Needing Space to Explore

Arriving back at Mount Doom, as Mary was calling it, Aubrey, Chloe, and Ellen made themselves scarce. Mary was able to remove the curse on the gauntlets of aggressive groping that Hilde had on during their trip back. Merida probably could have removed a few more curse items with her new staff, but just couldn’t muster the focus to do so, and no one pushed. Wanting some privacy to talk, Mary, Hilde, Flora, and Merida all went to Mary’s room.

Walking into Mary’s room, they found a natural domed cavern. Braziers lined the walls, casting a flickering firelight throughout the room, which gave it a sensual quality. A bed that could easily fit eight was placed on one side, and down a set of stone-carved stairs was a crystal clear pool of water. A dining table was on one side. The group of four sat down at the table. No one said anything for a while, not knowing what to do or say.

Mary spoke up first. “Flora, Merida, I want to say I’m sorry for my part in this.”

Flora shook her head. “No. Don’t apologize, Mary. On the way back, I thought about what Ellen said. She was right. The damage you could have caused is so much worse than what happened. We aren’t playing the blame game here. End of story. I… I just…” Flora was clearly hurting. “I don’t know how to move forward from here.”

Hilde asked, “Would you like my advice?” Hilde braced for Flora to yell at her, but Flora just nodded. “You need some time away from Merida. You need that space to feel and process your feelings. I think your initial response is indicative that you realize what happened wasn’t Merida’s fault. Which is accurate. That doesn’t change how you feel about things, though. You’re obviously hurting, which is understandable. Right now, you are trying to keep it together, but you need to let it out. Now I want to mention something that I’m sure will be a touchy subject, but it does need to be resolved soon. Flora, you’re sleeping in bed with Mistress tonight. Would you like Merida or me to join you in here? I ask because otherwise Merida and I will be sharing a bed tonight. Given what happened, I could see not helping.”

Flora shook her head. “No. It’s only one night. Also, I won’t be able to control the room arrangements later either. Merida won’t do anything with you consensually anyway. I don’t think you would do anything with her either right now.”

“You’re correct. I wouldn’t.”

“Space… I think space sounds good at the moment.” Flora said weakly. Hilde got up to leave. Merida reached out to Flora and was about to say something when Flora said, “Merida, I love you, but right now looking at you hurts. Could you please go?” Flora was looking down and away from Merida.

Merida nodded and stood up. As Merida took a step to leave, she paused without looking back, “Flora… I love ye too. If there is onythin' I can dae tae help, please… please let me ken.” Merida had tears in her eyes again and walked out of the room.

Merida and Hilde walked to their bedroom. Upon entering the room, Merida immediately went to the bed and buried her face in a pillow. Hilde got changed for bed and then sat down on the side of the bed opposite Merida. Hilde said, “I think you handled that fairly well, and I'm not sure how much this is worth to you, but I think you and Flora will be able to make it through this.”

Merida moved to a sitting position and squeezed a pillow between her arms and legs as she sat there. “I hope so. I… I cannae believe I… Hilde… I’m sorry tae ye too. For whit I did tae ye.”

Hilde turned to Merida and smiled weakly. “I was wondering if and when you would apologize to me. I was examining your boon on the way back from the dungeon. I know exactly what you did to me, or should I say us. I could tell because of the number of remaining uses of each type of bond left.”

“Whit can I dae tae mak' it up tae ye?” Merida said with a plea in her voice.

Hilde looked at Merida. “I don’t know. I know what I want to tell you, but it won’t be helpful to do so now. Merida, you need to fix things with Flora before you worry about me. Please take my advice about this Merida; don’t try to smother Flora with affection, constantly apologize, or make a bunch of suggestions on how you could make it up to her. Let her come to you. I’ve seen stuff like this before. Time should help.” Hilde lay down in bed. “Goodnight, Merida. Try to get some sleep.”

“Guid nicht, Hilde, thanks for the advice an' yer unnerstaun'in'.” Merida got under the covers and tried to go to sleep, but it would be a long while before she managed that.

Back in the Mistress’s suite, Mary was waiting for Flora to explode or crack. It took longer than she thought it would, but Flora picked up a chair and threw it against the cavern wall, letting out a cry of rage. Then Flora just let out a cry and dropped to her knees. Mary went over and hugged her. Flora just cried into Mary’s shoulder for a bit. Mary gently stroked Flora’s hair, trying to soothe her. Eventually, Flora stopped crying and was just trembling in Mary’s arms. Mary said, “Let’s get you cleaned up.” Mary slowly started to undress Flora carefully, fully aware she was still quite sensitive. Flora let her, not protesting or doing much at all. Mary then helped Flora to her feet and walked her down the stairs to the pool of water.

Flora sank deep into the warm water. Mary undressed and then joined her. Mary saw shampoo and body wash had appeared along with some towels. She wordlessly moved over and started to lather up Flora’s hair and the fur on her ears. Mary felt she got traces of the slime coating Flora on her hands, but she simply didn’t care. Flora had started purring in contentment, and that was more than enough reason for Mary to continue. Flora let Mary move her towards the shallower part of the pool and let her wash her body all over. Flora leaned back into Mary, resting her head on Mary’s cleavage. Flora finally spoke, half sobbing as she did so. “I know it isn’t her fault. But why does it hurt so much then? It didn’t hurt like this when I heard you two were together.”

+1 VP Be emotionally **** to the Mistress

Mary ran her fingers through Flora’s hair, “It isn’t the same. You both knew the other was involved with me, and that couldn’t change. It was an agreed-upon part of the relationship. Her being with Hilde wasn’t. But I don’t think that is what really hurt you.”

Flora tilted her head to look up at Mary. “What do you mean?”

“I think that if they had just had sex, you wouldn’t be this upset. You would still be upset, but given the full circumstances of what happened, you would understand. It also doesn’t help that there isn’t anyone that you can concretely hold responsible for what happened. Also, I want you to stop blaming yourself. It isn’t your fault that happened.” Flora didn’t respond to Mary’s statement of self-recrimination, but Mary could tell that she had hit the mark. “I’m not going to belabor that point, but I did want to say it. Back to my other point, I think part of you has realized something. Hilde is going to remain interested in Merida. Merida is also going to be attracted to Hilde, too.” Flora nodded. “Thought so, now I was wondering something. When you were clobbering Slevia, did you forget to make it so I couldn’t see you, or did you intentionally let me see you like that?”

Flora’s eyes went wide, and she sat upright. “You… I… Mary… please don’t repeat what I said… I was angry.”

“Flora, relax. I know. You remember how, when I was playing video games online, I was saying invectives towards my teammates, but they couldn’t hear me. It’s the same thing. You were venting. I won’t tell anyone anything that happened. Let’s stay on topic, though. Right now, what would you like to do?”

Flora muttered. “Punch Hilde in her stupid face.”

Mary chuckled at that. “Well, you won’t be doing that, and I think you know it.”

Flora moved in and nuzzled Mary, “I want you to hold me.” Mary immediately put her arms around Flora.

“I have a question for you, Flora. Did you and Merida have a conversation about what would happen if you went into heat and couldn’t get to me or her? Like what if someone else was around?”

Flora shook her head, “We’ve been meaning to talk about it, but just didn’t have time.”

“Well, give it a day or two, and I think you should talk about that with her. Actually… I think that is something that everyone should talk about. It isn’t unreasonable to expect something like what happened today to happen again. Where two of you are in a situation where you might have to do sexual things together. Going to be honest, I was half expecting Cassandra to just steal Laura’s Olympic Rings and make that a challenge. I just don’t want any of you to have hurt feelings because of something outside your partner’s control.”

“That… That’s a good point.” Flora nuzzled Mary. “Thank you. Talking with you has helped.”

“I’m glad. Now… I was wondering…” Mary bit her lips. “Would you be up for… exploring? Sorry if it isn’t the right mood, but… I think the slime that was still on you mixed with the water, so I feel a bit more sensitive right now. With everything that happened today I’m also rather turned on, and you’ve been rubbing your butt up against my groin, and I'm not sure if you forgot, but you do have vibrators down there. So… You might have been accidentally teasing me for a while.”

“Umm… sure. Are you sure you’re ready?”

Mary shook her head. “No, but I don’t think I’ll ever feel ready. I’m worried I’m making a mountain out of a mole hill.” Mary stood up, got out, and offered Flora a hand, which she took.

Flora looked at Mary, “Okay, that is totally unfair.” Flora picked up a towel and started to dry off. “Really, nothing clings to you? Your hair looks like it is nearly dry already.”

“Huh, that is… Oh! It’s because of the slime. Water doesn’t normally just come off, but I guess aphrodisiac slime-tainted water does.” Flora vigorously ruffled her hair with the towel until it was dry, which caused Mary to chuckle. “Glad to know that isn’t exclusively a guy thing. When I tried to do that, like this, Ellen nearly yelled at me. Said it would ruin my hair.”

Flora nodded, “And it would make it a tangled mess at your hair length.” Flora grabbed Mary’s hand and led her up the stairs to the bed. They lay down next to each other, butt naked. “So how do you want to do this? I know you talked about adding hypnotic triggers for me to stop.”

“I thought about it and I’m simply going to trust you, Flora. I want to return the trust you’ve placed in me. Now I had thought about something fun to do with your hypnosis.”

“I… I don’t know about you using it for sexual things.”

“Flora, what do you think the suggestions in the dungeon were?”

“I guess those are sort of sexual…”

“Besides, I’m going to tell you my idea before even putting you in a trance. You’ve been wearing three different vibrators for multiple hours but have been mostly ignoring them.”

“Yeah… because it’s normal for me to be wearing them. You told me so.”

“I did. I was thinking that I could have you feel all the physical pleasure you’ve received today when you make me orgasm. Since I’m not sure how much I can return the favor with those cursed objects on you.”

“Oh, well… sure we can try that.”

“Great, now sleep, my pretty Kitty.” When Flora slipped into a trance, Mary asked, “Kitty, I want you to answer me right now, ignoring any suggestions that I made to you. Do you want me to do as I explained?”

“I’m not sure, I’m a little afraid it will be overwhelming. But also excited.”

That’s how I’m feeling too. “Okay, Kitty, you realize that your sensations have been altered these past couple of hours, right?”

“Yes.”

“Well, if you cause me to orgasm tonight after penetrating me, I want your sensations suppressing your pleasure to revert to normal, and I want you to experience everything that was blocked over the course of several minutes. If it gets too intense for you, though, the suppression will come back on.” Flora just nodded. “Kitty… Flora… are you actually up for this tonight, or do you just want a distraction? I’m asking because you said you wanted to take things slower.”

“Both. I do want things slower, but I also feel like this is what I want, what I need right now.”

“Fierce Lioness.”

Flora looked at Mary, “So, how do you want to do this?”

Mary lay on her back. “I’m… I’m going to let you take the lead, here, Flora. Just, don’t try to pin or restrain me.”

“What about a firm grasp? Say around your thighs?”

“That… that should be okay.”

Flora rolled to the side of the bed and rummaged through her backpack, and Mary saw her eat something. Flora rolled back and explained. “I’m just taking the last Gummy Tongue that I have. Should allow for a better experience.” Flora rolled on top of Mary, and they both started to make out with one another. Mary moaned in pleasure. Her body was particularly sensitive right now from the slime water. That, on top of the heightened sensitivity of her lips and breasts, made every touch feel electric. Flora was also pressing her breasts into Mary’s, causing Mary to feel the vibrators on Flora’s nipples. Each of them were extending their tongues into the other’s mouth, and running their fingers through the other’s hair. Flora separated Mary’s legs and took a scissoring position, grinding their crotches together. Mary felt the vibrator inside Flora as she pressed up against her clit. Wracked with pleasure, Mary came and pressed herself into the bed.

Flora cupped Mary’s cheek and smiled. “You have such a cute expression when you climax. I’m going down now. Okay?” Mary weakly nodded. Flora slid down, positioning her head between Mary’s legs. She began to lap up Mary’s juices while wrapping an arm around each leg. Flora stopped licking and started to massage Mary’s slit with one finger, and slid it in without any effort as Mary was soaked.

Mary gasped, “AH!” Flora paused, but then slowly moved her finger in a come-hither motion, stroking Mary’s insides. “YES! OH FUCK! KITTY… more… please…” Flora grinned again. She pulled out her finger and then inserted her tongue, extending it several inches inside. As she went in deeper, Mary squirmed but never asked her to stop. Flora started teasing her insides, poking at the spots she learned were sensitive with Merida. Then she slowly started to retract and extend her tongue, creating a slow thrusting sensation for Mary. “OH, TOO MUCH! TOO MUCH!” Flora stopped moving immediately, feeling Mary’s hand on the back of her head. Mary then said, “I want more just… not the thrusting… not yet.” So Flora resumed caressing Mary’s interiors, swirling her tongue. Which caused Mary to convulse as she climaxed.

+1 VP Touch Mistress's Pussy
+2 VP Cunnilingus on the Mistress
+5 VP Penetrate the Mistress to Orgasm (x2 First)

That caused the trigger to activate. Flora immediately pulled away without retracting her tongue as she felt hours of pleasure over a few minutes. She convulsed in pleasure next to Mary as she roared while having repeated orgasms. After a few seconds, Mary recovered from her own orgasm and repositioned to hold Flora while Flora felt the pleasure of the last hours she had been denied. A good seven minutes later, Flora stopped writhing and was just panting. Then she roared out, “THAT WAS FANTASTIC!”

+2 VP Orgasm by Mistress's doing via toys.

Mary smiled and agreed, “Ditto. I don’t know why I was so hesitant. Scratch that, I know exactly why. I’m still glad we did that, though.”

Flora just purred, turned around to face Mary, and nuzzled her, “My little fairy.”

“My adorable Kitty.” Mary responded, scratching Flora behind the ears.

“You’re not upset, right? About the thrusting?”

“Not at all. It… it was just overwhelming. I think I’ll get there eventually.”

“That’s good to hear. Aubrey might also be enthused to hear that.”

“What? Why?”

“Well… Chloe… she might have let it slip that well… Aubrey ejaculated inside of her.”

Mary had a look of utter bewilderment. “What do you mean, ejaculated?”

“Okay… so I probably shouldn’t have overheard this… I was using my boon, and they were talking. But it sounded like Aubrey bought a double-ended dildo for them to use together.”

“Seems reasonable.”

“Well, apparently it… Well, dildos are typically pink. I think her boon made it function like a working penis. Including the ability to ejaculate.”

Mary bolted upright. “What!?”

“Mary, calm down. There is no way Aubrey would ever use that on you without your permission. But they were talking about kids, including whether they might be able to have their own without you. They were trying to figure out how to broach the topic with you. Especially since they don’t feel like things are great between you and them, and they aren’t even sure if Aubrey could get Chloe pregnant that way or not. I’m actually wondering if that would upset you? If there was a way for one of us to get pregnant with one of the others.”

“Hmm… I think that would depend.” Mary said. “I don’t think I would be upset if it happened. I think I would get upset if it happened, and you weren’t interested in having my kids, though. In that situation, you are essentially telling me that I want kids just not yours, which, yeah, that would hurt.”

“Huh, I really thought you would be more against it. Especially with what you told Smug about no penises.”

Mary grimaced. “I… maybe you’re right. I’m not sure. I don’t know why, but… what you described Aubrey and Chloe doing didn’t bother me. The idea of Smug sleeping with one of you in her male form makes me angry.”

Flora said in a playful voice, “You’re weird, you know that, right?”

Mary chuckled, “Yeah, but I’m clearly your type of weird.”

“Oh yeah, Kitty definitely likes whatever this is.”

The two just lay there holding one another, slowly drifting off to sleep. Right at the edge of consciousness, Flora muttered to an already sleeping Mary, “Kitty loves you.” Then she drifted off to sleep.

Meanwhile, Team Fairy Castle was also settling in for the night. Allie, Isabella, and Talia had all bathed after a long day of training. They were the only three to remain in the yard for most of the day and were all drenched in sweat by the end of practice.

Talia explained what Maja was having her do since no one could really observe with the wall in place. Maja just kept throwing more projectiles at her. Varying the size, shape, speed, number, and sometimes even throwing in complicated trajectories. Despite the hours of training, Talia was only ever able to make it past Maja once, and that was because everything aligned perfectly. She thanked her Anime Physics for giving her that respite.

Isabella had just progressed to the point that Petra was having her attack back shortly before they wrapped things up for the day. While Allie had figured out how to slip into and out of a rage fairly easily, all in all, the three were quite pleased with the training day, but also hoped that the group would be doing some actual questing tomorrow as they lay down for bed.

Sam and Laura retired to their room. It looked like a really fancy hotel suite that was meant to host foreign dignitaries. Sam thought, If this place were real, it probably would be used to host foreign dignitaries, which I guess we sort of are.

Sam had been avoiding everyone since the bath. Not wanting everything to be awkward, Sam said, “I guess we should talk about it, shouldn’t we?”

“Only if you want to. Personally, I think you said everything that needed to be said, and I think Mark is right about expectations. I don’t have any friends besides you who have suffered anything even remotely similar or traumatic. But I do understand that it doesn’t just go away.”

“Did you really stay just to make sure I was okay?” Sam asked as she was stripping off her armor.

“Of course.” Laura replied as her equipment disappeared into her raiment and she put on a cream colored silk robe to sleep in. “Sam, like I said, you’re my friend. I told Mark that I didn’t have a clue who Cassandra could bring on besides maybe my mom if I were eliminated. I didn’t really have anyone close. I have one teammate with whom I’m a little chummy, and my coach, but that’s it. I can tell you without a doubt that my closest friends are all here on the show. Sam, right now, you, Allie, and I are probably the most stabilizing forces for Mark. That fact isn’t lost on me. There is absolutely no way things would be as stable and peaceful without your presence. I wouldn’t have two wonderful girlfriends if not for you, either. You are far stronger than you think, and you are most certainly not broken.”

Sam was rendered speechless, not really knowing how to respond to that at all. After a minute of silence, Sam just said, “Thank you.”

“Sure, someone has to help you keep your head on straight.”

“I was wondering… So… Talia mentioned that she was okay with us doing things…”

“Yes, she did.” Laura raised a curiously seductive eyebrow.

“Would… could I kiss you?” Sam asked hesitantly.

Laura walked over to Sam and leaned over and kissed Sam. “Of course. Might be easier if we move this to the bed, though.” They both smiled at the other, as 'I Kissed a Girl' by Katy Perry started playing.

Sam followed Laura to the bed. Laura lay down on her back and was about to pull Sam on top of her when Sam shook her head. “No… I… I would like you to be the one on top. Though I also don’t want to do much more than kissing. Is that okay?”

Laura wrapped an arm around Sam’s waist and put her on her back. Laura said, “Of course.” And then the two started to make out. Sam slipped her hand into Laura’s robe, and she lightly fondled Laura’s breast. Laura reciprocated, running her hands along side Sam, until she reached Sam’s breasts. Where Laura started to gently caress her nipples through the nightgown Sam was wearing. The two continued to fool around late into the night. Eventually, they drifted off to sleep with Laura holding Sam in her arms.

After getting Bertha a saddle, Mark had left Sadie and Ethel to continue training. He eventually returned to the yard to get in a bit more practice before the end of the day.

When he retired to his room, he got a surprise when he opened the door. Bertha was standing mere inches from the door, startling him greatly. “What the hell. Why is Bertha in our room instead of… I don’t know, the stable maybe?”

Sadie was setting the table for dinner and rolled her eyes. “She wouldn’t go there. She insisted on coming here. I didn’t have the strength to stop her. You are free to kick her out of the room if you can.”

Mark looked at Bertha. He might have grown, but Bertha was still a lot bigger than him. He sighed, side-stepped Bertha, and went to help Sadie with dinner preparations. Which was when that he noticed Sadie had set out three plates, which was also the exact time Mark heard the door slam shut and a lock click into place. Mark whispered in a hiss, “Sadie… please tell me that Ethel isn’t locked in here with us?”

Sadie looked away from Mark’s gaze, “I can’t do that. I don’t want to lie to you.”

Mark hissed, “Why!”

“Mark, calm down. Ethel has to stay with someone when we are traveling. That someone is going to be me. You’re welcome.”

“Why should I be grateful?”

“Because she had been angling to always stay with you. I convinced her that the others needed some alone time with you, but I would be willing to share. So now instead of dealing with her for twelve nights, you have her for two.”

Mark sighed, “Fine. Thank you.”

Ethel came out of the changing room in a silk evening dress and sat down next to Sadie across from Mark. “Good evening, Mark.”

“Good evening, Princess Ethel.”

“Please, Ethel is fine.” Ethel beamed a smile at him.

Sadie brought out a covered silver tray and placed it in the middle of the table. She pulled off the lid. “Roasted pheasant with potatoes and mixed vegetables. I hope you like it. It took a lot of arm pulling to get Ethel here to show me the kitchens.”

Mark’s eyebrows rose, “You cooked this?”

“Yes.” Sadie nodded. “You might remember me saying that my father has some… outdated views. Well, that has resulted in me having rather good cooking skills.”

Mark had just bitten into a bite of pheasant. Boy, is this GOOD! He finished chewing and said, “You mean he’s sexist?”

“Not… not overly. He’s been very supportive of my career, and as far as I am aware, he’s never chosen a less qualified man over a woman for a promotion. I know he thinks the world of Talia. He won’t shut up about her brilliance. He… he even joked once that if I was interested in Talia, I would have his support. He does have a very old school attitude about men and women knowing certain skills, though.”

“Really? How well does he know Talia?”

“I mean, Talia and he are business partners. He became the CEO of a pharmaceutical company about eight years ago. Not the one I work at, I told him he can use his connections to help me, but I refuse to work at the same place as him. He helped Talia get a few of her **** to market. To be honest, Talia has so much that his company can’t even handle the volume of requests, so I’ve actually been working on some of them. In fact, I’m responsible for her transitioning **** being about to get approval in the US. Well, I say about to, it still has a year or more of paperwork, and then there will inevitably be litigation, but soon on a business time scale.”

Ethel tilted her head, “What… what is a pharmaceutical? You mentioned ****, but surely you aren’t making illicit substances, Sadie.”

Sadie shook her head, “No, you have healers and alchemists here, right?” Ethel nodded. “We make medicines to help people, as we don’t have healers with magic like you do. We rely on doctors and medicines. Well… mostly. It’s complicated.”

“That must be tough. Healers make things so much easier. Not to mention, through the blessings of Cassandra, injuries are rather rare.”

Mark said, “If Talia works with your father, why didn’t she mention it? That seems rather relevant info considering Chloe was here.”

“She might not have made the connection. My father’s last name isn’t Harper. I wanted to make my own way, and while who my father is inevitably comes out, I don’t want it to be the first thing people associate with me.”

“What’s his last name?”

“Marshal.”

“Wait… you’re English, right?”

“Yes, and yes, I’m part of that Marshal family. Not the main branch, but yes.”

Ethel asked, “Who is the Marshal family?”

Sadie said, “You remember how I said our world doesn’t have much nobility or royalty. That’s true. Most are figureheads or simply ceremonial titles with little weight, where they persist. But that wasn’t always true, and many of the families that were nobles are still influential. The Marshal family is one of them. Don’t get any ideas, though, Mark, our connections to the main family are loose. As my grandfather was a bastard son, only recognized because there was no other male heir to my great-grandfather. Besides, you don’t need our clout anyway. Talia has more than enough money to buy a country or two.”

Ethel just shook her head. “Your world sounds so strange.”

Something had been bothering Mark, and he just noticed what. “Ethel, not… well, not to sound rude, but is there a reason you change your speaking habits?”

Sadie closed her eyes in annoyance, like Mark had just stepped in something gross. Ethel responded. “Sadie… might have mentioned that, I have a tendency to talk a lot… And that tendency might be why you didn’t want to take me with you…”

Mark sighed, “I will be honest, Ethel, partially yes. You enthusiastically talking about stuff isn’t that big of an issue, but you don’t let others get a word in. Being cut off is also something of a pet peeve of mine, and I have a history with Cassandra deliberately putting me in situations or putting people around me just to press my buttons. I sort of thought you might be another instance of this.”

“The Goddess Cassandra would never do something like that!” Ethel exclaimed in a tone that Mark just uttered blasphemy.

“Ethel, not to belittle your faith, but I’m telling you: I’ve met her. She isn’t evil or anything, but she is more than happy to put people in uncomfortable situations to get what she wants. She has done that repeatedly to me.”

Ethel pouted. I mean, Mark is one of her heroes. Of course, he would have met her… but that doesn’t mesh with the Cassandra I know about. I don’t see why he would lie, though. “I’ll think on your words, Mark.”

The three finished their meal, having an amiable conversation, where Ethel described the surrounding area to them. When it came time for bed, Ethel changed into a pair of silk pajamas, and Sadie had a matching pair. Mark looked at the two of them and thought, Ethel looks like she could be Sadie’s sister, even with the different hair and eye color.

Ethel said, “Mark… I know you didn’t want to take me as your bride. Would it be alright if I stayed the night, though? We are going to be traveling together and camping with one another… Would I really be imposing that much?”

Mark sighed, “No, it’s fine, but I want to make this clear, we aren’t doing anything together.” Mark got into bed, and Sadie slid in on one side and Ethel on the other. Despite Mark’s words, both snuggled up to him and quickly fell asleep. Well, this isn’t that bad, I guess. Mark drifted off to sleep shortly after.

(End of Day Tally Below, including rewards from the Task.)