The small group had moved into a quiet corner on the left side of the Arena hall to talk undisturbed. Jak sat across Vee and the kiddie squad while Myra had taken seat at the side with Drake. The raven felt incredibly out of place and the look the bunny cat was giving him was also strange. Why was he even being involved with this?! He had barely even been in the background. He was just carrying Ricky! Both Drake and Jak had shared the same thought as they awkwardly glanced at each other for a second at the start but nobody else seemed to have shared their impression. And so the poor guy had been left to be dragged into this.

“…yeah, explains why you didn’t pop up at school today.” Vee nodded solemnly after Jak ended. She was sitting atop the table, tail wrapped around her crossed legs.

Jak blinked, genuinely confused, and cocked his head.

“…school?”

His mind was still trying to recalibrate and understand what she was talking about. Vee stared at him in disbelief.

“… yes? Don’t tell me you forgot about school. And the promise…?”

Her eyes narrowed sharply at him, there was no real anger in them and she tried to hide her lightly hurt feelings with a teasing flash of her teeth. She could see the gears turning behind his eyes until he finally managed to drag the relevant memories back to the forefront of his mind.

“…Abyss!” Jak cursed, slapping his forehead hard as he had literally forgotten all about both. The chameleon hybrid sweatdropped amused.

“How many reasons to kick his ass has Haggard hoarded by now?!” He exclaimed, throwing his arms up in the air in aggravation.

“Hundreds!” Jenny cheerfully declared, bouncing on her feet with a wide grin as her mind was entirely preoccupied by much more important stuff.

“So, you will really take me to your hideout? Really? Really?!” She gasped excitedly, eyes sparkling at him.

“Yes.” Jak groaned, already having found the one hundred and first reason to hate Haggard even more.

An excited cheer echoed through the air. The other patrons of the TC Gear Club were only throwing them a few curious glances as their table echoed loudly irregularly through Arena hall. Some of them were already used to stuff like this and just ignored them while others were curious but didn’t want to intrude more on their private conversation than they already had and just turned back to their own matter after maybe a second glance.

Amused, Vee leaned over to whisper with a light grin to the wolf cat and Jak sighed back quietly.

“Don’t want her rummaging around your home, huh?”

“Yeah, I just hope the Numeryuus can keep her occupied.”

He could already feel a headache coming.

“Their sacrifice will be honoured and given songs of bravery.” He nodded solemnly, hand over heart.

“I will make sure to hold a minute of silence.” Vee gravely agreed. A giggle escaping the two of them while Jenny tilted her head confused at the giggling duo.

Mina and Geen just shook their heads exasperate. They had been mostly listening quietly from the side during the initial conversation, the topic was alarming but not really all too clear to them, but while they hadn’t heard what Vee had whispered to Jak, they could put in a good guess.

Meanwhile to the side, Myra had decided to approach the dramatically dressed raven with a conversation. She had been watching in awe at all the Tyrant Crabs around the club and wanted to know more. Drake seemed to be similar to the carriers many of the Tyrant Crabs back home employed, so he should know a bit more. The raven also decided to go for conversation, his reason was mostly to not just sit here in awkward silence and listen in on things he really had no business with. And it didn’t befit a bird of darkness such as him to fidget nervously about! … Ahem, acting went a bit wild him again.

“So, where are you from?”

Drake was the first to ask curiously, Lilith had perched atop his head and now perked up in interest.

“The Tinkerers Cove.” Myra answered promptly. “It’s really different from here!” She added helpfully.

“Oho, a name fit for a kingdom of Tinkerer Crabs.” Drake laughed while Lilith facepalmed.

Myra opened her mouth to correct him only to blink as she actually couldn’t and snapped her mouth shut, thoughtfully she rubbed her chin. The pieces fit together and she mused out loud.

“Huh, suddenly the name makes a ton more sense…”

He had been joking! Drake exclaimed inside his head while his and Lilith’s jaw dropped.

“Actually, I have been wondering if you were a Crab Carrier! The really important Tyrant Crab back home used to have them sometimes.” She grinned back at him, sparkling eyes gazing at him with innocent curiosity.

“…I just lost a bet to the kids.” Drake deadpanned in answer and then snorted amused as Lilith pinched him lightly. Making sure that Ricky couldn’t overhear them he conspiringly leaned over, one hand covering his lips from the table, and gave a winking whisper to Myra.

“Actually, we intentionally lost, but don’t tell them, okay?”

“Hehe, sure.” Myra’s eyes twinkled with mischief as she leant over as well. “But only if you tell me a bit more about this club here~”

“Then the deal is struck.” Drake smirked back and he began to enlighten her on the art of TC Matches.

———

Deep underground there was a dark room, lit only by a single screen. A goggled face was weakly illuminated by its glow, the rest of his body cast into shadows as he intently focused on the events transpiring within it. Then he sighed, scratched his neck and snapped his fingers.

Immediately the room was filled with warm light and the screen switched from the recordings to the cheerful title screen of a jump-n-run game, the controller already in his hands as he began to cheerful hum.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Qilby was a Jellyfish frog, his body a mix of dark and light blues. However, anyone who met him had their eyes immediately drawn to his skull. Semi-transparent, his brain pulsed visibly for all to see. The reason why he normally wore both a beanie and his goggles. In addition to other, more personal reasons.

“Hehe, nothing’s better than a nice game of Terra Flops after some planning.” He chuckled with a wide grin, his long tongue flitting through the air as he began another round of the game.

He was about halfway through the first world when a knock echoed from the door.

“Yeah, come one in~” Qilby called out, unbothered by the distraction even as his eyes flitted for a second towards the door. Rapid calculations played reflexively through his mind, vectors and movements filling his view. A marble throw, or maybe a blade, bounce off there and then… he didn’t even acknowledge the intrusion as he was already more than used to its constant presence.

“Heh, already back at the game, huh?”

An amused smile tugged at Crya’s lips as she poked her into the room. Warm light shone inside from the hallway alongside her.

“Yep yep yep~ What can I do for you, Crya? Plans all done, can’t give you any info before the start, though.” He grinned. It was something he incessantly did but it wasn’t forced, why shouldn’t he enjoy life to its fullest at all times after all?

“Ah, I just wanted to know if my sister had already filled you in.”

For anyone else the light twitch of her ears would have been unnoticeable. To Qilby it was impossible not to notice.

“Graam’s ward getting into a scuffle with a Demon? Yep~ And who would’ve thunk that Holomew’s granddaughter would be there to bail him out.”

A snort escaped him and he exaggeratedly bend himself backwards until he was looking right at her, head fully upside down. All while continue to play without fail, he hadn’t even missed a single jump.

“But that’s not what’s bothering you. Come on, you wouldn’t have bother little old me with this visit until after you joined that girl’s little nap alongside your cute girlfriend~ So, what’s the actual reason you wanna talk with me?”

An annoyed twitch pulled unwittingly at Crya’s temples. Qilby was great to talk to… unless you were trying to approach things tactfully. Then he wanted you to be blunt. And it aggravated her how easily he was able to read her and her sister.

“Demons. The Network Breakdown. High alert of the Guards because of our break-ins. We’ve got more escalations outside our plans than I’d like. And it’s making my blood boil!”

Her voice rose in intensity until she was growling loudly. A flicker of red washed over her body, a scarlet halo wrapped around her waist, and she slammed her fist against the door frame that dust fell from the ceiling. Heavily she breather and as the red receded, the darkened bags under her eyes became very much visible.

Quietly Qilby hid a sigh, unbothered by her outburst, and pulled himself back up. A gentle smile adorned his lips.

“Hoo boy, those are certainly some important points… but you gotta relax~ All this tension ain’t good for you.”

The glow of the screen reflected within his googled eyes. Before she could say anything more, he raised a finger.

“While all of this is certainly outside our expected parameters, everything is still well within the expanded margin of error. The risk of failing the mission isn’t any higher now than it would before. And it’s better to have an idea of the chaos before the mission than during it, wouldn’t you say? I’ve already made sure of contingencies.”

His eyes twinkled at her through the reflection of the screen and Crya groaned, his logic cleanly punching through her worries.

“Sorry… I think I’m just tired…”

Crya winced, a wide yawn perfectly proving her theory a second later.

“Then join your sister and girlfriend in their nap, you more than deserve it. We’ve have been pushing the two of you a lot over the last weeks and tomorrow that workload ain’t gonna be any lighter.” Qilby chuckled apologetically and then playfully shooed her away like a petulant child. “Now, hush, get some sleep~”

“Yeah, yeah.” Crya rolled her eyes in annoyed amusement. A tired smile curled her lips as she snorted on the way out.

———

The room was kept dark. The windows shut tight. Pillows, blankets and mattress bunched together in a chaotic but cozy nest of warm and cushy rest. Sprawled lazily over the cushions was Lyca, the she-wolf was already fast asleep and snoring audibly with a lolling tongue.

Snuggled up against the pillow walled backrest, Verena poked her girlfriend’s tongue amused back into her mouth. Lyca cutely grinned within her sleep and cuddled into the other girl’s thighs. The bunny bat woman gently brushed through her hair, absentmindedly flicking through the pages of her book. Even in this darkness, she was able to see. Or better said, hear. Well enough that she could even read the letters in a book. And the cutely whistling form of the small Numeryuu her girlfriend had brought with her. Vex rested atop the pillow wall, dozing peacefully.

“Myuh…mhmlk…llfu…” Lyca mumbled cutely in her sleep and snuggled herself further against Verena’s thighs.

“Yeah, I love you, too.” Verena replied with a small grin, keeping her giggle quiet as she pulled her loveable and huggable girlfriend into her lap for a cuddle.

“Now, less talking and more resting, ‘kay~?” She whispered with an amused twinkle in her eyes, putting a finger against Lyca’s lips and quietly squealed as the she-wolf playfully licked it.

With chuckling exasperation, Verena pushed Lyca back into the cushions where the other girl blissfully melted into the warm and cuddly pillows, finally falling into a deep and dreamless asleep.

Lyca and her sister and had been put through the wringer by their operation over the last month and tomorrow wasn’t about to be any more restful. If anything, there was definite proof that the next day would be even harder on not just them but her as well.

A nostalgic smile flitted over Verena’s lips as she was reminded of the stressful work she had to deal during her first few days working as a strip dancer and waitress at the Noctis Xerxes Night Club. It had been where she had first met the twins as co-workers and from there she had been pulled into their world. Things had been simpler before then but also much less vibrant.

Verena was brought out of her reminiscence by the soft clicking of the door, nearly inaudible but to her as clear and obvious as the alarm and bright sunshine in the morning. Her large bat ears easily twitched towards the sound’s origin, she didn’t even need to hear closer as she easily recognised the gentle foot steps tiptoeing into the room. The voice that followed was a bit of a giveaway, too, she supposed. An amused smile tugged at her lips. She would recognise Crya’s whispered whines at any time.

“…ugh, why did I even bother Qilby? Must be more tried than I thought… and I hate how he’s always so good at shooing me away…!”

“Qilby send you off to bed again…?”

Verena’s voice echoed amused within the second she-wolf’s ears, audible only to her as to not disturb her cutely snoring sister. Crya didn’t even so much as twitch at how close their girlfriend sounded, already well used to it.

“Don’t get me started…”

Crya groaned, her voice little more than a silent breath as the bunny bat perfectly picked her words up nonetheless. Shuffling towards the bed to soon join her sister and girlfriend, Crya couldn’t hold back a wide yawn any longer. Verena grinned audibly.

“Yeah, yeah, my sis and I need some sleep.”

Crya rolled her eyes bemused and playfully stuck her tongue out at Verena.

“Oh, you don’t know the half of it. Lyca practically collapsed into me when she came back, barely managed to get her into her pyjama’s. Would have been nice to cuddle with her just like that but I’d rather not show the world my girlfriends anymore than I already have to~”

Verena giggled lightly, a mischievous gleam entering her eyes as she drank in Crya’s beautiful body. The she-wolf’s gorgeous curves bared to her before a formfitting one-piece pyjama snugly hugged them tight.

“Can’t have that after all.” Crya smirked back before slipping under the blankets, snaking her way through before finally reaching her lover’s side. Cuddling up against her, she pulled her down to her and Lyca’s level. With a playful push, she was in Lyca’s range and her dozing sister instinctively latched onto her girlfriend.

“Now… let’s… take a nice, long rest… tomorrow’s got a lot of work ahead for us…” She yawned widely while trapping her adorable bunny bat between their twin bodies.

Verena flailed cutely within their tight hold before happily cuddling deeper into them. Legs wrapped around legs, arms hugged waists and heads nuzzled into anything soft. And soon Crya’s soft snores joined Lyca’s within this bundle of limbs.

“Night, you two… you deserve it…” Rena whispered softly to her girlfriends, giving them a light kiss on their foreheads before relaxing alongside them. A pang of guilt for having been able to rest the day was washed away. And with a wide yawn of her own she nestled her head against them and soon dozed off to join the twins in their deep and dreamless slumber.