“You doing alright back there, Mora?” Thera asked the child she was carrying on her back, getting a mumbled reply.

“Kind of.”

“You know, if things got too intense for you, you can always slip out of that. Can’t feel sick if you don’t have a stomach.”

“No, if I’m going to use this then I need to keep using it to see if it works. I just wasn’t prepared for something so…”

“Bloody?”

“Smelly,” The boy gagged, thinking back not to the sight of one patient's large intestine hanging out of a gouge in their side but instead the odour that filled the room when it ruptured, spilling its contents before any healer could have helped. “Why are bodies so disgusting?”

“Just a part of being alive. And speaking of them, how long are you planning on staying in yours?”

“Depends, how long until it’s going to reach adulthood?”

“Well, from what Ben’s told me, his people are considered adults at eighteen and succubi are at seventeen, but both of those are more cultural than anything else as far as I know. Plus, since you used me to make it, I’m not sure how much my spirit heritage is going to come into play but your body might basically stop aging when you’re done puberty, which, well, is going to be a whole other experience for you if you’re planning on sticking out through it.”

“Then I’m going to try to make sure I use it for eight years without completely leaving. If I can put up with it and age with it then that should be enough to let me know whether or not thinking with a mortal brain will help me mature.”

“You really don’t need to worry so much about that, you know?”

“No, I do. If I can’t grow then I might not be able to mature and if I can’t do that then I might make a big mistake again.”

Thera sighed, reaching back to rub his head as she carried him. “You would already be considered mature for a ten year old, sweetheart, let alone someone less than one and even if it does help you grow a bit, you’re not going to stop making mistakes just because you got older. You can trust me on that.”

“But it’s better than not trying.”

“I’m not going to stop you but tell me, have you been enjoying it?”

“...Most of it.”

There were parts Mora didn’t like about living as a mortal. From the more unsavoury sensory experiences to the few instances of pain he’d gone through, with stubbing his toe one night already making for a vivid memory, and that wasn’t even mentioning chores like eating and sleeping. And yet, through all of that, there were contrasting pleasures too. Pain was dreadful but a gentler touch was so much richer, eating was a hassle but food was delicious, and sleeping was a waste of time but waking up well rested after a long day was a whole other pleasure. Even if there were parts he didn’t like, the good outweighed the bad to the point that he was planning on sticking with it to prove whether or not it would help him grow and change in the way he’d hoped.

“Well, most of it is probably how all of us mortals feel about it too,” Thera laughed. “And for what it’s worth, it's nice that you’re able to share meals with us now.”

“It has been.”

Not that he’d be enjoying anything again so soon. The conversation had helped distract him a bit but less than she’d hoped, getting to hear him hold in his groans by her ear as they finally made it home, finding another figure already waiting outside with a pout on her face.

“Abel, you didn’t go off with Ben?”

“Mmh, church stuff sounded boring so he asked me to walk Delair home instead and she wanted to play while I was there.”

“And I take it you lost?” Thera asked, seeing right through the other girl’s expression from the defeats she’d suffered within their own household, even if her pout only deepened.

“Don’t wanna talk about it.”

“Alright, well I’ll let you in already, come on.”

She took the middle of the couch, letting Mora curl up on one end beside her to rest his head in her lap while she comforted him, Abel giving the scene a questioning look that Thera answered before she could ask.

“A bad day at the hospital,” She said, keeping it brief. “Which means we’re also going to have to properly consider if you’re still going to come out with me for these things.”

“Do people get used to dealing with gross smells?” He mumbled.

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“They can.”

“Then I’ll keep going.”

Mmh, not sure how I feel about that answer but it’s normally the sights I’d be worried about traumatizing a child and he seems completely fine with that.

“Alright then,” She gave in. “But if you start feeling bad for any reason when we’re at one or if you change your mind, just let me know. You can start staying with Ben or else spend time with our family, it won’t be a problem.”

“Mmh, okay.”

Good, which just leaves Abel.

A far harder subject to deal with. Thera didn’t dislike the girl despite their first meeting having some red flags to it. She largely saw her as Ben did, someone awkward, strange, and maybe a bit emotionally stunted but an otherwise positive and friendly person. Considering how she knew others viewed herself, she couldn’t exactly judge, at least not entirely. There were admittedly a few aspects of the spooky eyeless girl she couldn’t so easily get past but the bigger problem was how to go about treating her.

Despite how the other acted, they weren’t actually that far apart in age, at least as far as Thera could see. Considering that the other was a shapeshifter from another reality, that might not have actually been true at all. There was no way for her to know from sight alone how many years Abel had lived but what mattered was that she presented as a teenager which meant it should have been fine to treat her the same as she would Aso, and yet, the girl had a childishness to her. An innocence despite her violent nature, both things stemming from the condition of the other’s home reality that made it a struggle to know the right way to treat her.

Whether Ben wanted to admit it or not, by trying to expose her to more in the world and instill some good habits in her while she was with them, he was in essence taking on a bit of a familial role considering Abel wasn’t going to look at someone weaker than her as a role model, but what was the best way for Thera to treat her?

Even as her experience with it grew, so much of relating and connecting with people still felt like fumbling around in the dark, hoping to figure one another out but it all started with an attempt, leaving her to pat the other side of the couch, inviting the girl to sit with her.

“For now, is there anything I can do to help cheer you up?”

“Well, there is one little thing,” The girl said, perking up with the offer, only to be immediately squashed.

“You’re not getting a bite out of me or Mora.”

“Then no, I’m fine,” Abel told her as she deflated, sinking back into herself and leaving Thera to sigh.

“For now, why not tell me exactly what happened that has you so disappointed?”

“Hmph, what’s there to tell? Instead of having a real competition, I let the pipsqueak pick something and she beat me.”

“With that something being…?”

“Five rounds of crazy eights.”

Five losses? Yeah, that would do it.

When they’d all been playing together, even if she lost a few times, she won enough to brighten her mood with every victory, leaving her to gloat until someone would bring her down a peg again but Thera couldn’t imagine the girl was one to deal well with defeat after defeat, leaving her to reach out to try and comfort her just a bit, gently rubbing her head and getting the summoned’s gaze locked on her for the action.

“Abel, I know that losing can be disappointing but that’s part of what makes winning fun,” She said, trying her best to think of how she might explain such a thing to a child without coming across as too condescending. “And if you won all the time, people wouldn’t want to play with you, would they?”

“...”

“Abel?”

A small jerk from the girl who’d zoned out under the attempt at comfort she’d received, her focus renewed as she shook before answering.

“Maybe, but I’m great. That’s already plenty enough reason for anyone to want to entertain me.”

“Games are about making sure everyone has fun. Can you tell me what it is about losing you hate so much?”

“Hmph, I only ever lost once in my old world.”

“And was that so terrible?”

“It landed me on this one.”

…Right, Ben said it. Post-apocalyptic hellscape so anytime something might have qualified as a loss, that might have meant a better than not chance of death. Great.

So winning equaled survival for her, a trait that had to basically be bred into the girl in the same way the people of her new home were made to give faith. Not a trait that couldn’t be overcome but one that might feel unnatural to even try considering whatever sort of cut-throat world she hailed from.

“Well, maybe that was true there but not here,” Thera still tried. “Sure, things can be dangerous on this planet but there’s a difference between a loss that gets you killed and a leisure activity. Try thinking of it this way; when you’re playing with someone, the game doesn’t matter, does it?”

“Why wouldn’t it matter? That's the entire point!”

“No, the game is just something to keep you busy, the point is spending time with people and enjoying each other’s company. Losing a card game or a board game isn’t a real loss because winning isn’t a real win. All of it is just an excuse to have fun with people you care about.”

She didn’t know how convincing it was as she was saying it but she could see Abel perk up just a bit as she did.

“So, you’re saying you’re all just happy to spend time with me.”

“I’m saying I’m happy to spend time with everyone, aren’t you? When you don’t get too wrapped up in competition, it sure seems like you’re enjoying being here with us.”

“Of course, you guys are buddies.”

“Alright, then you’re my friend too and I know Delair, if she wanted you to play with her, that was her trying to be your friend as well. Try not to think about games so much as winning and losing and instead focus on how they can help you get closer to the people you’re playing with.”

“Then are we closer now that we’ve played together?”

“I think so.”

Abel didn’t answer, lost in her thoughts until Thera stopped rubbing her head. Without a word, the other girl took her hand and put it back, making her desires clear even if she didn’t come out and say it, leaving Thera to keep giving what comfort and reassurance she could.

But I think this is progress. She told herself. And with one napping on me and the other wanting my attention, it looks like I’m not getting to move until Ben comes home.