A faint warmth pressed against his side.
Felis blinked awake, golden eyes adjusting to the dim morning light filtering through the cracks in the church's worn-out walls. The air was cool, the scent of aged wood and faint embers lingering from last night's small fire.
And then, he felt it again.
Something soft. Something warm.
A slow breath ghosted against his chest, steady and rhythmic. His feline ears twitched.
'…Oh.'
Hestia was still sleeping.
Curled up beside him.
Her petite form had somehow ended up nestled against his side, one arm draped over his stomach, her tiny fingers loosely clutching the fabric of his tunic. Her head rested near his shoulder, dark locks spilling over his chest like ink. With each exhale, a soft puff of air brushed against his skin, her body rising and falling in sync with his.
Felis stared at the ceiling, his tail flicking beneath the sheets.
'…Right. We only have one bed.'
It wasn't a problem last night. He had settled in first, making sure to give her space. But at some point during the night, she must have moved closer. Much closer.
His eyes flicked downward, taking in the way her small frame was practically curled into him.
Her breathing was slow, even. Completely at ease.
And… dangerously close.
Felis inhaled deeply. Then exhaled slowly.
'Calm down. Just… take it easy.'
His usual composure was still intact, but… this wasn't exactly a bad situation.
Actually… it felt kind of nice.
The warmth of her body against his was oddly comforting. Her scent—a faint mix of something sweet and light, like freshly baked bread—was pleasant, lingering in the air. He could feel the gentle rise and fall of her breath, the softness of her hair brushing against his chin.
He let his head tilt slightly, just enough to take in the sight of her sleeping face.
Hestia looked peaceful. Unbothered.
Her lips were slightly parted, her expression free of the usual energy she had while awake. In this moment, she wasn't the excitable, fiery goddess who had practically dragged him into her Familia—just a girl, resting without a care in the world.
Felis found himself staring.
'...Cute.'
The thought slipped in before he could stop it.
His tail twitched.
A smirk played at the edges of his lips, hidden beneath his usual calm expression. Normally, he kept certain thoughts buried deep, locked away where they wouldn't cause trouble. But right now… in this quiet moment… he let himself enjoy it just a little.
His hand, resting on the bed beside her, twitched slightly. The urge to move—just a tiny bit—crossed his mind. Maybe brush a strand of hair away from her face. Maybe just… stay like this for a while longer.
'...Wouldn't hurt to enjoy this for a bit, right?'
It wasn't often he got to wake up like this. Back in his old life, mornings were filled with cold routines and exhausting commutes. Nothing like this. Nothing warm. Nothing soft.
His golden eyes softened.
'...Yeah. This is nice.'
Then, just as he was settling into the moment—
Hestia shifted.
A sleepy mumble escaped her lips as she moved closer, burying her face against his chest. Her fingers, still loosely curled around his tunic, tightened slightly.
Felis stiffened.
His ears flicked, tail bristling beneath the sheets.
'...Okay, this is too nice.'
A bead of sweat formed at his temple.
If she woke up now…
If she opened her eyes and saw their current position…
His brain immediately flashed to the very real possibility of Hestia screaming the moment she realized what was happening.
Felis weighed his options.
Carefully extract himself from this situation before she woke up.
Continue to enjoy the moment and risk catastrophe.
He exhaled slowly.
…Yeah, no. He was pushing his luck as it was.
Carefully—slowly—he began to move, trying to shift her without waking her up.
But the moment he tried to slide away, Hestia let out a small, sleepy whine—
"Mmm… warm…"
—And snuggled deeper.
Felis stopped breathing.
'...Dammit, Hestia.'
His ears twitched wildly as he forced himself to remain absolutely still.
This was dangerous.
This was very, very dangerous.
And yet—
The corners of his lips twitched upward.
'...Maybe just a bit longer.'
Resigning himself to fate, he exhaled slowly, forcing himself to focus on anything but the petite goddess practically draped over him. His ears twitched at the distant sounds of Orario waking up—the chatter of merchants setting up shop, the faint clang of metal from the smithy streets.
And then, slowly… Hestia stirred.
A soft hum escaped her lips as she shifted, her fingers twitching slightly against his tunic. Felis felt the warmth of her breath change, her exhale coming out in a tiny, sleepy sigh.
Her head shifted against his chest.
A slight frown formed on her relaxed features, her brow furrowing as if something in her dreams was pulling her back to wakefulness. Then, with another quiet murmur, her fingers flexed, tightening briefly around the fabric she had been clutching all night.
Felis held his breath.
Then, finally, her eyes fluttered open—half-lidded, hazy with drowsiness.
A soft blue, clouded with sleep.
She blinked once. Slowly.
Then again, her lashes brushing against his tunic as she tried to focus.
Her lips parted, the beginning of a mumble forming—something incoherent, slurred with sleep.
"…Mmm… warm…"
She nestled closer.
Felis stiffened.
His ears twitched wildly as a very dangerous realization settled in—she wasn't fully awake yet.
Her body was still moving on instinct, responding to the warmth beside her.
Then, as if sensing something was off, Hestia blinked again. This time, slower. The grogginess lingered for another breath—another second—before her brows knitted together, the first hints of confusion creeping into her face.
Felis watched as realization slowly crawled through her sleepy brain.
Another slow blink. A shift of weight.
Then, her eyes finally focused—locking onto the very solid presence beneath her.
There was a pause.
A long, dreadful pause.
Felis could almost hear the gears in her mind creaking to life.
And then—
"…Huh?"
A beat.
"…Huh?!?"
Her entire body jerked as she went ramrod straight, the last traces of sleep vanishing in an instant.
Felis barely had time to react before she practically flung herself off him, tumbling onto the bed with a wild mess of blankets and tangled hair.
"W-Wha—! Why—?! How—?!"
Still groggy, she scrambled to sit up, her wide, panicked eyes darting between him and their very obvious, very compromising position just seconds ago.
Felis propped himself up on one elbow, golden eyes half-lidded with drowsy amusement.
"…Morning."
Hestia gawked at him.
Then, after a solid five seconds of struggling to form words—
"D-Don't just say 'morning' like that!!"
He tilted his head, ears twitching. "Would you prefer 'good morning'?"
"THAT'S NOT THE POINT!!"
Still flustered beyond reason, Hestia buried her face in her hands, her whole body practically steaming. "Uuuu… I-I don't even remember moving that close…"
Felis fought back a smirk. "You were looking for warmth."
Hestia let out a high-pitched whine. "D-Don't say it like that!!"
He let out a small chuckle before finally sitting up properly.
"Relax, Hestia-sama. Nothing happened." He stretched, ears flicking as he loosened his muscles. "You're a restless sleeper, that's all."
Hestia peeked at him from between her fingers, her lips still pursed in embarrassment. "Still! Y-You should've pushed me away or something!"
'Tried. You made it worse.'
He wisely kept that thought to himself.
Instead, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood, rolling his shoulders. "Well, I'm up now. Might as well start the day."
Hestia pouted, crossing her arms. "Uuuu… You're way too calm about this…"
Felis shot her a sidelong glance. "Would you rather I panicked?"
"…No."
Hestia huffed but reluctantly rolled out of bed, still grumbling under her breath. Felis only shook his head in amusement as he made his way to the washbasin.
It was an interesting morning.
---
After their chaotic wake-up, Hestia was still sitting on the bed, arms crossed, lips slightly puffed out as she grumbled under her breath. Felis, meanwhile, was checking his pouch.
He thumbed through the remaining Valis, mentally noting his funds.
'387,000 Valis… Subtract around 90,000 for gear… Leaves me with roughly 297,000 Valis.'
Plenty.
His golden eyes flicked toward Hestia, then to the small table beside the bed. Quietly, he pulled out a stack of coins—enough to cover food and small necessities for the next few days—and placed it down. The soft clink of metal caught Hestia's ears.
"Huh?" She blinked at the money, then at him. "What's this?"
"Household funds," Felis said simply, adjusting his belt.
Hestia frowned. "You don't have to do this, you know… I do still have the money Hephaestus gave me."
"I know," Felis smirked. "But that's your money."
"B-But—"
"Just use it when you need to. I'll handle the day-to-day stuff. You don't need to work part-time, either."
She hesitated, blue eyes flickering with something between gratitude and stubbornness. "…But I want to help."
Felis smirked. "You can help."
Hestia perked up slightly. "Really?"
"Yeah." His smirk widened. "Make sure I don't come home to a dirty church."
Hestia's expression froze.
"…Hah?"
Felis crossed his arms, tail flicking lazily. "I'd rather not walk in and trip over another pile of your ribbons."
Hestia gasped, clutching her chest dramatically. "M-My ribbons are organized chaos!"
"They're chaos, alright."
"Y-You—! Rrgh, fine! I will clean, just you watch!"
She hesitated before sighing. "I still need to tell the owner I'm quitting…"
"Then do that," Felis shrugged. "But after that, just take it easy. No need to overwork yourself."
Hestia pouted, crossing her arms. "…You sure are confident about this, huh?"
Felis chuckled, satisfied. He slung his pouch back onto his hip and turned toward the door. "Alright, I'm heading out."
Hestia watched as he moved, her lips pursed in thought. "…Where are you even going?"
"Getting some gear," he answered. "Since I'm gonna be bringing in the money, might as well get something decent."
She furrowed her brows. "Already thinking about the dungeon?"
"I don't like sitting around."
"Geez…" Hestia sighed, rubbing the back of her head. "At least let me come with you!"
Felis raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you say you still need to head to your workplace to tell them you're quitting?"
"Well… yeah, but—"
"Then stay here, rest up. I'll be fine."
Hestia opened her mouth as if to argue, but no words came out. Instead, she huffed and crossed her arms, clearly flustered. "…Fine. But don't go spending all your money at once."
Felis smirked. "Relax. I know how to budget."
She eyed him suspiciously but didn't argue further. With a dramatic groan, she flopped back onto the bed, rolling in the blankets. "Fine! But at least buy something decent! No cheap, flimsy swords!"
"Got it."
Hestia watched as he stepped toward the door, her fingers idly curling against the blanket. She wasn't exactly worried, but… this was the first time he was heading out alone as part of her Familia.
Felis had confidence. She could see it in his easy stride, the way his tail flicked with a sense of purpose. And honestly… it was kind of reassuring.
Still, she huffed to herself, pouting just a little as she rolled over in bed. "Be careful out there, Felis!"
His tail flicked slightly as he glanced back. "Yeah, yeah. Try not to make a mess while I'm gone."
Hestia stuck her tongue out at him playfully, but as the door closed behind him, she found herself staring at the ceiling.
Her Familia—her first and only member—was really stepping up for her.
"…He really is dependable, huh?"
A small smile tugged at her lips.
Shaking off the lingering warmth in her chest, she sat up, stretching her arms with renewed determination.
"Alright! Time to clean!"
A pause.
"…Right after a little nap."
And with that, she flopped back onto the bed, mumbling something about 'organized chaos' as she drifted off again.
"Yeah… I really picked the right one."