Catgirl Roommate Has Lovecraftian Tentacles!? (Closed)

There was an odd tugging, prodding, and sliding feeling across Nevin's skin as he slowly brought himself awake. There was also a weight pressing in to one side of his body, pinning his left arm down against the bed beneath him. It took a few moments for his brain to start up enough for him to realize part of what was going on here. Slowly he rolled his head to look to the left and looked down, and sure enough there was a set of blue-furred ears twitching slightly, on top of a mussed up head of blue hair. Once again, Eteri had decided to leave her own little nest that she had built up in the partitioned section of the room and made her way over to his bed, cuddling against him in the night. This was not the first time this had happened, in the few times the cat girl had visited Nevin had learned that she apparently quite liked to cuddle against him while he was asleep.

The things that had emerged from his ....friend? Friend was the right word, yes - those were new. They looked almost like ghostly versions of his own thread tendrils, save for the facts that they were a darker red, had a strange, ethereal almost see through quality to them and had sparks of black rolling across them. They were almost impossible to see in the dark of his tiny bedroom - and only the light of the moon peeking through the window let him see them at all. They were tracing across his body, almost caressing him - and that was a very weird sensation - and leaving trails of those black sparks behind for a moment. The truly weird part was the fact that some of his own threads had slid forth from his skin and were coiled together in a tendril, and one of the tentacles emerging from Eteri had twined around it. Nevin was still getting used to the fact that he could feel with his threads, so this was a decidedly weird sensation that he had no clue what to make of.

Well. Aside from the panic that gripped him for a moment at the fact that there was something wrong with Eteri. She had never mentioned tentacles before so this was something she may not know about herself. An almost scream was strangled on his lips when he realized that Eteri didn't seem to be in any pain from her .... extrusions, and was instead purring contentedly into his side. Well. This was... problematic. One of the tentacles slid up to coil around his neck, and Nevin decided that this needed to stop. Like, now.

"Eteri - Eteri, I need you to wake up. Eteri, come on." Nevin tried to move his arm underneath her, ignoring the soft sensations pressing into his arm and side as he did so. The tentacles roaming across his body were far more important at the moment.

"Mmmrrrph...." I mumbled, still asleep. I faintly heard one of the fish call my name. Oh yeh... I was chasing fish in my dreams, they were as big as me, and ran on their tiny little tail fins, but I was quicker than that. I groaned and opened my mouth out wide to bite into one of them (and in the process, ended up gently gnawing on one of Nevin's arms)

"Eteri!" The fish cried out. "Eteri I need you to wake up! Come on!"

Now...that was a very weird thing for a fish to say I let go of it, since it'd probably be harder for it to try and talk as I was eating it. <"Look Mister, a girls gotta eat to live and its the circle of life. If you weren't so delicious I'd let you go - but I'm hungry, and you're a fish sooo...."

Before we could finish our tit-for-tat however, the world around me shook and crumbled away, my dream disappeared as I slowly opened my eyes. Gingerly rubbing them. "MMmm?" I lifted my face away from Nevin. Barely noticing the wet patch of drool that sat where I was resting my head. "What is?" I asked before yawning and opening my mouth wide. I arched my back. "Is morning?" I asked, slowly blinking.

No...wait. It was still dark. I furrowed my brows in confusion. Why did Nevin have his arms wrapped around me, did he shake me awake? In the middle of the night? I grumpily pushed him away. Then just for god measure continued to kick at him till he was forced off the bed. "Mah bed now." I said to him as I poked my tongue out. "You fault for waking! Why wake Eteri! It night! Night for sleep."

I held out three fingers before him, forgetting that he probably couldn't see in the dark as well as I could. "Morning for sleep naps. Afternoon nap. Night sleeps. No wake Eteri!" I chastised.

"Eteri!" Nevin said exasperated as he pushed himself up off the floor. "Are you ok?"

"mmm?"

He seemed to be staring at me, or around me. I shifted my gaze- but saw nothing. "Am fine?"

I pointed to him, seeing the tiny needle protrusions from his body. Not only that, but a big...bloody...one, it looked like a bunch of little ones wanted to have a super hugging contest but then span around waaay too fast and ended up getting put into a giant pencil sharpener. I wrinkled my nose. "What that?"

I carefully peered off the bed, he was bleeding? Did he get stabbed by this thing? My eyes darted to his chest. No...it looked like it was coming from him. I hadn't seen anything like it. "Why bleeding?" I asked, becoming more and more awake as the seconds ticked by.


Wait...was that a weapon?

My curiosity and outstretched hand suddenly pulled back and away. "Y-You not hurt Eteri! Right?"

I recalled the time that Scarleet girl captured me... and nailed my ears down to the floor... along with my tail. My hands instinctively reached up to my ears as I scrambled back away from him. "Is sorry... Is sorry... be good. Eteri be good. No hurt!" I whimpered.

"No, I'm not bleeding, these are -" Nevin's attempt to explain about his threads was cut short by the terror and panic in Eteri's actions as she scrambled away. Sitting on the ground, the man was thankful that he had taken to sleeping with trousers on as he stood up, trying to figure out why Eteri had suddenly pulled away. She had clamped her hands over her ears and was rocking back and forth, her tail lashing in fright, as she stared at him, eyes wide and unseeing. The redheaded alchemist froze when he realized what the girl was saying over and over again, whimpering the words out under her breath.

"No, no no, I'm not going to hurt you Eteri, no hurts coming." The man pulled his threads back inside, the crimson sliding beneath his skin and vanishing from sight as Nevin carefully sat down on the edge of the bed. She scooted away a bit, until his threads had completely vanished, and then she slowly uncurled - not a lot, just a little bit, still watching him with wide, fearful eyes. It was disconcerting to see the normally happy or inquisitive girl so scared. "I'm not going to hurt you, I promise. Those are - they're a part of me, like your tail. Just red not blue." He spoke in a low, calm tone, trying to soothe the fear from her.

"I - You didn't see them, but you had something like them coming out of you as well.They - well, they were a lot like mine actually." Cobalt and Scarlet, did she know about them already? What on earth had those been and why in the name of the Great Flow had they been rubbing against him? The man drummed his fingers against his leg as he thought, fingers moving rhythmically as he waited to see if the cat-girl would relax enough to respond to him. He wasn't sure about that though -
she did seem rather scared of him. He just wished he knew why, so he could avoid that happening again.

I blinked, he said I had the same thing coming out of me? "No sense...?" I whispered. My heart still racing. A big strong part of me knew Nevin wasn't going to hurt me (I finally got his name right) If he had planned to - surely he would have done so already. Besides... it wasn't like I had anything of value. Just a bag of ol' soul pieces. "Promise?" I asked warily. The man before me nodded.

"Promise." He extended a hand out toward me and I stared at it silently for a few minutes. Contemplating all the things that he could do. Would his hand open up wide and swallow me hole? Would he pull me into his body only to have all those little spikes pinpri- wait. WAIT! Pinpricks! When we first met. My hand had them all over it. Was HE the one responsible.

"Hmmph!"

No wonder he was being so nice. It was guilt. I slowly lowered my hands from my ears and crawled closer to him. His hand lifted up and landed on my head.

Pat Pat

Okay... yeh... ok... I suppose he wasn't going to hurt me after all. I was still quiet, which I guess unnerved Nevin. Who had always seem me as loud and talkative. (Admittedly, I am these two things)

"Why things do that?" I asked finally. "What doing to you?" I didn't let my eyes leave his, I wanted answers. I wanted to know why he had scary things coming out of him that reminded me of the redheaded woman who locked me up. Were they related? Did they have the same problems? No... his soul was broken and torn, but it wasn't pure and condensed death.

The wariness in Eteri's voice was understandable - Nevin was wary of getting too close to her himself, especially now that he knew she didn't even know about her own frisky tentacles. Despite that, when she slowly inched forward, he found himself reaching out and slowly stroking the top of her head trying to soothe her fears. He didn't know why she had panicked, but at least she trusted him enough to relax at least a little despite that.

She looked up into his eyes, watching him carefully as she tilted her head into his hand. The silence was a little unnerving, with the only other times she had been this quiet being when she was deep asleep, so when she finally spoke it made him twitch slightly as her voice broke the quiet. His fingers stilled in their gentle scratching motion and he frowned in thought.

"If you're asking about yours, I have no clue why they were ah, massaging me. As for why I have them... Some very bad people yes ago tried to make me into something.
I stopped then, but even with that some of their changes... Stuck." Being trapped inside his own body had been a living nightmarish hell. If all he had to live with from that experience was these threads that now stayed with him, he would have been able to cope - but now he knew that there were other beasts out there that were trying to restart that hellish process.

"Ah, but. I can control them, and I found out I can feel with them. So, maybe it's not all bad news for that." He gave her a little smile before scooting back to sit against the wall.

I huffed, annoyed when he stopped scratching me. I wanted more of those, but I guess... this was somewhat of a serious moment, wasn't it? It had that sort of atmosphere to it. I wrinkled my nose. I was never good with these moments. I would say the wrong thing, or mess something up. I'd get too loud or too quiet. Crap... I'm being quiet now aren't I?

I blinked and watched as he butt-scooted across the floor (like a dog does when it has wormies) till he hit the back wall. I slinked off the bed to follow. First the left hand hit the floor, then the right, followed by my feet, soundlessly creeping forward till I sat just two feet away from him. He said something about massaging? What did that word mean?

"What Massaging?" I asked.

Nevin blinked at me. "Massaging, like rubbing gently on something. I uh..." He averted his gaze from mine. "Does that make sense?"

I nodded. Yes. It did. "So like scratches, or head pats?" I asked. He gave a series of short nods, still keeping his gaze away from me. Gosh I know I had bedhead but I couldn't be that bad to look at. He was so rude sometimes. "Maybe they return favour?" I suggested. This got his attention. HIs dark eyes shifted back to give me a curious look. I elaborated. "Because you give Eteri many massages?"

"I-I what!? No I don't. That's different."

Damn...I guess I misinterpreted it, stupid language barriers. This would be so much easier if he spoke Akashimian, or if we all just communicated by liek dancing, that would be fun right? Wasn't that how bees communicated? Oh gosh! I would love to meet a giant bee and do a dance with it, and see if it understood me. I bet a bee would be a good dance partner, even if it didn't have arms. It'd be able to move its feet like crazy good!

Oh crap...Nevin had been talking, and here I am sitting and thinking about the birds and the bees.

What did he say? It sounded serious. Bad things? something bad happened to him? That made sense. "Is that why you soul is gross?" I asked. He winced at the insult. "Can I see the things? How feel with?"

"Massages, especially the ones like what your ah, your extensions were doing, tend to be a bit more sensual than just head pats or scritching." Nevin had seen the flash of confusion then the slight frown before Eteri had gotten distracted by her own inner thoughts. He wondered where those had gone, as she sat there quietly swaying in front of him. The alchemist really, really wished she would sit down. And pull up her shirt.

Then he stared at her, his eyebrows rising in shock. After how scared of his threads she had been, he certainly didn't expect for her to ask to examine them. Nevin slowly lifted one hand up, and let the threads in his palm slide outwards. At first they were just the small, individual threads, but under his mental command they began to wind together into a larger 'rope'.

Dancing to his will, the crimson rope rose up and waved at Eteri, then coiled up into a circle before extending outwards. As he manipulated his extra extremity, he spoke softly. "I'm not entirely sure how they feel though, just that I can feel contact on them. Warm sensations, soft ones - they're about as sensitive as my fingertips, so fairly so. I didn't realize I could feel with them at first, I normally had only been taking them out when I actively needed to do something with them, and apparently when I'm focused sensations from them, what I feel with them, is easy to ignore."

"Whoa..." I slumped down on the ground, planting my butt firmly between his extended legs. "That strange...." And it was...he said he could control them, but they came out of him when he slept, and apparently out of me when I slept? That sounded freaky. Much strange.

I prodded one gently with my finger. "So can use like hands?" I asked. He opened his mouth as if to say something, then changed his mind at the last minute. He cleared his throat. "Yeh, something like that."

I let my palm graze gently up and down the length of one of the larger ones. Now that I was seeing them like this...they weren't really that scary.

Honestly though, a part of me was tempted to rip them out of his body. It was a small part...a dark part that didn't really feel like me. I didn't want to hurt Nevin, but boy oh howdy oh golly gee willikers did I want to grab hold of those things, rip them out hard and..

and..


and eat them...

I licked my lips at the thought. What did they taste like? chicken? Fish? Maybe a salty sort of jerky? I haven't really thought about eating people before, but I hear they taste like chicken or piggies. Maybe one tiny bite...would Nevin mind? Would he notice?

Hungry eyed I stalked a little closer...a liiiiitle closer.... I opened my mouth juuust that teeny tiny bit.

And then...

I realised how utterly absurd that notion was. I shook my head vigorously and slapped my cheeks. "Gross! Eew! no eat things!" I snapped at myself.

Nevin was, suffice to say....startled at my words. "What did you ...just say? Did you- Eteri were you going to eat them?"

"What? Yes! No! No no! I just wanted them inside of me!" I rambled on, "I wasn't going eat because they looked tasty or anything! I just... This ..this awkward now yes?"

I let go of the tendril and shoved my hands firmly into my lap. "Is Sorry!"

Nevin very slowly retracted his thread, watching the way Eteri's eyes tracked it. When she had started crawling forward, and leaning forward with her mouth open, he had actually been frozen still by the rather brilliant blush that had shot through his body.
Suffice to say at that point the blood mage's blood flow had not been operating as intended.

However, the girl suddenly sat back on her heels - still between his legs - declaring she had just wanted a taste, and that had done a fair job of dumping ice water... On Nevin's head. So now he was trying to think of what to say, as she looked down and away, staring at her hands that she had shoved into her lap. She was definitely closer to her animal nature than Rainee had been - no, that was not fair to Eteri. In truth, he barely knew the other cat girl, and one of their two meetings had been while she was drugged up on catnip.

He swore to himself to never, ever, let Eteri find the catnip he had in the store. Nevin thought he might not survive that situation entirely intact - or with his chastity intact. With that thought in mind he coughed into his hand before reaching up with the other one to rub the top of Eteri's head gently.

"A little, but that happens. I think perhaps we should see about getting you some food though - I don't think you'd be happy with yourself if you started nibbling on me." Whether he would enjoy the nibbling or not was an entirely different matter and not one he was found to think about at the moment. No, not while she was sitting between his legs.

I wasn't exactly hungry. So I wasn't entirely sure why I wanted to... or had the urge to eat those things. I furrowed my brows, pouting. "No.. Eteri no eat Nevin!" I mumbled. Feeling ashamed I had been so tempted to do so mere moments before. Just what had come over me? "Was that feels!" I said as I pressed a hand to the mid of my chest. "Feels inside tell Eteri to but Eteri no want."

I bet he wouldn't even taste that good. I lifted my head and offered him a wry grin as he toussled my hair, his fingers entangled in my blue trestles. That always felt nice. He was trying to comfort me. So I guess I shouldn't have anything to feel bad about then...right?

"Eteri no think you'd taste good." I said. "I prove." I said again.

"You what now?" Nevin asked, slightly alarmed.

"Is ok...." I muttered as I stalked closer. His breath stilled as I drew closer, crawling on hands and knees. I placed one hand on his upper leg to lift myself up because he was tall. Very tall. Too tall. (Why though? I think this man was the tallest I have ever seen in Althanas...ever!) I leaned forward and went for the nearestest, closest part of skin.

The crook of his neck, namely, the space between his shoulder and neck.

nibble nibble

He tasted....a little salty? there was no real way to tell what he'd really taste like without biting down hard and I promised him I wouldn't. Instead I drew away.

"Bleh.. like salty...not nice salty...strange salty.." I muttered as I scratched the taste off my tongue.

"No need eat Nevin." I grinned as I gave him a reassuring pat on the head. "Is safe from that! Pinky promise!"

"Well, I'm glad you don't want to eat me -" Nevin had just started to feel a modicum of relief. But as with many things, it was tinged with concern too - something inside Eteri did want to hurt him?
Or at least, eat a part of him? Before he could follow up on that concern though - well, his brain short circuited. The feline female had already been close enough that if Nevin didn't know how innocent she was he would have been having some problems.

But then she was even closer, and a heady, musky scent filled his nose and Nevin found it hard to focus. That is, until sharp, delicate teeth nipped at his skin, sending shivers up and down his entire body. A full body blush shot over Nevin, making the lines across his body disappear as his skin changed shade to match them. At some point when her teeth had been on him he had made a noise, but he wasn't sure what it was.

What he was sure of was that - she needed to not be on his lap. Immediately. Suiting action to thought, he scooped her up and moved her to the side, and quickly stood up. He looked in every direction but at her as he spoke.

"I'm- I'm feeling hungry, let's go eat" Ah, Crimson. He was stammering.

"Huh!" I felt myself being gently lifted up and placed to the side. He made a strange noise. Almost like a moan, but it wasn't one that was...pained what was it? I swear I heard sounds like that before. I furrowed my brows trying to think... what made that sound?

...bears? No....they growled... bee's buzzed... cows mooed... Oh... wait...

I covered my mouth as my ears shot up, when I realised what that sounded like. It sounded like things ...like the things my sister got herself involved in! Still with my hands over my mouth I looked up at Nevin. He was avoiding my gaze. Oh geez... oh golly gee gosh. I didn't mean to make him all flustered like that. My sister always told me that was my issue, that I was completely oblivious to the nature of men. Of course I was... I was a girl! well.. kind of... half cat...half girl... yeh... but STILL


What did my sister call it? spiky? No... Hungry? No... that had to do with food.

"Nevin..." I asked, finally pulling my hands away from my mouth as I pushed myself up off the floor. "Is that the horned noise?" I asked. He quickly changed the subject to eating.

Oh...

Well.. Maybe I was wrong. I sighed, feeling my own cheeks all hot and bothered. About as much as he looked. Maybe I was wrong, and it was just a warm night. I gave him a small nod.

"Yes. Food!" I said, tail swinging side to side - I could always go for food. Even if it was still in the middle of the night. "When eat we can talk more about things inside us?" I inquired, trying to make him feel better. "May help?" I asked as I padded behind him when he turned to make haste toward the kitchen.

"Do have meat?"

"The horned noi- ack." Nevin felt his blush ratchet up a notch. "Horny? Is that - I - ye-lets get food now yes food is safe." Cooking would keep him from thinking about the half-dressed cat girl that was far, far too close to him. He swallowed, and half turned, leading the way out of his tiny side of the bedroom. Anything not to fhink about those slender legs and the -

Nevin promptly strode out of the room into the small area that served as his kitchen and dining room. He maneuvered past the book shelf and the work table, over to the ice box, and grabbed a chunk of ice from inside that he pressed against his head to cool the blush. Then before Eteri could catch up to him, he dropped the ice back into the box before picking up a chunk of chicken breast that he took the cutting board.

The man busied himself with preparing food, cutting the chicken into thin strips and making sure all the bones were out. He turned his dark gaze to Eteri who had moved up silently behind him, and cleared his throat. "Ah. Right. You said you prefer your meat raw, or at least your fish. Do you want me to just give you some of this, or do you want me to cook it again like how I cooked the fish?" Each meal had been a bit of a gamble on what she wanted that time, so he tried to ask before cooking all of the meat up. He did his best not to look down her shirt as he asked, he had only just managed to calm himself down.

I crossed my arms tightly over my chest as I contemplated this, "hmm..."

"Dammit..." Nevin hissed under his breath.

I blinked, only just catching what he said. "Et tu? Nevin you ok?" He nodded, turning his eyes to the filleted chicken before him. He must be hungry. Actually...staring at the chicken, I felt my stomach growl. I was too. I would normally eat it raw, it wasn't the first time I'd have hunted and devoured my own food but I was interested in the way he cooked things, and how different it made the tastes and textures.

"Can cook. Want see what like." I said as I pressed closer, standing on my tiptoes to peer over his shoulder as he tried to work. Grabbing hanging herbs from the ceiling. I pressed myself against his back, wrinkling my nose. (what was that sudden smell?) I shook my head, ignoring it. "What that?" I asked.

"This? It's.. ah..coriander."

"Coh-ree-an-duh?" I repeated. "That make taste nice?" I wanted to get a closer look. I leaned forward and sniffed the air. Ah! It smelt nice. There was that strange smell too, it reminded me of something, almost musky. Was that a herb too? "What will now do?" I asked.

"E-Eteri how about you go sit at the table. This..won't take long."

I pouted. Why was he being so mean? I was just trying to learn. "Yes. Fine." I said, before muttering under my breath. <"I'm just trying to learn more about you and your culture you distant meanie butt."> I turned, and on purposefully gave him a bump with my hip so he'd stumble. "Nyer!" I thew my head over my shoulder, sticking my tongue out at him as I sauntered over to the table and sat down.

These tables were always so high....

I pressed my head against the table and kicked my legs freely as I watched him work. "Nevin. Why think you spike move on own? Or Eteri's energy inside? What else they do? Jsut hands? Look like needle?"

He seemed uncomfortable with something...so I distracted him with a barrage of questions. That and I was curious too I wanted to know.

Three times. Three times while Eteri had been pressing herself up against his back, her arms wrapped his waist, Nevin had nearly turned around and - done something inappropriate. Instead he had nearly cut himself or smashed a finger as he worked on preparing the food. After she had sat down with a loud huff - and bumping him and making him run into the counter top with his stomach and just below - he was able to focus on the food at least a little more and stopped injuring himself.

Once she was sitting down, he was able to mix the chicken and herbs together, coating the meat in the spices and herbs before setting them into a pan to start simmering with some lemon juice. It would take a little bit to cook like this, but it should be worth the wait. He took the other chair and moved it across the table from Eteri,
putting the solid wood between them as a defense.

Thankfully she asked about something that wasn't - distracting, so he was able to focus on that. He leaned back in his chair and ran his hands through his hair as he huffed in thought.

"Well. I've already learned in the past that mine will react to my subconscious desires if you am not alert and aware - I actually found out I could feel with them when someone grabbed one while I didn't know they had slipped out. It's possible that, well, while yours were rubbing me I wanted to reciprocate - ah, return the act - even thought I was asleep. I have no idea why yours came out though, and it's clear you couldn't fell them. And no, I can make them come out from a lot more than just my hand." His left hang came up and gently traced a finger along his skin, following one of the myriad red lines that were visible on his chest.

"I can actually make them come out pretty much anywhere from my skin. And they can act as needled, or as whips, or as ropes, or to make me stronger." He lifted his arm up higher and the Crimson threads slid out of his skin and wrapped around his limb, coating it in red. Then he reached out his coated hand to her, to let her feel the smooth and almost slick surface.

"If I want to I can make them a bit sticky as well, makes it easier to grab things with them." Of course, he waited to say this until she was experimentally poking his red hand with one finger, and he shifted the threads to their adhesive state with a grin. Only for a moment though, to give her resistance when she tried to pull her finger away - too long and she might have hurt herself.

This, this was safe. Talking to her about his nature from across the table was safe and good.

"oh...ohhh!" I ran my fingers up and down the strange slick red of his arm almost excitedly. "It like velvet!" I said, when really I meant silk. But, I got the two confused. "It strange, you do much! All I do is fix souls and-" I went to pull my hands away "G-Gah!" They were stuck. Was this what he meant when he said it acted like a glue. He was right. "Eteri stuck to Nevin!" I said as I tugged again, and again. I slid off the chair and down under the table trying to pull myself away. But no good. This was no good. Then - just as quickly as my hands had stuck. They unstuck, and the force caused me to fall back onto the floor. "Nevin!" I huffed as I pushed myself back onto my knees. "That could make accident!" I chastised.

Then...there was that underlining scent again, it was almost.. hmm what was it? what was the word to use when you really liked it? It was good? No, that wasn't right...It was alluring. Yes! That! I sniffed the air in front of me and frowned. What was that?

"Is something wrong?" Nevin asked. "Did I hurt you?"

"No. Is fine." I said as I stood and headed toward the cooking chicken.

"It's not ready yet."

I ignored him and continued. I sniffed at the sizzling meat. It wasn't the chicken. Granted this did smell amazing, but... maybe it was one of the herbs? I drew my face close to each one of them. Nope. Nope. Nope. Oh! I knew this one, Rosemary! Venex used this sometimes. But no.. that wasn't the source of the smell. I started opening random jars and sniffing them. Still nothing. If anything it was weaker here. Well...I guess that's that then... I turned and headed back toward the table, defeated. Ears drooped. "Was smell something..." I muttered. "Not find."

Nevin looked as though he were about to stand, but instead shifted the chair he sat in further under the table. "Sit Eteri." He gestured, and I almost complied, but as I passed him I stopped.

Oh... oh

"It you!" I said as I drew closer to him, bending over to sniff his neck. "Yes. You have strange yet nice scent." I stood straight and offered to ruffle his hair. "Is good I think."

Satisfied that I found the source I sat back down. Almost completely forgetting about the serious conversation we were having moments before. "What was talk about again?"

He smelled good? That was - that non sequitur was enough to confuse the life out of Nevin. As far as he knew he just smelled of sweat, possibly the chicken and herbs. But she had sniffed those and none of them were what she was looking for. At least she hadn't been too... Well, her, about sniffing him, just confusing. Which, was her most of the time, wasn't it? Wait - no, there was no way - a slight blush crept up his cheeks as he thought of what she might have been smelling.


He let his threads unravel from around his arm and buried his face in his hands, only noticing then that he had apparently cut one of his fingers on his right hand. The man frowned and pulled his hand away, glaring at it. He lifted his other hand and made a pulling motion, and the blood slid off of his finger and face, collecting into a small, hard plate that clattered onto the table. He coughed and looked up to Eteri.

"Sorry. We were talking about the tentacles. I don't know why yours came out though. Ah!" There was a brief moment where Nevin realized his problem with getting to hide his problem. He had to stand back up to get back to the chicken. The alchemist swallowed nervously, then decided to just stand up. Hopefully it had subsided enough not to be noticeable, so he pushed his chair back away from the table.

"Need to check the meat." He stood up swiftly and tried to turn quickly enough that Eteri wouldn't see anything out of place. Now of she just stayed at the table he shouldn't have any more trouble.

"Whoa!"

I exclaimed loudly as I watched him collect little bits of blood and turn it into a disky type thing. I picked it up. It felt...solid... I put it into my mouth and bit down hard. Still didn't break. Wait! What was I doing. I quickly put it down and placed it on the table and attempted to smooth out the teeth marks that were on its surface. Oops. I wasn't thinking.... you know how you just have the instinct to put things in your mouth? I had that, and I just..forgot to tell it that no! Putting a strange blood disk into your mouth probably isn't a good idea!


Even if it was oddly satisfying...

I shook my head of the thought.

"Can you be the doing that to others? Do you collecting the blood things?" I blinked as I watched him head back to the stove. Would that help him? I couldn't judge him for collecting such a strange thing. I collected souls after all. I grinned as a new thought sprang to my mind. "Eteri has the idea!" I called out as I stood and followed him to the little kitchenette. "What if Eteri help?"

"H-help wth what?" Nevin asked, his back stiffening as he kept his head down at the meal he was preparing.

"If you the collects. Eteri offer too! Collect some of Eteri's. To be thanking you for looking after and helping."

She had followed Nevin into the kitchen, and for a moment he thought he was going to be subjected to the pleasurable hell once more. Thankfully though she kept at least some modicum of distance, so he wasn't dealing with her soft, delicate frame being pressed against his. And she was asking - oh, about his blood.

He was so used to dealing with loose blood in private like that that he hadn't even stopped to think about the fact that she was there. She was surprisingly easy to be comfortable with - case in point, she was half dressed in only a loose night shirt and he was only wearing trousers, and he felt no need to cover up like he would with pretty much anyone else. Maybe he would be comfortable like this around Stare but then again maybe not. While she was his best friend, there had been an unspoken tension between them at times that he did not know how to handle.

"My collection? Oh. I - yes, I do tend to gather blood." he'd never thought of it like that though. Most of the time, if he had blood in some way it was being used for a purpose. In fact there was only one vial of blood potions not that he had never considered using at some point - the only sentient blood he had, what Stare had donated to him. That blood was sitting in a cushioned vial, protected from harm. Nevin blinked and turned to stare down at Eteri when she offered some of her blood, his eyebrows raised in shock.

"I - Eteri, you don't need to give me your blood to thank me. There are other ways to do that." Verbally, verbally was good. "But if you want me to have some - well. Maybe a trade then? You tried trading fish for it before, but, would you take a little of this soul of mine in exchange for some blood?" He raised his eyebrow as he watched her.

'Excellent!" I said as I clasped my hands together. We had a deal, a plan. Granted... I probably wouldn't really need his soul for anything. It was too broken, but maybe I could try and mend it and give it back to him as a present. Then haha jokes on him. He'd get two things from me. That's another thing to add to the list. Eteri, Master of the giving of gifts!

"Will have to tell Eteri." I said as I stepped closer to him, quite content in my victory.

"T-tell you what?" Nevin asked as he backed further into the stove.

"Other ways to thank." I said. "I learn, try to." I leaned in and pressed my finger into the middle of his chest. "It important Nevin. Soul is more important than blood." I glanced down at his chest and once again, gently pulled, parts of his soul drifted up and out. I wouldnt' cut it away just yet, I didn't have my scissors on me. All I really did have on me was a shirt.

"Nevin..." I said, voice lowering. A serious whisper fell from my lips as I took his hand and guided it to his chest with my spare hand. "This is part of you. This important. Should not give easily. Eteri can accept but want Nevin to think on it please?" She let go and his soul fell back into his chest. She ignored the clawing feeling in the back of her mind telling her to rip it out again and instead kept her hands on his chest.

"Think then tell Eteri."

Nevin reached up slowly and gently squeezed one of Eteri's hands, before carefully moving her back. His face was a study in emotional changes - confusion, then amusement, followed by almost pain, and ending on quiet contemplation. Instead of replying right away, he turned around and checked on the chicken - it needed a bit longer. He stirred it up before replacing the lid on the pan. That done, he moved over to the table and spun the chair around, dropping down into and staring at Eteri.

The cat girl fidgeted under the continual stare, until Nevin finally cleared his throat, and spoke. His voice was soft and calm, but laced with - with an emotion he couldn't quite place.

"You would be surprised how important blood is, Eteri. If I wanted to, with yours, I could copy that power of yours. I could pull souls from their bodies myself, for a time. Or I could see souls like you do. It isn't just a matter of collecting the blood - I am a blood mage, I can use that blood. And I was not offering my full soul, just a part of it, something for you to carry with you. You seem calmer when you are touching me, and I thought that with a piece of my, admittedly bloated, soul, that peace would be easier to obtain even when you aren't here." He shook his head slowly, and leaned back in the chair.

"And for me, blood from you would be important even if I could not use it in other ways. Only one other person has offered their blood to me, and I treasure it as a memento of our close friendship. Yours would be much the same." He was not going to talk about other ways to thank people, not now, not when the conversation had taken such a serious turn. No, instead his eyes were locked onto hers, watching for her reply.

Whoa.

He got Serious all of a sudden. So blood to him, was as important as a soul was to me.

I thought he was Just some kooky collector with a blood or vampire fettish. He did make such interesting sounds when I had bitten... Err nibbled on him before.

"is true." I said, a little too loudly, more so than the moment called for. "I is better near. Would fix grime on soul and put in necklace!" I said with a small grin.

I think, if it were patched up a bit the green and red glow would look pretty.

I clapped My hands together loudly, which caused Jim to jump. "right!" I said as I approached him. He didn't HABE to arch hos head up, even sitting down he was almost eye level to me.

I grinned and pressed my head against his to ease the tension. "can take eteri anytime." I said, "just make no hurt." I wanted to let hom know he could take my blood any time.

"boop."

I pressed a finger to his cheek.

Serious conversations... Too stressful

She leaned her forehead against Nevin's, her face extremely close. Close enough that Nevin could feel her warm breath against his lips as she spoke. And of course she said something that, if it had come from anyone else, would have been giving him severe issues in terms of mental state. But no - Eteri was too innocent as she breathed against his lips and told him he could take her any time, if he didn't make it hurt. Her small frame was close to him as she leaned against his head and gave him a wide smile.

Nevin stood up abruptly, wrapping his arms around Eteri to keep her from falling over at the sudden motion. He smiled down at her - "The chicken, I think it needs to be taken care of." With a squeeze of his arms around her shoulders, he shifted her to the side and hurried over stove. Sure enough, thankfully for his sanity, the chicken was ready to come out of the pan. He picked up two small bowls and quickly transferred the chicken from pan to the two bowls, and picked up a fork for himself.
He set his bowl down on the table with the fork on top of it, and set the other bowl down on the table near it with a crooked smile on his faceas he stood, carefully placing the chair between himself and her so she couldn't see his lap area.

"We should eat while it's fresh and hot. Come on." He sat down in the chair and waited for her to take her food and go over to the other side of the table as she normally did.

I felt him wrap his arms around me, and to keep my balance I had to grasp hold of his upper arms. I could feel the slight tension of his muscles as they flexed to lift me up.

"A-ahh!"

I wasn't expecting the action, nor was I expecting the flood of warmth. I looked down at him as his dark eyes met mine. Lined with wrinkles and dark circles they peered at her from behind crimson bangs which I instinctively reached out to tuck behind his ears.

Better. Yes this better. Now I could see him clearly. He smirked. G-gah what! Why would he do that.

I squirmed. "when said take me eteri meant blood! Not pick ups!" I muttered futily punching his arms.

He ushered me to the side like it was nothing, abd set me down before bustling about the kitchen.

I stared at him. What was that? Was it the nagging burning feeling I felt when around him? I wasn't sure.

Nevin quickly made his way back to the table and sat down. Making mention of eating whilst it was hot.

I was still curious..m what was that? I had to investigate more. I picked up my bowl and before he could say anything I deftly sat myself in his lap.

It was warm... And there was something else... I shuffled, trying to get comfortable. Ah... There. Yes
This was nice.

I rested My back against his chest and using my fingers, began to eat. Tail contently swishing side to side I lightly hummed as I ate. I was happy.

Somehow, Nevin should not have been surprised that the catgirl decided to sit herself down on his lap when she got her food. In truth, he really, really should not have been surprised. But, despite that, when she sat down on his lap he went very stiff and still. Which only got worse when the girl wriggled in his lap, shifting things around beneath her. The redhead let out a slightly strangled groan and thumped his head against her back and took a moment to gather himself.

Flick. Flick. Flick. Nevin bit the tip of his tongue to prevent a sneeze, and opened his eyes to see the very edge of soft blue fur dancing beneath his nose, twitching in a pattern. At the top of each flick, the very ends of the fur brushed against the bottom of his nose, and he had to suppress the urge to sneeze again. He slowly, carefully sat back, doing his best not to move and make his aggravated situation worse than it already was. With this minor success under his belt no do not think about that area, he carefully reached around Eteri, cradling her in his arms as he picked up his bowl again. Eating over her shoulder was a bit awkward, but manageable thanks to long arms and forks. Wait - he has an advantage here!

Nevin smirked behind her and set his bowl down, then wrapped his arms around Eteri's waist. "What do? No eat? I eat your chick-" Before she could finish that, red threads emerged from his shoulders and wove together, and one set carefully picked up the bowl while the other adhered to the fork and lifted it up as well. Now with two extra limbs to work with, and these ones having far more reach than his normal arms, he was able to resume eating without issue - though he did stick his tongue out at Eteri when she turned her head around to pout at him over being denied the opportunity to steal the rest of his chicken.

I stopped wriggling and bouncing around when his arms tightened around my waist, looping up and under my arms giving me a tight squeeze. "oof!" I breathed out as he squeezed. Damn. What was he doing, It wasn't like I was one of those stressy smoosh balls that you squeeze. I was Eteri! I went to wriggle again and he squeezed tighter. I stilled...and waited quietly as I finished the last few bites of my chicken. Then, wriggled again - and again - he squeezed tighter.

Was this a game? Or was he just trying to get me to stay still. I was aware of what was underneath me, I wasn't born yesterday (Actually I was born 8 952 days ago) I knew what that semi hard smooshy feelng was against my thigh. I just didn't care. It didn't bother me. But wait!

Wait! If he was hugging me then... I reached out for the chicken, but it was scooped up and away by those strange blood tendril things. I turned to glare at Nevin who just stuck his tongue out at me.

"That rude!" I spat.

"What is? Me not giving you my share of food?"

"Yes!"

He chuckled and I could feel the rumble of laughter in his chest. I took a deep breath, ready to give him a lecture on how important it is for me to eat, and how even more important it was for me to get twice as much meats as he did. (I mean, it tasted better than vegetables, and they weren't really a big part of my diet.) I needed fatty amino acids and protein.

"Now listen! Eteri gonna-"

Squeeze

He held me tight again, and this time...he didn't relent. He continued eating and didn't say a word and it left me sitting here feeling....feeling...ugh flustered. This wasn't fair! This was imprisonment! This was against my rights as a (ok not so) legal citizen of Corone! (I never exactly legally crossed from Akashimia into here, or anywhere, ahaa oops! What is paperwork anyway...BORING!) This was! This was....


This was...


Extremely comfortable and pleasant. I wriggled again and I felt him squeeze me even tighter, it was difficult to move but I twisted my body just enough so that the side of my head could sit against his chest. I had to shift one of my legs so that it hung loosely over his side as I semi-straddled him. I pressed my head against his chest.

"Eteri- stop moving."

I stopped. With his arms still wrapped tightly around me and my head against his chest I stopped. "Okay." I said, closing my eyes - I could feel the beat of his heart, and almost hear the pulse of his blood against his skin.

He could have his damn chicken for all I care...

It seemed like Nevin had won the endurance contest, between who would cave first. Eteri, with her insufferable enticing wiggling in his lap, or Nevin, with his squeezes to keep her still. It had been very, very close,
and he hadn't been able to stop the words escaping his mouth, asking her to stop moving - wait, did that mean he had lost? No, no it didn't, because he could still squeeze her, and she had decided to stop moving, and was instead resting her head against his chest, her eyes closing half way as she listened to his heartbeat. It was...peaceful now, and actually somewhat relaxing now that she wasn't moving around in his lap.

So he loosened his hold on her, and actually dropped one arm away from her waist, and slowly began stroking her hair, his fingertips just grazing against the base of her ears as he petted her. It was strange, almost like petting a giant cat, but also very relaxing. That relaxed air only increased when Eteri began to purr against his chest, and nuzzled against his skin - making Nevin blush a bit. While she was definitely cat-like, her human aspects couldn't be ignored either, which was leading to very conflicting feelings in the alchemist. This was only emphasized more when her tail flicked up and coiled around his wrist for a moment, then lashed up to brush against his stomach and side.

Slowly she shifted her head up so that she could stare at him through half-lidded eyes, and Nevin swallowed, a bit nervously. She licked her lips, her tiny tongue darting out and flicking across her skin, and Nevin very forcibly made himself look away from that sight. Eteri was very soft against him, and it had been some time since he'd been able to get away to visit the 'inn' that Philomel had directed him towards.

I was vagually aware of the gentle minstrations against my head. They relaxed me. I wasn't sure the last time I felt this relaxed... it was probably the time I had taken part of Venex's soul and had no longer felt completely cold and empty. There were still large parts of me missng. Hell...what was inside me...wasn't me at all. I don't think I'd ever have a real soul to call my own.

"Nevin..." I mumbled his name as he glanced away from me. I repeated as I lifted a hand up to his chest, pressing firmly against it. "Hey... Nevin...."

It.... concerned me. Sure this was nice, it was more than nice. It was wonderful. It was warm and enticing and I didn't want to leave this spot, planted firmly in his lap. It was hard for me to meet people that could tolerate me. People like Venex, who did, who was wild and carefree as I was. He was so wild that sometimes even I could not keep up. He was a man without a care in the world, so much so - that he didn't give a damn when he gave up half his soul to me. (I was going to return it!) His issue was... that he couldn't stay serious. I mean.. I wasn't very serious either, but he didn't believe me or the things I said and that sometimes hurt...

Then there was Taka, who ever since he was in that scary place - was never the same.

Now - there was Nevin. Nevin was nice to be around but just how long was I allowed to be here? How long could I possibly continue this...this....what even was this? I don't know... but i didn't want it to end.

He still wasn't lookng at me. I cleared my throat and spoke, voice quiet and small. "Nevin...Eteri no have soul, just nothing but is ok if able to stay with still?"

"Stay still as long as you want to, Eteri. I won't make you go."

My hand clenched into a fist. He wasn't understanding...hell I don't even think I was understanding. "No!" I snapped. "Is stay?" Just what the hell was I trying to say?

"Y-you can do blood thing if want." I muttered, to change the subject. That sounded better. That was something, that was something based on something. Not nothing based off of nothing.

For the first time, Nevin realized something that he hadn't put together. He had been attributing her accent to her animalistic nature, but this time, in her worked up emotional state, he caught a bit of a cadence that he had run into before. And for the first time, he realized that... that the language that they were speaking was not her first one. His immediate reply, while entirely accurate to what he had thought she said, hadn't quite fit up with what she was trying to say. Nevin went still for a moment, and tightened his arm around her waist again.

"I'm sorry, I'm a bit of a fool. I didn't realize Tradespeak was not your first language. Stay, hm? You don't mean here, in my lap. You mean, here, with me." He watched her face, to see if he was on the right track. He took in a deep breath, and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, they were glimmering with red light. He was almost not surprised at all to see what was between them, barely visible in the tiny gap between his chest and hers. Crimson cables stretched between them, twisting and twirling, almost turning into thick, heavy chains. His were flickering in color, between a passive curiosity and shock - and her end, her end was... it was falteringly glowing. Like she was afraid. He slowly leaned forward and rested his head on top of hers.

"I repeat what I said, to you. As long as you want to stay, you can. You'd be the first to want to, like this." He shifted his hand down from the top of her head, lifting his face from her hair to stare at her eyes, close. "I won't be the easiest person to get along with, I think. I tend to get obsessed about alchemy, or blood stuff. I don't care if you don't have a soul, Eteri - hell. I have two." A half-smile, and he kissed her forehead. "And I already told you. If you want me to take a bit of your blood, you'll have to take a bit of my soul. Have to keep me around you, right?" He grinned.

"R-right..." I stammered.

What the hell just happened? Of course tradespeak wasn't my first language! Wasn't that obvious. What did he think I spoke like that for laughs? Did he think that I was putting on some childlike front to get what I wanted? I mean! I only did that over half a dozen times, but it wasn't always on purpose. Tradespeak was a very hard language for me to pick up. Even now I'd continue to switch between speech patterns and mannerisms because I could never get it right and then change my mind on what exactly 'was right'

I Shot him a small glare as if to say ' you dumb ass' but he completely rebuked it. Damn his and his dastardly wiles and his calloused hands and his ...his gentle head pats and his soft kisses. Damn each and every single one of them. How the heck was I supposed to concentrate.

I blinked again. Feeling very red. "R-Right! I go get!" I said as I scrambled up and off of him then quickly left the kitchen. I headed toward the matted mess of a mattress and clothes on the floor and picked up my trusty satchel to rummage around in it till I found a pair of scissors and a clear vial. I looked down at my hands and realised they were shaking.

Why were they shaking? Why was my heart beating so fast? Did Podes soul really affect me that much when I was around him? Maybe that would go away if I took a piece of his soul. I gripped the scissors tighter. Determined. I would take a piece of his soul and then I would try to fix it all up. Badda bing badda boom. Wham, Bam, thank you maim!

I padded back toward the kitchen to see Nevin still more or less where he was. Albeit less rigid. "I back." I said as I padded over to him. "IS uh...is ready?"

Nevin glanced toward me and offered me a wry grin. "As I'll ever be Eteri."

I shifted my eyes away. Did he have to do that? Did he really? Did he have to look at me...? I kicked a chair over to him and sat down in front of him. In quick practised motions I dragged his soul out of his body once more and flinched. Damn...this feeling was a little different to before - this burning was painful. I bit my lower lip and began my work. The enchanted scissors glided through a section of his soul. I carefully peeled away the part I had cutt, and guided it into a vial for safe keeping. I stared at it...murky and brown, tinges of red...it looked completely tattered, even in the vial. I had taken a larger portion than I normally would have, and had to use one of my bigger vials.

I didn't tell Nevin that this was more than I'd normally take. I wasn't going to tell him that I was going to try and make it better for him. I didn't tell Nevin that holding it in my hands...made me want to eat it. I pulled my amber eyes away from the vial and then looked to him.

"Is turn for you now."

The time while Eteri was grabbing whatever she needed, Nevin was sitting in the kitchen thinking about this all. It was.... Difficult for him at the moment to think, but he needed to. He needed to think of just what Eteri meant to him, because - well because he clearly felt something for her. And while she was confused about it, she reciprocated some kind of strong feelings back.

Eteri was... Special. She was one of two who knew the worst part about himself, the dark thing that he kept away everyone else. His soul was, despite his protestations, not OK, and he knew it. At times he had felt, bloated? Uncomfortable? Definitely not right. One body wast meant to hold two full souls, even if one had been stunted due to the rituals that the Cult had been performing. Whateverit was, he had kept that nature from everyone except for Stare, and now, Eteri.

Both women had been shocked and disgusted, not at him, but at what had happened and the state of his soul. Eteri had - had offered to try helping. Had... Had stayed, and stayed close and affectionate, despite knowing just how messed up he was. And his blood magic, another major sticking point - she didn't care at all, and in fact worked off of Soul magic herself, and treated his magic as not too different from her own. And as for his threads - he was comfortable enough to hold her in his lap and eat with them.

And that was its own thing. Eteri seemed to draw him in to physical contact whether he intended to or not, and when it happened he never found himself actually minding it. His... Salvarian soul had not grown up in the best of environments, and so, this, the cuddling - Nevin was not used to it. At all and yet he found himself craving it.

Then she came back in, scissors in hand, and they got to work. As his soul slid into the jar, Nevin felt strangely more comfortable, but also, almost, brighter? Like something that had been holding him down, holding him back, was gone. And he felt like he fit his skin better, like his body was more suited for him. It was strange, like he had been wearing a size of shoe just a few hairs too tight, for years, and now he was finally finding out what it was really supposed to be like.

Then she smiled at him, and Nevin felt his stomach twist. He knew then that, unless he absolutely had to, he would never use the blood he took from her. It would become a cherished possession, no matter what else happened between them. He stood up on fresh legs and moved over to his work room, sliding open the door. A wave of chemical and herbal scents rolled out from the room, along with the smell of warm blood.

A few moments later he came back out and closed the door behind him. In one hand we're to small glass vials - one, scarcely enough to hold even a few milliliters of blood the other enough to hold maybe a few ounces. Nevin slowly set them down on the table and took Eteri's hand in his own, cradling it gently.

"I'm sorry if this hurts." He didn't think it would, though. He had already figured out that if needed, his threads could numb. Threads emerged from his hand and slowly slipped into Eteri's skin, and pulled out slowly, drawing thin streams of blood behind them. Unlike his normal habit, Nevin said nothing as he pulled out her blood and concentrated it, creating a small blood potion in the larger vial. The smaller glass vial held blood as well, but he corked it and set it aside for a moment.

"This one, this is the potion that holds some of your power." He set the ounces large vial on the tile, and gently picked up the tiny vial. "This one... This will let me find you. If you want me to keep it that is." He offered the vial on the palm of his hand to her.

It didn't hurt, but it felt strange. I had been injured before, and knew what it was like to feel blood loss. This was similar to that, but it wasn't painful. It was peaceful, at least...it was at first. That rumbling welled up inside of me again and without thought to what I was doing I reached out to clasp the thin tendrils. "More..." I muttered... but just as quickly as the dizzying moment came, it left.

I felt calm and sedated in a way. I rolled my shoulders back then let my head lilt forward till it hit his shoulder. Yes. It definitely made me feel sleepy. I watched as he continued.. It looked strange. "Is you drinking it?" I asked. "What taste like?"

"No, I'm not drinking it. It feels... Smooth though, and a bit tingly?"

"Oh..." Admittedly I felt a tad disappointed. So obviously he wasn't a vampire. I mean, I knew this. Vampires had disgusting and rotting souls. His wasn't pretty, and in all honesty, did err on the side of disgusting - but it wasn't rotten. It was far from rotten. "You know is ok if did taste. Eteri tasted yours."

"I...Eteri..." Nevin furrowed his brows, then shook his head and laughed softly. "I have no intention of 'tasting' your blood." He urged his outstretched palm to me again and I glanced down at it.

Wow.

I didn't even know they made vials that small. I picked it up and peered inside it. Looked normal to me. Nothing fancy. I gave it a few shakes and the tiny beads of red liquid sloshed around the glass. Yup. Just normal blood. I placed it back into Nevins outstretched hand and closed his fingers over it. "You keep. Eteri not need." I shifted my gaze to the larger of the two. "So this make the seeing of souls?" I asked warily.

"In theory, yes. Unless you have any other latent abilities you aren't telling me about." He jested as he tousled my hair. I gave him a toothy grin. "Am wish for that but no. Sister is good one. I just do souls. Not much else. Is done?"

Nevin nodded. I looked down at my arm and rubbed it where his strange tendrils had entered my skin. "Tingles too." I said. "am tired."

Nevin reached out and gave my head a soft scratch, which I leaned into - because why wouldn't you? They were pretty damn amazing. He mentioned something about it being a common side effect of blood loss, but I had already slipped to the floor, my head falling to his lap...

So sleepy.... I wrapped my arms around his waist and lay there....I could faintly smell that pleasant smell again....I slowly opened my eyes, blurred vision seeing his arm shift as he gently ran his fingers through my hair. It was the last I remembered before falling asleep.

Nevin slowly stroked her hair, doing level best not to react to the fact that her face was in his lap. He thought he did an admirable job of it, managing to keep from racing too much to the sudden pleasant pressure. This was helped by what happened shortly after she fell asleep though.

Those red tentacles, crackling with black light, slipped from beneath her skin again, and once more began roving across him body. They created strange aftershocks whenever they touched, and the man wasn't sure if they were pleasant or not. He did begin to grow alarmed though when then began to coil around his shoulders and the back of his head, locking him in place.

Nevin started to struggled against this, only to freeze when his... Whatever Eteri was to him now, began to smoothly crawl up his body, dragging herself forwards, her body pulling itself up, dragging against his chest. Nevin could see that what was moving her was actually the tentacles, pulling the body up with their hold on him. When Eteri's face was level with his, her eyes snapped open, to red orbs that matched his far too closely.

"Let's unite and do terrible things once more. Destroy that which lives and embrace in the fierey pits of hell" the voice was not Eteri's, and the grasp of Trades peak was far cleaner than she normally managed. With a hungry gleam, notEteri lunged forward, latching her lips onto Nevin's and kissing him fiercely, before going limp and falling away. Nevin gasped as Eteri collapsed against him, the tentacles vanishing.

"Crimson. How much away does that part of that thing hold on you?" His words fell on deaf ears - Eteri was sound asleep once more.

Catgirl Roommate has Lovecraftian Tentacles..
No judgement

Rewards:

Nevin receives:
1760 EXP
165 Gold

Eteri receives:
1320 EXP
165 Gold

"Everybody is a book of blood; wherever we're opened, we're red."
Clive Barker

"A room without books is like a body without a soul."
Marcus Cicero

All rewards have been added.