Your hand remained touching Monica's sphere, ready to release her at a moment's notice. But your thoughts were derailed as Rachel spun around and latched herself onto your left side. You looked at her almost impassively as she cooed, squeezing her whole body against your arm, and leaning against your shoulder.

It took a moment. "You're pretending to be defenceless."

"What better way to fool the spiders?" She replied with a sweet smile but sharp eyes. "No prey is as tempting as the one that seems all too distracted with other things."

Nodding, you did your level best to ignore how readily she was rubbing her body against you. Instead, your eyes remained in the growing darkness of the forest, and on how quiet everything felt. You walked, and soon enough you didn't even have the others within sight. You knew they weren't too far away, and were getting slowly closer so they could give support, but remaining solely within shouting distance.

"You're too tense, Rick," Rachel whispered into your ear, making you shudder. "A blind Titmouse could sense it a mile away."

"Not exactly a situation I'd call reassuring," you replied. "I don't like being 'bait'."

"Don't trust me?" She pouted.

"It's more that I trust a feral can kill me before I can blink a heck of a lot."

She looked at you. "You have a weird definition of trust."

"My definition is based on reliability." You paused, looking at her a bit more squarely. "If it's not a reliable result, then it would be 'hope'."

"Hm..." A light tilt to her head. "I guess that makes sense." At this, she followed her words with a nonchalant shrug. "Then what happens when it's forced?"

"Forced?"

"Yes, like this."

Her hand snaked for your right hand, yanking it away from the belt before you could grasp the capture device, the other moving to cover your mouth. In one fluid motion, she'd pinned you against the nearest tree, the force behind her hands felt like steel that was wrapped in the softest silk.

The infernal's eyes looked into yours. Ruthless, cunning, she was looking into you. For a second you'd feared she could read your mind.

"You're in my hands now," Rachel spoke in a whisper, her grip on your mouth and neck like iron. "Would you call what comes next 'hope', or 'trust'?" As she asked this, her hand slowly lifted from your mouth. You understood the look in her eyes though, if you tried to shout she'd stop you before you could even gather the breath to do so.

Rather than answer, you looked into her eyes taking several long breaths to calm down.

It was only then that you spoke. "Are you going to threaten me today too?"

"Maybe," she replied.

"Why?"

"Who knows?"

"So what now, Pookums?"

That startled her a little, looking at you with a frown. "What now?"

"You have me pinned, and clearly demanding control of the situation. What now?"

"What does 'Pookums' mean?"

"Who knows?" You chuckled, rolling your eyes.

The succubus looked at you more closely now, as if once again trying to look into your head. "Why are you so calm?"

"I'm definitely not calm." That got a loud snort out of you.

"But I'm not making you nervous," she said. "You're worried over the ferals, that hasn't changed much, but this... I just overpowered you, pinned you, why am I not making you nervous?"

It took you a heartbeat before you pieced together the proper words. "You gave your word I wouldn't get hurt, it kind of extends to you not intentionally hurting me."

"You're not stupid enough to blindly believe that just because I said something I'd keep to it."

A slight narrowing of your brows, but not responding to her taunt, waiting for her to let go. Seeing how she appeared intent on trying to scrutinize you, you take the chance to just... sigh. You didn't want to play this game, she wanted an answer that felt like you wouldn't really be able to provide.

Closing your eyes, you took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. You focused on the top of your head and slowly moved it down your body, keeping careful attention on each part of you and relaxing it. Head, face, neck, shoulders, chest, arms, hands, gut, hips, lower back, thighs, calves, feet. You mentally went through the list, trying to tense and then relax it.

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Your heart rate went slightly below 'wild beating drum', so that was... nice.

Finally, you opened your eyes again, looking at the succubus as she in turn looked at you in clear confusion.

"Are we going to spend the day here or are we going to get moving, Pookums?" You moved your arm, twisting it and finding her grip had loosened enough for her to let go. "You familiar with the local spider population?"

Your question rang out as you rubbed your wrist, only glancing at her sideways.

That brought her back from that place inside her head she seemed to be spending so much time in lately. "No, but I am familiar with spiders in general," she scoffed, proudly. "They've got legs for miles." Rachel took a moment to focus on you, moving the hand that had been lingering over your mouth to caress your chin before trailing down towards your chest. "If you caress them in juu~ust the right way, they'll melt into your arms."

As she said this her touch felt like it tingled against your skin, making you feel small pleasurable waves that coursed through your body. You visibly shuddered. Reaching up, you stopped her hand before it could continue further down. That appeared to spark a slight glee in her eyes, at least until you moved her hand away.

"Where are the ferals?"

"I'm sure they'll come if we make enough noise."

"Then let's keep moving." But as you said this you stopped, took in a deep breath, and turned towards her. "You said you had a way to make them lower their guard?"

"Are you asking me to take the lead?"

"Yes." Your answer was firm enough to make things clear, you hoped.

"Hm." She considered it for a moment. "Then call me 'Mistress'." At her comment, you rolled your eyes, placing your hands on your hips and giving her a look. The infernal chuckled. "Well, I'll just call you 'Master', then."

"'Rick' will do just fine, Pookums," you said. "What's the plan?"

"Just a little game of pretend. I play the bubbly bitch who's not aware of her surroundings because she's so deeply in love with her Master dearest..." The Succubus looked like she'd been about to gag throughout half the words she'd spoken. "...And you play the average horndog of a tamer who wants to fuck on every available surface."

"Fine... but I'm not going to fuck you."

"We'll see about that..." Grabbing your hand, she pulled you as she began to walk further into the woods.

Rachel let out a giggle, and you realized she'd slipped into that porcelain fake smile, her grip on your hand softer as, after merely a handful of steps, she turned and slowed enough to keep your pace. "Oh how handsome you are, Rick," she purred, hugging your arm and slowly caressing your shoulder. "So very big and strong, manly even."

You let out a slight sigh of annoyance.

"Does my Ricky poo not feel comfortable being told how cute and handsome his face is?" Rachel pouted, batting her eyelashes at you.

You held back from acknowledging it outright, remembering her earlier words. "Oh, no, I just love hearing my sweet little darling tell me all the cute little things about me." You reached out and pinched her cheek. "It's just so adorable having a cute submissive pet like you around, I just can't imagine how I'd be able to live without you around."

"Please don't joke, I'm blushing!" She squealed, cooing loudly as she leaned into your shoulder, and you noted her touch wasn't sparking tingles throughout your body this time. "How could my Ricky dearest say such things! I could never even think of living without you, I'd sooner hang myself upon the nearest tree. Life without my sweet darling would be just that unbearable!"

"Of course it would be, I am just that impressive." A puff of your chest as you straightened your back. "With my perfect chiselled jaw and impressive skills, no monstergirl would be able to resist, let alone be able to live on after I'm immortalized into the history books."

"Oh Ricky..." Rachel swooned into your arms, letting out a chuckle you weren't too sure if it was faked or not. You noticed she pushed a little more forcefully than a second ago. "You make me so hot, so so hot, you're so sexy Ricky, I just can't hold myself back anymore." She looked into your eyes, and then flicked her own upwards. "I need you Ricky, here and now, I need you so badly..." A coo, her fingers gripping your shirt as she leaned you against the tree.

The ferals were here.

You froze slightly.

"You're so tense, Ricky," came the whispered words, as she leaned slightly away to caress her fingers against your shoulders. "There's three of them, you know? All stuffed but curious," she spoke with the same bubbly tone, not missing a beat. "Cautious, but curious. Not quite interested, not yet at least."

"Well, I wouldn't know, Pookums," you replied, forcing the knot in your throat down. "What would that mean?"

Smiling from ear to ear, she leaned in to whisper into your ear, her hands caressing your hips. "This is where you tell me you want to fuck me, Rick."

"I said-."

"I heard," she said with a smirk. "So right here, right now. Honestly. Tell me you want to fuck me." There was a slight growl to her words.

"Are you going to be this petty?" You whispered harshly.

"It's not being petty," she replied fully. The look in her eyes was serious. Dead serious.

It was your turn to be caught off-balance, and your mind whirled, trying to figure out what was going on. What was her angle? She moved to pin you against the tree, leaning into you, pressing her body against you. No tingles, no weird sensations, she wasn't using her powers. "And don't forget we have an audience to fool," she added with a slight smirk as she reached out to grasp at your head and pull you into a kiss.

Her lips were impossibly soft and pliant, her tongue leaving a faint trail of apples and cinnamon in your mouth, her fingers pressed against your head as they pulled you closer, and her kiss became all the hungrier. Rachel' leaned against you, a constant soft pressure. Her other hand trailed the side of your face, following your cheek down to your throat.

Your consideration to shove her off is interrupted by the fact that there were ferals watching. This whole thing, it was meant to urge them to get more easily caught, in the realm the succubus knew how to handle best.

Fuck it.

Growling, your hands move, the succubus relents just enough, and you flip both of you, moving to place her against the tree. Your fingers sink into her body, finding it softer than her lips or hands, only enough firmness to remind you of the woman's body. Rachel yielded under your assault- she tried to say something, a taunt no doubt, but your kissing kept her mouth occupied.

Apples and cinnamon, you swallowed and felt the taste still faintly lingering even as you pulled back to take a breath.

She was looking at you with that look of... She was amused. This entertained her? She didn't care about the ferals, as she was too focused on you.

Why?