Chapter 25 : Morning

“So why exactly do you want to make the dungeon bigger?” asked Fiona as she and Kianna followed Anton up the stairs that led out from the dungeon and back up to the rest of the house “You plan on hanging stuff up down there?”

“Something like that.” mumbled Anton with a grin “That space is going to become our new classroom. And we'll need the extra room for magical training.”

“Oh really!?” exclaimed Fiona as a broad, excited smile spread across her face “Okay! Hell yeah!”

“Master?” questioned Kianna as she nervously glanced back over her shoulder in the direction that she knew the homunculus was in “What is Mr. Earlivi's “containment” like?”

“Ah, yes, honestly, I have no idea what he's even talking about with that. You see, he has offered to put people in his containment before but I've never been brave enough to actually let him do it. I don't have a actual dungeon at the house, and as far as I know he doesn't either. So I have no clue where he would put them, or what he's even talking about. I could just ask him of course... but sometimes when it comes to Earlivi its just better not to ask too many questions...” explained Anton as a thoughtful expression spread across his face “One thing is for sure though. Wherever, or whatever, this containment is, I can't imagine that its a place that anybody would ever want to find themselves in...”

The dark elves both glanced at each other as their eyes tightened in unease.

“How do you even live with that psycho!?” questioned Fiona as she shivered and twitched her ears up and down “The fucking air around him just feels evil!”

“It's surprisingly easy. Well, it is now. There was an adjustment period of course. Things were a bit intense there for a little while. But once I gave him his own room and told him he could do whatever he wanted in there, Earlivi's entire demeanor towards me changed. I'm guessing he appreciates the gesture as well as having a little privacy. After that things between us have been much more friendly, and he's become a very diligent servant and home guard. Though, he does still keep to himself for the most part... In fact, the only real signs of personality that I've ever seen out of him is when I've caught him watching TV, which with him its always some kind of game show, reality show or survivalist show...” mused Anton as he stepped out of the dungeons stairwell and into the house proper “He seems to really like the ones where people are left alone on islands... Anyways, I do know what you mean about the evil feeling in the air around him. Luckily, you do get used to that over time.”

“Yeah, sure, if you say so...” muttered Fiona as she rubbed her upper arms and grimaced “I can see why you'd put him in that crystal thing now. Best feature he has!”

“I didn't do that. I'd never do that to him.” stated Anton “No, that was due to a burglary that took place at my house.”

“...Wha? A burglary!” exclaimed Kianna “You were robbed!?”

“Yes, I was...” mumbled Anton “And whoever did it definitely knew what they were doing. You see, rather than trying to break my wards and barriers. They waited until I was gone and just demanafied my entire house. Which is something I had no idea you could even do! I don't know how they did it... And honestly I would be impressed if I wasn't so angry about being the one targeted! Anyways, when they did that, Earlivi ended up getting demanaed as well. And that's why he was in his crystal form. I would have awoken him earlier, but I had no idea how damaged he might be. So I figured I should talk to Fillola first. She's the one who recommended I give him a few days of rest, but otherwise she said he should be fine. And thankfully, he is.”

“Damn! So what did they steal from you!?” asked Fiona.

“That is actually what has me the most puzzled. They took mostly random research items. Which, although these things would still be somewhat valuable, its still a little odd. This seems like such a targeted move that its surprises me that they would only take what they took...” explained Anton “I have things that would be worth much more than the items they did take. And yet they didn't even touch these things... This whole mess just feels off to me, and I want to get to the bottom of it! Unfortunately, at this point, I've done all I can really do. I have some people that are already looking out for my items and as soon as they find something I can go from there on tracking down the thieves. But until something pops up, I just have to wait...”

“Huh! Well that sucks for you!” smiled Fiona.

“Yes, it does...” agreed Anton “Luckily though! I've now got two new little pets to give me something to do and keep me entertained while I'm waiting!”

Fiona blinked and began to grumble under her breath as she pointed her ears straight back behind her head.

“So is that all we're gonna do for now then?” asked Kianna as she pulled the door to the stairwell closed “Are we just gonna wait till something happens? And until Mr. Earlivi is done down there?”

“Yes, for the most part. Though we should still try not to let the time go to waste.” smiled Anton as he stepped out of the alcove that hid the entrance to the dungeon and made his way towards the stairway that led to the second story “So to that end, we'll be utilizing the rest of today for your evaluations!”

“...Evaluations!?” mumbled Fiona as she creased her brow and followed Anton up the stairs “And what exactly does that mean!?”

“It means that I'm going to assess you both as students.” explained Anton as he stepped onto the second story landing and turned left in the opposite direction of the master bedroom “That way I can have an idea of what to expect out of you two.”

“...Uh huh, and how are you gonna do that again!?” asked Fiona as she and her sister both followed him down the hallway to a room near the far end of the building.

“With research!” smiled Anton as he opened the door and stepped into the room.

The room was filled from floor to ceiling with a odd assortment of boxes that were stacked on top of each other.

“I'm guessing that when you turned the basement into a dungeon, this is where you put everything that was being stored down there?” questioned Anton as he flicked on the rooms central light.

“Yeah.” said Fiona as Kianna nodded in agreement.

“And I'm also going to assume that somewhere among all of these boxes is a box that has all of your school records as well as your old report cards?” smiled Anton as he looked over the rows of stacked boxes “...Right?”

“...Uh.” drawled Fiona as she stiffened “...Yeah!”

“There's a lot more than just that.” said Kianna as she pointed at a stack of boxes midway down a center row “Nanny Ma had it set up with Bridgemont to keep everything that was going to be discarded at the end of the year. So instead of it all being thrown away, it all got sent home with us whenever we came to visit.”

“Really!?” exclaimed Anton as his smile broadened “So then all of the paper assignments and book reports and busywork that you did throughout the years is all here as well!?”

“Uh huh.” nodded Kianna “It's all in those boxes with the blue stripes on them.”

“Well, how wonderfully convenient!” laughed Anton “And here I thought I'd get just a glimpse into your academic history, but instead I'm getting a whole written record!”

“Wait, are you seriously going to go through all that shit!?” exclaimed Fiona as she gave him an exasperated look “Like seriously, seriously!?”

“Of course! How else would I be able to determine just what kinds of students you two really are?” explained Anton as he turned back and gave them both a sinister looking smile “Now, I'm not going to be disappointed in anything that I find... Am I!?”

The dark elves were both still for a moment before they looked at each other and grimaced.

“...Oh, this is going to be so much fun!” chuckled Anton as he turned away from them and began to make his way straight towards the boxes with the blue stripes “I'm going to really enjoy this!”

Fiona was slowly grinding her teeth in frustration as she watched Anton begin to shake his head in mock disappointment.

She and her sister were both sitting together on the opposite side of the large dining table from Anton. After having gathered over twenty of the boxes from Bridgemont together, they had then carried them all down to the dining room before separating them out by sister and then by year.

“They were being very generous when they graded this a “C-”... I don't even see a “D” here...” sighed Anton as he frowned at the single page book report in his hands “I'll need to see this one redone as well...”

“Are you serious!?” snarled Fiona as she watched Anton drop the paper onto a stack that was slowly growing larger in front of her “Why!?”

“Yes, I'm serious.” declared Anton as he narrowed his eyes at the fuming dark elf “And as for the “why” it's simple. This isn't even a completed report! For the summary you wrote “Emily Sang talked to a “Parrat” “To the clues” she needed to “Sove” the “Mystory” It was “Exsiting” I really liked it” and then you just repeated this, along with the same misspellings, for your final thoughts. So of course you're going to need to redo this...”

“I was 9!” growled Fiona as she pointed her ears straight back in anger “I didn't know what to write!”

“Well now you're 23, so it should be much easier for you.” said Anton as he pointed his finger at her “And if it isn't, then that is going to be very disappointing!”

Kianna flattened her ears submissively behind her head and grimaced at her own stack of papers while her sister continued to groan in frustration.

“Why are you even doing this!?” exclaimed Fiona as she glared at her stack of papers “What does this even have to do with anything!?”

“Well I'm not going to lie to you Fiona. I'm mostly doing this because it's fun for me.” said Anton as he bent over to his side and tossed a now empty box away before pulling an unopened one in close to his chair “But this busywork will also help you to get back into the mindset of a student though, so it's not like it's a complete waste of time...”

“Forcing me read a kids book is absolutely a waste of time!” snared Fiona “This whole thing is just a waste of time!”

“First of all, let's not pretend like your time is precious, Fiona. No one's life is going to be at stake because you're suddenly busy. Thankfully!” mumbled Anton as he paused his efforts to open the new box and looked up at the dark elf “And secondly, “forcing you”? Don't pretend like you aren't happy for the excuse to reread “Emily Sang Breaks the Dead Mans Curse” you did say that you liked it after all.”

The dark elf blinked before clenching her jaw in anger.

“Are you serious!?” she growled as she balled her hands into fists “It's a book for fucking preteens!”

“...So? Are you saying you're not excited to read it?” asked Anton as he cocked an eyebrow at her.

“Of course I'm not!” started Fiona as she threw her hands in the air “It's a kids book! Why in the world would I ever want to read it again!”

“Because you own it.” stated Anton as he gave her a tired look “Along with the rest of the series. They take up a whole shelf on one of the bookcases in your room.”

“...That's! That's just cause of me having them from when I was at school!” explained Fiona as she glanced at her sister “They're just nostalgic! That's all! I would never actually read any of them again! I... seriously, I don't-!”

“Fiona.” interrupted Anton as he narrowed his eyes at her “Will you please stop trying to lie to me. Now, the truth! Are you looking forward to reading “Emily Sang Breaks the Dead Mans Curse” or not!?”

The dark elf froze mid speech and held herself completely still as she stared at Anton. After a long moment of silence she shifted her eyes to her sister and then quickly looked away from them both.

“Argh, I hate you!” she mumbled as she folded her hands down onto her lap “So fucking much!”

“That's what I thought...” muttered Anton as he turned his attention back to the box he was in the process of opening.

Kianna couldn't help but to cock an eyebrow in surprise as she glanced at her still fuming sister.

“Well now! What's this!?” exclaimed Anton as he stared down into the box he had just opened “...Now what do we have in here!?”

Both of the dark elves immediately turned to him as he began to excitedly rummage around in the box. The stinging smell of mothballs suddenly struck their noses as he lifted a blouse and skirt ensemble out of the box and laid them out across the table.

“...Are these your old school uniforms!?” asked Anton as looked over the bright white blouse and navy blue and green plaid skirt.

“Oh, yeah.” mumbled Fiona as she gave the uniform a disinterested look “I think those were our junior high ones.”

“They are, they're the ones we had to wear while in class.” explained Kianna as she looked over the blouse “There's also a red skirt and a different kind of blouse that we could wear on our off time.”

“...I see.” said Anton as he carefully gathered up the uniform and bent down to set it back into the box “Well, we'll just have to set these aside for now... Might just get a little more mileage out of them pretty soon!”

“Uh, what!? Yeah, no! No we're not!” declared Fiona as she crossed her arms over her chest “Sorry to shatter your sick schoolgirl dreams, Master! But those are definitely not gonna fit us anymore!”

“Oh, my dear Fiona! Such a lack of faith!” quipped Anton as he smiled at her “Where there's a will, there will always be a way!”

“Yeah, no!” snapped Fiona as she pointed her ears straight back “That shit'll never fit and even if it does it'll be so fucking tight that it'll barely even be on us at all!”

Anton was silent as he stared back at her for a moment.

“...You do realize that you're not helping yourself with that statement, Fiona.” he said as his smile broadened “At all!”

“Argh, Kianna! Will you please say something!” snarled Fiona as she turned to her sister “Please!”

Kianna sat completely still with her eyes wide and the tips of her ears pointed straight upwards as she stared down at the table towards the spot where she knew the box of uniforms was sitting out of her sight on the floor. Without a word her eyes darted to Anton before returning to the empty spot on the table.

“...Oh for fuck's sake!” growled Fiona through her teeth as she seethed at her sister “Kianna!”

“Huh!? What!?” exclaimed Kianna as she turned to her sister and was immediately taken aback by the sight of her “What!? What's your deal now!?”

“My “deal”! Is that my slutty sister clearly has no issue with being paraded around like a barely dressed stripper doll!” snapped Fiona as she glared in frustration “And all for the twisted amusement of some jackas- uh! Box! Guy! Fucking, thing! And that's... it's pissing me off!”

Kianna stared at her sister for a moment before a tired expression marred her face.

“You do realize that you'll get to see me wear it too, right? ...You might even get to do more than just look.” she said nonchalantly as she folded her arms over her chest “And don't you try to act like that won't be worth it for you!”

Fiona pointed her finger and went to speak but stopped short with her mouth hanging open.

“...Yeah, that's what I thought!” mumbled Kianna as a small smirk spread across her face “So, if you be a good girl, Fiona, and help me give our Master a little, “amusement”. ...I'll make sure I take care of you too!”

Fiona remained still and silent as she merely stared back.

“...Oh, no! I've been such a bad, bad girl! Showing everybody my panties and disrupting the whole class!” whined Kianna as she playfully lowered her ears and began to pout “And now my teacher, miss Vale! Says she's gonna have to give me some lessons on how to behave myself! And I'm super worried about it because I don't know what that might mean! It could mean I have to do whatever she wants me to! And that's super scary, because I think she might want me to strip for her! And if I don't do it, I just know she'll spank me! Really, really, really hard!”

Fiona's eyes began to glow with an ominous red light as Kianna folded her arms down across her front to mash her breasts together and began to shift back and forth in her seat while feigning nervousness.

Folding her still pointing finger away, Fiona's hand began to make creasing sounds as she tightened it into a fist.

“Oh, your damn right she will!” she breathed as the glow in her eyes intensified “You naughty little bitch! I'll teach you all right! I'm gonna give you so many lessons! Really, really, really, really hard lessons!”

Kianna blinked as the fake nervousness in her eyes suddenly became real.

“So! Fucking! Hard!” growled Fiona as she leaned forward and loomed over her sister while a wide maniacal smile slowly spread across her face.

Lowering her ears even further, Kianna hunched down into her shoulders and swallowed a lump in her throat as her sister's smile grew wide enough for her short fangs to come into view.

“...You two are so wonderfully delightful.” chuckled Anton “You really are just the best!”

Both of the dark elves immediately turned to the sound of his voice and found him casually watching them as he sat with his elbows on the table and his cheek resting against the closed fist of his left hand.

“I'm so happy that I decided to enslave you two.” he said around a smile “You're both just so endlessly entertaining.”

Fiona's smile instantly morphed into a vicious looking scowl as Kianna began to grin sheepishly.

“Yes, you are... But anyways!” said Anton as he turned away from them and glanced about at the short stacks of unopened boxes still piled around him “Let's get back to it. We've still got quite a few of these boxes to go through before the day is done.”

The dark elves were still for a moment before with a groan they both settled back into their seats.

Later that evening, after a quick early dinner consisting of reheated leftovers, Anton stepped through a double door wide archway and into a front sitting room that was positioned right off of the foyer of the house's main entrance.

An extra long couch sat along the back wall of this room, while the wall to the left when entering the room was taken up by a second normal sized couch. A short round table sat in the corner of the room between the two couches and this held a tall, thin lamp. A large bay window complete with a sun seat bench took up the entirety of the wall to the right and overlooked the front walk and driveway. Dozens of potted plants were dotted throughout the room and these were all clearly thriving as they took advantage of the bright, ambient light that the bay window offered the room throughout the day.

This room would be just to your right as you walked into the house from the front door, and was set up as a sort of quiet getaway spot that was a perfect place for reading.

Anton stopped short in surprise as he entered the room and realized it was already occupied.

“Oh, I'm sorry.” he exclaimed as Fiona dropped her book down from where it had been covering her face “I didn't know anybody was in here.”

With her head resting on it's cushioned arm, the dark elf was comfortably laid out across the couch that sat along the left wall of the room and was already two chapters into her Emily Sang book. She said nothing as she expressionlessly stared up at Anton.

“...Mind if I join you?” asked Anton as he lifted his arm and indicated his book on dark elves.

Fiona's eyes darted to his book and hung there for a moment before she shrugged and went back to reading her own book.

With a nod, Anton continued into the room and made his way to the end of the larger couch that was closest to the window and took a seat.

For some time the two sat in silence as they read through their respective books. After nearly two hours had passed Anton glanced over at Fiona as he turned to the next page in his book.

“This is nice.” he said softly “I like this.”

Fiona was still for a moment before she gently rolled her head to the side and looked over at him with a single one of her large, ruby-colored eyes.

Anton stayed silent as he gave her a genuine grin.

Her eye tightening ever so slightly in annoyance, the dark elf said nothing as she turned her eyes back to her book. Shifted her shoulders back and forth against the armrest she was resting on until apparently comfortable again, she twitched her ears in a seemingly dismissive manner and made a show of going back to reading her book.

Shaking his head with a shrug, Anton continued to grin as he went back to reading his own book.

A short time later Fiona glanced back over at him, and finding him now intensely focused on what he was reading she reached down to the back pocket of her jean shorts and pulled out a packet of gum.

Anton's head shot up in surprise as a sharp snapping sound suddenly rang out through the room.

“What was that?!” he cried as he immediately turned to Fiona.

The dark elf said nothing as she smiled up at her book and began to blatantly chew her gum.

“...Oh. Really?” mumbled Anton as he watched her blow a small bubble and then pull it into her mouth to make another popping sound “Very funny!”

Still smiling, Fiona continued to say nothing as she absently flipped to the next page in her book.

Shaking his head, Anton sighed and went back to his own book as well. After a few minutes he had once again become focused on what he was reading when another sharp pop rang out.

“C'mon now, Fiona!” he mumbled as he looked over at her “It's been so peaceful in here. Why are you doing this?”

The dark elf clenched her jaw and remained silent.

“Please stop it.” said Anton as he narrowed his eyes at her “Seriously, that's enough.”

Her eyes creasing into a glare, Fiona tilted her head to the side and looked over at him as she blew another small bubble and pulled it into her mouth to pop it.

“...Why are you doing this?” asked Anton as he shook his head “I don't get it?”

“If you don't like it! Then do something about it!” mumbled Fiona as she looked away from him “Either make me leave, or just leave yourself!”

Anton stared at her for a moment before closing his book with a sigh.

“Alright then...” he grumbled as he got to his feet “I guess I will...”

Fiona smiled up at her book as he began to cross the room. Her smile faded immediately however as he stopped and stood right next to her. Dropping her book down she stared straight up at him as he gazed back down at her.

“Wha, what are you doing!?” she questioned as she blinked up at him.

“Something about it.” stated Anton as he reached down to grab her.

“Where is he Molly!? Where is he!?” cried Kianna as she quickly followed behind the small dog that was moving frantically towards the sitting room “C'mon girl! Find Master, find him!”

The little pomeranian bolted through the archway and raced across the room before leaping up onto the couch and jumping onto Anton's lap.

“Hey, girl!” smiled Anton as he rubbed her head with his whole hand “Did you find me!?”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Anton once again was sitting at the end of the couch near the window. Unlike before however he was no longer simply sitting with his legs bent over the edge of his seat but was now lounging with his legs propped up in the air and his ankles resting in the groove at the small of Fiona's back.

“HUMPH! MM, MH!” growled Fiona as she struggled against the light chains that held her in place as she hung floating in midair “MMH! MM, HM!”

The dark elf was now hanging suspended face down a little over a foot above the floor. She was being held in the air by dozens of thin, vine-like light chains that shot out from various points along two orange glowing rings that circled around her body at both her shoulders and at her ankles. These glowing orange chains stood out brightly against her dark skin as they wrapped themselves tightly around her shoulders, arms and torso and as well as her long slender legs. A glowing orange version of the ninja-like plate mask style gag, that was complete with it's head-harness, was wrapped tightly around her head and was not only preventing her from speaking clearly but was also stopping her from chewing the gum that was still in her mouth. With her body stretched taunt between the two rings and her arms folded over themselves and held in place behind her back, the ensnared dark elf was nearly immobilized completely as the only portions of her body that she could move freely were her head, which she was currently thrashing wildly back and forth, and her feet, which were frantically and uselessly kicking at the open air behind her. At the sight of her sister she began to call out even louder in both eagerness and anger.

Kianna completely ignored her raging sister as she bounded, smiling into the room and stopped just in front of Anton.

“Hey there!” greeted Anton as he smiled back up at her “Are you still mad at me?”

Kianna's smile faded as she looked off to the side and pointed her ears straight back.

“Yes!” she pouted “...Mostly!”

“Oh, Kianna, I said I was sorry and I meant it.” stated Anton as he gave her a soft look “But there was no reason for us to make macaroni and cheese when we already had enough leftovers ready for dinner.”

“...Yeah, I know! ...But you said we would make it today!” whined Kianna as she looked at the floor “And I really wanted to...”

“I know you did, and again, I'm sorry.” apologized Anton as Molly dropped off of his lap and settled in next to him on the couch “We will make it though, Kianna. That hasn't changed and we'll always have tomorrow. ...Okay?”

“...Yeah, okay.” mumbled Kianna as her ears rose back up to their resting stance “...It's fine, I guess!”

“Okay, good!” smiled Anton as he continued to pet Molly “So is that what you came in here for? Or?”

“No! Not exactly!” cried Kianna as her smile returned “I need some money! So I came here to ask you for some!”

“Money?” questioned Anton as he cocked an eyebrow “You need some money?”

“Uh huh! Since you took all of mine, and my account is still empty! I kinda have no choice but to ask you for some!” explained Kianna “So here I am!”

“Mm hm, okay.” nodded Anton “And what exactly do you need money for?”

“Cause I wanna buy some things...” stated Kianna as her entire demeanor became playful and she began to shift from foot to foot.

“Uh huh...” mumbled Anton as his eyes became suspicious “And what kinds of things exactly?”

“Well, some of its secret stuff...” admitted Kianna as she folded her arms around her middle “But the rest was... Well... mm... You see! When I was doing the dishes I was thinking about our school uniforms. And then I was thinking that since I'm gonna be doing chores now. I, kinda need some... working type of uniforms!”

“Uniforms?” questioned Anton.

“Yeah! You know, like what you wear when you do chores.” explained Kianna as a light blush began to spread across her cheeks “The kind that's like a dress. But it's, kinda, different and it's really... Well, you know! ...It's a uniform!”

Anton tilted his head as he stared at the now squirming dark elf.

“Kianna, sweety, I don't think you really need to wear a uniform?” offered Anton “I mean all you're going to be doing is just normal housework. So I would think that regular clothes would be more comfortable for you?”

“What!? No! Argh! Look! ...Maybe uniform isn't the right word!” claimed Kianna as she raised her hands and pressed her fingertips together “I'm talking about things that are... like, outfits, they're like dresses! They're cute! And I think that you'll definitely like them! They're, like... Oh! They're like what a maid wears!”

“...Oh! Those!” exclaimed Anton as realization spread across his face “Oh, that kind of uniform...”

“Yeah! Now you get it!” grumbled Kianna as her blush deepened.

“Right, right... I see! Hmm...” smiled Anton as he cradled his chin in his hand “I don't know about that though, Kianna. Do you really think that you'll even be able to get any work done while wearing one of those?”

“Oh, yeah, sure!” exclaimed the dark elf as she nodded her head “Trust me! I've already found a whole bunch of em online! And all the different ones that I've picked out look like they'd be super easy to move around in!”

“Really now... Wait!? Did you say different ones?” questioned Anton “And did you say a bunch of them!?”

“Well yeah!” smiled Kianna “I can't keep wearing the same one everyday. And it'll be more fun to keep changing into different ones. Also, I'll have different ones ready encase any of them get, you know... damaged...”

“...Damaged?” questioned Anton.

“Yeah, you know... damaged...” mumbled Kianna as her eyes darted to the floor “Like if they get, ripped apart...”

“...Uh huh.” mused Anton as he hid his smile away and took on a stoic expression “Well, I don't know then, Kianna. I'm not sure if you really even need any uniforms to begin with. And if you think they're just going to get “ripped apart” then this might all be nothing but a waste.”

“What!?” exclaimed Kianna as her eyes shot back up to his “No, no no! You don't understand!”

Finding Anton's face looking as serious as it was caused the dark elf's own expression to immediately become troubled and desperate looking.

“Please, Master! I really need these!” cried Kianna as she clasped her hands together and began to beg “And you'll like em too! I swear, you really, really will!”

“Hmm, I don't know...” mumbled Anton as he worked to keep his face as serious as possible “I just don't like the sound of them getting ripped apart is all... Especially since I really don't understand why they would ever even get ripped apart in the first place?”

“Uh, well... That's, cause you, might rip them apart...” offered Kianna as she meekly lowered her ears.

“...Because “I” might rip them apart!?” exclaimed Anton as he narrowed his eyes “Well if you don't think that I'm going to like them, then I definitely don't think this is a good idea!”

“...Huh!?” questioned Kianna as her face was marred with confusion “What!?”

“You just said you think I'm going to rip them apart.” explained Anton as he continued to tease the dark elf “Why else would I ever rip them apart, Kianna, unless I just didn't like them!?”

Kianna was still for a moment as she put together what he was saying.

“No, no, no! Wait, you don't understand!” she cried as her face suddenly became panicked “You will like them! A lot! Seriously! I swear you will!”

“Oh? And how do you know I'll like them?” asked Anton as he cocked an eyebrow at her.

“...Um! Because, they're... Uh, well they're...!” stumbled Kianna as her face became torn and her voice began to get softer and softer “Because they're, really, really... slutty...”

“...I'm sorry?” said Anton as he leaned forward and acted as if he couldn't hear her “What was that!?”

“...I said they're slutty!” exclaimed Kianna as she covered her face with her hands and flattened her ears down submissively “Like, really, really slutty!”

“Oh! Ah, I see...” nodded Anton as he let himself fall back into his seat “Well, I guess that does kind of change things a little bit...”

“It does!? Really!?” cried Kianna as her eyes brightened with excitement “So can I get them then!? Please!?”

“Well...” drawled Anton softly “I still don't know...”

“Please! Please! Please!” cried Kianna as she went back to begging “I promise you'll love them! They're the best! Seriously! I swear, they're definitely like the skimpiest, sexy, super tiny things! They're the sluttiest things you've ever seen in your whole entire life! They really are! I swear!”

Anton was silent for a moment as he stared back at her. Letting out a heavy sigh that was laced with mock frustration, he leaned forward and reached his arm back to pull his wallet out of his pocket.

The extra weight of his legs pressing down onto her back as he leaned forward caused Fiona to cry out in fury as loudly as she could.

“Well... alright, Kianna... But if you're going to swear they are! Then they better be! And you better wear them all the time, even when it's cold outside!” declared Anton as he flipped open his wallet and slipped out a credit card “Here you go, and try not to go too crazy with it.”

“Yes! I won't!” sang Kianna as she snatched the offered credit card “And I will wear them! I promise! All the time!”

“Alright then! I'm gonna hold you to that!” stated Anton as he leaned back into his seat and looked back down at the book in his hand “Just bring the card back whenever you're done with it...”

“Yes Master!” cried Kianna as she smiled at the card in her hands and turned away from him. Not wasting any more time on further goodbyes, the excited dark elf immediately bolted from the room and disappeared into the house.

“Oh, my, goodness...” mumbled Anton as he uncrossed his ankles and switched their positions before letting them resettle back into place across Fiona's lower back “Who would have ever thought that having dark elves as slaves could ever be so difficult...”

“HUMPH! HUMPH, HMM!” snarled Fiona as she frantically tried to twist herself back and forth in a vain effort to throw his legs off of her “HMM! HMM! HMM!”

Clearly fed up with the racket, Molly popped her head up and gave the struggling dark elf an annoyed growl.

“HUMPH? HM! MMUH!” snapped Fiona as she turned to the little dog and pointed her ears straight back in fury “HMMUH HM!”

Molly growled back even louder and bared her tiny teeth, which though far from a frightening sight was still threatening enough to cause Fiona to cringe back in uncertainty.

“It's okay, Molly.” reassured Anton as he began to rub the little dogs head “Just try to ignore that stubborn dark elf.”

Molly grunted happily from the attention and even though she settled back down when it was over, she continued to keep her eyes locked to Fiona.

The dark elf narrowed her eyes at the little dog and began to grumble quietly as she continued to try and free herself from the light chains.

Chuckling to himself, Anton repositioned his book and went back to reading as both Molly and Fiona continued to glare menacingly at each other.

Some time later Molly popped her head up again and began to growl nervously as she stared at the archway that led into the room. Glancing at her and then following her gaze, Anton was just in time to see the lights throughout the house begin to flicker and dim down a bit. As the air in the room became thick and heavy the little dog went quiet and lowered her head back down before scooting herself back and tucking herself in next to Anton. Fiona followed her lead and went quiet as well as she lowered her ears and stared down at the floor below her. Anton couldn't help but to grin as he looked back and forth between the two cowed creatures. Grin still on his face, he turned his attention to the archway and waited. Within moments the lights throughout the house dimmed down even more as Earlivi stepped into sight.

Like Kianna before him, the homunculus completely ignored the living footrest named Fiona as he entered the room and came to a stop in front of Anton.

“Greetings, my Master...” rumbled Earlivi as he lightly bowed his head “I have come to inform you that your requested tasks are now complete...”

As Earlivi stood with his head bowed Kianna suddenly came into view behind him. The dark elf had a confused look on her face as she gazed about at the dimmed lights in the house. As she came around the corner her head swiveled into the room and as her eyes fell on Earlivi her expression immediately shifted to a look of surprised terror. Without slowing her motion in anyway the frightened dark elf instantly turned on her heel and quickly disappeared back the way she had come.

Chuckling to himself, Anton nodded his head as he looked up at Earlivi.

“Good to hear!” he exclaimed as he smiled at the homunculus “Did anything give you trouble?”

“Not at all...” answered Earlivi as he raised his head “The tasks were all simple enough. And no problems ever arose during my efforts to complete them...”

“Glad to hear that.” nodded Anton “Well I appreciate everything you've done today, Earlivi. And I'm sure you're anxious to get home, but I do want you to know that you are more than welcome to stay here if you'd like. All I ask is that you don't kill either of the dark elves, or Molly.”

“I am thankful for the offer, my Master...” said Earlivi as he bowed his head again “But if it is all the same to you, then I would prefer to return to your home. As I am eager to search for any evidence that may have been left behind by the trespassers...”

“Right, I understand. And I am hopeful that you'll be able to find something that I couldn't detect.” said Anton with another nod “All the same though, I'd still like for you to takes things easy for a bit, fully recover and enjoy the peace and quiet as well, Earlivi. Of course, if you do find anything odd while you're out there then please let me know immediately.”

“I will do so on all accounts...” answered Earlivi as a portal winked into existence right next to him “If you require anymore assistance with anything else at all... Please let me know...”

“Will do.” said Anton “Have a goodnight, Earlivi.”

“You as well, my Master...” rumbled the homunculus as he turned to face the portal “Farewell...”

With a single step, Earlivi walked through the portal and disappeared.

As the portal vanished both Fiona and Molly immediately groaned in relief as they each seemed to start breathing again.

Chuckling at their spent expressions, Anton turned to the archway.

“Kianna!” he called out around a smile “You can come back in here now! It's safe!”

A few moments later the still nervous looking dark elf peeked around the corner and quickly scanned the room before entering fully.

“I'm sorry, Master, but Mr. Earlivi is really hard to be around!” exclaimed Kianna as she lowered her ears and shivered in an effort to shake the nervousness from her shoulders “He's just so intense!”

“He is, isn't he!” laughed Anton as he carefully lifted his legs off of Fiona and dropped his feet down to the floor “You do know you'll have to get used to him if he ever gets bored and decides he'd rather be here though.”

“That's a... really scary thought!” mumbled Kianna as she handed him back his credit card “You don't think he'll ever really wanna do that though, do you!?”

“Thank you.” said Anton as he took the card and reached back for his wallet “Probably not. But you never know, especially with people like him who are very difficult to predict. I am going to make it clear right now though that I won't make him stay away, Kianna! He may be intense, but he did come first and I won't force him to be alone if he doesn't want to be. That wouldn't be fair for him.”

Kianna blinked and went still for a moment before her eyes went soft and she flattened her ears back submissively.

“No, no! I, understand that...” she exclaimed as she looked down at the floor “...I don't, want him to be alone either.”

Anton stopped mid motion as he registered the soft tone of her voice, smiling he finished putting his credit card and wallet away before looking back up at her.

“Well good, I'm glad to hear that.” he said as he smiled and leaned back into his seat “Now, at the same time though. I don't want you to be worried about him either. Earlivi definitely prefers to be alone, so you need to remember that. I know its a little different for you, but trust me. That homunculus can take care of himself. And he knows that he can come back here at any time. So again, I don't want you to be constantly worrying about him, Kianna. Okay?”

“...Okay. I won't.” mumbled Kianna as she began to fidget with her fingers “...You are gonna check on him though, right!?”

“Of course.” laughed Anton “We can make sure he's fine whenever you want to. Alright?”

“...Okay!” agreed Kianna as her ears rose back up a bit “Good!”

“Yes, good!” smiled Anton as he lifted himself up to a standing position “Now, let's go see how the dungeon turned out!”

“Aah! Ow! Dammit!” cried Fiona as the rings and chains that were holding her in the air suddenly disappeared from around her and she fell to the floor “Fuck you Molly! You little shit!”

“Stop playing around on the floor and let's get going, Fiona.” commanded Anton as he stepped over her and made his way towards the archway “We got places to be.”

Growling at the little dog who growled right back at her, Fiona angrily scrambled to her feet and quickly followed after Anton and her sister as they made their way to the dungeon.

“Well this turned out perfectly!” exclaimed Anton as he looked over the remodeled dungeon “Leave it to Earlivi to get the job done right!”

Both of the dark elves nodded in agreement as they looked out over the now seemingly much larger room.

The alcove that housed the metal door and acted as the entrance to the dungeon now opened out onto a broad landing that stretched across the width of the room and trailed down via thin wide steps, to the now lowered floor below.

“...Those look pretty tough!” mumbled Fiona as her eyes followed the dark colored wooden beams that now crossed over the ceiling and then traveled down the pole-like wooden pillars that both held the beams in place and gave them integrity “You could so easy tie someone up and hang them from those!”

“Yes, you could...” mused Anton softly to himself as he gazed up at the hoist that had been mounted to a beam in the center of the room “Very astute, Fiona...”

“...What?” snapped Fiona as she turned to him and pointed her ears straight upwards “What did you say!?”

“Nothing.” smiled Anton as he turned away from the dungeon and addressed the two dark elves “Alright, so this looks like it's ready. So tomorrow morning, we will begin!”

Fiona's eyes went wide and began to faintly glow as she took in an excited breath through her nose.

“Seriously!?” she exclaimed as she took a step closer to him “You're really gonna...!? You're serious!?”

“Mm hm!” hummed Anton as he nodded to her “First thing in the morning!”

Kianna couldn't help but to smile broadly as she watched her sister become more and more excited.

“In the morning!” exclaimed Fiona as her eyes darted from Anton's to the dungeon and back “Do we really have to wait!? We can't do anything right now!?”

Anton chuckled and shook his head.

“The first step isn't going to be an easy one, Fiona. And it could take us hours, if not even days before we're finally done with it.” explained Anton as he smiled at her “We all need to be as rested and as ready as we can be, both physically and mentally! So, go get yourselves as much sleep as you can tonight! Because we will more than likely be spending the entire day on this tomorrow.”

“Argh, I'm so ready right now!” cried Fiona as she balled her hands into fists “Seriously! You have no idea how ready I am for this!”

“Oh, I do actually!” chuckled Anton as he continued to smile at her “And trust me on this, Fiona... You are not as ready as you think you are! So, we take the night, rest up! And tomorrow, we will begin!”

“Argh, your not just messing with me because of the gum thing are you!?” grumbled Fiona as she lowered her ears “Because that was a really stupid thing and I'm really sorry about it!”

“You should be sorry, and I agree that was foolish of you!” exclaimed Anton as he pointed a finger at her “But no, I'm not messing with you Fiona. I'm serious, none of us are ready right now. So! Back upstairs and then everyone to bed!”

“...Bed?” mumbled Kianna as her eyes fell to Anton's groin “Okay! I'm good with bed!”

“Your own bed!” smiled Anton as he shifted his still pointing finger to her “I just said that we all need to be rested! And that means you don't need to be half dead like you were this morning! So you're sleeping in your own bed tonight, Kianna!”

“Ah! But that's not fair!” cried the dark elf as she pointed her ears straight back “Last night we used that stupid elixir! Tonight we won't, so it'll be totally different!”

“Kianna... Look, we barely got any rest at all last night! ...In fact, I'll be honest with you. I think it's down right amazing that you're even still standing right now.” said Anton as he cocked an eyebrow at her “Anyways, a full nights rest is necessary at this point. We're gonna need this! Both of us!”

“Yeah, I get that. But like I said, tonight will be different! ...And besides.” mumbled the dark elf as she lowered her ears and took on a sorrowful expression “Remember what you said before? ...You said I would always be welcome in your bed!”

Stifling a smile, Anton narrowed his eyes as he folded his arms over his chest.

“Why you cheeky little... Alright, Kianna. Can you promise me that you'll go straight to sleep, and stay asleep?” he asked as he looked at her sideways “Without trying any funny business?”

“Yes!” chirped Kianna as she went rigid and pointed her ears straight upwards “I can promise that!”

“...Can you really keep that promise, Kianna!?” demanded Anton as both he and Fiona stared at her “For the whole, entire night!?”

Kianna was completely still for several moments before her eyes suddenly went misty. Dropping her gaze to the floor she laid her ears back submissively and slumped her shoulders in sadness.

“Why!” she whined pitifully “It's not fair!”

Anton threw his head back as he began to laugh loudly.

“Oh, my poor little dark elf!” he exclaimed as he shook his head in mock frustration “I can't believe how spoiled you've gotten already!”

“Oh please! I am not!” cried Kianna as she glared at him with teary eyes “You've been nothing but cruel to me all day! First you make me redo a bunch of stupid math homework! Then you won't let me make macaroni and cheese! And now you're gonna make me sleep in my bed, all by myself! ...So now I'll be all alone again...”

“Oh no! Don't you even try that Kianna!” exclaimed Anton as he put his hands on both of the dark elves shoulders and ushered them back into the alcove and out of the dungeon “Okay! We're done! We are not having this discussion anymore! Now lets go upstairs and get to bed!”

Both of the dark elves began to groan miserably as they made their way through the metal door and started up the stairs.

“Now that's enough of that! Neither of you even have a reason to be grumbling!” mumbled Anton as he took hold of the doors handle and looked back into the dungeon one last time “You will though... Trust me... Your both going to really hate this next part...”