<~> CHAPTER 53

Now that I was near the lake, a lot of the false bravado I had before was gone and I was feeling nervous about the prospect of being naked in front of my girlfriend again. It hadn't taken long to get over here and I didn't hear any monsters around. The hardest ones to detect would be the dumb hawks that liked to dive-bomb me but those aren't particularly threatening either. I perked my ears for the sound of any monsters all the same.

I set Luna down and shifted back to my human form. Glancing at her, I saw she was already stripping out of her robes and neatly folding them into a pile. I looked away and blushed as I started to strip myself naked as well. We wouldn't need to wash anything this time, we had done that last time and frankly, the clothes were probably just going to get dirty again. It wasn't like we could change our clothes regularly down here. I might choose to carry more underclothes with me in the future though.

Shaking my head I finished undressing. I was getting lost in my thoughts because I was nervous I think. I spied another peek at Luna and found that she was just watching me undress now which only made me blush more. Deciding to get it over with I finished stripping and came over to her. She glanced at my body but I didn't get the feeling that it was an overly sexual look, more like a curious glance. The two of us walked down the short beach and dipped into the warm pool of water. Luna didn't decide to go far, she went a little less than waist deep and sat down.

Blushing I sat down next to her and stared at the permanently orange sky.

("It's pretty here, isn't it? I enjoy being on this floor, even though it isn't very lucrative. The dungeon is a pretty wonderous place.") Luna relaxed into the warm water and leaned back a little.

I smiled and followed her gaze to the frozen sunset off in the distance. ("It is pretty amazing. Though I found the crystals on the floor-before-last more impressive.")

("Those are pretty amazing as well,") she agreed.

There was a moment of relaxed silence and I took the opportunity to wash some of the blood and sweat off of me. It was becoming a bit old how often I had to clean blood off myself now.

("Helena... can I ask you something?") Luna asked.

I turned to look at her with a sheepish smile on my face. ("That kind of question scares me, but sure.")

She turned to look at me too, her gaze once again traveling across my body before landing back on my face. I blushed at the thought of her checking me out like that.

("I'm a little curious why you're so modest. You seem almost... ashamed of your body, but I think you look great.")

I looked down at myself. My body did look kind of amazing now, even more so than when I first arrived in the dungeon. I was looking pretty muscular but I still had a hint of fat in the right places that kept me looking feminine despite that. As much as I was a tomboy I didn't really want to look like a dude either, and even after the last change that packed even more muscle on my body I still thankfully looked like a woman.

I looked back up at the sunset and frowned. ("I... didn't always used to look like this. I told you earlier about the competition I had been training for right?")

Luna bobbed her head at me so I continued, ("Well... before that, I didn't use to exercise, like, at all. And I didn't really eat very well either. Lots of junk food.")

("What's junk food?") she asked.

("Junk food is like... cheap and really tasty food but it's kind of bad for you and has a lot of empty carbohydrates. Oh, those are like grains and sugars... Anyway, before I started training for the triathlon I weighed a lot more, I had been borderline obese. I used to be shorter before whatever the umber hound did to me too so that much weight was... extremely unhealthy. I wasn't really concerned about it before but I probably would have gotten really sick because of it when I got older. I don't like to think about how bad I was at the time, I had just been rejected by this person I liked, a co-worker, and it made me depressed. Even recently I told myself I was 'only a little chubby' after I quit that job but I was just bullshitting myself. I weighed way too much and I needed to lose weight. I had been overweight for a long time, all through high school. I broke myself out of the depression spiral I was in after that rejection by training for the triathlon. I committed to a pretty ridiculous training regimen because I wouldn't have been able to complete it otherwise. Dieting was almost worse than the exercise was but I was determined to compete in that triathlon, not even win, just make it through. By the time that umber hound dragged me here I had lost around forty pounds in only six months and combined with the weight training I did, I looked great... probably for the first time in my life.")

Luna glanced at me. ("I can't even imagine you being that large... How did you get anything done while weighing that much?")

("Where I came from all I had to do was study mostly. My mom made enough money to put me through college so I just... went to school and tolerated it. The work I did was mostly retail so it was a little bit of walking and moving mostly light things around. It wasn't difficult work. I was used to being the 'fat girl' but the teasing and mean comments bothered me so much that I... didn't like showing my body off to other people. I often wore baggy clothes and loose sweatshirts to hide how chubby I was... I almost had a panic attack the first time I started training at the pool in the gym. There were other overweight people there and the gym is a place where you're meant to lose weight and workout, but I couldn't stop myself from feeling like everyone was going to laugh at me. I ended up going home the first time and trying again a week later. It was only because I knew I had to practice swimming for the triathlon that made me finally get past my nerves and do it. No one laughed and it was okay but I still remember how scared I was...")

Luna's hand reached out and took mine under the water. I smiled and squeezed it. ("I'm not used to being attractive or strong. I had only started looking better recently and then whatever that umber hound did to me made me look even better. I didn't notice it at first but I'm taller and more muscular than before too, and now I look even stronger after that last heart... So... to answer your question, up until very recently, I was ashamed of my body and it was only within the last few weeks that I'm... not as disgusted with myself. I'm still a little shy though, I'm not used to the attention.")

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

("Does it bother you when I look at you?") Luna asked. She was trailing her thumb across my knuckles as we both gazed ahead.

("I... No, I don't think so... It is a bit embarrassing but I like it when you look at me like that... Do you think I'm attractive?")

Luna leaned her naked shoulder against mine. ("I do. Very much so. I think you're the most attractive woman I've ever met. But I may be a bit biased, you're also a very kind person who's saved my life at least twice.")

My face felt hot and I couldn't look at her without feeling like I would burst into flames. Instead, I squeezed her hand. ("O-oh,") was all I could manage to reply. I leaned back against her shoulder and let my emotions settle. ("I think you're beautiful too, you're stunning. And your cute ears and tail make you look even more amazing. I was really nervous that I was misreading the signals you were giving me... I've never had someone flirt with me the way you were... and the last time I thought it was happening I had completely misunderstood the situation.")

Luna leaned forward and peeked at my face with a small grin and a hint of a blush. ("I was flirting with you harder than I had ever seen anyone flirt. I was a little worried you weren't catching my hints at all, I had to put myself in your lap for you to realize how I felt.")

I chuckled awkwardly. ("Yeah... I just really wanted to be sure. Could you imagine how awkward it would have been if I kissed you and you weren't flirting with me though?")

She trailed a finger across her lips. ("I don't think it would have been that bad.")

I rolled my eyes. ("Sure")

Luna scooted back behind me. ("Let me wash your back. Your big muscles must make it hard to reach.")

I laughed. ("I'm actually plenty flexible but I won't refuse a pretty girl rubbing my back.")

She pushed water up my back and traced along it with her delicate fingers. The subtle massage felt nice and I closed my eyes as she ran her hands up and down.

("Helena... Thanks for telling me all this. I wasn't sure how to interpret how you were acting and I was a little afraid you were worried about getting closer to me. Where we come from, bathing with friends and family is seen as... somewhat of a bonding ritual. I've been trying not to push you, or make you feel like you have to come to a fast decision about our engagement, but I do worry about you turning me down still... We haven't known each other for long but I want you to know that I hope you accept me.")

I turned around and stared into her eyes. The white glow of my eyes reflected the blue in hers like glittering gems.

("Luna... I'd like to think I'm a pretty straightforward person. I'm not the best with relationships and... to be honest, you're the first person I've ever been in this kind of relationship with before at all. I am a little nervous and worried... but it's because I'm afraid I'll mess something up. I really do like you a lot. I wouldn't avoid something like this because I don't want to get closer to you, in fact, I only want to get closer to you. I don't like people who play with other people's emotions and try to manipulate them, so I promise you that's never what I'm doing. I... might not be ready to promise you that we'll get married yet but it's because I'm not ready for it, not because there's something wrong with you.")

Luna hugged me from behind and I locked up for a second when I realized her bare breasts were pressing against my back.

Her voice came through the rings like a whisper. ("Okay. I'll trust you. Can I talk to you if something like this happens again?")

("Please do,") I replied. ("There will probably be lots of things I don't know about, customs and mores I don't understand. Just be patient with me and explain things to me if you think I'm missing something.")

("Then you need to promise to do the same. Tell me if I'm doing something that isn't to your tastes and suggest things that could bring us closer. Tell me more about the customs of your people. And... promise me that if you're ready to become engaged, that you won't leave me waiting.")

I turned to face her despite my hesitancy to be seen nude. Despite my blushing cheeks, I focused my gaze on her face. ("I promise.")

She scooted forward and pulled me into a kiss. Our naked bodies pressed up against each other but it distracted me from the intensity of the kiss for only a moment. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her closer to me before deepening our kiss further. We made out naked in the shallows of the lake for longer than I thought I would enjoy.

When she finally pulled away and rested her head on my shoulder I didn't feel as nervous about being naked around her anymore. I would still probably blush and be shy when she looked at me but I felt a bit closer to her now.

Luna leaned up and placed another kiss on my cheek before smiling up at me. ("Can I ask you to wash my back now? It's customary to offer after I washed yours.")

I grinned down at her. ("Sure, I would love to.")

We spent a while longer at the lake just the two of us. When we finally returned to camp together, everyone was wondering where the hell we had been for so long. I couldn't help but laugh it off and tell them I had enjoyed the water too much, but I was glad that the two of us had gotten to spend that much time alone. I felt closer to Luna than ever now.