick glance to the window revealed a startling world of black. The scarlet shadow of a setting sun had vanished. The only light came from a series of Lux Spheres, which were better than nothing.

“I’m sure glad they don’t give off heat. I don’t know what I’d do if it was hotter. But, Servy… It is getting kinda late.” Momo placed her journal in her bag and walked to the hopping girl, who seemed to resemble a certain kind of bunny that never ran out of energy.

Momo yawned again for what felt like the 19th time. She groggily wiped her eyes and gave her friend a big hug, making sure to move her arms up and down. “Good night, Servy. I love you. I’ll see you in the morning, okay?”

Momo found it hard to move her arms away from those blue overalls, but she did it with reluctance. When she left Servi’s room and entered her own, which seemed enclosed by impenetrable darkness, Momo barged straight ahead after shutting her door. Her bag was left by the locked door, and she took off her shoes near the bed. In a flash, she stripped down to her unmentionables and crawled into her bed.

She sat on her knees, staring down. The golden blanket was right there. Underneath that was a bedspread, and underneath that was yet another cover. It wasn’t cold at all, but with her clothes off, it wasn’t that hot.

“Dang, I’m finding it even hard to decide on if I want to sleep naked or not without Servy being in the room. It’s like when she’s not here, I can’t do a thing for myself. It kinda seems that my love isn’t just regular love… It’s not a bad love, is it? I guess I’m kind of obsessed with her, but that’s not a bad thing, right? No, it couldn’t be… Bah! Fine, I guess I’ll just sleep like this. The rain cooled down the temperature enough so it might be comfortable. If it’s sunny tomorrow, I better think of something to do with Servy. Hmm... A walk is always nice… Maybe we can… Ahh… I’m too sleepy to think. I can do that in the morning, right? Yeah… I can. Good night, world…”  Momo crawled forward a bit, rubbing her tail on the golden blanket. Then she leaned back, falling until her head landed comfortably on a pillow.

Momo rolled to her side and curled up in a ball. When her eyes closed, she instantaneously drifted off to the dream world. There, she did nothing but lay side-by-side with her lovable Servy. That was all she wanted to do, even though she had total control over her fantasies.

That just proved Momo was a simple girl with simple needs, and that was alright.

But what wasn’t alright were the vast amount of nightmares trying to force their way in to re-traumatize the girl who had survived through her darkest despair. Only a single defender stood headstrong to battle them away.

She had hair like that of liquid cherry blossom, eyes similar to the deepest blue in the deepest ocean, and a pair of ears and a tail so fluffy that they’d drive anyone wild. Yes, she was the internal foundation that had been with Momo since the day she took her first breath of life.

All throughout the night, and the night before, the night before that, and even the night before that, this doppelgänger with a fluffier tail held the line, keeping back the approaching nightmares. Not once did she ever think about stepping to the side and allowing them free reign.

She wouldn’t allow it. She’d never allow it. She’d died herself before allowing even one spec of darkness to sully the pleasant dream Momo was having.

This was her fight, and fight she would since it was partly her fault that Momo had to endure the unimaginable, coming mere seconds away from death.