You've already promised to answer all my questions.

Niki looked taken aback. "What? But I already..."

"Nope. You promised to answer all my questions. And I have thousands. But don't worry. You'll enjoy answering most of these."

Niki frowned, skeptical but intrigued. "Go on..."

"Do you enjoy being tickled." It wasn't really a question, at this point, and he didn't ask it like one.

"Obviously," Niki said, folding her arms with an exasperated huff.

"You're embarrassed about it?"

Niki glared daggers at him. "Yeah."

"Do you enjoy humiliation?"

Niki wrinkled her nose and avoided eye contact. "Sometimes," she said finally.

"You hate that I'm asking these questions?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

Niki seemed to struggle to come up with an answer.

"Because that's not the way it works!" she said finally. "I'm supposed to confess to you!"

"Why?" But then he hit upon a theory that seemed to fit.

"You want to be sure I like it before you admit to it."

Niki hung her head.

"I can't believe it... despite your attitude, you actually care what I think of you."

Niki covered her face with her hands.

"Oh, Niki. Let me make this easy for you. I love that you're ticklish. I love that you're submissive. I love that you love it. And I love that you hate that you love it."

Niki peeked out from between her fingers at Shiroe.

"I already said it once. Your heart is a tangled mess of conflicting desires. And I love that about you. Because you're passionate. You chase those desires wherever they lead you, and damn the consequences."

Niki lowered her hands. "You like that, huh?"

Shiroe steepled his fingers. "I'll admit... it makes you a handfull, sometimes."

"Oh really?" Niki stood up and put her hands on her hips, slightly offended, but unable to stop smirking. "What's the matter, am I too masculine for you?"

"Quite the opposite. You're a feminine **** of nature. A powerful mountain of a woman..."

Niki's smile finally spread to her eyes.

"...and the bigger they are..."

Niki's eyes widened.

"...the harder they fall."

"Wait!"

Niki cringed and scrunched her face up tightly and all but doubled over in anticipation of a tickle-attack that never came.

"Why'd you stop?"

"You said wait."

Niki slowly let out an annoyed sigh. "Tickle me!"

"I will," Shiroe promised. "But first, we're going to have to do something so the neighbors can't hear you. I want us to still be welcome at this inn tomorrow, after all."

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