What the hell is with all these cat-people this isn't bloody Akashima I mean C'MON

"Hmph..." It was closed. Ayaka sighed. What a waste of time. The only Alchemist shop that wasn't run by some grime covered horny as fuck sod involved in some creepy gang was closed. A sign hung neatly on the door. "Be Back in 10 minutes." Ayaka had been there for 12 and they had not yet returned. Had they no regard for fucking common courtesy? Tch. 'Back in my country such impoliteness would have you shunned, fuckin' rude shit

Her mood was foul, more so than usual. Before getting here she had a run in with a trio of what Ayaka could only call high class trash. The ringleader was wearing so much makeup that Ayaka could practically smell the lead leaking into her skin. The bitch deserved the irritable and painful death she'd receive. They approached her, insinuated she was a prostitute, then claimed that some red-headed tall fuckin' freak was gettin' it on with a buncha catgirls. Nothing pissed her off more than people throwing their weight around, and people getting a hard on for her kind. Sure, people had their kinks - but she didnt get it. So it pissed her right the fuck off.

Ayaka had cussed the girls out and tried to throw rocks at them but they ran off. Muttering something about how she was worse than the 'blue-hared' one. And there was only one blue haired catgirl that came instantly to mind. Her ratty shit for brains sister...

Sure the other one did, what was her name? Renee? The useless mother who couldn't reign in her even more useless child?

It seemed unlikely that both of them would be around the place. Ayaka hoped that it was the dumb as shit mother and not her sister.


"Well, their loss...really.." Ayaka muttered to herself as she turned to leave she was face to face with a tall, redheaded. Oh fuck. This was the creep from the rumours. HE was the alchemist? Her lips formed a sneer of disgust as she could so easily see the tears and rips in his...dual souls. "Ugh..," She'd have to deal with that in a moment.

"Open up, yer hours say you should be and you're three minutes and 23 seconds late."

"Madam. I apologize that I cannot help you right now, but I have just had to deal with some disgusting trash who wanted me to abandon my friend and roommate. So I am not having the best of days right now. If you come back tomorrow I will give you a discount on a purchase. But I really, really need to go and do some Alchemy to de-stress."

"De-stress?" Ayaka muttered. "De-fuckin'-stress? Well sunshine you gotta job to do. Get your dirty assed soul in your dirty ass store, whip up something to calm your angsty ass down and -" She paused and huffed. Golden eyes shifting behind the strange man. Her hair literally bristling. It was her damn sister, and she was acting like... oh god fuck knows.

"Eteri-aya-Yoko you get your fuckin' sorry ass here right the fuck now."

Ayaka pointed back to the alchemist. "And YOU, open up this store. NOW."

"Dirty assed sou-" By the love of the Great Flow. This had to be Eteri's sister, the one that she said was better than her in every possible way. Honestly, he couldn't see it. Nevin moved in front of the door, then very deliberately looked to Eteri, who did not look happy at this development. Nevin resisted the urge to snap his fingers in realization. It wasn't hero worship - it was having the stuff beaten into her head day in and day out.

Another glance to the window and he saw Eteri nodding rapidly, her frame shaking as she tried to hide behind his curtains. He slowly turned his head to look at the entirely too rude sister. "You can come in - because she wants you to." Nevin unlocked the door and stepped inside, moving to hold the door open for Ayaka - only to be shoved aside as the brown-haired woman stormed inside. She was looking around with a haughty, disdainful expression as Nevin closed and locked the door behind them.

If she calls me a third rate alchemist she's going back out on the street. Dealing with that once had been enough, thank you very much. He folded his arms over his chest and stared steadily at her.

"You're in. What was so vitally crucial that it could not wait?" His tone was flat as he watched Ayaka. In the corner, Eteri was trembling fiercely, and his opinion of Ayaka was getting ready to plummet. Ruling someone through fear was disgusting.

Why was she here? Oh gosh... why? Why?

"Ayaka..." I said, my voice small. "Why is here?" I muttered.

She rose her neatly trimmed eyebrows at me. "What? Why am I here? Why are you? Why are those bitches out there in the street talkin' about you like you're some cheap ass prostitute?" Ayaka took two steps toward me and I took two steps back. Ayaka sighed, annoyed. She pressed her fingers to her temples. "Goddammit Eteri. What shit did you get yourself into this time. Do you want me to claw out their eyes? I'll fuckin' do it?"

Why was she so violent? I shook my head vehemently. It was hard enough dealing with Nevin right now... I didn't need to deal with being blamed for grievous bodily harm. "Eteri find safe space."

<"Just talk to me like this, you sound like a fuckin' idiot. Haven't you grasped Tradespeak yet?">

I winced. <"N-no... it's hard. There are so many different phrases and terminology and- Ayaka why are you here? Is it because Nevin is an Alchemist?">

My sister glanced over at Nevin then back to me, then back to Nevin. I could see her brain piecing bits of information together and that quite honestly mortified me. I went to inch closer to Nevin but halted when he caught my eye. Instead, I shifted back and away. If I moved slowly...really...really...slowly..maybe no one would notice if I made my way to the door.

"Eteri."

Awww crap. My sister noticed. Her voice wasn't harsh though, this time it held a note of concern.

<"Eteri, I need you to pull your soul out."> She glanced over at Nevin, gave a curt nod and switched to Tradespeak. "You seem competent enough to handle this. Considering whats inside of you."

Ayaka ignored the spiteful look the man gave her and turned to Eteri. She was cautious of him, but her sister seemed to like him. For whatever reason. So Ayaka decided she'd explain everything as she went along, composition through monologue or some shit. How had Eteri not seen this? She was a master soul seamstress and yet something so inherently obvious she was blind to. "You took half of that kid, Ven was it? His soul into you. That was a few months ago. Haven't you looked at yourself in a mirror?"

She huffed, "Yes! I no see own good. You know!"

"Right...right..." Ayaka murmured. No, she had forgotten that her bratty sister wasn't able to clearly see the shit inside of her. The scary, dangerous demi-god festering piece of shit inside of her. Ayaka waited as Eteri fumbled around before finally tugging at the flimsy piece of soul inside of her. Her eyes widened at the realisation.

The red miasma of whatever demonic thing had planted itself in her was infecting the part of Ven's soul that she had tried to attach to herself. Ayaka was aware of Nevin's presence but was ignoring him for the time being. There were far more pressing matters at hand. "Cut it off."

"W-what?"

Ayaka crossed her arms in front of her. "You heard me. If he's your friend you'd cut off the clean parts of that before it all goes to hell." She added under her breath. "Like some others..."

Eteri seemed hesitant but did as she was told, once the parts were safely stored away Eteri tried to slink away again. "Good. Go do...something the adults are talking." Ayaka muttered.

<"I'm an adult!"> Eteri shot back. <"I'm an adult I have feelings and I have- I have...emotions and I am sick of you treating me like I'm nothing.">

Ayaka straightened and the imposing sight had Eteri shrink further back away from the shop, tail between her legs and ears flat against your head. Ayaka spoke in tradespeak, purely so the Alchemist didn't think she was saying anything too bad. "I'm treating you with a grain of salt. You're like chaos manifested in physical form. You're a danger to peopel around you, and I don't give two shits about that, but you're a danger to yourself, and unfortunately I do care about that. Even if you DO piss me off. Now can you let me talk to?"

"N-Nevin."

"Talk to Nevin alone."

Eteri stood in the doorway, reluctant to move.

"I'm not going to hurt him, that'd be bad for business."

Eteri nodded and finally turned and left. Ayaka waited till she could no longer hear Eteri's footsteps. There was the faint click of a door shutting somewhere and Ayaka could safely assume her younger sister was out of earshot.

No longer talking to Eteri, Ayaka's voice once again held its harsh bite to it. "Now, I honestly came here just to fuckin talk shop with another alchemist. Instead, I find my little sister moping about his shop. Not only that, but I see a very messed up soul, and a very pristine - masterfully piece of it stitched back up. Now Ain't that a peach?" Ayaka sashayed over to the counter and lifted herself onto it, crossed her legs then her arms and stared down Nevin.

"What do you know about my sister, and why is she shuffling around you like a fuckin' lost pup?"

Nevin was slowly processing what he had seen. He couldn't speak whatever tongue the two of them were speaking in, but Eteri had definitely seemed upset - until she pulled out the soul inside of her. When she did that, his eyes had gone wide, then narrowed as he remembered something he had been told once, by Stare, the first person who saw his soul. Red, like oozing sores.

That red thing had been inside of her? That was - how much influence had that had on her? Was that thing - Nevin's spine stiffened when he saw thin tentacles ooze forth from the soul, waving in his direction before Eteri shoved it into vials, not seeming to notice the outstretched parts. Nausea swept over him. He should have pressed her harder about the tentacles when that had happened. Those had been inside of her for who knows how long, and he had had a chance to stop it, had caught it happening, and not known enough to realize the danger it presented. He cursed himself - and then Eteri fled, leaving him alone with her sister.

He took a deep breath and focused his gaze on the woman sitting on his counter. She clearly had a far better grasp on tradespeak than her sister did, there was no sign of the hesitation or miscommunications that Eteri suffered from. He leaned to one side slightly, staring at her. For a moment his eyes had flickered red as he studied the bond between the two. Fear, and love, flowed from Eteri towards her sister, while Ayaka seemed concerned and furious - but for her. Damn. Family was confusing, wasn't it?

"I know your sister loves you." That was the first thing he said as he stared at the new cat-girl in his.. life? "She loves you, but doesn't feel like she can compare to you. And she respects you a lot." His hand came up and pressed against his chest, where Eteri had grabbed to pull out his soul to reunite the part she'd mended. "The healed part is because she wanted to show that she could do something for someone else, not just for herself. I didn't ask her to do it, but she did anyway. Made it a surprise for me. A surprise she nearly died trying to do - not because of my soul, but because she apparently wanted to give me flowers as part of the gift. And she ate some. They were.. tiger lilies." His voice took on a bit of a choked edge as he looked in the direction that she had gone. A blue ear was twitching, just in the line of sight from the doorway. "She called for you while she was sick and recovering." Dark eyes flicked back to Ayaka.

"I saved her. It took effort, but she should be recovered now. As for why she's stalking me like this - that, you might know better than I do. She's been doing it for the last three or four days, and won't talk to me. If I walk into a room, she either hides in a corner, or goes outside of it - but stares at me from the doorway or from a window. Once, she was in the rafters and stayed up there for half a day, moving where she could see me if I changed rooms. If I go out, she stalks me, and throws things at me sometimes. And as for those bitches that were spreading false rumors - they were using her poor grasp of Tradespeak against her. Saying she slept with me, and she agreed, because she has literally slept here. That should be dealt with now though, or I am going to poison each and every one of them and drive them into insanity before ending them." His voice was very hard as he spoke, then he shook his head.

Ugh

Ayaka thought to herself as the man before her went into a long tirade of ...welll everything, she didn't need to hear his entire goddamn history with Eteri. Jeez. Ayaka glanced over at the doorway at the mention of tiger lillies. Eteri should have known better. It was unlike her to be that daft. She knew what was poisonous so what had caused such a lapse in judgement? "So its been a few days..." Ayaka murmured thoughtfully. She shifted her gaze back to Nevin and noticed the flicker of his eyes. Her own narrowed. He had done something just then, she didn't know what but he had certainly done fuckin...something.

"I don't need a damn lecture on how she sees me." Ayaka said as she pushed herself off the bench and stalked over toward Nevin. "You shouldn't get attached." Nevin lowered his arm and his body stilled for a moment. Bingo. Something was going on between these two, Ayaka just had to figure out what. "Eteri doesn't have a soul. Do you know what that means?"

"Aside from that it seems to have been causing her some mental issues, no. I would have thought it hindered her ability to feel but it seems like that isn't the case."

The guy had little grasp over things. Not surprising. "You can function mostly normal without a soul, in all honesty it varies from person to person. Some are born without one and it develops over time with their actions. Sorta like a buildup of karma or fuckin' whatever. I'm not sure. I never studied it in detail. Whats the point when I can't work with thet damn things. 'Sides, all the cultures will tell you something different anyway."

Ayaka shifted to the cabinet and picked up a small vial, turning it in her hands. An antidote for a toxin that was common in the area. obvious choice. "Eteri can't stay still much, you gave her a task and she did it. Issue was she was always shifting around. Her emotions were all over the place and she kept slipping in and out of more animalistic tendencies." Ayaka paused, "Case and point, following you around without saying a word. She flipped open the vial and sniffed it, just from that she could tell that it had been brewed well. She was impressed but she'd never admit as such. Ayaka dropped the vial, allowing the contents to splatter across the floor. She reached into her pocket and tossed him the few coins it would have cost.

"Eteri may never have one. It may have been fine if it stayed that way. Yet she's insistent on making one herself. I don't doubt her skill to do so but whatever is inside her may have sway on her actions. One day she may just up and leave you without a word, or she may strangle you in her sleep. Judgng by whatever is inside her - I'd go for the strangling." Ayaka ignored the mixture of shock and annoyance that had etched itself over the mans face.

"Have you two fucked?"

Nevin went red and turned away. Okay, clearly not. He acted almost like he was a virgin. "If my sister hasn't changed throughout the years - I'd say not. Unless you've known her long enough to experience her heat cycle." Ayaka paused, and decided to dumb it down for him. "Ovulation. She gets needy, whiny, and has done quite whatever and whomever she pleased. I'd take a chance that she's acting like that because she isn't used to such feelings outside of that cycle. Course, I'm just throwing a fuckin' guess out there. I'm smart, but I'm not inside her brain."

Ayaka crossed her arms over her chest. "I'll take Eteri away. Let's pretend she never met you. That'd be easier on the both of you."

At Ayaka's last sentence I burst back into the room. I wasn't exactly listening to the conversation...I didn't understand about 90% of it but I did hear that last line. I scrambled as I tripped over only to right myself back up. <"No! don't you dare take me away! I like it here!">

Ayaka grabbed my shoulder and gave me a dark glare. <"Woman, you are three days out of of your cycle, do you really think he's gong to deal with that."> Ayaka gestured over to the man. <"You can't even say the word sex without him getting all funny about it like some 6 year old brat. Hell, he may even be a fuckin' virgin.">

I was fuming, why was she getting involved? Why would she want to bother? I huffed as I folded my arms, turning away from her. <"We kissed, just so you know and it wasn't very virgin-like. He promised he'd stick around and I don't see why he wouldn't.">

Ayakas grip on my shoulder tightened and she leaned in closer. Me, being the obstinate person I am tried my best to avert my gaze but I could feel her eyes on me. Oh man...they were judging me. This wasn't good. This was.. ah poop I gotta look at her. I carefully shifted my gaze back to her. <"Eteri...."> She began, ahh! Why did she have to use such a condescending tone. I looked over at her, lips pressed into a thin pout. "<You should be focusing on getting that thing outside of you. Not on some flippant romance. What, first it was that Ven character - now this guy? Who was before Ven? Whatever happened to Draven? Or Derick? Or Elly? Were they all like Nevin too? Or were you just attaching yourself to the first person to show you food and a warm place to sleep?">

I felt an anger boil up inside of me... I had been angry before but this was different. This felt right. I grit my teeth and pushed my sisters hands off my shoulder before shoving her to the ground..hard I stood over her practically spitting. It burned inside me and this..this felt good. It felt right. <"YOU have no control over me anymore. YOU keep your fuckin' dainty hands out of my fucking life or I will RIP them off!"> Yes...ripping them off...that sounded good.

Ayaka stared up at me, her eyes wide in..fear? Yes. It was fear. Good. GOOD she should fear me. Everyone should. This felt great. I took another step forward raising an arm to swipe at her, but before I could.... I felt a strong grip around my wrist.

...

wait?

I blinked and turned to see Nevin whose dark eyes were laced with concern. "Eteri, stop." And just like that. I did. I lowered my hand and shuffled a few steps away. I didn't look at my sister as she picked herself up off the floor and dusted herself off.

"That is what I was talking about." Ayaka said, her voice strained. "I can barely deal with Eteri's shit as it is. Your shop reopens at 9 right? I'll return then to talk shop, and for god fuckin sakes Eteri. Get your blue haired face outta here when I do."

I refused to look at her, even as she lightly padded away from the scene and I heard the chimes of the door as it opened then closed. Nevin and I...we were alone again. I wrung the button of Nevin's oversized shirt I was wearing in my hands. Ah.. alone. Yes. I just had to...

One step back..

Two steps back....

Nevin didn't know what Ayaka had said to her sister - he needed to look into learning this language that the two of them were speaking. Both women had shot looks in his direction as they spoke, Ayaka clearly unimpressed, and Eteri had focused on his lips for a moment. Had she just told her sister that they had - why did Eteri look so furious? Nevin began moving before he knew what was going on, reacting to the suddenly violent expression on the blue-haired woman's face.

It was an expression of hatred, vile and fierce. A delicate hand rose up, fingers curled up to bare their claws, and Nevin could see she intended to attack her sister. This was wrong, very very wrong, and that expression was completely at odds with how she felt towards her sister. Nevin's hand shot out, catching the wrist, and his soft command made the girl freeze. Ayaka seized this opportunity to spit something out about not being able to handle Eteri as it was, then fled. Nevin watched her go,
and wondered for a minute if he would even bother unlocking the door for the woman when she came back. He shook his head slowly and shifted his gaze, catching the fact that Eteri was trying to slink away.

A single stride ate the distance between them, and he took her shoulder gently in one hand, forcing her to stop and look at him. "Eteri. Please stop avoiding me." For the first time that he had seen, a blush crept up her cheeks, and she latched onto his jacket, her fingers curling around the edge as she stepped up against him. She burrowed her head against his chest and Nevin felt her shoulder shake a little in his hand.

"Eteri sorry. Eteri want to be around Nevin. Don't make Eteri go because angry?" Her voice was muffled by his chest, and it took Nevin a moment to figure out what she had said. He rested his hand on the back of her head, stroking her hair as he shook his head above hers.

"I told you I was staying and that you were welcome to. Meeting your sister has not changed that offer. And I'm not about to forget about you." And that darkness that was hiding inside of her - well. He could deal with that if it became an issue.

Ayaka infuriated me, but she may have been right... I was close to my cycle, what if all of... I shifted my head up to peek at Nevin. What if all of this was just a byproduct of that? What if she was right and I would just wander away again? I lowered my head once more and closed my eyes. This was... a tricky situation, one that I wasn't used to and didn't know how to deal with it.

"Nevin... Eteri need talk..."

"Yes?" He asked.

...Oh no. I wasn't good at talking or anything like this. How do I even start? "I uh...in three days Eteri goes to this...thing...like...it is..." I huffed, sighed, then just spat it all out at once. "In 3 days Eteri go on heat. It is cycle it make Eteri go all...it make Eteri get whiny and needy but needy for lots of things like cuddles and food and attention and physical contact and the sexes and sometimes Eteri not herself when like that."

"So. In three days, you're not going to want to leave the bedroom? And do you want that to be with me, or are you afraid of it to be with me? Because, if it is the former.... well. I don't see the offer of being here for you changing in the next three days, honey."

I didn't quite understand his words. Was he going to lock me up in his room? That..that sounded like it might work. If I was locked up I couldn't cause any issues. "That work maybe...if Eteri locked up...Eteri can not do the trouble?" I contemplated it, but a word in his sentence confused me more than the rest. "What is the honey? I not honey?" I asked.

Nevin paused, his eyebrows raised as he thought back over what she had said, and what he had said. Then he let out a soft laugh and shook his head slowly. "The only reason I would lock you in the bedroom was if I was in there as well, Eteri." He coughed, once. "In other words, I'll give you what you need during that time." He raised one eyebrow at her, curious if that was blunt enough for her. Or if he would need to flat out say that he was fine with pinning her down on the bed for a few days, stopping only for breaks for food and water. He fought down the slight blush at the mental image of Eteri writhing beneath him came into his mind, and instead focused on what she had asked.

He blinked, he hadn't realized he had been slipping the term of endearment into casual conversation. He shrugged and pressed his lips against hers for a moment, then leaned back and grinned. "I don't know, I think you're pretty sweet." There was a heartbeat of silence, and she blushed harder.

"E-Eteri...sweet?" She squeaked. Nevin just laughed before kissing her again, and the squeaking sound turned into a soft purr of pleasure that vibrated against his mouth. Before they could get too worked up and distracted, he straightened up again,
relishing the slightly dazed look in the blue-haired woman's eyes. He let go of her shoulder and flicked her nose.

"But to actually answer your question, it's a term of endearment. A nickname given from affection, liking someone. As I happen to like you." He brushed his finger against her lips for a moment, then coughed and took a step back.

"And. In case you're afraid that this is because of your cycle or something like that, remember that you've been acting jealous since we really kissed and that was three days ago. Do you normally start feeling your cycle get to you so early?" It was unlikely, he thought, because normally something being in a cycle meant it only happened in that time - hence the name. "And as well as that - I certainly want you to stay even after the cycle passes."

I huffed, slightly annoyed he had pulled away. He caught sight of my annoyed look and laughed. He asked if it was normal for me to have such... feelings before my cycle and I had to think. No... No it wasn't, I couldn't recall a time I was even vaguely interested in being physical with someone outside of it. I never saw the reason to, at least not until recently. Ayaka was right, I was quite childish with these things. It never once occurred to me that people would do it purely for enjoyment and not to procreate. I wasn't that stupid at least... I always ensured that I wouldn't be carrying around a baby 9 months later. Could you imagine? A blue haired cat lady running around with a child? Thayne forbid such a sight.

"Eteri never thought sex as pleasure." I admitted. "Just as means to end." I followed his gaze as it shifted to the cupboard. He must have thought about one of the things inside it because his discussion changed.

"People do...crazy things for pleasure. Still." His eyes wandered back to me and he smiled. "I'm glad it seems that this has nothing to do with your cycle." He went to approach me and his hand lifted as though to wrap an arm around my waist but he hesitated. I wasn't sure why. Was it because it still bothered him?

"So...if is pleasurable..." I asked. "Is why you not like Eteri when less clothes?"

"W-what?" He stammered. "No...it's not that I don't like it ...Crimson its..." His eyes glanced over my body, and I was painfully aware of the places they lingered. "You seem so innocent, and it drives me crazy. You don't seem to know what you're doing half the time is practically inviting me to..." He cleared his throat and turned away.

"Ah. Drinks. Let's have some drinks."

"Oh... Okay..." I said as I followed him into the kitchen. Confused. He seemed....happier? That was good. Right?

Nevin took out two glasses from a cabinet and set them down on the table, and then found one of the bottles of alcohol he kept. He didn't care too much about what kind it was, just that it was alcoholic and would clear his mind and burn his throat. He poured a shot into one glass and threw it back, as Eteri watched him with a tilted head. He winced slightly as it burned going down his throat, then poured more to sip slowly as he sat down. He folded one leg across the other knee and stared at the girl for a long few minutes.

"So, yes. It's not that I dislike it when you wear less clothes. If anything, I like it a bit too much. It's tied to sex as more than just reproduction, and instead for pleasure." He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, not sure how to handle this. The fact that she had not considered it before - he paused and tilted his head to the side, watching her closely.

"You said never considered - meaning you didn't before. Has that changed?" If it had, and if she accepted that, then that would be damn good proof that what she was feeling wasn't tied to her cycle. "And, something else to think about. If your sister told some people to leave you and forget about you, or warned them about not being able to handle you, would you have resisted her like that?" It had been a little unnerving to see Eteri fly into rage like that. He still didn't know what Ayaka had said at that point, but it had obviously gotten to the blue-haired girl. Eteri slowly shook her head as she moved forward, perching herself on his lap once more. Nevin took a moment, resting his chin on top of her head before he spoke again.

"You know, having you throw stones at me in the street was a little uncomfortable."

I huffed. "You deserve them!" I said. "Eteri try get your attention. You not give."

He laughed and I felt one of his hands wrap around my waist to steady myself so I wouldn't go toppling backwards. His other hand fixed himself a second shot of alcohol. "It's a little hard to give you attention when you're stalking me in the streets and hide whenever I try to approach you."

"No but! You didn't pay attention!" I whined. He wasn't getting it. I was following him around to watch him and because I wanted his attention and pats, but he didn't give them to me...ok...so...I did move away whenever he tried. I suppose, in the smallest teeniest and tiniest of senses..that would have been hard to convey. "Won't do that no more." I said as I pressed my face into his shirt. "Like too much." I inhaled deeply and my tail flicked side to side, I felt content. "Smell too good." There it was again. That strange feeling. I gripped tighter at him, nails digging into his skin. "Smell real good."

"A-ah.. so those questions..." Nevin stammered as he attempted to shift himself underneath me.

"Oh." I blinked and the feeling had passed. "No. Never consider before." I stared intently at him, and I had to admit that I had considered it now. "Yes. Change little."

I didn't like what he was saying next. It left a pit of unease in my stomach. "Ayaka...told you to leave Eteri?" I asked. Nevin fell silent and it made me even more uneasy. I wriggled in his lap only to have his grip tighten on me. He pressed his head into the crook of my neck.

"I'm not going anywhere."

My body rumbled in a purr. "Feel nice..." I murmured. "I drink too?"

"Well, I'm glad you like it here with me. Though I'm not sure why you say I smell good...Maybe it's the blood? I don't know." Her nails dug in, and he inhaled a bit at the sharp pricks. Then he chuckled and shook his head at her admittance that something had changed, which was a bit reassuring. He hadn't actually looked at the bond between the two of them - he was hesitant to find out how she felt like that, it felt a bit...cheap? So hearing her put words to it meant that she had actually thought about it and accepted the fact that something had happened. Which made a nice warm feeling buzz in the pit of his stomach.

The quaver of fear in her voice when she asked if Ayaka had told him to leave made that warm feeling turn into a solid lump of cold in his guts. It seemed like this wouldn't have been the first time Ayaka chased someone away from her sister - or rather, tried to chase someone away, because Nevin doubted severely that the brown-haired cat girl could do anything that could convince him to leave. So instead he shook his head and buried his face in the crook of her neck, and reassured her that he wasn't going anywhere. She purred against him, her tail flicking happily - and asked for a drink.

Nevin nipped the side of her neck before pulling away - he couldn't resist it, her skin was so soft and delicate, just ready for - well. He pushed that thought down and instead reached out, moving his arms around her as he poured her a glass of the alcohol, and held it for her to take. He was slightly curious to see how she handled booze, he spent enough of his time drinking it that he was fairly sure someone with him needed to at least not hate the thought of it. One delicate hand took the cup, and she tried to copy his first drink, dumping it all in her mouth and swallowing it at once. Nevin watched as she spluttered, her tail shooting out behind her as it burned her mouth and tongue. She stuck it out, hissing, and shoved the cup into his chest. He took it with a laugh and set it back down on the table. At least she had tried it.

"Well. If your sister is intending to come back, why don't you just stay in ou-my bed? She won't see you, and you don't have to even think about leaving the house if you don't want to."

"Nother!" I hissed. I didn't like the taste, I didn't like the burning in my stomach but I didn't want to fall behind.

"Are you sure that's a good ide-"

"Nother! I demanded.

Nevin relented which made me feel better about myself. Like I had succeeded in some unseen victory. He poured me another, this time smaller drink and I downed it all at once again. Bleh. How did he like this stuff? "Eteri like sweet alcohol." I admitted. "Or spicy sweet. Got to be both not just spice." I reiterated with a nod of my head as I tried to twist my body to set the glass down, again shifting in his lap which caused cute little mutterings and sighs and groans to come form Nevin. I grinned wide as I turned back to face him. "You knowing...those sounds make me want to -" I paused as I shifted myself again, he grabbed my waist to stop me. "IS cute!" I said with flushed cheeks. "How you act with this!"

"I am not cute. I am doing my best not to pin you down and make you make them. Stop wriggling!"

I grinned and continued, "Yes you is!" I wriggled again till his grip around my waist tightened and his fingers dug into my skin. "Don't start things you can't finish." He jested. I snorted and placed my forehead against his. I didn't exactly understand what he meant but it sounded both scary and fun. "Eteri like this." I said, rubbing my head back and forth.

"And nothing Ayaka will do or say will take this away." He confirmed as he reached out to cup his and over my cheek.

The subject shifted to that of my sister and my face soured, I pulled away. "Will hide in bed." I said affirmatively. "Not sneak near, she know." I pointed to my eyes then my ears. "She real good at senses."

Nevn's eyes shifted to my ears, and the small holes that adorned them. He reached out and gently rubbed them between his thumb and forefinger. "Why do you have holes in your ears?"

I stiffened. "I uh...was nailed to floor. By ears and Tail." I lifted up my tail showing him that the very end of it had a slight kink to it. Normally it was not noticeable till I pointed it out, since it was almost constantly in motion. "By girl think name Crimson? Red? Skeelet?" I couldn't remember her name...just her dark and unnerving eyes. "Had me pull out one last pure bit of soul from her. Now all bad."

Nevin fell silent and his face darkened. "She hurt you?"

I nodded. "Mmhmm. But let Eteri go." I gave him a jovial pat on the head. "Shh, shh, is ok."

It took a sizable effort of will for Nevin not to take Eteri to the bedroom right the hell then as she wriggled on his lap and taunted him about being cute. It was clear that the little kitten needed to be shown that he was not 'cute'. As she nuzzled against chest, affirming that she liked this Nevin smiled and began rubbing her back. His hand brushed against her tail, and with a grin he started scratching her gently with his fingertips just above the spot where her tail met her body. She stiffened against him, mewling and arching her chest against his as her eyes fluttered rapidly. She dropped her head against his shoulder and weakly squirmed before he relented, leaving her shivering against him for a moment before he resumed the conversation.

He reaffirmed that Ayaka would not be able to force her away, and he saw Eteri's face drop into an unhappy expression. The catgirl clearly did not like being reminded of her sister, and he couldn't really blame her. If it wasn't for the fact that Ayaka had already made it clear that she would be coming back, tonight, Nevin would have ignored thoughts about the girl for the rest of the day. As it was, he had to shoulder the unpleasant burden of dealing with that situation. Hopefully, it wouldn't actually be so bad.

And then she explained that she had been pinned to the floor and tortured into ripping a soul from someone and Nevin's eyes turned cold and furious. "Scarlet?" There was a moment of thought from Eteri, and then she nodded. Tentative fingertips stroked her ears around the holes, and then brushed along her tail, feeling the kink in her tail from that.. that.. He swallowed, trying to fight the rising rage. He knew full well how twisted that particular person was, her blood and magic screamed and were constantly at war with itself. Sadly, the thought that she would torture someone like Eteri, who probably didn't even understand what was going on fully, was nauseating.

Some of his emotions must have shown on his face, because Eteri patted him on the head, trying to comfort him. It was a little comical, her trying to comfort him when he was upset over the fact that [i]she/[i] had been hurt. It was stupid, because he hadn't even known her when this happened. But even so, he knew that any future dealings with Scarlet - who had made it clear that she did want more experiments done - would be far tenser. He stood up abruptly, wrapping his arms around Eteri's waist and holding her up against him as he started walking. The girl let out a tiny squeak of surprise and wrapped her legs around him, desperately clinging on.

"Wha-Nevin where go! Put down!" He just smiled at her and carried her back towards the bedroom.

Whoa whoa whoa

Why was he carrying me to his bedroom!? Why did he have that devilish smirk on his features?

His words echoed in my mind 'Don't start something you can't finish'

Oh my gosh! Oh Oh! Was he actually...was he planning on...having sex with me?? What? NOW!? Doesn't he know my sister would smell that? Doesn't he know that I - I ... oh man..My cheeks went bright red. Was this what he kept on hinting to? I mean I knew it was but I just didn't pin Nevin to be that bold. He always seemed like the kind of 'I'm going to avoid sex because I'm a chaste looser' sort of guy. Which is why it sorta surprised me when he'd move in to grip me tighter or kiss me...

...He was a good kisser...who taught him that? (Somewhere, on Althanas, a fauns ears twitched and she screamed out 'You're Welcome')

He kicked open the door to his room and set me on the bed. Oh. Oh boy here we go. My heart thumped hard against my chest as I looked up at him. Did I want this? Yes. Yes my body screamed at me but I wasn't so sure - like, he just had this whole big how do you do about sex being more intimate and well just more than a means to a screaming, crying, and pooping end.

Does this mean he felt something for me?

What did I feel for him?

He was leaning in closer now.

Closer..

Closer

I shut my eyes and held my breath with slightly parted lips. THen... THen...boop. A small kiss on my forehead.

"I need to get things ready and do some work in my shop before your sister comes back. Will you be ok here?"


Oh.

I exhaled.

Well that wasn't what I was expecting.

"Y-Yeh.." I squeaked. "Is fine."

Large, trusting eyes staring up at him as he set her down on the bed, and Nevin had to take a very long, deep breath. It woudl be so very easy to push her dress up and out of the way, and do his absolute best to leave her a twitching mess on the bed. It would give him a strange sense of vindictive satisfaction to meet Ayaka again with the scent of Eteri clinging to him like a healthy musk. She closed her eyes and her mouth parted, her tiny pink tongue darting out to wet her lips, and Nevin was so sorely tempted to give in and finally satisfy the hunger for her form that had been burning in him for weeks now. To finally stop retreating to the girl's of the Golden Lily and take her instead.

But - but that would be stupid. Stupid and counter productive. Ayaka had warned him that Eteri was only interested in him because of the proximity to her next cycle. If he went to her smelling like her sister - and she was nekojin, she would probably be able smell it with extreme ease - that would only reinforce her decision. So as much as he hated to not give in and do what they both clearly wanted, when he leaned in, he kissed her forehead instead of her lips. His body shuddered as he felt her so close, her body beneath him, and it took iron discipline not to give in. But he leaned back and smiled, instead, the expression a bit tense as he controlled himself. She would stay here, safe and away so she wouldn't aggravate her fear of her sister.

The disappointment in her eyes hurt, and he reached down and squeezed her hand to reassure her. It seemed he wasn't the only one who had started thinking something was about to happen there.

"I'll be back. I promise." She nodded, her ears and tail drooping as he forced himself to walk away. But he did it, walking away from her despite wanting nothing more than to pin her down and show her that sex was more than just to reproduce.
But instead he walked into the front of the shop, and began cleaning up the mess that Ayaka had made, then from there restocked the shelves. It would be interesting to see what Ayaka wanted Eteri gone for.

A few hours had passed, and in that time Ayaka had bitch slapped, quite literally several different women. She found a quiet place, and with paper and quill wrote out a few notes on what she wanted to say and how to properly express it. She was callous and cold, but she wasn't an idiot. The Alchemist reacted negatively to her harsh demeanour and if it weren't for the involvement of her sister. Ayaka would have moved on by now. This was a delicate matter. Ayaka had seen Eteri become enamoured with people before only to have them mess with her or get bored with her.

The fact that she wasn't still galavanting around with Venex was concerning enough. Granted, the two seemed to share some sort of connection. But it was clear it was never more than friendship. Despite that Ayaka didn't want another Elly. Ayaka had been so infatuated with the other girl it was almost sickening. She'd follow her around and throw rocks at her when she didn't pay too much attention to Eteri... and it seemed like the same thing was happening with Nevin.

It took months for Eteri to recouperate from Elly.

And Ayaka wasn't going to have that happen again. The buxom woman sighed as she glanced at the time. It was almost 9. Ayaka pushed herself out of the chair and collected her papers. She dropped a few coins on the shop counter before exiting. With the papers bundled up under her right arm Ayaka headed toward Nevin's little potions shop.

She paused at the door. The lights were on, good. He opened on time for once. Ayaka pushed the door open to see the tall man wiping down the counter with a cloth. He stared at her, wary, before greeting her in a strained voice. "Welcome, how may I help you today?"

Ayaka smirked. He was gonna play this card? "Oh noble Alchemist. I'm looking for a potion one that gets rid of any sexual gratificaton from a nosy man who can't keep his crooked nose out of other peoples business. Got anything like that?" His face soured and Ayaka laughed as he approached the counter.

"Got a couple chairs? This may take a while."

Ayaka watched as he disappeared into the back room, her ears flicked side to side. She couldn't hear the pitter patter of a sneaky sister. She could smell her, but the entire place reeked of Eteri's presence. It was almost as though she had been rubbing herself up and down every damn nook and cranny.

Nevin returned with a second stool for Ayaka. She took it, sat down and then set down the paperwork she had drawn up.

"I'm here to explain to you why getting close to my sister right now is a very bad thing."

"I dont think you have a right to decide that." He muttered.

I nodded. He was right. Gusty. "Yes..." I muttered. "That is true, despite how I appear, I do care for my dumb brat of a sister. Here, look." I showed him a series of illustrations. "Look, see this. This is Eteri." Ayaka said as she pointed to the first, an empty looking person. "She tried to fill herself with all sorts of things..." Ayaka began scribbling shapes inside the outline. Fish, trinkets, and what could only be described as Nevins crudely drawn face. "Thing is... they all come and go, which leave her empty again. Can you imagine how it'd feel to walk around with nothing inside of you?" Ayaka rose her eyes to meet him.

"I.... yes, I can. It hasn't happened recently to me - but I am a blood mage, Ayaka. I have made friends, but they find that out and disappear. I gave up at one point, and didn't even think to try again. Then someone saw my soul and asked about it, and I started to open up again. I'm not going to force her to stay with me, but I'm also not going to walk away from her either. And if she wants to stay here, I am perfectly fine with that."

Ayaka grumbled. Why did people always go on about their own little problems. She didn't care if the kid crawled out from the sewers being raised by rats. His words were endearing, if not predictable. God, at least he wasn't out just to fuck her.

"She's empty. It's probably why she wanders around she has nothing to ground her. Nothing to keep her still. Her personality shifts at times, but usually remains annoyingly, cheerfully chaotically carefree."

Ayaka sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger. "This romance...whatever that is going on between you two... If that were the case, I'd almost drop it. Eteri is a big girl. She can do what she wants but I've seen her behave this way once before and it did not end well for her."

Ayaka turned the page and a red smear sat in the centre of it, along with notes and calculations. "I'm not sure what is inside of her, but its bad news. It'd be hard enough dealing with such an infectious disease of a thing with a soul. Eteri has none... " Ayaka drew the outline of a body outside the red smear. "Think about it, it doesn't need to pry for control over her personality. There is nothing there to ground it in the first place. If left unchecked what do you think something like that would do to a person?"

Ayaka handed him the notes, allowing Nevin to draw his own conclusions. "How long do you think it'd be - before it eats away at the psyche of a person, so much so that they cease to exist? What could you, a Blood Mage possibly hope to achieve. You can't see that thing the way we do. It's bad news. I'd almost go as far as to say its a Forgotten ONe, if the notion wasn't so completely and utterly absurd."

Nevin stared for a long, long time at those notes, reading through them. Ayaka had done her best to make them easy for someone who had no grounding in what she or the other nekojin of their clan could do. While her drawings were a bit childish, the actual written notes were of a high quality with a steady hand. He folded the papers up and set them on the table in front of him, drumming his fingertips against them as he thought. Ayaka seemed to be a bit angry with how long he was taking to respond, but he found that he didn't really care about whether or not she got pissy right now. No, responding to her properly was better than responding quickly. He had responses to her, that was for sure,
but the problem was organizing them, when they were things he wasn't even sure of himself. But there were things he did know, things that had already been proven to him that he could rely upon, as well as things that Ayaka had already said herself. He had almost choked when she mentioned thinking that the red mass inside of Eteri was a Forgotten One, but rejected the idea as absurd. He had finally put together what had happened and just why Eteri's 'tentacles' were so eager to be touching him, and it wasn't really a good thing.

Finally he took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. When he opened his eyes to look at her, they were glowing with an inner red light, brightening them up and making them shine with a brilliant ruby red hue. "I never said a Blood Mage was all I am, Ayaka. But I do know that stuff inside of her. I cannot see it the way you can, that is true. But I am well aware of its presence. She's cut herself, and I can feel it scraping against her magic, trying to find a foothold. Somehow, it hasn't, but I could not tell you for how long that is going to be the case. But, I can see when it affects her more - because while I cannot see her soul, I can see her Red String of Fate. The one connecting to me is.... sturdy, at least the one that is from Eteri herself. Even empty, she has enough of a presence to anchor a String. The thing inside of her, well, that is much weaker, and the emotions that run through that connection to me are far darker in nature." He took a deep breath and shook his head before leaning forward, folding his hands together and staring at Ayaka.

"You said before that sometimes the empty ones have managed to grow their own soul. Do you know how that is done?" He had a thought. There were those who claimed that the soul, tied to life as it was, was also tied to blood. And that was not even considering the fact that his powers came from the Great Flow of Crimson, which he was seriously beginning to question as to its nature. But, if he could help Eteri in any way, if he could give her enough to start building her own, personal soul, that could balance out and eventually overcome the remnants inside of her. His magic had already beaten back Pode's infestation inside of himself, swallowing it up and overwhelming it - even if he had not told Eteri what had happened to him in the forest. Or told her what exactly he was. That was.... a conversation that needed to happen, he thought.

"Ah, so that was his skill... Ayaka leaned forward now mildly interested in the man. "So you see bonds between people? Pray tell out ours show, if any at all." Her lgiht brown ears twitched. "Describe what good and bad ones are." My amused smile faded "The fact there is a link between that thing inside her and you at all is cause for alarm." She muttered under her breath. Ayaka tapped a clawed finger against the table.

"Between us, right now?" His eyes slide downwards. "You're interested in me...oh! More so now." Ayaka raised an eyebrow, so it shifted that quickly? "You're wary of me, not fear but the caution is there. Bonds are thicker the closer someone is to the other person, emotionally. Happy, strong emotions are brighter. And even the dark emotions from that bit leaning towards possessiveness."

"I see...so that thing inside of her is possessive of you? Why?"

Nevin averted his gaze. "I...can't go into that right now, but it may be because parts of my soul have something in common with it."

Ayaka rolled her eyes. "Fan-fucking-tastic. So not only do the two of you have a fuckin' hard on for each other but that writhing mess in her wants to get down and freaky with you too?" Ayaka shook her head. "That sounds like a poorly written adult fantasy if you ask me."

Ayaka huffed. With any luck whatever dark thing inside her sister would just off the man and everything would be easy. Done. Kaput. Nevin seemed very interested in helping my sister. Admirable, but what the fuck did he know? "Tch." I wasn't happy. When was I ever though?

It was bad enough Tobias was pulling her along on a figurative chain, now this shit thought he could do the same to her sister? Nope. Nuh-uh.

"As I said I never really researched it. Eteri is far more knowledgeable on that, but she may not be able to explain it in your primitive language." He gave me a disgrunted look. "What? It's true. Why do you think its nicknamed the common tongue?" I shrugged. "I ain't sure if you can help her. I'll give you a condition."

"Condition?"

"A month. I got my own shit to do, so I am going to go do that and come back. If I return and don't see any improvement in a month. I'll take her away. Forcefully if I have to. We can't let whatever is in her fuck her up. I'd rather her die than have that happen."

"Well then. I'll just have to make sure that there's progress, because I don't want her going anywhere unless she wants to." Nevin folded his hands on the table. He understood though, even if he despised the idea of the ultimatum that was being issued. Who knows how long Eteri had been suffering with that festering red mass inside of her? He refused to let that stay any longer than it had to. So he had a month for there to be improvement? He'd do his damndest to mitigate it or get rid of it.

The damn thing had molested him once already, and his tendrils had been able to interact with its tentacles. If he had to, he would just pin Eteri down and wrestle the damn things out and drag them to a temple, kicking and screaming or whatever it was corrupt soul bits did. Or - he already had some of that magic inside of him, being subsumed by his magic and his nature. If he had to, he would take it himself and drag it in his own soul to somewhere it could be dealt with. He knew people,
who had a somewhat direct line to some deities. They would be able to deal with the shattered remnants of a Forgotten One. If he couldn't find another way, that was.

"So. The topic of your sister - one month, and improvement. A rather loose term, but I will do everything I can to see her safe. You said you wanted to talk alchemy - do you still wish to do so, or has the other focus of conversation fouled the mood?" His head tilted to one side as he stared at her. Talking about her sister seemed to calm Ayaka down. It seemed that despite her brash nature, her affection for her sibling was genuine. Good.

"Sometimes..." Ayaka said thoughtfully. "We can't have what we want. What we want is bad for us. I want to down several glasses of firewhiskey, but we can't exactly have that now can we?"

"Are.. you comparing me to getting drunk?"

Ayaka smirked. "Yes." She said "I am. You're just as bad."

"How is that? I'm not intoxicating to be around."

The crude catwoman brushed his comment off. "Right, right. Tell that to my sister. You're obviously intoxicating to her. No idea why. Quite frankly... she can do better..."

Nevin finally agreed to Ayaka's deal. She felt satisfied, assuming that he wouldn't be up to the task. It was bad to assume that her younger sister would only deteriorate around the man but if that were the case Ayaka would take her away and try to get rid of whatever was inside her. Failing that. Eteri would...Eteri would need to die. "Done deal. You said you were a blood alchemist right? So you mix potions with peoples blood?"

Ayaka had heard of it, but never seen it in practice and could only hazard a guess to what sort of things he'd be able to do with such things. "I'd assume whatever you make is unique to the blood you use. Does it take on the properties of the donor? Or do you cater poisons or healing salves for that particular persons inhibitions?"

"Something like that. I can make potions that temporarily give you the abilities of the donor. It varies."

"And if they have no inherent abilities, what then?"

"Abilities are more than just magical. Perhaps you're renowned for your strength, or for your speed, or your intellect. Or if you're a waste of space, your bitchiness, or just your straight life force. There is always some quality of an individual that can be brought to the fore and exemplified. My magic helps me know what that is. But, I can also create potions targeted to a specific person, if I need to, as you guessed. A tailor made medicine, dosed with a few drops of a person's blood, would be more effective than a general one off the counters or shelves." Nevin shrugged slightly, glossing over the barb he'd dug in there for her sake.

"I also create standard medicines and candies, as well as doing research into more esoteric and rare plants and animals for use in alchemy. I travel when I'm not actively manning this store, and my apprentice oversees the store in Stonevale when she can. There, I dealt with the issue miner's get from breathing too much rock dust in the tunnels, where their lungs have trouble getting enough oxygen into the systems. I cam here to Radasanth to force myself to develop different skills in terms of alchemy. Or rather, to hone what I had." I shrugged and looked around the store. It wasn't much, but this place was mine. Then he turned his gaze to her and raised an eyebrow.

"But then, I'm not the only alchemist here. Eteri told me you were skilled yourself - what's your focus in?" Talk with her, make nice, and keep thing from getting too tense. He would make an effort to be polite, for Eteri's sake here if for nothing else. The blue-haired cat girl really did care for her sister, and while Ayaka clearly just thought of him as another tumbleweed in her sister's life, Nevin intended to be a bit more of a permanent fixture than that. So being on at least half decent speaking terms with Ayaka was somewhat necessary. Even if she did seem to go out of her way to be crude.

There was some small talk - Ayaka had mellowed, but only a little, as they discussed Alchemy. She tried to get Nevin to share some of his private recipes but he just smiled and shook his head. In retaliation she had huffed and refused to look at him, touting how everyone else had realized how great it was that she was interested in her knowing their trade. He had simply said he already had an apprentice he was training, and that they were learning his secrets, not someone else.

Ayaka had about enough at this point. She stood in a huff. "Fine." She muttered. "We're done here." She tossed him a few gold coins for the potions she had been given, a poison and an antidote. "Don't get your lil panties in a twist. I'll test this in the confines of my own home." She mused at his questioning look. Ayaka had...after all told the man she had planned to drink it herself as that was the best way to figure out potency and how to mimic it.

Nevin...wasn't too happy about the idea of her mimicking his potions but be damned. Ayaka didn't give two shits. "It'd help if next time I come back you got somethin' that helps with the fuckin' cold. Gotta go to Salvar soon...Ugh...fuck that place. Who the fuck even thinks its a good idea to set up there? Oh look!" She threw her hands up in exasperation, still complaining as she headed to the shops exit.

"A frozen fuckin' wasteland, lets set up camp here. its Perrrfect"

The door slammed closed behind her, and she was still complaining loudly even as she walked out of earshot.

One month....



In one month she would return to check in on her sister and if Eteri hadn't made any sort of recovery Ayaka would whisk her away and take her to Tobias. Eteri wouldn't have a choice. That thing needed to be purged, or purified or both. Hell, Ayaka may just have to take a long ass journey and throw her little sister into a burning volcano.

What the hill is with all these cat people ....
Workshop rewards

Rewards:

Ayaka receives:
565 EXP
80 Gold

Nevin receives:
1375 EXP
125 Gold

Eteri receives:
670 EXP
80 Gold

Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea.

Robert A. Heinlein

So, I love you because the entire universe conspired to help me find you.

Paulo Coelho

all rewards have been added.