Ayaka’s soul wasn’t anything like mine. I wasn’t sure what the hell she was on about. The centre of her soul was white, around that blue a soft blue that reminded me of the sky. Sure, surrounding that was similar bands of crimson and black - they matched my own shades. But they were creeping in at the edges, like they were seeping through.

My soul though, it was black and red, shaded in vivid hues. The dark colors swirled around an orange center, shading in and out, and I raised an eyebrow as I looked back to hers. “Beautiful.” I made sure I was staring directly at her I said this. I leaned against the wall, studying the swirls on her soul, losing myself in the evershifting patterns.

“No. Not really. That colour I see those swirls every day in every living thing. Others can willingly turn that sight off. I can’t.” I grimaced at that, and nodded. I could see how that would be aggravating. No wonder she was so moody.

“Well. Yours is quite spectacular to look at. Keep in mind I don't grasp the colors, though I'm assuming blacks and reds are negative ones.” I shrugged and stood up, and slowly began walking towards her. As I did there was a spike in the red, toward me. Curious. I reached out and poked it, confused as to what it was.

Ayaka reeled, her back hitting the weathered wall. Her cheeks red. “Do you fuckin mind?” Oh? What's this? I smirked, and reached out, caressing the spike that still lingered in the air between us.

“Estus, that’s my soul you’re getting all grabby with I-I’d appreciate it if you stopped. Do you have any idea how that fuckin’ feels?” She hissed at me as she pushed herself off the wall, and used that momentum to push me away. Well.

“No, not really.” I wasn’t about to try I pulling on it - I didn't want to yank it out of her. But I did… Caress another surge of color with my tail, away from where my hands were. I couldn't tell if she was liking this, or absolutely hating it. Knowing her it was a mix of both.

She huffed and backed up against the wall before sliding down to the floor. “It’s very invas...invasive. It feels like someone is tugging on your fuckng insides. And it is RUDE as FUCK. I was trying to do something nice you fuckin’ ass.”

“And exposing my scales and waving them around is rude as sin in my lands. You love me doing it.” I countered, folding my arms over my chest. Wow, her soul was bouncing about, arching towards me and - what. The? Fuck!

Why the everloving SHADE did a band of my black just dance against her spikes of red? And why did it feel so fucking… wooof. That was not an easy sensation to describe. I staggered, gripping at the wall.

She didn’t seem to get the same sensation I did. Ah. Her sister had more potent magic than her. Ayaka had burried her face into her knees. All bark, very little bite this one. I pushed off my wall and approached her, carefully sliding through the spikes and weaves in her soul until I couldn't avoid them any more, because I was reaching out to touch Ayaka directly.

“Kitten. Talk to me.” My voice was a soft command as I tried to go figure out how to get closer to her.

“Eteri always was teh fucking protege when it came to soul magic.Hows it feel weilding it?” Her face didn’t leave her knees.

“Very fucking weird at this point. Your soul is getting frisky with mine. Is your sister nuts by any chance?”

“Very.” Ayaka rose her head to meet my eyes. Her entire face was red. “Hows that whole you’re gonna stay thing workin out for you?”

“As I said, your soul is getting frisky with mine. Let me decide if I like it or not. Though I gotta say, getting past the initial weirdness of it… you always know how someone feels around you, don't you?” I frowned. That had to be absolute hell, nearly the depths of the Shadow lands.

“No. Not really. I don’t see such changes as subtle as that. I grasp that from body language.” She tilted her head to the side. “Is that what you see? Wait- what? What the fuck do you think I Feel?”

“Currently? A bit irritated, but mostly embarrassed and aroused. And curious. And wow that is weird, how long does this last?” I did NOT need to know how my victims felt.

Ayaka shook her head, she didn’t know. “I imagine it’d wear off soon. It wore off me in a matter of minutes, but….”

But… ah, fuck. She didn't know. How could she I don't think it had come up. I swallowed - and tried to keep my eyes off the way her body was reacting to my closeness. Damn it it was getting to me too. Fucking souls getting it on around us! And they were ours! Fuckers!

“Can you see why others are afraid of yours? It threatens to engulf things around it. It suffocates weaker souls.”

“Not really? Oh.” I blinked. It did NOT look like my soul was engulfing hers. Mixing, dancing, sliding and caressing - but engulfing, no. “So doesn't that just mean that… I don't know. That feels like they're lashing out in fear because they're weak.” I mean, it made sense. People did that all the time. I suppose it made sense, it was a more literal threat than just the ‘that man is a dark Serpent, fear him”.

She shrugged. “I fear very little.” The swirl of colors around us faded down, and the feeling of… The feeling of arousal and confusion died with it. I glanced to Ayaka to see if she was being relieved by the dissipation as well as I was, or if it still was affecting her. Or, now that I could touch her without directly manhandling her soul, if I was as I took her shoulder in a firm grip.

“What?” She asked.

“Staying seems to be working out for me.” I shifted and sat down next to her. Seeing her soul, feeling it - and mine interact. Well. They definately meshed well. I wasn’t sure if it helped me or impeded me knowing how the more intimate parts of her worked. She was more prone to suggestion than I thought.

“Mmm. That was a mistake though.”

“Oh?”

“I wanted to show you how crazy your soul is. How bad mine is. To deter you from wanting anything to do with me.” I laughed. I couldn't help it, I dropped my head back against the wooden wall behind us with a thump and laughed hard.

“Deter? If that was your intention than yes it was a mistake, because if anything now I want more to do with you. And your soul is not bad - it is no crime to be powerful, to be strong.” She was silent as she stared out ahead. Damn.I felt like I was loosing my hold on her.

I stood up swiftly and smoothly. “Now then. I'll begin sorting out what this bandit had made off with, if you wish to join me you can when you're ready.” Let her think, let her stew. When she was ready she would speak - if I kept pushing now, I risked pushing her away.

“Mmhmm.”

I settled down at the table and began sorting out the things I had collected from the bandit cave, setting things in piles based on what I could tell of their value. Things that looked like they were merely sentimental, I set aside - perhaps the high Priestess could return things to her flock. I turned to sorting out the coins, basing them purely on their metal make and nothing else - I didn't know enough to tell if there were different currencies here.

I paused and turned my head to Ayaka as I watched her get up and walk across the large room to the bathroom. Within a few minutes I heard the shower going.

I walked toward the bathroom and peered my head in. She had finished her shower and was now laying in the tub. Her eyes were closed and her breathing steady She had a folded washcloth on her forehead, her ears tilted back. I . She wasn’t asleep. But I could tell she was resting. “Kitten?”

“Ayaka.” She corrected. I ignored it, as I always did.

“Care to share what's on your mind?” Had she seen, or felt, something in my soul that had been too much?

“I’m not good with someone being around me. I’m no good. I am selfish. I don’t give a shit about others. I do what I need to do and nothing more. I Thought I had things set. Then you fuckin’ show up.”

Ah. That was… Well this was an opportunity. I had to handle it right. I slowly stalked into the bathroom, shifting and itching as the moisture clung to me. Damn it this was rather irritating. I sat down beside the tub, with my back against it so I sat facing away from her - giving her a modicum of privacy, not that I thought she really cared about it.

“I'll address that all out of order, I think. No, most of those can be addressed with the same statement.” I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “There's nothing wrong with that. Or with you. Being selfish is perfectly fucking fine. We have to be selfish to have any kind of fucking drive in the world. The only people who want others to be ‘selfless’? They fucking want something from the person they're asking to be selfless. And you lie - you do give a shit, you've just been hurt before and so you feel it isn't worth the time to try. How do I know - ah ah, I do know. If you didn't care, if you gave no shits?” I leaned my head back, obsidian colored strands of hair trailing in the water.

“You made those language potions for me. And more than that, you made them sweeter, because you saw - and I know I never mentioned it so you had to be paying attention to me - you saw that I was struggling with how bitter they were.” Press her, push her. Don't let her wallow - and tie her to me, by reassuring her and giving her comfort and guidance.

I heard the water shift behind me, then - warmth. Ignoring the water that spilled over the edges of the tub onto the tiled floor. She wrapped two wet arms around my shoulders and I felt the wet of her cheek against my own. I blinked, several times. “Kitten?”

“Shut up. I’m trying to thank you. Fuckin’ idiot.”

I shut up, chuckling. She pulled back away from me and I smiled at the sentiment she shared with me.