...before home beckons

Teysa was at home in and around water, but this was her first time swimming since her transformation, and she approached it uncertainly. Fortunately, the pool was shallow enough that she could touch bottom and keep her upper torso and head above water. Less fortunately, it was as cold as Aliara had warned. Teysa's drenched shirt clung to her body, and she was uncomfortably aware of the way her nipples, hard as diamonds, jutted outward against the fabric. If anyone else noticed, though, they were too polite to say anything.

Jy'ven was trying to explain something to her, but her poor Common skills were getting in the way. "You can... silk, and then much silk, and air is also," she said, and frowned. Even she could tell that wasn't right. She endeavored to explain with her hands, cupping them together to form a sphere. "Is air egg. Egg? Yes, like that. Egg in silk, but empty and full air."

"A bubble, do you mean?" Teysa asked. When Jy'ven looked at her helplessly, she dunked her head and blew a stream of them underwater. She re-emerged to see the drider nodding excitedly.

"Yes! Boobul! Air boobul! You float on top. Is good for cross large waterings."

Teysa tried to picture it. She'd heard spiders on the surface could "swim" by trapping air bubbles in their webs. It made sense that driders would have the same ability. She wondered if El'keth could teach her.

"Booble, huh?" Aliara said, from somewhere by her elbow. "Looks like your boobles are saying hello. Cold in here, eh?"

"Aliara!" Teysa said, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"Oh, whatever. We're all big girls here. Some bigger than others, of course." She waggled her eyebrows suggestively and shot a glance at Jy'ven's bosom. The other drider stood with her chest half-submerged; her massive mammaries bobbed gently up and down on the surface of the pool like buoys. Teysa looked away, embarrassed. Once again, she wondered where these thoughts were coming from. They had lived among the driders for months, during which time only El'keth had shown the slightest inclination towards clothing. Speaking to nude driders had become routine. It was only since Teysa's own transformation that this state of affairs had started to become awkward.

"Race you to the other side of the pool and back, Aliara!" Lil'esh shouted. Aliara scoffed.

"Where did you even learn to swim, anyways? Did your family's manor have a pool?"

"We have lakes underground, you know!" Lil'esh blew a raspberry. "I've been swimming since I was a girl."

"You're on! First to that side, then the other, and back here. Ready? Go!"

Both women exploded away in a flurry of flailing limbs and splashing water. Teysa watched them go with a bemused look on her face. The sudden motion caused the reflected light to ripple and bounce, as though they were sitting in the middle of a spinning crystal chandelier.

As the sounds of frantic splashing faded, Teysa turned to Jy'ven. <So what made you decide to join our lunch today?> she asked. She was very conscious that speaking in the driders' language felt... right. It felt comfortable, and that fact all by itself made her _un_comfortable. But Jy'ven's grasp of Common was too shaky to have this conversation.

<What do you mean?> Jy'ven asked. She swayed back and forth in the pool, stepping from foot to foot to foot. Her hands made tiny waves as she swished them to and fro, and she stared at them as if mesmerized.

<I mean... did Lil'esh invite you? Forgive me, but most other driders don't seem interested in formal meals.> It was true; El'keth had shown some interest, but the rest of them fed like feral predators, eating when they felt hungry and then resuming their tasks.

<Yes, she asked if I wanted to come. I said I did. Lil'esh thinks I should learn to eat... what was it...> Jy'ven screwed up her face in concentration. "Preakfast, lunch, and din-ner."

Teysa found questions bubbling up inside her that she didn't dare ask. Why are meals so important? Why did you change your hair? Why do you seem to be becoming so much... so much more... human? And just what is going on between you and Lil'esh?

Instead, she smiled lamely. <Well... I'm glad you're here.>

<Me too!> Jy'ven exclaimed. She looked at Teysa bashfully. <I have questions for you. If... if you don't mind.>

<Go ahead,> Teysa said, momentarily wrongfooted. She yelped as Jy'ven reached out and grabbed her left breast. The drider seemed interested in her shirt-- she pinched the fabric between two fingers and rolled it back and forth.

<This is... robe? You got it from the little princess, right?>

Teysa blinked. "Princess" wasn't quite right-- the word that had arrived in her ear was unfamiliar, and her brain tried to translate it as "young daughter-queen." But was clear that she meant El'keth.

<Yes,> she replied. <Why? Do you want one?> She remembered Jy'ven's seeming shyness earlier.

<Why do you use robe? Is it for warmth? Are you not warm? It seems thin for that.>

<Not... exactly,> Teysa began. It was true that her new body seemed impervious to extremes of temperature. She tried her best.

<There are parts of your body that you do not show strangers. At least, that's how it is on the surface. Parts that are private. It is modest to cover them up.>

<But I am not a stranger,> Jy'ven pointed out. <We are sisters. And Aliara is your broodmother, and Lil'esh is your student. So why do you wear robe now?>

Teysa was taken aback. She was, for once, glad that they were speaking in a language Aliara couldn't understand.

<_Aliara isn't my broodmother!> _she said, perhaps a bit more fiercely than she'd intended. Jy'ven flinched away. Teysa took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. <We're... I don't know if your language has a good word for it... we're partners. I love her. Not like how I loved my spiderlings, a different kind of love. But it's not the same as the Matron and her broodmothers. And I like Lil'esh, and you seem nice, but... some parts are just private. Like breasts. You shouldn't grab other people's, by the way. It's rude.>

<Oh.> Jy'ven's eyes widened. <I am sorry, Tey'sa. I did not mean to be rude. But... are you ashamed of your breasts? Why? I am not ashamed of mine. From them I bring forth ambrosia. It is my Purpose. I feed the young ones and my sisters.> She cupped her hands around her breasts and lifted them proudly. <My ambrosia is the finest and sweetest, everyone says so. Should I have to hide away my bosom?> She didn't sound angry, only confused.

<Things are different on the surface, Jy'ven. You have nothing to be ashamed of. Being an ambrosia mother is very worthy. I just wear clothes because... because that's what people do, I guess. Because that's what I always did. I don't want to lose touch with that part of me, the human part. It's not shame, it's just modesty.>

A shout went up from the far end of the pool. Both racers had reached the stone wall at around the same time, turned, and were heading back.

<My other question, Teysa, is about Aliara. I hope I am not being rude. But... you say she is not your broodmother, but you lay with her, do you not?>

Teysa considered this. They hadn't been intimate since her transformation, and she didn't see that changing anytime soon. The thought gave her a sick, queasy feeling in her stomach. But, she supposed, perhaps the question was meant more broadly. Besides, her relationship troubles were none of Jy'ven's business.

<I... suppose so. But that is a rather personal question, Jy'ven. We don't really know each other well enough for you to ask me that.>

<Oh.> Jy'ven looked so forlorn that for a moment Teysa felt a surge of pity for her. She glanced at Aliara, still swimming gamely along, and decided to press her luck a little.

<Why do you want to know, Jy'ven? Do you want a broodmother of your own?> She deliberately didn't look at Lil'esh while she spoke, but the other drider's eyes flickered across the pool for just a moment. It happened in less than a second, and if Teysa hadn't been watching for it she'd have missed it entirely. But she was, and understanding began to dawn.

<That would be foolish,> Jy'ven said, a little nervously. <Only the Matron lays eggs. This is known. We all have our roles, and we all play them. My role is ambrosia mother, and I serve the warren with the fruit of my body. Even if I had a broodmother, I could not swell her belly with child. It is foolish to step out of your role and seek that which you cannot have.>

<I don't think I'll be "swelling Aliara's belly" anytime soon,> Teysa said. <But to love someone is a comfort, Jy'ven. I had sisters and parents when I was young, and I loved them. I bore the Matron children, and I love them. But with Aliara... it's different. Being with her makes me want to be a better person. It makes me want to be worthy. She raises me up. Love can be difficult, Jy'ven, and scary. You make yourself ****. But it's worth it, I think.>

Jy'ven watched her wide-eyed and nodded sagely when she had finished. For a moment, she looked as childlike as El'keth. Then she blinked, and the inhumanity of her face reasserted itself. She was beautiful, of course, but it was an artificial beauty, more like a painting come to life than a person. All that was left of the shy, curious Jy'ven was a twinkle in the depths of her glossy black eyes.

Teysa was about to say something else, but a loud splash behind her caught her attention. Aliara and Lil'esh were approaching. They seemed to be neck and neck. Aliara's arms looped over her head in a graceful crawl stroke, while Lil'esh was on her back with her feet fluttering at the water's surface. They had built up a surprising turn of speed, and as they zipped past the driders and came to a halt, Teysa could not tell which had arrived first.

"So who wins?" Aliara asked, treading water. She seemed out of breath, and clung to Teysa's arm to support herself. "Me, right? I was at least a head ahead of her."

"You can't ask your lover! That's not fair!" Lil'esh cried. "Jy'ven, it was me, right? I distinctly saw her trailing me when I passed you."

"I not... no-see," Jy'ven complained, throwing her arms up.

"It looked even to me, too," Teysa admitted. "Sorry, dear."

"Well, that's unsatisfying," Aliara pouted. "We need a tiebreaker. Ideas?"

Teysa had one. She thought back to the summers of her youth. There'd been a pond near her family's cabin; normally an overgrown puddle, it swelled after summer rains. If the children were good and completed their chores, they were allowed to play in it. Teysa had hit her growth spurt early, and her smaller siblings loved nothing more than climbing all over her. They'd invented the game Water-Joust to take advantage of their sister's patience and stout back.

"Climb up on my shoulders," Teysa said. When Aliara gave her a quizzical look, she nodded encouragingly. "Go on, try it. Lil'esh, you get up on Jy'ven's back. If that's ok."

The feeling of Aliara scrambling on top of her abdomen was strange, but not unpleasant. The half-elf seemed to weigh nothing at all. Teysa reached back and cupped one of her hands, turning it into a stirrup, and Aliara vaulted up onto her shoulders. Her legs dangled down Teysa's flanks, and her hands met at Teysa's temples. Jy'ven, watching, beckoned Lil'esh to follow suit. The drow scrabbled madly against the smooth chitin of Jy'ven's carapace before the drider simply picked her up around the hips and lifted her like a doll onto her shoulders. A great wash of water poured down Jy'ven's front and dripped her from face, and she laughed uproariously. She had a lovely laugh, husky and deep, and Lil'esh's high-pitched giggle counterpointed it wonderfully. Then they were all laughing, all four of them, their voices bouncing off the walls and melding into one gargantuan sound of joy.

Teysa was acutely aware of the feeling of Aliara's bare thighs pressed up against her skin, and the warmth between them at the back of her neck. She could feel herself growling flushed. She tried to push that down and focus on the game, but a part of her wondered if Jy'ven was in the same position.

"This is Water-Joust," she said. "Lil'esh, Aliara, you're the knights. Your job is to knock the other one off her steed. Jy’ven, you and I are the steeds. We just try to keep our riders mounted.” Jy’ven gave her a look of hopeless confusion, so Teysa quickly dropped into the drider language to explain again. When she had finished, she wrapped her fingers around Aliara’s calf. “Ready?”

Aliara kicked her heels gently into Teysa’s sides. “Chaaaaaaarrrrge!”

The driders thundered towards each other, kicking up vast sheets of spray. Aliara and Lil’esh both shrieked in delight. They met in a titanic clash, their arms locking together with a wet slap of flesh. Teysa found herself cheek by jowl with Jy’ven. The other drider was laughing and twisting her body back and forth, her hands around Lil’esh’s ankles.

“I will break you!” Lil’esh shouted from somewhere overhead. “I will cast you down! I am the champion of my House!”

“Arrogant swine!” Aliara replied. “My cause is pure! My lance will spear your heart!”

Both women cackled madly. Teysa found herself laughing, too. Aliara wriggled and twisted in her arms, and she found herself stepping to and fro to maintain her balance. Water sloshed and sprayed around their jostling bodies. For a moment, all of Teysa’s misery fled, her worries and fears banished to the shadows. Her heart swelled with pure happiness.

Later, despite everything that was to come, she would come back to this memory again and again, finding it untainted by time. The warmth of Aliara’s skin against hers, the laughter, the beauty of the pool and above all the companionship kept her warm on cold nights. The four of them could not have been more different: Jy’ven, hatched in darkness; Lil’esh, born to the spires of privilege; Aliara, the former **** turned adventurer; and Teysa, with a foot in both worlds, neither fish nor fowl. For a brief moment, all divisions collapsed, all boundaries snapped. Aliara and Lil’esh, still grappling, wrenched each other off their mounts and toppled into the water. Teysa and Jy’ven overbalanced and fell, and then there was nothing but a tangle of thrashing limbs and breathless laughter.

They dredged themselves out onto the shore and lay panting on the towel and staring up at the ceiling. For a long time, no one spoke. The silvery glow filled the chamber and shimmered from the walls, forming patterns that merged and broke apart like windblown clouds.

“We should get back,” Aliara finally said, with a hint of regret. Teysa nodded.

“I’m sure the Matron is wondering where we are. Jy’ven, we’re not going to get you in trouble, right?”

Jy’ven shrugged. “I feed young before we go.”

Lil’esh and Aliara, by now only damp, pulled their robes back on and cinched them up. Teysa folded the towel and put it in the wicker basket, which Jy'ven carried. It did not escape Teysa's notice that the other drider still held it protectively in front of her chest, and she resolved to ask El'keth about clothes for her at the closest opportunity.

Aliara led the way back, followed by Teysa, with Lil'esh and Jy'ven lagging behind. Teysa suppressed her curiosity. She badly wanted to look around behind her, to see what the two behind her were doing, but she focused her gaze forward. Whatever's going on with them, they need to figure it out, she told herself. You can barely handle your own problems. Don't go borrowing other people's.

The image of the knife rose, unbidden, in her mind's eye.

As they passed back into the main cave complex of the warren, Teysa's acute hearing picked up the faint sound of scuttling footsteps. Someone was rushing towards them, someone with eight legs and no patience. Soon enough the noise was loud enough that even Aliara could hear it. She halted and curled one hand around her ear. "Is that..." she began.

"El'keth." Teysa wasn't sure how she knew-- a taste to the sound, a pattern of footfalls perhaps. But she was sure. "She's agitated."

No sooner had she finished then El'keth burst around the corner. She pulled up short and sagged, panting. Clearly, she had pushed herself to her physical limits. "There you are!" she said breathlessly. "You have to come quick!"

"What? What's happened?" Teysa's heart sank. She should have known. The one day she took for herself, and something terrible had happened.

"Drow!" wheezed El'keth. Teysa felt her stomach flip-flop. So soon after the last attack... she could not feel even a trace of the power that had filled her before. If that armored drow had come to finish the job, she knew she could not stand up to him. Aliara clearly felt the same way.

"How many?" the half-elf asked. "Another army? We should flee--"

"No," El'keth said. She rested her hands on her knees and caught her breath. "No, it's not an invasion. Not exactly... you have to come and see!"

Without waiting for a response she turned and headed back the way she had come.