The Achievement Junkie

"You're strong too. You're way braver than I am," said Slivia in a hushed tone.

"Nah, it's not the same. You only know me from this world, you never met me before I was summoned. I was a weak scaredy-cat that would hide from all my troubles, never confronting them. Here I'm a hero, but there I'm nothing." Jack let out a deep breath and loosened up a little. "So, Slivia, what are your plans now?"

"Umm… I was kind of hoping I could stay with you guys for a while," answered Slivia nervously.

"Actually, I was going to ask you to stay. Considering the changes in the azure mine, we could use your help. You've seen all the recent changes and it always helps to have a cleric around," said Jack.

"You guys are going in there?" She finally remembered why she and Jack met in the first place.

"Well yeah, Rydel is probably talking with the Zariff right now. It'll probably become an official mission. Plus, with what we plan to do, I can guarantee that you'll reach at least lv. 15 by the time we're done," persuaded Jack.

"Really? You can guarantee that? What exactly are we going to do?" asked Slivia.

"We'll discuss that tomorrow, for now, I just want to enjoy the meat," chuckled Jack.

Slivia smiled and blushed. "Okay, but you have to share." She tore off a piece of Jack's rib meat and giggled. Jack froze for a second as he stared at her smiling face. The air became a little heated and a little awkward between the two of them.

Suddenly, Bowser snatched away the rest of Jack's rib meat and started to chow down. While Jack and Slivia were sharing stories, Bowser had finished his half of the deer and set his sights on the more delicious cooked meat that was left unattended.

As Bowser broke the silence, the two laughed loudly and the mood returned to normal.

For the rest of the night, they chatted about Slivia's different adventures while laughing or applauding each other.

Slivia took this opportunity to hide Jack's handkerchief in her storage ring while he wasn't looking. But sooner or later their fun had to end when Slivia went to sleep in her tent and Jack was left alone with the now tired Bowser.

He sighed and pondered about Slivia's stories. Both he and she were inexperienced in love and had no clue how to address it.

Time continued to pass until Jack remembered something.

Looking down at the nearly sleeping Bowser, Jack focused his gaze. Nothing happened at first, but suddenly he felt happy-go-lucky. The feeling stuck with him as long as he kept focusing, but he'd easily lose it if he looked away.

Next, he tried to think of the phrase, 'Who's a good boy?' Jack focused on the phrase while staring at Bowser and was surprised to see Bowser open his eyes in startlement. Bowser's ears twitched as he stared back at Jack and scrunched his face. At first, Jack didn't understand what was going on until he heard an infant voice in his head yelling, 'ME!'

Amazed at the reaction, Jack thought up a reply, 'You're a good boy!'

Bowser acted like a bobblehead as he jumped up and down in Jack's lap, responding, 'Me! Me good boy!'

Jack laughed frantically as he shot up to his feet in excitement with Bowser in his hands. 'Bowser, you can hear me, right? If you can hear me, wag your tail up and down.' When he saw Bowser's tail go crazy, Jack's smile stretched from ear to ear. 'Good boy! I can finally talk to you.'

'Me talk too,' replied Bowser. 'Me happy!'

'Bowser, how old are you?' asked Jack. He had long thought up a list of questions that he wanted to ask Bowser when given the chance; this was just the first of many.

'Bowser born three month." The fox pup's reply was broken, showing that Bowser understood the human language well enough to roughly understand Jack, but he struggled to build sentences.

Jack laughed and rubbed Bowser's little head. 'Good Boy!' He wanted to ask Bowser about what happened before they met, but then he heard how young and innocent Bowser was. Due to that, he decided to wait until Bowser was older or until Bowser brought it up.

'Jack good too!' Bowser enjoyed chatting with Jack, feeling much closer to him. For the past few days, no one could talk with him, let alone understand him. Now that he and Jack were mentally linked, he would always talk with Jack to try and learn to speak better or just because he could.

'Are you scared of going in the mine? There will be lots of goblins,' thought Jack, curious to see how brave the little fox could be.

'Me no scared!' With his chest puffed out, the fox pup tried his best to appear intimidating but despite his efforts, Bowzer was even more adorable when he did this.

'Good boy! You'll be safe, I promise.' Jack yawned and scratched his head. 'For now, let's get some sleep. We've got a big day tomorrow.' Bowser nodded and curled up on Jack's chest. Most people might feel cold out under the stars, but Jack was warm and cozy thanks to the heat Bowser naturally put out.

The morning sun woke Jack up nice and early, making sure to blind him the moment he opened his eyes.

Squinting to recover his sight, Jack slid Bowser carefully to the side and stretched his body. He soon noticed that Rydel was still in his tent snoring but Slivia was nowhere to be found.

At first, he panicked a little, but Jack found her boots and bag still in her tent. Not sure what to think, he searched the surrounding area to make sure she was alright.

To the south he found nothing, and the west was the same. When he searched to the north, he heard running water in the distance. Like all hot-blooded young men, Jack's mind immediately started to wander in thoughts of finding Slivia under a waterfall. Keeping his thoughts at bay, Jack coughed and refocused himself before continuing northbound.

The sound of crashing water grew louder the further he went, and Jack slowed with every step as if he were afraid to find her. Jack noticed that up ahead of him was a clearing of trees, letting in more of the natural sunlight.

He proceeded to hide behind a tree and calm himself down. It was easy for him to figure out that the water was in the clearing and he dreaded the thought of getting caught peeking by Slivia. After slowing his breathing and steadying his rapidly beating heart, Jack crept closer and closer to the clearing.

Once he reached the last line of trees, he hid again and mentally prepared for what he might find on the other side of the tree. A few seconds passed and Jack finally built up the courage to look around the tree trunk. His head poked to the side, revealing the entire scene before his eyes.

In the clearing, the ground had sunken down, as it were an unnatural crater. At the bottom was a crystal-clear pool thanks to a fountain of water spewing from one of the crater's ridges. Some small fish could be seen swimming in the depths it was so clear.

The only thing Jack couldn't see was a bathing Slivia because she was nowhere to be found.

Inwardly Jack sighed, unsure of whether he wanted to find her or not. Instead of worrying, he enjoyed the view, admiring the water's clarity.

"It's amazing isn't it."

Slivia's voice appeared from behind the turned around Jack, causing Jack to jump in fright. There she was in a loose-fitting shirt and a plain skirt. Her damp, long hair was wild as it fell and hung to dry naturally. Jack's heartbeat kicked into high gear, not letting him recuperate or respond quickly.

"Are you okay?" asked Slivia.

"Mhm." Jack nodded and took a deep breath. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just saw that you were gone and was making sure you were okay."

Showing some blush, Slivia smiled when she heard that he was looking out for her. "I'm doing great; in fact, I found the perfect place to take a bath. Isn't it just perfect?"

"It definitely is," said Jack who also started to blush. He never had much of a thing for prim and proper girls. His type was more of a hands-on girl that could work hard alongside him but was still undeniably feminine. Seeing Slivia dressed like this was a huge turn-on for Jack.

"What's the matter?" Slivia was confused and didn't understand why Jack was acting so weird.

"Everything's fine, but I should go check on Bowser and make sure he doesn't get into anything." Jack bolted away, not giving himself a chance to hear what she had to say next.

Slivia was left alone and without a clue. She said to herself, "What's wrong? He's lucky I found him and wasn't busy taking a…" Immediately she realized the awkwardness and turned as red as an apple. Taking her time, Slivia strolled back to camp while she tried to calm her shaky heart.