“You’re sure you aren’t uncomfortable?”
“I’m very comfortable,” Jay reassured Meli. “Trust me, you don’t weigh anywhere near close to enough that you have to worry about lying on top of me.”
“I was more worried that the bark of the bough under you might be too rough on your skin.”
Jay grinned as she fiddled with the strands of Meli’s willow branch hair with one hand.
“I’ve had better beds. Might have to check for splinters later, but I’m perfectly fine, I promise.”
There was a small silence between them.
“Was that a joke about me being made of wood?”
“…it wasn’t before, but now I wish I had thought of that.”
Meli’s mouth latched onto Jay’s left breast, roughly sucking and nibbling on her nipple. Jadis guessed that the move was probably supposed to be a counter tease in response to Jadis’ unintentional joke, though it wasn’t so much of a tease as it was just straight foreplay.
“Careful,” Syd warned as she brought her face close to Meli’s. “Keep that up, and we might have to go for another three rounds.”
“I would not mind that,” Meli said as she gave Jay’s breast one final lick before settling her head on her chest. “…in a few hours. I need time to recover.”
Jadis wasn’t going to admit it, but she needed a little rest as well. She and Meli had been fucking in the treetops for the better part of four hours, with only a brief pause at one point because of a passing guard patrol. Since they were almost discovered, Jadis was reminded that they could also perform Exhibitionistic Accession, if they wanted to, though she had yet to even discuss classes and attributes with her Dryad lover. After a brief explanation, Meli had agreed and the ritual had been performed. Meli had told her that the boost had gone to her Will stat, which was definitely a good thing no matter what her overall status sheet looked like, though they still needed to discuss the full details. They hadn’t yet, though, since they had far more pressing topics to discuss.
“I was right.”
“Hm? About what?” Dys asked as she nuzzled the back of Meli’s neck.
“Your abs do feel good to the touch.”
Jay was lying on her back, with Dys and Syd lying to the left and right on her sides. Meli had made a somewhat sticky bed for herself on top of Jay and had spent most of their idle cuddling time with one or both hands running up and down Jay’s stomach. Sometimes she would reach out to Syd or Dys, tracing the lines of their arm muscles, but mostly she stroked her abs.
“Thank you,” Jay smiled. “Yours feel good, too.”
“I do not have muscles as defined as yours,” Meli replied with a frown in her voice. “And you are not touching my stomach.”
“Yeah, but they felt great from the inside,” Syd joked while wiggling her eyebrows.
“That is not how any of that works,” Meli continued to frown.
“Pretty sure I shouldn’t go that far inside you under normal circumstances. Who knows how magic interacts with physiology in those circumstances.”
“I still do not think that is how that works,” Meli repeated, shaking her head against Jay’s chest. “Your skill is strange, though. Everything about you is strange.”
“Thank you,” Syd said as she leaned in and gave Meli a kiss. “That’s very kind of you to notice.”
“Ηλίθιος,” Meli smirked before going in for another kiss.
The two continued to trade banter and soft touches for a while, enjoying the cool breeze on bare skin as the sun shone through the green canopy surrounding them. There were probably things Jadis had to do that day, but she wasn’t in any rush to get to them. Anything that needed her attention could wait, or she could rely on her loved ones to handle things for her until she got back. Aila knew where she was, if anything important came up. She deserved a day off every now and then, and she couldn’t think of a better way to spend that time than with someone she cared for.
Some of the things that Meli had to say were still startling, though.
“My tertiary class is dependent upon you,” Meli admitted, breaking a comfortable silence.
“How so?” Jay asked, surprised by the admission.
“It is called Nephilim Augmented Druid. The skills that I have received from it thus far have been entirely based around sex with you.”
All three of Jadis lifted their heads to look at Meli, brows furrowed. Struggling to find words for a moment, when she eventually spoke, all three of her selves did so in unison.
“But… we’ve never had sex before now. When did you unlock this class?”
“After the battle against the Demon Prince in Glanum.”
Jadis stared into the distance for a second.
“Hold on… is that why you asked if we would ever have sex back in Glanum, in Aelius’ house?”
“Yes.”
“Did you… did you take the class before we talked?”
“No,” Meli shook her head. “That would be stupid. What if you didn’t want to have sex with me? Then the class would be a detriment. I only accepted the class after you confirmed that we would one day have sex.”
All three of Jadis’ heads clunked loudly as she let them fall back against the tree bough.
“You really put a lot of faith in my word, didn’t you?”
“Yes,” Meli said in her matter-of-fact way. “Why wouldn’t I? I trust you.”
Squeezing the Dryad just a bit tighter in her arms, Jay smiled up at the sky.
“Thank you for trusting me.”
“You are welcome.”
Not sure of what else to say in the moment, Jadis fell back on a question that was now seriously buzzing around in her brain.
“So, what kind of weird skill did you get?”
“You don’t have to tell me all of the details,” Dys clarified. “If you’re willing, we’ll want to talk about it with everyone, especially Aila. She likes to catalogue all of our skills and attributes.”
“But I would still like to, you know, know if it’s anything interesting,” Jay said.
“Or super lewd,” Syd smirked.
“Sex with you will change and enhance transformations into beast forms,” Meli explained in simple terms. “Well, the skills only specify sex with Nephilim, but I suppose that is only you, at this point. I am very interested in comparing my transformations to Tegwyn. Not many Dryads gain classes that allow for transformations into beasts, and they are usually priests like Tegwyn, not Druids. I am intrigued to see what the differences are.”
“That does sound interesting,” Jay said as she considered the prospect. “Have you tried changing yet?”
“Not yet,” Meli confessed. “I wanted to wait until I had been with you, first.”
“I’m not sure I would have had the patience you showed,” Jay told her new lover. “I’m really sorry for waiting so long.”
“The acorn does not grow into an oak overnight,” Meli smiled as she patted Jay comfortingly. “I was not worried. We will both live for a very long time. I knew we would have our chance soon enough.”
“You sure do like to take the long look of things, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
Jadis chuckled, all three of her selves smiling as she snuggled closer together. Meli really was an odd one, but that wasn’t a bad thing. It just meant Jadis had to keep her wits sharp and her mind open around the Dryad. Who knew what the tree woman would think or do next?
“Do you think I am pregnant?”
“Uh,” Jay coughed, caught off guard by the sudden change in topic. “I don’t know. I mean, how does that even work with Dryads, anyway?”
“We are not terribly different from most other races,” Meli stated plainly. “We have been having sex all morning. You did not find me to be different from anyone else, have you?”
“No, not at all,” Jay hurried to say. “I just meant, I don’t know how often Dryads can have children, or if there is any special aspect to the, uh, process. I know therions can go into heat when they want to, but humans don’t work that way.”
“We do not have any way to control our cycles,” Meli explained. “We are more like humans than therions in that way. However, Kerr told me that you have an aura of fertility now. Since we spend time together, I wonder if it has affected me.”
“I really don’t know,” Dys said as she traced the lines of Meli’s bare back. “I mean, I’m not even sure how effective the whole aura thing is. I don’t know if something like that can even be tested.”
“Kerr told you?” Syd added. “What were you talking about?”
“Having sex.”
“Oh. With me, I presume.”
“Yes.”
“And she didn’t tell you that you don’t need to practice with a giant dildo?”
“…I did not tell Kerr about the dildo,” Meli admitted. “But she also did not mention your adaptation skill. Mostly, she just talked about how good in bed you are.”
Trying not to let the praise go to her head, Jadis focused on the more relevant part of the conversation.
“Do you want to be pregnant?” Jay asked softly.
Meli was quiet for a little while, eyes closed as she continued to trace random patterns against Jay’s pale skin. When she spoke again, her eyes stayed closed, though a small smile played across her lips.
“I do not know. I never gave any thought to having children before. I had thought that it was a strong possibility that I would remain alone for the rest of my life in my grove. But when I see Hope, and how happy you and Alex and the others are… the idea grows on me.”
“Mm, that’s good,” Jay grinned as she hugged Meli a little tighter against herself.
“Very good,” Syd giggled. “Because I completely forgot to check what my potency was set to. I was on full blast the whole time now.”
“Check your potency?”
“Ah. So, another skill I have…”
Some minutes later, while Jadis and Meli were still discussing the intricacies of unusual, sex-based skills and spells, a shadow moved across their recumbent forms. Glancing up, Jay saw a familiar pair of wings, one black and one white, slowly moving through the great tree’s canopy. Sitting up, Dys waved a hand and called out to her angelic lover.
“Sev!”
At the sound of her voice, the winged figure flew closer and pushed her way through the foliage to hover above the two cuddling lovers. Or four, depending on perspective.
Severina was in full gear, her shining paladin armor on display. Jadis was continually pleased by the changes that Sabina had made to Sev’s armor on the side with the metal wing, as the asymmetrical glowing runes gave the Seraphim an even more exotic and enticing flare. Sev’s helmet was under one arm, revealing her golden blonde hair, as well as her mildly amused glare.
“My… congratulations,” Severina said dryly, looking at Meli. “I do not mean to interrupt, but I need to speak with our shared paramour.”
“I do not know what that word means,” Meli said as she sat up on top of Jay’s stomach, completely unashamed of her nudity. “But if you need to speak with Jadis alone, I can leave.”
“No, you do not need to depart,” Severina assured the Dryad. “I am simply delivering a message, albeit an important one.”
“What’s up?” Jay asked as she sat up as well, wrapping her arms around Meli in the process. “Did Kestil send us a letter or something?”
“No,” Severina shook her head. “Though you are not too far off in your guess. Emperor Somerulf has requested your presence at the palace.”
That announcement was enough to get all three of Jadis to sit upright.
“What does he want?” Dys demanded.
“When does he want to see me?” Jay asked.
“Did he ask for everyone or just me?” Syd questioned.
Blinking at the three, rapid-fire questions that had been launched at her, Severina took a few seconds to respond. She was quick on her wings, though, and was able to answer in order.
“He only asked for you, no one else,” Severina explained. “He has requested that you meet him at the palace at the thirteenth bell, which is about one hour from now. And I have no inkling as to what he wishes to speak to you about. Prince Kestil has not mentioned anything to me, nor has spymaster Eadgar. You will have to speak with the emperor to learn his purpose.”
Jadis hadn’t spoken with Emperor Somerulf since their private conversation that had occurred after he had pardoned Alex from the imperial law that put all Demons under the penalty of death. At that time, he had asked Jadis to do something about the bitter in-fighting that was going on between his two sons, Hraustrekr and Kestil. Jadis had to admit, she hadn’t been all that focused on the old elf’s request. While she had liked the aged emperor, finding him to be kind and reasonable, she didn’t care much for his sons. Hraustrekr was an absolute asshole, while Kestil was a sneaky politician. As a result, she didn’t spend much time thinking about either of them, much less trying to find ways to resolve their differences.
If Somerulf was calling her for a status update, she really wasn’t going to have much to tell him.
Then again, she did have quite a lot to say about what Hraustrekr was doing in regard to other nations. She couldn’t imagine the kindly old elf was fully aware of what exactly his son’s plans were, or the damage that was being done because of his decision to bluntly ignore the plight of the empire’s neighbors. Or maybe he did know, and approved? That was possible, Jadis supposed. She really didn’t know the emperor all that well. She just felt like what Hraustrekr was doing was not something his father would do, based off of the vibe she had gotten from him. Further, while Jadis hadn’t had too much time to spend on books, she had read enough on the subject to know that the young Emperor Somerulf had handled the demonic invasion of his time in a far different and more direct way. Of course, both the Demon Lord and the Hero of those bygone days were very different as well, so Jadis wasn’t entirely sure how closely they could be compared. Either way, if she was being given the opportunity, she wanted to talk with the emperor about the first prince’s actions.
“I guess I better get some clothes on, huh?” Syd remarked.
“I believe you will need more than just fresh clothing,” the Justicar stated dryly, her eyes sweeping over the messy forms of the entwined Nephilim and Dryad. “A bath, at a minimum.”
“Um, would you mind flying down and getting us some temporary clothes, actually?” Jay asked as she looked around for her pants. “I don’t really know what happened to… well, any of my clothes.”
“I may have seen a few pieces hanging in the branches lower down,” Severina said as she flapped her wings once. “I will be right back with clothes for both of you.”
As the Seraphim quickly dove out of sight below the green tree leaves, Meli shifted around so that she could look up at Jay.
“Do you think we have time for one more go?”
“Ah, probably not,” Jay admitted.
After a moment of silence, Syd leaned in from one side while Dys leaned in from the other.
“We could still try, though.”
Reaching down between their legs, Meli affectionately patted Jay’s hardening shaft with one hand.
“The skill for my transformations isn’t fully charged yet. Let’s see what we can do on a time limit.”
“Alright, but if Sev yells at us, this was your idea.”
“Deal.”
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