Astrid tells me our time is almost expired.

Astrid sighs before much can be exchanged. “You have to leave again soon.”

“How soon?” You ask, feeling disappointed too.

“30 seconds,” she sighs deeper. “A minute at most.”

Despite the lack of time remaining, you feel little to no urgency. Instead, you let all the air out of your lungs as you look upward, feeling satisfied and well. “We’ll see each other again soon, won’t we?”

“Unless Scarlet gets you killed somehow. I don’t like that girl very much,” Astrid does a long stretch, showing her hourglass figure, and then gets off the lounging chair. “However, I prefer her over Alexandra. Scarlet is much more cunning but also more of an individual. She’s prideful.”

You think about it and concur Astrid is correct in her observations. “Think I made the right choice in sticking with her, then? Or was it a fatal mistake on my end?”

Astrid becomes dressed. You aren’t sure she became NOT naked, but she was again in her bikini with a towel over her waist. She wasn’t any less alluring, however, but now that you’re done with your activities, you don’t feel anything lustful in either your mind or nether regions. She bowed slightly, drying her hair. “I’m not God,” she winks at you. “I cannot say for certain. Alexandra would have must certainly remained loyal to Amara, but Scarlet might return the fire you started her memory.”

Your cheeks become red-hot, and you realize Astrid might’ve been present when you **** Alexandra and Scarlet. Your eyes dart away, and you stammer. “You saw that then?” You say out loud, but you’re again in the shower at Tiny’s Tavern. You blink away the water and look around. Then, you’re wide awake, and the world is again before you.

Scarlet is in the other room, probably still sleeping. You didn’t know how much time had passed in the world of mortals, but you figure you’ve only been in the shower for a handful of minutes, no more than the near hour you spent with Astrid. Despite doing nothing more than soaking, you do refresh and relatively clean from the rinse. You step out, dry off, and rejoin Scarlet, almost expecting her to be awake, but she isn’t…She’s sleeping.

You attempt to wake her up, but she kicks you away from her. “I’m tired,” she mumbles.

Scarlet has planted herself in the center of the bed, moving it impossible for you to lie down too. You sigh, taking stock of what you could do now that you’re left to your own devices. Tiny’s Tavern hadn’t changed itself, but you only knew Delilah, none of the others.

On the other hand…

“Scarlet, make some space for me.”

“Wake me up in an hour,” she groans and then thinks. “And 5 minutes.”

“Scarlet,” you say a little more urgently. “If we’re together, we ought to–”

Scarlet shoots up, looking incredibly disgruntled now. “I’m fucking tired, Warren. I’ll get out of this bed when I feel like it.”

She plops down to the sheets and rolls herself in them, covering not just her face but every part of her body beside a foot, which sticks out lazily from the blankets. You stare at it for a moment and then roll your eyes.

You regard your uniform on the chair along with the other discarded equipment. You could quickly leave the room and go out to look around. Lord knows that the local businesses won’t be busy, so you could take whatever advantages this place offers, and considering Miranda’s reaction to your outfit, you might get some special treatment.

Perhaps finally feeling the sensation of “cold feet,” Scarlet’s feet slither into the warmer interior of her blanketed fortress. You consider annoying her to see if she’ll wake up, but you go against the thought and put on your clothes and step out of the room. You’re met with silence, but when you start moving around, you hear the floorboards below you protest every step you take forward.

Once you are in the lobby, you’re met with a few options. Miranda is still at the counter, and she’s looking at you from where she is behind the counter. She wiggles her fingers at you, giving a playful gesture of “hello,” and the doors that lead outside almost beckon you to leave. You racked your brain, trying hard to remember the places Delilah talked about before you left. You vaguely remembered her talking about the massage parlor she wanted to visit, but you could also run your original trails and visit the bounty board for old-time's sake. Then again, Miranda is there too, and she could be an exciting person to get to know, perhaps fill in as a companion while Scarlet snoozes.