Fenrir woke abruptly. It was some time after midnight; he had been asleep for perhaps three hours after closing the day by giving Kira and Chellise another helping of their preferred repast. They were now snuggled up against each other on his right side along with Katari. But the cause of his awakening had come from his other side, where Safara slept.

  As he turned his eyes upon her, she mumbled something in her sleep, her brows knitted and her hands clenching the sheets. He reached out to her, but as his arm went about her shoulders she jerked awake with a little cry.

  "Sh, shh, I'm here," Fenrir murmured, pulling her close to him. She let out a breath that was half a sob, pressing herself against him, taking comfort in his presence. He waited until her heartrate slowed back to a normal level, then whispered, "Nightmare?"

  "Yes. I was back in that box, being sent to gods know where, and..." She shivered, and did not finish the sentence.

  "It's over now. I'm here, and if anyone tries to take you from me again they'll be taught the sharpness of my cws."

  A small white hand stole up to his cheek. "I'm okay now, E'nas, it was just a nightmare," Safara said. "I know you'd never let it happen again."

  Fenrir looked down at her, her hair gleaming silver in the moonlight, her blue eyes turned up to his with a wealth of trust and love pying in their depths. Bending, he kissed her, slow and soft, an expression of affection rather than lust. "Go back to sleep, Safara."

  She murmured an assent, and was soon again asleep. Keeping her cradled close, Fenrir y back himself, but sleep was a little slower to come to him. He could make what promises he liked, but the undeniable fact remained that in the pecking order of this world he was still far from the top. On both the sides of Dark and Light there were many who would be able to crush him like an ant under the heel of a boot should they find him. He needed to build strength and gather allies about him until he could be sure of withstanding whatever force might be brought against him and his own, and the sooner the better.

  'Once I get back to the castle, I need to go all in on training. Maybe I can make use of my Key of Apollyon to grow more quickly. And even though she could easily wipe me off the map, I also need to go find the Ancient Dungeon Core. If she really is the preeminent expert on runeworking, it's worth the risk.' He yawned, and closed his eyes. 'Thankfully, we'll be on our way home before long, probably the day after tomorrow. I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of my girls again.'

  The following morning dawned with cloudy skies and drizzling rain. Despite its being the height of summer, several fires were started in the estate's firepces to combat the unseasonable chill. After their usual morning toilet, Fenrir led his girls down to the kitchens for breakfast. They found Brandis, America, and Cassia already there, discussing the upcoming day's activities and were welcomed to join in on the conversation.

  Tsavani was there as well, looking as though she hadn't slept at all the previous night. She visibly rexed when Fenrir entered the room, something that wasn't lost on the great lupine, and when he took a seat he lost no time in inviting her to sit beside him. She made a show of reluctance, but they both knew it was only for the sake of appearances, and he insisted until she gave in. The chairs in the servants' dining hall had no arms, which allowed Tsavani to pull her chair close enough to lean against Fenrir. He accepted it without comment, even pcing an arm about the cat-girl's shoulders as he conversed with the rest of the table.

  Cassia was commenting on the weather. "I was going to take our fox-woman in to see that mage today, but with the rain and this chill, I'm thinking I had better just send him a message asking to reschedule."

  America looked up in surprise. "You got an appointment already? I expected him to be far too busy for such short notice."

  "Normally he is," Cassia agreed, "but when he heard about the kitsune's condition, he changed his schedule. Apparently, he doesn't often get a chance to observe someone under the effect of such an enchantment since the use of such spells on a Light-race is forbidden."

  "But not on Dark-races?" Kira asked, smirking a little.

  Cassia gave her an apologetic look. "I'm afraid people who think like us are still the exception rather than the rule."

  Kira waved her off. "Oh, don't sweat it, it doesn't bother me. Besides, if anyone tried to cast a spell like that on me, the boss would knock them into the middle of next week."

  Fenrir grinned his admittance of the truth of Kira's statement, then asked, "Where's Myrina?"

  "Out for a run, I think," replied America.

  "In this rain?" This question came from Safara, who had pced herself on Fenrir's opposite side.

  "The rain isn't likely to bother her," Cassia answered. "The amazons' homend lies in a tropical region, so rain there is hardly worth commenting about and certainly not worth interrupting one's schedule over. The cold would be more likely to deter her, but if she's exercising, she won't have much to worry her there either. Before I forget, are you certain you don't want to make an appointment with the mage as well? With any luck, he may know something about the null rune the svers pced on you."

  Safara turned questioning eyes upon Fenrir, who considered for a moment. There was a certain amount of risk to it. He wasn't particurly enthused about letting any more people than absolutely necessary know about his or his followers' presence, including Safara, and who knew whether this mage would be capable of keeping his mouth shut about a high elf with nulled magic. On the other hand, if he did know a way to restore Safara's magic to her, Fenrir didn't want to miss the opportunity.

  "I think you should, unless you have a good reason not to. The potential reward is well worth the risk, in my opinion. Hopefully you can take the slot Miss Cree scheduled for the kitsune, which would mean we'll still be able to leave tomorrow."

  Tsavani started, looking up at Fenrir with dismay in her eyes. "You're leaving?"

  "Yes," Fenrir replied, giving the cat-girl a comforting squeeze. "The girls you see at the table here are not the only ones who can cim the right of my protection, and I've been away from them for quite long enough."

  "Where are you going to go?"

  "To my home, in the Kharos mountains." Reading her desires on her face, he continued, "If you'd like to come along, you're welcome to do so. You can spend some time with us, and then continue on to your own home. I don't know where exactly your cn lives, but from what you've said I'm pretty sure it's closer to my home than it is to here."

  Relief blossomed on Tsavani's face, then was just as quickly smothered by hesitance. "I'll, uh, I'll travel with you for part of the way, sure."

  "Excellent," Fenrir smiled, before turning his attention back to Safara.

  She had a hand over the spot where, hidden by her clothing, the null rune y, but after a moment she raised her eyes to Cassia and said, "I think I will, then, if he can see me in a day or two. I don't want to make Ma- Fenrir wait any longer than necessary." She coughed into her hand, cheeks pink at her slip of tongue.

  Cassia took no visible notice. "Alright, then, I'll ask him whether he'd be willing to see you instead of the kitsune this afternoon and reschedule her appointment for some other day on account of the rain."

  Everyone nodded their approval of this course of action, and in the momentary lull in conversation America turned to Brandis. "What's our pn for the day? We're almost done with screening the servants, right?"

  The knight nodded, taking a moment to swallow before responding. "Yes, there's only a few left, so unless you object, I was thinking we would finish with that this morning, then we can move on to pnning for our assault on the svers in Eldfall. Ah, Ser Fenrir, I forgot to tell you st night, but I was able to procure the horses you wanted. Will you want them delivered to the estate, or somewhere else?"

  Fenrir looked up from his meal. "Here would be fine, but we'll need to cross the Phoebe at some point, so we'll need some way of getting not only ourselves but also the horses across. Is there a ferry that can handle that, preferably without any chance of our identities leaking out?"

  "Not unless we hire one ourselves," Brandis shook his head. "If you used the public ferry you'd be spotted out, no doubt about it."

  "You've done so much for us already that I hate to ask, but could you arrange something of the sort? We'll have to see when Safara can get her appointment, but we'd like to leave as soon as possible afterwards."

  "I can handle that, sure. Hiring a ferry for a few days shouldn't be an issue, even one rge enough to transport your party and the horses."

  "Excellent." Fenrir straightened in his chair and his tone turned serious as he said, "I'm afraid I can't give you anything in recompense for this at the moment, but I won't forget it. I'll repay my debt to you in future, count on it."

  Brandis waved him off. "You've already done that and more. I haven't forgotten that it was you and your companions that made the capture of the svers in Mavenia possible, and you've been a great help here as well. I'll admit I've been tempted to ask you to stay and help take down the svers here in Eldfall as well, but..." He paused and gnced across at Kira, who was chatting with Katari and America. "I understand that you may have other priorities."

  Fenrir bowed his head. "I appreciate your understanding." Then he raised it again, a twinkle entering his eyes. "I'll still be paying you back for the horses and the ferry, though."

  Brandis chuckled. "I doubt I can stop you, considering you know where I live."

  "Eh, just put Princess America on the case. Judging by our past history, she'll always be in just the right pce and time to catch me red-handed."

  Cassia and Fenrir joined Brandis in ughing this time, and upon hearing her name, America looked up from her conversation in some confusion. Seeing that it was apparently nothing of consequence, she carried on, though with a little smile lurking at the corners of her mouth.

  Fenrir decided to help Ser Brandis finish with the interrogations, so he parted from his followers after breakfast, leaving Tsavani in their care as well. While the rest of the party scattered to their own devices, Cassia dispatched a messenger to the city with her missive to the mage.

  Just as Fenrir and Brandis were finishing up questioning the st prisoner, Cassia entered the room. Dismissing the servant, who had clearly known nothing of Murtell's more shady practices, they both turned their attention to her. "What is it, Cassia?" Brandis asked.

  "I got an answer from Magus Dorner. Upon hearing that we didn't want to move the kitsune due to the weather, he offered to come to us to see her. He's also perfectly willing to look at Lady Cidrin while he's here. I don't see any issue with it, but I thought it best to check with you before sending a reply."

  "Hmm. Can we trust his discretion?" Brandis asked.

  "My other girls and I can make ourselves scarce while he's here, so no need to hesitate on our account," Fenrir put in.

  "I don't know him personally, but I haven't heard anything bad about him," Cassia answered Brandis, with a nod of gratitude towards Fenrir. "Still, it would probably be best if we kept our real reason for being here as quiet as possible. Let him think that I brought Lady Cidrin and the fox-woman up to see him, and the reason that I'm staying here is because I'm friends with Lady Murtell. I had the opportunity to speak with her yesterday, and I'm nearly certain she would be willing to help out."

  "In that case, I'd say go ask her, and if she agrees then go ahead with the pn."

  "Very well then, I'll do that. Where do you pn to go to stay out of sight while he's here, Fenrir?"

  "I do still need to go through the gear my girls have gathered together, so probably down in the sex dungeon."

  Cassia nodded. "That should work just fine. He likely won't be here for an hour or more, but you may want to let your girls know now anyway."

  Fenrir smirked. "If they've scattered to the four winds it might take a while to track them all down, so I think I'll take your advice. Once he's gone, come let us know. Ah, and Ser Brandis, since the mage intends to examine Safara today, I think we can pn on leaving tomorrow before daybreak. Can I assume the horses and ferry will be ready by then?"

  Cassia and Brandis nodded an assent, and Fenrir left to find his girls. Surprisingly, they had not scattered far and wide but were instead all lounging around in one of the estate's sitting rooms. A merry fire crackled in a firepce, and floor-length windows on one wall gave an excellent view of the misty sheets of rain that were drenching the grounds.

  Tsavani was curled up in an armchair directly before the fire, listening to the conversation between Safara and Chellise, who were in turn rexing on a sofa which had also been turned to face the fire. Kira and Katari were over near the windows, Katari busy polishing her armor and Kira watching the rain. They exchanged words every now and then, but for the most part seemed content to sit in silence and listen to the conversation between Safara and Chellise.

  Fenrir paused just inside the door to watch them for a bit. Safara had seen him enter and had smiled in welcome, but no one else had noticed his entry. They all seemed comfortable in each other's company, a striking change from the first few nights, when neither Katari nor Safara had engaged with the succubi at all. Fenrir wondered whether the same would remain true once they all got back together, or whether having Kira and Chellise around had broken the ice enough to keep things from getting awkward for the oni and the elf.

  He was just about to step forward to join the conversation when the door opened beside him and Myrina stuck her head into the room. Her hair was still slightly damp from her run, but her clothes were dry. "Where- Oh."

  "Hello, Myrina. What do you need?"

  "It's nothing. I just wanted to tell you that I've decided to accept your offer. I'm not saying I'll stay for long, but I might as well see where you live."

  "We'll be gd to have you." Their exchange having attracted the attention of everyone else, Fenrir stepped forward, saying to the room at rge, "The mage that's going to be looking at Safara and the kitsune will be coming here to do so in about an hour. Apparently he has no problem with checking Safara's mark now to see whether he can dispel it, but I thought it best that the rest of us all make ourselves scarce while he's here; after all, there's no need to give him anything more to gossip about. So, why don't we head down to the sex dungeon and wait there while I go through all the gear that Kira and Chellise picked out?"

  Upon hearing his st sentence, Tsavani's eyes widened to the size of dinner ptes, and Fenrir had to hide a smile. "I thought this was a human mansion," she managed.

  "Oh, it is," the direwolf answered, now failing to hide his smile. "Dark-races are far from cornering the market on lewd behavior; it's just that Light-races often want to pretend that they don't have such inclinations, so they hide it behind a virtuous facade. You and Safara have had firsthand experience with one aspect of the dark underbelly of humanity."

  Tsavani shivered a little, her eyes falling to the carpet, and Fenrir chastised himself internally for bringing up painful memories. Before he could say anything in apology, however, Kira spoke. "Do you think that this mage will be able to fix Safara?"

  "Honestly? I have no idea, but it's worth a shot. Giving Safara back the use of her magic is a priority, and not just because of how valuable her skills have been in the past."

  Safara colored under Fenrir's warm smile, and all but whispered, "Thank you, E'nas."

  "What about the kitsune?" Chellise wanted to know. "Do you think he'll be able to wake her up? She's so pretty..."

  Fenrir shrugged. "No clue there either. I don't even know what magic is responsible for keeping her asleep. I never learned of any rune which could do something like that in my studies with Safara."

  "I have seen a rune circle which might have been capable of something like that," Safara volunteered. "I didn't mention it before now because it's been so long that I'm not even sure what it looked like anymore. I was only a child when I saw it."

  "Oh, really?" Fenrir asked, turning to her. "Where did you see it?"

  "In the forbidden section of the library in the royal pace of Ellevandra. No one's allowed in there without the explicit permission of either the king or the queen. I wandered in there by accident and almost got caught before I realized where I was." Fenrir pricked up his ears at this, and correctly reading the expression on his face, Safara quickly added, "Oh no, E'nas. There's no way you'd ever get permission, and not even you could sneak in undetected. They have all sorts of magical security."

  "Ah well. While any knowledge stored there would no doubt be useful, I don't have any great or pressing need for it at the moment. So, shall we go? All that gear our dear succubi have gathered together won't sort itself, after all."

  This suggestion was met with general assent, and the entire party with the exception of Safara made their way down to the secret room underneath the estate, taking a quick detour to grab bags and satchels into which the gear could be packed. Once there, Fenrir found he had his work cut out for him; the succubi had gathered together absolutely everything they thought they or their sisters back at the castle might want.

  "You do know we're going to be traveling light, right? No wagon or anything like that; we're just going to be riding on horseback," Fenrir pointed out to Kira, who was standing beside him looking at the pile of equipment.

  "We ...might have gone a little overboard," she admitted, a little embarrassed.

  "We couldn't pick," Chellise added. "It's all going to be so much fun to py with."

  "Well, we're going to have to throw out about half of this stuff," Fenrir said. "There's only so much a horse can carry."

  "Fine." Kira heaved a sigh and stepped forward to begin sorting through what they had picked out.

  Fenrir and Chellise lent their aid, and after a bit Katari wandered over and began helping as well. It took them well over an hour to narrow down the list of toys and gear to an amount Fenrir was satisfied would not overload their pack horses, not least because the succubi had a great deal of difficulty deciding what to keep and what to leave behind. Fenrir added his own input from time to time and even Katari had a few words about several of the items. The rest of the girls remained interested but silent spectators.

  The pile was dwindling when Safara entered the room, looking downcast. Fenrir broke off pcing several lengths of a soft rope in a satchel to turn to her, a question on his lips, but her expression answered it before it could be asked. "He couldn't do anything. He tried a couple different spells, but nothing worked." Tears pooled in her eyes and she wrapped her arms around him, silently crying into his fur.

  Fenrir held her close, providing what comfort he could, and it wasn't long before Safara regained her composure. "I'm sorry," she said in a steadier tone, "but I wanted so very badly for him to have some way of removing the null mark that I let my hopes get away from me."

  "I hardly think you need to apologize for that. I'd say it's entirely natural," Fenrir told her. "But don't think that we're giving up here. I'll exhaust every avenue of finding you a means of getting your magic back. If there's a way, I'll find it. You can count on that."

  Safara leaned back into his embrace, fresh tears coming to her eyes. "Thank you," she whispered.

  They were just finishing up when Cassia and America entered the room. "Well, the mage just finished examining the kitsune and is on his way back to the city," America announced, eyeing the discard pile.

  Fenrir looked up from the pack he had just finished tying shut. "What did he have to say?"

  "He was able to confirm that she is in fact in a sort of magical stasis that can only be broken by a specific trigger," Cassia answered. "Unfortunately, there's no way to tell what that trigger might be. It could be anything so long as it interacts with one or more of the five senses. Minus sight, of course."

  "Kitsune are from the Sakura isnd chain, right?" This question came from Safara.

  "Yes, across the Vesper Ocean to the west," Cassia nodded, taking a seat next to her in the small sitting area at one side of the room. "You don't often see them on the continent just because it's so far."

  "That's not the only reason," muttered Tsavani, garnering curious looks from the keener-eared individuals present. Her eyes went wide and she tried to cover her embarrassment at being overheard with a scowl.

  "They're also viewed as Dark-races, aren't they?" Fenrir guessed, prompting a nod from Cassia.

  "I'm sorry to say that they, like other beastfolk, face discrimination from most Light-races."

  Now finished with the package she had been working on, Katari took a seat on the sofa opposite Cassia and Safara, next to Tsavani. "Do you believe that she came to the mainnd of her own will?"

  Cassia spread her hands in a helpless gesture. "I hope so, if only because the alternative would confirm that the svers have a presence even in a pce as far distant as the Sakura archipego, but there's really no way to tell."

  "How difficult would it be to trace her movements back to wherever she was initially captured?" Fenrir asked, coming to stand beside where Katari sat.

  "It might have been possible if we had begun as soon as we found her, but the news of the colpse of the svers in the capital will spread to the other cells before long. I wouldn't be surprised if all the cells which had direct contact with the capital end up going dark, especially after we make our move on the cell here in Eldfall. Finding the one who cast the spell would be the most effective method of finding out how to awaken her, but I'm afraid it will prove an impossible task now." Cassia gave Fenrir a smile. "I think you ought to try out your hunch before you leave. We're not out of options yet, but if what America tells me is true, contacting you will be impossible for several months or more once you leave here."

  Fenrir nodded. "It's not that I don't trust you, but the fewer people who know exactly where I live, the better, at least for the present." He paused for a moment, considering, then continued, "Very well. I'll do that sometime this evening."

  "Excellent," Cassia said, standing and adjusting her skirt. "Now it's already past lunchtime, so why don't we all refresh ourselves with another of the cook's delicious meals?"

  Surprisingly, Lady Murtell joined them for lunch, accompanied as usual by her daughter. There was a little awkwardness until the ice was broken, but then the conversation flowed well, remaining light but entertaining. Grace seemed honestly curious about the succubi, though there were hints of disapproval in her gaze whenever allusion was made to their more licentious activities. To their credit, both Kira and Chellise kept any such references vague enough that Felicity would have no idea what it was they were actually talking about.

  She was particurly interested in their retion to Fenrir, though he noticed she was careful to avoid being too direct. She even managed to draw him into the discourse several times, and by adroit conversation drew out several more details of how he had come to work with the princess. The ease with which she pulled the information from him raised Fenrir's eyebrows, and he redoubled his caution to avoid giving away anything potentially damaging. Sensing his increased reticence, she tactfully backed off, steering the conversation into more general channels.

  Now free to fade into the background of the conversation, Fenrir took the opportunity to study Myrina. She was silent to the point of taciturnity, but even without using God's Eye it was obvious to him that she harbored a burning desire to learn more about him. It wasn't just simple curiosity, either. Rather, it was as though she was unable to reconcile everything she had already learned about him and was looking for something which would make the pieces fit into pce.

  His other guest-to-be had other problems. Tsavani clearly viewed him as something of a safe haven, but her rational mind pushed back against trusting too much too soon. The result was a clingy, needy cat-girl who at the same time was desperate not to appear so. While her behavior was nothing less than adorable, Fenrir found himself eager to see her healed from her past traumas so that she could truly become the fiery, confident woman that he occasionally glimpsed in the changing expressions of her vibrant eyes.

  Both of them had revealed just enough of their backgrounds to make Fenrir curious, but as neither was eager to share more at present he had to resign himself to wait patiently. While bringing them to his home was an undeniable risk, Myrina far more so than Tsavani, Fenrir was reasonably certain that his influence over them would have grown enough by the time they decided to leave that they would be willing to keep the secret, if they decided to leave at all. And if not, he was capable of forcing the issue, though he hoped it would not come to that.

  His thoughts were interrupted by a question from Kira, and putting them aside, he engaged in the conversation around the table. After all, it was the st day he would spend with several of these people for some time, and of all those gathered there, there was not a single one whose company he did not find agreeable.

  As evening approached, Fenrir slipped away from the other inhabitants of the manor and made his way to the room occupied by the kitsune alone. After dismissing the soldier before the door with the help of a short note Ser Brandis had penned, he stepped within and surveyed the still form of the woman lying on the bed. He could still hear Marstolle's voice in his mind as clearly as the moment she had first uttered the words:

  "To awaken the mind-bound, give selflessly of the joy of pleasure, and take none for yourself."

  At the time it had seemed rather nonsensical, but ever since he had seen the kitsune and especially after he had looked her over with God's Eye, the pieces had fallen into pce. 'It does make a certain kind of sense,' he mused. 'No decent person would do anything of the sort to her, and no one that would do anything like that would care one whit about her pleasure, much less focus entirely upon it. Still, it's a bit, well, perverted, isn't it? There has to be multiple ways to craft a trigger that wouldn't be accidentally tripped that's less convoluted, not to mention less sexual. And there's always the possibility that I'm on entirely the wrong track.'

  Walking forward to stand at the edge of the bed, he extended a hand to tuck a stray hair behind her ear. 'Well, I needn't go all in immediately. It's possible that Marstolle wasn't talking about sexual pleasure at all. I'll start with a massage and see whether that has any effect.'

  Suiting action to thought, he pulled down the bnket which covered the kitsune, revealing her to be clothed in only a simple white nightdress. Positioning himself at her feet, he began to gently massage them, marveling a little at their softness. As the minutes passed, he made his unhurried way up her legs, pointedly avoiding her more intimate areas for the time being. As he worked, he frequently gnced at her face, but it remained as still as though sculpted from porcein.

  He could not help but note the coolness of her skin, not quite deathly cold but still considerably cooler than any warm-blooded being should be. He paused to take her pulse, and at first thought there was none, it was so slow. However, it was regur, if only about a quarter as fast as a sleeping woman's should be, and he concluded that these oddities must be the result of the magical stasis which gripped the fox-woman.

  Continuing the massage, he soon finished with her front and gently turned her onto her stomach to begin on her back. While there was nothing inherently sexual about his actions thus far, it was serving to give him an intimate knowledge of Saeko's body, and to feel the soft femininity of her beneath his fingers stirred his lusts regardless of his intentions. He steadfastly ignored it; to indulge his own desires in any way would invalidate the experiment.

  At length Fenrir had thoroughly massaged the entirety of Saeko's body save her most intimate areas, and still she y unresponsive, though his fingers had brought a little more warmth and color to her skin. He sighed. 'Well, can't honestly say I'm surprised. I guess it's time for the next step.'

  Lifting her in his arms, Fenrir pulled the nightdress off, revealing a graceful and thoroughly feminine body underneath. He id a gentle hand on the white swell of the fox-woman's breast, kneading and teasing, bringing to bear both the expertise Mindbreak offered as well as the practical understanding gained from his trysts with Kira to stimute her pillowy mound. Staying mindful of his objective, he moved to the other breast after a few moments, giving it some attention as well before tracing down her smooth stomach to the cleft between her legs. As he stroked over the outside of her bia, Saeko's mouth opened and she let out a gentle sigh.

  Fenrir stopped short, his attention riveted upon the fox-woman's features, but when multiple seconds passed with no other indication of returning consciousness, he returned to his task. Again utilizing all the expertise at his disposal, he teased her sex first with his fingers and then with his tongue, ears cocked to pick up the slightest vocalizations from the kitsune. Under his ministrations, her breaths grew deeper and then gradually developed into whimpers and moans.

  Now confident he was on the right track, Fenrir pushed on, spurring on her arousal with both hands and mouth. Her taste was delectable, but in accordance with his goal Fenrir focused solely on maximizing her pleasure, and before long Saeko came with a long, satisfied sigh.

  Fenrir raised his head to look at her face and was rewarded by seeing those long eyeshes flutter open and her amber eyes gaze back at him. There was a long silence where neither moved, both held by the other's gaze.

  At length, Saeko asked, "Who are you?"

  "My name is Fenrir," the direwolf replied, finally straightening fully. "How are you feeling?"

  "How did you know?" she asked, ignoring his question.

  "Know what? How to awaken you?" Fenrir inquired. At her nod, he continued, "I was given a tip by someone whose business it is to know such things. I apologize if-"

  She cut him off. "No need. I would gdly have submitted to far worse things in order to be freed from that prison. And if I may say, you were most charmingly gentle about it."

  Fenrir blinked in surprise, and Saeko ughed, a soft musical sound. "I remained vaguely aware of my surroundings while under the influence of the spell. I know everything you did to attempt to wake me. The massage in particur felt marvelous."

  Fenrir gave her a wry smile and a shrug. "I'll be honest, I didn't expect you to be aware of any of it, but I'm gd you enjoyed it, I suppose." He extended a hand to help her up.

  She took it with a gracious smile, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed to sit up beside him, apparently entirely unconcerned about her current state of undress. Her eyes widened when they fell on Fenrir's crotch however, prompting him to look down. His cock was fully erect, standing out vividly against the dark background of his fur.

  Suppressing a sigh, he said, "My apologies. Please ignore it, it'll subside before long."

  "Oh, no need to worry, I'm not offended," she assured him, tearing her eyes from the towering monolith. "Rather, I take it as a compliment." Her eyes flickered back to it then away again, a slight blush rising in her cheeks.

  Casting about for something to relieve the growing awkwardness, Fenrir's eyes fell upon the nightdress he had id aside, and he took it up. "Shall we go apprise the others of your recovery?"

  "A good suggestion. I would like to express my gratitude to Miss Cree for all she did, as well as all the others who had a hand in my rescue," the fox-woman admitted, rising from the bed. She took the nightdress Fenrir offered, then stopped. "Would you mind helping me into it?"

  "If you wish it." Taking the nightdress back from her, Fenrir bunched the skirt up and slipped her extended arms into the sleeves. Next, he maneuvered her head through the appropriate opening, taking care to avoid clipping her ears, and pulling the waist over the swell of her breasts, let the skirt fall freely to end a little below her knees. The gown was a high-waisted affair with a loose and billowing skirt, which was fortunate as it left plenty of room for her tails.

  Saeko turned wordlessly to expose her back, and musing that dressing her in this way was a surprisingly intimate act, Fenrir pulled her raven hair free of the dress and closed the buttons that trailed up her back. "Done," he murmured.

  She did not immediately move, instead leaning her head back against his chest for several breaths. Only then did she pull away, saying in almost a whisper, "Thank you, Fenrir-sama."

  Fenrir's eyebrows shot up, not only at the suffix applied to his name, but also the tone in which it had been uttered. Looking down at her, he activated God's Eye.

  Saeko ItsumiFemale KitsuneSage Lvl 43 – Elementalist Lvl 12Status: Grateful, GuardedAbilities: Meditate, Restore, Fortify, Appraise, Lesser Summon Fire, Lesser Summon WaterKinks/Fetishes:prefers her partners to be sure of themselves, but not unkind – enjoys shibari, and to a lesser extent, other types of bondageDisposition Towards User:is grateful to him for awakening her - believes him to be potentially a very dangerous individual - has decided to remain close to him so as to observe him further

  'Ah, I see what she's pying at. Clever of her; if I didn't have God's Eye to give me a heads up, I could have easily fallen for it. Well, I'm game; let's see who blinks first.' Aloud, he asked, "Do you feel weak at all? You haven't eaten in some time, have you?"

  "No, the enchantment preserved my strength. I feel perfectly fine, but thank you for your concern."

  "Well, at least allow me to offer you my arm. If you begin to feel faint at all, let me know immediately."

  "I will, thank you," Saeko smiled, taking the arm he proffered. Together they left the room, turning their steps toward the drawing room where Fenrir expected to find the rest of the manor's inhabitants.

  TheBestofSome