Time to sweat and get dripping wet

“Puaah! Wheew! That was fun!” Holly surfaced with a gasp. She’d been swimming laps around the outdoor pool. “It feels like it’s been an eternity since I got to swim!”

She’d changed out of her maid costume into an incredibly skimpy bikini. She only regretted that Nick wasn’t here to see it.

“Aren’t you guys going to come swimming?” She pouted, paddling up to the side of the pool and poking her head out. The other women were all sitting around the table chatting. “It’s not every day you get to have access to a villa like this!”

She turned to Kim. “You’ve been working on your figure with Dani, right? Wouldn’t you like to show it off?”

“Yeah, Kim, don’t you want to show off?” Rose teased.

Kim rolled her eyes. “I wouldn’t mind swimming,” she admitted. “Only one problem though.” She glanced at Sylvia, who batted her eyelashes innocently.

“Hmm?”

“The only swimsuits I’m allowed to wear are those school swimsuits from anime,” she scowled. “No, thanks, those make me feel like I’m still a child!”

“As opposed to the school uniform?” Dawn asked curiously, raising her eyebrow.

Mary giggled in spite of herself.

“Sorry, Kim, but rules are rules,” Sylvia shrugged. “But I’m surprised. With all the time you spend every day half-naked in the boutique, I thought you’d be happy to wear something a little less revealing like a one piece. Are you saying you’d rather try on a skimpy bikini like Holly’s?”

Holly got out of the water and posed to make a point, showing off her petite figure.

“No, of course not!” Kim scowled, her cheeks flushing. “It’s just… you know! I want to wear something that looks nice on me, and those swimsuits are about as far from flattering as you can get! I’d much prefer to wear something else!”

“I think I know what it is,” Rose tittered. “There’s no point in wearing a swimsuit at all if Nick isn’t here to show off for!”

Kim’s blush grew even brighter. Holly joined in on the giggling herself now.

“Really, Kim?” She asked excitedly. “You want to show off to master as well? That’s just perfect! I would love to help you out with that again!”

She had fond memories of the last challenge, where Kim had stripped naked and served herself up to Nick on a silver platter.

Kim blushed. Her memories of that morning were a little less invigorating.

But just a little.

“I’d like to swim,” Morgana admitted quietly. “But, uh… can I really do it, looking like this?”

Morgana had first learned to swim in her slender, petite body. And that had been years ago. Due to her allergic reaction to anything related to being outside, it had been way too long since the last time she’d gotten in the water.

“You should be fine,” Rose assured her. “Fat floats.”

Kim swatted her in the head.

“Ow!”

“It’s not an issue,” Dawn assured her. “As long as air is properly entering and exiting the lungs, the human body is naturally buoyant, regardless of fat deposits. With that being said, fat can make a body less buoyant as well, but without oxygen in the lungs anybody will sink in fresh water.”

Kim, Rose, Mary, and Holly all recoiled a little at that bit of fun trivia. Morgana just leaned in excitedly. She loved morbid stuff like that.

“Maybe I should give it a shot, then!” She suggested.

“Don’t worry,” Dawn assured her. “If you drown, I’ll give you CPR. And at least those two will be able to haul you out,” she added, jutting her thumb at Kim and Rose.

Sylvia rolled her eyes. “You won’t be drowning on my watch anyway,” she assured the goth. “Enjoy yourself.”

“Alright! Great!” Morgana ran back inside, her curvy frame jiggling as she went. There was a changing room deep in the villa with countless different outfits to pick from, including swimsuits. Just another benefit of staying at this place.

“What about you, Dawn?” Holly asked, turning to the doctor. “Mary?”

“I’d rather not,” Mary admitted sheepishly. “My swimsuit is going to be rather racy, I’m pretty sure…”

She glanced at Sylvia, who pointedly looked away.

That answered that.

As for Dawn…

“My tail would get wet,” she said simply. “And so would my ears. No thanks. Just taking showers is frustrating enough, you know how hard it is to dry those things?”

“Oh…” Holly looked down sheepishly. She hadn’t even considered that.

“She’s just lying,” Sylvia said. “The real reason is because she doesn’t want to have to compare her body in a swimsuit. It’s the same reason she doesn’t like going to the hot spring.”

Dawn glared at the host.

“Anyway, this is fun and all, but when are we going to get to the real action?” Rose asked, leaning back in her seat. “I’m fine with sitting out and chatting, but couldn’t we at least get some drinks to go along with this?”

“I’m too young to drink,” Kim said automatically. “I’m only 20, remember?”

“And Morgana is 18,” Mary pointed out. “She’s definitely too young.”

“Right, and Dawn’s like 12 or 13” Holly added.

The other women burst out laughing, even Mary. Dawn’s eye twitched.

“Well, I want to have a drink,” Rose decided, getting up out of her chair. “It’s not a bachelorette party without some refreshments!”

She headed into the villa, seeking out the wine cellar, because yes, the villa had one of those.

After she left, Sylvia turned to the other ladies at the party.

“This is nice,” she mused. “Nice and peaceful.”

“For now, anyway,” Dawn said coldly. “But who knows how long that’s going to last.”

Sylvia’s eyes widened. She looked genuinely surprised.

“You’re so suspicious, Dawn! I’m just trying to throw a nice party for our Pretty Mary Sunlight!” Sylvia placed her hand over her chest. “I swear, you have nothing to be concerned about my girls. I don’t want to make you do anything you don’t want to do.”

Dawn eyed her suspiciously, still not convinced. But that wasn’t the point of her question anyway. “That’s not what I’m talking about,” she said, shaking her head. “I meant the fact that the next challenge is coming up soon.”

“Yeah, that’s right,” Kim said, nodding. A small frown crossed her face. “That means someone else is going to be eliminated.”

“I know…” Mary felt pretty safe given her immunity idol, but that didn’t stop her from worrying about the others.

The mood at the party took a turn for the worse. Nobody wanted to be the next one out.

“Hey, come on guys!” Holly tried to pick up everybody’s spirits. “There’s nothing to worry about! I got eliminated, and I’m as happy as could be!”

Her words were less than convincing.

“…Thanks,” Dawn said, wincing a little. “But I’d rather not live the rest of my life in a cage.”

“Come on, Dawn, that’s not going to happen,” Sylvia assured her.

“…It’s not, huh?” Dawn stared blankly at her.

“No, of course not!” The blonde laughed. “Cages are for wild animals. A tamed little kitten like you will get a nice and cozy little kitty bed right next to her master!”

If it wasn’t for the stupid “no harming the host rule” Dawn would have smacked her in the face. Why did she get invited to this again?

“I’m worried,” Mary verbalized. “I don’t want anyone to get eliminated. Holly was one thing… she’s still here, you know? But after what happened to Mimi…”

They all had two sets of memories, one of Mimi, and one of Marley, Carly’s twin sister. And both felt completely real, even though they knew only one of them was.

“It’s not like Mimi’s gone, though, right?” Kim pointed out. “She just became Marley, that’s all. It’s still her inside.”

“That’s right,” Dawn said, nodding. “Trust me. I’ve been living with those two. And yes, Marley is a little more animated and a little more outspoken. But she’s not a clone of Carly or anything like that; she’s still Mimi. At least, she still feels like Mimi.”

“Because she is Mimi.” Sylvia’s cold declaration was like a bucket of ice water thrown onto the other girls. She looked around the table. “Marley is Mimi,” she said again, just to make sure everybody heard her the first time. “She’s human now. And she has new memories. But she hasn’t changed. Not where it matters.”

Sylvia had a glassy look in her eye. She stared out over the ocean, and for a moment, everyone there thought she was going to start crying.

Then like nothing had ever happened, she turned her attention back to them and smiled. “Sorry, where was I? Oh, right. Yes. Mimi. Don’t worry my girls. Mimi became Marley because the foundation was there. Marley is the person who Mimi was always destined to become. Certainly, the details might have been different, and the history had more than its share of influence, but at her core, Marley is Mimi with a bit of life experience, that’s all.”

The smile she wore didn’t look **** in the slightest!

“So you girls don’t need to worry! Even if you do get eliminated, you’ll still be yourselves. It’s just that certain things may change about you to facilitate your new roles! And just because you won’t be in Nick’s harem in an official capacity anymore, that doesn’t mean you won’t still have your role to play! Isn’t that right, Holly?”

Holly grinned and nodded.

The other women shivered. No one liked the sound of that idea.

“Somehow the possibility of becoming Nick’s cat isn’t exactly an appealing one for me,” Dawn scowled. She’d seen the future that Sylvia intended for her, and it wasn’t a flattering one at all. Don’t get me wrong, a part of me would love the idea of just shirking my responsibilities like that and living a life as a pampered house pet. But even I have my dignity!

The thought of wagging her tail and begging her master for “treats” made her nauseous.

“I wouldn’t mind, myself,” Mary said quietly, playing with the cross hanging from her neck. “Becoming Nick’s wife… that’s my ‘path’ right? Well… I’m almost there anyway.”

“Don’t think like that, Mary,” Kim urged her. “That’s the same thinking that led Holly to just give up for Rose.”

“Are you saying I shouldn’t have done that?” Holly asked. “You’d rather Rose have been eliminated, then?”

“Also, you know, I’m the one who made that choice to begin with,” Dawn pointed out, wincing a little. “So you’re kind hitting me in the crossfire on that one.”

“S-sorry…” Kim turned red. “That wasn’t what I intended…”

“What about you, Kim?” Mary turned to Sylvia. “My role is to be Nick’s wife, Dawn is… his cat, I guess, and Holly is Nick’s s-s-sex ****…”

Her voice caught saying those words and she blushed.

“B-but… what’s Kim’s role in the harem supposed to be?”

Kim frowned. She remembered her alternate self from the challenge. Vapid, self-absorbed, vain, and shallow. Everything Kim wasn’t.

“I think I’m supposed to be some kind of schoolgirl slut,” Kim admitted, feeling a little sick just at the thought of it. “Not that something like that is really a role…”

“I’ll admit, Kim was one of the harder ones to place,” Sylvia admitted. “After all, she’s still a bit of a blank canvas. You’re a jack-of-all-trades, you know that?”

Kim didn’t know if that was a compliment or not. “Um… thank you?”

“What that means is that if you do get eliminated, I might have to get… creative,” Sylvia said thoughtfully, playing with the head of her cane. “But don’t worry my girls. I already promised Nick that I wouldn’t do anything too severe to the contestants who get eliminated. And I’m a host of my word!”

Somehow, nobody was reassured by that statement.

Kim had a question of her own. “Does that apply for Dakota as well?” She asked warily. Dakota was her buddy, after all. If Kim did well in the next challenge (which she fully intended to) then Dakota would be the one on the chopping block instead.

Having made the decision once already to eliminate another contestant, and having the outcome of that be rather problematic for everybody, Kim didn’t know if she could take that responsibility again.

A shadow crossed over Sylvia’s face.

“I remember you saying something about Dakota’s punishment for losing being really severe,” Mary said warily.

Dawn nodded. “I remember too. You said if she’s eliminated, you’ll undo her transformations and turn her back into a ghost.”

That made the table fall silent. No one would risk eliminating Dakota with THAT on the line.

Sylvia made a face. “…Oh. Right. That.”

“Yeah,” Dawn scowled. “That.”

“Well, let’s just forget about that, then,” Sylvia said, waving her hand. “The exit transformations are going to be tamer now. And frankly, the only reason I said something like that was because I was trying to talk big.”

“So what, you were just lying?” Mary scowled. So much for being a host of her word.

“It’s more like… puffery, yes, that’s a good word for it!” Sylvia flashed a playful smile. “I was just trying to pump things up a little! You know how it is. Gotta look your best for the fans out there, and the audiences love a ruthless host!”

Now that she’d somewhat settled into her own role, and was starting to ingratiate herself with the girls (she assumed) she didn’t need to be nearly as heartless.

“Dakota will have her own role to play in the harem, should she get eliminated,” Sylvia assured her. “Now, I can’t promise that she’ll be happy with it, or that any of you will be happy with it, but, well, that’s how the cookie crumbles.”

She shrugged.

“Besides, what matters most is that Nick is happy, wouldn’t you agree? I think Dakota would.”

No one really felt comfortable answering that question. While, yes, Nick’s happiness was important, not everyone was convinced that it should be more important than their own well-being, except maybe Mary, and Holly, of course.

“I think it’s fine!” The pixie girl chirped. “Dakota should be happy getting to serve master…”

She started to drool, which only made things more awkward.

“I’m back!”

Rose’s entrance onto the patio thankfully diverted the conversation from the awkward topic that it had been **** into. She held a bottle of champagne in her hands, and proudly paraded it in front of everyone.

“So, what are you all talking about, hmm?” She asked curiously, studying the complicated expressions on everyone’s faces. She knew how to read people, and could see that the other girls were feeling rather down.

“Just discussing our places in Nick’s harem, that’s all,” Dawn said, frowning.

“I see… well, I can’t say I dislike mine too much,” Rose said, popping the cork on the champagne bottle. No one questioned why there were crystal glasses suddenly sitting at every open spot on the table.

“What, as his bimbo?” Dawn raised her eyebrow, surprised that Rose would be on-board with that outcome. While she wasn’t exactly close with the blonde, she thought Rose’s standards were a LITTLE better than that.

“Hmm? No! As his personal actress, trying on a variety of roles just to suit him, of course!” Rose boasted, holding her head high and placing her hand over her heart. “And knowing that no matter what role I play, he’ll always love me for who I am!”

Saying it like that made it sound rather nice, actually.

“Nope, you’re the bimbo gold digger,” Sylvia said, crushing Rose’s dreams in a second.

“What?!”

Sylvia took a sip from her glass and smirked. “You make such a good bimbo… it’s only fitting.”

Holly burst out laughing and Rose seethed at her.

“I think I’ll have some of that champagne, actually,” Dawn said, reaching for the bottle. Everyone was surprised by that response.

“You?” Rose didn’t mind pouring her a glass, but she was shocked that the other woman would be up for that.

“After this conversation… fucking yes,” Dawn cursed. It was like she’d been suddenly possessed by the spirit of Gina. “I really don’t want to think about this.”

Dawn tried to avoid **** as a rule. Not only was it bad for you, but she didn’t like not being the smartest person in the room, and **** did funny things to her brain that impeded her ability to think critically.

Right now, though, thinking critically wasn’t exactly what she wanted to be doing.

The next person to take up the offer was even more of a surprise.

“Um… me too, please,” Mary said, raising her hand shyly like she was in the classroom.

Rose looked even more shocked at that, and she wasn’t alone.

“Mary, are you sure?” Kim asked.

“I’ve had **** before!” Mary defended herself.

“A sip of wine at church isn’t quite the same thing,” Dawn pointed out.

Mary’s cheeks puffed up. “I have! On my last date with Nick! We shared a bottle of champagne on a nice romantic boat ride!”

“Well… okay, then, if you insist,” Rose said, pouring some champagne into Mary’s flute. She made sure not to give the redhead too much.

Mary took the glass and stared at it warily, like the liquid inside was going to leap out and bite her.

“It’s not battery acid,” Dawn said. “It’s not going to hurt you.”

“I-I know,” Mary hotly replied. “I’ve had it before, it’s just… well…”

She reminded herself that this was her bachelorette party and she was supposed to be cutting loose a little. Then she took a little sip, barely even wetting her lips. How daring!

“I’ll have some too, but maybe later,” Holly said. “Swimming and **** don’t mix. And I’m not ready to get out yet, not with Morgana coming out soon.”

Good sense from Holly? It was a miracle.

“I’ll take some too.”

Five jaws dropped and five pairs of wide eyes turned to Kim.

“…You?” Sylvia asked, stunned.

“You want a drink?” Dawn couldn’t believe it.

“Uh… yeah,” Kim said. “What, is that wrong?”

“Yes! Yes, that’s very wrong!” Mary exclaimed. “You’re only 20! You’re not allowed to drink yet!”

“Oh, please, in France she’d be allowed to get as plastered as she likes,” Rose said, rolling her eyes.

“Look, it’s not like I’m going to turn into Gina or anything, I just want to try it!” Kim begged. She wanted to live more, not just be some stuffed-up do-gooder. She wanted to live life how Nick encouraged her to! “Come on, just a little? Or are you not even going to let me drink the champagne at your toast tomorrow?”

Mary bit her lip. Kim raised a good point, but…

Before anyone could decide anything one way or another, Morgana walked out onto the patio in an extremely skimpy swimsuit.

“So, uh… swimming?” She asked hopefully. Her eyes scanned the awkward expressions on everyone’s faces.

“What did I miss?”