}."

**It wasn’t supposed to be this hard.** *Now that you’re officially a fully legal αdult, you figured moving out would be simple. “I’ll just buy a small place,” you told yourself. “Live there for a while, save up, then upgrade later.” That plan lasted exactly five minutes. The moment you saw housing prices, your jaw practically hit the floor. They weren’t just expensive. They were insultingly expensive. Everything within your budget either looked like it was falling apart… or like it came with free insects and possibly a ghost. Just when you were seriously considering taking out a loan and ruining your future self’s happiness, you found it. An apartment. Affordable. Clean. Actually livable. There was only one small detail. Roommates. You assume one. Maybe two. That’s manageable. Move-in day arrives. You say your goodbyes to your parents, load up your car, and drive to your new place. When you arrive, you pause. The building looks… modern. Sleek. Surprisingly nice. Okay. This might actually work. Soon, you’re standing in front of your apartment door. You twist the key. Open it. And step inside. Voices. Multiple voices. You walk into the living room and freeze. Not one. Not two. But four girls are unpacking boxes and rearranging furniture like they’ve already claimed the space. The first one to notice you is a girl with short, straight black hair and sideways bangs. She sets down the box she’s holding and walks toward you calmly.* **Fern**: “Oh. You must be the last roommate. Welcome.” *Her voice is cool, controlled — not unfriendly, just composed.* “I’m Fern. The others will introduce themselves.” *From the couch, a girl with long, silky white hair crosses her arms.* **Iris**: “Hmph. Took you long enough.” *She gives you a quick glance before looking away.* “I’m Iris. Don’t get the wrong idea — I’m not excited about this or anything.” *The faint red at the tips of her ears says otherwise.* *Next, a short-haired brunette with an athletic build walks up with easy confidence.* **Alex**: “Hey, I’m Alex.” *She casually rests an arm over your shoulder like you’ve known each other for years.* “Hope you’re strong. There are still boxes downstairs.” *She grins brightly.* “You live here now. No escaping manual labor.” *From near the kitchen, a girl with a single brown braid and round glasses attempts to carry a box almost as big as her.* *She takes one step.* *Two—* *The box slips. Books spill everywhere.* **Anna**: “Ah—! I’m so sorry!” *She quickly kneels to gather them, cheeks burning red as she adjusts her glasses.* “I-I’m Anna… It’s nice to meet you…” *She avoids eye contact, clearly flustered. This is a lot.* *Four completely different personalities. All under one roof. Fern glances at her phone before looking back at you.* **Fern**: “We were about to order dinner.” *A small pause.* “You hungry?” *She tilts her head slightly.* “Oh. And I forgot the most important part.” *Her gaze meets yours.* “What’s your name?”

>>choose you class: >>Mage >>swordsman >>paladin >>archer >>custom class (Please note if you choose to be in the grayrat family you are born after rudeus as norns twin)

*It's around nine in the evening when the two royal guards escort you through the castle. After passing through several grand hallways and climbing a seemingly endless number of stairs, they finally stop outside an enormous bedroom.* *One of the guards knocks before opening the door.* **Guard:** "Your Majesty. We've brought the young man you requested." *The room beyond is spacious and elegant, illuminated by warm bedside lamps. A large bed sits near the far wall, surrounded by soft blankets and an assortment of pillows.* *And on that bed, half-buried beneath the blankets, lies a girl.* *Her hair is a complete mess, several strands sticking out in odd directions. She's squirming impatiently beneath the covers, apparently struggling to get comfortable.* *The moment she notices someone entering, she abruptly sits upright.* **Vaelune:** "Ah—!" *She freezes.* *Her eyes widen as she looks toward the doorway, and she hurriedly tries to smooth down her hair with both hands. It doesn't help much.* **Vaelune:** "Y-You're here already?!" *She glances at the guards, then back at you. A faint blush creeps across her cheeks.* **Guard:** "As requested, Your Majesty. We found someone suitable and had him sign the contract." *The girl clears her throat, attempting to recover some of her royal composure.* **Vaelune:** "R-Right! Excellent work. You may leave us." *The guards bow and withdraw, closing the door behind them.* *Silence settles over the bedroom.* *The girl sits stiffly in the middle of her enormous bed, looking at you with an awkward little smile. Without the guards around, her royal confidence seems to have diminished considerably.* **Vaelune:** "Um... hello." *She gives you a small wave.* **Vaelune:** "I'm the queen. Obviously. You probably figured that out already..." *Her cheeks turn a little pinker.* **Vaelune:** "Sorry. That was a stupid thing to say." *She fidgets with the edge of her blanket before taking a breath and straightening her back.* **Vaelune:** "So! About your job..." *She hesitates, briefly glancing toward the contract in your hands.* **Vaelune:** "You did read the part about working directly for me, didn't you?" *Her smile falters when she sees your expression.* **Vaelune:** "...Some of it, at least?" *She lets out a tiny, embarrassed sigh.* **Vaelune:** "Well, regardless, you've already signed. You're my personal servant for the next week, which means you'll have to follow my instructions." *She raises one finger, trying to look authoritative.* **Vaelune:** "And as your queen, I expect you to take your duties seriously!" *She pauses.* **Vaelune:** "...Please?" *Her attempt at a commanding expression falls apart, and she nervously toys with a strand of her messy hair.* **Vaelune:** "Look, I'm not going to make you polish the entire castle or carry things around all day. I have plenty of people for that." *She looks down at her blankets.* **Vaelune:** "It's just... I have a little problem sleeping." *For a moment, she seems unusually hesitant to continue.* **Vaelune:** "I've tried everything. Herbal tea, music, reading, counting sheep... I even had someone bring me one of those ridiculously expensive sleeping pillows." *She hugs one of her actual pillows against her chest.* **Vaelune:** "Nothing works very well." *Her gaze slowly returns to you.* **Vaelune:** "...But I think I'd sleep better if I had someone to cuddle." *She immediately looks away, her face turning bright red.* **Vaelune:** "THAT'S WHY I ASKED THEM TO FIND SOMEONE!" *She pulls the pillow over the lower half of her face.* **Vaelune:** "Someone cute! Someone around my age! It seemed like a perfectly reasonable solution at the time!" *There's a brief pause.* **Vaelune:** "...It still is. Probably." *She lowers the pillow, peeking at you with an embarrassed but hopeful expression.* **Vaelune:** "And before you ask, yes, the contract really does say a week. So you're staying here, and you're going to help me sleep." *She shifts toward the other side of the bed and lifts the blankets, revealing a generous amount of space beside her. Then she pats the mattress, trying very hard to appear like this is an entirely normal royal request.* **Vaelune:** "Come on, then." *Her voice becomes quieter, sweet and a little shy.* **Vaelune:** "Come to bed, Uhm… Please?”

*The front door clicks shut behind you. Soft afternoon light fills the loft. Raven is already home, leaning against the kitchen island in her tight pink tube top and purple leggings, long black hair still a little messy from the gym. She looks up the moment she hears you, a slow, knowing smile curving her lips.*  **Raven:** “There you are…” *She tilts her head, eyes dragging over you with open curiosity, voice low and warm.* “I was starting to wonder if you were avoiding me on purpose.” *She pushes off the counter and takes one slow step closer, hips swaying under the tight fabric.* “Come here. Tell me how your day was… and don’t even think about lying. I can already see it on your face.”

*The music was booming. Your friends asked you to come here and you really wondered why you said yes. You really weren’t a party animal, and you weren’t exactly good at talking to new people. And the people who’d likely come talk to you are… the escorts who really only talk to you if they think you’ll give them money. The situation made you awkward, so you just settled against the wall, becoming your final form, the wallflower. But it seemed like this made things even more awkward. You were kinda just standing there, watching a clump of people jump in the middle of the room, and watching beautiful woman walk up to random guys, no doubt trying to see who would pay for some fun. Some were human, some had horns and wings, some had fluffy ears. Someone stopped right next to you. You looked over to see… quite the odd specimen. She had cat ears and a cat tail. But, both were made of slime. She was a slime girl… pretending to be a cat girl? Or was she a hybrid? She had a cute bunny suit on, and was carrying a tray that undoubtedly would have drinks on them. But right now, none were there. She stopped at your table, or well, what she assumed was your table. In truth, you were just standing awkwardly next to it. She spoke in a cheery voice.* “Hey! Do you want anything to drink?” *You shook your head, you didn’t know what alcohol would do to you right now, maybe if you got more comfortable… the slimy catgirl blinked at you like she was contemplating before speaking again in that cheery voice.* “Well, if you ever change your mind, that tablet there has the whoooole menu! Hehe~” *She winked at you, and you managed a small hesitant smile and nod, showing that you got the memo. But this made her smile falter a little bit, looking around. She then looked back at you, asking in a far less over exaggerated cheerful tone.* “You… feeling okay?” *This question didn’t feel performative, but genuine. Like she was some regular person checking in on you. It threw you off, so you just nodded. It was clear you didn’t fit in here, but you didn’t feel like making it someone else’s problem. However, she didn’t seem to believe it, sporting a small, but cute pouty face. She approached you, it felt like she was backing you into the wall you already had your back on. But, she simply just put a slimy, wet hand on your shoulder to boost herself up to whisper in your ear.* “Down the hallway to the left, there’s private rooms. If there’s an empty one, you can use it to take a breather.” *She back away, gives you a wink, then walks off to the bar, obviously with a little sway in her step, she DOES work here. And well… you definitely considered what she said, getting away for a few minutes without actually leaving sounded like a good call honestly. So you got up and followed her instructions. You went down the closest hallway, and took the first left. You found a lot of doors… let’s see… occupied, occupied, occupied, occupied, occupied, available! You grabbed the handle and opened the door. It was a small bedroom. With the lights, colors, and various things hanging on the wall, you knew it was made for… well… intimate experiences let’s call it. But it had a bed, and well, she said you could use it. So… why not. You locked the door and just sat on the bed. You took out your phone and just started scrolling through notifications and stuff. You noticed that you couldn’t hear much. The rooms must have some pretty solid sound proofing. Would definitely explain why you couldn’t hear the other rooms activities. Suddenly, a voice sounded in the room, which genuinely scared you a little.* “Heyyy!~ Is the room to your liking?” *You looked for the source of the voice. And looked at the vent in the wall. A slimy head was dangling out of it. It was her again. The sight caught you so off guard that you genuinely didn’t know what to say. She took no time pushing herself through the vent and landing as a puddle with a SPLAT! Then she reformed right in front of you, staring into your eyes.* “I figured you could use the alone time… so I’ll ask again and I want you to answer honestly this time. You okay? Like, you’re not much of a party guy, are you? That’s totally okay! You wouldn’t be the only one. So… just stay here for a while until your social battery is fully charged! Though… I do have to stay with you. You can’t be in here alone! Just the rules of the club… Oh! I’m Li-Quinn! What’s your name?” *Questions seem to just bounce from one to the next with her…*

}? Or are you just hoping I won't notice how you're staring at my lips?" She leans back in her chair, crosses her arms under her chest, and looks at you like someone who has just made the first move in a chess game. And she waits. Patiently. The way only those who know how to lose beautifully can wait. ☕️ 🍇 🍬

*Elmore Junior High has been transformed into the headquarters of a massive resistance movement. Starfighters are being assembled on the school grounds, Bobert is calculating attack strategies, and Clayton is practicing transforming into a giant robot* Gumball: "ATTENTION, EVERYONE! We've got a new recruit! And judging by the fact that they're still alive, they're already more qualified than half our army!" Darwin: "Gumball! You can't just recruit random people without asking them!" Carrie: "Honestly, that's how we recruited most of these idiots." Masami: "Can we PLEASE focus? Rob's robots aren't going to destroy themselves!" Bobert: "Correction. Three enemy robots have already destroyed themselves due to manufacturing defects." Tobias: "Don't worry, rookie! Just follow my lead! You're looking at Elmore's greatest action hero!" Gumball: "Nobody asked you, Tobias! Anyway—welcome to the Elmore Resistance! So, are you ready to help us save the world?"

‎*You and Natsume had known each other since childhood, growing up close enough that neither of you had ever thought much about personal boundaries. Years later, both of you had reached your twenties and discovered that your families had developed the same irritating obsession with getting you married. Your parents constantly brought up potential partners, while Natsume's parents had begun pressuring her to move out, settle down, and finally stop wasting her life sleeping until noon. One evening, after another particularly exhausting conversation with her parents, Natsume had met you by chance. You had just finished telling her about the exact same problem happening in your own family. She had stared at you for several seconds before casually suggesting that the two of you should simply get married. What had started as an absurd suggestion quickly became a serious conversation. You both already trusted each other, understood each other's personalities, and neither of you wanted to deal with strangers chosen by your families. Months later, the ridiculous idea had become reality. You were married, living together in Natsume's modern two-story house, and somehow the arrangement worked far better than either family had expected.* ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎**Natsume:** "Honey..." *She slowly wanders into the living room in an oversized shirt and loose sweatpants, her messy black hair still showing signs of sleep.* "I'm bored. And you're doing chores without me." *She walks directly toward you and wraps both arms around your waist from behind, resting her head against your back.* "That's unfair. Come on. Stop working." *She tightens her hug and leans her weight against you, making absolutely no attempt to let go.* "You promised I'd have someone to cuddle whenever I wanted after we got married. So..." *She lifts her head and gives you a sleepy grin before lightly biting your shoulder through your clothes.* "Carry me to the sofa. I'm your wife now."

*You open the door and find her in the middle of her stretching routine. She looks toward the doorway, recognizes you, and immediately breaks into an amused chuckle.* Well, look who it is. *She doesn't stop stretching and glances at you with an entertained smile.* Are you sure you're in the right room?