Leah peaked around the stable yard of the Potted Pickle.
The stableman was out in the village getting something for Mrs. Arlee. No one was coming in or watching from the windows so Leah went to the shady secretive spot behind the stables and between the fences. A warning had come out that the large group of orcs in the area had been found, and people who came into the Inn had said that they saw a big group of adventurer's going out to take care of them.
Leah was so excited about seeing some more adventurers. Maybe she could be friends with them even if the man Micheal with the Bear Dog wasn't with them. Maybe they would know where he was. She was worried too though. She didn't want Matilda or Bruce to lose their Inn if the orcs went wild. So she had snuck out here the day before and released a few of her scout wasps. It was a little hard to do it this way, but she made the larva come up from her mouth like her hive making queens did. That took a few hours to manage, but she got outside on a task when she was ready and came back here to spit them out where they wouldn't be found and had a little time to hatch.
She called them back now. She had released the first call a little while before. It was something they could smell, but people couldn't. They came out from under the awning of the stable in a happy little cluster and broke apart to fly down to her.
She opened her mouth and one by one they flew inside and found the open pockets on her cheeks and under her tongue. They worked their way in and the blood worms inside her attached to them and told her what they found. Normally she would release them, and use them again, but it seemed the orcs were all dead by the smell of blood and guts. The first ones wiggled and struggled a little when she didn't let them go, but the last one got into her mouth and Leah's eyes went wide at the scent this one had recovered.
She crunched the wasps down between her teeth and ate them so they wouldn't go to waste now that she didn't need them. She would have yelled and jumped if she wasn't chewing something right then. There was a man's scent, mixed with a little mud and some other things, but it came with a Bear Dog scent. The same Bear Dog. The scent had to belong to this Micheal! She was so happy she skipped back across the yard and into the building. She would put on her armor and find him and be his friend! It was going to be an excellent night.
Matilda caught her as she came into the kitchen.
“Oh there you are dear. There's some adventurer's here that need some washing up. Quite badly. I've got baths going for their women already, but their boys are so muddy there's nothing to do but rinse them off in the yard.” Matilda had her biggest soup kettle out and was cutting and chopping things up to put into it as she spoke to Leah. “There's some buckets by the door. Would you take them out to them and show them where the well is or would that be too much?”
Leah shook her head. She could do that. She just had to give them buckets and show them the pump in the stables. That was easy, and would give her a chance to talk to them.
“I can do that Matilda. I wanted to see if they would be my friends too.”
“Friends dear? You mean to travel with them?” Matilda looked at Leah with warm eyes then as she considered.
“Oh maybe with this group. You've been a good young lady working for us the way you can, but that Micheal has a decent head on his shoulders and he's very kindly. Too kindly. He's in love with that Elf woman clear as day, but what can you do with adventurers? I'm sure they could use a hardy girl like you. Make sure you show them how you can count your coins now, and don't let them pay you any less than your fair share on a contract.” Matilda said with mock severity in her voice.
She smiled at Leah so warmly that Leah had to look down to keep the squirminess she felt inside down. Leah really, really liked Matilda. More and more what Sara had said in the days before made her think maybe she could stay here forever.
“I'll show them the outside pump and bring them the buckets then.” Leah said doing the little curtsy Matilda showed her how to do when she was wearing a dress.
“That's a good girl.” Matilda said with another smile as Leah took the bucket and went back out into the yard.
The adventurers were just coming around the front of the inn and most of them were covered head to toe in mud. There were more than a dozen and they even had mud on their faces and in their hair. Leah knew how hard it was to clean up after getting that dirty. She had been fighting off her excitement since Matilda said the man's name, but she had real problems doing so when the big furry Bear Dog came up to a man on the side of the group and nuzzled his hand.
She had seen much bigger Bear Dog's out in the wilds, but clearly the man was friends with it. A smile came over her face and she made a little excited sound in her throat as she came forward though she thought the man Micheal took for a sign of her being scared.
The men watched her approach with the three buckets in her arms.
“You're Micheal Morrison?” She asked in her sweetest voice as she came close unafraid of the tame creature. There was a nice light in the pup's eyes. She could easily see and smell that he wasn't angry. “And this is your Bear Dog?”
The man Micheal beside the dog brushed a little mud from his hair and smiled at her. He was friendly and nice!
“Yeah his names Jack actually. When he's a little less muddy I can let you pet him if you like. He's totally okay with one or two people petting him. It's just a little too much when too many people do at the same time.”
Leah almost squealed. She loved Bear Dog fur. They always had really good and thick hides she had used in the winters to keep herself warm when the wind was fast and biting cold.
“Can I really?” Leah asked giddy as giddy could be.
Her insides were squirming at the thought. She always wanted to touch a Bear Dog when it wasn't dead. She wanted to feel how warm and cuddly they looked when they weren't mad. She was going to bury her face in its fur when it was clean! She was wearing the dress Matilda had given her so she couldn't get it dirty, but otherwise she would have pet the Bear Dog right then.
Micheal laughed. He sounded worried about something, but he did seem happy to let her do as he said. She laughed, hardly able to stop herself from doing so, and then showed them the way back into the yard and how the fence could be closed so they wouldn't be seen by everyone on the road. Micheal and the other men thanked her and she made herself go back inside instead of waiting out there. People often didn't like her enthusiasm for things when she got excited like this so she stayed away as to not spoil her chance later to talk with Micheal, pet Jack, and most importantly see if he would be her friend.
She made sure to ask Matilda for things to do so she would stay busy. So she ended up washing plates and bowls, and helping Bruce get bath water ready and to bring it in with their daughter to fill the baths with fresh water for each of them as they took turns getting cleaned up. They even rented rooms. Leah listened as she worked and took some plates with the Innkeepers daughter and found out they were staying until the morning. She would have lots of chances to talk to Micheal and his friends then. They all seemed very friendly. All the girls were really cute as well! A tall elf girl watched her with a curious eye, but was friendly when Leah asked to take her plate.
Finally there was time when the boys had cleaned up in the baths after getting rid of the mud outside. Jack the Bear Dog puppy had to be toweled off again and again until he was dry enough to come inside. Leah made sure to bring all the towels Micheal and the Bunny girl needed to get him nice and dry so Matilda would let him inside.
“Can I pet him now?” She asked as Matilda let them inside.
“Yeah of course. What was your name again? You've been a big help.” The tall handsome man she had been looking for asked.
“Leah. Sarraleah.” She said to him happily as she knelt down to rub the happy Bear Dog's big floppy ears.
The puppy licked her face and it made her laugh a lot when he did. His little tail that looked like the old dusting brushes Matilda had for cleaning rooms made his butt wiggle too! It was so cute! She petted him and petted him until he was up against her knees and getting fur everywhere! Leah didn't mind a little fur, but mud might stain. She would just wash the dress like she did every night anyway if there was some left. So she didn't mind even if they happened to have missed something getting the Bear Dog clean.
She noticed the Bunny girl looking up at Micheal with a strange face and Leah looked up to see what was wrong. Micheal's face was odd. His eyes were suddenly a little cold and it made her feel a little uncomfortable, but she reached out and touched his trouser leg.
“Aren't you going to pet him too?” She asked carefully in her sweet voice.
Micheal's face changed, and he smiled again, but it wasn't the same. He knelt near her and Jack wiggled a little on his back to get pets from his tall master. Micheal rubbed a place on Jack's ear that made his leg twitch and wiggle, but his eyes still looked a little cold and faraway.
Leah pulled her hands away from Jack feeling she had somehow done something wrong. The friendly Bear Dog rolled around and looked at her right when she stopped and came to her for more pets, but she didn't know what to do. Micheal saved her though.
“You uh...go by Leah then?” He asked, sounding maybe a little nervous. It smelled a little like fear, but why would he be afraid when she was being cute? She hadn't been noticed up until this point than to be the girl she appeared to be.
“Yeah. My family said not to use my full name after some things happened. It's okay though because I have two names already.” Leah said relying on something Therry told her back then too.
Micheal gulped, but petted Jack and kept his voice and face from showing how scared he smelled. Why was he scared? She didn't understand! It was making her scared and angry!
“You're an adventurer then?” He asked.
The bunny girl's ears perked up and touched Leah's hand. She had to keep tight control to keep from breaking her hand for that. She was angry inside and very wary. The girl didn't smell afraid like Micheal though and Leah was being good.
“You're not traveling alone are you?” The girl asked in a nice voice. “Is that why you're working here?”
Leah nodded carefully to the girl. She felt a little bad for that impulse to hurt someone who was kind from the start like this.
“Yes. I was looking for the nice man with the Bear Dog when the rains came, and I came here. After that Bruce and Matilda taught me how to be better with money because I overpaid for my armor.”
That still upset her a little. She had worked really hard for those contracts and gone a really long way for a really long time. Her eyes leaked a little and she had to wipe them.
“For Micheal? He is nice, but don't you have friends to travel with you?” The bunny girl asked.
She was nice and worried about her. It made Leah like her a little more every time she talked. The touch of her hand was nice too now that she had time to consider it.
Leah shook her head.
“I don't have friends other than Mr. and Mrs. Arlee. Their daughter doesn't like me either. So it's just them.” Leah said a little sadly.
The bunny girl stood and sat beside Leah and took her arm. If Leah hadn't been liking what she said she might have hurt her for that, but her touches were still very nice and she had a big smile on her face. She had also learned to be a little more patient too since Rosebridge. Matilda would be upset for sure if Leah broke someone's hand or arm especially with paying customers.
“Well then I'm Luna of the Unbroken Guard.” the bunny girl said. “And now you have three friends.”
Leah blinked and thought about what she meant as she looked at her, but Luna's big smile could only mean she meant that she was going to be her friend. Still Leah had to ask to be completely sure. This had never happened to her like this before.
“You'll be my friend?” she asked, trying to sound sweet, but her voice was all shaky and tears leaked from her eyes again as a warm fuzzy feeling filled her squirming insides.
“And Micheal, and Vivian, and Dexter, and everyone else too.” Luna said with a big smile. She even wiped a few tears off Leah's face like Matilda did when she got upset like this.
“Will you really do that?” She asked looking up at Micheal. He was so tall. Even sitting down he was like a tower next to her. Almost as tall as an orc, but he was much better looking. His blood would be cleaner, tastier than an orcs too.
He took a few slow breaths, but nodded and put an arm on her shoulder. He smelled a little afraid still, but his gentle touch on her skin made her feel warm inside all over again. After that she lost the ability to see with all the tears streaming down her face.
In an odd way it made her think of Sara's father. He was a big man like Micheal with wide shoulders and scars on his hands. Jack and Luna immediately began comforting her, but it only made it worse. She was so glad nothing squirmed out of her then because she was really afraid it was going to and she was going to lose her new friends right away.
Micheal watched Sarraleah as she took a few of the Brazen Boys' plates and went back into the kitchen after a little bow. Her eyes were a little red from her emotional outburst, but she was smiling widely now and practically skipped back into the kitchen.
Things were bad. No one but him knew it, but things were bad. Luna had taken to her natural course and now had 'Leah' invited along to go with them back to town in the morning. It appeared likely that the guild leaders would send for the detachment here any day for their next group action as more orcs had been spotted within a mile or more of Three Bridge itself.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
That made taking care of this leftover group all the more important. He and Vivian had discussed that his threat ranking should still be covered by the protection granted by the Wind Goddess, but he thought he knew the source now. One of the most dangerous, and durable characters he had ever written was acting as an aid to the Potted Pickle. --Learning to count coins and balance a budget of all things as well. She was sweet and innocent in appearance, and not all that bright, but that hardly mattered seeing as she was essentially just the queen of the vampric host of bugs held within her body.
Sarraleah wasn't exactly a vampire. She drank blood, but mostly it was the blood worms in her that made her feel she had to do that. He had always planned for her to be more of an extreme meat eater than a vampire. In his writing a necromantic host had taken hold in her body after a massive battle against a man who sought to use the bugs to raise an army of undead at his command and would likely have gained a great deal of success otherwise. He would have died in a massive climatic battle where hundreds of adventurer's would have risen against him, one of them being a sixteen year old girl who fought with her father's warhammer.
Already strong as five men, innocent and inexperienced, the then completely human Sarraleah had been mortally wounded in the final battle. Her skull was cracked, her body horribly maimed, and all her friends dead from the last suicidal efforts of the Necromancer. It would be then, gasping and barely conscious on the ground that a single wounded queen, the last of its kind, would seek out the most fit body nearby to grow her new host. She just happened to pick a body that was still alive to reanimate instead of one that was properly dead.
Sarraleah would have awoken whole and healed completely and spent years dealing with her sudden urge for blood and the squirming she felt inside. Eventually the queen would begin to take away things from her in an attempt for control of the body they shared. That would send Sarraleah on a wild course of action for several years as she dealt with the repercussions of the monster she had become. Eventually the host would win over for a time before Theradin found her.
Instead of killing her, Theradin would bring the parts of Sarraleah's mind that were still very much human to the fore. Under threat of elimination if she went wild again Theradin and Jakcova would have spent years teaching her how to control her powers, using her strength and ability to sniff out others of her ilk all while preventing the necromantic host in her from spreading or creating undead effectively reconditioning her as they worked together to demolish what small spread of hives she had managed. The queen blood parasite inside her head would form stronger symbiotic relationships with Sarraleah's body then after and focus on becoming a perfect symbiote for her. In that process their personalities would mix. As far as he could tell right now, and from the fact that Jakcova wasn't with Theradin adventuring that meant that this Sarraleah was in her later stages. He hadn't written much beyond that.
The adventurer was still inside her head somewhere, but he was convinced this sweet girl appearance was the hive doing its very best to blend in. It wasn't really going to be dangerous until that changed. He had to remember that she could likely smell his fear and other strong emotions; remembering that had helped relieve her growing agitation. Luckily too the draft was some of his more recent writing and her abilities were fresh in his mind even after months in the camp.
The camp... Bad idea to think about that. He had to push it away and focus on remaining calm. The sense of present danger helped him push away the usually stubborn thoughts and memories just a mention of the camp could bring up.
He had no idea what would really send her over the edge, but she had cried and seemed actually really affected when Luna had promised they would be her friends. He had either to make sure that happened or found another way to keep Sarraleah occupied. With Luna's very friendly manner and soft heart for 'Leah's' lonely plight it would be hard to get rid of her.
She was dangerous. Very dangerous and if she went completely wild there was a chance she could infect him with the host that lived inside her. He definitely didn't want any part of that, but maybe...just maybe he could convince everyone to keep her around as the powerful front liner she was if only there was some way he could explain her powers to everyone. And contrive a way for her to tell him about them. Which was only so difficult because to his mind he couldn't lie worth a damn, and it might have spooked Leah if he showed that he knew so much about her. It felt greedy sort of, high risk high reward was maybe a little better way to describe it, but to be honest she was a weapon he could use against what threatened his friends and his own safety.
He was sitting next to Luna while he ate, there was an empty chair across from him left by Dexter, and everyone was either doing the same or talking over finished meals or cups of wine or ale. Vivian was talking with Zephdin and Eva about their situation with their silver threat rank, and how it hadn't been lessened or raised when they came to town or when Micheal joined the guild or even after this job.
The consensus seemed to be that they had a dangerous task awaiting ahead of them, and Zephdin was advising that they all train as hard as they could in the days between now and the summon by the guild. The guild summons were to be obeyed regardless of current threat level with exceptions for traveling alone with a singular high threat level like silver or gold on one person without access to a reprieve.
Even then Micheal had recently learned that sometimes the fate was so immediate that the Gods could not grant them safety from it. The usual plan of action then was to mount a party and send them after the stuck adventurer before whatever in the threat level went after them. Sometimes even with silver rank threat levels more than three dozen guild members would ride out to either get them out and away from wherever they were holed up or to deal with what was coming down on them. So with that in mind he felt he had to act.
When Sarraleah came back out with a broom in hand he waved her over.
“Leah come sit with us for a little bit. I want to talk to you.” He said mustering all his courage and forcing as much of the hope he felt for his character into his voice as he could.
Theradin and Jakcova wouldn't have left her in a state that was horribly unstable, but there was no telling just how long ago their reconditioning had happened. Not that he didn't know what or who to ask, but how to explain how he did know to ask in the first place. She seemed drawn to him so he would play on that as much as he could anyway.
The cute black haired and blue eyed girl immediately brightened at his words, and she looked to Matilda Arlee for permission before she went. Mrs. Arlee's response was to smile and wave the girl ahead as she took the broom Leah had come out with.
Leah came over brushing a little black fur from her maroon wool dress as she walked slowly to the table and sat down across from them in the ladder back chair. Micheal sipped his wine and thought about how he was going to approach the problem without revealing he knew more than he should.
“You're said you're an adventurer and you overpaid for your armor.” He started with getting them back on familiar ground.
Leah looked down at her hands in her lap and nodded. Micheal noted that her pale complexion meant that she hadn't fed in some time. She was still healthy looking, her skin filled with that luminous look some young women got however, so she hadn't been starving herself. Was the food from the Inn enough to keep her going? He really really hoped so. It would be much easier that way.
“What kind of armor?” He asked carefully. “I've been thinking I should get some myself, but it's made me want to ask how you fight since you said that. Maybe with your knowledge you could help me pick some out.”
Luna sipped at her drink and pulled herself from the conversation with Julia and Pelanna to join his talk with Leah. She smiled at the other girl and put a hand across the table for Leah to take.
To Micheal's surprise Sarraleah actually, after a moment, reached out to touch Luna's hand and held it for a little while before bringing her hands back in her lap. She brushed at her short cut hair nervously and her eyes flicked toward the bar.
“People say it's really heavy, but I like the way my armor feels. It makes me feel safe.” Leah said shyly. “It's pretty and pink this time, but I did pay too much. That doesn't mean I don't like the work I had done. The leather working man even put ribbons in with my hammer grip.” She pointed to the hammer handle that stuck up near the kitchen door behind the bar. The pommel was a pair of dice held in the mouths of two sea serpents, snake like creatures, just like the large version that would be at the top where it was hidden behind the bar.
It was worn and little battered, but the weapon was solid steel though it did have an odd sort of waxy coating in the soft light of the lamps. Micheal could probably lift it, but fighting with it even with whatever stamina regeneration he got from the bond with Vivian would quickly be negated. Leah handled her extra strength well, but he wondered how the physics would play out when she really got to swinging that heavy thing around.
Luna blinked several times with a smile growing on her face.
“You have pink armor?” She asked with a giddy note to her voice. “Will you wear it in the morning for us Leah?” Luna's honest delight seemed to make Leah squirm in her seat.
“Yes. It's dangerous out on the roads sometimes so I'll wear it. I just don't want to get it muddy like I did coming here. Mrs. Arlee worked really hard to get all the mud and dirt spots out.” Leah explained still very shy and sweet.
Luna giggled, and was obviously delighted.
“I have the same problem sometimes. Don't worry. I have lots of clothes and know a tailor in Mayonn who can help make some changes for you. Maybe we can figure out a way to make it so you change out the cloth on your armor so you can change how it looks and maybe have a rougher set for travel that won't stain as easily.”
Leah's eyes sparkled and she sat up straight. Her hand shot across the table for Luna's and Luna happily took her hand.
“You really are my friend aren't you?” Leah asked, smiling and getting a little watery eyed again, her eager sincerity was clear in her voice. Julia and Pellana seemed moved by the girl's innocence and warm emotional outbursts.
Luna laughed and took her hand in both of hers.
“Of course that's what I said wasn't it?”
“So you'll be ready and eat with us in the morning right?” Micheal said, reaching back in his memory to pull up details of the short story he had written about Sarraleah.
Leah's gaze shot to his full of hidden anticipation and gleaming with a little wonder, but there was also a cold light inside, and for a moment it was almost like he was looking into two different eyes at once. He had a suspicion about that, but pushed that off his mind so he could smile at Leah and her delighted reaction. If he let the guise take him in it wasn't very hard to be pleasant with her when she was shy and sweet like this.
“Yeah eat with us.” Luna said, adding her natural energy to his friendly question. “You ate in the kitchen today and I suppose the staff should, but you'll be with us tomorrow so you should eat with us.”
Leah looked down at her lap and drew her hands in. She was fighting the huge smile on her face and starting to blush, but she looked up after a moment and then nodded happily.
“Friends right?” He said holding out a fist before he thought about it.
Leah stared at it with wide eyes, but Luna jumped in.
“Oh that's a fist bump Leah. Like this, and not hard.” Luna said, taking his hand over and bumping it. “Lots of the boys do that now because they don't want to hold hands.” She said sticking her tongue out at Micheal.
He had failed to explain the gesture appropriately it seemed, or more likely Luna was just teasing him.
Micheal sighed at her, but Leah sat up on the other end of the table with her fist up.
“Like this?” she asked.
Micheal nodded and tapped her knuckles with his. Even at a brief touch her hands were uncannily soft and warm.
After that interaction Lindsey found her way over to their new member and was her usual friendly energetic self. She wrapped a stunned Leah in a hug and told her how pretty her serving maid dress, her hair, eyes, stockings, and slippers were. Leah fell behind her energy just barely getting out shy replies and tearing up a little bit when she got overwhelmed by Lindsey's friendliness.
“Don't you worry about a thing Leah.” Lindsey told her. “We all overpay for things sometimes. We'll make that money back, and lots more. Luna and I will also make sure you're the cutest you can be too so just stick with us.”
“Don't forget us now!” Julia put in leaning over the table to offer her hands in support to Leah.
Leah was a little overwhelmed, but took Lindsey's and Julia's hands when they offered for a few moments and looked very happy and comfortable with her situation as the night went on. Wine was had and people began to seek their beds after too long. Micheal and Vivian even had the luck to be back in the room they had stayed in here however that was only a little spoiled by having to share the room with Luna and Dexter to make up for the number of people they had staying in the Inn. There was room enough for three on the bed, and there was a cot for Dexter and a pad of blankets for Jack. That made the normally spacious room and bed feel almost crowded.
It was a little close, but Vivian lay next to him and Luna next to her after the girls had changed into sleeping clothes which was a shock to Micheal for a moment as they both had stripped to do so. Luna did blush a little, but slipped into her pj's faster than she had stripped. Vivian just wore the light tied panties and shift she wore under her normal attire to bed instead of her usual habit of sleeping naked.
They all settled in and Micheal was still a little unsettled by the fact another one of his written characters had shown up. And a terrifying one at that. If Sarraleah went wild and was allowed to gain momentum she could easily overwhelm a city in a few days. Actually it would be rather dangerous for her to do that with so many adventurer's around, but without magic defenses to stop her she would be a monster.
The poison bugs and the ability to fight on through the largest amounts of damage and heal through devastating wounds would frighten anyone. The only way he could think to beat her would be to have Jakcova, Xeradin, or another powerful adventurer using overwhelming area attacks on her to kill her swarms before she could recover while focusing her down with direct damage ranged attacks. Then it was just the matter of surviving her immense strength long enough to wear down whatever blood and energy she had in reserve. With little controlled AoE to deal with her swarm in the party though they would be helpless as they were. There would be no good end to facing her down now. Diplomacy had to be the way. His thoughts ran like water in a stream as he laid down.
He wasn't all that tired. Actually he felt quite good. Still when he laid back his eyes got heavy. He thought about what he was going to do with Sarraleah. She could be a boon. She was also unstable and kind of crazy. He had to play it right. Maybe he could win her over and have her as a permanent part of the party.
She had a psychotic side in his writing, but she also liked to eat and be with people she thought were friends. The problem was if the adventurer, 'Sarra', had her emotions yet or not. If she was cold and calculating she might tell 'Leah' not to trust him. That tied in badly with what he couldn't tell Vivian too. It was becoming a rather dangerous knot to untangle. And the need to lie would weigh on his mind and probably be obvious to his lover.
He watched in the moonlight as Luna patted Jack's head where he sat beside the bed. If he had it right Luna had been sleeping with Jack in her bed, and the Bear Dog looked disappointed to be relegated to the floor once more. It was almost like Luna had Jack as a familiar more than he did, but that was alright. He didn't need Jack to be right at his side all the time. He did however feel himself longing for Vivian more than simply laying next to her would satisfy. She seemed to know it too, but was cuddling Luna and teasing her in whispers for not being able to sleep alone. She had picked up on Luna's nightly snuggling of Jack too.
Dexter took to the stiff looking cot like it was a bed in the guild apartments, and looked to already be lightly snoozing. Micheal dozed off thinking about what he should do. His anxiety had faded over the night spent talking with Sarraleah, but honestly he wasn't sure if he could be certain of her motivations.
In what felt like an eye blink, only vaguely aware of time passing, he was feeling someone getting out of bed beside him. He wasn't totally awake so he didn't really know which one of the women it was, and he drifted back to sleep. A little later he awoke to the sound of the door and Jack's claws as they tapped on the wooden floor boards as he followed after the person who left the room.
Warm hands found his arm and cuddled in. He was so used to cuddling Vivian in the morning like this he didn't think it strange at all and pulled the soft body in to lay close against his chest. She smelled lovely. It felt a bit odd to feel the sheets around her though. So soft. Were the sheets really that soft here?
His hands ran down her sides and to her hips and waist. The sheet covered her end to end. His cuddler made soft sleepy sounds. He pulled her close not really thinking about how odd that voice might have sounded to his ears otherwise. Something brushed up against his face and lips. Slowly he opened his eyes and blinked a few times to get them to focus on the close object.
In the disorientation of sleep he touched the fuzzy soft shapes and out of habit felt along the side of her as she yawned and cuddled in close making soft pleasant noises as he touched the soft ears.
Yeah they were ears. Big ones. Like a floppy-eared dog… or a bunny.
Alertness came and his faculties with it. He in fact had a full handful of Luna's luscious hips and another of her overly sensitive ears. Her eyes were slowly opening and coming to full wakefulness too. She looked up at him with a blush on her face not really seeing him. Her ears flopped down and she moved his hand off her hip. She looked back up at him again to blink once, then twice, then her eyes started to go wide.
Micheal quickly pulled his hand off her head as both of hers slapped over her ears and she stared up at him half mortified and half indignant.
“Were you...” She asked in a whisper recoiling from him.
“No, I think I thought you were Vivian.” He whispered quickly, his voice a little rough with sleep. “I didn't really wake up until I had your ears touching my face.”
She looked about the early dawn room and froze as Dexter rolled onto his side on the cot. Her ear perked up and listened for a moment then she peaked over Micheal and back around her.
“How did I get to this side of the bed?” She asked in a fierce whisper.
“You came to me.” He whispered back defensively.
“Then why are you hard?!” She demanded in a hissing whisper filled with embarrassed outrage.
He checked on that, oh yeah, yeah he was. No hiding that. Heat flushed his face.
“Sorry, that just happens when I lay in a bed with a woman and feel her hips.” He whispered without thinking. His mind was filled with thoughts of Vivian courtesy of his libido.
“You!” Luna whispered loudly before covering her mouth. “You did then!” She said in an accusatory hiss that was much quieter.
“In my sleep yeah. I said I thought you were Vivian wrapped up in blankets or something.”
She frowned hard and made an angry face, but wiggled back to her spot taking most of the blankets with her.
“Keep that thing away from me then.” She snarled.
“Sorry sorry. Vivian and I have been well...active...sorry.” He whispered trying to sound as honest as he was, and very apologetic. “I'm honestly surprised we don't get up late every day.” He confided saying anything to get away from his mortifying embarrassment and making it worse with his careless tongue.
Luna turned a bit red as her imagination took flight. “You mean you guys..how many times? And in the bath you said...” Her face went even redder. “Are you trying to end up like Lindsey and Mike or something?”
“No, but..” He scratched his head. Vivian was...clingy...during sex. Half the time he could have stood up and jumped and not shaken her off. The look on her face when he pinned her down and did it was even better. He felt himself start to grin.
“Why...why are you looking at me like that?” Luna whispered nervously, pulling a pillow down to hold against her chest.
“What?” He whispered. “No that-- I was—nothing. Let's just get up. I'm too awake to stay in bed any longer.”
He adjusted himself and got to his pack and pulled out clothes. Dexter rolled over again not having changed at all or using a blanket to cover himself using only his cloak for that and yawned til his jaw cracked loudly.
“Morning.” He said sleepily after pushing past the great big yawn.
Luna got up and scooted past Micheal quickly. She opened her pack and put a dress out on the bed before returning to the pillow she still held to her chest. Her hair was tied back in a loose bun and still fairly neat, but she got out her brushes and combs and set them out on the bed too. She looked at Micheal and then at Dexter who was still pulling up from sleep, and then undid her buttons as Micheal looked away.
Micheal changed and got his staff from beside the door and waited without looking for Luna and Dexter to join him at the door. Luna came first with her comb in one hand, and brush working through her hair in the other. Dexter stumbled along after her, his eyes a little wide. Luna had changed right in front of him, front row seat. From the blush on her face she either knew that or was still embarrassed from how they woke up. The glance back at Dexter showed Micheal which it was.
They headed downstairs with all their things on their backs once again. Micheal made sure to have grabbed Vivian's pack too and had it over his shoulder with her belt of swords and her spear in hand with his staff. Noise came from the other half dozen rooms as the others too woke and started getting ready. There was lots of clanking, jingling, and giggling coming from the room where Sarraleah had opted to move in and sleep with Julia and Pelanna.
That should have made him more nervous than it had, but Leah had taken to both of them about as well as she had to Lindsey or Luna. Better maybe at least after introductions.