A Warm, Fuzzy Evening

> ”I’ve always imagined myself with Frein relaxing somewhere on Atlas Sid. I just didn’t expect it to happen, and with more than just him.” ~Katherine Militia

“Just be yourself out there, Bro,” Katherine said while she tidied up Xiv’s summer vest. “The Skyside’s the perfect place for a date. It’s private, food’s good, music is relaxing, and the scenery’s the best wherever you look. You don’t have to worry about anything external ruining your time with Frill. So all you have to focus on is yourself, you understand?”

“Bro?” Xiv asked like the dumb, overwhelmed man that he was. Katherine found it funny and adorable.

“Short for Brother, dummy.” She produced two reservation pamphlets and gave them to the Vyndivalian. “If you’re close enough with Frein and Eli to call them brother and sister, then I’m taking a slice of that. Now you don’t have a M.O.B.I.L.E., so don’t lose these. I’ve personally taken care of the reservations, so these are just for formality’s sake, but still.”

Xiv nodded along. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself down.

“I can’t believe something like this is making me nervous,” he admitted.

“Don’t worry,” Katherine assured. “Frill’s nervous too. She’s just better than you at hiding it.”

“I find that hard to believe, Sis,” Xiv replied, awkwardly piecing together the short term for sister.

Katherine leaned forward and spoke in a serious tone. “Look, Bro. Frill’s never gone on a date before. Too busy with Kristel. Now, I don’t know how many dates you’ve been on—zero, if I had to guess—but no one does it right the first time. You don’t know what to expect, and sometimes, you expect too much. So you don’t have to go there trying to make this the most special event you two will ever have in your life. Just have fun and get to know each other. You just have to convince her that she’s not wrong about you.

“For what it’s worth, Frill won’t expect you to do this perfectly the first time either. The plan happened out of the blue and neither of you are prepared, let’s be honest.”

“I don’t even know what we’ll be talking about,” Xiv said stubbornly. Katherine didn’t have to use Heart’s Will to see his brain frying and melting.

“Well, that’s your problem lover-boy. I’m pretty sure it’ll come out naturally. Just don’t start with the weather, okay?”

Xiv nodded again.

He’ll definitely start with the weather…

With a smile, Katherine tapped both shoulders and sent the Vyndivalian on his way. “Take a right on the next corner and the first establishment you find will be The Skyside. You won’t miss it. Get yourself comfortable in there. I’ll bring Frill over in a few minutes.”

Xiv gathered his courage and determination, giving Katherine one final nod. “Thanks, Sis.”

“Don’t mention it.”

As soon as he turned the corner and out of sight, Frill emerged from the other corner behind the same block, riding Stiry, her brown yuma. She dismounted elegantly, while looking past Katherine.

“He gone?”

“Yes, I made sure he prioritizes your reservations so nothing stupid happens.” Katherine looked all over Frill.

As always, the Aria dressed in a way that emphasized her namesake. This time, she wore a pretty pink, frilly, summer dress layered with a white shawl to add some weight on her thin fabric. She was subtle with her makeup, only slightly accentuating around her eyes. Impressive but not surprising since Frill had a lot of practice with Kristel and even her late sister.

“How do I—”

“I think I’ll keep that to myself. Don’t forget to ask Xiv.”

“I don’t even know what we’re going to talk about,” Frill complained.

Katherine did her best and managed to prevent any signs of laughter from showing on her face. She played it cool, tapping Frill’s shoulder like she did for Xiv.

“Don’t worry about it,” she replied. “You’re both nervous, and that’s okay. It might get awkward, but that’s okay. Start with things you two are comfortable with. Your relationship doesn’t have to develop to anything on your first date. All you need to do is to get to know each other more and see if this thing you have going on is worth a shot.”

Frill nodded the same way Xiv did earlier.

They’re definitely going to start with the weather. And again, Katherine wore her best poker face, preventing giving any accidental hints to Frill.

“Alright,” the Lady started, “I’ll walk you to the entrance.”

“Thank you.”

They took a few steps—Stiry closely behind them—before Frill completely caved and desperately held Katherine’s hand.

“I think I’m having a breakdown after all,” she said, her voice shaking.

Katherine closely examined her friend with Mesiffera to make sure there wasn’t anything wrong with Frill’s meiyal system. A thorough scan clarified that she was clear. It was really just her nerves.

“You want to back out?” she asked Frill. Katherine made her voice neutral, rid of any sarcasm. While she didn’t want her friend backing away from a potentially positive thing, she didn’t want to force her either.

“I just wish it was the same for me,” Frill replied, desperately trying to stabilize her knees. “You and Frein, I mean.”

“It wasn’t exactly smooth sailing for us either, you know. And unlike you, I didn’t have someone else to cling on to.”

“What did you do?” Frill asked, her purple eyes desperate for answers.

Katherine smirked when she recalled her first serious date with Frein. “I clung on Frein, of course,” she said naturally.

“I…”

“Look. Xiv already said he likes you, Frill. You don’t have to try for him to like you. I know there are a lot of uncertainties still involved, but at least you’re done with the most important part, right? If you also like the guy, then try to keep it that way.

“For now, why don’t you just go there, get something to eat, and just talk about things you’re comfortable with? Come on. You’re already fashionably late. Let’s not drag that too long and give him the wrong idea.”

Frill still shuddered, but she was smiling. “I’ve never been this nervous since my first concert.”

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

“Remember what you did back then?” Katherine asked. The Aria nodded. “Together now.”

Both ladies took slow, deep breaths.

“You got this, you got this,” Katherine whispered.

“I got this, I got this,” Frill repeated.

“Everything’s going to be alright,” the Lady added, and the Aria repeated that too.

It was like magic. Frill calmed down and stood straight, smiling as confident as before. She reached behind her to find Stiry reflexively taking her hand on his large snout.

“You be good,” she said. “I’ll call for you later.”

Stiry made a small nod and nudged his master’s shoulder.

“I get it, I get it. I’ll be alright.” After sending the yuma off to return to his mate, Frill turned to Katherine. “Thanks, Kat. I can take it from here.”

Katherine gave her one final encouraging nod and sent her off with a proud smile. “Have fun!”

Satisfied, she turned around, pretending to return to the training room. As soon as she turned the corner, however, she brought out her coat from her Spatiera and sneaked somewhere within sight of The Skyside. The venue was indeed private, in the sense that the place was high enough that anyone trying to snatch a peek would either be flying or climbing the establishment.

Katherine preferred to simply listen. Her Siffera was now about on par with Frein’s without four-meiyal investment, enough to eavesdrop from the roof of The Skyside and make sure things were going fine between the two lovebirds. She liked what she heard and decided not to linger for long.

Someone else was stalking her.

“You know that’s cheating,” Katherine began in a whisper. “Sneaking with Nature’s Favor just gives you so much advantage.”

A soft whine confirmed her suspicions long before Enza melded into view. The yuma snuggled on her lap, already too large for her adolescent antics. But Katherine tolerated her. Despite how the yuma looked, large as a horse as she was, it was still a fact that the youngling wasn’t even a month old yet.

“Did Frein ask you to fetch me?”

The yuma made an affirmative, yet snuffed out bark. It was adorable looking at such a beast of burden trying to be sneaky.

“Alright, we should glide down the other way and just take the road. We want to avoid flying since it’s against the rules while traveling on the Atlas Sid. You understand?”

Another affirmative bark.

It was only then did Katherine realize that the yuma understood her word for word. It was odd. Not even bonded yumas could comprehend their masters the entire time.

Maybe bonding with Frein granted her more than just a Blessing? she thought while they both made their way down the road. Enza was even courteous enough to carry her. That she found extremely surprising. A yuma required a lot of training to carry someone else, especially if their bonded practitioner was absent.

“Can you try and talk to me, Enza?” Katherine took a gander, not expecting the yuma to respond.

But she tried. Enza tried. Katherine, in utter shock, could feel the yuma trying to communicate with her. She could feel the intentions behind the attempt.

Enza wanted to say hi and ask if the Lady could understand her words.

The realization stunned Katherine. It took her a second a nudge from Enza to gain back her thoughts.

“No, I couldn’t hear your words, Enza,” she said, “but I can understand your intent. I think, if Frein helped you out, or if there’s a meiyal-charged material he can integrate for you, you might be able to communicate with everyone else!”

Enza jumped with joy, rocking Katherine from her seat behind the yuma’s back. The Lady didn’t mind. She was excited herself.

“Let’s get back to Frein! We should tell him about it!”

Enza ran like the wind and entered the military facility within minutes. No one tried to stop her. People were so used to rushing yumas and vorks that the time of day didn’t matter at all.

Despite the evening, the entirety of Atlas Sid was still bright. It would remain so during the whole flight. People who wanted to sleep simply used the curtains in their rooms.

As soon as they arrived at the training facility, Katherine passed her greetings to the current guard on duty and entered with the yuma. There she found Princess Kristel sprawled on the floor, trying to catch her breath. Frein was on the other end, using some makeshift weights out of some obstacle course parts. He was smoking, clear signs of Art fatigue.

“I’m back,” Katherine announced herself, dismounting Enza.

“Hey,” Frein replied first, dropping his weights and running to her. “How are they?”

“They’ll be alright,” Katherine replied before taking a kiss. They took a prolonged moment and indulged in each other before parting with a sigh. “Thanks for asking Enza to fetch me. Did you know she can understand me even without you around? That’s not something bonded yumas can do.”

“Yeah. We’re experimenting a bit. I think I can help her communicate with other people with words.”

“Oh, so you already know. That’s good to know.” Katherine wasn’t surprised. Only slightly. But she already expected it from Frein. She turned to the Princess, who was still on the floor, instead. “What happened to her?”

“Perpetual-Layered Milling Form. Recovering from Art fatigue.”

“Oh. That’s right. She can’t use meiyal resuscitation.”

“That’s why we’re waiting.”

“Did you try?”

“Try what?” Frein visibly tried to play dumb, but quickly caught himself. “Meiyal resuscitation is a deep kiss, Kat. It only works for lovers.”

“Thought I’d ask since you seem to be getting a lot of attention lately.” Katherine tempered all of her excitement and tried to push Frein’s buttons. The kiss made her feel hot under the collar and her desires and priorities became entangled again.

Kristel’s right… I’m basically addicted now.

“Eli’s a different case, Kat. Kristel’s like a sister to me. Even Frill and Xiv are siblings to me. Never had siblings before.”

“Yeah, I know,” Katherine quickly admitted. “Just confused. You did promise tonight, remember?”

The Visitor just stared at her, waiting. She frowned for a while, but she quickly realized what he wanted to convey.

“Oh…” she said, looking at Kristel. The two lovebirds would be busy—hopefully not too busy too soon—tonight, leaving the Princess on her own until late evening. It wouldn’t be a good idea to leave her alone, especially since it might cascade into unwanted events, leading to Frill and Xiv’s relationship not working out—as one mild example among other things.

“I guess we’re babysitting,” she whispered.

“How about you bring me on a tour?” Frein suggested. “Play a bit of hide-and-seek while the Princess’s around?”

Katherine felt his hand drift on the scar of her stomach, slipping under her shirt and working their way up her bra. He snatched a squeeze behind the Princess’s back while his other hand masterfully undid her hook. She felt her lust skyrocket, as Frein pulled her undergarment off and stored it in his own Spatiera.

The man was still in Art fatigue, but he forcefully Drew the spatial Art. It aggravated his condition only slightly, but neither of them cared.

Still, Katherine tried to regain control, realizing Enza was still around.

The yuma had ignored both of them and was playing around Kristel instead, messing up the Princess’s azure hair while she tried to recover. Enza was serving as a distraction.

“Did you just ask your yuma to assist you? That’s—” Katherine hissed, but she did nothing when Frein’s other hand slipped inside her shorts, pressing a finger in between her ass. She almost let out a moan.

“No,” Frein replied smoothly, pressing his lips on her collar bone and licking her up to her neck. At the same time, his finger went in and explored her insides. “I’m just taking advantage of it.”

This time a soft sigh escaped Katherine, causing Frein to quickly release all engagement.

He acted nonchalant.

“So where do you think we should go?” he asked, slightly tilting his head towards where Kristel was. It was a subtle sign to say she was gaining awareness, no longer busy with recovering. At the same time, he sucked on his middle finger, the one that was inside her just now.

“Katherine? When did you come back?” Kristel asked, sitting up and massaging Enza’s face to calm her down.

The Lady of the Void double checked herself before turning towards the Princess, making sure none of her clothes were loose or inappropriately slipping on the side. She felt frustrated but still excited at the same time.

Good thing she had her coat on. Her stiff nipples would’ve shown through the shirt, especially without the bra. Frein had barely touched her, but she was overwhelmed with arousal already. She zipped it close before replying to the Princess.

“Just a few minutes ago. How was training?” she asked.

“Dead tired. But I’m ready to try again.”

“Actually,” Katherine started, “I was thinking if you want to come with us? I wanted to show Frein around.”

“Oh. I don’t want to be a bother.” Kristel quickly raised her hands in denial. “You don’t have to include me in your plans just because Frill’s not around. I’ll be fine on my own, I promise.”

“How about just dinner and maybe one place?” Frein asked. “Then we’ll call it a night?” He motioned for Enza to give the Princess a ride. Katherine saw him use the hand that assaulted her breasts and couldn’t help imagine it resuming its work.

“Let’s do dinner then, then let’s see how it goes,” the Princess replied, pulling herself up on Enza’s saddle. “Thank you.”

“So, where?” Frein asked.

“The Skyside?” Katherine asked jokingly.

“That would be incredibly funny, but rude. Let those two have their moment. We can wrench the details out later.”

“Well, I know a few places that just opened when you were gone, Kat,” Kristel suggested. “If you’re willing to experiment?”

“Sure! I’m in an experimental mood.” the Lady said, letting the Princess on the yuma lead the way.

As soon as Kristel was in front of them, Katherine looked at Frein and teasingly smiled, undoing just a bit of her coat’s zipper to show him a part of her breasts underneath a braless shirt.

“Take my panties off, too,” she said invitingly, mouthing the words so only his eyes could read the message.

His dumb smile accepted the challenge.

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