let nia handle this

A couple of days passed, and against all expectations, the world did not immediately explode.

Alice did not trust it.

Quiet in Ikos was usually just the universe crouching behind furniture with a knife, but she took the win where she could get it. After the night everything changed, she had expected the party to fall apart completely. She had expected Nia to vanish into the rooftops again, or Jen to start a fistfight in the middle of the guild lobby.

Instead, they went dungeon crawling.

Small runs.

Safe runs.

Almost insultingly normal runs.

The kind of beginner adventurer work Alice had actually imagined when she first registered at the guild, before her life developed divine relationship analytics and vampire hunger. They entered low-level stabilized gates, cleared a few weak monsters, collected salvage, harvested cores, grabbed whatever minor loot the dungeon decided to cough up, and left before anything could turn into a boss fight, moral crisis, or pregnancy announcement.

It was strange how much Alice appreciated that.

The first run had been awkward enough that even Mako stopped making jokes for almost fifteen minutes, which everyone silently agreed was a warning sign. Nia had barely looked at Alice outside of command calls. Jen had watched Nia like she expected her to either break or bite someone. Nell had stayed close enough to Alice that their sleeves brushed whenever the corridor narrowed, which made Alice feel safer and more flustered in equal measure. Mako had hummed battle music under his breath until Jen threatened to throw him into a slime pit.

By the third run, though, some of the tension had loosened.

Not vanished.

Gods no.

Nia was still obviously, painfully, catastrophically in love with Alice. The devotion had not disappeared just because Alice had given it a lecture and a pastry. Sometimes Alice would look up after a fight and catch Nia staring at her with that same frightening intensity, like the whole dungeon had blurred around the single fact of Alice existing. But now Nia looked away. Not instantly. Not perfectly. But she tried.

That mattered.

Nia still gave orders cleanly. She still watched everyone’s positioning, still adjusted formation, still called out ambush points before anyone else noticed them. In the dungeon, leader mode wrapped around her like armor. Whatever else she was outside, inside a gate she was their captain, and Alice could admit, grudgingly, that Nia was damn good at it.

Working together helped.

Killing low-level monsters and splitting loot was somehow easier than talking. A licelash vine tried to grab Alice’s ankle, and Nia cut it down without making it weird. A gumbark lunged for Nell, and Alice’s thorn lash snapped it out of the air before Nia had to move. Jen punched a jawgrinder so hard its armor cracked, and Nia, after a long pause, said, “Good hit.” Jen had looked suspicious of the compliment for the rest of the run, but Alice counted it anyway.

By the end of those few days, Alice had gained three levels.

Three whole levels.

It was not academy-prodigy nonsense. It was not the sort of progress that made guild recruiters start foaming at the mouth. But to Alice, Level 4 felt enormous. Enough that her Paladin class no longer sat in her body like an oversized coat. Enough that her thorns responded faster. Enough that Bullet Time no longer left her feeling like someone had wrung out her brain after a single use.

She still had not fully forgiven herself for not picking Necromancer.

But she could feel the shape of this path now.

A hunger she could manage with blood packs, Bloody Marys, and the occasional feeding from Nell, who blushed every single time and still wrote notes afterward like the whole thing was a magical research project.

Nell was still living with them.

That had become normal faster than Alice expected, which was terrifying.

His room across from Maria’s bedroom had gone from storage cave to careful little nest in under a day. Books lined the walls in neat rows. Spell notebooks were stacked by category. His desk had three different lamps and a drawer full of rune chalk sorted by conductivity. Maria had walked in once, stared at the organization, and said, “Gods, you really are a desk boy,” with such fondness that Nell almost dropped a teacup.

He was, Alice had decided, the cutest house boyfriend in existence.

Not that she said that out loud.

Often.

He made tea in the mornings because Alice kept forgetting water existed until her head hurt. He labeled the blood packs in the mini-fridge with tiny flavor notes which was both incredibly thoughtful and so embarrassing Alice had to stand in the kitchen for a full minute holding one to her chest. He helped Maria carry things from the storage piles. He fixed one of Alice’s artificial candles after it started flickering. He somehow made the apartment feel quieter just by existing in it.

And he never made Alice feel strange.

Not when she forgot her cock was visible through her shorts. Not when she hissed at sunlight like a pathetic gothic housecat. Not when she got too focused on his pulse and had to look away. Nell just adjusted, asked good questions, and treated everything like it was another part of her worth understanding.

Alice was probably doomed.

She was mostly okay with that.

The new problem arrived yesterday.

Nia had finally asked Jen out.

At least, Alice thought she had.

No one had told her directly, because apparently her entire party had decided to become allergic to clear communication at the exact moment Alice became a Paladin of Love. But Mako had overheard Nia asking Jen if she wanted to “Go shopping for equipment together” which, translated through Nia’s emotional damage, sounded suspiciously like a date.

Jen had apparently said, “Fine. But if this is weird, I’m leaving.”

Which meant Jen either knew it was a date and had chosen ****, or did not know it was a date and had chosen **** anyway.

Alice needed to know which.

So she was going to spy on them.

For love.

And research.

And possibly the continued stability of her adventuring party.

“I still think this is a terrible idea,” Nell said.

Alice stood in the living room in front of the mirror, trying to look casual and failing because her hooded black jacket made her look like someone planning either a stealth mission or a dramatic album cover. She had chosen dark pants, boots, fingerless gloves, and a loose shirt that did not clash too badly with her new silver eyes. Her fangs were visible when she frowned, which she was doing frequently.

“It is not spying,” she said.

Nell, standing behind her with her jacket in both hands, gave her a look through his glasses.

Alice avoided his reflection. “It is supervised romantic reconnaissance.”

“That is spying with more syllables.”

“It is my divine duty.”

“I’m not sure Liliana would phrase it that way.”

The rose-gold text appeared in the corner of Alice’s vision.

[Liliana: Uh, Maybe?]

Alice ignored it.

Nell stepped closer and helped slide the jacket onto her shoulders. He did it carefully, smoothing the fabric down her arms and adjusting the collar so it would not catch on her hair. The gesture was ridiculously intimate for something as simple as clothing. Alice tried very hard not to think about how much she liked having him close enough that she could feel his breath near her ear.

“You’re doing the worried husband thing,” she muttered.

Nell’s hands froze on her shoulders.

Alice froze too.

The room froze with them.

Then she slowly looked at him through the mirror.

His face had gone bright red.

“I mean boyfriend,” Alice said quickly. “House boyfriend. Not husband. That was a verbal accident. Words are terrible.”

Nell swallowed. “I didn’t mind.”

Alice’s brain skipped like a scratched disc.

“Oh.”

He adjusted her hood with intense concentration. “But I am worried.”

Alice turned around.

Nell’s expression was soft, but serious.

“She is trying,” he said. “Nia, I mean. And Jen is... Jen. If they realize you followed them, it might make things worse.”

Alice rubbed one hand over the back of her neck. “I know.”

Nell sighed.

Alice reached out and tugged lightly at the front of his shirt, not enough to pull him close, just enough to have something to do with her hand. “I’m not going to interfere. I just want to make sure Nia doesn’t turn the first date into breeding and Jen doesn’t punch her through a mall fountain.”

Nell considered that.

“That is a reasonable concern.”

“Thank you.”

“Still spying.”

“Supervised romantic reconnaissance.”

“Spying.”

Alice leaned up and kissed him quickly.

Nell went quiet immediately.

His blush returned, but his mouth softened into the shyest smile in the world, and Alice had to resist the urge to cancel the entire mission and stay home.

No.

Important Paladin work.

From the kitchen, Maria called, “If you two are done being adorable, the taxi’s downstairs.”

Alice groaned. “We are not adorable.”

Maria appeared in the hallway with a mug of ginger tea in one hand and her other hand resting lightly over her stomach. “You are weaponized adorable. It’s disgusting.”

Nell looked mortified.

Alice pointed at Maria. “You’re enjoying this too much.”

“I’m pregnant. Joy is good for the baby.”

“You are abusing that excuse.”

“I’m going to keep abusing it for months.”

Alice looked at Nell. “See what I grew up with?”

Nell nodded gravely. “Your resilience is impressive.”

Maria laughed.

Alice opened the apartment door and immediately regretted existing.

Sunlight hit her like a flashbang.

She made a strangled sound and yanked her hood up so fast she nearly punched herself in the chin. The world outside the apartment was too bright. Not burning. Not dangerous. Just violently overexposed. Her silver eyes slammed down into thin slits, and for a few seconds everything became white edges, painful glare, and the humiliating realization that stepping from the Velvet Bottle’s dim warmth into daylight was now a tactical hazard.

“Ugh.”

Nell was beside her instantly. “Eyes?”

“Yes,” Alice hissed. “Why is the sun like that?”

“Very bright.”

“I hate it.”

“You adjust after a moment?”

“Usually. But going from inside to outside feels like someone threw a holy grenade at my face.”

Nell made a sympathetic little sound that actually sounded genuine instead of amused. “I understand that. Not the vampire part, obviously, but the light sensitivity.”

Alice squinted at him from beneath her hood. “You do?”

He nodded, stepping down the stairs beside her. “My owl side gives me very good night vision. Too good sometimes. Bright light after dark rooms can be painful. Not as bad as what you’re describing, I think, but similar.”

Alice stared at him.

Then softened.

“Oh.”

He adjusted his glasses, embarrassed. “I used to get migraines at school when classrooms had harsh ceiling lights.”

“That sucks.”

“It did. My snake side also complicates things.”

Alice blinked. “How?”

Nell looked away. “Scent.”

Alice’s ears perked.

He immediately went red. “Not like that.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You were about to.”

“I was thinking respectfully.”

“You were not.”

Alice smiled despite the sunlight stabbing her eyes.

Nell fiddled with his sleeve as they stepped out through the side exit and onto the street. “I can smell more than humans can. Not exactly like a dog. It’s... different. More chemical. Heat, stress, fear, certain kinds of mana residue.”

The taxi pulled up It was a compact mana-cab, sleek and dark blue, with tinted windows and a floating meter rune spinning above the dashboard. Blessedly discreet.

Not Maria’s monstrous stretch Hummer.

That thing was many things. Comfortable, absurd, probably illegal in three lanes, and stocked with enough liquor to supply a diplomatic collapse. It was not discreet. If Alice had shown up to spy on Nia and Jen in that oversized neon luxury beast, she might as well have worn a sign reading I AM FOLLOWING YOU.

Alice ducked into the cab first, still shielding her eyes under her hood. Nell slid in beside her, careful as always not to crowd until she tugged him closer by the sleeve.

The driver, a bored-looking woman with tiny antlers and a coffee the size of a potion bottle, glanced back. “Radiant Bazaar?”

Alice blinked. “How did you know?”

The driver pointed at the meter. “Your mom booked it.”

Of course she did.

Maria leaned down through the open cab window and gave Alice a bright smile.

“Be subtle,” she said.

Alice stared at her.

Maria’s smile widened. “Or entertaining. Either works.”

Then she stepped back and waved as the cab pulled away.

Alice slumped into the seat. “I am surrounded by saboteurs.”

Nell looked out the tinted window, hiding a smile. “You love them.”

“Unfortunately.”

The taxi glided into traffic, slipping between delivery bikes, private cars, and a hulking adventurer transport covered in claw marks. Ikos rolled past in layers of sunlight and shadow. The city looked different during the day. Less magical, maybe. More honest about the dust. Neon signs still glowed where mana circuits never slept, but the desert sun flattened some of the romance out of everything, turning alleys sharper and windows brighter.

Alice kept her hood up.

After a few minutes, her eyes adjusted. The pain dulled from stabbing to merely annoying. Details returned in painful abundance. Reflections on glass. Dust in the air. Heat shimmer over rooftops. The faint pulse of mana wires beneath street plating.

Nell watched her quietly.

“What?” she asked.

“Nothing.”

“That’s your thinking face.”

“I was just wondering how much your new vision changes tracking.”

Alice perked slightly despite herself. “For stealth?”

“For stealth. And observation.”

“Useful for spying.”

“Reconnaissance,” he corrected with a tiny smile.

Alice stared at him.

“You’re enabling me now.”

“I am participating under protest.”

“That’s still participating.”

“Yes.”

Alice leaned against his shoulder.

Nell went still for half a second, then relaxed.

For a few minutes, neither of them spoke.

The taxi hummed through Ikos, carrying them toward the mall, toward Nia and Jen and whatever counted as a first date between a yandere bunny-horse barbarian and an angry martial artist who might not know she was on one.

Alice closed her eyes under the hood.

Alice woke to fingers brushing lightly against her cheek.

For one confused second, she thought she was back in bed.

Warmth pressed against her side. Her hood had slipped low over her face, turning the world into a dim pocket of black fabric. The hum beneath her was steady and mechanical, not the old familiar vibration of the Velvet Bottle floorboards, and the air smelled like leather seats, mana coolant, Nell’s soap, and the faint ghost of the Bloody Mary she was absolutely not thinking about anymore.

Then Nell’s voice came softly beside her.

“Alice.”

She opened one silver eye.

Nell was leaning over her, close enough that his feathered hair fell forward slightly around his face. His glasses had slipped down his nose, and his eyes were soft with concern and amusement in equal measure. The cab’s tinted window cast cool blue shadows across him, making his snake pupils look even sharper than usual.

Alice stared at him.

Her half-awake brain had exactly one thought.

(Pretty.)

Then she kissed him.

She just leaned up from where she had apparently fallen asleep against his shoulder and pressed her mouth to his before common sense could catch up with the rest of her body.

Nell froze.

Then made a tiny muffled sound against her lips.

Alice whispered into his ear, “Good morning.”

Nell’s entire face went red.

Alice blinked herself fully awake.

The taxi driver was watching them in the rearview mirror.

The antlered woman had one elbow propped lazily against the window ledge, coffee in hand, mouth curved in the slow delighted smile of someone who had just received free entertainment with her fare.

Alice went very still.

Nell looked like he had forgotten how lungs worked.

The driver took a sip of coffee.

“Cute,” she said.

Alice’s hood nearly slid over her face as she jerked upright. “That did not happen.”

The driver’s smile widened. “Sure.”

Nell adjusted his glasses with shaking fingers. “We, um. We arrived.”

Alice looked out the window.

They were in the air-conditioned parking garage beneath the Radiant Bazaar. Cool artificial air rolled faintly through the cab vents and across her face, mercifully dim compared to the sun-blasted streets above. The garage was all polished concrete, glowing directional arrows, humming mana-lifts, and rows of vehicles tucked into bays marked by floating symbols.

No sunlight.

Blessedly no sunlight.

Alice pulled her hood back just enough to see properly, then immediately regretted making eye contact with the driver again.

The woman held out a payment panel. “Your mom already covered it.”

Of course she had.

Alice squinted. “Did she tip you extra to report back?”

The driver’s smile became deeply suspicious. “Maybe.”

Nell made a quiet **** sound.

Alice pointed at her. “Do not tell her about the kiss.”

“Sweetheart, if your mother booked this cab, your mother already assumed there would be kissing.”

Alice stared.

Then slowly got out of the cab.

“I hate being known.”

Nell followed, still blushing, smoothing down his sleeves with the **** dignity of someone trying to recover from being kissed awake in front of a stranger. The cab pulled away with a soft hum, and the driver gave them one last little wave before disappearing around the curve of the garage.

Alice shoved both hands into her jacket pockets.

Nell stood beside her.

For about five seconds, neither of them spoke.

Then Alice said, “I was asleep.”

“I noticed.”

“So that doesn’t count as public indecency.”

“It was a kiss.”

“A surprise kiss.”

“Yes.”

Nell looked at her, still red but smiling faintly now. “I didn’t mind.”

Alice’s heart betrayed her again.

She looked away fast.

“Good. Because I’m not apologizing.”

“You looked like you were about to.”

“I changed my mind.”

They headed toward the mall entrance, moving with the kind of exaggerated casualness that immediately made Alice feel more suspicious than if they had simply sprinted. The lower entrance to the Radiant Bazaar was guarded by two decorative brass dragons curled around a sliding glass archway. Their eyes glowed when people passed between them, scanning for weapons, active curses, loose monster parts, and whatever else mall security had decided counted as a liability this week.

Alice and Nell crossed through without incident.

One of the dragon statues turned its head slightly as Alice passed.

Its glowing eyes lingered on her fangs.

Alice pointed at it. “Don’t.”

The statue, being a statue, did not answer.

Nell hid a smile behind one hand.

The mall opened above them in layers of light and motion.

The Radiant Bazaar was less a shopping center and more a city district that had decided to stack itself vertically and add a fountain. Balconies curved around a huge central atrium, each level packed with stores, food stalls, gear boutiques, potion kiosks, salon booths, arcade dens, and little pop-up vendors selling everything from enchanted shoelaces to tiny bottled storms.

She smelled sugar first.

Then oil.

Then mana solder, leather, perfume, fried dumplings, expensive soap, fresh paper, hot crepes, and the terrifyingly distinct scent of a pet shop.

Her stomach reminded her that she had skipped breakfast.

Her vampire hunger reminded her that breakfast was a more complicated concept now.

Nell paused at her side. “Are you okay?”

“I smell everything.”

“Overwhelming?”

“A little.” Alice squinted across the atrium. “Also, why does someone sell roasted eel next to a crystal boutique?”

“Mall zoning is mysterious.”

“That’s not zoning. That’s a war crime.”

Then she saw Nia.

It was not hard.

Even in Ikos, even in the Radiant Bazaar, even among Chimerin, elves, orcs, dwarves, scaleborn, goblins, a six-foot-seven albino bunny girl built like a siege weapon did not blend.

Nia stood near the central fountain, white hair loose down her back, rabbit ears upright and alert, crimson eyes scanning the moving crowd with the intensity of someone expecting an ambush in a food court. She wore practical clothes instead of armor today, fitted dark pants, heavy boots, and a sleeveless top under a puffer jacket that did absolutely nothing to make her less intimidating. If anything, the attempt at casual clothing made the sheer strength of her body more obvious.

Beside her stood Jen.

Jen looked like she had arrived to fight the concept of leisure.

Her arms were crossed. Her twin tails were tied high, her expression sharp, and her stance said she was prepared to leave at the first sign of emotional vulnerability. She wore a fitted cropped jacket, skin tight bike shorts, and no shoes, because apparently even mall floors did not deserve her respect.

Alice grabbed Nell by the sleeve and pulled him behind a decorative pillar.

Nell stumbled after her. “You found them?”

“Yes.”

He peered carefully around the pillar. “Oh.”

Nia and Jen were not talking much.

That was either terrible or normal.

Alice could not tell.

Nia stood very straight, visibly trying not to loom. Jen looked up at her with narrowed eyes. Nia said something. Jen’s expression shifted a little. Then Nia turned toward a nearby vendor stall.

Alice’s eyes narrowed.

“What is she doing?”

Nell adjusted his glasses. “Buying food, I think.”

The vendor was a crepe cart built like a tiny pink carriage, complete with glowing wheels and a sign that read SWEET FOLD in looping letters. A cat-eared man in a striped apron worked behind the counter, flipping huge thin crepes across a heated mana-stone surface with theatrical skill. Fruit fillings gleamed in little glass bins strawberries, blueberries, cherries, peaches, caramelized apples, chocolate banana, whipped cream, custard, and bright green melon cubes that looked suspiciously radioactive.

Nia pointed at one filling.

Then another.

The vendor assembled two crepes with impressive speed.

One came out overflowing with strawberries and cream, folded into a neat cone and wrapped in paper printed with tiny hearts. The other was packed with blueberries, whipped cream, and a dusting of powdered sugar.

Nia took both.

Then, after a brief visible hesitation, handed the blueberry one to Jen.

Jen stared at it like it had insulted her ancestors.

Nia said something.

Jen looked at the crepe.

Then back at Nia.

Then took it.

Alice sucked in a breath.

Nell leaned closer. “That seems positive.”

“I think that’s positive.”

Jen took a bite.

Her expression did not change.

Then she took a second bite.

Alice whispered, “That’s definitely positive.”

Nia took a careful bite of her strawberry crepe, watching Jen like she was trying to determine whether food had successfully improved morale. Jen said something without looking at her. Nia’s ears flicked. Not fully upright. Not flattened. Somewhere nervous and hopeful in between.

Alice’s chest tightened.

This was strange.

Nia looked so different without her eyes locked on Alice.

Still intense. Still awkward. Still absolutely capable of crushing a table in her bare hands. But different. There was uncertainty in her now. A carefulness from actually not knowing what Jen wanted and needing to ask the world rather than assume it revolved around her desire.

That was good.

Probably.

Nell touched Alice’s sleeve lightly. “We should keep distance.”

“I know.”

“You’re leaning out from behind the pillar.”

Alice immediately leaned back.

“I was observing.”

“You were looming from cover.”

“I am small. I cannot loom.”

Alice huffed.

Nia and Jen began walking along the fountain path toward the second-level escalators, crepes in hand.

Alice immediately stood straighter. “They’re moving.”

Nell nodded. “We should wait a few seconds.”

“Right. Discreet.”

“Discreet.”

They waited exactly four seconds before Alice started after them.

Nell followed with the resigned air of someone who had known this would happen but still believed in making responsible suggestions.

Halfway across the atrium, Alice’s stomach made a small, tragic sound.

Nell looked at her.

Alice looked at the crepe cart.

Nell followed her gaze.

“No,” he said.

“We have to blend in.”

“We do not need crepes to blend in.”

“We are at the mall. Everyone has food.”

“Not everyone.”

Alice pointed at a group of teenagers walking by, all holding snacks. “Evidence.”

“That is not statistically significant.”

“Also, Nia and Jen have crepes. If we don’t get crepes, we’ll stand out.”

Nell stared at her.

Alice stared back.

He sighed. “This is also a date for you, isn’t it?”

Alice’s face warmed. “No.”

“Alice.”

“It is mostly not a date.”

He smiled faintly. “Mostly?”

She tugged him toward the cart. “Shut up and pick a flavor.”

The cat-eared vendor greeted them with a grin. “Two crepes?”

Alice glanced at the menu, trying to look like a normal customer and not a Paladin doing surveillance on a harem test case.

“Cherry,” she said.

Nell looked at her. “Cherry?”

Alice shrugged, suddenly embarrassed. “Apparently Dhampir like red things. I’m starting to suspect a theme.”

The vendor nodded as if this were perfectly normal. “Cherry cream with dark chocolate drizzle?”

Alice’s fangs ached in approval before she did.

“Yes.”

Nell studied the options with the careful seriousness he brought to spell diagrams, which was adorable and also extremely inconvenient for Alice’s ability to concentrate.

“I’ll have chocolate custard,” he said.

The vendor began making them.

Alice watched the cherry filling spread across the thin crepe, glossy and deep red, almost jewel-bright under the stall lights. It smelled sweet and tart and warm, nothing like blood but close enough in color that her new instincts gave a tiny curious twitch. The first bite confirmed her suspicion.

Dhampir liked cherries.

Of course they did.

The flavor hit bright and rich, sweet-tart fruit against cream and the bitter edge of chocolate. Alice made a pleased little sound before she could stop herself.

Nell looked over.

She froze mid-bite.

“What?”

He smiled. “Good?”

Alice swallowed. “Unfortunately.”

“Why unfortunately?”

“Because I am building a list of vampire-coded food preferences and it is embarrassing.”

“Tomato juice, cherries...”

“Anything red, apparently.”

“Strawberries?”

“Probably. Nia has that covered.”

Nell’s chocolate crepe looked much more dignified, which Alice found offensive. He took a careful bite, then blinked with quiet delight.

Alice stared.

“What?”

He looked away quickly. “It’s very good.”

“You looked like you saw a minor god.”

“It has hazelnut.”

“Nerd.”

They walked after Nia and Jen at what Alice insisted was a normal pace, crepes in hand. Keeping distance was easier with food. It gave them something to do with their hands, somewhere to look when Nia glanced around, and a plausible excuse for stopping every time Alice panicked and dragged Nell behind a kiosk selling enchanted hair clips.

They finished their crepes just in time.

Jen stopped near the second-level railing and looked up.

Alice followed her gaze and immediately understood why.

The Radiant Bazaar’s indoor coaster cut through the upper levels of the mall like some engineer had looked at a shopping center and decided it needed more screaming. It was not huge, Sleek blue tracks looped around the central atrium, dove through artificial stars, skimmed past glowing advertisements.

A tiny silver train shot by overhead with a delighted roar of wheels and mana-brakes.

Passengers screamed.

The artificial stars rippled around them like disturbed water.

Jen looked at the coaster.

Then at Nia.

Then back at the coaster.

Nia said something Alice could not hear over the crowd.

Jen’s arms crossed tighter.

Nia’s ears dipped.

Jen stared at her for another second, then pointed toward the ride entrance with an expression that somehow said fine and if I die, I’m haunting you.

Alice gasped.

Nell looked alarmed. “What?”

“They’re riding the coaster.”

“We do not have to follow them onto the roller coaster.”

Alice grabbed his sleeve. “Of course we do.”

“Alice.”

“If they’re trapped in a moving vehicle, we can observe without them suddenly changing direction.”

Nell looked toward the coaster, then toward Nia and Jen already heading for the entrance queue, then back to Alice. “What if they see us?”

“They’ll be in front.”

“How do you know?”

“Jen wants the front seat. Look at her.”

Nell did look.

Jen was already cutting through the queue with the grim certainty of someone who considered waiting a personal insult. Nia trailed after her, visibly trying to be polite to the people Jen had just emotionally bulldozed.

Nell sighed. “She does look like she wants the front seat.”

“So we take the back.”

“That is still very visible.”

Alice pulled her hood lower. “Not if we crouch.”

“You cannot crouch on a roller coaster.”

“Not with that attitude.”

Nell opened his mouth, closed it, then followed her.

The line moved quickly. The coaster was popular enough that the attendants had perfected the art of shoving people into seats before they could regret existing. Nia and Jen ended up exactly where Alice predicted, in the front car. Jen sat with her arms folded even after the safety bar locked over her lap. Nia sat beside her, enormous and awkward and clearly too large for the seat in a way that made the attendant stare for half a second before wisely deciding the bar counted as secure enough.

Alice and Nell slid into the very back car.

The seat was narrow.

Of course it was narrow.

Alice sat first, and Nell sat beside her with the stiff politeness of someone trying not to press too close while the safety bar **** them together anyway. Their shoulders touched. Their thighs touched. Alice’s hood fell forward over her eyes again, which she decided was perfect because it made her look mysterious instead of deeply flustered.

The attendant checked their bar.

“Hands inside the vehicle. No spellcasting. No active weapons. No summoning. No feeding during the ride.”

Alice’s head snapped up.

The attendant looked at her fangs, then gave a tired shrug. “You’d be surprised.”

Nell made a small **** sound.

Alice sank lower in her seat.

The train lurched forward.

Then climbed.

Slowly at first, the coaster rose along the inner wall of the atrium, past second-level storefronts, past hanging banners, past a café balcony where several customers looked up and waved. Below, the fountain shrank into a glowing pool of blue and gold. The crowd became shifting color and sound. Alice could see Nia’s white hair in the front car, Jen’s twin tails whipping faintly in the breeze.

Then the lights changed.

The track entered the starfield.

Everything around them went dark except for pinpricks of light constellations bloomed around the coaster, huge and close, like the train had slipped through the mall ceiling and into space. Nebula ribbons shimmered violet and green overhead. Tiny mana-stars drifted around the track, parting as the train cut through them. The air cooled. The wheels hummed.

Alice forgot, for half a second, that she was spying.

“Oh,” she whispered.

Nell looked at her.

His smile softened.

Then the coaster dropped.

Alice’s stomach tried to leave her body.

She and Nell grabbed each other at the exact same time.

Nell’s hand clamped around hers. Alice’s free arm shot across his chest. He made a startled sound, she made a sound that was absolutely not a scream, and the train plunged through the starfield with enough **** to turn the world into glittering streaks.

The first loop hit before either of them recovered.

The mall spun.

Stars whipped around them.

Alice’s hood flew back. Nell’s hair went wild. Their hands stayed locked together so tightly Alice could feel his pulse through his fingers.

Then, impossibly, they both started laughing.

It burst out of them at the same time, shocked and breathless and stupid. Nell laughed like he was embarrassed by the sound but unable to stop it. Alice laughed because the whole thing was absurd, because the wind was in her face, because she could see Nia’s ears flattened in the front car and Jen’s posture finally crack into something like excitement, because for thirty seconds everything terrible had been replaced by motion and light and the fact that Nell’s hand fit too well in hers.

The coaster shot through a tunnel of falling comet lights, banked around a floating display of moons, and dove beneath a bridge connecting two upper levels. Shoppers below looked up as the train roared overhead. The second loop was smaller but faster, snapping them sideways hard enough that Alice practically fell into Nell. He caught her without thinking.

She looked up.

He looked down.

For one heartbeat, with stars flying past and wind tangling their hair, they were close enough to kiss again.

Then the train braked.

Hard.

They both jerked forward against the safety bar.

“Ow,” Alice muttered.

Nell blinked rapidly. “That was fun.”

Alice stared at him.

Then grinned. “It was.”

When the train returned to the platform, Jen was the first out of the front car. She looked offended by how much she had enjoyed herself. Nia followed, ears still windblown, watching Jen with a cautious kind of happiness that made Alice’s chest ache.

Then a group of children surged between them.

Alice grabbed Nell’s hand and stepped around a family with five shopping bags.

For one second, she saw Nia’s white hair.

Then the crowd shifted.

Gone.

Alice stopped. “No.”

Nell looked around. “We lost them.”

“No, no, no.” Alice rose onto her toes, scanning the mall. “She is six-foot-seven and albino. How did we lose her?”

“Crowd density, multiple exits, and the fact that we were on a roller coaster.”

“That sounded judgmental.”

“It was observational.”

“It felt judgmental.”

“It can be both.”

Alice huffed and turned in a slow circle. The second level stretched in both directions, packed with shops, shoppers, food carts, banners, and the occasional wandering mascot. No Nia. No Jen. Just too many bodies and too many smells and too much movement.

Then Nell reached into the small satchel at his side.

Alice looked down. “What are you doing?”

He pulled out a smooth crystal orb about the size of an orange, set in a brass ring etched with tiny runes. It was pale blue at first, cloudy inside, like fog trapped under glass.

Alice stared.

“Nell.”

He adjusted his glasses. “Scrying orb.”

“You brought a scrying orb to the mall.”

“You said we were conducting reconnaissance.”

Alice stared harder.

Nell’s feathers, seemed to puff slightly with embarrassment. “I thought it might help.”

Alice took one slow breath.

“You are the best boyfriend.”

Nell nearly dropped the orb.

They ducked into a quieter side corridor between a potion boutique and a store selling enchanted sleep masks. A little alcove held a decorative bench, a fake potted palm, and a wall-mounted directory that flickered between floors. It was not private, exactly, but it was discreet enough that no one paid them much attention.

Nell sat on the bench and held the orb between both hands.

“Do you have anything of Nia’s?” he asked.

Alice stared at him.

He immediately blushed. “For sympathetic tracking. Not in a strange way.”

“I know what you meant.”

“I realize how it sounded.”

Alice checked her pockets. Nothing. Then she remembered the pastry box ribbon she had shoved into her jacket after Mako gave her, She held up the red ribbon with a faint grimace.

“This was from Nia’s pastry box.”

Nell nodded. “That should work.”

He wrapped the ribbon around the orb’s brass ring and whispered a soft spell. Pale circles unfolded around his fingers, raw magic lines drawn in air with careful precision. Alice watched, fascinated despite herself, as the runes locked into place. The orb clouded, then cleared.

A store interior appeared.

Alice leaned in.

Nia and Jen turned into a store on the second level with a black-and-gold sign reading FIELD & FINERY.

Nell looked at the entrance. “Adventure gear?”

“Sort of,” Alice said.

Field & Finery was one of those stores that existed because adventurers were ridiculous and eventually realized that if they were going to risk **** daily, they wanted to look good doing it. The front displays showed armor jackets, reinforced cloaks, stylish utility belts, rune-threaded leggings, combat boots polished enough for a formal event, and mannequin outfits that sat somewhere between practical dungeon wear and high-fashion intimidation.

It was definitely an adventure gear store.

It was also definitely clothing shopping.

Alice’s eyes widened slowly.

“Oh.”

Nell looked at her. “What?”

“Nia brought Jen clothes shopping.”

“That’s good?”

Nell adjusted the focus with a small turn of the brass ring. “Image only at first. Audio takes more mana.”

“Can you get audio?”

“Yes, but we should be careful. Scrying in a mall might trigger privacy wards if I push too hard.”

Alice gave him a flat look.

He paused.

“Yes, I understand the irony.”

Inside the orb, Nia and Jen walked between clothing racks. Field & Finery looked even more dramatic through the scrying lens, all polished black floors, gold fixtures, and mannequins posed like stylish assassins. One display held armored jackets with rune-threaded seams. Another showed lightweight combat skirts with hidden plating, reinforced leggings, and boots designed to look decorative while probably being able to crush a skull.

Jen moved like she wanted to hate everything and could not quite manage it.

Her eyes kept catching on pieces.

A pair of fingerless combat gloves with red stitching. A cropped black jacket with shoulder plating. A set of blue-gray martial wraps braided with thin silver defensive runes. She stopped near each one for half a second too long, then looked away like the store had insulted her by appealing to her taste.

Nia noticed every time.

That was the good part.

The concerning part was that Nia seemed to interpret noticing as “buy everything Jen glances at.”

She picked up the gloves.

Jen said something.

Nia put them back immediately.

Then picked them up again, slower.

Jen stared.

Nia stared back.

Jen looked away first.

Alice clutched Nell’s hand.

“Progress,” she whispered.

Nell nodded seriously. “Possibly.”

Jen reached for the gloves herself and checked the tag. Her expression soured. Probably expensive. She set them down.

Nia reached for her wallet.

Jen grabbed her wrist.

Alice inhaled sharply.

Nell adjusted the orb, trying to bring in sound. The image flickered once, then steadied, and faint voices came through, muffled but understandable.

“I said no,” Jen snapped.

Nia’s voice was low. “You wanted them.”

“I just fucking looked at them.”

“You wanted them.”

“That doesn’t mean you buy them.”

“I can.”

“That’s not the point.”

Nia’s ears lowered. “I’m trying to make the date successful.”

Jen froze.

Alice froze.

Nell froze.

In the orb, Jen slowly turned her head.

“The what?”

Nia went still.

Alice whispered, “Oh no.”

Nell whispered, “She did not know.”

Jen stared at Nia. “This is a date?”

Nia’s expression shifted through several kinds of panic before settling on grim honesty. “Yes.”

Jen’s mouth opened.

Closed.

Opened again.

“You asked me to go equipment shopping.”

“Yes.”

“That’s not a date.”

Jen stared at her.

Nia’s face twitched.

Alice winced.

Her eyes narrowed. “Did Alice put you up to this?”

Nia’s ears flattened immediately. “No.”

Jen did not look convinced.

Nia’s voice tightened. “She suggested I should form bonds with others.”

Jen barked out a humorless laugh. “Wow. Romantic.”

Alice squeezed Nell’s hand so hard he squeaked.

“Sorry,” she whispered.

“It’s okay,” he whispered back, flexing his fingers.

Inside the orb, Nia took a breath. Alice recognized the effort. The way she **** herself.

“I asked you because I wanted to,” Nia said.

Jen’s expression flickered.

Nia continued, stiff but honest. “You followed me when I ran. You were angry, but you still followed. You fight well. You are direct. You don’t treat me like I am fragile. I like that.”

Jen stared at her.

For a second, Alice thought it might work.

Then Jen looked away sharply. “I’m straight.”

Alice’s stomach dropped.

Nell went still beside her.

In the orb, Nia did not move.

Jen crossed her arms, defensive now, almost angry with herself for having to say it. “I don’t like girls.”

Alice’s chest tightened in sympathy so strong it startled her.

Nia looked down at her own hands. Her white ears dipped, not fully flattened, but close. For a moment she looked like she was about to accept the rejection cleanly and walk away.

Then she lifted her head.

Her voice came quieter.

Not pleading.

Thinking.

“Is it that you don’t like girls,” Nia asked, “or is it that you just like cock?”

Alice had chosen that exact moment to take a sip from the bottled tomato juice she had bought near the coaster exit.

She spat it directly across the alcove.

Nell jerked backward just in time.

A passing sea elf with three shopping bags stopped, looked at Alice, looked at the scrying orb, then kept walking much faster.

Alice coughed. “Nia!”

Nell, bright red, grabbed a napkin from his satchel and shoved it into her hand. “Quiet!”

Inside the orb, Jen had gone scarlet.

Not a little.

Scarlet.

“I.” Jen sputtered, then pointed at Nia like she was about to throw a punch and had forgotten how arms worked. “You can’t just ask people that!”

Nia frowned. “Why not?”

“Because!”

“That is not an answer.”

“It is an answer when the question is insane!”

Nia’s ears twitched, nervous but stubborn. “I am trying to understand.”

Jen looked around the store, clearly realizing no one nearby had heard them thanks to the privacy wards around the fitting area. Then she hissed, “Girls don’t have dicks.”

Nia stared at her.

Alice stopped breathing.

Because she knew that pause.

Nia’s face shifted.

Then Nia said, very simply, “I do.”

Jen went silent.

Alice gripped Nell’s hand hard.

Her whole body leaned toward the orb.

“Oh gods,” she whispered.

Nell’s fingers wrapped around hers. “Alice?”

“She said it.”

In the orb, Jen looked like someone had pulled the floor out from under her.

She stared at Nia. Not at her face first, which made Alice’s jaw tighten, but then back up quickly, embarrassed by her own reaction. Her mouth opened, closed, then opened again.

“I didn’t mean...” Jen stopped.

The scrying orb flickered as Nia's hand closed around Jen's wrist.

Alice leaned forward, heart pounding.

"What is she "

Nia pulled Jen toward the changing booths at the back of the store.

Jen stumbled after her, too shocked to resist, her face still burning crimson from the revelation. The privacy curtain swished closed behind them, cutting off the view from the main floor.

Inside the orb, the image shifted, following them into the booth.

Alice's breath caught.

The changing room was small. Barely enough space for one person, let alone two. Nia's massive frame filled most of it, her white hair brushing the ceiling. Jen was pressed back against the mirror, trapped between cold glass and six-and-a-half feet of albino bunny girl.

"Nia," Jen hissed. "What are you doing?"

"Showing you."

Nia's hands went to her belt.

Alice's eyes went wide.

Nell made a strangled sound. "Should we stop watching?"

"No," Alice breathed, unable to look away.

The belt came undone.

Nia's pants loosened.

And then

She pulled it out.

Alice had seen Nia's cock before. In the bathroom. In her memories. In her nightmares and her fantasies and every confused moment in between. But seeing it through the scrying orb, watching it emerge in real-time as Jen stood frozen against the mirror, hit different.

Sixteen inches of thick horse flesh.

Wider than Jen's forearm.

The shaft was distinctly equine, flared at the base with a broad, flat head that glistened with precum already beading at the tip. Heavy balls hung below, swollen and full, practically radiating heat even through the magical projection.

Nia bounced it.

Right in front of Jen's face.

The massive cock swayed, heavy and obscene, close enough that Jen could probably feel the warmth radiating from it. Close enough that the musky scent must have been overwhelming in the tiny space.

Jen stared.

Her mouth fell open.

Her eyes glazed.

"Oh," she breathed. "Oh fuck."

Her hand moved without permission.

Fingers reached out, trembling slightly, and touched the shaft.

Nia's breath hitched.

Jen's palm pressed flat against the hot flesh, feeling the weight, the girth, the impossible size of it. Her fingers couldn't even wrap halfway around. She stroked upward experimentally, watching precum bead at the tip, watching the whole massive length twitch under her touch.

"It's real," Jen whispered, sounding dazed. "It's actually real."

"Yes."

"You're actually... you have..."

"Yes."

Jen looked up at Nia's face, then back down at the cock in her hands. Something shifted in her expression. The defensive anger melted away, replaced by something rawer. Hungrier.

"Fuck," she breathed again.

Nia's ears perked forward.

Her hands found Jen's hips.

"I want to breed you," Nia said, voice dropping into something low and primal. "Right here. Right now."

Jen's whole body shuddered.

"What?"

"I want to put this inside you." Nia's grip tightened, fingers digging into Jen's hips hard enough to bruise. "I want to fill you up. I want to make you mine."

Jen's breath came faster. "Nia, we're in a changing room "

"I don't care."

Nia's hands slid down, hooking into the waistband of Jen's bike shorts.

She pulled.

The shorts came down in one smooth motion, taking Jen's underwear with them. Jen gasped, suddenly bare from the waist down, her petite body exposed in the cramped space.

A tiny pussy, already glistening with arousal.

Nia stared at it with predatory hunger.

"So small," she murmured, one hand sliding between Jen's thighs. Her fingers brushed against the slick folds, feeling how wet Jen already was. "So tight."

Jen whimpered. "Nia..."

"I'm going to stretch you."

Nia lifted Jen by the hips like she weighed nothing.

Jen's legs wrapped around Nia's waist instinctively, her back pressed against the mirror. She could feel the massive cock pressing against her cunt now, hot and hard and impossibly thick.

"Wait," Jen gasped. "Wait, you can't just it won't fit "

Nia pushed forward.

The broad head pressed against Jen's tiny pussy.

And stopped.

Nia pushed harder.

Still nothing.

Jen's pussy resisted, stretched to its absolute limit just trying to accept the tip. She cried out, pain and pleasure mixing together, her nails digging into Nia's shoulders.

"Too big," she whimpered. "Nia, you're too big, it won't "

Nia growled in frustration.

She pushed again, harder, trying to **** her way in through sheer determination. The massive head ground against Jen's cunt, spreading her obscenely wide, but still couldn't breach her fully.

"Fuck," Nia snarled. "You're so tight."

"I told you ah! I told you it wouldn't fit!"

Nia pulled back slightly, panting with frustrated desire. Her cock throbbed between them, angry and unsatisfied, precum dripping onto Jen's bare thighs.

"I need to be inside you," Nia said, voice strained. "I need "

"Wait." Jen's face had gone bright red, but her expression shifted to something almost... hopeful. "There's... there's something else we could do."

Nia's ears twitched. "What?"

Jen bit her lip.

Her blush deepened impossibly further.

"I could..." She swallowed hard. "I could use my feet."

Silence.

Nia stared at her.

Alice stared at the orb.

Nell made a sound like he'd been punched.

"Your feet," Nia repeated slowly.

Jen looked like she wanted to die. "It's... I like it, okay? I watch... I watch videos of it. A lot. It's embarrassing, but I'm really good at it, and your cock is so big, and I could probably "

"Yes."

Jen blinked. "What?"

"Yes." Nia's eyes had darkened with renewed hunger. "Show me."

She lowered Jen back to the floor and stepped back as much as the cramped space allowed. Her cock jutted out between them, massive and demanding, still slick with precum and Jen's arousal.

Jen stared at it.

Then she sank down to sit on the small bench built into the changing room wall.

Jen's face was burning, her whole body flushed with embarrassment and arousal, but her movements grew more confident as she lifted her legs.

"Sit down," she ordered, her voice steadier now that she was in familiar territory.

Nia sat on the opposite bench, spreading her legs wide. Her cock stood at attention between them, pointing straight up, the broad head glistening.

Jen positioned her feet on either side of the shaft.

And pressed together.

Nia's breath caught.

Jen's feet were soft. Warm. The arches pressed against Nia's shaft, creating a snug channel that wrapped around most of the massive girth. Her toes curled against the flared head, bright against the horse flesh.

"Like this," Jen breathed, starting to move.

She stroked upward.

Nia groaned.

Jen stroked downward.

Nia's hips bucked.

"Fuck," Nia gasped. "That feels..."

"Good?" Jen's embarrassment had melted into something almost smug. "I told you I was good at this."

She established a rhythm, her feet sliding up and down Nia's shaft with practiced ease. Her arches pressed against the sensitive underside, her toes teased the leaking tip, her heels ground against the flared base. Every motion was deliberate, expert, the product of countless hours watching videos and fantasizing about this exact scenario.

"I think about this all the time," Jen admitted, her voice breathy. "Giving footjobs to big cocks. Feeling them throb between my feet. Making them cum just like this."

Nia's hands gripped the bench so hard the wood creaked.

"More," she demanded.

Jen obliged.

Her pace increased, feet pumping faster along the massive shaft. Precum spilled from the tip, slicking her skin, making the friction even better. Wet sounds filled the tiny changing room, obscene and unmistakable.

"Your cock is so big," Jen panted. "So fucking big. I've never seen anything like it. I bet you could split me in half if you really tried."

Nia's ears went flat against her head.

Her hips started thrusting, fucking up into the channel of Jen's feet with increasing desperation. The massive cock slid between those soft arches, the head pushing past her toes with each stroke, glistening and angry and so close to release.

"I want it," Jen breathed. "I want to feel you cum. I want you to cover my legs in it. Please, Nia, please "

Nia came.

The orgasm was explosive.

Thick ropes of bunny jizz erupted from her cock, shooting up between Jen's feet with enough **** to splatter against the ceiling of the changing room. More followed, and more, painting Jen's legs and feet and stomach in pearly white streams. The sheer volume was obscene, pooling on the bench beneath them, dripping down Jen's thighs.

Jen kept stroking through it, milking every drop, her own breath coming in **** gasps as she watched the display.

"Oh fuck," she whimpered. "Oh fuck, there's so much "

Nia's orgasm seemed to go on forever.

Finally, finally, the pulses slowed.

Jen's feet came to a stop, still wrapped around the softening shaft, absolutely drenched in cum.

They both sat there, panting.

The changing room reeked of sex.

Cum dripped from the ceiling.

Jen looked at the mess, then at Nia, then back at the mess.

"So," she said weakly. "That happened."

Nia's ears slowly perked back up.

"Yes," she said. "It did."

A beat of silence.

Then Jen started laughing.

It was breathless and slightly hysterical, but genuine. Nia's lips twitched in response, something almost like a smile crossing her usually stoic face.

"I think I ruined these shorts," Jen managed between giggles.

Nia looked at the crumpled bike shorts on the floor, now thoroughly soaked.

"I'll buy you new ones."

"You're buying me the whole store after that."

"Acceptable."

In the alcove outside the potion boutique, Alice and Nell sat in stunned silence.

The scrying orb had gone dark.

Privacy wards, probably. Or maybe Nell had stopped feeding it mana. Alice wasn't sure. She wasn't sure of anything anymore.

"That," Nell said slowly, "was not what I expected from equipment shopping."

Alice turned to look at him.

His face was bright red.

So was hers, probably.

"No," she agreed faintly. "It was not."

They sat in silence for another long moment.

Alice's heart was still pounding. The images from the orb burned behind her eyes Nia's massive cock, Jen's flushed face, the obscene amount of cum dripping everywhere. Her body thrummed with a tension she couldn't quite name.

Beside her, Nell shifted uncomfortably.

She glanced at him.

His face was crimson, glasses slightly fogged, and there was an unmistakable bulge pressing against the front of his robes. He noticed her looking and immediately tried to angle away, mortified.

"Sorry," he whispered. "I can't it just watching that was "

"Yeah," Alice breathed. "I know."

Because she was in the same state.

Her cock strained against her pants, achingly hard, demanding attention she was trying very hard not to give it. Her pussy was wet too, slick and needy, and the combination made her feel like she might actually explode if she didn't do something about it soon.

They looked at each other.

The alcove was still relatively private. The potted palm provided some cover. The directory screen flickered between floors, casting shifting light across their flushed faces.

Alice's hand moved before her brain approved the action.

Her fingers brushed against Nell's thigh.

He sucked in a breath.

"Alice..."

"Is this okay?"

He nodded frantically.

Her hand slid higher, finding the bulge beneath his robes. She palmed him through the fabric, feeling the heat, the hardness, the way he twitched under her touch.

"Oh gods," Nell whimpered.

"Shh." Alice glanced around quickly. Still no one paying attention. "Keep quiet."

His hand found her in return.

Fumbling at first, uncertain, then more confident as he located the outline of her cock through her pants. His fingers wrapped around her shaft as best they could through the fabric, squeezing experimentally.

Alice bit back a moan.

"Like that," she breathed. "Just like that."

They stroked each other in the shadowed alcove, movements awkward and **** and impossibly hot. Nell's breath came in sharp little gasps. Alice's hips rocked into his grip without her permission.

"The orb," Nell whispered suddenly.

Alice blinked. "What?"

"Should we..." His face burned brighter. "Should we turn it back on?"

The suggestion hit Alice like a physical blow.

Watch more. While they touched each other.

"Yes," she heard herself say. "Yes, turn it on."

Nell's free hand fumbled for the scrying orb, still clutched in his lap. His fingers traced the activation rune, and the cloudy interior began to clear.

The image that emerged made them both freeze.

The changing room again.

But different now.

Nia had Jen pressed against the mirror, but this time Jen's legs were together. Squeezed tight. And Nia's massive cock was sliding between her thighs, using that narrow channel of soft flesh like a surrogate pussy.

"Fuck," Nia grunted, thrusting hard. "Your thighs feel so good."

Jen whimpered, arms wrapped around Nia's neck for support. "It's so big I can feel it rubbing against my"

"Your pussy?" Nia's voice dropped lower. "I know. I can feel how wet you are. You're dripping all over my cock."

She was.

Through the orb, Alice could see the slick mess between Jen's thighs. Her tiny pussy pressed against the top of Nia's shaft with every thrust, her clit grinding against that thick horse flesh. The stimulation must have been overwhelming.

"I'm going to cum like this," Jen gasped. "Just from you fucking my thighs, I'm going to "

"No." Nia's thrusts grew faster, more brutal. "You cum when I say you can cum."

Jen sobbed. "Nia, please"

"Not yet."

The pace was frantic now. Nia's hips slammed forward with incredible speed, her massive cock sliding between Jen's clenched thighs hard enough to shake the entire changing booth. The mirror behind Jen rattled against the wall. The bench creaked ominously.

Alice's hand tightened around Nell's cock.

Nell's hand tightened around hers.

They stroked each other faster, matching the rhythm on screen, lost in the voyeuristic thrill of watching something they absolutely should not be watching.

"I'm close," Nia growled. "I'm going to"

At the last second, she pulled back.

Jen whined at the loss.

Then Nia grabbed her hips, angled her cock down, and pressed the broad tip directly against Jen's pussy lips.

"What are you" Jen started.

Nia came.

Not inside her. Not really. The cock never penetrated. But the tip was pressed so firmly against her entrance that when Nia's orgasm hit, the cum had nowhere to go but in.

Thick ropes pumped directly into Jen's tiny pussy, flooding her without ever actually fucking her. Her belly bulged slightly from the sheer volume, her cunt stretched just enough to accept the flow, her whole body shaking as she was filled.

"Oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck" Jen chanted, eyes rolling back.

Nia held her there through the entire orgasm, emptying herself into that tight little hole, claiming it without conquering it.

When the last pulse finally faded, she pulled back.

Cum dripped from Jen's pussy lips, thick and white.

"Put your shorts back on," Nia ordered.

Jen stared at her, dazed. "What?"

"Your shorts." Nia's crimson eyes gleamed. "Put them on. We're going back into the mall."

"But I'm I'm full of your "

"I know."

Jen's face went through approximately seven shades of red.

"You want me to walk around with your cum inside me?"

"Yes."

"That's insane."

"Yes."

A beat of silence.

Then, slowly, Jen reached for her ruined bike shorts.

She pulled them on with trembling hands. The fabric was still damp, clinging to her skin, and Alice could see the exact moment when the pressure of the waistband pushed against Jen's cum-stuffed pussy.

Jen gasped.

Nia smiled.

It was not a kind smile.

"I'm going to breed you," Nia said, stepping closer. Her hand cupped Jen's cheek, tilting her face up. "I'm going to train that tiny pussy to take my cock. Every day, I'm going to fill you up just like this. Stretch you a little more each time. Until you can take all of me."

Jen's breath shuddered.

"And you're going to let me," Nia continued, her voice dropping into something dark and possessive. "Because you're my good little pet."

Something changed in Jen's expression.

The word hit her like a physical blow.

Pet.

Her pupils dilated. Her breathing quickened. Her whole body seemed to soften, tension melting away into something yielding and eager.

"Yes," she whispered.

Nia's ears perked forward. "Yes what?"

"Yes... I'll be good." Jen's voice came out small, submissive, nothing like her usual aggressive tone. "I'll be your good pet."

"You'll walk around with my cum inside you?"

"Yes."

"You'll let me breed you whenever I want?"

"Yes."

"You'll take my cock like a good girl?"

Jen's hips rolled involuntarily, pressing against nothing. "Yes. Please. I want to be good for you."

Nia's smile widened.

"Good girl."

Alice came.

She didn't mean to. Didn't expect it. But watching Jen break, watching that fierce, angry girl melt into submission, combined with Nell's hand stroking her cock and the obscene sounds from the orb

It was too much.

Her orgasm crashed through her without warning. She bit down on her own hand to muffle the cry, her cock pulsing in Nell's grip, cum spurting across his fingers and soaking through the front of her pants.

Nell followed seconds later.

He gasped her name, hips bucking, his release painting her palm in hot stripes. His whole body shook with the **** of it, glasses going completely askew, his free hand gripping her thigh hard enough to bruise.

They came together in the shadowed alcove, watching Nia lead a trembling, cum-stuffed Jen back out into the mall.

The orb flickered.

Then went dark.

Alice slumped back against the bench, panting.

Nell collapsed beside her.

They were both a mess. Hands sticky. Clothes stained. Faces flushed with exertion and embarrassment.

For a long moment, neither of them spoke.

Then Nell said, very quietly:

"I need new robes."

Alice looked at him.

Then burst out laughing.

It was hysterical, breathless laughter that shook her whole body. Nell stared at her for a second before joining in, both of them giggling like idiots in the aftermath of something they absolutely should not have done.

"We're terrible people," Alice managed between gasps.

"Absolutely terrible," Nell agreed.

"We just watched " She couldn't even finish the sentence.

"I know."

"And we"

"I know."

They looked at each other.

Then started laughing again.

Somewhere in the mall, Nia was walking around with Jen at her side, the smaller girl squirming with every step as cum leaked slowly into her bike shorts.

Alice and Nell had front-row seats to the whole disaster.

By the next evening, Alice had decided there were three possible explanations for why the world had not ended.

One, the gods were distracted.

Two, the universe was saving up.

Three, Nia and Jen had somehow managed to do the impossible and convert one of the most awkward dates in adventuring history into something that looked alarmingly close to progress.

Alice did not know which possibility frightened her more.

The Velvet Bottle had settled into its early-evening rhythm, that sweet little pocket of time before the serious drinkers arrived and after the tired workers decided they deserved something with a garnish. Jazz drifted soft and smoky through the bar, mana-lights glowing amber above polished wood and dark booths. The air smelled like fried food, citrus liquor, perfume, smoke, and the faint metallic tang of adventurer gear that never fully washed clean.

Their booth had become a thing now.

Alice hated that it had become a thing.

She also loved it.

It was tucked near the back wall, just far enough from the stage that conversation was possible and just close enough to the bar that Maria could look over every few minutes with terrifying maternal precision. Mako had already claimed the corner seat as his “emotional support chaos zone.” Nell sat beside Alice, one knee lightly touching hers beneath the table, close enough that she could feel his warmth without making it obvious she was leaning into him. Alice had a Bloody Mary in front of her, because apparently that was just her life now.

Then Nia walked in with Jen.

Alice nearly choked before taking a sip.

Nia looked better.

Not fixed. Not magically stable. Not suddenly transformed into a healthy and well-adjusted person, because that would have been ridiculous and probably suspicious. But better. Her shoulders were straighter without being locked. Her ears were upright instead of pinned back. The terrible hollow intensity in her eyes had softened around the edges, redirected into something focused, possessive, and weirdly calm.

Jen walked close beside her.

Very close.

That alone would have been enough to make Alice stare, because Jen did not cling. Jen moved through the world like she was ready to kick affection in the teeth if it approached too quickly. But now she stayed tucked against Nia’s side with one hand loosely holding the sleeve of Nia’s jacket, her usual sharp posture softened into something smaller and more uncertain.

She looked shy.

Jen.

Shy.

Alice’s brain had difficulty accepting that.

The black choker around Jen’s throat made it worse. It was tight and sleek, fitted perfectly against her skin, with a small metal tag hanging at the front. The tag caught the bar light when she moved, flashing silver for one brief second. Alice could not read it from across the room, but she did not need to. The way Nia’s eyes flicked to it told the whole story.

Mako saw it too.

His mouth opened.

Alice kicked him under the table before he could speak.

He yelped. “Ow.”

“Preventive measure,” Alice muttered.

Nell looked from Jen to Nia, then quickly down at his drink, his ears and cheeks going pink. Alice knew exactly what he was thinking about, because she was thinking about it too, and both of them were terrible people who had absolutely not discussed the scrying orb incident in any detail beyond repeatedly agreeing never to do it again.

Nia guided Jen to the booth with careful confidence.

“Pet,” Nia said softly, “sit.”

Jen’s face went red so fast Alice almost felt secondhand heat from across the table.

But Jen sat.

Immediately.

Mako made a sound like someone had stepped on his soul.

Jen glared at him, but it lacked her usual ****. “Say one word and I’ll break your nose.”

Mako raised both hands. “I said nothing.”

“You made a noise.”

Nia sat beside Jen, one arm settling along the back of the booth behind her. Jen leaned into her by fractions, as if pretending gravity had caused it. Nia noticed. Her hand lowered and brushed lightly against Jen’s shoulder.

Jen’s glare softened into embarrassment.

Nia’s voice dropped. “Good girl.”

Jen’s eyes went unfocused for half a second.

Alice grabbed her Bloody Mary and took a long drink just to give herself something to do.

The tomato, spice, salt, and **** hit her tongue with tragic perfection. Her Dhampir body gave a pleased little internal sigh, which made the entire situation worse.

Mako stared at Jen’s choker.

Then at Nia.

Then at Alice.

Then back at Jen.

“So,” he said carefully, “shopping went well.”

Jen pointed at him. “Do not.”

“I’m not doing anything.”

“You are visibly thinking.”

“That is discriminatory.”

Nia looked at Mako with calm warning. “Do not tease my pet too much.”

Mako went very still.

Alice saw his survival instincts engage in real time.

“Understood,” he said, then leaned slightly toward Alice and whispered, “Your plan is becoming extremely real.”

Alice whispered back, “I know.”

“I am afraid.”

“Same.”

Nia’s crimson eyes shifted to Alice.

The old intensity was still there.

It probably always would be, at least for a while. Alice felt it the moment Nia looked at her, that pull of worship and want, that painful devotion that had once seemed ready to devour the room. But this time, something interrupted it. Jen shifted beside her. Nia’s hand moved to Jen’s shoulder, almost instinctively, and the sharpened edge of her gaze eased.

Alice watched that happen.

Her chest tightened.

Progress.

Actual progress.

Not clean. Not normal. Not what anyone outside their cursed little circle would probably call healthy. But compared to where they had started, it was almost miraculous.

Nia looked at Alice with grave seriousness. “I have made progress.”

Alice swallowed a laugh and nodded just as seriously. “I can see that.”

Jen looked like she wanted to disappear into the seat.

Nia’s hand squeezed her shoulder. “Pet did very well.”

Jen covered her face with both hands. “Gods.”

Mako opened his mouth.

Alice kicked him again.

He hissed. “You can’t keep doing that.”

“I can and will.”

Nell leaned close to Alice’s ear. “You look proud.”

Alice kept her eyes on Nia and Jen. “I am proud.”

Nell’s smile softened. “I know.”

That made her chest warm enough that she had to take another drink.

Nia sat straighter, clearly preparing herself for something. Jen noticed and looked up at her, still flushed, still smaller than usual, but attentive in a way that surprised Alice. Like she wanted to understand where Nia’s head had gone before deciding whether to be annoyed about it.

Nia looked directly at Alice.

“What is the next step?”

Alice paused with her glass halfway to her mouth.

“What?”

Nia’s expression remained serious. “For building my harem.”

Mako dropped his pastry.

Nell coughed into his hand.

Jen’s face turned an entirely new shade of red, but to Alice’s surprise, she did not object. She only shifted closer to Nia and glanced away, fingers brushing against the tag at her throat.

Alice slowly lowered her drink.

“We’re saying that out loud now.”

Nia nodded. “Yes.”

“Great.”

“It is your plan.”

“I deeply regret naming it.”

Mako bent down to retrieve his fallen pastry from the napkin on his lap, staring into the distance.

Jen, still red, muttered, “It’s not that weird.”

Everyone looked at her.

Jen’s shoulders climbed defensively. “What?”

Alice blinked. “You’re okay with this?”

Jen glanced at Nia, then down at the table. Her fingers kept touching the choker tag, not quite fidgeting, not quite showing it off.

“I mean,” Jen said, voice quieter than usual, “I don’t know. It’s weird. Obviously it’s weird.” Her eyes flicked toward Nia again. “But she’s a lot.”

Nia’s ears twitched.

Jen swallowed. “I’m not saying that as an insult.”

“I know,” Nia said.

Jen looked down. “I think I would usually want something committed. One person. Straightforward. No drama.”

Mako made a tiny sound.

Jen snapped, “I said usually.”

Mako raised both hands again.

Jen’s voice softened despite herself. “But Nia is... Nia. She feels everything like it’s life or ****. And I don’t think I could handle all of that alone. I don’t think anyone could.” She glanced at Alice, then quickly away. “That doesn’t mean it isn’t real. It just means... there’s too much of it for one person.”

Nia listened without interrupting.

That alone was impressive.

Jen took a breath, then leaned a little more into Nia’s side. “I don’t doubt she has enough love to spread around. I think that might be the problem.”

Alice’s throat tightened.

Liliana’s rose-gold text bloomed softly in the corner of her vision.

[Oh, wow, this is working a lot better than I thought it was going to. You go girl keep it up.]

Alice looked at Jen with new appreciation.

Jen caught the look and scowled. “Don’t get emotional at me.”

“I wasn’t.”

“You absolutely were.”

Alice took another sip of her Bloody Mary. “I was professionally moved.”

“That’s worse.”

Nia looked down at Jen. “You would accept others?”

Jen’s blush returned full ****. “I didn’t say I’d be normal about it.”

“I do not require normal.”

“Clearly.”

Nia’s mouth twitched.

Almost a smile.

Jen saw it and went very still, as if she had just been rewarded in a language she did not know she spoke.

Alice set her drink down slowly.

Okay.

This was working.

Somehow, against all laws of sanity, this was working.

Nia looked back to Alice. “So. Next step.”

Alice leaned back in the booth and **** herself to think like a Paladin instead of a panicking goth with divine paperwork. There were options. Too many options, actually, which was horrifying because the word harem had started as a **** joke-plan and now apparently required logistics.

“We could focus on adventuring for a while,” Alice said. “Let everyone settle. Build levels. Build trust. Do small dungeon runs until this stops feeling like the emotional equivalent of a mimic chest.”

Mako nodded quickly. “That one sounds safe.”

Jen snorted. “Coward.”

“Yes,” Mako said. “Alive coward.”

Nia’s eyes stayed on Alice. “Or?”

Alice hesitated.

Nell touched her knee lightly under the table. Not pushing. Just grounding.

Alice exhaled. “Or we could go to Jett Havoc’s concert.”

Mako’s head snapped up. “Now we’re talking.”

Jen frowned. “The rockstar?”

Nia tilted her head. “The woman from the pastry shop.”

Alice stared. “You know about that?”

“Mako told me.”

Mako pointed both thumbs at himself with absolutely no shame. “Family intelligence network.”

Alice sighed.

Nia’s expression sharpened thoughtfully. “You said she had compatibility with me.”

Alice nodded slowly. “High sexual compatibility. Good romantic potential. High volatility.”

Jen gave Alice a flat look. “You can just see that?”

“Unfortunately.”

“That is invasive.”

“I know.”

Jen glanced at Nia, then looked away, cheeks coloring. “What did it say about me?”

Alice opened her mouth.

Closed it.

Jen narrowed her eyes. “Alice.”

Nia’s hand settled more firmly on Jen’s shoulder. “Pet.”

Jen immediately shut her mouth, then looked offended at herself for doing so.

Alice took another drink.

Mako whispered, “That never gets less wild.”

Nell whispered back, “It really doesn’t.”

Alice decided not to answer Jen’s question directly because there was no safe way to say, High compatibility but emotional mess warning, and because Jen looked like she might crawl under the table if the conversation turned too focused.

“Jett might be a good fit,” Alice said instead. “She’s chaotic enough not to get swallowed by Nia’s intensity. She might actually mellow Nia out by being more unpredictable than she is.”

Nia looked intrigued.

Jen looked suspicious.

Mako looked thrilled.

Nell looked like he was already imagining the property damage.

Alice continued, “And I’m pretty sure I can arrange VIP backstage passes.”

Mako slapped both hands on the table. “Absolutely yes.”

The entire booth looked at him.

He cleared his throat. “For supportive family reasons.”

“Liar,” Jen said.

“Also because Jett once set a guitar solo on actual fire and I want to know if it was a skill or a wiring issue.”

Nell adjusted his glasses. “Could be both.”

Mako pointed at him. “See? Desk boy gets it.”

Nell blinked, then looked faintly pleased and embarrassed all at once.

Alice smiled despite herself.

Nia’s gaze briefly flicked to where Alice’s hand rested near Nell’s on the table.

For one sharp second, Alice braced.

But Nia did not tense.

Not like before.

Her eyes lingered on their hands, and Alice could see the old pain move through her. The jealousy. The loss. The instinctive hunger to remove anything between them. But then Jen shifted beside her, following Nia’s gaze, and leaned closer into Nia’s side with a little huff that might have been accidental and absolutely was not.

Nia’s hand tightened around Jen’s shoulder.

The dangerous look passed.

She looked away from Alice and Nell’s hands.

Alice stared.

Then, very carefully, she slid her fingers over Nell’s.

Nell froze.

Nia noticed.

So did Jen.

Mako looked like he had stopped breathing.

For one second, Alice thought she had pushed too far.

Then Nia inhaled slowly through her nose, turned her attention down to Jen, and murmured, “Good girl.”

Jen immediately went pink and hid her face against Nia’s arm.

Nia did not try to **** Nell.

Nia did not even look like she wanted to **** Nell.

Maybe strangle him a little.

But not ****.

Alice grabbed her Bloody Mary with her free hand and drank like it was victory wine.

Mako whispered, “Holy shit.”

Nell’s fingers tightened around hers under the table.

Alice’s chest felt too full.

She looked at Nia and Jen, then around the bar.

Lila passed near the end of the booth with a tray of drinks balanced on one hand. Her eyes flicked to Nia, then to Jen’s choker, then to Alice. A smile curled at the corner of her mouth, wicked and knowing.

Alice’s stomach sank.

No.

Absolutely not.

The Matchmaker’s Sight itched.

Alice looked at Lila by accident.

The skill did not activate, but it wanted to.

Lila winked at her this time, then moved on.

Alice took another drink too fast and nearly choked.

Nell leaned toward her. “Lila?”

“No.”

“I only said her name.”

“No.”

Nell’s mouth twitched. “You thought about it.”

“I thought about not thinking about it.”

“Is that different?”

“Yes.”

It was not.

Lila might be a decent option too, which Alice hated for several reasons. Lila was confident, experienced, emotionally slippery, and far too good at reading people. She would not be intimidated by Nia. She might even enjoy the challenge. She was also Alice’s history, folded away but not gone, and Alice did not want to hand that complication to Nia like a lit candle in a fireworks shop.

Still.

The thought remained.

Lila. Jett. Jen. Maybe Maria in the parenting sense, not romantic. Maybe someone else entirely. There were other girls out there too. Ikos was full of strange, powerful, lonely, reckless people with bad taste and worse survival instincts.

Alice’s mind began building categories despite herself.

Three to five.

That was the number that felt right.

Not too many to become a cult. Not too few to leave Nia pouring herself too heavily into one person again. Three to five women who could each meet a different part of her challenge, comfort, chaos, discipline, softness, maybe someone who could actually tell her no.

Alice stared into her Bloody Mary.

“I think,” she said slowly, “we should aim for three to five.”

Mako froze. “Members?”

Alice winced. “That sounded so much worse out loud.”

Jen stared at her. “You’re assigning party size to Nia’s sex life?”

“I’m assigning emotional load distribution.”

Nell looked at her with quiet horror and admiration. “That is somehow worse and more reasonable.”

Nia considered it with total seriousness. “Three to five.”

Alice nodded. “Maybe. Not as a quota. Gods, not as a quota. Just... a structure. Enough people that you stop making one person your entire universe. Few enough that everyone still matters.”

Jen looked down at her hands. “And I matter?”

Nia turned to her immediately.

“Yes.”

No hesitation.

Jen’s lips parted slightly.

Nia’s voice softened. “You are my first pet.”

Mako covered his face. “Sibling trauma.”

Jen looked mortified, but also pleased enough that Alice could practically feel her melting.

Alice took another drink.

Her life was so stupid.

Liliana’s text appeared in rose-gold at the edge of her vision.

[This is not what I would call a healthy relationship.]

Alice stared at the words.

[But...]

The pause lasted long enough that Alice raised an eyebrow.

[Liliana: It is working.]

Dice’s red-blue text slammed in beneath hers.

[Dice: Local goth invents therapeutic harem. Experts baffled. Goddess of Love taking notes.]

[Liliana: I am not taking notes.]

[Dice: You absolutely are.]

[Liliana: Maybe a few.]

Alice put her face in one hand.

Nell leaned close. “System?”

“Yes.”

“Concerned?”

“Impressed.”

“That seems worse.”

“It is.”

Across the booth, Nia was explaining something very seriously to Jen in a low voice Alice could not quite hear. Jen listened while trying to look annoyed and failing because every time Nia called her pet, her posture softened another inch.

Mako finally uncovered his face and reached for another pastry.

Alice lifted her Bloody Mary and took one careful sip.

Three to five girls.