The Epilogues

1 – Crusch

It's been a few decades now since the events of the Pleiades Watchtower and… many things have happened in this 'short' amount of time.

Fourier was chosen as the new king, Felt was sworn in as his heir until the new monarch managed to marry and make a child that would inherit the kingdom, and… I got married with Crusch. When Meckart told me so many years ago that his daughter would have moved mountains and rivers to get in the situation where I couldn't refuse that offer, I hadn't expected the woman to be this bold and quite clever.

It all started as a simple day of work at the capital, one that suddenly spiraled out of control when I was unexpectedly pulled in a treasure hunt. I thought it to be a game from Fourier, or even someone like Majima and the twins. Each clue held a location to check with the finality of finding a new message. There were some calligraphic hints that I spotted from time to time, but nothing that made much sense to me until it was too late. The little journey around the castle was eventually concluded by the guests' living quarters and… I was ultimately surprised when I ended up finding out that Crusch had decided to visit. And that she had picked quite the clever trick to put me in a hard spot. As soon as I entered that bedroom, the doors closed behind me, and I recognized Felix's snickering beyond the entry that had been shut down.

Crusch wasn't… decently-dressed, her clothes neatly folded by the edge of the mattress, numerous red petals resting on the sheets, on the floor and… on her. My face burned a nervous red, and then, I saw how nervous she was in that regard. Crusch was normally not one that would be this forward, this bold, and for her to take that big gamble… It meant she was ready to stake her claim and be quite strong about it. I was stunned- no, shaken by such an instance, especially since I knew how conservative she tended to be in this kind of situation. And yet, within that unease, within that reluctance and worry, two words emerged that sounded as convincing as self-convincing.

"Join… me~."

The duchess' words were filled with all her emotions, and where those sounded meant to dictate a command, the voice mellowed the order into something more optional, more reluctant, and filled with that sort of shyness that just burned of Crusch's personal insecurity in this matter. And yet she was making an effort not many would go for. Not many with a mindset akin to hers would. In the end that effort paid off incredibly well. The girl was happily cuddling with me after we were done, but we took a week to plan out the next few steps. It wasn't a one-time thing. It didn't feel as much for her as it wasn't for me. We had to make sure this affair failed to become scandalous and achieved an official legitimacy it deserved.

The announcement shook a few in the nations. Not many expected two souls like ours to come together and consider a wedding to bind ourselves to one another. But very few objected to this closeness, with Priscilla spearheading a very arduous matter in trying to be there to 'prevent too much influence on me'. It took us all three years to eventually come to an agreement that fit well with her claims. The orangette would get the chance to share the bed with me once in a while. Nothing scandalous would unfold, we would talk, we would cuddle and eventually have a bit of a light-date before that.

Crusch trusted me to the point of not checking on me too intensely, being aware of my commitment to our marriage and… and I guess that's really the central point of these decades. Marriage is… a big step in life. It was bigger than what I thought it to be, but overall had that sense of completion that made all that hardship worthwhile and interesting. Crusch put in an effort, just as much as I did. She was devoted to trying to make this a union of equals. Sure, she had her own personal restraints on being too independent, but I never dared to tell her to be more submissive. While society dictated a very bleak vision on how to treat wives, I was against all of that, and eventually managed to score a solid relationship with the young woman.

That one issue that strained this bond the most was… Satella. The poor woman herself did nothing about it, but the discussion about how to handle that kind of relationship did set off a few awkward conversations with Crusch. After a bit of tug o' war, the duchess agreed to a plan that felt feasible considering the few times we spent with the woman and the fellow witches. The process of stabilizing their Witch Factor gave them the chance of living in harmony in an undisturbed valley protected by various magical protections. They were mostly sedentary and eager to enjoy a slow eternal life in that place, with only Typhon taking it upon herself to wander off to either visit us or check the world with someone looking after her. Stable or not, her Authority was still destructive when used in specific circumstances.

Still, back to Satella, eventually we resolved to visit her, keep her company and, if the situation allowed, even spend the night together in bed. One would imagine it would be something incredibly lewd but… Satella wasn't exactly into that affair. I wasn't sure if it was the long time or the fact that she had grown impassioned due to the true story behind Flugel and Dolos, but her full focus was to enjoy the small things of life and… be Pandora's mother.

It was too little or too late to make a difference, but both the Witch of Envy and the Witch of Vainglory decided to still give it a shot. The shortest of the two being fine to give it a try. Not for her, but for Satella's sake as she had the least ties to the pain she suffered in these centuries. And, in a way, it would be correct to say both were

Finally, the one that really had me tense about this, the one I had supported from the very beginning… Fourier was overjoyed. A marriage he was invited as the best man with Felix? A marriage with a delicious cake? And a marriage with the chance of teasing us both to his heart's delight? He was in for it, but he still held some sadness at the missed chance with Crusch. He still sought a marriage, and eventually settled to marry one of his rivals to the throne. It was an odd development, but one that resulted in quite the amusing circumstance.

Emilia and Fourier, an odd combination that oddly fit. I would have expected Barusu to react negatively to it but… he seemed busy with someone else. I wasn't sure how he pulled it off, but he ended up bonding more with Rem and eventually were granted permission to marry and start a life away from the manor. Roswaal had lost ambition and interest to play clever games, with the clown having 'deflated' and grown lazier and laid back after what happened with Echidna. I knew a conversation had happened, that some shrieks from the annoyed student flew all around the halls through the small office that unfolded in. But Echidna left satisfied, and Roswaal gloomy.

Ram remained for a while, but she eventually accepted the offer of working in our home, with her skills providing for quite a well-mannered staff of servants.

And after three decades of blessed marriage, I couldn't ask for more.

Elias Bukharin-Karsten, my firstborn, was already working his way through the royal court, experiencing the troubles of building his own future with a solid foundation but the least help from us. He wanted to achieve greatness on his own, without having to feel ever so burdened by the notion part of his success was tied to unnecessary favors being used by his parents. Crusch loved our son to death, just as strongly as we did with the twins, and we both doted him into being the maker of his own destiny by the time he was ready to leave the household. Meanwhile, I had retired and enjoyed a full existence of providing advice to my children when needed, focusing on dealing with businesses and affairs born from the combined financial situation between the Bukharin and the Karsten family.

A life, with Crusch, that I couldn't ever regret. A full and great one.

2 – Priscilla

When Fourier decided to marry Crusch a few months after his ascension to the throne, I was already bearing a ring that was the same as the one owned by a certain Vollachian princess.

Truth be told, it oddly felt 'natural' for me to end up with Priscilla. Part of it was because I had known her well enough for a while and we both worked well together, but there was also the fact that ambition had to culminate into a final conquest. And it was clear from the young woman's own amusement that marriage with me was that. It was an interesting experience, one that left me baffled at times even after years since we wed and… nothing much changed about the status quo I had. The twins, Beatrice and Alice? Spoiled with love and affection as Priscilla loved everything that was small and cute. Same for Majima despite the familiar unease around the fiery woman.

I was as cordial towards those of her camp that became part of the household once we married. Al was quite the jovial guard to talk with, same for Schultz. But with all circumstances, even some of the more bizarre ones came up due to the nature of our relationship. First was Prisca's brother and current Emperor of Vollachia. Considering the last few visits we had, the man had… some good reasons to question me some more. But while the expectation of said meetings would have suggested quite the intense edge to it all, his wife made sure nothing too aggressive and violent evolved through these discussions.

Next up was Satella and Pandora, with the latter being instantly pulled in a deep hug and given permission to 'cuddle up with Priscilla whenever she wished for'. The Witch of Vainglory took the opportunity with a big grin. Still, Priscilla was… actually intrigued by having Satella around. Maybe it was the notion that the witch was actually cute and it became more evident how open of a person she was about women of a certain age. Of course, she asked for dialogue before forwarding this notion and… let's just say that poor Satella had a warmer bed at times when we visited, yet she sounded the opposite of uneasy at that notion. Quite giddy, terribly happy, and atrociously hugging around Priscilla. Like a moth to a flame.

Eventually the matter evolved and deepened with the passing of decades with the end result of that marriage leaving us with two daughters, twins, both of which kept an interesting mix of qualities and flaws from both parents.

Aurelia Bukharin was an ambitious adventurer that took the fierceness and the sense of adventure from her mother, coupled with her own selflessness and duty towards the weak which ultimately led her to take a line of work her mother was deeply upset about. Not due to the 'dent' it made to the family's reputation, but because it left her in a constant state of worry. Something that our other child, a cheeky politician that was known nowadays as Marianne 'the Stern' Bukharin, did little to help about. These two were partners in crime despite how many issues Aurelia was known to cause due to her inherent clumsiness. In fact, one could even assume Marianne was a bit too affectionate to her 'silly little sister'.

Very jarring of a development, but I saw no signs of something too intense to be genuinely worried about. All in all, I saw nothing in this life but a pleasant and good one.

And I couldn't ask for more.

3 – Ram

Many screeched 'Scandal' when the news of my relationship with a certain pinkette came to mind.

Not like there had been much of an effort to hide it, or reason to be genuinely worried beyond some people shouting and gasping at the class-gap. Ram was prepared for it, so was I. But how did it come to this and why did I feel entitled to dare the system to this degree?

The answer comes in the form of me taking in Ram ever since she asked to be relieved from the manor. After her sister left with Subaru and Emilia decided to move to live with the Witches, she felt mostly unaffected when it came for her to leave the place. Roswaal tried to ask her to remain, but the many lies that came close to hurt her and her sister were enough to give her mind resolution on the matter. She left… only to accept my offer to be my maid. I didn't think it would have escalated to the point of marriage, but Ram had that unconscious pull on me that eventually saw us talk, then touch, then kiss and… well, go beyond that.

Marriage was the answer to that much escalation, with some arguing that it would have been dangerous due to the pinkette's Oni genes definitely going to create children with Oni blood in them. Their power was worrying if not taught, but Ram had a bit of a plan after we had the time to talk about this.

A new home would be built, one that would be surrounded by untouched trees of a lone forest well away from other settlements. It would provide protection and a safe environment for the family to live properly. And this investment proved to be quite successful, with three children, two boys and a girl, having a proper mentorship under Ram's vigilant eyes.

Now, one question that would come up is… what about Priscilla? She should have been the most vocal about it. And the answer will definitely surprise many as it did with me. The orangette decided to relocate back to her fief, accepting to live together with Arakya in a friendly manner. No more romance, and more effort in rebuilding what was once lost with her childhood friend. I wasn't sure if that expanded due to Arakya's romantic feelings, but I had a strong feeling that these two had stopped being 'just friends' after a few years.

So this is how it came to be. A proud father, a doting mother, four sons, one daughter and a fairy tale coming to its slow end. A good end at that.

4 – Satella

It was surprising for the general public when, even after two decades of hard work, a Prime Minister of my caliber never considered marrying someone.

I had the attention of many beautiful women, the love of even more, but overall I was quite 'chaste' about this whole situation and… the truth was quite different than what the general public knew about. Mostly due the awkward nature of my current relationship and how she specifically asked to not be mentioned and used to hurt me.

Many of my close friends and surrogate family were aware of what was going on. Most of them were shocked by the truth, but they all came to agree that it was a legitimate wish despite it being a selfish one. But here I was, away from work for my usual visit at a certain silver-haired woman's cottage. It was one of the furthest away from the entrance of the small community of witches that had settled in this valley, with many of them organizing feasts and parties, while my dear Satella enjoyed those with moderation due to her conditions.

Humming happily, the elf was busy finishing cooking something by the kitchen area and almost jumped in surprise when I carefully wrapped my arms slightly below her pregnant belly. A kiss on the neck was enough to melt her up and to throw the worry away… so annoyance would flare at the fright.

"J-John! That wasn't nice."

I chuckled at it, my reaction mimicked via a giggle coming from the side.

"Pandora," I hummed as a greeting and the girl nodded as she waved from the table where she was waiting for lunch.

"John, you're… earlier than usual."

"Less paperwork today. Fourier is taking a week off to rest," I quickly answered, moving away from Satella once I had landed another kiss, this time by her cheek.

I sat beside Pandora and smiled. "How are things?"

"Same as usual," The short witch replied dully. "Can we go fishing next time you visit?"

I slowly nodded. "If Satella is going to be in the conditions to come too, sure."

That didn't seem to fully get accepted by the pouty witch, but she knew that there wasn't much for me to say about it. Satella was due to deliver the child and the last thing I needed was to put her through that instance within a situation where she could receive limited assistance during the delivery. Pandora would have to 'endure' that situation for a while, but she seemed to be fine for as long as I gave her lots of cuddles and head pats from the looks of it.

This life was slow but still great. And nothing could-

"And I will stop you there. I think this whole repeating the same sentence at the end of all epilogues but with different phrasing is getting old."

...Seriously? Pandora, how about the next one, the biggest, will have you?

"I… wait, for real?"

Yea, I saved the best for last. This one… it will be fun. Hope you like it.

"Huff, you pest..." She muttered, her irritation mellowed due to a hand suddenly patting her head.