Short Story: [Emberfate] Home

Hey everyone!

Final reward post for this month: a short story of Emberfate, this time starring Nathan ft. some members of the guild! I kind of really like how it turned out, so I hope you enjoy this little story too!

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The incessant ringing of cheerful tune brings a frown to your face even before your consciousness fully returns. The melody sounds familiar — one that should mean something to you but is currently lost upon your drowsy mind at the moment. 

Beside you, Nathan stirs, shifting under the covers until you feel a sharp bony elbow digging into your back. Muttering something incoherent in protest, your eyes crack open to the bright daylight — no, rather, the complete absence of light in the dark room.

"Huh? Wait, what time is it?" You stretch your arm towards the nightstand, searching blindly on the surface until your fingers make contact with the cool metal of your phone. Bringing it up to your face, you squint at the screen just as it starts vibrating in your hand with the jingle once more, almost startling you enough that you drop the phone on your face. 

"Hello?" You murmur groggily into the phone. Nathan turns in the bed, throwing an arm around your torso to pull you closer. 

Ruby's energetic voice blasts into your ear, the volume making you wince slightly. "Thank God you're finally picking up! Jesus, everyone's been trying to call you and Nathan for like fifteen minutes! Are we raiding tonight or not?"

"Raiding — wait, shit!" You immediately pull the phone away from your ear to glance at the clock, and this time, you can see the numbers through your bleary eyes. 

Ten minutes past seven.

You jerk upright in bed, all sleepiness flying away in an instant. "I'm so sorry! Tell everyone we'll be right there!" 

Hanging up on the call, you grab Nathan by the shoulder and shake him in panic. That seems to do the trick, as his eyes slowly open to stare at you in confusion.

"Nathan, wake up! We're late for raid! Damn it, didn't you set an alarm on your phone?" 

"Raid...? Oh, crap!" Nathan glances at the time on your phone, and in record time, he's untangling himself from the blankets and jumping out of bed, almost tripping over his own legs in the process. "My phone must have died or something! I thought I plugged it in for charging before we had our nap!" 

The two of you scramble straight for the room where your computers lie, thankfully already turned on and ready to go. It doesn't take long for you to type in your password and for the beautiful graphics of the Emberfate world to greet you on your monitor. 

A party invitation from Cat immediately appears on your screen, which you accept. The moment you put in your earphones, you hear the familiar chatter of your guildmates — loud and chaotic, but enough to bring a smile to your face. 

"Our guild leader is finally here! We've not been abandoned after all!" Jim lets out a dramatic cheer, eliciting a laugh from you as you apologize. 

"We're so sorry. We were having a power nap before the raid, and we ended up oversleeping because my phone failed me." You hear Nathan's voice sound from beside you a second before it echoes through your earphones. You hastily mute your microphone, but it's too late — the rest of your guild is in an uproar, cackling with great amusement.

"Whoa, whoa. A power nap in the same bed, and now you're raiding side by side too? Sheesh, think of the feelings of us single pringles here!" The teasing note in Aedriss' voice is clear as day, and you cough awkwardly. Out of the corner of your eye, you see a flush rising to Nathan's cheeks. 

Although the guild has known about your relationship with Nathan for a long time, they never fail to take joy from teasing the two of you, especially since the recent development of you two taking the step of moving in together. 

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry! It's not our fault we're so cute together, you know?" Nathan retorts, the grin evident in both his voice and on his face. Outraged gasps and jeering ensue from the guild, multiple people speaking over each other in an attempt to tell Nathan off for his audacity. You, too, nudge him in the side with a laugh, and he smirks playfully before capturing your hand in his for a quick squeeze. You have to tug your hand away with a warning glare to be able to control the mouse again and initiate the raid teleport.

"Cat and I are still the cutest couple in the guild though! No competition, nuh uh." Ruby chimes in as the loading screen to enter the raid dungeon fills up your monitor. The banter among the guild continues for a while as you and Nathan join them at the entrance, and you can't help but smile wide enough that your face hurts. 

This, exactly, is where you feel most at home — and you can only hope that it never ends.