Chloe guided the couple through the village while the three were chatting with each other. There, Sophia mentioned that she'd like the see the insides of an elven treehouse. As the fox-girl lived in one of those, she decided to simply show the duo her home and guided them to it.

“Ohhh!” The moment the group entered the place, Sophia's eyes immediately started to sparkle as she excitedly looked around. Just like the outside of the treehouse, everything inside was made out of wood, as well. Even a part of the tree itself was going through the main room. All the wood made the place look a little dark, but it also made it feel incredibly cozy. “It’s sooo comfy! A little too cold for my liking, though…”

“That’s the best part!” Chloe didn't share her opinion.

“I beg to differ!” The two will probably never be on the same page with this topic.

“I don’t!”

“Hehe.” The tiger liked how the two were so in sync with not being in sync at all. “The insulation of a boarded wooden treehouse might not be the best, huh? Well, nothing a generous amount of heating can’t fix!”

“There are heaters for your home here?" The fox-girl tilted her head.

“Of course!” Sophia got excited again. “Even floor heating seems to be becoming a thing lately.” She decided to leave the part out where she was the one making them a thing.

“Wow. Now that you mention it, I saw them in stores before, but I thought homes were heated with fireplaces only? Then again, I haven't stayed in houses in areas where it gets really cold like here before.”

“You can’t have a fireplace in every room, after all. I’d die without a heater in our bedroom.”

“I’ve never met a cat as cat as you…”

“Thanks~.” It definitely had become a compliment for the tiger at this point. “Do you really never feel cold?”

“Have you taken a better look at my tail yet?”

“I haven't stopped looking at it ever since we met.” She's been a very honest girl for quite a while already.

“Err…” Chloe wasn’t sure how to react to that for a moment. “Thanks to that fluffy thing, it’s impossible for my backside to get cold. Whenever I feel a bit chilly when sleeping, I simply grab my tail and use it as a hug pillow. You won’t get any more comfortable and warmer than that.”

“…” Sophia stared even harder at the fox-girl's tail. "I am SOOOOO jealous!" She got loud.

“Yes…” Maya also looked slightly envious while glancing at it.

"C-Cat tails are also adorable! I bet it’s easier to control them, too. Because my tail is so big and unwieldy, it's often all over the place and in the way, even. It messes with my balance, too…”

“Tell me about it…” The blonde only mumbled those words while remembering how her new tail had messed with her balance in the beginning. “Still!” She got loud again. “The list of positives with such a thing is way longer!”

“Is it?” Chloe tilted her head.

“Yes!” She sounded confident about her claim. “It’s adorable, warm, and fluffy! Each of those things are worth at least ten points!”

"Sorry about my idiot here. She's slightly biased when it comes to fluffy things." Maya felt like apologizing for her tiger. “Not that I disagree, though…” She also was a fan.

“T-Thank you…” The fox-girl got a little bashful. “Well, I’d like to see how it is to have a slightly more manageable tail, like those of the two of you… Especially the long one of Sophia seems like a lot of fun, and it's so expressive, too~. The best I can do is to have it wag a bit like a dog.”

“Urgh…” Sophia took some damage from Chloe having already noticed that her tail was so expressive.

“Very expressive~.” Maya used the chance to tease her.

“S-Shut up!” The blonde’s tail twitched once while her face turned slightly red. A moment later, she used that very tail to bonk the cat-girl's forehead with it.

“O-Ouch!” She raised her voice. “I told you to stop that! There’s way too much power behind your tail!”

“Hehe.”

“See!” Chloe pointed at Sophia. “I love my tail, but being able to manage and use it like that seems like a lot of fun! I wish I would be able to control mine better…” Coincidentally, her fluffy tail went limp and dropped to the floor while saying so.

“Seems like it’s working pretty well to me, though.”

“Well, you can see my emotions on it, like right now… Consciously controlling it, that’s a different story.”

“Okay, that does sound like a pain.” The blonde gave her a few nods.

Stolen novel; please report.

“Yes… You really have to take care when you sit next to me because, sooner or later, my tail will most likely end up in your face.

“S-Seriously?!” The tiger sounded quite excited all of a sudden. “I call dibs on the seat right next to from now till forever!”

“…” Maya glared at her girl for a moment before looking at Chloe. “I guess tails aren't that sensitive of a topic for foxes, huh? After all, Sophia's the only one who's allowed to touch mine. Accidents aside, I would get really upset if anyone would touch it.”

“Yep.” The tiger nodded. “Maya’s also the only one who gets bonked with mine, too."

“Well…” The fox-girl scratched her cheek. “I would definitely dislike someone touching my tail on their own, yes. The thing is… My actual tail isn’t any thicker than Sophia’s. It's basically just all fluff all day around it. So, if I graze someone with it, chances are that I don't even feel or notice it because it was just the tip of my fur that touched you.”

“Oh, I see.” Maya nodded. “That makes sense.”

“Hmm…” The tiger had a complicated expression while her gaze wandered between Chloe’s and her own tail a couple of times. “So, when it rains a lot, or you take a bath…"

“Don’t finish that sentence.” Her aura suddenly changed.

"Touchy subject, huh?" Sophia held up her arms in defense while she took a step back.

“Y-Yes…” She hung her head. “That’s also why I perfected my air-related magic to immediately blow-dry it with the wind so that no one would ever see me in that sorry state!”

“I like your priorities!” The tiger was a fan of Chloe being so overly inventive about seemingly useless things. She could relate to that a lot. “So, your tail is about as sensitive as ours? It’s just that the base is covered in fluff, which basically acts as a barrier?"

“I guess so.” She nodded. “Every now and then, it still tingles when I brush against someone, so it really only happens with people I’m comfortable with. I’ve never hit a stranger with my tail before.”

“Are we still strangers?” Sophia really wanted to get a feel of the fluff.

“Stop pestering her already!” Maya got a little loud. "If it happens, it happens. Just wait for it!"

“Hmm~?” The blonde found her wording a little interesting. “Seems like I’m not alone, huh?”

“W-Why would you? Look at her tail!”

“Ahaha…” Chloe let out a small chuckle while watching the two. “You sure are an interesting couple.”

“Yes.” They answered together.

“Strangers might already be a bit of a stretch at this point, but I think my tail needs a little longer to relax around you. After all, it has a bit of a mind on its own."

“Okay…” Both girls sounded a little disappointed.

“If the actual base of your tail is similar to cats when it comes to sensitivity, what about your ears?” Sophia looked on top of Chloe's head. “Just out of curiosity, of course, I have absolutely no intention to ever touch them.” As her own ears are a huge deal for the tiger, she wouldn't dare to touch those of others.

“That’s good. I would have Feyfey attack everyone who even thinks about touching my ears!" The fox-girl's tail got even bushier while she gave out the warning.

“Alright…” Sophia scratched her cheek. “Soo… about my earlier theory… your taller ears and fluffy tail aside, foxes basically are cats.”

“A-Ah.” Chloe paused for a moment and tried to think about it. “Well… I love the cold, and my tail behaves closer to a dog's, too."

“Soo… a cat with quirks?”

“…”

“Ahaha… Sorry about that.” Sophia suddenly looked a little awkward. "My sister had always loved foxes a whole bunch, and I liked to tease her with that. The actual, full animal foxes, that is. I know that foxes are foxes and cats are cats. Still, I always found it interesting that foxes aren't related to cats yet have so many similarities. They’re from the same general family as dogs, right? Like this cute little one here." Sophia had spotted a plush dog with violet fur and white highlights next to Chloe's bed and gave it a little pat. “I have one of these plushies at home, too. The color is great, isn’t it?”

“Yes! I got it when I was in the capital the last time. It’s very adorable!” The fox-girl shared her opinion. “Oh, you have a sister?” She then focused her attention on the tiger.

“I have…” Her expression turned a little somber. “She isn't with me anymore, though…”

“Ohh…” Chloe looked down while her tail plopped on the ground again, too. “I’m sorry…”

“No, it’s alright…” She didn’t sound alright at all, though. “It’s been a while… and it’s not your fault either, so you really don’t have to feel bad for- mffmfnn!” Her voice turned even more somber, but the blonde could not finish her sentence.

“I-I’m sorry to have brought up something unpleasant for you…” With a slightly panicked expression, Chloe was apologizing while the bushy tip of her tail had pressed itself against Sophia’s face.

“…” Maya wasn’t sure how to feel about any of this but decided to remain silent.

“…” Sophia, too, stayed silent for a few moments before she eventually swished away Chloe’s tail with a gentle motion of her hand. “Why…?”

“I, uhh… I really don’t like it when people are sad… Even more so if I’m responsible for it. Partly, at least, because I made you think about it…” She was still waving the tip of her tail around in front of Sophia’s face. “I-I thought this would be the best to divert your attention…”

“T-Thank you…” She smiled at the fox-girl. "Still, you don't have to do anything that makes you uncomfortable… just to cheer me up…"

“I-It’s alright!” Chloe started panicking again. “As I said before, if it’s just the fur part, I’m okay with it when I’m the one initiating it. If you want to squeeze my tail, I would be against it, but this much, if it cheers you up again, that’s fine!”

“You really are sweet…” The tiger took quite a lot of damage from her consideration. “Thank you very much.”

“Ehehe~.” The fox-girl liked the compliment. “Did it help, then?”

“Yes!” Her face lit up. “The soft fluffiness of your tail is divine!”

“I’m happy to hear that. I try to take good care of it, after all.”

“I ate some hair, though. That wasn’t so nice.” While saying so, the blonde stuck out her tongue and used her hand to pick up some pinkish hair that stuck to it. "Probably wasn't the best idea to literally shut me up…"

"A-Ah…” Chloe’s face turned red. “S-So embarrassing…” She needed a moment to recover. “W-Well, you are a cat, so you should be used to that, right…?”

“I’m not that much of a cat!” Sophia got loud. “I don’t groom myself in that way! I've never coughed up a furball, if that's what you're trying to imply!"

“Well, there was that one time when you were trying to…” Maya suddenly spoke up.

“Don’t you dare to finish that sentence!” The blonde instantly glared at her.

“Hehe.” The cat-girl playfully stuck out her tongue in response.

“Ah, it’s good to see you in a good mood again!” Chloe looked at the duo with a warm expression.

“Eh, mixed feeling about that one, right after getting teased by my sassy cat. Not to mention that she, too, has some experience with the topic, like when she tried to…”

“Stop!” Maya suddenly became flustered, as well.

“Heh.”

“So…” The fox-girl tilted her head. “It was supposed to be a joke, but is there actually a…”

“Shut up!” The couple now glared at her together.

Afterward, the group decided to take a little break to calm down and get back to what they had initially planned, to look at Chloe’s house.