I am a very good girl.

This isn't bragging, it's an objective fact. I have been told so many times by my owner, after all, and the idea that they could be wrong is absurd. As for the idea that they could be lying, it's downright ridiculous.

Therefore, it's the only possible explanation. I am a very good girl. Among the best? That's harder to determine, as I don't really know how many girls there are out there, much less how good they are, respectively. But that hardly matters. It's not a competition, after all.

I know that my owner isn't wrong because my owner is never wrong. He's the smartest, strongest person that there is. His skills with both sword and diplomacy are second only to his talent for giving belly rubs.

I know that he isn't lying because he's a paladin. He's the nobleist, most honest and most honorable human that there is, and that's not just my opinion either, although I do consider myself to be something of an expert. At any given time there are only nine paladins in all the world, and he is the oldest one currently alive, yet still very much in his prime. I don't know exactly how many 'nine' is, but I'm pretty sure that it's not a whole lot.

My owner has saved countless lives and defeated countless foes, only killing when absolutely necessary. He travels far and wide, aiding those in need, righting injustices and protecting the defenseless, yet still finds the time to come back to see me every single day, a smile upon his face, and usually bringing some sort of delicious, exotic monster meat as a treat. Then, while I enjoy my dinner, he sits back and tells me all of the stories of his adventures, lovingly petting my fur as he does. As much as I would love for this to continue all day long, however, I know that it cannot.

Each time, I hate to see him leave, but I know that he has no choice. There are countless people in need, and only so many hours in a day. As short as the visits feel, I'm endlessly grateful for them. Being a good girl, I don't make him feel guilty. I bark happily and wag my tail as he goes, and only softly whine to myself after the shimmering blue portal he has created closes behind him. It's difficult, but I calm myself at the realization that he will be back again tomorrow. For the longest time, things worked out that way. At least until they didn't.

There was no gradual decline of his visits. One day they just stopped. While rare, it wasn't completely unheard of for him to miss a day. His work is incredibly important, and sometimes he just can't get away from a particularly urgent mission. At first I had assumed it to be a situation like this, but then one day had become two, and two four. Before I knew it, an entire week had passed, sitting alone, watching the door, terrified to so much as look away just in case he were to arrive and maybe think, even for a second, that I hadn't missed him.

In time, expectation turned to hope, which turned to wishes which in turn turned to fantasies. Finally, they turned to sheer depression. I couldn't deny the possibility there was some dire event which he couldn't possibly return from. A threat to the entire world, perhaps? Perhaps one which would be resolved in the very near future? But more and more I found myself faced with the simple realization: He wasn't coming back.

For a shameful amount of time I simply moped and whimpered to myself, convinced that I had been abandoned. I looked about the same brown wooden walls, head on my paws, the room feeling just a little bit smaller with each passing day. I barely moved, quickly growing to ignore the many outdoor noises, each one of which over the first couple days I had been convinced was the sound of the human's triumphant return. Those moments of hope were pleasant ones, but short lived compared to the pain which followed. I would watch the sunbeams appear in the morning, stretch across the floor throughout the day, vanish in the evening and repeat. I slept erratically, and ate joylessly. In time, the finite food supply might prove to be an issue, but I couldn't bring myself to care about such petty matters as self preservation. I was difficult to bring myself to care about anything.

Maybe being a very good girl just wasn't good enough... what if he found an even better girl, or, dare I say it, the best girl, one who was fluffier and smarter and even more adorable? No. Not that the idea itself was impossible (although I'd like think that it was unlikely), but he wouldn't just leave both me and his home without a word.

The realization, one which should have been obvious right away, hit me all at once. Clearly something is wrong. Clearly my master is in trouble. There is no time to feel depressed, and someone out there very much worth caring about. Now I had to find them. I had been idle for far too long, and as I rise to my feet, I know that it is time for action, and only one thing stands in my way: A powerful, stalwart defender, an ancient conglomerate of modified nature spirits, once a savior and a guardian against the many threats of this world. Now a bitter foe which stands between me and my destiny.