The 24 Minute Day

Samantha was content. She felt the comfort of her hoard wrapped around her. Why do I have a nagging feeling I need to get up? Leave my hoard? That I shouldn’t touch it… Samantha opened her eyes and turned around. Oh right… I’m not supposed to be doing stuff with Mark. Samantha begrudgingly removed Mark’s arm from around her, and she got up to shower. So glad that Cassandra didn’t include medieval-level hygiene or plumbing in this setting. Samantha turned on the shower, and piping hot water began to fill the room with steam as she stripped naked.

As Sam washed her hair, she heard the door to the bathroom open and then close. She noticed Mark out of the corner of her eye. Weird, why do I feel like I need him to leave but also need him to stay? Mark stepped into the shower, joining Samantha. “Mark, we aren’t supposed to be fooling around… You heard Allie.”

Mark massaged Samantha’s shoulders. “Yeah, but I also notice you didn’t actually ask me to leave. Why is that?”

“I think it is conflicting compulsions. I feel a need to wet your dick, but I also feel like that would be against what Allie said I should do for her Walkthrough.” Samantha leaned her head into one of Mark’s hands on her shoulders. “Mark, I want nothing more than for you to carry me to the bed and make love to me right now, but I think I need you to leave.”

“Okay.” Mark kissed the top of her head and left. “I’ll be outside waiting for you.”

Samantha was annoyed. Why did I say that! I want him here with me! Samantha rolled her eyes as she washed out her hair. Oh, right… I need to be more open and honest with Mark. God, this is so frustrating and distracting. Maybe I can convince Mark to alter my lists a bit. Samantha turned off the shower and dried off. Samantha looked in the mirror, and took a moment to adjust the shape of her horns and tail. Her horns now nearly formed a crown around her head, while her tail had become sleeker. Smug uses her scales like clothing… maybe I can do the same. Sam tried to have scales cover her body, but found it rather difficult. She could get scales to show up on her forearms and below the knees, but only if she transformed her hands and feet into claws first. Maybe it just takes practice. I had to really concentrate the first time to get my hands back. I wonder if Smug might be willing to give me some pointers. Sam put on a dark blue vintage sailor dress and watched as the skirt shrank and the dress became more form-fitting. Then she walked out and found Mark in a simple tunic and trousers, setting the table. She looked at the massive cart of food. “Why is there so much food?”

“I guess you were rather groggy earlier. We can’t leave here for twenty-four hours. We still have to eat, though.”

“Right… Talia said something about that.” Sam frowned. “Just great. Trapped in a room with something I desperately want but can’t have.”

“Let’s have some breakfast, there’s also coffee.”

Samantha settled in across from Mark as he handed her a plate of food. She looked at her plate and then at Mark’s. She had an omelet filled with veggies and cheese, with a side of hashbrowns and a fruit cup. Mark had a stack of chocolate-chip pancakes topped with syrup and whipped cream with a single strawberry on top and a large side of bacon. “Mark, you can’t be serious with that breakfast.”

Mark sighed, “Sam, can we not do this. I didn’t even prepare the plates. Look at the tray, it literally had name cards by the plates.”

“Mark, I’m not apologizing for caring about you, and I literally can’t focus on other things right now. That’s the nature of the list when you tilt it that heavily.” Samantha split her omelet in half and grabbed Mark’s plate. Mark tried to stop Samantha, but a glare and a slight amount of dragon aura made Mark reconsider. Samantha gave him half of her breakfast and took half of his. Then she handed the reapportioned plate back to Mark. “There, I even left you the pancakes with the whipped cream.”

“I thought we went over this before, Sam. I’ll be fine eating what was on my plate.”

“Mark, even if that is the case, what about your kids? They are going to follow your example. If they see you eating like shit, they will want to too.”

Mark stabbed a piece of pancake with his fork and took a bite. After swallowing, Mark said, “It’s really annoying when you have a good point and I don’t like the consequences of that point.”

Sam chuckled, “Well, you best get used to it, because between all of us, it is going to happen a lot. So what are we supposed to do, locked in here for a day?”

“I don’t know, to be honest. Most of the amenities available in my suite aren’t available here.” The two ate in an awkward silence, both occasionally glancing at the bed. When they were both done, Mark grabbed the dirty dishes and placed them back on the tray and covered them. When Mark turned back to the table, he saw the usual tablet he used to order things had appeared on the table. “Guess Cassandra doesn’t want us to be bored.”

“Any chance we can order something to get rid of the dessert’s effects? I really don’t want to have to be locked in a room with you for a whole day and not be able to do anything with you. Anything physical, to be clear. I’m already pissed about what happened in the bath the other day.”

Mark looked through the tablet. “Hmm… I don't… wait a second, the BP store just opened up on here.” At the same time, they both received a notification. “Okay, so maybe there is something we can buy. Hmm… Oh, this should work.” Mark spun the tablet around and showed Samantha.

Delay Temporary TF: Pause the effects of a temporary TF in effect for 24 hrs. The total duration of the effect is unchanged, and the remaining time will continue after the delay. (400BP)

“That seems surprisingly cheap.”

“Well, it doesn’t reduce the time; rather, it grants a reprieve, probably so if someone hits you with a temporary TF shortly before a challenge that you can suppress it if you have the BP.”

“Tell me you are going to buy it, for both of us.”

“Yeah, I am.”

-800 BP Mark -> 8625 BP

The two of them immediately felt the effects of the desserts lift. Mark let out a relieved sigh. “That could have been really bad. That still could be bad when the effects return.”

“Agreed. I wasn’t thinking either. I wanted you to take me to bed and make sweet love to me, but I am SO not ready for that, but I would have let you, because of the donuts. I can’t believe I mentally asked Sally to send me more.”

“You did what?!” Mark exclaimed.

“Uh… well, I guess the cat’s out of the bag. Look, Mark, I want to have sex with you. I want to make that very clear. Yesterday I was frustrated, and it seems like our thoughts are sometimes broadcast to the audience. So I thought, ‘Hey Sally, please send me a dozen of these donuts.’ Mark, they feel amazing. The thing is, I know that while we were under the effects of the desserts, we couldn’t do anything. But it would be different if we agreed to take the desserts ahead of time. It would be like what you did with the candies.”

“Because that went well.”

“I bet if you asked Ellen or Lucia, they would say that it did. Laura, too, excluding the pregnancy scare. Hell, I bet Flora is ultimately happy with the outcome. Yeah, you messed up with her, but you fixed it and have a better relationship because of it. Now, Mark, could you please make it so I have less on my inactive list? At least for the day.”

Mark nodded and moved most of the options back to the active list. “Know that before we go to bed, I plan on reverting this.”

Samantha nodded. “Thanks, it was really annoying, having the lists that lopsided.”

“No problem. So what would you like to do now that we have a day to ourselves?”

At Mark’s words. Samantha grabbed the side of the table and flung it to the side, where it slid to one wall as she leaped at Mark, causing him to topple backward. Samantha aggressively kissed Mark. She interlaced her fingers with his and pressed her body into him.

Mark was enjoying this side of Samantha immensely, that was, until she pulled his hands above his head and pinned them to the floor. Mark tried to free his hands, but he couldn’t. “Samantha! Stop! Let go of my hands.” Samantha paused, kissing him, and glared down at him in annoyance. After a moment, she released his hands. “What’s come over you? I suppressed the donuts. Also, you know I don’t want to be restrained.”

“Sorry about that. Part of me still considers you a thief and didn’t want to let you get away. As far as why, I’m like this? I have been around you, thinking about all the things I have wanted you to do with me since lunchtime yesterday. Just because the influence of the donuts left me doesn’t mean that the ideas and fantasies they amplified just magically disappeared from my mind. Now shut up and let me pleasure my thief of a boyfriend.” Samantha grabbed the front of Mark’s shirt and pulled him into a kiss. Samantha let her fingers turn into claws for just a moment so she could rip Mark’s shirt off him. As she threw the tattered remnants of his shirt to the side, she sat up, straddling Mark’s waist, and placed a hand on his naked chest. She looked him over rather lustfully. “God, I knew you got bigger, but you are absolutely ripped.”

Mark smirked, “Thank Laura, for that.”

Samantha squinted at Mark, “Did… did you do that on purpose?”

“Do what? Laura is the reason I’m so fit. I definitely got an upgrade from my Adonis TF, but when Laura got her main path, I got a significant upgrade too.”

“So, you didn’t notice that you made a statement that could have been you substituting Laura for God. Didn’t you do that this morning, too?”

“Well, I definitely didn’t mean, thank god or goddess, right now. Laura loving me is literally the reason I’m fit. I’m actually surprised that you could pin me to be honest.”

“Keep an eye on that, please.” Mark nodded in response. Samantha stood up and offered Mark a hand, which he accepted. Then she dragged him to bed and pushed him onto his back. “Mark, will you let me do what I want right now?”

“For the most part, yes. As long as you are comfortable.”

“Great.” Samantha pulled down Mark’s trousers and briefs, throwing them to the side. Samantha saw the erection in front of her as she knelt down between Mark’s legs at the side of the bed and inhaled sharply. Okay, Sam, you got this. You’ve been fantasizing about this for the past day. Samantha gently gripped Mark’s dick and started to run her thumb up and down the side. Samantha smiled as she saw Mark’s muscles tighten for a moment from the pleasure. Samantha leaned in and hesitantly licked Mark’s penis. Samantha pulled back in bewilderment. “Mark, why does your dick taste like caramel?”

“That’s on you. Cassandra, apparently, tweaked a few TFs, including my ideal penis; it doesn’t just include penis size anymore. It is simply ideal, which includes taste.”

“Really… That is interesting.” Sam’s mind was whirling, and she felt like there was something important. Then it hit her. “Mark, you should be careful then about when you have sex with Aubrey. I’m pretty sure you will get her pregnant the first time you have sex with her.”

Mark sat up on his elbows and looked at Samantha with one eyebrow raised. “Okay… that requires more discussion. Do you want to continue with this or the discussion?”

“This, we can talk afterward.” Samantha licked Mark again.

Mark noticed that Samantha seemed to currently have a forked tongue like a lizard, before he lurched back from the pleasure. Holy crap, am I sensitive.

Samantha closed her eyes and took Mark’s penis into her mouth. This is like sucking on candy. Samantha savored the taste as such slowly bobbed her head while vigorously sucking. Mark found himself climaxing rather quickly but not losing his erection. Tasting Mark’s load, Samantha continued to suck him off as she swallowed. Seriously, not fair at all, butterscotch-flavored semen. If all guys were like this, they would get blown a lot more. Samantha just kept sucking Mark off, swirling her thin tongue around his cock. As he came a second time in her mouth, Samantha pulled his dick out of her mouth. Samantha held his load in her mouth, savoring the taste for a few moments before swallowing.

Samantha stood up and then sat down next to Mark. “That was a lot better than my fantasies from yesterday. Mostly because I wasn’t aware of the changes to your magic dick.”

Mark was breathing heavily, “Do… do you want me to return the favor?”

“Yes… But I’m not sure that I’m ready for that. I know you got me off as Mary, but…”

“I understand. It’s different.”

“Yeah… soon, though… I hope. I was surprised how easy that was. It isn’t like I got your dick wet a bunch of times.”

Mark sat up and cupped Samantha’s face in one hand. “That isn’t why it was easy. You’ve been putting in effort, and it’s paying off. Also, your dress is probably helping too.”

“My dress? Really?”

“I mean, that is only inspired by Navy attire, right? Not an actual uniform, so you are probably deviating somewhat.”

Samantha thought about it. Damnit, he’s right. How did I miss that? Samantha sighed, “I guess I have to work on remembering all the TFs better. There are just so many. It doesn’t help that I don’t have access to the upgrades for everyone.”

“I can share the TFs with you if you want.”

“You would do that? Won’t that sort of piss off Chloe at the least?”

“Chloe can deal with it. I won’t let you peruse her status page, but I can just pull up everyone’s TFs. I would tell most of you whatever you wanted to know about the TFs anyway.”

Samantha looked at Mark, concerned. “Most? Who wouldn’t you trust?”

“Well, I won’t be giving Sadie and Chloe each other's info until that mess is at least somewhat resolved. I also won’t be giving Talia unrestricted access. That’s about it, honestly.”

“I was worried for a second that there was a problem I didn’t know about. Those make sense, though. Would you like me to help with the Sadie-Chloe problem?”

“If you honestly think you can, then sure. Just don’t go overboard.”

“Mind filling me in on what you know?”

“Sure.” Mark then proceeded to tell Samantha what Chloe and Sadie had both told him. How their stories mostly matched, too. That their feud started because Sadie asked him out, and it escalated throughout college. He made sure to highlight the differences in the stories, though. That Sadie said Chloe gave her permission to ask Mark out, and that Sadie claims she has only taken reactionary steps to protect herself after college, despite what Chloe says. During this explanation, the two of them found themselves cuddling with Samantha, lying her head on Mark’s naked chest as he talked.

When Mark finished telling everything he knew, the two sat in silence just enjoying being near each other for a bit. Samantha eventually said, “Okay, so I see two options: First, Sadie is lying, which I’m going to be honest, I doubt; Second, there was some sort of miscommunication between the two that started this, and a third party is messing with Chloe and possibly Sadie.”

“You really think it is all just a miscommunication and someone else is fucking with Chloe?”

“I think that is the most likely, yes. I don’t know Sadie all that well, but I’ve gathered her family is rather well off and connected.” Mark snorted in amusement at that. “Care to share? It might be relevant.”

“You heard of the Marshal family?”

“Yes. Are you serious that she’s part of it?”

“Apparently, but they aren’t particularly close. Her grandfather was a bastard who was only begrudgingly recognized.”

“Doesn’t matter. That actually further supports someone fucking with Sadie via Chloe. Old families like that care about prestige. The fact that Sadie’s last name is Harper, not Marshal, actually makes her a more likely target if they wanted to pressure the family. They get Sadie involved in a scandal and then mention how it would be horrible for it to come to light that she is actually part of the Marshal family. I’ve seen similar things happen with the military brass. We even get briefings on stuff like that, and when we are up for promotions, our history and those related to or close to us are looked into rather a lot. That only answers part of the puzzle, though. From what you said, Sadie point-blank asked Chloe if she could ask you out. Maybe even share you with Chloe. That doesn’t seem like the kind of thing that Chloe would forget. Especially in the short term.”

“That is what Sadie said, she did.”

“And it makes absolutely no sense for her to lie. Plus, she was rather kind to Chloe after beating her in the Grudge Match. Sadie is also attracted to Chloe; she said as much during the match to you. Which supports her statement that she considered sharing you with her if she found her attractive back then, too.”

“Yeah. Apparently, I can’t just have Mary ask Chloe about it either.”

“That sucks.”

“Yeah. Now, what is this about getting Aubrey pregnant the first time I have sex with her?”

“Mark, your penis is the ideal for your partner. Aubrey wants kids. Her ideal penis is going to be one with hyper virility.”

“Huh,” Mark said in understanding.

“Sorry, but you know it’s true.”

“Not that. Aubrey has enhanced fertility now, so I figured that might happen anyway. I just realized Allie might be pregnant.”

“She mentioned you two were trying.”

“Yeah, but our wedding night would have been the first time we had sex after Cassandra changed my TF.” Mark received a message. Since they were told they couldn’t message anyone besides Cassandra, he knew it had to be from her and checked it.

Cassandra: A Princely Staff does not include virility adjustments. You have an option in the BP Store for that.

“Cassandra says that isn’t the case. Probably a matter of control. She doesn’t want the contestants to get to decide that they are getting pregnant.”

“Would you be happy if Allie were pregnant?”

Mark thought about it, “Yeah, I think I would be.”

“I was wondering since you didn’t seem super happy about Laura being potentially pregnant. Also, with how you blew up at Cassandra, the first round.”

“I blew up at Cassandra because she took away the contraceptives without telling us. Not simply because they were missing. With Laura, it was more about the surprise and the fact that I had known her for a bit more than a week. Since we didn’t really talk all that much in college. I feel like being a bit freaked out in that situation is warranted. Allie, I’ve been with for years, and we talked about starting a family. So, it is a very different situation.”

“But you aren’t concerned about doing that with Aubrey.”

“HA! Of course, I’m concerned. I’ve just accepted how things are.”

“Good, because I want to let you know right now that the first time we have sex, we aren’t using protection. It is incredibly aggravating to consider you a thief while also loving you. I assume you can’t just eat Allie out now and change Mary back, can you?”

“Nope, I can’t. Even if I could, I don’t think it would matter until you saw your hoard restored to normal.”

“You’re probably right.” Sam glared at him again. “Sorry, I really can’t help being pissed off at you. It’s worse than if I found out you were stealing money or something from me. It’s more like I found out you were badmouthing my family. I know it wasn’t intentional. I also know that it isn’t exactly fair that I claimed you as part of my hoard. But I did, and you should be lucky I have.”

“Oh? Why is that?”

“Because as part of my hoard, you are somewhat protected from retribution and suffering my wrath. I wouldn’t want to damage my own hoard.” Sam’s voice was deadly serious as she placed a hand on his chest.

“How bad would it be if someone else had done what I did?”

“I would tie them up and find a way to get back what was stolen. I wouldn’t even consider freeing them until I got it back… Unless they were also part of my hoard.”

“Samantha! Who else have you added to your hoard?” Samantha turned away from Mark and did not answer his question, but was blushing from embarrassment. “Answer me! This is important. I need to know, so that I don’t mess things up more.” Samantha really didn’t seem to want to talk. “Okay… so that’s how you want to play things, is it? Fine, let’s see how about Allie.” Mark pulled up the Customizable Waifu app. “How would you feel if I made her breasts smaller?” Mark asked, hovering over the slider.

“Fine! Jerk. Allie isn’t part of my hoard. Besides you in both of your forms, Laura is the only other person in my hoard at the moment. Though Allie is likely to get added based upon how things have gone… Isabella might, too, by accident.”

“If that’s the case, it is even more important that you get comfortable enough to have sex with me, because I am certainly not going to allow you to dictate how my wife looks.” Sam nodded. “Speaking of that—”

“I am so not ready for sex despite what I said yesterday. Shit, sorry. I cut you off again.”

“At least you’re working on it. I was wondering what you were going to set your goal as this round. You have to figure that out soon.”

“Shit, why does that keep sneaking up on me?”

“If you want my opinion, you should make it a goal to be intimate with me at least once a day for the rest of the round. Intimate, in this case, is defined as something involving one or both of our genitalia.”

“Eh… that seems… a bit much. What if I freak out like in the baths?”

“That’s okay. Think of it as a stepping stone goal for the one you made last week. If you don’t want to, though, no pressure. I just have to give you my opinion, remember?”

“Right. I’ll think about it. I have more time thanks to this time bubble. So what are we going to do with the rest of the day?”

“Well, I was thinking we could play some board games while looking through the store. Cassandra tried to pull a fast one on me, which I’m glad I noticed now.”

“What did she do this time?” Sam said, sitting up and grimacing.

“Well, at the beginning of the LARP, Hilde asked for a rules clarification. Sadie and I were passed along the result of that clarification. Which TF I have copied is different for each body. I was told she was also separating my other resources. Which I think she did, but that resulted in the duplication, not the splitting of my remaining boosts and BP. I bet she had planned to recombine the leftovers at the end of the round and say it wasn’t her fault I did the math wrong, and spend my BP.”

“Okay, then we should definitely look over the BP store. What game did you want to play?”

“How about some 1v1 Catan? I bet after a few games, you will crush me, though.”

“Oh, you feel confident that I won’t just crush you from the outset?”

“I feel confident,” Mark smirked.

Mark handed Samantha the tablet to look through after he ordered a Catan board and started to set it up. They rolled for first, and Mark won. He looked over the board. Okay, so a scarce sheep game. Mark placed his first settlement on a wood, sheep, wheat corner and passed to Samantha.

Sam handed over the tablet. “I think I found something already, take a look.” Mark grabbed the tablet while Sam looked over the board.

Mark read what Sam was interested in.

True Love’s Kiss: Sometimes, contestants find Transformations more of a curse than a blessing. Well, those who Mark/Mary loves and loves him/her in return can find some relief. By sharing true love’s kiss, Mark/Mary can suppress up to three transformations of his/her choice for 24 hours. He can do this once per round per person who qualifies. [The Prince] (4000 BP)

“That certainly has potential. I will say I won’t be buying anything before talking to Slevia. She gave me an earful for not doing it earlier.”

Sam placed her two settlements, first on a wood, wheat, and brick corner, then on an ore, wood, and sheep corner. “What, why?”

“Apparently, advising me on how to spend my resources is literally part of her job. She was rather annoyed that I asked Freya and all of you, instead of coming to her. She was really pissed I had been telling you all to spend down each round.”

“Well, she can fuck off. Spending down is the correct call.”

“I… I actually agree with her now.”

“What…” Sam glared as she rolled the dice and took her resource card. “Mark, you'd better have a damn good explanation.”

“Well, I already mentioned before, you didn’t all need to spend down too heavily since it would let me fix more. More than that, though, Slevia said she had something like a quarter million BP worth of things for me to buy off the top of her head that are purely beneficial. She convinced me to upgrade both my points TF and my boosting TF. Now I get more of both.”

“What!” Sam exclaimed.

“Sam, why are you getting upset?”

“Mark, I’m sorry this isn’t anything against you, but under no circumstances should we ever let you have 20,000 BP or more again. If you get that much BP, I am literally going to badger you until you spend below that threshold. I don’t care if I lose VP for doing so or not.”

“I’m confused, why?”

“Like I said, it isn’t anything against you, but there are some truly horrific purchases in your store at that price and above. Tell me, honestly here, how big of a push do you think you would have needed while under the effects of the caramels or the brownies, to simply not care that you would hurt us? What would have happened if I hadn’t confiscated the brownies and you had had another two or three? Would the little voice in your head telling you not to **** yourself on us be gone? Would you buy something from the BP store on an impulse, completely ruining our lives, because you don’t care about the consequences? This is the second time that you have had your morality fucked with by magic.”

“So you don’t trust me?”

“Mark, I trust you greatly. Most of us do. I don’t trust you without your filter. Honestly, I don’t think there is a person here whom, without their inhibitions, I would trust. Including me. Can I see the TFs?” Mark pulled up all the TFs and handed the tablet back to Samantha. “Oh, great… this is worse than you said. Now we need to keep you under 16000 BP instead. At least the upgrade to the boosts is better.”

Samantha ignored the game and started to browse the BP store.

“I take it you aren’t interested in continuing?” Mark said a little disappointed.

“Sorry, Mark, but no, I’m not. Please don’t upgrade your points TF again.” Mark nodded and started to clean up the game.

“I won’t promise that, Sam. Slevia made some good arguments as to why I should. Maybe you should talk to her about it.”

Sam grumbled but nodded.

Mark asked, “You aren’t going to stop looking through the store unless I take that away from you, or until you find something for everyone to buy, are you?”

“No, probably not. I feel a nagging sensation to do this because of my lists. So please don’t take the tablet.”

Mark sighed, “Okay. I won’t, but how about we cuddle in bed, turn on some background music while you look.”

Samantha looked at Mark like this was some ploy for a moment, but said, “I would be amenable to that. Also, not that I’m particularly complaining, but are you planning on putting on pants?”

“Will they remain in one piece if I do?”

“Hmm…” Samantha eyed Mark’s crotch. “That’s a decent point.” Sam climbed into bed and got under the covers with Mark, snuggling close with him. While nuzzling Mark’s shoulder, Samantha said, “Mark, I’m happy we got this extra time together. I’m sorry I didn’t want to finish the game, and sorry if it seems like I’m worried you will do something stupid. I don’t think you would do anything I would be worried about, at least in your right mind. I love you and trust you. I said this on our last date night, and I’ll say it again because it bears repeating: I’m happy I was given a chance to be with you, even if it means competing on this show. The idea that I could lie in bed with a naked man, let alone a man I’m in love with, would have been completely unthinkable to me a month ago. Thank you for being a good man who is trying his best, because neither of those things are givens.”

“I’m the lucky one,” Mark replied as he kissed the top of her forehead.

It was several hours before either one of them got out of bed. Samantha was insistent on finding ways to spend all the BP everyone had. She also gave suggestions as to what Mark should upgrade depending on which version of him did better. They had been arguing for the last thirty minutes about what he would upgrade for Samantha. Mark had gotten dressed and was preparing tea to go with the lunch they were provided.

“Mark, are you seriously not going to respect our wishes on what we want upgraded?”

“I will take it under advisement but I’m going to choose what I want to choose for this. I have a better idea of what will happen than all of you do. In your case, though, if the other team’s me is the winner, it is either Bring Honor to Us All or Creature of Legend. I won’t even consider the others. If you bought one of the TFs you didn’t get in the second round of TFs, I could consider one of those.”

“Why not my uniform, TF? Cassandra had a point that I would likely be wearing something similar even without the upgrade to it eventually.”

“Sam, I told you this already. If that gets upgraded, you won’t like it. Please just trust me on this.”

“You know that is such an unfair tactic, right?” Samantha grimaced. “You’re going to use that against me for the rest of my life, aren’t you?”

Mark made an exaggerated hurt expression as he poured tea for them both. “WHAT?! It’s like you don’t trust me not to use your TFs against you.” Samantha furrowed her brows and pouted at his response. “Seriously, though, no. I won’t be. I might ask you to just trust me on occasion, but I’m not going to use it to win an argument.”

“Then why not tell me what you think the upgrade would be?”

“That’s the thing, Sam, I’m not entirely sure.”

“So, this is just a gut feeling?”

“Yes, but also no. Why do you want it? What do you think it would do?”

Sam was putting the food on the table after reapportioning it again, as she was quite unsatisfied with what Mark was being served. “I… I don’t really know. I was just thinking that it has been the most mild of my TFs, at least of the ones you can upgrade. Let’s put a pin in this for now. If this you scores higher, will you at least agree to upgrade Secrets of The Ancestors?”

“Why?”

“Why? That should be obvious!” Mark looked at Sam, expecting an actual answer. “I think it would let me summon specific people.”

“I was worried that would be your answer.”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“Sam… I don’t think—”

“No! Mark, shut up! I don’t want to hear that I shouldn't live in the past.”

-1 VP Disrespect of The Master’s Boundaries

“I’m going to be seeing these ghosts all the time. So what if I want to see my dad, my grandparents, or eventually my mom and uncle, instead of some random ancestor I never knew? I’m going to outlive essentially all of my family that aren’t part of your harem! Even then, it might include some of them. I found a book about dragons in the library. It varies by species, but hundreds of years old is the shorter end of the various life spans of dragons that it listed. Immortal is the other end. Having people I care about to talk to during those years to help ground me is something I’ll need. Listen, Mark, if you lose and have to make an upgrade just for yourself, fine. I’m not particularly happy with your two choices, but if we include the options to purchase my two missed TFs, that is four TFs that I can see not sucking while receiving that sort of upgrade. But if you beat Mary, I’m going to be upset if you pick something else without articulating a compelling reason why before you pick it.” Sam finished her rant and took some calming breaths. “I’m not sorry for ranting. I’m a little sorry for cutting you off, but I really didn’t want or need to hear you tell me not to live in the past.”

Mark let the silence hang for a while. Samantha eventually asked, “What not going to tell me I’m wrong? That, what I want, isn’t healthy?”

Which was when a tray behind Samantha flung up and hit her upside the head. She then heard a stern voice as the tray clattered to the ground. “How dare you talk back to your Master, to your better!” A stern male voice said from behind her. She gently rubbed the back of her head, not really hurt by the action but annoyed. She turned around and saw a middle-aged Japanese man in clothes befitting a samurai. “You are an ungrateful concubine. You sleep in his bed and yet have not pledged yourself to him. (Tsk) You even have the gall to pretend to be a warrior.”

Mark rushed over to Samantha. “Sam? What happened?”

“A very rude ghost showed up.”

Mark immediately activated Messing with The Code, and he saw the active TF. He started tinkering.

“Rude! HA! You are the disrespectful one. Making him pour the tea. No wonder he isn’t interested in taking you as his wife. Plus, you dress like a —”

Sam whirled on the ghost, “Shut up! Why are you even here if you are just going to insult me?”

“To teach you your place! I must say, at least earlier, you realized your place was on your knees, pleasing your man. You should simply accept whatever he decides for you. After all, you're a woman. Your place is at home bearing children.”

Mark punched the ghost in the face, which, to the surprise of both the ghost and Samantha, actually landed, sending the ghost flying backward. “Mark?! How did you hit the ghost?”

“I messed with your TF. For the next forty-eight hours, I can see, hear, and touch the ghosts. Since you were here earlier, you perv, I assume there are others watching right now, too.” Mark grabbed the spirit's robe. “Let me make one thing clear. Do. Not. Fuck. With my woman. That goes for any of the others watching, as well.” The ghost tried to grab at Mark’s arm to get free, but the ghost just phased through it. “That’s right, prick, I can touch you, but you can’t touch me. This isn’t permanent, yet, but I promise I’ll make it permanent if I need to. I’ll also make it so I can do more than just punch you, too. It’ll be just a matter of time before I figure out how to let Samantha touch you, too, and even imprison you. Maybe she’ll start a hoard of unruly ghosts. So do not fuck with her.” Mark let go of the ghost. “Leave before I change my mind about rearranging your face some more.”

The ghost vanished with a slight fear on his face.

Mark started to turn around, but found himself hurling through the air, falling towards the bed. Momentarily after landing on the bed, he felt Sam land on top of him and her lips on his. She grabbed Mark’s shirt fiercely and didn’t stop kissing him for a few minutes. When she finally stopped making out with Mark, she said, “That was so fucking sexy.”

Mark saw Samantha’s eyes had widened from their normal vertical slits almost to complete circles. She was also breathing heavily. “Sam, are you okay? You—” Mark was cut off by Samantha, resuming kissing him as she once again tore Mark’s clothes off his body. Samantha ran her fingers of one hand along Mark’s muscular form while encouraging Mark’s hands to go lower with her other hand.

As Mark’s hand slipped into her panties, Samantha stopped kissing him to remove her dress. “Oh!” Samantha inhaled sharply as Mark began to gently massage her slit. “Please, I want this.” Samantha took off her bra and panties while leaning into Mark. Samantha raised her hips and saw Mark’s erection between her legs, which she took in one hand. Samantha froze as Mark took his hand away from her crotch, but left his other hand on her back. She hovered over his erection until she sat back in disappointment. Mark’s cock sat in front of her, between her thighs, but not inside her.

Before Samantha could say anything. Mark sat up and put a finger to her lips. “Don’t apologize. I know you want me. It will happen one day. It doesn’t need to be today.” Mark wrapped his arms around Samantha. She did the same to him.

When she pulled away, instead of getting off of him, though, she pushed him onto his back again and repositioned, turning around into a sixty-nine position. Mark found she had taken his cock into her mouth. Causing him to let out a, “OH, Fuck yes!” Which got him a light tail slap in the face, followed by the tip of her tail pointing at her crotch, which she was waggling in anticipation. Mark chuckled. Message received. Mark grasped Samantha’s butt cheeks as he lowered her into a position so he could pleasure her as well. Mark started slowly to make sure he wouldn’t overwhelm Samantha. As she increased her speed, Mark matched her. He paused for a moment and said, “Sam, if you’re okay with it, I’m going to try sticking my tongue inside.”

Sam paused and took his dick out of her mouth. “Go for it. Please! I’ll slap you again if I want you to remove it.”

This better not be just an excuse to slap me. Mark thought while smirking. He resumed his efforts and hesitantly stuck his tongue inside. This is so much easier as Mary. Mark wrapped his arms around Samantha’s waist and partially lifted her as he moved to a sitting position with her knees on his shoulders. She braced herself with both hands on his thighs, but didn’t stop attacking his cock. Mark could feel he was close, but couldn’t quite climax. OH, so that’s how it is, huh? I bet you’re making it so I won’t climax before you. Well, let's see how long you like being teased. Each time Mark felt like he was about to climax and likely finish off Samantha at the same time, he slowed down ever so slightly, just enough to keep her on edge.

Finally, Samantha had had enough. “Fucking hell, Mark! Stop teasing me already. I know you are doing that intentionally.”

Mark didn’t wait for her to resume blowing him but ruthlessly went at her, bringing her to climax before she could resume her blowjob. Mark still came when she did, covering Samantha’s face in his cum. He noticed it was a rather large amount of cum, too. He put her legs down to the side, and as Samantha sat up, she glared at Mark. “You did that on purpose, didn’t you?”

+1 VP Facial (x2 First)

“I wasn’t the one who wanted a penis that would climax when you received an orgasm. That’s also quite a lot of cum. Was it really that tasty that you wanted so much of it in your mouth?”

Samantha shoved Mark’s shoulder while pouting, pushing him onto his side. “I’m going to the bathroom to clean up. Don’t follow me.” Samantha stood up, and he watched as she left the room, her tail swishing behind her. She was out of the room for a few minutes, of which he only heard running water for the last thirty seconds or so. She came out while licking her lips and posed with one claw on her hip and scales halfway up her arms. “How do I look?”

“Dangerously sexy.”

Mark’s response caused Sam to smirk, but then she seemed a little self-conscious. “Really? You aren’t turned off by the claws or scales?” Samantha walked over to Mark and held out a claw for Mark to hold as she sat on the edge of the bed. He gently held it and turned it over in his hands.

“The scales, absolutely not. I will say the claws, it isn’t that they are a turn off, but I would really appreciate it if at no time you handled my penis with these, as they are rather sharp. I will say I think they look badass, though.”

Samantha chuckled at that. “Yeah, don’t worry. You’re precious to me. I wouldn’t want to hurt you.” Then mimicking Gollum while wiggling her talons in the air, said, “My precious. Mustn’t let harm befall my precious. Filthy little hobbit stole my precious.” Then Samantha broke out in a grin and started laughing.

Mark, through his own laughter, asked, “Did you just call me as Mary a hobbit?”

“If the shoe fits.”

“Hobbits don’t wear shoes.”

Samantha rolled her eyes. “Fine, but you have to admit you are fairly short as Mary.”

“I would rank as one of the tallest hobbits ever as Mary, and just you wait, I’ll be taller than you soon enough.”

“Wait, what?” It took Samantha a second. “Oh, did you also change your height as Mary during your blatant theft of my hoard. WAIT! Is that what you used my hoard for?! To gain a couple of inches of height!”

“I used it for other things too, like muscles, but yes.” Samantha scrunched up her face in frustration. “You are really cute when you do that with your face.” Samantha tackled Mark, putting her hands on his shoulders.

After a second of glaring down at him, she got off him. “Sorry, I lost control of my emotions.”

“It’s okay, Sam. I have nothing against aggressive, strong women. Honestly, I'm a little surprised you are so strong.”

“Mark, I am a Dragon. Of course I’m going to be strong.”

“Sure, it’s just, I’m supposed to be as fit as Laura. I guess being as fit as her doesn’t include her supernatural strength, just being muscular.”

“Mark, I’m a little confused. You don’t mind me pushing you around and throwing you onto the bed, but pinning you or restraining you is a problem?”

“I’m actually surprised you don’t get that.”

“I… I sort of do, but also don’t. Like you clearly liked it when I tossed you on the bed and climbed on top of you so you couldn’t get up. Earlier, though, pinning your wrists was a problem, even though when I let go of them, it wasn’t like you were really less helpless. You still couldn’t have gotten out from under me if I didn’t want to let you go. Don’t get me wrong, I completely understand the desire not to feel helpless.”

Mark pulled Samantha into a tight hug and then relaxed a bit but held her close. “You told me before that you feel safe in my arms. Even before becoming a dragon. Right now, you can **** yourself free, but how would you feel if you couldn’t, and when you tried to stand up, I wouldn’t let you?” Mark could tell he struck home with his explanation. “It’s exactly like that. Even before you gained remarkable strength, it wasn’t a problem because you felt safe. I don’t like how it makes me feel, and the feeling is worse while I’m Mary.”

“Then why was I given a boon for safely tying people up? If you don’t want that. I thought even our boons were meant to provide something for you.”

“I think that’s because you are intended to help me tie up and dominate others. It’s also helped you be more comfortable exploring sexual things with the others. Which is something that helps you be with me, too.”

“I… I’m not sure I’m comfortable with that.”

“Well, if you ever are, I can tell you that is something I’m interested in. I think you are probably the person intended to fulfill that role, too. At least partially. I could see Merida or Laura doing something similar, but I think you were the one Cassandra intended for that. Possibly still intends for that. I know you said you weren’t comfortable with that, but I heard you tied up Laura in the first round. You also haven’t really been hesitant to be forceful with me. That isn’t new either.” Samantha scrunched up her face in contemplation. She stood up and grabbed her dress, her face not changing expression as she put it on. Mark went to get new clothes since Samantha once again destroyed his previous set, and joined Samantha at the table for lunch. Sam separated the meals into two again after seeing both. Seeing her expression still hadn’t changed, Mark asked as he sat down next to her, “Would you like to know what I think?”

“Hmm? About what?”

“About why you aren’t comfortable with tying people up and dominating them. At least in your head.”

“Don’t know that I want you telling me why I feel a certain way.”

“That’s not really my intent, but I’ll keep my thoughts to myself if you don’t want to hear them.”

“I think I know what you are going to say, but go ahead and tell me,” Sam said, taking a bite of a coney dog with onion and cheese.

“I think, when you hear dominating someone, that you would be taking away power and control from them to do that. If you are doing it healthily, though you aren’t stripping them of control, they are giving it to you. Which is why I don’t care for being restrained. I don’t like giving up control. I don’t think you do either.”

“You’re right about that. Mark… will you ever take off the kid gloves with me, or do you consider me too fragile to do that with?”

“Sam, I’ve done my best to treat you the way I thought you would like me to. I don’t think you are fragile, far from it. I do think you have been hurt badly and are still healing. Am I holding back some with you? Yes. If that bothers you, I can stop or stop holding back as much. I don’t think you are fragile, though, where if I do the wrong thing that I might break you. I’m partially exercising so much caution, not solely because of you but because of the rules.” Mark moved his hand to hold Samantha’s. “How fast can you turn your hand into a claw?” Instead of answering, she just did it. Her hand became a claw in about a second. Mark lifted the claw and put it flat on his chest. Mark could feel her talons through his shirt, resting on his chest. “What happens right now if you panic?” Mark felt her claw return to being a hand as he asked the question.

Samantha hung her head. “It’s the same problem as Flora.”

“Indeed. Except that in your case, triggering that kind of reaction by accident is far more likely.” Mark let go of her hand, and she pulled it away slowly. “If we were back on our Earth, and you didn’t have claws. If we were just trying to make things work between us. I would still be cautious, but I’d be more willing to take risks, even if it meant you lashing out in panic. Here, though, that could be disastrous. You are too precious to me, too, Sam. I refuse to lose you.”

“I can’t say your worries are unfounded either. I nearly attacked Ellen. I have panicked before. If we weren’t in the sparring arena, I could have been in real trouble on our first date. What can we do about this?”

“I think Cassandra put Swab The Dick up for the vote for a reason.” Mark snorted in amusement, “I just realized something. I bet Allie’s Walkthrough included some of this in its plan after knowing about the dessert effects, maybe not the time bubble, but using the desserts to advance our relationship. Think about it, build up a bunch of fantasies in your head, with a reason why you can’t act on them right then. Then, when you aren’t being pushed to act on things but still have them fresh in your head, you and I do stuff together, because you’re in the right headspace to do that.”

“Sometimes I love that TF and other times I find it the most frustrating thing ever.”

“I feel like you could say the same thing about this show or Cassandra.”

“Nope, no way. Though I could see how you could say that.”

“That’s fair.” Mark was about to put his main plate back on the tray when Samantha reached out and grabbed his arm.

“Eat the salad. It doesn’t make up for the chili dogs and chili cheese fries, but at least it’s something.” Mark glared back at her but ultimately relented. He did poignantly stab the salad with his fork aggressively with each bite, though. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, also, this dressing tastes gross.”

“I appreciate your sacrifice.” She replied, rolling her eyes in amusement.

“Is this seriously about setting an example for our future kids?”

“Partially. I’m also not convinced that there won’t be consequences for eating horribly.”

Mark begrudgingly finished his salad in silence. After lunch, Samantha went right back to looking through the shop. Until Mark had had enough, a few hours later, and took away the tablet. “Okay, you’re done for now. You don’t need to look through for stuff for the other team right now. You can’t talk to them anyway.”

Samantha clenched her jaw as she reached for the tablet. “Mark, give that back.”

“No. Samantha, we have an entire day together. We aren't just spending it looking at a tablet.”

“I’m fairly certain we have in fact done other things today.”

“Honestly, I’m feeling ignored. I get that it is important to you that I do not get a stockpile of BP, but you don’t get to tell the others how to spend their BP. If I find out you are pressuring them to spend it, I’m going to be upset.”

Samantha looked like she was about to yell in frustration, but she closed her eyes and pursed her lips. She took in some calming breaths. “Fine, what would you like to do then? We are stuck in here for several more hours, and I’m not exactly tired enough to go to sleep yet.”

“Well, there is one thing I’ve been wanting to do with you.”

“We aren’t doing more sexual stuff. I’m annoyed with you right now.”

“I was thinking we should look into the mirror together.”

“Hmm… I suppose that would be fine.”

Samantha walked over to the mirror with Mark. Mark put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her in close, and together they looked into the mirror. As it turned blue, they were both pulled into their vision.

Samantha found herself looking out over the city of Chicago. She was in a nice corporate office. The door was open, and the nameplate on it read, ‘Samantha Garret, CSO’. She looked down and noticed she was definitely pregnant. Allie came into the room and kissed her on the cheek. “Here’s that report, dear.”

Samantha wrapped her tail around Allie as she flipped through the report. She couldn’t make out what the report was actually about, besides it had to do with cybersecurity, and she noticed the company letterhead read, ‘Garret Industries: Pharmaceutical Division’. Samantha went to sit down at her desk, and Allie sat across from her, explaining some things, but Samantha couldn’t understand a word. What she noticed instead were the many pictures on her desk. Pictures of her family. Everyone was in at least one picture, even Cassandra. Most of them had them in a picture with Samantha. She noticed there was a plethora of children, though none were distinct. Samantha picked up one photograph as Allie was leaving. It was a massive group of people; it looked like a high school class photo, with so many involved. Samantha, despite not being able to make out a bunch of the people in the vision, knew that she recognized each and every one of the people in the picture. My family.

Mark found himself back in the foyer as normal. He did a quick check of each hall before heading down Samantha’s hall. Allie’s and Isabella’s hallway had gone from white with red roses to including gold filigree on the vines, walls, and floor. The orange hallway for Merida had also changed significantly. Above the arch were four fox tails, and one was made of solid gold. In addition, there was now an intense, fiery love and passion radiating from the hall. Aubrey’s and Chloe’s halls hadn’t really changed, while Talia’s and Laura’s halls had merged into one. It now looked like the entrance to a temple or cathedral of some sort. Definitely checking that out if I have time. Flora’s hall had also seen a makeover. It was polished brown granite, with the pink flowers now on either side of the hall in hanging baskets every few feet down the hall. From the hall, Mark got a sense of peace like before, but also of overwhelming trust, and he thought a hint of love. Ellen’s hall no longer hurt to look at. Instead of split yellow and gold, the two were now intricately intermingled, even though the yellow dominated. What confused Mark, though, was the inky blackness that was mixed in as well. The hall had a feeling of submission, uncertainty, and perversion from it. Hmm… well, maybe Ellen’s future is finally stabilizing, some? Then there were the two new halls. The first was the return of a purple hall, but this time, he felt something from it. He felt pride, practicality, determination, weariness, worry, and fear. He also sensed an undercurrent of attraction and hope, but it was faint. Then was a dark hall that was lined with bright vertical streaks that reminded Mark of lightning. Mark sensed attraction, gratitude, and eagerness pouring out.

Mark then proceeded down Samantha’s hallway. The walls looked like glittering dragon scales. Getting to the end of the hall, though, Mark found the room very odd, considering what he felt from the hall was a protective love. The bed was rather simple and was only a queen-sized bed. It was made and had soft silk sheets, but looked disused. There was no nightstand either. The floor was padded and looked like it was set up for sparring. The wall the bed was up against was lined with weapons. The wall opposite that one, though, was lined with shelves of photos and a closed door. Mark walked over to examine the photos and found the wedding picture he expected, but also one of Samantha and Allie both in wedding dresses, and one of Mary, Allie, and Samantha all in wedding dresses together. There was an individual picture of Samantha and each other member of the Harem doing something together, too. Mark moved to try the door, but found he couldn’t open it. Does this lead to another room? I guess that makes sense; that would be the direction of Allie’s and Isabella’s room. It would also explain why there isn’t a vision of Sam and me here, and the room isn’t particularly lived in all that much. Mark didn’t see much more of interest, so he walked back to the foyer, hoping he would have time to check out Talia’s and Laura’s hall.

Proceeding through the temple doors, he felt welcomed, like he belonged here. Entering the room was much bigger than either had been before. There was no delineation between what was Laura’s and Talia’s, with the exception of two things. The first was an enclosed area with a workbench inside, clearly meant for Talia to be able to experiment safely. The other was an altar at the foot of the bed, clearly dedicated to Laura. The bed was massive, having room for twenty people comfortably. There was an entire section of the room dedicated to sex toys and contraptions. Mark saw Talia, Laura, and himself lying in bed. One of his arms was around each of them. He was trying to understand what he was feeling when the vision ended.

When Mark returned, he didn’t find Samantha standing beside him. Instead, she was getting things ready for dinner. Noticing Mark moving, Samantha said, “About time. You’ve been standing there for quite a while.”

“Really? It didn’t feel longer than normal.”

Samantha shrugged, “Yeah, something like forty-five, fifty minutes. Maybe it has to do with the time bubble or something. Anyway, we should eat.” Mark came and sat down to eat with Samantha. “So, anything interesting in yours?”

“Yeah, quite a bit actually. What about you?”

“Nuh, uh. I asked first. Spill.”

“Well, I’m not certain, but I think you end up sleeping in Allie’s room in the future. Your room still felt like it was your space, but more like an extra room, if you get my meaning. Like it was mostly there for when you wanted alone time with me, or wanted to practice combat techniques. Also, a LOT of pictures.”

“Yeah, I got a feeling about pictures, too. There was a massive one. More than a hundred people for sure, but all of them were family. I was also pregnant, and I think that you start a company or something.”

“Eh… probably in name only. Likely a combination of all of you.”

“Possibly. Anything more?”

“Yeah… Talia’s and Laura’s halls combined. It reminded me of a temple.”

“Hmm. Makes sense. I’m quite happy with the results. You?”

“For us, yes. I’m going to reserve my feelings about some of the halls to myself, though.”

Samantha seemed annoyed, “Fine, I can’t expect you to share personal details about the others with me just because I want you to.”

The two finished dinner, discussing what to do next in the LARP. When they finished dinner, Mark cleaned up, and when he turned around, he found Samantha had vanished. “Sam? Where did you go?”

“I’m up here,” Samantha said from the rafters of the room. Mark looked up and saw that she had the tablet in her hands. “I figured you would try to steal this from me again, since you are a blatant thief.” She stuck out her tongue at him.

Mark frowned as he looked up at Samantha. Then he got a nagging feeling in the back of his head. Oh shit, I need to pick a TF to copy. Hmm… that would be a fun surprise.

Samantha wasn’t paying attention to Mark as she was rather engrossed in looking through the store. So she was taken off guard when something hurled into her, knocking her off the rafters and onto the bed. She heard the tablet hit the ground hard and shatter. Samantha looked at her attacker and saw a large, muscular black dragon coiled around her body, claws placed on either side of her head. She didn’t move while taking in Mark's form. She slowly transformed into a dragon herself. Something primal overcame both of them as their claws interlocked and they battled for dominance. They coiled around one another, making an absolute mess of the bed as they thrashed around and swiped at each other with their claws. Samantha ultimately found herself the loser in the battle, but didn’t seem to mind.

Mark and Samantha were coiled around one another, but Mark rested his head and claws atop hers. Samantha gently pressed into Mark as he gently nipped at her neck. Both let out contented growls. Samantha twisted beneath Mark, and she returned a playful bite. After staying like this for a few minutes, both returned to their humanoid forms at the same time, Mark holding Samantha’s hands against the bed. Samantha tried to reach up to touch Mark’s face, and he let her, releasing her hand at the first push. She said, panting in arousal. “Mark… I feel…”

“I know… I want you, something bad right now. I’m afraid I won’t stop myself if I continue.”

“I’m both afraid and excited because I don’t think I would want you to.” Samantha was clearly debating what she wanted him to do at that moment. Mark made the choice for her as he rolled to the side and lay next to her. After a moment, she said, “Yeah… that is probably the right call. How are you a dragon, though? I thought only Mary got the non-human characteristics when you copy a TF.”

“She does, unless I copy the TF that gave them to you. Now we have two dragons on our team. You’ll have to show me how to breathe lightning.”

Samantha smiled a toothy grin, and she moved in to cuddle Mark, “Oh, this is going to be fun.”