The movie credits started rolling, playing some music in the background that I pretty immediately tuned out. It was kind of surprising how decent the movie was. It had its moments, and didn’t do anything egregious. Overall a fine movie to watch that I also got some extra enjoyment out of due to how wrong they got vampires. Why would vampires be able to give people bug powers? Who thought of that? 

But one of the best parts was getting to watch it together. Well, most of it anyway. Sam had fallen asleep about twenty minutes or so before the movie ended. My sensitive ears could tell when her breathing changed as she went off to dreamland. I didn’t have the heart to wake her up, not when she looked so adorable snuggled up in her big blanket. She must really have been exhausted. No wonder as to why that might be. 

Over the past couple days, Sam’s life had gotten thrown into chaos in a way that I wouldn’t wish on anybody. Yet, she faced it and pushed back so hard that any attempt I made to try and atone for what I felt was my fault was met with stern scolding that I would have never expected from such a cute and shy-looking girl. Heck, she even ended up comforting me! How the heck does that make sense? 

Well, I kind of knew how it made sense. Sam had drilled it into my head pretty convincingly. She doesn’t hold me accountable for my actions while I was out of control. I don’t really know how, but that girl convinced both me and herself that what happened was an accident. She doesn’t hold blame over anyone, and though she does seem to accept help for the things that are new to her she stoutly carries forward while asking the bare minimum from me. I even had to strongarm my way into helping with dinner. She was ready to make the whole thing by herself, and might not have said a word otherwise.

I really do want to help her. Circumstance led her to be in the path of destruction being wrought by the beast that I became when my shift went wrong, and whether that was an accident or not Sam deserves the best I can give her. I might have to make use of more teasing to get her to let me help more. She seems really weak to it.

With a sigh, I leaned over a little and called Sam’s name loud enough to hopefully wake her up without terrifying her. No response.

I tried another two times with escalating volume until I was just above normal speaking levels. It wouldn’t be nice to wake up to someone yelling, so I axed that idea from going any further. 

Next up was adding a slight jostle to her shoulder as I called her name. That, it turned out, was a mistake. As soon as I started gently shaking her shoulder, Sam’s head dipped down and she would have fallen onto her side if her weight wasn’t suddenly resting on my arm. She was unfairly cute. Her cheek was against the back of my forearm, radiating a warmth that made me involuntarily sniff the air.

Sam’s scent, as per usual, filled me with some complicated feelings. I wanted to bask in it, feel the comfort that it promised. The comfort that I got a small taste of a couple of times now. Once when I woke up on that first day, and the other as Sam held me while I cried. Neither moment was without some pretty heavy baggage, so I was sure that the moments were diluted by the presence of other factors.

That didn’t matter though. It wasn’t right for me to take advantage of Sam like that. She has been nothing but kind, offering understanding and compassion that I didn’t even think possible. I didn’t deserve to feel that from Sam. I was supposed to be the one responsible for her as she trains to be safe from the threats that lurk in the shadows. It was fortunate that this town didn’t have much in the way of threats. From what I had been able to survey so far, there were a lot of harmless or timid things scurrying about. Maybe a couple supernatural sentients, but nothing that was outright malicious on the outset. That still didn’t mean I could let my guard down though. It was up to me to keep Sam safe. 

Another sigh later and I discerned that Sam was unlikely to wake up without excessive force. I wasn’t keen on yelling or shaking her hard enough to wake her the hard way. That only left one option.

I stood from where I had been seated on the couch, careful not to let Sam fall over any further. Then, I maneuvered my free arm to scoop up Sam under the legs while bracing her back with my other hand. It was a little tough to do smoothly enough that I didn’t spook her, but my strength made up for the subpar coordination. In my arms, Sam might as well have been a paperweight. It still made me feel a little weird knowing just how strong I was that an entire person weighed next to nothing. 

The feeling ended up going away pretty quick, since a moment later I had Sam, still bundled in her blanket, in a princess carry. She squirmed a little bit and I was mortified at the thought of her waking up now of all times. Thankfully, she didn’t wake up. Not so thankfully, her squirming led her to nuzzling her face into my shoulder while trying to pull her blankets a little tighter around herself. She even made a show of taking a few exaggerated sniffs and making some contented mewling sounds while rubbing her face into me for a moment. 

I looked stoically off into the distance, my image likely ruined by the massive blush I felt rise in my cheeks and up to my ears. I had never seen anything so precious in my entire life, and I doubted that I would be able to get the image out of my head any time soon. 

Taking a steadying and resolute breath, I started slowly making my way upstairs. The TV had already gone into sleep mode, so I only had to hit the lightswitch on my way. Up to the second floor, to the room at the end of the hall, and into the door that I really felt like I shouldn’t be allowed in. I wasn’t about to let Sam sleep on the couch though, so I’d take the scolding for intruding into her room later if I had to.

I hadn’t turned the light on, but I really didn’t need to what with the night vision that came from my Were eyesight. Sam’s room was… interesting. Very minimalist, except in the places it wasn’t. Her dresser was absolutely covered in a curious mixture of plushies and anime figures. Her bed, the only other thing of note, had exactly two things on it besides the blankets and pillows you’d expect. One was a stuffed bunny the color of milk chocolate and the other was a body pillow that depicted a very exposed elf lady with creamy white skin with a slight flush, long pointed ears, and tits for days.

It would be for the best if I just ignored that. Sam’s bedroom is her business, and if she likes to sleep holding a lewd elf lady then it is none of my concern.

Realization struck that I had just been standing next to Sam’s bed holding her against myself for much longer than was necessary to get her into bed. I blushed again and made to pull back the covers of Sam’s bed as quickly as possible. It wasn’t that difficult, since Sam hardly weighed anything to me, to position her in such a way that I had one hand free enough to get the covers moved and ready to set Sam down.

Calmly and steadily, I lowered Sam down onto her bed next to her stuffed rabbit. I considered for a moment whether or not to try and extricate Sam from her cocoon so she could sleep under the covers on her bed, but thought better of the attempt and decided not to push my luck. She looked comfortable enough when I set her down. 

Momentary worry passed over me when she started to stir as soon as she hit the bed and I let go of her. She grumbled some nonsense to herself while she wiggled around and somehow freed herself from her bundle of blankets. Once she was free, she reached her arms out searching for something. 

Doing what seemed to make sense at the time, I moved her stuffed rabbit closer to her questing limbs. She latched onto it almost immediately. The poor rabbit got very squished into Sam’s chest in a tight hug as she lay on her side. It drew a smile to my face thinking that the rabbit was probably used to it. 

I turned to leave, no reason to stick around any longer since Sam was comfortably in bed now. Before I got more than a step away from Sam’s bed though, I heard a small voice mumbled into the forehead of a stuffed rabbit. “Liz…” She then took a deep breath in and hummed out a very delighted-sounding sigh.

My eyes shot open wide as I turned back to Sam. She was asleep… She hadn’t woken up. I didn’t even need to see her to know that. I could hear the cadence of her breathing and the steady beating of her heart. 

All that my mind would supply me were memories of this morning, hearing Sam say my name while she was… in the shower. I couldn’t tune out what I had heard, nor could I manage to forget it. I did a good job of shoving it to the wayside while other things were happening, but now in the dead of night with Sam mumbling my name in her sleep…

Gulping down a whole lot of feelings that I wouldn’t allow myself to do anything with, I left Sam’s room with a false sense of calm and shut the door behind me quietly. A short trip down the hall landed me in my own room, where I closed the door as quickly as I could without it making too much noise. 

My phone got plugged in on the quaint nightstand that Sam had bought for me to use, then I pretty much collapsed in bed. I lay there on my back looking at the ceiling, thinking about all the things that I shouldn’t be thinking about.

Sam…

Where Sam was very recently in my arms with her body against my torso, I felt a distinct sense of longing. I craved her touch in a way that left me more than a little conflicted. A part of me warred against the other, unsure of which part was right and which part was wrong. 

I shouldn’t feel this way about Sam. After all that happened to her because of me, accident or not, I didn’t deserve that kind of thing. It left a sour taste in my mouth that I could take advantage of her in a time of weakness. That I could be manipulating her without even knowing it. I didn’t really know how the magical scent thing worked. I had what my parents told me about to work off of, but the condition is exceptionally rare and has precious little information in circulation. 

Eyebrows scrunching in consternation, I continued to stare at the ceiling fruitlessly. Eventually, I gave up trying to logic away my feelings. That didn’t mean that I couldn’t shove them somewhere convenient though. 

Between my sense of duty and the maddening onslaught of feelings that come with being around Sam, there exists a common ground. One that I can agree to with one-hundred percent of my being.

I’ll do anything that I can to protect Sam while she gets strong enough to be able to take care of herself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Somewhere not too far away in an airport that hosted a good deal of wealthy patrons and their fancy private planes, a bickering couple made their way down their ramp that led to a plane that they had managed to rent from someone who had owed them a favor.

“Did you pack enough changes of clothes for us?” The wife asked innocently.

“It is entirely too late to be asking me that, but yes. Yes I did. Though I don’t know why you insist on having me pack all of your clothes for you. I hardly understand enough about that menagerie of a closet that you have to even find a set of matching socks.”

“And yet you did find matching socks for me!” She answered mischievously. “Oh how lucky for me to be blessed with such a mindful husband. I love the surprise of what you might pick out for me to wear. It’s far more interesting than picking out something on my own.”

The husband simply harrumphed and refused to acknowledge playing along with her games. “I don’t see how anything I pick out for you could be a surprise.”

“You’d be surprised.” The wife answered before cackling at her own joke. The husband merely let out a defeated sigh as he sat them down in the only passenger seat that would be occupied for this flight.

The flight that they had reserved was destined for a landing strip in Cambodia, one far away from the usual bits of civilization. Far enough away that they hoped that the group responsible for the upkeep of the runway were doing their job properly. Nobody on board wanted to land in any manner but safely. 

A flight attendant appeared to the man’s side in a very dapper looking button up with an apron over the front, carrying a tray of beverages and snacks. He accepted a bottle of water and a board with a very generous spread of meats, cheeses, and crackers and set them on the table in front of himself. He thanked the flight attendant before pointing his attention back to more important matters.

The wife reached out for a piece of meat, then thrust the morsel into her husband’s mouth before he had the chance to protest. “My dear Damian, you worry far too much. The girls will be fine. You know plenty well how strong Liz is and how knowledgeable she is when it comes to things that could be dangerous to the unprepared.”

Damian swallowed before he responded curtly, “I do not worry for the safety of their bodies Delilah my sweet, but for the safety of their spirits. They have gone through such a traumatizing event only to have found that their magic had bonded. That would be difficult to tackle with someone you just met by itself, let alone the extenuating circumstances.”

Delilah giggled playfully. “Dear, did you not see the way that they looked at one another? They were smitten as soon as they first laid eyes on one another, I would wager. They’ll figure things out in due time.”

Damian sighed, not willing to refute what his wife had said but also not entirely pleased with letting them both deal with this delicate situation all on their own. He had a long plane ride ahead that he would surely use to ruminate on his daughter and Samantha. 

Delilah had other ideas, cramming yet another piece of tasty meat into his mouth and cackling to herself. She wouldn’t just let her hubby brood all by his lonesome. 

Up walked the flight attendant once again, stopping for only a fraction of a second seeing Damian looking forward seriously with a scrunched up brow while also munching on charcuterie meat. “The plane will be taking off soon, please mind the sign when it says to buckle up. Emergency exits are to your left and right. If you are in need of my service, please press the call button there to your left.”

Damian thanked the man once again and resigned himself to letting his wife’s antics distract him from his less than helpful overthinking. It was going to be a long ride, but one that he hoped would be worth it to meet an old friend and hopefully find some answers as to what transpired during Samantha’s awakening that caused such unique results. The light dinged to put on your seatbelts, and so they did as the plane was towed to the runway where their journey would truly begin.

MegaSuperKami

Behold! Fluff! And also emotional turmoil. That part is less fun. But still! Fluff!

I hope that you enjoyed this little detour from Sam's POV. I was waiting for this chapter for ages, but it has finally happened! We got to see Sam through Liz's eyes, and we were left in a chorus of 'awwwww's and smiles. I also hope that this chapter helped frame what Liz was feeling more concretely. She has a tough road ahead of her.

Anyways! Glad that you could join me in the foray into the lives of others. Until next time, have a frabidituous day!