Flummoxed, Princess Pearl left to her room in a state where her thoughts were inscrutable. It was impossible to know if she was happy of the development with Yutis royal family or pissed at Cythrel's meddling or just burned out from all the stimulation. After the dazed Princess left, Cythrel pointed around and asked a very relevant question.

"So, where is Dawn sleeping tonight? There is no bed in this room anymore." The elf turned to stare at the girl, "Next time, burn the whole room. Just the bed gives us too much information to work with."

"I don't think there will be the next time. I'm not bringing Dusk back." She snapped a finger as some silly idea came to her mind, "I'll just throw some spare blankets on the ground."

Cythrel's eyes narrowed into slits as she glared at Dawn, "Fake Princess, put in some effort."

Dawn flinched, pretending to be hurt. They laughed at her antics and she came with an answer, "I might sleep with Sora and let Aidan have the couch. I don't think our bed is big enough for three bodies."

"Oh, a classic," Retorted Cythrel. "Put the guy on the couch. Seriously Dawn, which side are you on? If you can't show some appreciation for yourself, I'll get Aidan on my bed for tonight then."

With that said, the elf grabbed the boy's arm and started to drag him to her bedroom. Sora chuckled and did the same to Dawn.

The two girls quickly undressed and duck under the covers. Dawn felt Sora next to her and sighed.

"I'm in trouble, aren't I, Sora?" She asked meekly.

"Yes, but not with me. As far as I am concerned, you did it with yourself," Sora answered with a hushed voice while tenderly planting a kiss on the other girl's forehead. "What really matters is what will you do now that you know how being a woman feels?"

"Dunno? Do I have to do something?" She cuddled with the furry body of the beastkin and smiled as she looked up to find her eyes, "Maybe step up my game with you?"

"Really?" Sora grinned and held Dawn tighter, "I might've picked up the wrong you to sleep with then."

"No. I'm fine with this arrangement and I'm having another important conversation with Cythrel right now?"

"Is she going for it?"

"No, and I wouldn't go for it even if she jumped naked on me. We are just talking and cuddling over there, just like we are doing here."

"Right..." Sora waited for a while and then asked as if it was a big issue, "Tell me, which is better? Being the sword or the scabbard? You told us you got Dusk's memories, didn't you?"

"No comments." Dawn turned her face away.

"C'mon." Teased Sora with a nudge, "Who did you enjoy better?"

"You," Dawn returned eye contact and took Sora's lips. "Seriously, Sora. It was good, very good. But it was only a thing of the flesh on the spur of the moment."

Dawn's speech was met with a healthy dose of skepticism by her partner, "And you two did it exactly how many times in the spur of the moment?"

"I was in a daze and Dusk was playing with his new toys. It wasn't bad and I knew we had only that chance. I don't regret it but I also didn't have the same kind of emotional release I get when I'm with you."

Dawn reached for Sora's ears, tenderly scratching them. "And just by making me think of doing it with you I'm convinced that you indeed picked the wrong me to take to bed." She purred.

Sora laughed, kissed Dawn, cuddled and hushed her, "No. We are tired and tomorrow will be a hectic day. Sleep."

Relieved to take those words out of her chest, Dawn caressed Sora's soft fur and lulled herself to sleep.

Meanwhile in the room next door, Cythrel led Aidan to sit on the bed and moved to stand a couple meters in front of him.

"Watch me, please." She asked.

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She had a bashful outlook and the boy wondered what was she going to do. Dance? Recite some poetry? As he felt the elf gather mana, he turned on his magic sight. She deftly constructed her Sylph's Hand spell and proceeded to unbutton her uniform. Aidan had no idea what he should watch if it was the spell, the undressing or something else. One by one the pieces of her uniform fell down around her.

She coyly asked, stuttering on the first vowel, "A-Are we a couple?"

"No," He answered with a playful tone, "We are a sorority with benefits, apparently... sister."

She blushed with five shades of red before stomping on the floorboards and pouting, "I'm trying to be serious here! Please don't joke." She sounded really hurt.

"Okay, okay." He steeled himself. Now it was really not the time to joke that she of all people was being serious. He was too focused on her magic circle and filtered the person behind so he dismissed the magic sight and looked at her properly. She was down to her underwear.

"So... do you like what you see?" She asked looking at a particularly interesting corner of the ceiling and with her arms crossed in front of herself.

"Yes. Very." He used his own Sylph's Hand and pulled her in. Holding his arms out, he plucked the girl from the air, dismissing the spell. "Why are you like this? It is so not like you."

She didn't answer and just gave him a deer-in-headlights look. In fact, she didn't need to answer. He lifted her and dropped her on the bed as he spun her around and over him.

"Silly girl." He teased her while he turned around to pin her down. "All talk and when it comes to the real deal you let your fears take the best of you. We are a couple."

"Doesn't seem like that most of the time," She retorted while averting his eyes.

"We are going through a time of crisis. Too many things going on and I'm still grafted to Lumina's soul. I didn't heal myself fully as we did with Pearl and Dawn because that would mean absorbing the Princess entirely and probably the end of me as you know it.

"But I can surely spare time to show my appreciation to my tiny bride right now."

She smiled and turned her head to meet his gaze. 'From the almost-crying frown to a grin, she shifts expressions too fast.' He thought.

"What is the matter?" He asked when her smile didn't fade.

"You called me your bride!" She answered as if it was the biggest gift ever.

"I guess I did, didn't I?"

Aidan leaned further over her to rest on an elbow so his hand would be free to caress her ear. Cythrel squirmed and turned her head to give him easier access to her lobe. She tried to say something but only some very cute sounds came out. His ear-scratching skills were top-notch from years of practice. He kept changing from her ear to her scalp until her breathing became ragged.

"What is the matter?" He asked back at her.

"Hmmm." She mumbled drunk with glee, "Elves don't let others touch our ears."

He pulled back in jest, "Too bad then. I was thinking of doing the other side, but I'm sorry I offended you. I wasn't aware of this custom of your people." He delivered with a deadpan face.

"Others! Others!" She hastily corrected herself before seeing his smile crack and realize she'd been deceived. "You rascal!" She tried to pout but he immediately attacked both ears.

Aidan naturally leaned down and kissed her as he caressed her ears, hair, and scalp. She kissed him back with a vengeance, belittling the apparent age of her body and revealing the grown woman inside. Their lips parted after some time, their lungs screaming for air. Aidan looked at Cythrel's sultry expression and she tried to pull him down over her.

"Are we a couple?" He asked her question back.

The elf briefly licked her lips and smiled as she delivered a line full of intent, "Very soon we will."

"Soon, yes. I can't wait to see you grow into a stunningly gorgeous figure and knock everyone's socks off. Then I'll feel very lucky I was able to get you before that happened."

"Must we wait?" She asked with no small amount of sadness and longing in her voice.

"Yes, we must." Aidan sighed. It was a hard call to do but it was the right one. "I don't want to hurt you. Two years at most. Wait this long."

She was more curious than horny though. Her body was still to awaken to those kinds of urges but her mind was mature enough to let her have whims of her own. "But you aren't even that big. It wouldn't hurt if we do it slowly."

He ignored the obvious teasing as he shook his head, "There is a law forbidding girls under fourteen years of age to work at brothels and this law exists for a good reason. Doing it too soon will hurt you." He shifted and laid sideways next to her. Aidan wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled the girl to him. "And you can tell I am holding myself back."

She felt their bodies touching from top to bottom, checking how he was indeed holdinb back and cursing him internally for keeping his uniform on. She didn't speak, just smiled and nodded. Cytrel leaned and rested her head on his collarbone. After a few minutes of cuddling, she rose her head and asked in a very innocent tone, "Say, Aidan... I have an itch I can't scratch, could you help me?"

Oblivious of the trap, he answered, "Sure, where is it?"

He'd been had.

The next morning the girls took a carriage to the castle. They earned a little holiday as Astromelicus wanted to focus exclusively on Aidan and Dawn. As they waved goodbye and made their way to the laboratories, a mental ping warned Aidan of an incoming flyer.

"Skippy! Hey buddy, how did things go up north?"

He held an arm up like a falconer and the dragon landed on it, canceling its camouflage and shifting back to its hatchling red and brown pattern. Some students cooed at this sight, the rumors of Princess Lumina's dragon tamer escort and maybe something more running wild in the academy gossipy corridors.

The little dragon picked its tail, held it next to his mouth, pretended to speak to the tip, and then dropped the limp tail.

"That good? How much time did you buy us?"

 Skippy showed two claws from a front paw and then moved the other paw over the two fingers.

"Two weeks? Awesome."

Aidan scratched under the chin of the dragon and it purred. Skippy climbed over Aidan's arm and jumped on Dawn, cuddling next to his well-earned special spot. The girl laughed and cradled the dragon, kissing its tiny snout.

"Let's go." Dawn ushered them forward, "Maybe we can coax more forbidden spells from the Headmaster."