Facing fears (End of Act 4)

Saeko did not hurry with her task. It was more important to get it done correctly than to simply get it done. She began by spending more time with the amazon, asking the occasional question about her homeland, her culture, or even Myrina herself. The kitsune was especially careful to avoid any potentially sensitive topics, identifying early on that Myrina did not like to talk about her family or her love life, though she had expected the latter from the beginning. Aware that friendship was reciprocal, the kitsune also occasionally shared small tidbits of her own past, though she was careful not to allow any hint of her true allegiance to slip through. Her efforts were made more difficult by the fact that Myrina was not particularly talkative by nature, but she'd dealt with the unsociable type before.

Fortunately, she had already begun to lay the groundwork for a friendly relationship on their journey from Eldfall to Fenrir-sama's castle, and so her attentions were much less likely to raise suspicion than they otherwise would have been. Even so, she sometimes caught Myrina giving her a confused glance when she sought out her company. Saeko pretended not to notice.

This approach brought no immediate results, but that was fine. With Fenrir now preparing for a visit to Katari's people, there was plenty to do while she waited for Myrina to open up, and she put herself at the direwolf's disposal whenever she wasn't spending time with the amazon, hoping to advance her overarching goal slightly farther.

She also carried on ingratiating herself into the ranks of his followers, focusing on Safara in particular. The high elf was a puzzle she wanted to solve, particularly after that little tidbit about her losing her magic that Fenrir had dropped in their last conversation. She had gathered from the others that the same slavers which had been responsible for her own capture had also enslaved Safara, and that had been why Fenrir had been in Eldfall in the first place. But why had Safara lost her magic? If such a thing was possible, she would do well to learn the details of how it was done and discover or devise a defense for it. The thought occurred that possibly the mark on the elf's chest might have something to do with it, but without further evidence it was only idle speculation.

Apart from that, however, she still needed to find out how Fenrir had brought Safara to heel. High elves were notorious even throughout the Sakura Isles for their unbending contempt of Dark-races, and to a lesser degree, certain Light-races as well. Yet, this one seemed positively overjoyed to be serving the direwolf, and unless she was much mistaken, was not only carrying the child of Fenrir, but was also happy about it. Saeko did not know what to make of it.

One evening not long before he planned to leave, Fenrir took her aside. "I know it's a bit early to expect anything, but I thought I'd ask. Have you gotten any idea of what's going on with Myrina? She's settled down a bit, I've noticed."

Saeko bowed slightly. "I'm sorry, Fenrir-sama. I have yet to discover anything concrete. If you wish, I can try more aggressive methods."

"No, no; your current approach is just fine. Myrina does need friends, after all." He paused for a moment and Saeko glanced up at his face, noting how his brows drew together slightly when he was thinking. "Do you believe she at least feels comfortable here?"

Now it was Saeko's turn to consider. "I would not quite use that word, but I do not believe she has any intention of leaving in the near future. Whatever her problem with you, she does not intend to run from it, at least at present."

"That's good. I had hoped to have the issue with her resolved before I left to see the oni, but it seems that's not going to happen. I'm planning on taking Katari and Nelith with me as well as Koreen, but I should be back in about a week; two at the most. Kira and Lilli will be in charge while I'm gone; if you can work with them to keep things running smoothly while I'm gone, I'd appreciate it."

"Of course, Fenrir-sama." There was a hint of disappointment that he had not picked her to accompany him, but her reason told her it was simply because keeping her near Myrina was the priority at the moment and not because he thought her unfit to be a companion on a diplomatic mission.

As they returned to the general group in the kitchens, Fenrir thought back over his choice of companions for his upcoming trip. Nelith was a no-brainer; eventually he wanted her to take over the management of the trading and general diplomacy, and for different reasons so was Katari. Even disregarding the request of the oni chief, bringing along someone familiar with the culture was all but necessary.

Koreen, on the other hand, was a bit of a wild card. If he was honest, his choice to take her had nothing to do with the mission itself. Rather, he thought it an excellent chance to get closer to her. Despite her surrender to him during their orgy, she still didn't fully trust him. She had become willing and eager to spread her legs for him, though, and even asked him for some more bondage play more than once, so the evening had not been without progress as far as she was concerned. He was hopeful that the more frequent association this trip would **** them into would help break down the last few barriers she had put up.

Speaking of barriers... He glanced across the room at Violetta. One undesirable side effect of bringing strangers back from Eldfall with him was that she had in large part retreated back into her shell. In an interesting wrinkle, however, Tsavani seemed to have recently been making overtures of friendliness; perhaps she saw a kinship in their situations. Fenrir was fairly certain he had overheard her asking Kira about the cripplingly timid succubus several days before.

Violetta didn't seem to be nearly as afraid of him as she used to be, at least; Fenrir supposed that seeing the person she trusted most now openly considering him to be one of the most wonderful beings to ever live probably helped with that. At this point, the greatest barrier to her opening up to him was probably just how swamped he constantly was with the other girls. Violetta certainly wasn't the type to **** herself into the middle of them and demand a share of his attention herself.

His eyes fell on Chellise as he took his customary spot next to the hearth. She had so far managed to avoid orgasming without permission, though the unfulfilled desire was driving her to distraction. If she managed to maintain her self-control until he got back, she'd have earned the release of her pussy and a good fucking into the bargain.

His attention was attracted by Tsavani claiming the spot next to him. Her manner, both eager and hesitant at once, piqued his curiosity instantly. She didn't speak immediately, however, beyond a soft greeting. He returned it, giving her a smile and relaxing back against the wall before returning his attention to the room at large. Whatever it was she wanted to say, she needed to work up to it herself, so patience would be required on his part.

"Hey, um..." the catfolk began, and then fell silent again.

"Yes, what is it?" Fenrir asked, smiling at her again as he did so. Her ears fell flat in embarrassment and she half-buried her face in the fur which covered his bicep, hugging his arm close to her.

"I, um... You know how awhile back you said that we could ...do it, if I wanted? Is that, um, is that offer still available?"

"Of course. I don't want to **** you into anything, but I'd love to have sex with you if you're comfortable with it."

"Well, I'm not- that is, I don't think- I'm not sure that..." She trailed off again.

Fenrir took her by the waist and moved her to sit in his lap, with his arms around her. She tensed up at the movement, and while she did not resist him, she did not relax into his embrace either. "Listen, Tsavani. I told you then that I would do my best to make sure you enjoyed it, and I still mean it now. If you prefer, you can take the lead for the whole thing. You can dictate the pace, and even decide how far we go. We needn't go all the way the first time if you don't want to. I'd be just fine with only oral, or even just cuddling if that's what would make you the most comfortable. And you don't need to decide all that now, either. If at any point during the act you don't feel comfortable, all you need to do is tell me and I'll stop immediately, no matter what."

Her brilliant orange eyes found his, searching them for any indication of insincerity. Apparently she found none, for she relaxed into him with a little sigh. "Okay. I, um, I want to try it. Maybe just with our mouths at first, like you said, but I don't..." Tsavani took a deep breath. "I want to be free of what they did to me."

Fenrir hugged her a little tighter. "Attagirl. That's the kind of attitude that will ensure you eventually are."

After a little more discussion, they decided that Fenrir would come to Tsavani's guest room in the castle that evening. The sex den was out as the succubi had made it their -and Fenrir's- bedroom, and Tsavani was still a long way from being comfortable with sex in front of a peanut gallery, however supportive they were likely to be. They had just decided on the exact time when the evening meal was declared ready and in the general confusion of everyone getting their food, the two ended up being separated.

Instead, Fenrir found himself seated next to Lilli, who was cradling her baby close with one arm as she handled her food with the other. Looking at the infant, Fenrir could have sworn that she was larger than the last time he had seen her, which had only been that morning. He leveled an inquisitive glance at Lilli. "Am I imagining things, or is Glory growing like a house afire?"

"Yes, she is," the motherly succubus replied, glancing down at the little bundle with a warm smile. "She'll probably be walking on her own by the time you return."

"Ah, that's right. Succubi only take about a year to reach maturity, don't they?" Now that he thought about it, the direwolf remembered Aimi saying something along those lines when she had first found out she was pregnant.

Lilli nodded. "It's a little sad, because it won't take long at all before she won't be a little baby anymore, but I suppose that just means I need to treasure each moment of her growth more than ever."

Fenrir echoed the movement. "That's true. In comparison to a human baby, she'll be an adult before we can even blink."

He looked Glory over with God's Eye, and was promptly shocked at the amount of mana that was concentrated in the baby's tiny body. 'Holy hell, she's practically bursting with it. Is that how she's able to grow so quickly? It's not as if her mother has a particularly large pool of mana, and neither did I back when she was conceived.'

He looked back up at Lilli. "Growing that quickly has to take an enormous amount of energy. Do you know how succubi are able to sustain it?"

She shrugged. "I'm not certain. Thinking back, when I was growing up, I certainly wanted food almost constantly, but I can't recall eating nearly as much as I should have needed in order to grow as quickly as I did."

"I see." Internally, Fenrir thought, 'I'll have to see whether Glory's mana decreases as she grows; if it does, then I can safely conclude succubi use mana to accelerate their growth. Considering how succubi are usually born, it makes sense, since they're not likely to have a stable family. The sooner they can be self-sufficient, the better their chances of survival. Said chances are low enough to begin with.'

He was pulled from his thoughts by Lilli saying, "So have you decided when you're going to leave?"

"As soon as Mitzi gives birth. She should be coming to term within the week; frankly, I'm surprised she hasn't given birth already."

The blonde head beside him dipped in acknowledgement. "She's so big it's a wonder she hasn't popped."

Fenrir chuckled. "Well, unlike succubi, goblins are generally pretty fertile, and that's before you factor in my **** virility. Most likely Mitzi's going to have quite a litter on her hands."

"I'm sure we have enough free hands to ensure she doesn't become overwhelmed," Lilli replied. "That said, I hope she'll produce enough milk to feed them all. While normally I'd be happy to serve as wet nurse, Glory is taking all the milk I can give her. I don't really have any left over."

"I can boost her production before I leave if need be," Fenrir said. "Good thinking, though."

Lilli shrugged as though to disavow the compliment, but a small smile lingered about her lips for several minutes afterward.

As the moment they had agreed on approached, Tsavani found herself growing more and more nervous. It was going to be fine. She trusted Fenrir, didn't she? And he'd said that if she felt uncomfortable at any point, he'd stop as soon as she said so. She fiddled with the hem of her nightdress, wondering whether she should take it off after all. Would he prefer that she was naked when he got there? If she did make him stop in the middle, would he be willing to try again some other time, or would she have lost her chance? What if they did it, and it didn't help at all? Maybe this had been a bad idea. She should just tell him that she'd changed her mind. Sex wasn't that important anyway. It wasn't like she'd die without it or anything. She didn't-

The knock on her door made her jump so badly that she almost toppled off the bed. "Tsavani? Are you alright?"

Of course he had heard her startle. Her cheeks flaming, Tsavani hurried to the door and opened it to see Fenrir in all his richly furred glory. He had to duck slightly to avoid bumping his head on the door jamb, and Tsavani found herself surprised all over again at how he seemed to fill the room with his presence. He looked down at her with his wonderful golden eyes and smiled, warm and comforting. "Feeling nervous?"

She swallowed. "I was, but now I think I'm okay."

It was true. The moment he got there her worries seemed to lose most of their bite. If he was with her, she could do this. He wouldn't give up on her just because she had to stop once. It was silly of her to even think that.

"That's my girl."

It was impossible to stop the warm glow that pooled in her chest at the words. His approval was like a thick, cozy blanket, and being called his girl did other things to her, not all of them innocent. To distract herself from the feelings, she asked, "So, um... How do we do this?"

"I expect it would be best if we start slow," Fenrir replied, stepping over to the bed and sitting down on it. "With that in mind, how about you just give me a kiss to start things off?"

Tsavani approached him on feet that were a little more hesitant than she would have liked. With the moment of action now here, not even Fenrir's presence could entirely assuage the fears that rose up inside her. He saw her hesitation and gave her a gentle smile. It seemed to say that he knew she was scared, but that he also knew she could do it and that he would be right there with her for every step. Fortified by this encouragement, she reached up to place her hand on his cheek, running her fingers over the fine soft fur that covered his muzzle. Even with her standing and him sitting, she still had to go up on her tiptoes to reach his lips, but he obligingly bent his head to make it easier for her.

The kiss was slow and soft. True to his word, Fenrir let her choose the pace, only responding in kind, never pushing any farther than she decided to go. She broke it to take a deep breath, and he opened his eyes to look down at her. If he intended to say something, Tsavani never found out, because, feeling suddenly hungry for more, she pressed her lips to his again.

This time, after a few seconds she pressed her tongue forward and Fenrir obligingly parted his lips to let her explore his mouth. His tongue wrestled with hers, not in a struggle for dominance, but in an intricate and inviting dance that had her letting out a moan into his mouth. She pressed herself closer to him and dimly felt his hands come to rest at her waist, but most of her attention was taken up by the kiss.

By the time they broke apart she was thoroughly out of breath, and even he was breathing deeper than normal. As she panted for breath, feeling hot all over, Tsavani caught a glimpse of his eyes. There was hunger in them now; hunger for her. It sent a flash of excitement through her, but also a sudden chill as there rose in her mind the memory of the last time she had glimpsed that hunger in someone's eyes.

"Okay so far?" he asked, his voice still gentle even as an undercurrent of lust suffused it.

"Y-yeah," she nodded. Something in her tone or manner must have betrayed her, because he gave her a sharp look, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he laid back on the bed, gently lifting her to sit atop his thighs as he did so.

"Now I know I can look a bit intimidating, so why don't you take your time to explore me? No hurry, just get comfortable with me."

Tsavani was pretty sure she already felt as comfortable with him as she was going to get, at least in that way, but she didn't tell him that. There was no way she was going to turn down an opportunity to run her hands through his fur, admire his muscles, and examine his male bits in detail. This last thought caught her by surprise, and she realized she was getting way more turned on than she had expected.

Whatever. She had more important things to worry about, such as getting her hands on that impossibly broad chest. She couldn't help letting out a soft exclamation of surprise as she felt the defined muscles under his thick fur. No wonder he was so strong, if he was hiding muscles like these. And his fur was so soft, particularly on his lower chest and stomach. The thick ruff around his neck felt good too, but further down it became gloriously soft, almost as soft as Penumbra's fur. And the contrast of the strength she could feel just beneath sent her imagination in some very exciting directions.

She lay down atop him, pressing her ear to his chest to listen to his heartbeat. A steady lub-dup, lub-dup greeted her, strong and measured. Laying there, she could also feel herself rising and falling with the movement of his breathing. It made her feel very small, but also safe in a way she hadn't felt in a long time. A chuckle rumbled through him that she felt more than heard, and she raised her head to see him looking down at her with that warm smile on his face. She couldn't help but smile back. Perhaps she should have felt embarrassed, because he had definitely been laughing at her, but there was nothing belittling or mocking in his amusement and she found she didn't mind it in the slightest.

She thought about simply lying there with him and enjoying the closeness, but the heat running through her body urged her on to examine the warm thickness she had felt poking her lower stomach through her nightdress. Accordingly, she sat up and scooted backwards to sit on his thighs again. This put his cock right in front of her, spilling out of its sheath and lying heavily on his stomach. She put out a hesitant hand to touch it and jerked back when it twitched under her fingers.

Another chuckle rumbled through the huge frame beneath her, and she looked up at his face again, a little sheepishly this time. "Oh, don't mind me," he said. "Take your time to get acquainted with it. I know it's likely quite a bit bigger than most you've seen."

Heartened, though more by his warm tone than the words he'd said, Tsavani reached out again and took the cock in her hand. It was warm, almost hot, surprisingly heavy, and spongy to the touch, but with a core that seemed to harden under her fingers as she gave it a small squeeze. It pulsed in time with his heartbeat, and even as she watched it began to grow, more of it spilling out of its sheath by the second while with each fresh pulse of blood it became harder, wider, and longer. In moments she needed both hands to encircle it, and her eyes widened as the monolith of cockflesh continued to grow until finally it stood fully erect, almost long enough to brush the underside of her breasts as she sat atop his thighs.

"No way," she breathed. "This is..."

"It's pretty big, I know," Fenrir said, his smile growing into a fullblown smirk.

"It's too big. This would tear me apart!"

"No, not if we take our time. My succubi can take it no problem; so can Safara and Katari and even Mitzi, though she doesn't take it to the base."

"How?" Tsavani tore her gaze from the giant red shaft to level skeptical eyes at Fenrir.

"My precum has special qualities to it that help you stretch around my cock without hurting yourself or tearing anything."

Tsavani eyed his cock doubtfully. There was no doubt that its sheer raw maleness was thrilling and that was only contributed to by its absurd size, but when she pictured trying to take it in her pussy she couldn't imagine enjoying the experience, even if it were somehow possible to escape serious injury doing it.

Maybe he sensed her uncertainty, because Fenrir said, "I know some magic which can also help with that, but we needn't go that far if you're not comfortable with it. Try just playing with it for a bit."

Ah, that was right. She got to choose what they would do, or even if they'd do anything at all. Heartened, she reached out again and took the gigantic cock in her hands, feeling its texture, like silk over steel, its heat, now even hotter than before, and just how alive it felt in her hands. It wasn't the first time she'd touched a cock, even before ...what had happened, but this beast was nothing like those she'd seen before. Just feeling how it twitched under her touch made her pussy clench and a strange ache manifest deep in her belly.

As she ran her hands up its length, a bead of liquid came out of the top and clung there, glistening in the light of the candles. Drawn by an irresistible impulse, Tsavani lowered her head and licked it up. It tasted odd, a little salty, but most prominent was the taste of him. She wasn't even sure how to describe it, but she found herself wanting more and she began moving her hands with purpose, hoping to coax more of it out of him.

Her efforts were quickly rewarded as another bead of precum surfaced and was promptly stolen by her eager tongue. "Try spreading the precum over my cock to lubricate it," Fenrir advised, and she did so. This made it considerably easier to stroke his cock, and it must have felt better too, because he let out a sigh that was half a groan as her hands glided up and down the length of it.

It was also producing precum faster now, enough for Tsavani to place her mouth over the top of his cock and just suck on it. This gave her enough to roll around her mouth, coating all her taste buds in the strangely compelling taste. The smell of him was also stronger down here, a scent that stuck in her head and increased the arousal running through her, clouding her thoughts and making her eager for more.

She lost track of how long she sat worshipping his cock, enjoying the seemingly endless bounty of precum and slowly grinding her panty-clad and by this time entirely soaked pussy along his thigh, but eventually he grunted, "I'm going to cum."

His cum. If his precum tasted this good, what would his cum taste like? Tsavani hadn't even thought of it before he spoke, but now she had to know. She redoubled her efforts, feeling his cock throb under her fingers, watching his stomach flex. She took as much of his cock into her mouth as she could, furiously lashing her tongue over his cockhead.

He groaned, his thighs tensed beneath her, and then his cock pulsed and her mouth was full of his essence. Greedily she gulped it down, but before she had got more than half of it swallowed, another pulse and another mouthful arrived. The third was too much for her and she had to pull off of his cock, allowing the rest of it to shower her face, neck, and chest, probably staining her nightdress beyond repair. She couldn't really bring herself to care at the moment, though, because her mouth was still full to bursting with the most delicious fluid she'd ever tasted, thick and warm and entirely him, and the feeling of being marked with his cum was almost orgasmic after how long she'd just spent teasing herself.

Tsavani took her time swallowing it, then scooping up the cum which covered her face, she sucked it off her fingers. Why did it taste so good? She'd never much liked the taste of cum before. And every new swallow made her pussy ache for something to fill it. "Hey, um..." she started, then trailed off, suddenly bashful.

"Yes?" Fenrir asked, straightening slightly. His eyes swapped from watching the movement of her fingers as they scooped still more cum from her collarbone to look back at her face.

"You, um, you said that you knew some magic that would make it easier for us to... you know. How does that work, exactly?" She wasn't sure why she was asking. There was no way that monster was ever going to fit in her pussy, magic or no magic. But her pussy felt painfully empty, and more than that, she specifically wanted him inside her. She didn't really know why, and right now, she didn't care either.

He sat up fully, scooting her back a little so they could still see each other's faces without craning their necks too much. "It's called flesh shaping. I can alter the length and elasticity of your vaginal canal, among other things. It gets pretty complicated, but the short of it is that you'll be able to take even my cock with no more difficulty than you would a normal-sized one. Mine will probably feel a lot better, though."

The last sentence was said with a teasing little smirk that sent butterflies through her, but she steadfastly ignored them. It was made easier to do so because the sound of this flesh crafting magic was more than a little scary, even if it was Fenrir that was doing it.

He saw her doubt and said, "I've done it before. Nelith wanted to be able to give me a proper blowjob, which according to her is taking the whole of my cock into her mouth and throat."

Tsavani's eyes widened. "What?! This whole thing?" she interrupted, staring at the still fully erect shaft between them and trying to imagine how something that massive could fit inside anyone's mouth.

Fenrir chuckled. "Yes, that whole thing. It took some doing, I'll admit, but- Well, do you remember how she looked when we first arrived here from Eldfall?"

Tsavani thought back. She didn't remember that well, but as far she could tell, Nelith's appearance was more or less still the same as it had been then. "I think so...?"

"That was before I did most of the work on making it possible for her to deepthroat me. Now she can unhinge her jaw at will, and her mouth, cheeks, and throat can all stretch a lot more. I had to strengthen most of the muscle groups in her lower face to make it possible and even change the structure of her jaw, but she still looks and sounds exactly as she did before."

"Wow..."

"Now, if I can do that, I can easily make you able to take my cock in your pussy without discomfort. And it's not as if I can't reverse the changes I make, if that's something you decide you want." He paused as a serious look came into his eyes, and Tsavani instinctively sat up straighter. "I'm not trying to pressure you into anything, Tsavani. I can guarantee that none of the changes I make will affect you in a way you don't want, but if you're not comfortable with having your body changed that's perfectly fine."

Tsavani swallowed. It was a little scary, there was no doubt about that, but... Her gaze fell back to the towering monolith that rose in front of her, still glistening with his precum. She really did want it inside her, and not just because her pussy was crying out for a cock and had been for at least the last fifteen minutes.

Well, it was Fenrir they were talking about. If he said he could do it, she trusted he could. Even from the beginning, he'd never struck her as a liar, or even one of those people who pretended to know more or be better at something than they actually were. It was just the opposite, actually. He was more likely to undersell his abilities than otherwise.

She set her jaw as she looked back up at him. "No, I want it. Can you ...change me, so we can do it together?"

A gentle smile lighted his face as Fenrir raised a hand to cup her cheek. Tsavani leaned her head into the contact almost involuntarily. "Yes, I can." Then his voice became a little more businesslike. "To clarify, all you want is to be able to take my cock without any discomfort or damage, yes?" She nodded, and he echoed the movement. "Alright, then let's get started."

He placed his hand on her lower stomach, making goosebumps break out all over her body, and his brows drew together as he started to concentrate. "Do I need to do anything?" she asked, a little hesitantly.

"No, just hold still for me," he said, breaking his serious expression to smile at her. "This could take upwards of fifteen minutes, so better get comfortable."

Her pussy cried out in dismay at having to wait fifteen more minutes, but she wasn't about to tell him to hurry something like this, so she just nodded and settled herself as comfortably as she could.

He went back to concentrating, staring at her stomach as though he were seeing through the skin to the muscles and organs beneath, which for all she knew, he might be. With eyes narrowed in focus like this, he looked different than how she usually saw him. The warmth of his gaze wasn't entirely gone, but it was subdued now, overtaken by something that snapped like a rope abruptly pulled taut. There wasn't any tension in his shoulders, though, and she realized that while he wasn't at all worried, he was still taking this seriously.

She let her gaze wander down to his shoulders, admiring the sheen of his fur in the candlelight and the way it thickened around his neck before growing more fine again as it approached his stomach. There something else obtruded itself, namely, his cock, still hard and glistening scarlet against the dark background of his fur. It seemed incredible that that would be going inside her before the night was over, but if Fenrir said something was going to happen, it happened. And underneath the anxiety was a growing excitement. She could just see it twitch subtly with each of his heartbeats, and the sight made her pussy clench needily.

To distract herself, she returned her attention to his beautiful furry coat. The extra thickness around his neck narrowed as it faded into the shorter, softer fur on his stomach like an upside-down triangle, ending in one last shaggy point a little below his pectorals. It almost looked like an arrow pointing down to where his cock- damn it. This wasn't doing a very good job of distracting her.

Reaching out, she ran her hands through the fur on his chest and stomach again, causing him to glance at her face and give a little grin before he went back to his task. Assured by this that he didn't mind, she indulged herself fully in the silky soft sensation. Moving up to his neck fluff, she could feel the difference immediately. The coarser guard hairs, while still soft to the touch, just couldn't compare. But underneath, if she dug her hands into his fur, she could still feel that same undercoat, just denser and thicker.

Any further exploration was brought to an abrupt halt by a strange feeling in Tsavani's lower stomach. She let out a squeak and grabbed at it, her hands instead coming to rest on the back of Fenrir's giant palm. He paused and asked, "It doesn't hurt, does it?"

"N-no, not exactly. It just felt really strange."

He nodded. "Let me know if it starts to hurt at any point."

Then he went back to doing whatever it was had given her the weird feeling, but now that she was ready for it, she found it a lot easier to deal with. It even felt good at times, sometimes in an innocent sort of way and sometimes in the ...other kind of way. It really wasn't helping Tsavani calm down any, and especially now that she needed to hold still, the desire to slip her hand into her panties was becoming almost unbearable.

Thankfully, it didn't last much longer. Perhaps five or ten minutes later, Fenrir relaxed, leaning back a little as he let out a ghost of a sigh. "Done," he said. "I've lengthened your vaginal canal and increased its elasticity considerably. I've also made so your cervix is able to dilate enough to accept my cock, and ensured the experience will be pleasurable rather than uncomfortable. That should ensure you're able to take my cock to the base without any issues."

Rather than waste time answering, Tsavani slipped off his thighs and quickly pulled down her panties. They were absolutely sodden with her arousal, but she ignored that and lifted her nightdress over her head.

The first thing she saw as her head came free of the garment was Fenrir's eyes on her naked breasts. It made her suddenly self-conscious; after all, she couldn't begin to compare with someone like Kira, and even the smallest of the succubi chestwise, Violetta, was better endowed than she was, if only by a little. Her hands came up to cover them, causing Fenrir's eyes to flick back up to her face. He frowned upon seeing the expression there.

"Don't be ashamed. Your body is beautiful, all of it."

That just made her blush more. His hands came up to her wrists and gently pulled her hands down. She let him, but found she couldn't bring herself to look up at his face. One of his hands came up and with infinite tenderness, cupped one of her small, soft mounds. His thumb came up to tease her nipple, forcing a gasp out of her, but when he stopped there, she finally found the courage to look back up at him.

Fenrir was looking at her. "Do you want me to keep going?" he asked, giving her breast the barest hint of a squeeze. She couldn't speak, but her nod was enough for him and his thumb resumed its circular motions over her nipple as his other hand came up to give the other breast some attention as well.

Tsavani groaned under the sensation. Somehow he knew just how hard to squeeze, just the right way to tease her nipples, just the right technique to use on her boobs to flood her body with pleasure and make her knees go weak underneath her. Very soon she couldn't take it anymore, and her hands came up to grab his wrists. "Stop, stop," she panted. "I want- I want your cock."

He gave her one last gentle squeeze, then did as she asked. "If we're going to be giving you full control, you'd better be on top, at least to start. Let's see..." Fenrir scooted back on the bed again, lying full length atop the covers. His cock jutted up like some great monument, and Tsavani swallowed hard as she looked at it. But after everything he had done to make this possible, she couldn't bear to stop now. That, and her pussy might never forgive her if she didn't at least try.

Climbing onto the bed herself, she crawled over to where Fenrir was lying. Straddling him again, she raised herself to put his tip at her entrance. She almost had to stand up to do it, and the conviction rose again that there was no way forcing this thing into her could be anything other than painful.

She didn't let herself think about it. Holding his cock with one hand and spreading her lower lips with the other, she met Fenrir's eyes- and sank down.

The first few inches were easy. Between his precum, her saliva (though that had mostly dried by this point), and her own wetness, there was more than enough lubrication to go around. In fact, she made it over a quarter down before the increasing girth stopped her. Well, it wasn't the girth itself so much as the ridiculous amount of pleasure stretching around that girth entailed. In fact, her pussy was stretching far more easily than it had any right to, and much more pleasurably.

Her knees trembled, and she was grateful when Fenrir's hands came up to support her. "You okay?" he asked.

Tsavani nodded, though there was a part of her that wondered if it was possible to die from too much pleasure. She wasn't sure if she'd come yet or not, but the feel of him stretching her pussy had already felt better than any orgasm she could remember having before, and she still had about a foot to go. The thought both excited and terrified her.

She let herself take another few inches, then had to stop to breathe, and to try to control her moans. Looking down at her stomach, she could see a subtle bulge that showed the progress she had made so far. The sight sent an excited twinge through her pussy and apparently Fenrir felt it, because his breath hitched. His grip on her thighs remained rock solid, however, which she was grateful for, because without his support she was fairly sure she wouldn't have had the strength to keep from collapsing, and she was more than a little scared of finding out what taking all of his cock in one fell swoop like that would feel like.

Another couple of inches. Her pussy should have been crying out in agony; instead it was expressing its joy in the strongest language it knew. She was having trouble concentrating on anything except the sensations that started in her lower belly and seemed to reach out to the utmost extremities of her body. Every part of her seemed sexually charged, and she gave up on keeping her volume low.

Another drop, and another pause. The pleasure was overwhelming. She was coming, she realized, and had been from almost the first moment she had taken him inside her. "How-" Her voice seemed odd to her ears, and she swallowed, then tried again. "How much further?"

"You're almost all the way down. Just a few more inches." She found Fenrir's face through the haze of pleasure. His eyes somehow steadied her; made it easier to focus.

One last drop. His knot mashed against her clit, and she writhed under the sensation, instinctively grinding it against the hard knob. The resulting orgasm was noticeable even through the constant high she was already experiencing. Every hair on her tail stood on end, her ears had long since fallen slack against the sides of her head, and she had at some point taken a **** grip on Fenrir's chest fur. It felt like her only lifeline, like if she let go, she would drown in the sea of pleasure.

"P-Please, I can't take it," she managed to gasp between moans. "Make it less- less intense. I'm gonna go c-crazy."

Dimly she felt Fenrir's hand touch her stomach. There was nothing for a moment, then the pleasure quieted. It still felt better than any sex she'd ever had before, but at least she could think again. "I deadened your nerves somewhat down there. Is that good, or do you want more?"

"N-No, that's fine." Tsavani took a deep breath. "Thanks." Now that every last bit of her consciousness wasn't taken up with trying to process what was happening to her, she could take a proper look at her lover.

Lover. That felt right, somehow. He wasn't just having sex with her, there was far too much concern for how she felt about it for that to be true. And she might have started this because she wanted to be rid of the scars on her soul, but that wasn't why she wanted to keep going. Right now, she didn't care in the slightest about that. She just wanted more closeness with Fenrir. She wanted to make him feel good, and for him to do the same with her, and most importantly, to savor the intimacy of this moment with him. She leaned forward and kissed him again. One of his hands cupped the side of her face and suddenly she felt hot wet teardrops running down her cheeks.

He pulled back, concerned. "Are you okay? I didn't hurt you, did I?"

She wiped the tears away quickly. "No, I just..." The words stuck in Tsavani's throat for a second, but she **** them out, trying to ignore the part of her that was terrified at the very thought of opening up like this. "I'm just so glad you found me and took me in and brought me out of myself and put up with the way I act and are willing to do this with me even though I'm not that pretty and are just so kind to me and-" The lump in her throat stopped her there, and rather than letting him see her face, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around as much of him as she could reach.

His arms came up and held her close in a safe and warm embrace, one hand resting on the back of her head and gently stroking her hair. "And for my part I'm enormously glad our paths crossed and that you were willing to come with me and be a part of my family. I know you said you only intended to stay here for a while; that you were eventually going to leave for your home, but there will always be room for you here if you should wish to come back." There was a breath of silence, then he spoke again. "No, that's not being entirely honest. I want you to stay here with me. If you really want to leave, that's up to you and I won't stop you, but what I want is for you to become a permanent part of my life."

Tsavani caught her breath. There was no denying the sincerity in his voice. He really did want her to stay, a lot, but even despite that he was still giving her the choice to leave if she wanted. She was under no delusions; if he wanted to, Fenrir absolutely could **** her to stay, and there would be nothing she could do about it.

She pushed herself upright, biting back a gasp at the jolt of pleasure that shot up her spine as the movement stirred the cock embedded in her. "I love you," she said, her voice ringing out firm and clear. "I know I haven't known you for very long, but I do. I want to be by your side wherever you go and whatever you do. You have all your succubi and Safara and Katari and Mitzi and maybe soon Saeko and Myrina, too, but can you make room for me too?"

"I can, and what's more, I'll be happy- nay, delighted to do so." He reached up and pulled Tsavani down for another kiss, one she eagerly reciprocated, trying to put all her happiness and gratitude into it. When they broke it, he gave her a severe look. "Later we'll need to talk about your opinion of your own appearance, though."

Tsavani felt her face grow hot. "W-Well, it's just that all your succubi are so beautiful and then there's Safara and-"

He cut her off. "Doesn't matter. Stop comparing yourself to them. You have your own beauty, and it's unique even among the diverse charms of my followers. Take your eyes, for instance. Bold and sharp like a glimpse of the fire in your soul, but still wonderfully soft when you smile. Or your body. Soft and girlish, and yet beneath your curves there lies deceptively strong musculature, only matched by your dexterity and flexibility. Or your-"

"S-Stop! Stop. I get it." She held his muzzle closed with both hands, trying her best to glare Fenrir into silence, although she wasn't sure how effective it would be considering the intensity of the blush she could feel on her cheeks. She could feel him grinning, but he held his hands up in a gesture of surrender. Tsavani eyed him narrowly, then deciding he wasn't going to keep going, released her hold.

He didn't stop smirking, which only made her blush more, but thankfully he moved on without further comment. "Think you're about used to the size of my cock?"

She nodded, happy to have them focus on something else. "As used as I'm going to get, anyway."

Placing her hands on his chest, Tsavani started to raise herself up, but she only got an inch or two before a new sensation made itself known, one that even with the considerably lessened sensitivity down there was almost overwhelming. She gasped and collapsed back onto Fenrir's chest. "W-What is t-that?"

"Another characteristic of my cock. Didn't you feel it when you were giving me a handjob earlier?"

Now that she thought about it, she had. On each upstroke there had been ridges that hadn't been there on the downstroke, but it hadn't really made much of an impression since she had been a little preoccupied with the taste of his precum. She swallowed. "O-Okay. I can do this."

Fenrir smiled but remained silent, sliding his hands up and down her sides in a show of support. She took a deep breath, let it out, and raised herself again. The ribs dragging against every inch of her internal walls was almost painfully intense, but she found that she could push through it, at least until it made her come again. "That's just not fair," she complained once her moans subsided enough to let her speak.

Fenrir laughed, a deep rumble which she discovered with wide eyes she could feel in her pussy. "It wasn't meant to be fair. It was meant to overwhelm my partners with pleasure." Tsavani pouted, which only made him laugh harder. "Take heart, you coming around my cock like that feels amazing, so you're not the only one who's enjoying themselves."

Setting her jaw, she lifted herself again almost half off his cock, her pussy crying out in dismay at the feeling of emptiness before she plunged back down. Repeating the maneuver, she began building a rhythm. It was frequently interrupted by more climaxes, but she refused to give up. She was going to make him come if she had to suffer through a hundred orgasms to do it.

Thankfully it didn't take very long, though she had already lost count of how many times she'd come when he grunted, "I'm close."

Raising herself entirely off his cock (she barely managed it due to another orgasm hitting her three-quarters of the way up), she jerked him off furiously, putting her mouth to his tip again. The taste of herself on his cock made her wrinkle her nose, but it was worth it to get another helping of his cum.

He groaned, the sound almost a growl, and Tsavani could feel the telltale throb which presaged a mouthful of delectable cream. He came even more this time, but now she was ready for it and was able to swallow five pulses before it became too much and she had to pull back to let the rest shower her face, chest, and stomach.

She raised her eyes to Fenrir's, taking a surprising amount of pleasure in the satisfaction she could see on his face. He smiled up at her. "I think we can call this an unmitigated success, don't you?"

It took Tsavani a couple seconds to figure out what he was talking about. "Oh! Yeah, I think we can. To be honest, I completely forgot about that halfway through."

"Well, that's a pretty convincing argument for its having worked. We should probably get cleaned up and get some sleep now, though. Tomorrow's going to be a full day."

"Hey, um..." Tsavani trailed off, suddenly feeling shy again.

"Yes?"

"C-Can you sleep here? With me? Just for tonight?"

His smile was warm and welcoming. "Of course. I'd intended to do so anyway, unless of course you had an objection to it."

She shook her head. "No, it would actually make me really happy." Tsavani wasn't sure why she felt so comfortable baring her heart to him like this, but she wasn't complaining. In many ways, it was actually a relief to just say how she felt without having the worry about how it would be received looming over her.

"Now, as for cleaning up..." Fenrir let out a low but carrying whistle, and before Tsavani could grow too curious as to why, the latch clicked open and Jello oozed into the room, radiating a definite air of excitement. "I thought we might end up making a bit of a mess, so I let Jello know to stay relatively close by. Have you been cleaned up by her before?"

Tsavani shook her head.

"There's not much to it, just relax and let her do her thing. Remember to close your eyes when she cleans your face, but other than that there's nothing to worry about."

She did her best, but Tsavani couldn't help tensing when the cool blue slime flowed around her, almost encasing her in the half-solid, half-fluid substance. It only lasted a couple seconds, though, and when it was over she had to admit it had been actually quite pleasant. She watched Jello do the same to Fenrir as she marveled at how fresh and clean she felt. All the sweat and other assorted fluids were gone, leaving her feeling even cleaner than if she had just come out of the bath.

Jello continued by cleaning up the bedsheets, which had gotten a little messy, and finished up with Tsavani's panties and nightdress. It made her blush to think that the slime was tasting her juices in the panties, but it wasn't as if it hadn't done that earlier on Fenrir's cock as well as her own body. And it was worth it, too, she thought as she slipped on the clean dry panties and the nightdress, both of which she had thought would never be wearable again.

"Thank you, Jello," Fenrir said, prompting a pleased coo out of the slime as he lightly scratched the top of it.

"Y-Yeah, thanks," Tsavani added, feeling a little ridiculous for talking to a slime, even though this one had already clearly demonstrated its intelligence on multiple occasions. Jello gave her a pleased churr as well, though, before it made its way to the door and vanished into the corridor, not forgetting to close the door behind itself.

Fenrir lay back in bed again, saying as he did so, "It always surprises me just how useful she and her brothers have turned out to be. And to think I chose slimes on a whim."

Tsavani let him pull her down to lay beside him, comfortably ensconced in the embrace of one strong arm. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you know how the slimes are Aimi's children? I'm the one who impregnated her."

She could feel her brow furrowing. "With slimes? How?"

"Ah, that's right, you wouldn't know. One of my abilities includes the ...ability" -he smiled a little at the awkward phrasing- "to choose what race my children will be, or even whether I will sire any children at all. In the case of Aimi and her children, I was experimenting with it. I only gained it recently, after all."

"I've never heard of something like that."

"In truth, neither have I," Fenrir admitted. "But Jello, Glory, and Penumbra are living proof of its being real. Each of them was born to a succubus and sired by myself, yet they're all entirely different races."

Part of Tsavani wanted to pursue this line of questioning further, but the fatigue of their earlier activities was quickly catching up with her and lying in Fenrir's embrace like this was far too comfortable. So she settled for a sound of acknowledgement and let her eyelids drift closed, listening to the sound of her love's breathing and savoring the warmth of his body next to hers.

Update: Added about five hundred words to this chapter, right after Fenrir and Tsavani decide on when and where they're going to have sex. Originally I only wanted to make the scene change less abrupt, but it kind of got away from me and the next thing I know there's a whole conversation going on there. Ah well.
And we reach the end of Act 4! Next up, an interlude, then it's on to Act 5: Friends ...and Enemies. Not sure about that name for it; I may end up changing it at some point. There's a reason you usually wait to name things until they're finished.
This was a long chapter, mostly because of the sex scene. It was a bit more than just a sex scene, to be fair, which might be why it ended up being almost seven thousand words just by itself. Not that I tried to draw it out, of course, I just let it take as long as it wanted to take, and as it turned out, that ended up being pretty long. I think it was worth it though, and taking the time to really focus on Tsavani was a lot of fun. We also got a bit more of Saeko, mostly just a heads up of what she'll be doing while Fenrir's out doing diplomacy things and how she's going about the task he's given her.
Next act we head out with a smaller party again, this time to visit Katari's people. I've got several ideas about how to handle that, and I'm excited to write them out. We also still need to return to Apollyon, which gives us the potential for more shenanigans. Not saying more because spoilers, and also, I don't have any concrete plans that far out. One step at a time, since each step affects where the next will fall.
Now for this act. It's easily my largest act yet, the lion's share of which is taken up by the estate arc. The estate arc ended up being a lot longer than I anticipated (who could've guessed?) but it's got a lot of fun moments, not to mention some larger consequences that we'll come back to eventually. In contrast, the arc the act is named after is quite small, though not without its moments, and the children present me a new challenge, namely, how to write their growth. I'm excited to get them to the age where they can start doing things; I've got some devious plans for them. The act as a whole is almost twice as large as any other at a hundred and eighteen thousand words, bringing the story overall up to just nine thousand words short of three hundred thousand. As before, I'm not counting author's notes or the stats chapters. Of course, length is no indicator of quality, but that you'll have to judge for yourself.
Speaking of stats chapters, I'll be doing my blanket update of it soon, and I'll let you know once I have. I may also take a mini-hiatus once the interlude chapter is out, so I can read back through my story again. I'll be editing as I go, since I'm a little bit of a perfectionist and can't stand to let an awkward word choice remain once I notice it. I feel that my first few chapters could really benefit from an overhaul as well, though I'm not sure whether I'll actually do that yet. Maybe just some subtle improvements for now. Either way, I'll try not to take too long on it; I want to get back to the present and my plans for the oni, some of which date all the way back to when I first introduced Katari into the story.
Lastly, thanks again for sticking with me! I've said it before, but this story has become quite the adventure for me, and I appreciate you joining me on it.
Enjoy!