"Not. Fair." Tessa panted, collapsing against Greg's chest.

"Hey, at least I didn't finish too fast." Greg replied with a chuckle.

"You finished. And then you finished. And you never stopped finishing." Tessa groaned.

"Hidden benefit of never getting tired. Who knew?" Greg shrugged, pulling the exhausted Tessa closer with a satisfied grin as she began to doze off, before turning to his own thoughts. Things with Tessa had… progressed, much faster than he thought either of them had intended. Not that Greg had much of an issue with premarital sex, especially when he wasn't even sure marriage was a thing anymore… it definitely wasn't a legal thing anymore, that was for sure. However… going from 'hey, I like you' to balls deep on the training room floor was a bit quick in his opinion. It was just… once they started, they just couldn't stop. First Tessa's bra went, then his shirt, then her pants, and then all his clothes had poofed into smoke and it was on. Then… Well, they'd quickly realized that Greg didn't need to stop. Ever. Which led to where they were now.

While Tessa drifted into unconsciousness, beginning to snore lightly, Greg sent out bits of smoke to clean up their mess. Well, Tessa's mess at least. The list of benefits of being a smoke man grew to include the fact that everything about him was smoke, which meant that his… excretions could simply be turned back into smoke as well, just like everything else about him. The obvious bonus, besides the quick clean up, was that he didn't have to worry about getting Tessa pregnant unless he wanted to. Of course, what a child born of smoke sperm would actually be like was another question, but… well, that could wait till later. Greg also dissolved Tessa's clothes, before using his smoke to reclothe the both of them.

The next thing he had to deal with was… what now? The two of them were obviously together now, but… how together? Should he move into her place? Well, 'move in'. With his great big pile of nothing, it'd really just change where he sat on the couch to read. Even still, that seemed a little fast, but then again, so had what they'd just done, and he didn't regret that, so… Eh, maybe he should just wait to talk to Tessa about it. No sense in making plans without her.

Tessa shifted comfortably in his arms, snuggling deeper into him, not looking like she was going to wake up any time soon. Not that he could blame her, really. She just went through two rather intense workouts in a row. She deserved some rest. Greg snuggled back, sighing in satisfaction as closed his eyes, before moments later they snapped open, a panicked look on his eye. *Oh no… I'm getting bored!* Greg tried to resist it, he really did, but the longer Tessa slept, the more he felt the urge to do something. *Okay, okay, Greg, you cannot leave Tessa right now. Sleeping with a girl and then running off is the definition of a dick move.* Greg chastised himself as he attempted to force himself to just stay still. It wasn't working. He was bored. *Okay… okay, how about this, I'll use the smoke to create a new body, then we'll… wait, no, then she'd just wake up to a fleshy sack that just looks like me.* Greg frowned. *Hmmm… maybe… if the other body is an exact replica, I could switch my consciousness between them? I mean, this body is just smoke, that body is just smoke, what's the difference?* Greg theorized, before letting out a sigh. *Okay, yeah, it's dumb, but I'm desperate, so…* Greg sent out a large cloud of smoke, enough to make himself a new body. He wasn't exactly sure how much smoke he actually had, but it seemed like the more he dissolved stuff, the more he got, so he had quite a bit at the moment. The body quickly formed, lying on the ground so it didn't just flop over.

Greg paused, blinking as he was suddenly in two places at once… kind of. Unlike what he'd supposed, he didn't exactly transfer his consciousness between the two bodies. It was more like he suddenly had double the amount of limbs… and eyes and ears and everything else, but he still had to coordinate it all. He felt it all, but he couldn't focus on it all. His new body sat up, glancing over at his old one, briefly turning his attention back to the old one and looking back, giving himself a wave, then shifting back and waving back. “Huh. This… could work.” It wasn't like he wasn't still there. If Tessa woke up, he'd feel it, and he could immediately turn his attention back to his old body! Meanwhile, this other body could go out and do whatever he wanted… as soon as he figured out what that actually was.

Greg made sure the training room door was locked before slipping out in a cloud of smoke, which actually proved to be somewhat difficult due to the metal door, which took him almost four seconds to get all the way through! Which admittedly, wasn't all that long, and the door was like four inches thick, but he'd expected to be through it in no time at all! Greg sighed as he reformed on the other side. At least he knew to avoid traveling through metal now. He then made his way out of the central tower, trying to figure out where he actually wanted to go. Usually he'd be training right now, but… well, obviously that wasn't happening. He supposed he could hang out with Jennifer and Sarah? They'd probably appreciate that, but he felt like doing something a bit more productive right now. Work before pleasure, you know? Or after, as it were… whatever, he had to at least do something productive today. Not that getting into a relationship wasn't productive…

Greg froze in the middle of the street as it hit him. He had a girlfriend! At least he thought he had a girlfriend… No no, he definitely had a girlfriend. Maybe… Tessa had made it pretty obvious, hadn't she? Or had she just gotten caught up in the moment? But she'd been the one to create the moment… “Probably just need to talk to her.” Greg muttered, shaking his head. Still, he was pretty sure he had a girlfriend now, and that… that felt pretty fucking amazing! His mind briefly drifted to his other body, a stupid grin spreading across his face as he pulled Tessa closer. He could get used to this.

Of course, he still had no idea what he was actually going to do with himself… Hm, he had been thinking of seeing what the city looked like during the day, hadn't he? It'd probably be a good idea to avoid fighting, but he could at least try to talk to some people, right? Greg nodded decisively, making his way towards the walls, slipping under them before flying deeper into the city, not going far before landing in a random alley and shifting into his sharkman form, immediately starting to scream as his eyes began to burn! He quickly returned to his human form, cursing as he rubbed his eyes. “Fuck! That is not a day time feature.” He grumbled, switching instead to his cheetahman form and sniffing the air to find a scent trail. He wasn't as comfortable following a scent trail as he was following a heat trail, but it was better than his eyes burning, and he was sure he'd figure it out.

Greg quickly found a scent trail to follow, making his way out of the alley and down the street, climbing through a collapsed building and emerging to find himself face to face- well, face to chest with one of the deadliest looking ferals he'd ever seen! Instead of arms, this guy had two tentacles coming out of each shoulder, but not like the tentacle man's tentacles. These tentacles were hard, whip-like, and spikey. They looked like they could rip your skin off in seconds. And the spikes didn't end there. The dude's entire body was like a cheese grater! Even its face! "Uh… hi?" Greg greeted the feral as it looked down at him, cocking its head, as if confused by his sudden appearance.

"Hm, a night-kin, yes? What brings one of you into the light?" The feral asked in a strange, scratching voice, which sounded almost… disappointed? As if it'd opened a present only to find an empty box.

Greg blinked a few times, not expecting that response. Most ferals either ran or attacked on sight. Or at least, they prepared to run or fight. This guy… he just stood there, looking almost relaxed. "Uh… curiosity? I've never actually met a… day-kin? before, and I was wondering what you guys were like." He finally replied.

The feral looked almost taken aback, starting to chuckle, then laugh, until it turned into a full on belly laugh, causing the feral to hunch over as it released its mirth. "You brave injury, death, or even worse, for mere curiosity?!? My my, what an interesting little creature you are!" The feral mocked as it continued to laugh, then it suddenly froze mid laugh, straightening as a serious look came over it. "You wonder what we are like, do you? It is simple. We are feral! We fight, we kill, we take whatever we want, and we love it! It is what we exist for! We live beholden to our basest instincts, in true communion with nature, with the world! And in return, the world grants us power! Strength!" The feral clenched its tentacles together as a pressure slammed into Greg, sending him to his knees! It stalked towards him with a chuckle, its tentacles rising as it poised to strike. "Do you regret your curiosity, night-kin? Do you feel fear?"

Greg paused. "Uh… not really? I'm kind of immortal, so… still, you're really strong, aren't you?” He grunted as he tried, and failed, to stand. “Yup, pretty damn strong. Props. But, uh… Could you stop? I'm just trying to talk, not get into any fights.”

The feral paused, giving Greg a strange look. "You- want me to stop?”

Greg raised an eyebrow. “Obviously?”

The feral cocked its head thoughtfully, then shrugged. “If that is what you wish.” Greg sighed as the pressure released. “Now, I wish to flay your skin from your bones. Shall we begin?”

“Uh… I'd really rather you not.” Greg coughed. “I mean, I guess it wouldn't exactly be a problem for me, but… you know, I'm not a huge fan of pain. Not that I haven't been getting used to it lately, but still.”

The feral tsked, shaking its head as the pressure descended on Greg again, quadrupling in strength! “You aren't being very accommodating.” It grinned as it increased the pressure even further, trying to crush Greg with his power.

Greg groaned as he felt his entire being get crushed under the pressure. *That's a new type of pain.* He shifted into his scorpocroc form, hoping the stronger form would help, but for some reason the pressure seemed to get even worse. *Ugh, this isn't working.* Greg grumbled, wondering if he'd just have to turn into smoke and leave. The feral was just staring down at him with an amused expression at this point, showing no indication of stopping any time soon. But… this guy was definitely an asshole. He couldn't just leave and let him continue to hurt people.

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Greg paused as an idea occurred to him. If turning into the scorpocroc, his biggest form, made things worse, would getting smaller make things better? He shifted into a tiny winged version of himself, and… it worked! Greg stood to his full six inch height with a grin, flapping his wings… okay, that wasn't happening, but at least he could walk! Though he wasn't going to be able to fight… and the feral could just step on him instead. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea.

The feral grimaced, glaring down at him as the pressure increased even further. A tentacle lashed out, wrapping around Greg and pulling him up to the feral's face. "Why do you refuse to die, strange night-kin!?!" The feral growled.

"I did say I was immortal." Greg grunted, sneaking out a few wisps of smoke, sending them towards the feral's chest, thinking he might be able to skip the fight and dissolve the feral's heart or something, but as the smoke reached the feral's chest, it simply stopped. Greg frowned, trying to push the smoke through, and while he did make some progress, the moment he relaxed, the smoke was immediately pushed back out. He grimaced as he felt the strain build as well, realizing he probably wouldn't even get through the feral’s skin before he was tapped out. *That… is a problem.* Greg groaned as the tentacle holding him tightened, tearing into his body, smoke leaking out between the gaps, unable to reform until the tentacle released.

The feral loosened its grip, watching as his small body reformed, growling in frustration. "Why won't you die!" It yelled, slamming Greg to the ground and stomping on him in frustration! "Die, die, die!"

*This is not going well.* Greg sighed. *How am I supposed to beat this guy?*

“Hey~” A voice suddenly murmured in his ear, Greg freezing until he realized he was hearing it in his other body, Tessa having woken up from her nap.

“Uh, hey, I'm- actually kinda busy at the moment.” Greg coughed awkwardly. “Could we- talk in like a minute or so?”

Tessa sat up, frowning down at him. “You're busy?!? Doing what!?!”

“Well, it turns out I can have multiple bodies, but like I still have to control them all, so…” Greg trailed off as an idea occurred to him. “Hold that thought.” Back with the feral, he snuck some smoke behind the feral, turning it into the scorpocroc to try for sneak attack, only to immediately get crushed by the pressure. “Shit.” Greg sighed, pausing as he realized the feral hadn't actually noticed him. It just had some kind of field putting pressure on everything. If that was the case… He dissolved the scorpocroc and moved the smoke over the feral, creating a steel spike, grinning in satisfaction as it drove through the feral’s skull like a bullet, practically cutting the feral in half! “Okay, I'm done, what's up?” He asked, sitting up as well.

Tessa glared at him for a moment, before letting out a weary sigh. “Multiple bodies?”

“Oh, right!” Greg exclaimed, remembering he'd been explaining that. “Uh… that's pretty much it, actually. I didn't want to leave you alone, but I also didn't want to just lie here while you slept for who knows how long, so I made myself a new body, and it worked! I ended up going out into the city and fighting this cheese grater looking feral who could create some kind of pressure field… wait, was it manipulating gravity? Hm, anyway it was completely bonkers and psychotic, so I killed it. Took some doing, though. There are some strong ferals out there…”

Tessa snorted, giving him a serious look. “Would you not have left if it hadn't worked?”

Greg blinked, taking a moment to decrypt that. “Probably? I mean, I don't think I would have left. Though… I definitely would have done something. It- probably would have gotten smoky in here.”

Tessa paused as she considered what Greg would have gotten up to if he hadn't been able to leave. “I suppose it's for the best that you were able to keep yourself occupied.” She muttered. “Plus, it's good to know I don't need to worry about sleeping in an empty bed while you run around at night.”

“So you do want me to move in?” Greg asked hesitantly.

Tessa flushed. “I- don't know. I didn't exactly expect my confession to turn into… this.”

Greg sighed. “Yeah, we may have gotten ahead of ourselves. Probably should have at least gone on a date first.”

Tessa rolled her eyes. “We've been going on dates all week, you just haven't been realizing it.”

Greg blinked. “Does that still count?”

“Did we still get to know each other better?” Tessa countered, Greg giving her a tentative nod. “Then yes, I'd say they count.” She paused. “But I do agree that we probably should have discussed things a bit more before we got to this point…”

“Yeah… I'm honestly still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that you actually like me.” Greg admitted. “I just- why?”

“Because you're a good, car- er, responsible man.” Tessa replied.

“Okay, but see, right there, you almost said caring, and that- that just isn't me.” Greg pointed out, frowning slightly.

Tessa sighed. “Greg, even if you don't feel care, you still take care, and that's what actually matters. The fact that you do it without even wanting to just makes it more admirable, not less.”

Greg scratched his head. “I mean… yeah, I get that, but wouldn't you want someone who does both?”

Tessa frowned. “I- don't think I do? I think I want someone who does what's right no matter how they feel… which is you.”

“Okay… but don't you find the fact that I end up doing something crazy whenever you leave me alone annoying?” Greg asked.

“As much as it can be… exasperating, in terms of issues you could have, it's a relatively benign one.” Tessa retorted. “What really concerns me is your inconsistent levels of self-control, but… from everything I've seen, you never let it affect anything that's actually important, and there are worse sins than indulging yourself every now and then.”

Greg coughed. “You realize that you're going to be one of the things I want to indulge in now, right?”

Tessa flushed. “I- don't think I mind being indulged.”

“Oh really~?” Greg chuckled menacingly, sending shivers down her spine as Greg cut off awkwardly. “Uh, sorry. Sometimes when I get excited, my laugh comes out evil.”

Tessa released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding in. “As long as you aren't actually evil, I can deal with it.”

Greg paused. “I mean… I'm not not evil.”

Tessa rolled her eyes. “Greg, if there's one thing the apocalypse has taught me, it's that everyone has evil inside them. The fact that you want to do horrible things doesn't make you evil, it's actually doing those things. And you've had plenty of opportunities to be absolutely horrible, and you haven't taken a single one.”

“Well… I do regularly go out and murder people. That's- legitimately something I do.” Greg pointed out. “I mean, I know the excuse is that they deserve it, but… there's a large part of me that's just doing it because I enjoy killing them.”

Tessa's expression twisted slightly. “I- understand that. But, in your pursuit, have you ever relaxed your principles? Have you ever decided to kill someone you probably shouldn't simply because you wanted to or because it'd be easier?”

Greg blinked. “No? I mean, it isn't like I'm hurting for people who deserve to die… there are a lot of nasty ferals out there.”

Tessa frowned. “Fine, then have you ever done anything to prolong a fight or cause undue suffering to indulge in the killing?”

“Also, no…” Greg muttered.

Tessa nodded firmly. “Then you're still a good person in my book. Even if you want to kill, you aren't doing it because you want to kill, and you aren't using it as an excuse to indulge yourself. You're simply doing what has to be done, and the fact that you enjoy it is… incidental.”

“Well, yeah, but… damn it, I just feel like it isn't fair for someone like you to have to deal with all my issues, you know?” Greg groaned.

Tessa raised an eyebrow. “Someone like me?”

Greg sighed. “Someone good. Both because you want to be and because you know you should be. I- I can understand if you respect me, even admire me in some ways, but- why would you ever want to stain yourself by loving me? Not that you do, I'm just saying that's where relationships are supposed to lead, and… I just don't get why you would ever want that.”

Tessa watched Greg slump in defeat with a mix of concern and exasperation, reaching out to grab his hand. “Greg, I want to be with you because you need me to… and I need you too. We both need each other to… balance us.” She let out a frustrated sigh. “Do you know why, despite all my complaints and how easily I could, I've never taken leadership of the squad? It's because if I was in Jake's position, I'd be even worse. He at least pushes us to attempt risky missions, like scavenging the campus. I- I probably wouldn't risk anything outside the suburbs. I couldn't. The idea that someone might end up dead because of a decision I made? It- it terrifies me. And now that I know the ferals are intelligent? People doing their best to survive, just like us? Just the idea of getting into a fight out there due to a misunderstanding makes me sick. I know it's necessary, but… it doesn't make me feel any better, and being forced to make decisions like that over and over… I'd be miserable.” She gave Greg a serious look. “I need someone like you, someone who can look at the necessary evils of the world and just accept them. Who can make the decision that certain people need to die, and follow through without second-guessing or regret. Just like you need me to make sure you're actually right.”

Greg blinked. “Huh… that- actually makes sense.”

Tessa smiled. “We all have our own struggles. Isn't that why you look for someone with different flaws? So you're strong where they're weak, and vice versa.”

“Well yeah, I just… never thought of my flaws having a strong point? I never thought about the fact that others would struggle to hurt people, even when necessary, as a bad thing.” Greg explained. “And I definitely never thought the fact that I don't was a good thing.”

Tessa crossed her arms. “Well it is.” She paused. “As long as you make sure you actually are right.”

“Well obviously.” Greg snorted. “But that's why I have you, right?”

Tessa couldn't help but smile again. “Right.”

Greg smiled back, then frowned slightly. “So… does this mean you want me to move in with you? Not that it'd exactly change much, but… I don't really know where our relationship sits, you know? Like, obviously we're compatible and good for each other, and there's a part of me that just wants to go for it, because I can't see this not working out long-term, but another part of me says rushing things is a great way to ruin things, so… I don't know.”

“I think- I don't think we're going to regret taking things slow, even if we could move faster, but we'd definitely regret moving too fast.” Tessa replied hesitantly. “I- think it'd be best to just let things develop naturally? As our relationship develops, we'll inevitably spend more and more time together, until we spend almost all our time together, and at that point, we'd already be practically living together anyway.”

Greg paused, then shrugged. “I guess I can work with that.”