Chapter 9: The Trial!

Chapter 9 - The Trial!Alice's eyes snapped open the moment she heard the slap-slap slap of something unholy and the shouting that followed. Her motherly instincts kicked in before her brain could even reboot. 'Baby!' Her arms were empty. 'Where's my baby?!' Heart thudding like a drum solo, she shot up and looked around the room in a panic—only to hear the unmistakable wail of her child coming from the crib across the room. "When—?!" she gasped. There was no time to overthink. She rushed to the crib, scooping her son into her arms with a protective fierceness that would make a mama bear say damn. She cradled him close, rocking gently. "There, there, sweet pea. Mommy's here now." She whispered, brushing his cheek with her fingers and planting a kiss on his soft little forehead. But then her thoughts caught up. 'Wait... I fell asleep with him in my arms. How the heck did he get into the crib?' She squinted at her baby like he might confess. "Did Grandma move you while Mommy was napping, huh? Was she worried about you falling down from mommy's hands?" Her voice was soft, sweet, and full of affection, but then— 'Oh no.' She glanced down and her face went beet red. One of her breasts was still out, full frontal, like it was still on breastfeeding duty. "Aaaah!" She scrambled, adjusting her dress and zippering herself back into decency like she was defusing a bomb. A wave of embarrassment hit her so hard, it nearly knocked her over. "Oh my God... she must've seen me like this..." She muttered to herself, eyes darting to the door like her mother-in-law might bust in and shake her head in judgment. Still cradling her baby, she let out a tiny sigh and gave him a sheepish smile. "Well... it's not like I was trying to flash anyone. Mommy was too tired to stay awake. Forgive me, dear." Alice was sweet to her core—a delicate little thing who could get embarrassed just by someone complimenting her hairstyle. The thought of someone seeing her in such an... exposed state? It was enough to make her want to dig a hole and move in permanently. "Alex, what's the meaning of this?!" Hero Alexander, eyes simmering with fury, slowly turned toward his wife like a kettle about to whistle. He jabbed a finger toward the goblin in question, who was standing there looking like a guilty kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar... a very illegal, very lewd cookie jar. "Do you know, where this vermin just came from?" Alice blinked. "...Upstairs?" "Upstairs." His voice dropped low like thunder before a storm. Alice's face turned pink. Then crimson. Then cherry tomato. Her mouth opened. Nothing came out. 'Upstairs... as in...our room?!' Her mind exploded in a slow-motion replay of her waking up earlier, one breast proudly waving hello to the daylight, her baby in the crib instead of in her arms, and her own nipple definitely having been on parade. Her knees almost buckled. 'He saw it, didn't he? That little gremlin perv saw me! OH GOD! Was I snoring too?! Did he hear me moan in my sleep?!' She wanted to just dissolve into particles of shame and scatter into the wind. Meanwhile, Alex saw her bright-red face and completely misread the situation. He thought she was livid. Raging. Ready to slap the green off Rae's skin. "Yes, exactly!" Alex said, mistaking her embarrassment for fury. "I ordered him to never leave the kitchen when I'm not home. Never. And what does this little piece of forest fungus do? He goes upstairs. To our bedroom." He took a step forward, fists clenched. "I told you before, Alice. I don't trust them. Even at level zero, goblins aren't harmless. They're sneaky, cunning little creeps. He may not be able to rebel thanks to the seal on his soul, but I won't have him creeping around my wife!" Rae, for his part, was just sweating bullets and trying very hard not to look smug. Alice stepped down the stairs in a hurry, one hand still clutching the fabric of her dress tightly around her chest, as if afraid the memory of her earlier wardrobe malfunction might decide to make an encore. She placed herself between her husband and the goblin, raising her palm like some kind of peacekeeping saint in a domestic warzone. "S-stop it, dear. Give him a chance to explain." Alex blinked, caught off guard. "What—?" "Shhhsssss... " She placed a gentle finger to his lips, which only made Alex's left eye twitch harder. "Dear, take a deep breath. What have we talked about your anger management?" She said softly, her tone full of those carefully measured wife-vibes meant to talk a man down from flipping furniture. Alex sucked in a breath through his nose like a dragon trying to pretend it wasn't full of fire. Alice turned her gaze to Rae, who was standing there like a caveman caught stealing fire. She put on the most diplomatic smile she could muster—while silently praying he wouldn't say exactly what she feared he might say. "It must all be... a misconception, dear. I'm sure Raedon had a good reason to come upstairs. Right, Raedon?" Alice did not want to know the truth. Not the part where he might've taken the baby to the crib to keep it safe, and definitely not the part where he may or may not have stared at her boob like it was the final boss in a JRPG. And Rae—dear Rae—was already poised to deliver the monologue of the century. He was about to launch into a smooth, Oscar-worthy tale about hearing the wind rattle a window and fearing a burglar had snuck in. Or maybe something about sensing an earthquake that only he, the noble goblin, could feel in his tribal bones. He took a breath, placed a hand over his heart... "Afternoon—" And then he remembered. Shit. Shitshitshit. I can't speak like this! The goblin whose body I hijacked barely knew how to say 'bread' without biting the table leg. Alice spent months just getting him to say 'yes, miss.' His whole body stiffened mid-performance, his eyes darting around. Abort eloquence. Enter caveman mode. "Afternoon. Lady. Food. Cut. Cut cut cut." . . . As promised—since we hit 50 powerstones, an extra Chapter is on the way! Stay tuned, legends. You made it happen.