The Shopkeepers

Morgan, Hailey, Jennifer, Fiora and Stella were all standing in the middle of the five stores.

“So girls, which one do you want to check out first?” asked Morgan, who seemingly put herself in a leadership position.

“Well, I genuinely need to go clothes shopping. I don’t have many outfits I can wear that show off cleavage. And most of the ones that do aren’t appropriate for everyday wear,” said Jennifer.

“Well, I sure as hell am not going to the other ones, so I’d say clothes shopping it is,” said Hailey.

“Come on Hailey, don’t be so closed minded,” said Fiora, to which Hailey rolled her eyes and walked into the clothing store. With a collected shrug, the others followed. Once they got in, they were blown away by the vast assortment of clothes. The store was massive, with multiple sections. The sections were divided by different colored floor and clothing racks, as well as signs hanging above with their names. The only difference was a "communal" section in the back and a “coming soon” sign against the wall.

“Wow, this is incredible,” said Stella, who was floating just above the ground.

“I wonder who’s running the store?” wondered Morgan.

“That would be me.”

The girls were taken off guard by the colorful and massive hair of this mysterious woman.

“Um, who are you?” asked Jennifer.

“I’m Alear, one of the many victims of the old Harem Hotel rescued by the Director.” The others were thrown off by not only her words, but also her extremely cheery voice. But unlike with Fiora, it sounded artificial.

“The who now?” asked Hailey.

“I was lucky enough to be chosen as a store keeper for this season, and to be here with you guys today.”

“This place is awesome!” exclaimed Fiora. Alear’s artificial cheerfulness seemed to turn genuine.

“You really think so?” Fiora exceedingly grabbed Alear’s hands.

“Yes yes yes! Please, you have to show me around!” Alear looked shocked for a moment before a big and real smile spread across her lips.

“That would be great, but first, I have a few things to say.” She turned to the group and extended her arms.

“Welcome to my shop! Here we have all of your clothing needs. You’ll be happy to know that buying clothes from your personal sections is cheaper than buying something from any other section. Your sections include clothes of your own personal tastes, ones that fit your transformations and outfits that we took from the Master’s fantasies! Stella, you are special however, as your section also includes plenty of materials to create your own clothes with! Once you’re ready to check out, just ring the bell on my desk. Any questions?” No one raised their hands, so Alear turned back to Fiora.

“Now, back to your tour.”

…

After a while, Fiora and Hailey left the store. Morgan and Stella were lost to the halls, browsing different items. Jennifer was actually doing some shopping, and was taking her time.

“You know, you didn’t need a tour. The place really wasn’t that hard to figure out,” said Hailey. Fiora shook her head, but kept smiling.

“I didn’t do that for me, I did it for her.” Hailey raised an eyebrow to that.

“Hu? I don’t follow?”

“When you’ve been through as much suffering as I have, you tend to notice when other people have suffered a lot too.” Hailey was thrown off by the look in Fiora’s eyes. She looked sad, despite her smile.

“That cheerfulness wasn’t real, it was fake. And I’m not talking standard customer service fake. I think she’s under a transformation that forces her to act that way.” Looking back, Hailey could see where Fiora was coming from.

“Damn. This place is really fucked up.”

“I’m going to check out the other stores. Want to come?” And just like that, Fiora was all smiles again.

“I thought you said you weren't interested in sex.”

“I never said that, just that I haven’t thought much about it. Besides, I’m not doing this for the sex stuff, I want to meet the store keepers.” The bright smile and genuine warmth in Fiora’s eyes melted Hailey’s cold heart.

“God, you are way too pure for this world. Fine, I’ll go with you.” Fiora lit up and grabbed Hailey’s arm.

“REALLY!”

“Yes really. Come on, no need to make a big deal about it.” Fiora giggled and pulled the flustered Hailey into the store.

...

Which store, the Item Store of course. The store was much smaller than the clothing store, and the items inside were much more expensive. There was a variety of just about everything from potions, to wands and even a few books. The store itself looked like it was taken out of a fantasy novel, with a distinct medieval feel to it.

“Wow, this place is awesome!” exclaimed Fiora.

“I’ll admit, it’s pretty cool,” said Hailey, When they walked over to the counter, they saw the storekeeper.

“Oh, hello. My name is Aika, and welcome to my humble store,” she said in a soft and quiet voice.

“OMG, your ears are adorable!” exclaimed Fiora, making Aika wince.

“Th-thank you. They are also very sensitive.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I’ll keep my voice down. C-can I touch them?” asked Fiora.

“Sorry, but they’re sensitive in multiple ways.” It took Fiora a second to pick up on what she meant.

“So, Aika, were you also rescued by this mysterious Director person?” questioned Hailey.

“Yeah, all of the staff were. We were all contestants on a season with a pretty terrible host and a perverted Master. He wasn’t a terrible person or anything, but he had a hard time resisting the sexual side of the show. The host, however, was a monster. When the Director was tearing down Harem Hotel, she cursed us. The Director couldn’t break the curse, but he was able to make it more manageable.” The other two women were shocked to hear the story, making Aika blush.

“Um, is there anything I can help you with?” Fiora shook off her shock and gave Aika a smile.

“Actually, we came here to meet you.” Now it was Aika’s turn to be shocked.

“B-but that’s not how this is supposed to go.”

“Trust me, there’s no deterring this girl. You might as well just go with it,” said Hailey.

…

After a while, Fiora and Hailey walked out of the Item Shop. As it worked out, it was at the same time that Jennifer walked out of the clothing store.

“Oh, hi guys. Were you checking out the other stores?” she asked. Jennifer was holding multiple shopping bags.

“More like meeting the other storekeepers. How was your shopping?” asked Fiora.

“It went well. I got enough shirts to have a nice variety. Spent all my BP though.”

Jennifer 12 BP–0 BP

“Do you want to join us? Fiora has insisted on meeting all the storekeepers,” offered Hailey.

“No thanks. I’m going to put my clothes away,” said Jennifer. Fiora and Hailey entered the Sex Shop right when Jennifer’s phone buzzed. She looked at it and squealed before running off.

…

The Sex Shop was exactly what it advertised to be. A shop full of all things related to sex. Lingerie, dildos, bondage, vibrators and much, much more. Fiora was slightly uncomfortable, but Hailey didn’t seem to phased.

“Why hello there darlings. I see I finally have customers.”

“Hello, what’s your name?” asked Fiora. The storekeeper got really close to Fiora, making the girl take a step back.

“My my, you are adorable. I’d just love to see what you look like tied up and begging.” Seeing how uncomfortable Fiora was, Hailey stood between her and the storekeeper.

“Back up bitch. She asked you a question.” The sly smile never left the other woman’s lips.

“Ooo, the big strong type. I bet you’re a kitten in bed. But very well, my name is Nyx, and this is my shop. Are you two interested in more ways to be ravaged by your Master?” Hailey glared at Nyx while Fiora nervously shuffled around.

“Um, no. We came here to meet you,” said Fiora. Nyx smiled and slipped past Hailey before wrapping an arm around Fiora. The young girl looked alarmed and stiffed up.

“Ooo, very interesting. I’d love to devour you, but I’ll leave that for your Master.” Fiora looked up at Hailey and mouthed help. Without a second thought, Hailey shoved Nyx to the ground before grabbing Fiora and dragging her out of the store.

Once they were outside, Hailey let go of her arm.

“You ok?” Fiora looked up at her and nodded, although her smile had yet to return.

“Thanks. She was making me very uncomfortable.” Hailey smiled before messing with Fiora’s hair, making the girl giggle.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll look out for you. Now come on, there is still one more store to look into.” Fiora’s smile returned in full ****.

“Yeah!”

…

The final store was the least remarkable to look at. Instead of sprawling shelves and interesting designs, it was very small. There was a single shelving unit in the middle that had multiple cards on it. Each card had the description of a transformation as well as multiple duration options.

But as you know, Fiora and Hailey aren’t interested in the shop, but the shopkeeper.

The woman behind the counter looked up at them from her book, but didn’t say anything.

“Hello, my name is Fiora and this is Hailey, what’s yours?” The other woman seemed very uninterested.

“Akita. You here to shop?”

“No, we wanted to meet you!” exclaimed Fiora. She held out her hand, but Akita didn’t take it.

“Sorry, don’t like talking. If not shop, please leave.” Akita looked back down at the book she was reading.

“You don’t need to be rude about it. She’s trying to be nice,” snapped Hailey.

“Can’t help it. If you no shop, please leave.” Fiora puffed out her cheeks, and dramatically turned around.

“Fine, be a bore!” Hailey tried, and failed, not to laugh. Once the two were out of sight, Akita smiled. As soon as Fiora left the store, her smile returned.

“I think she likes me!” Before Hailey could question how in the world Fiora came to that conclusion, Morgan and Stella walked out of the Clothing Store. They were both carrying shopping bags, but all of the bags had Stella’s name on it.

“Hi guys! How was your shopping?” asked Fiora.

“It was great! I got so many materials to make new clothes with!” exclaimed Stella.

“But, how did you afford it?” asked Hailey. This time, Stella began to blush slightly.

“I ah, I called David and he loaned me some BP. It was only ten, so not too much.”

Stella 5 BP–0 BP

David loaned 10 BP to Stella

“But doesn’t that mean you have to pay it back,” said Fiora. Stella was still blushing and looking away.

“Yes, but that information isn’t for your ears. Stella knows what she has to do, and it’s none of your business,” said Morgan. Stella gave Morgan a small smile.

“Eh, good point. Anyways, I’m going to the gym. Does anyone want to come with me?” asked Hailey.

“Oh, I do! I’m not very strong, but working out has always made me feel better,” exclaimed Fiora. Hailey smiled at her roommate before grabbing her and throwing her over her shoulder.

“HEY! I can walk on my own!” Fiora protested. Hailey began to walk away with a smile on her face.

“Yeah yeah, I know. Geeze, you weigh nothing. I think I need to put some meat on your bones.”

“That’s rude, put me down!”

“Nah. You’re under my protection now, whether you like it or not. If I put you down, you might fall.”

“I’m not made of glass! I can take care of myself!”

“I know, and I don’t care. Come on!”

Stella and Morgan stood there in confusion, both feeling like they missed something.