Otherworld Therapy

### Chapter 1: Ch 1 Harem Counseling

John took a sip of coffee and leaned back in his chair staring listlessly at the far wall. He needed to organize his notes, check his calendar for openings to fill, and send a pixie with his pen and ink order so he could have more by morning. He sighed, he wasn’t going to be doing any of that and he knew it. He also knew that the reason why he wouldn’t do it was because he missed his old secretary, and that was something she would normally do, so he was very deliberately deciding not to do it so that his thoughts wouldn’t linger on her. So instead he stared at the wall. It was somewhat hypocritical for a therapist to not be willing to do any work on himself, but the other good thing was that as a therapist he could come up with myriad excuses such as ‘giving himself time to mourn the relationship’, or ‘allowing himself grace’. Lazy platitudes, but that was all he really had the motivation for at that moment. He heard the bells on the front door jingle as it opened, and launched himself to his feet, barely avoiding spilling his coffee as he did so. He fixed his tie, and threw on his green checkered suit jacket, before stepping out of his office into the small waiting room. There were five people waiting for him. A large orcish woman with thick dark hair that fell in curls and an axe on her back, wearing chainmail and fur, a tall elven woman with long blonde braids and a quiver on her back, a young human woman wearing a plain peasant dress with red hair a similar shade to his own, and another young human woman wearing a crown, with black hair that fell straight down her back over a fine dress. Every single one of them was outrageously attractive in a different way. A young man stood in the midst of them, with sandy brown hair and a sword on his back. He was strong and lean with a plain face. He seemed out of place with the rest of his attractive company. John smiled at them. “Ah, welcome. I’m sorry I don’t have anyone to greet all of you, I’m still in the process of hiring a new secretary.” “Secretary?” asked the redheaded girl. “It’s a person that helps keep a business organized for other people,” replied the young man. John noted that, either the young man was a fellow expat from another world, or he’d spent a fair amount of time in Avalon where a lot of terms from other worlds tended to bleed through. “Are you all separate, or together?” “Together,” they replied almost in unison, several of the women shooting annoyed glances at one another. “Ah, yes, the group relationship counseling,” in the books it was labeled as ‘Harem Counseling’, but that seemed like a term that might ruffle some feathers. “Come in, come in. Would anyone like coffee? Tea? Water?” “I’ll have some tea,” said the woman with the crown. “Ale,” said the orcish woman. “You know I don’t actually have any ale here, but…” he stepped behind his desk and pulled out a bottle of brown liquor and a glass. He poured two fingers, looked at the orcish woman again, noting that she took up nearly half of the couch in front of him, and poured two more, then he activated the magical runes on his kettle as he prepared a cup of tea. “So, before we get started, what’s everyone’s name?” All of them started talking at once, and John held up a hand with an apologetic look on his face. “That’s my fault, I should’ve been specific. I’ll point at each of you and you can tell me your names,” he pointed at the Orcish woman. “Krush.” “Beautiful name, my aunt was named Krush.” He pointed at the elven woman. “My name would take longer than your lifetime to fully pronounce. You may call me Sereniteya of the Western Forest.” “Well it’s a little informal for me to call you by a nickname, but I can deal with that,” he pointed at the redheaded woman. “I’m Carol.” “Lovely.” He pointed at the woman with the crown. “You do not point at crown princess Grailia Costanza of the kingdom of Lendaria.” “Won’t happen again Princess Grailia.” He pointed at the young man in between all of them. “I’m Zak.” “Thank you Zak.” The kettle started to whistle and John poured the water into the infuser carefully, watching the water rapidly brown before he poured a single cup and handed it gently to Princess Grailia. He then handed the other drink to Krush. He had a feeling that order would cause the least trouble, and was right when neither of them did anything aside from taking small sips of their drinks. He went to sit at his desk and took a breath as he looked over everyone. “So, relationship counseling is something I have a lot of experience with back on my world, but I’m going to be honest with you, this situation is a bit more complex than what I’m used to.” “Do you not have chiefs with many consorts?” asked Krush. “Not in my part of the world, and therapy isn’t… common in those areas where it happens.” She frowned at that. “So, generally the impression I get is that there’s some dissatisfaction in the relationship from all parties. Does that sound right?” They all nodded. “And are all of you in relationship with one another or-” “Absolutely not ,” cried Princess Grailia. “The only reason I’m here is for Zak.” “These women are too weak to withstand me,” said Krush. Carol blushed crimson. “I am bound only to Zak,” said Sereniteya. John nodded as each of the four beautiful women spoke while a bit of jealousy bloomed behind his calm smile. “I think, in this case, I’d like to take ten or fifteen minutes with each of you on your own so that I can keep proper track of things. Unless you’d all prefer to talk over one another?” “I wouldn’t mind,” said Krush, draining her drink and holding the empty glass toward John. John smiled and pulled his liquor back out, pouring her another glass. Back on Earth he wouldn’t have let a client drink, but living in a new fantastical world with no ethics board or licensing concerns meant he could be a bit looser with things. “Well, I’d like to speak with Zak first, so if the rest of you would be so kind as to wait outside the office.” There was some pouting, but each of the women slowly made their way out of the room and into the waiting room. John closed the door behind them and activated the sound dampening enchantment before sitting back down, not at his desk, but in a smaller chair closer to the couch where he could be closer to the client. “Are you from another world?” Zak shook his head. “No, my dad was, but I was born in a village on the frontier. Carol is from there as well.” “Ah, a childhood friend?” “Yeah, we used to spend all day together until I left to be an adventurer.” “Adventuring, that’s exciting. What made you decide on that path?” If it was meeting a bunch of beautiful women, he’d succeeded. “I uh, have the ability to copy other people’s powers. It seemed like the best way to use it and grow it would be adventuring.” “Ah how…unique,” John had met nearly twenty adventurers with that kind of ability. It seemed much less interesting the more people had it. “And you’ve had some success?” “Um, yeah. We slayed the demon king, and brought peace to the world of Centalia.” “Wow! Congratulations.” That was the fiftieth demon king John had heard of. They may as well declare a demon king hunting season at this point and just set these people loose on them. “Thank you.” “So, how do you feel about your relationships with these women?” “Well I’m uh, I guess I should say that I…” He paused and let out a long sigh. “I’m exhausted. It’s so hard to keep them all happy. Krush wants me to spar or sleep with her all the time, Serenitiya just wants to be near me constantly just silently staring at me as if waiting for me to say something, Carol hates all the rest of them and wants me all to herself but doesn’t say anything about it to anyone but me and Grailia expects to be waited on hand and foot and is offended if I do anything with any of the others.” He rubbed a hand across his face. “It never ends. I’m busier now than I was when we were fighting our way to the Demon King.” John nodded along as he listened, a bit of empathy bleeding through his envy as he heard the young man speak. “And have you talked to any of them about how you feel? Maybe even breaking it off with a few of them.” “Well… no. I don’t want to make them upset. I wouldn’t be a hero without them.” Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. John wrote people pleaser with communication issues on his pad. “If one of them was to say they no longer wanted to be with you, would you accept that?” “Of course. They didn’t even really ask to be with me, they each just kind of assumed. I wouldn’t want them to be with me if they didn’t want to be anymore plus” He looked at the door as if making sure it was closed, “I may actually be able to get some sleep.” “And would you say you have a favorite?” Zak opened his mouth to answer then snapped it shut. “That wouldn’t be fair to them if I did.” John nodded. “Alright, I’d like to talk to some of them now. You sure you don’t want some tea? Coffee? Water?” “No, I’ll uh, I’ll be alright.” They both stood and made their way to the door, when Zak opened it, Serenitiya was standing directly in front of it, and looking at Zak who didn’t even flinch, just walked right past her with a wan smile. “Well,” said John who’d startled a bit at the sight of her. “How about you go next, since you’re already here?” … Serentiya sat silently as John got settled back down. Her posture was perfect, and like most elves, she blinked very sparingly as she watched him sit, making him feel a bit like he was being visually dissected. Still, he was familiar with it at this point. He’d treated a fair share of elves. “So, Serenetiya. How did you and Zak meet?” “He came to my family’s forest, seeking the western winds so that he could make the flight to the castle of the Demon King. I decided to aid him in that quest.” John nodded. “And you developed feelings over the course of the quest?” “No.” John frowned. “So, they just happened suddenly? He did something that impressed you, or made you realize you cared for him?” “No.” He furrowed his brow as she stared unblinkingly with wide mint green eyes. “Can you… elaborate?” “I considered him a friend from the start and stayed that way. When we fought the Demon King’s Knight of Lust she cursed me to love the first person I saw against my will. It was supposed to be her, but instead Zak appeared at that moment and so it was him.” “Ah… And does Zak know that’s why you love him?” “No. Sharing such a thing would hurt him and I could not do that to the man I love.” “But you would prefer to be free of it?” She stayed completely still and unmoving. He took that as his answer. He nodded with a sigh. “Well, this is easier to take care of than real love at least.” He stood up and went to his desk. He took a small piece of paper and wrote a quick note on it, then he walked to his window and opened it. He gestured at a nearby pixie and she buzzed over to him. “Can you take this to Cursebreaker Thomalia Hexbane please?” The pixie held out two hands and he handed her the note and a piece of honey candy. After she had them she buzzed away. “Well, that’ll be solved by the end of the day at least.” … Krush sipped her third glass of liquor like it was water, but seemed only slightly buzzed, her light green skin a bit flushed around her cheeks and neck. It looked quite nice on her. “So, how long have you known Zak?” “Many moons. He came to my tribe to ask for our aid in the great battle. He earned our loyalty by facing me in single combat.” “And when did you start to develop feelings for him?” She frowned, tilting her head. “You think I love him?” He nodded, “That’s the typical reason for these kinds of things.” She laughed, it was a low and booming thing. “No, I don’t love him. I am obligated by the rules of my tribe to bear the strongest child possible. I believe he is the best choice for that. Once he has impregnated me I will no longer travel with him.” She laughed again. “He is far too meek to be my type.” “And you’ve made… efforts to reach that point?” She nodded. “Yes, but he wastes too much of his seed with the others.” “Ah,” said John, once again pushing down a pang of jealousy. “I think we can maybe work this out for you.” … “Did you want another cup of tea princess?” asked John as they sat down. She balanced her cup expertly in her hand and sat with perfect posture. “In my palace I wouldn’t have to even ask,” she said, holding out her cup. John moved to the tea he’d made earlier, kept hot with a warming rune on the pot, and poured it carefully into her cup. He then poured himself a cup. He preferred coffee himself, but didn’t want to waste what was left in the pot. Katrina, his former secretary, had picked it up from the herbalist before she’d… He shook his head a bit, narrowly avoiding a drop of tea hitting his slacks and sat down. The Princess was looking at him with her eyebrow raised. “So,” he said with a smile. “How did you first meet Zak?” “My father, The King, invited him to the palace when he slayed the Demon Knight of Wrath. The King gave him the order to slay the Demon King himself. After that I chose to travel with him, as I didn’t trust him or his little group of harlots to be able to finish the job properly.” John nodded along. “And when did you start to develop feelings for him?” She went red, shaking her head. “I do not have feelings for him. I am simply betrothed to him as a reward by my father.” “So if your father released you from the obligations of the betrothal you’d leave?” She bit her lip, her face still red. “Well… I mean…my father would never do such a thing anyway.” John nodded, “Of course, of course. Your duties take precedence.” He could tell she obviously actually loved Zak, so decided to let her have an out. She regained her composure, some of the color leaving her face, and took a sip of tea. … Carol looked uncomfortable as she sat on the couch. Shifting herself as if it was physically uncomfortable for her to be there. John gave her a light smile. “So, Zak told me that you two grew up in the same village?” She nodded. “Yes. He was my neighbor.” “When did you start to develop feeling for him? When he left as an adventurer?” She smiled and shook her head a bit, blushing lightly. “No... it was probably when he threw a frog at my big brother. He’d been chasing me with a frog of his own and Zak tossed one right into his face,” she giggled a bit, then her smile dipped again as she remembered where she was and the uncomfortable shifting started again. “What do you think of the others?” She frowned. “They’re too rough on him. Too demanding. He’s earned his rest,” she shook her head. “I just want to take care of him. “Hmm,” murmured John. “I think that’s all I need.” … “Come in everyone,” said John as he held the door open for each of them to file back in and squeeze back onto the couch. Once they were settled he moved back to his desk, but was interrupted by a light tapping on his window. “Perfect timing,” he said as he opened the window for the small pixie that was hovering outside. The pixie handed him a small scrap of paper, and he reached into his pocket producing another piece of hardened honey. “Your tip,” he said handing it to her, she saluted and buzzed away. He latched the door and walked back to his desk to sit down, looking at the paper the pixie handed to him and nodding. He pulled a candle from a drawer in his desk and started to light it. “So, thanks to the talks with everyone I think I can make things… about fifty percent easier for all of you.” The wick caught fire and he smiled, taking the scrap paper and igniting it before he started to read the runes on it. “You who has been cursed to lose your heart you now regain it by the powers of my art,” the voice he spoke with was not his own, but that of an old woman. There was a crackling of purple energy as the note exploded into sparks. When it was done he blew the candle out, and looked at Serenetiya expectantly. She blinked a few times, shaking her head a bit as black smoke leaked quickly from every orifice on her face. When it was gone she stood up with a wide smile. “Oh thank the gods of the old forest!” she exclaimed. “My curse is lifted!” “Curse?” asked Zak. “She was cursed to love you. I sent a note to a cursebreaker friend of mine to get it resolved.” Serenetiya walked up quickly to the desk and shook John’s hand thoroughly. “Thank you so much for this, I can’t believe the Knight’s curse could be broken so easily”. “Avalon sees this kind of thing a lot. Happy I could help.” She released his hand and looked at the rest of them. “What happened wasn’t anyone’s fault, but I just want to say, I hope I don’t see any of you again for at least a few hundred years.” With that she walked out the door. “So… she didn’t love me?” asked Zak, more curious than hurt based on his tone. “Fraid not. The root problem here, which is almost always the root problem of anything ever, is that none of you communicate properly.” He was being blunt, more blunt than he would’ve been back on Earth, but he was no longer really bound by the same rules he used to be, so bluntness was free for him to use at any time. “Now, to solve another problem you need to sleep with just Krush until she’s knocked up.” Krush laughed. “He is far too small to knock me around by the force of his mating.” John chuckled back. “It’s a term where I’m from. I mean he needs to impregnate you.” “-now wait just a-” “-That’s improper and-” Both Carol and Grailia began talking at once and John held up a hand. “Do you want Krush to leave Zak alone or not?” he asked simply. They said nothing. “Thought so,” responded John. “I know some local alchemists that may be able to speed things along.” “So Krush just wants my kid?” Zak asked. John nodded. “Communication, as I said, you all need more of it.” “What about…?” Zak looked at Carol and the Princess. “Oh no, they both love you, no easy solutions in that case." They both went crimson red, but only Grailia spoke. “I do not !” “Sure,” replied John dryly. “Whatever the case, I’d like to see you three for another appointment in say… a week?” “Oh, are we out of time?” asked Zak. “I mean, I solved half of your issues in a little over an hour. I’d say we’re doing pretty well so far. The rest of this though,” he looked at Zak, Carol, and the Princess. “will take some real work. Particularly when it comes to talking to one another. So, can I set another appointment for you?” Krush laughed again. “I like this human. You should all be like this.” John shrugged, keeping on a friendly smile. Sure he was great at giving others advice. Didn’t mean he was so great at following it.

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### Chapter 2: Ch 2 Isekai Support Group

“Alright everybody. As you can see, we have a new face so we’re going to go through and do our introductions. I’ll start.” John stood up from his chair, and smiled warmly at the group. It was a practiced smile, one that was easy to wear even though he wanted nothing more than to go back to his apartment and crawl into bed. All but one person seated in the circle already knew him and his story, but it was easier to keep to the routine than to make the effort to be novel. “Hello, my name is John. Back on Earth I was a therapist. I was transported here by what I now know, was a fairy circle. At the time, I’d thought it was just a circle of mushrooms in the path of my walk. Guess I’m an idiot for that.” A slight chuckle broke out across the room. “I was dropped into some woods south of Avalon. Not knowing that civilization was just a mile or two north, I headed south, thinking I had gotten lost in the woods back on Earth, and that was the best way back to the road.” He paused, remembering his disorientation. “The trees were different, the smell, the sky, all of it had changed in such strange ways, but my mind just wouldn’t allow me to realize what was wrong.” He paused for dramatic effect, the same way he did every time. “It wasn’t long before I encountered a particularly hungry group of Mites. I’d love to tell you that I immediately raised my walking stick, smashed all of them with ease, and started a life of adventure, but that obviously didn’t happen. They chased me up a tree and threw rocks at me for an hour before a wandering adventurer happened by and cut them down before helping me to the city.” He sighed. “It took a long time to adjust after that, and I was lucky to have a fair amount of help from some good people.” He paused again, this time to catch his breath. He was rushing through, bored by his own story, though his expression didn’t show it. “Now thanks to some luck and hard work I’m working as the first therapist in Avalon. I still have my troubles of course, but luckily I have the group to lean on when they happen.” That got some polite applause, a few rolled eyes from those that had been in the group from the beginning, and silence from the new girl that was sitting to John’s right, who seemed a bit shy. “Alright, how about we work our way around in a circle clockwise.” John nodded to the man to his left. He was wearing a brown jumpsuit with the label ‘Eric’s Extermination’ on the back, his hair was greasy and blonde, and his face weathered. He was roughly forty, though John made a point not to ask anyone’s age. Things like that became strange in the new world; he’d mis-aged too many non-humans or sorcerers that change their appearance to comfortably guess, and formed a habit not to ask at all after a particularly sensitive gnome punched him in the balls for talking to him like a child. Eric stood. “Name’s Eric. Was an exterminator back in Mississippi. Transported here when I got hit by a truck.” That provoked several nods from the rest of the group. Truck accidents were perhaps the number one cause of waking up in this world. Eric continued. “Tried to do it here. Locals took offense to me clearing out gremlins with poisons and traps. Said it’s ‘unethical’ and ‘horrifying’. Between jobs now. I miss Bud Light.” Eric nodded, as if to punctuate that he was done, then sat down. John was grateful he’d kept things short this time, though normally he would’ve chastised him for being too abrupt. John still had flashbacks to helping Eric with the ‘brownie’ incident. He was the one that had to smooth things over with the locals for him. He understood why he was frustrated. An adventurer would’ve killed them too, just with a knife or club. For some reason, the poisons Eric had developed offended people’s sensibilities. “Thank you Eric.” said John, then nodded at the next man in the circle, “Ben?”. The ‘man’ he was referring to was roughly eight feet tall, with a head like a boar, covered in thick fur and equally thick muscle. He didn’t bother standing; the ceilings were a bit low for him. “My name is Ben….but you may know my stage name, Hot Bennies. I’m from Canada, originally, though I’d lived all over before I came here. I was a member of a band… I was considered ‘the hot one’ in fact. I uh, pissed off a groupie, who turned out to be a big deal online as a witch or something. I assumed it was bullshit when my publicist told me about the buzz about her cursing me online, but uh… turns out all those weird green haired girls really were magic, because I woke up about ten miles away from the city looking like,” he gestured emphatically to his face “ THIS ,” He snorted with despair. John reached for a handkerchief and handed it to him, but he batted it away. “I’m never gonna get any pussy ever again…” If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it. John sighed. Ben was…difficult. He felt a bit of responsibility toward him since he didn’t have many others to lean on, but found it hard not to get frustrated at the fact that he ignored all of the advice he ever gave him. John looked at the woman to Ben’s right. She was roughly half his size, with a pretty round face and dark hair. “Sarah, want to take it from there?” She nodded, a wry smile on her lips. “I’m Sarah, in case you don’t understand context clues. I’m from London originally, but I was hit by a truck outside of the Comedy Cellar in New York which is how I wound up here.” Eric nodded. “Makes sense. An English truck wouldn’t have been big enough to kill you.” “A Lorry in England wouldn’t have hit me in the first place.” She responded quickly. “Anywho, I was a comedian back on Earth. Quite a good one too. Was on track to shoot a special for a certain streaming service… had a name for it picked out and everything. Now I’m here though, and all my material is useless and most comedians here punctuate everything they do with a fucking lute or by juggling.” She took a moment to look dramatically despondent. “What’s the deal with Airline food? They don’t know what the fuck an airline even is .” That got a small laugh from the group, a much more genuine one than John had gotten earlier, he noticed. “I mean, I had five minutes about Thatcher, and if I told those jokes here they’d think I was talking about someone who makes roofs!” The chuckles were a bit harder this time, and there was a twinkle starting to shine in her eye. John held a fist to his mouth and gave her a cough with a pointed stare. She looked at him and sighed. “Anyway, I’m working as a serving girl at a nearby Inn now. Obviously, my story isn’t quite as tragic as ‘not getting pussy ever again’, but thanks for listening anyway.” There was a final round of laughs at that last comment, as well as a low growl from Ben. John turned to the person to her left. His name was Rene, and he was a bit of an odd case. He was tan, with a full head of brown curls and a thick mustache that slightly hid his youthful face. “Rene, you want to speak this time?” asked John. “I… I can try, sure. Hello. My name is Rene. I’m from France. Born in 1894. I’ve been told that’s an important thing to mention. I was flying my plane, doing reconnaissance on the Germans, when I saw a strange light in the air in front of me. When I went through it, suddenly day was night, and the sky looked completely unfamiliar. I panicked, and was going to crash, when a monste- a dragon moved to attack me, but saw my reaction and fear, and instead grabbed my plane and placed me gently in front of the city. I feel that I have both an easier and a harder time than the rest of you, but I’m getting by. Was happy to hear that we won the war…both of them.” “ We won the war,” said Eric. “Yes Eric, the United States helped…” said John, cutting him off before he started to mention saving their ‘Frog Asses’ for the second week in a row. “More in the second war than the first, but please wait for everyone to finish sharing before you say anything.” Eric held up his hands, leaning back in his chair, with what he considered his ‘sorry to tell the truth’ face, but everyone else considered his ‘please punch me’ face. After that they went through a few of the irregulars that had shown up this time. There was a core group of those who showed up to the group every time, and there were a few that just wanted to socialize every once in a while, or needed a bit of help in the short term. John didn’t fault their lack of attendance, and was generally okay with them being infrequent visitors. The group was there when they needed it; that’s what was important. Once they were all through with introductions, they finally arrived at the new girl. She was very pale, tall, and skinny, with jet black hair. John gave her what he believed was his friendliest smile. “Would you be comfortable introducing yourself today?” She shook her head. “I’m… not quite there yet I think,” she said, angling her dark eyes downward. John nodded. “That’s perfectly fine. You can take your time.” This was her first meeting, and John wasn’t sure of where she’d come from, but he saw no reason to force her to participate. The transition could be very difficult. Aside from that he, a little selfishly, just wanted to go home and mope so this worked out to get him there faster. “How about we break for pastries and tea everyone?”

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