Anticlimactic

When Aisha woke up the next morning, she did not feel good.

.

In fact, she felt terrible. The sun hurt her eyes. Her mouth was dry.

.

(How can I still get hungover?) She groaned.

.

(Because you're stupid.) A voice groaned back in her head. (I told you not to!)

.

(But Libba wanted to…)

.

Aisha grimaced as another lance of pain shot through her head, Aiyu's voice also fading. What happened? She tried faintly to remember, but for the life of her she couldn't remember anything beyond watching Liberta and Rennala make out…

.

Something faintly about… drinking… well, obviously. Kaya was there…

.

["Sho cute…" Someone had slurred.] 

.

Wait. No, that was her voice.

.

["Ah…" Someone else's voice mumbled quietly. "Thanks, Aisha…"]

.

Kaya's.

.

[

"Nya nya nya nya nya nya!" Someone giggled - wait, that was her again. "Pet me petmepetme! Kanyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!"

.

Aisha devolved into giggling as a warm pair of hands pulled her head onto a lap, petting and stroking her. In her inebriated state, the hands had felt like heaven…

]

.

The positive memory made Aisha smile a bit, nullifying the pain in her head slightly. Kaya was just so cute. And opening up, despite the slow progress.

.

It made her… happy.

.

(Alright, fun time's over.)

.

Aisha took a deep breath, and remembering the technique taught to her by Feng, rapidly circulated the flow of mana inside of her. She felt the blood rushing through her veins, the alcohol rushing through her body…

.

And exhaled out, a cloud of gas oozing out of her mouth, followed by a quick breath of relief.

.

Ah, magic was so convenient. Before, such a thing would have made her angry, when she was still soulless, but now, she was just thankful for the ability.

.

Regardless, though, it was time to figure out what was going on. Aisha began to get up, and-

.

Oh. Nevermind.

.

Attempting to turn her neck sent pain shooting through the muscle, and unfortunately, this problem wasn't one that she could fix so easily. She attempted to reach up and rub it, but discovered that her back and shoulders were also sore.

.

Aisha grumbled as she realized that she had collapsed on the floor in a position she could only really describe as "pretzel-like," her arms and legs bent in unnatural positions, stretched uncomfortably for a normal person, but especially for the inflexible girl. Even the smallest movement sent an annoying pain through her body, but a sturdy girl like Aisha could take the pain.

.

…She just didn't want to.

.

Aisha opened her eyes, ready to wrench her limbs back into a comfortable resting position, but jolted slightly when her eyes were met with another sleeping face.

.

Oh. Kaya was the one who had draped the covers over her. But, Aisha noted, the girl herself wasn't underneath them, instead, sleeping on her side, on the ground, with no covers or even a jacket…

.

Aisha smiled softly. Kaya was so nice, but so timid… Aisha didn't really mind though, the timidness made her a lot cuter.

.

But still, the girl was sleeping alone, and cold, so Aisha scooched closer, assimilating Kaya's sleeping form into the little blanket pile-

.

Kaya's eyes snapped open, darting around frantically before settling onto Aisha's slightly-concerned expression.

.

And for a second, the panicked expression stayed on her face, but after a small pause, it faded away, giving way to a slightly flustered expression, her hazel eyes staring softly into Aisha's big, dark reds.

.

"...Good morning, Aisha." Kaya whispered softly. "..Does your… head hurt at all? Are you cold?"

.

"I should be asking you that." Aisha mumbled, stretching the corner of the blanket over Kaya's body and tucking it under the girl's side. "You look cold! You feel cold."

.

"I'm…" Kaya mumbled, eyes wandering over to the hand that Aisha had left over her side. "I… Thank you…"

.

"What happened last night?" Aisha asked.

.

"You all got drunk and wrestled until you fell asleep." Kaya sighed. "Liberta and Rennala… um… well, they're on the bed… You kind of just… sat down on the floor and went to sleep…"

.

"Oh." Aisha said dumbly, kind of expecting more of a story. But she guessed that was really all that happened. "Thanks for taking care of me…"

.

Aisha's last words came out softer than she had expected, almost inaudible. But Kaya heard anyways, and a small little smile popped onto the short girl's face, following a little flush in her cheeks.

.

"It's.. nothing." Kaya said softly back. "I… I like you…"

.

Aisha just smiled back and moved closer, wriggling an arm underneath Kaya's side so that she could embrace the small girl. She buried her face into Kaya's collar, and giggled softly when the small girl nuzzled her back, rubbing her cheek against the side of Aisha's head.

.

And for a while, she was content to just stay like that, sharing her own body heat with Kaya's. Just enjoying the feeling of their bodies pressed together, her small breasts pressed up against the shorter girl's flat chest… Their legs pressed up against each other, Kaya's legging-clad thighs rubbing up against Aisha's uncovered skin.

.

But like always, Kaya grew flustered, and although she didn't outright push Aisha away, she resisted Aisha's attempts to get even closer, pulling away slightly. She even let out a cute little "eep!"

.

Aisha frowned a bit but was still pretty happy, cuddling was still nice, even if she couldn't worm her way into a full, tummy-to-tummy, crotch-to-crotch hug. Just resting their heads together was enough for her, at least for now.

.

So nice. Kaya also wasn't wearing her jacket, which meant even more skin-to-skin contact, god, Aisha loved cuddling so much. She was such a little cuddle-slut, she would literally do anything Kaya had said in that moment.

.

But as with most good things in Aisha's life, it didn't last very long.

.

"Ugh." Rennala moaned from the bed. "I feel terribleeee…. It's so hot, holy fuck…"

.

Aisha mewled in protest as Kaya began to pull away, holding onto the girl desperately, but letting go as the girl sat up, rising to her feet.

.

Aisha pouted, looking like she could cry as she also rose to her feet, gazing down at the naked pile of limbs on top of the bed. Unlike Aisha, and to a lesser extent, Kaya, the two taller women had fallen asleep on the bed, although their bodies were sprawled out haphazardly, and also - on top of each other, like they had fallen asleep while having sex.

.

"Good morning." Aisha said quietly, but Rennala's face still grimaced anyway.

.

"My head hurts…" Rennala moaned. "This is why I stick to nepenthe…"

.

"I think you took some of that last night too." Kaya mumbled.

.

Rennala just mewled in displeasure, turning her face over and unintentionally squishing it into the other occupant of the bed.

.

"Oh god." Rennala balked, the cogs in her drunken mind turning. Naked. Sweaty. In bed. With another woman. "D… did I?"

.

"It was loud." Kaya said flatly.

.

"NNNnnnnn!" The woman groaned. "Zaris, I… Oh, why…"

.

"Don't act all shy now." Aisha rolled her eyes. "We all know you like her."

.

"I don't like her!" Rennala denied instantly, her face souring a bit as pain lanced through her head again. "No, that… barbarian… ugh!"

.

"Yeah, whatever."

.

"I don't!" Rennala insisted. "Who would like such a brazen idiot! No thoughts in that head whatsoever! No consideration for anyone else! Just a- an animal!"

.

"Okay." Aisha said mockingly, holding her hands up in the air. "Whatever you say. You're the one in bed with her though!"

.

"I… I-"

Rennala's words came out in a jumble, and it seemed like the pure embarrassment and indignation of being in bed with Liberta forced the hangover out of her system, as she rolled her body sideways in an attempt to get herself out.

.

But just as quickly, another pair of arms shot out, wrapping around her waist and wrenching her back into bed.

.

"I don't like you either." Liberta grumbled.

.

"What!?" Rennala squawked. "Then let me go!"

.

"...No."

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Aisha just looked at the scene and giggled softly, watching the two women who clearly liked each other more than they would like to admit. And indeed, as Liberta pulled Rennala's body back into her own, she struggled a bit, but not long after, she clearly relaxed, even gently running a hand over Liberta's.

.

"I… whatever." Rennala mumbled. "A few more minutes of sleep won't hurt…"

.

"Stop talking." Liberta grumbled.

.

"...Ok."

.

.

.

It was over an hour before the girls even managed to get dressed, Liberta's groaning and childish insistence requiring the effort of all three of the other girls to convince her to get out of bed and get dressed.

.

And even still, she was grumbling as they made their way over to the guild, and even still as they were picking out a contract.

.

"I don't have any particular preference." Rennala mumbled, after being shown a wyvern contract by Aisha. "It's all trivial for me."

.

"Bold words." Aisha said offhandedly. "But I guess I don't really have a preference either."

.

"I wanna go back to bed." Liberta sulked, before walking over and grabbing her favorite hug toy, pulling Aisha over to a chair and into her lap.

.

"I guess I'll pick." Kaya said softly, running her eyes over the neatly-organized job list and gingerly peeling off a contract. "How about this one?"

.

"Sure." Rennala said absentmindedly.

.

"Eh." Liberta mumbled.

.

"Okay." Aisha said cheerfully.

.

And just like that, they were off.

.

.

.

"I like both. Some guys are pretty hot. And a lot of girls too. But I don't like it when they're really insistent on topping, then I can't stand them."

.

"MMmmmhhh… I like girls… Preferably with big boobs. I think some boys can be cute, but only the more feminine ones. I can't stand beards… they're so hard and scratchy…"

.

"Really?" Liberta said, surprised. "I think a nice, masculine beard can be hot."

.

"I can't stand them." Aisha said, pursing her lips as she kicked a rock on the side of the road. "I think they look weird too."

.

"Eh?" Liberta said in surprise. "You basically only like girls, then! What about hairy women?"

.

"Um… I guess a little hair is okay, but I would say-"

.

.

Rennala looked away from the conversation and glanced quickly at her companion in silence, looking equally uncomfortable at the brazenly forward conversation happening in front of their eyes.

.

"You… Kaya, right? Or… how would you like to be addressed?"

.

"Oh." Kaya said, surprised at the first words Rennala had spoken in a bit. "My full name is Koga Kageya. But you can call me Kaya. Aisha says we should all be friends. And friends may call me Kaya."

.

"All be friends, huh." Rennala laughed nervously. "I… I don't really know what she means by that."

.

"Huh?" Kaya responded, curious. "Why? She just wants us to all get along. I… It's nice. She is a kind person… and a good leader."

.

"You really think that's all she means?"

.

Kaya gazed softly at Aisha, dressed in the outfit that she had picked out for her, creamy legs almost shining in the sunlight. 

"How could she mean anything else? She is… she reminds me of a pure maiden… like from a folk story… beautiful and kind, accepting…"

.

"She kind of…" Rennala hesitated. "I don't know. Something feels off… But I guess I agree. She does seem to be a kind girl. She could have forced me to join this group, but she, uh…"

.

Rennala's words trailed off, and she glanced worryingly at Kaya, but the girl seemed too focused on looking at Aisha to pay full attention to the fact that Rennala had trailed off.

.

"Um… anyways…" She coughed. "What about… Liberta? What do you think of her?"

.

"Liberta is strong, and while she isn't terribly reliable…" Kaya trailed off. "Um… she seems to genuinely like us… and… well, she does seem to care about us, in… smaller ways. What about-"

.

 Before Kaya could even prompt her, Rennala scowled. 

"Such a crazy bitch." She mumbled. "Who the fuck kisses someone in a fight? She was the one who started it, too! And on top of that, while I'm drunk, she- she- she fucks me, and then, in the morning, she forces me to stay in bed, and- and-"

.

Kaya also rolled her eyes as Rennala began to ramble about the small little things that Liberta did that seemed to piss the mage off. Not mentioning how Rennala seemed to be strangely focused on everything that Liberta did, including the smallest little details and behaviors that even she had missed.

.

"Hate her!" Rennala finished. "Stupid woman!"

.

"... I see."

.

"Not at all like you." Rennala pouted. "Normal."

.

"Oh."

.

"I didn't mean it like that!" The lithe woman corrected hastily. "I meant- we're the normal ones in the party! Not like them! We're normal!"

.

"I guess." Koga smiled faintly. "And girls like us have to stick together, right?"

.

"Right!"

.

"What about you, Kaya?" Aisha asked suddenly, the other two women slowing their walking pace to let Kaya and Rennala catch up.

.

"Ah… huh?"

.

"What's your type?" Aisha asked. "Girls? Boys?"

.

"I… I guess I like more outgoing… confident people…" Kaya said softly. "Um… I like both men and women…"

.

"Ehhhh?" Liberta pouted. "What about looks!? Are you a boob girl? Butt girl? Hair?"

.

"I-I… I guess I like thighs." Kaya mumbled shyly.

.

Aisha and Liberta shared a mischievous look before nodding, a sight that made Kaya's face fall. And sure enough, Aisha pulled up her shorts as far up as they would go, almost exposing her butt, poorly disguised as… well, an adjustment.

.

But Liberta just straight up kicked off her shorts, leaving herself in only her tunic and boots - Rennala gasped audibly at the sight, while Kaya just blushed - a blush that only deepened as Liberta laughed at her, walking up close and bending over, showing off her-

.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Rennala shrieked. "WE'RE IN PUBLIC!"

.

"Huhhh?" Liberta pouted. "There's nobody around for miles. Prude."

.

"I'm not-" Rennala sputtered. "That's not an insult! Especially from you!"

.

"Hmph." The elf scoffed. "Kaya likes it. Right?"

.

"I-I'm not going to be a part of this." Kaya stammered

.

"Huh?" Liberta cried suddenly, her voice high pitched and distressed, like she was genuinely hurt. "Don't you think I'm pretty?"

.

"What? Of course!" Kaya corrected frantically. "You're really sexy, I just - I - I… I… oh."

.

"Oh my." Aisha said, putting a hand on her mouth coquettishly. "Looks like more than one person here has a crush on Libby."

.

"Yeah." Liberta laughed. "Wait, who's the other?"

.

.

.

"Oh. It's over there." Aisha said, pointing into the distance. "Or at least, there's a drake over there."

.

"You can see that far?" Rennala commented nonchalantly. "Wow! I can't even see that far with an enchantment!"

.

"What color is it?" Kaya asked.

.

"Red." Aisha answered, squinting slightly. "Or… orange?"

.

"It should be our target." Kaya nodded, taking off her backpack and unzipping the front zipper.

.

The girls watched curiously as Kaya rummaged through her backpack for a few seconds. Of course, as one of the two left who hadn't showcased their abilities, they were naturally curious of the nature of her abilities - Aisha certainly was, given the timid nature of her companion, and lack of ego.

.

They walked for a bit longer before Kaya pulled out a small little glove fitted for her hand. Little hooks and notches adorned the top of the thing, looking quite strange - until she began retrieving little steel dowels and rods, clipping them onto the top of the glove in a methodical manner.

.

Before long, a small little bow was mounted on top of her wrist, a few bolts mounted to the side of the glove for easy use. Aisha recognized the multicolored tips as the precious gemstones that Amir had once shown her…

.

So she was one of those adventurers. Someone who had gotten here through pure effort, without any insane abilities of her own…

.

"A catalyst?" Rennala observed. "I barely even see the lower division adventurers use those."

.

Aisha's eyes were drawn to a little sphere mounted right below Kaya's palm. It was dull, but refracted unnaturally with the light - being a little too refractive, as if imparting some of its own energy into the colors.

.

"It's helpful." Kaya mumbled. "Especially for more non-combat oriented magics, they require a bit more control…"

.

"Oooh, a buffer!" Liberta said excitedly. "What can you do?"

.

"Just a few enchantments." Kaya shrunk. "Nothing that impressive… I think Rennala could probably beat me in that regard…"

.

"Don't be so hard on yourself." Rennala reassured, putting a hand on Kaya's back. "We haven't even seen anything yet! Besides, it doesn't matter who's the strongest."

.

"Yeah, because it's me." Liberta laughed coarsely.

.

"Hmph." Rennala sniffled. "You're so conceited."

.

"Hah, and? I'm right."

.

"You're wrong."

.

"And why's that?"

.

"We haven't even seen Aisha or Kaya's capabilities!" Rennala said incredulously. "And not to mention, I'm stronger than you!"

.

"Haaaauuhhh?" Liberta shot. "I beat you!"

.

"You wish." Rennala shot back. "I was going easy on you! I could…"

.

Aisha just rolled her eyes and continued to walk as the two women began to quarrel again. A few months ago, she would have said something snobbish, like that she wished they would just fuck and make up, but…

.

It was fun. It was fun being around them, it was fun watching them argue, and talk. And Aisha wasn't afraid to admit it - she imagined that if times were to get rough, she would look on these memories fondly.

.

But there still was the job ahead of them, and Aisha would be lying if she said that she wasn't a little excited to see everyone's powers, and test her own.

.

The side effects from consuming the dragon soul had waned, but she could still feel the burning inside of her - and it itched for a fight, it itched to show her friends what she could do.

.

She wanted their admiration badly. To show her dominance. And then take their bodies as trophies -

.

Aisha coughed in embarrassment. Where did that one come from?

.

But regardless it would be nice to cut loose. And her opportunity would come soon, the drake's body growing larger in size as the girls began to approach. She felt giddy, almost. She REALLY wanted to show off, impress Kaya.

.

Aisha prepared a spell, and-

.

"Deletra!" Rennala screamed, at the same time that Aisha felt a rumbling, and a burst of mana from behind her.

.

And before Aisha could even sigh, the drake was gone, vaporized into a million pieces, barely even a corpse left.

.

"That was my spell!" Liberta argued, panting slightly from exertion. "I did that!"

.

"If you have eyes, moron, you could see that my beam hit it before yours did! "

.

"I have better eyes than you! I'm an elf!"

.

"Aisha, who's spell was it!?"

.

"Asking her because you know you can't prove-"

.

Kaya walked up to the fey girl sympathetically, disassembling her glove tiny little piece by tiny little piece, carefully putting them back into her backpack.

.

"I kind of wanted to see you fighting." Kaya said shyly.

.

"I kind of wanted to show you."

.

"Next time."

.

.

.

Soon enough, night had fallen, and although they could all easily go on for days more at a time, an entire day of conversation and talking had worn down on their bodies. Funnily enough, the animated conversation, more than the hours of walking, was what made them the most tired.

.

"Kind of anticlimactic." Aisha sighed, flopping down onto her stomach on the big quilt that Kaya had brought with her.

.

None of the girls had brought a sleeping roll except for Kaya. Aisha had on purpose, but she had the sneaking suspicion that Rennala and Liberta had just forgot.

.

"What was?" Rennala asked, sitting next to Aisha on the quilt. She shivered slightly when Aisha moved her head on top of her thighs, the fluff on her head tickling the skin, but after a bit of hesitation, she began to pat Aisha on the head awkwardly.

.

"Our first contract together… it was so easy." Aisha mumbled. "I feel like we haven't really gone through anything…"

.

"Sorry." Liberta and Rennala chimed in harmony.

.

"It's fine." Aisha said dismissively. "I don't think stretching it out for no reason would have been any fun either."

.

"Well." Liberta said, gazing softly down at Aisha. "We could still make the night a little fun."

.

"You're such an animal." Rennala mumbled.

.

"Mnnnnnnnnnnggg…" Aisha mumbled as well.

.

Usually, she didn't partake in these kinds of activities - she just never had really liked it all that much. Doubly so after her time as a slave. But, well… she kind of wanted to feel those soft bodies against her own.

.

"Kainya?" Aisha asked playfully.

.

"I-I think I'll pass." Kaya squeaked.

.

"What about just a cuddle!?" Liberta pouted. "Come on! I haven't gotten to hug you yet."

.

"Me either." Rennala whispered quietly.

.

A look of conflict swept across Kaya's face briefly, but after a brief pause, she took a step forwards, towards the big blanket filled with beautiful girls, all who wanted a piece of her.

.

Aisha couldn't understand the hesitation. At first, she just assumed it stemmed from a kind of societal prudishness, but after so long, it seemed like there was something else stopping the girl from expressing her affection. There was a chance that she just didn't like them in that way, but the way that she would shyly inch towards Aisha when they sat together on a bench, or touch her shoulders when she wanted to get her attention - she definitely liked it.

.

"Okay." She said meekly. "But I'll take first watch."

.

"Yay!" Liberta cheered.

.

And before anybody could do anything, Liberta yanked Kaya down onto the blanket and smothered the girl in her chest, forcefully pushing her face against her breasts and holding on tightly.

.

"Hehe…" Liberta giggled childishly. "I'm… oh, I guess I'm second. Aw."

.

Rennala furrowed her brows, before she also knelt down on the blanket, shivering slightly from the cold. "Huh!? Wait, no, I- don't hog her!"

.

And Rennala too, joined the little pile, gently pulling Kaya away from Liberta and towards herself.

.

"You're really firm…" The mage mumbled. "Oof. We need to get you a massage, or something."

.

"Or we could give you one." Liberta smiled mischievously.

.

"Maybe…" Kaya whispered, her voice muffled by girlflesh. "Oh…"

.

Meanwhile, Aisha frowned. What the hell was this?

.

There was cuddling going on, and she wasn't a part of it! Inconceivable!

.

"Hey…" She whined. "I want in!"

.

"Y-you can take my place!" Kaya squeaked. "Please!"

.

Aisha smirked. Not a chance.

.

"Turn her onto her back." The fey commanded, and like two loyal servants, the taller girls complied, awkwardly jumbling a bit as they shifted Kaya to face upwards, giving the girl a good view of Aisha's looming figure, shadowy silhouette standing against the moon.

.

Aisha could see the blush forming on her face, where there wasn't one before. She felt flattered. So flattered, that she could…

.

"Waiwaiwai wai-" Kaya blubbered, but soon the wind was literally knocked out of her body as Aisha leaped onto the girl's chest, wrapping her arms tightly around Kaya's midsection.

.

"Oof." Aisha laughed, the movement also taking a bit of air out of her. "You are firm! But so warm…"

.

"Aishaaa…." Kaya whined. "P-please?"

.

"Not a chance." The fey girl purred. "You're such a cutie… "

.

"Mnnnnnnnnn…"

.

As Aisha nuzzled the top of Kaya's neck, she felt a pair of arms wrap around themselves around her midsection. Followed by more arms, and then some legs, and soon, Aisha could barely tell where the pile of limbs stopped and started.

.

It was almost unbearably hot, and slightly sweaty, and the girls smelled… strong, to say the least - but still, Aisha wouldn't have traded it for all the chicken nuggets in the world.

.

And for a long time, the moment lasted, without being interrupted by anything they needed to do, or some outside force, or bandits or whatever - Aisha protested when Kaya insisted on getting up, but she didn't want to be greedy.

.

It had lasted just long enough so that she craved it again. And when she took Kaya's spot, being surrounded by soft bodies, she supposed she couldn't particularly complain.

.

But still, it felt like something was missing, even when she fell asleep, being at the most peace she had felt in a long, long, time.

.

.

.

"...It's time for your watch, Liberta."

.

"Mnnnnno."

.

"..."

.

"..."

.

"..."

.

"It's time for your watch, Rennala."

.

"Ouh." Rennala groaned. "Okay."

.

In her half-awake state, Aisha couldn't help but mewl at the loss of one of her heaters and pillows. Doubly so when Liberta shifted onto her side, no longer pressing directly into Aisha.

.

But when a little body wormed its way into her arms, resting its head on Aisha's shoulder…

.

She felt happy.