The Assignment

Aless, Aisha and Two walked up to the door to Raxas's office, placed in the corner of some suffocating hallway. Aisha kind of expected something more grandiose from one of the most powerful men in the capital - but then again, Aisha would also not know what to do with a huge office.

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Aless knocked on the door two times, kneeling at the door before Aisha walked past her and just opened the door into the office, ignoring the "Hey!" from behind her.

"Come in… And you're just going to walk in." He muttered. "Okay."

"Hi, old guy." Aisha said casually as she strolled into Raxas's office.

Raxas glared at Aisha, as a mortified Two and Aless stood in shock behind her.

"I'm not going to ask you to call me sir, or anything." He said slowly. "But I will ask you to not call me... 'old guy.' "

"Then what should I call you?"

"Raxas. My name."

"I'm not good with names." Aisha muttered.

"Then get better at them." He snapped. "Are you this annoying on purpose?"

"..."

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Raxas sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. The girl frustrated him to no end.

(Calm down James. You were a kid once too. Was I that annoying when I was twenty? I hope not. But then again, if I was that annoying, I wish someone would tell me-)

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"Sir?" Aless asked tentatively, Raxas seemingly deep in thought at his desk, frozen in his frustrated pose. Her next words came out in a whisper. "Um… the assignment?"

"Hm? Yes, of course." He muttered. "You're… uh… Oh right. You're going to go deliver a shipment to the frontlines of the Kalamina Front."

"A delivery?" Two said, surprised. "Can't you get someone else? Like… anyone else?"

"The shipment is classified." Raxas said offhandedly. "You should know this, Two."

"Yes sir." Two muttered. His eyes shot open. "Wait, how'd you find out about-"

"Nevermind that. I sent Falo ahead to speak with Doctor Vinderi, to prepare for the shipment. Just pick up the shipment from the research department here, and get it over there in two days."

"Ok." Aisha said. Aless furrowed her eyebrows.

"TWO DAYS?" Two exploded. "THAT'S… crazy..."

His expression faltered as Raxas stared at him. Blankly.

"Sorry sir." He whispered.

.

"I'll be fine." Aisha mumbled.

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"What about us, sir?" Two asked.

"You and Aless can help me with paperwork." Raxas said dismissively. Two's shoulders slumped in response.

"So. the usual?"

"Yes." Raxas responded, waving the group off. "You three are dismissed.""

"Wait." Aisha said hastily. Raxas raised his eyebrow in response. "I wanna take Aless with me."

"...Sure. She can show you around the research division."

.

"WHA-!" Two blurted. "Aless gets to get out of paperwork!?"

"Sir..." Aless said weakly. "I can help you with the paperwork. Two should-"

"No." The middle-aged man said, waving the agents off. "Two is enough. You should accompany Aisha. You might run into trouble."

"But sir-" Both agents said at once.

"That's enough." Raxas said calmly, but firmly. Although he had lost much of his stature and intimidation to age, the aura of authority that surrounded the man was incredible, telling the two agents that his word was final. Aisha walked off, the sound of the door creaking open behind them shocking Two and Aless out of their stupor.

.

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"If I might ask, Aisha… Why did you ask for me to come with you?" Aless asked uncomfortably, as the two of them made their way down the halls of Raxas's building, on their way to the research lab. Aisha turned to look at Aless in response.

"Hm?"

"I understand that you needed a guide-"

"Oh, that's not why I needed you." Aisha corrected.

"... Then why..?" Aless asked quietly.

"You'll see why later." Aisha responded. "And you look like you're more fit than Two."

"More fit? Like, physically?"

"Mhm." Aisha said. "I wonder why, if you two came out of the same program."

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The intense, calculating stare that Aisha gave her made Aless shift uncomfortably, somewhat wishing she had her mask on. Everything about the girl was… uncomfortable. Sometimes she was uncomfortably affectionate, and other times… it was unsettling, the way that she would just stare at people. Analyzing.

"The details of the Persona Program are supposed to stay secret." Aless said. "I will ask you, respectfully, to not pry."

"Oh? Something that isn't supposed to reach the public's ears?"

"...It's to make sure that the enemy doesn't have access to our secrets." Aless said mechanically, as if she had practiced saying the phrase. Aisha caught on immediately.

.

"Something unethical going on?" She guessed, craning her head to gauge Aless's reactions. "Something happen to the ones that don't turn out well? Something unnatural done to the children? Eh?" She reached up to poke Aless.

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Aless growled and caught Aisha's arm in her hand, squeezing uncomfortably tight, almost breaking Aisha's arm. She tried to break out of her grip, struggling fiercely, but surprisingly, Aless was much stronger than her.

"Stop digging." She growled. "Right. Now."

"Okay, okay!" Aisha grunted. "Let go of my arm."

"What?" Aless said, confused. She looked at her hand and then retracted it, horrified at the sight.

"I-I'm so sorry!" She apologized. "I-I-I..."

"You've got incredible strength." Aisha muttered, rubbing her arm. "But it's not something that you activate consciously..."

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Aless saw the gears turning in Aisha's head, but didn't want to risk hurting her friend again, so she hung her head and was unresponsive for the rest of the walk.

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"We're here." Aisha said, Aless almost bumping her head into a wall. She looked around, confused, before her eyes locked onto a nameplate, reading "Research Division." Aless knocked on the door, and Aisha attempted to force her way in, as usual, but the door was locked, despite how much the fey girl juggled the handle.

"Stop that." Aless muttered.

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The two girls heard an unlocking sound from within, and then soon a man in a white lab coat appeared at the door, carrying a small, velvety looking box.

"Identification?" He asked, receiving two emblem flashes in return. He looked around the hallway, and then hastily pressed the box into Aisha's hands, slamming the door immediately after.

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"...Well, that was stran- HEY DON'T LOOK AT THAT!"

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Aisha opened the box, which was filled with tiny, prismatic gems, red, yellow, blue and white in color, nestled snugly and secured tightly in the cushions of the box. She didn't really get too good of a look, however, as Aless slammed the box shut on her curious hands.

.

"ARE YOU INSANE?" She screamed. "THAT'S CLASSIFIED INFORMATION! YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO SEE THAT!"

"If we weren't supposed to see it, then it would be locked." Aisha said calmly.

"You don't know that!" She snarled. "Listen, I don't know how you think things work around here, but you don't get to just do whatever you want!"

"Hey, the old guy will never know-"

"Stop calling him 'old guy!' Show some respect!" Aless snapped. "And it doesn't matter if he'll know or not, what matters is that we're not supposed to!"

"Lame."

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At Aless's furious expression, Aisha knew that she was on the verge of damaging their relationship beyond repair.

"I'm sorry." She muttered, lying. She was not sorry in the least. But nonetheless, Aless's expression softened at the way that Aisha's fluffy ears flattened against her head, and her head drooped to the ground. Before she could even process the guilt in her heart, her hand stretched out to pat the girl on the head, running her fingers through the softness and fluff. Enraptured by the feeling, she stood in the hallway for a good minute, just fluffing and petting the girl. She vaguely recognized the feeling of a warm body wrapping around her waist, but all her attention was… diverted. Towards the amazing feeling in her fingers, shooting warmth through her body…

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It was only when Aisha let out a pleased mew that she broke out of her trance, stumbling backwards and jerking her hand back.

"Ah... " She mumbled, embarrassed. "It's ok. You didn't… know."

"It's just..." Aisha muttered into Aless's side, still hugging her. "You know, you work directly under that guy. Wouldn't he trust you more than anyone else?"

"W-well… I guess..."

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Aisha grinned as she successfully won Aless over.

"Can you… stop hugging me?" Aless mumbled. "I've… got a girlfriend."

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Aisha obliged, stuffing the small, flat jewel box into her sash. She started to walk away, leaving the red-faced Aless behind.

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She made it all the way past a corner before Aless caught up to her, jogging briskly.

"Hey, just so you know." She said, walking up to Aisha's side. "I'm still your senior, so you have to listen to me, okay!"

"Okayy…" Aisha sang. "Whateeeever you want."

"Don't say it like that!"

(What the hell was that?) Aless thought, as the two girls made their way out of the building. (When I touched her, it's like my brain shut down… It felt so good. Two was right.)

(There's something unnatural going on with that girl...)

.

.

.

"So… how do you plan on getting to Kalamina?" Aless asked. "I don't like to admit it, but… Two was right. Kalamina is at least six days away. A week, usually, at a regular walking pace. Even with a horse, it would probably still take four days."

"We're going to run." Aisha said, dead serious.

"..."

"..."

"...You serious?"

"Yeah."

"No offense… But that's crazy." Aless mumbled. "Even if we could run all the way, I don't even know if it would be fast enough."

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Aisha didn't respond.

"...Aisha?"

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But the girl was already on the other side of the street, coat-tails flowing wildly behind her as she ran at an alarming speed.

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A few hours later, Aless was left panting for breath, ass flat on the grass as Aisha tended to a flame, uncomfortably close to the coals. The light sweat on her neck and chest quickly sizzled off her skin as she leaned in, seemingly entranced by the dancing flames.

"What are you doing?" Aless wheezed. "That's- *cough* - dangerous."

"It's ok." Aisha whispered. "Not even… as warm as mistress. Nnn..."

"Whatever-" Aless gasped. "Gods, how can you run for so long?"

.

Aisha's clothes began to smoulder, which the girl took as her cue to stop getting close to the fire. She grumbled to herself, pulling her legs close to her body, and resting her chin on her knees.

.

"What are we going to do for food and shelter?" Aless asked, sidling up to Aisha. "I don't know… if I can run another day like this."

"Aw, you can't?"

Aless shot Aisha an annoyed look.

"I'll carry you, if you can't run anymore." Aisha said offhandedly. Aless looked at her incredulously, but the girl was completely serious, as she tossed a stick into the fire.

"...I don't think that's necessary." Aless muttered. But at the same time, the sinking feeling in her stomach told her that it might be necessary. She looked longingly at the capital in the distance, a grey blob on the dark horizon.

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"Ok. We should get to sleep." Aisha said, wrapping her arms around Aless's waist, laying her head on her lap. Aless held up her hands in shock at the action, the ticklish sensation on her legs completely unexpected.

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"W-what are you doing?" She asked slowly, as Aisha snuggled into her lap, closing her eyes in contentment.

"Sleeping." She murmured. "Your lap is kind of firm, but it's still nice..."

"A little sticky though." She added in a low whisper.

"Wh-" Aless stuttered, going pink in the cheeks. "It's not that cold out! We don't have to sleep together!"

"That's not why I'm doing this." Aisha said. "I'm doing this because I like you! And I want to sleep with you."

"I've got a girlfriend!" Aless responded, trying to push Aisha's head off her lap. Aisha took Aless's wrist in her's, stopping the effort.

"Not like that!" Aisha said, annoyed. "I've got enough of those. I just want to cuddle with you, okay?"

Aless's expression scrunched up as she weighed the pros and cons of letting Aisha sleep in her lap. But as she was about to say something to Aisha, she looked down and realized that the girl was fast asleep, chest falling and rising peacefully.

(God, she's… really quite cute.)

(...What's this?)

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Aless's eyes caught the sight of a glint on Aisha's neck, reflecting the light from the fire. Her vision was drawn to the pendant on Aisha's neck, laying loose on the side of her neck. Aless had never seen it before. It was usually tucked into the folds of Aisha's scarf and clothes.

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She reached out to touch it, the amulet glowing almost… evilly. It seemed to pulse with a heartbeat, almost, but when she felt the side of Aisha's neck, the two pulsing heartbeats quickly desynchronized.

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She hissed in pain, retracting her hand like it had been electrocuted. She threw off the glove on her right hand, revealing it to be red and angry, as if it had been burned.

.

(I better… leave that alone. What's a girl with no soul doing with that?)

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The next morning, Aless woke up to a finger poking her cheek. She mumbled in her sleep, trying to get away from the finger, but despite turning a full rotation on the ground, she found that she couldn't escape the stupid poking.

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Her brows furrowed, and her expression twisted into an annoyed one as her eyes opened to see Aisha on top of her lap.

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She grabbed the curious finger and growled, annoyed. Even the sheepish look that Aisha gave her, that had gotten her out of so many angry encounters, didn't help to stop her from gripping the finger tightly, one movement away from breaking it.

.

"Stop that." She said dangerously. "I don't know how it's like with those other girls, but I'm not going to just let you do whatever you want."

"Ok."

"You say that, but you keep trying shit!" Aless said angrily. "The next time you do, I'm not going to be so nice!"

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Aisha nodded, and the angry woman let go of Aisha's index finger, letting out a deep breath.

"It's time to go out." Aisha said, cracking her neck. "I just wanted to wake you up before I left."

"Huh?"

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Aless cursed as Aisha started to take off again, sprinting off into the distance at an incredibly fast speed.

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"くそ!" Aless swore under her rapidly dwindling breath. "くそったれ! The things I do for him."

Her heart pounded in her chest, and her clothes were once more becoming sticky as her legs pushed off the dirt powerfully, making long strides in the ground.

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But even still...

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(How is she so fast!? Even with the enhancements, I can barely keep up!)

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She wiped a torrent of sweat from her forehead, attempting to keep it out of her eyes, but despite her best efforts, she couldn't keep the little beads out of her eyes. She eventually gave up and just settled for closing her eyes, feeling the water now dripping off her cheeks and onto her breasts and ground.

.

"This sucks." She gasped. "I hate this!"

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She had been trained to resist torture, to steel herself through fire, nails, and waterboarding, and yet, this was by far the hardest trial she had ever gone through.

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Running was just… so boring.

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Aless understood why Aisha had cracked so easily under Raxas's torture. Being deep in enemy territory, with no hope of escape, and only your obligation to a cause left - that was what made it bearable - knowing that there was nothing left but your own resolve. But doing something so menial, knowing that you could be doing something better - in a way, the hope made it so much worse, in an ironic twist.

That, combined with the burning feeling in her chest, the weakness in her legs, and the sweat dripping into her face, made running the worst thing ever.

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Aless quickly realized that closing her eyes was a terrible idea when she bumped into Aisha, sending them both sprawling onto the ground in a pile of limbs. She tumbled into the ground, chest skidding on the dirt as her momentum sent her flying past the other girl. Vaguely, she recognized the sound of ripping clothes, although that issue was secondary to her fatigue, and the pain of hitting the dirt.

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"Aughhh…" Aless groaned, as she laid there, face-flat on the ground. "Sorry..."

Both girls began to pick themselves off the ground, Aisha springing to her feet, Aless taking her time on the ground as she propped herself off the dirt with an arm. She flipped herself over onto her back, panting heavily as she used the opportunity to catch her breath.

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"Hey." Aisha said, squatting down and pointing in the distance. "Is that it?"

Aless followed Aisha's finger to a row of mottled, light-brown tents in the distance, with various robed figures running tent to tent. She grimaced as a bead of sweat entered her eye.

"Whoa…" Aless said in wonder. "We're here!? How..?"

"I guess that's a yes." Aisha said, getting up and preparing to barge into the camp, but as she got up, Aless's hand caught her wrist, the woman struggling to get up.

"Wait." She said, struggling to her feet and almost pulling Aisha down with her. "Not right now."

"...What?"

"I look… terrible." Aless said, glancing down at her ripped jacket, shifting uncomfortably. "I-I have to fix this up."

"You serious?"

"Yes! Appearances are important!" Aless chided. "If we show up like this, it will reflect poorly on Judge Raxas! We're here early anyways."

"Falo can wait a bit." She muttered.

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Aisha resisted rolling her eyes, despite that "I don't care." was on the tip of her tongue. For the first time, she exercised a little bit of restraint, as to not anger the strict woman.

It was difficult.

"Fine." She said. "But I have no idea how to fix your clothes. And we're going to have to look for water."

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Miraculously, they were able to find a lake, and while Aless wrung the sweat and dirt out of her clothes, Aisha waded around in the shallow waters, her clothes discarded on the shore. She submerged her head halfway into the water, covering up her nose and mouth and blew out a stream of bubbles, watching as they reached the surface of the water and disappeared.

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Aisha looked to her right, where Aless sat on the grass in her undergarments, using a needle and thread to sew up the chest of her outfit.

(Where did she get that? Does she carry that with her?)

"Come play with me." Aisha called.

"I'm busy."

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Aisha sighed and sank deeper into the water, counting the rocks on the lakebed.

(I'm bored… this rock looks cool.)

She picked up the rock from the lakebed, and after only a second of looking at it, Aisha grew bored of it and tossed it across the lake.

"Ow!" A voice said from far away. Aisha's eyes widened, glancing at Aless, but it looked like she didn't hear the noise, continuing to stitch up her clothing. Either that, or she didn't care. Aisha considered telling her, but she didn't feel like doing it. She started to swim to the source of the voice.

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As Aisha swam deeper into the lake, she grew confused, her eyebrows furrowing. There seemed to be no person inside the lake that she had hit with her rock. She should have seen something by now, but unless she had hit a mermaid, there was no way someone could have swam away from her that fast.

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She grew slightly concerned at the possibility of an ambush, starting to turn back, before a shimmering in the water caught her attention. It was a bit faint, but… a portion of the water reflected light a little differently than the rest of the lake. It created a shimmer in the water, about the size of a human, in the middle of the lake…

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Aisha swiped her hand through it, and heard a giggle come from the spot.

"H-hey! Don't do that! That tickles!"

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Aisha did it again, eliciting even more giggling. She was about to dive into the water, before the shimmering spot rose upwards rapidly, sending water splashing everywhere. Aisha also surfaced, to see the form of a young woman, completely made out of water.

"Water sprite." Aisha said firmly, as the girl propped up her face with her hands, pouting, resting her elbows on the water as if it were a solid surface.

"And you're from the feywood!" The sprite said, the rest of her body floating out the water, flat on her stomach. She began to kick her legs up and down like a schoolgirl at a slumber party, as she observed Aisha through a set of clear eyes, pouting slightly.

"Throwing that rock was really mean, you know!" She said, puffing out her cheeks. "If I was a hume, you could have killed me!"

"Uh… sorry."

"What are you even doing here?" The sprite questioned. "It's a loooong way from the feywood."

"It's complicated."

"Complicated, huh?"

"Yeah."

"...Are you with the humes?"

"The humes over there?" Aisha asked, nudging her head in the direction of the camps. The sprite nodded in response.

"...Not really." Aisha responded, after a terse silence.

"...Not really?"

"Are you just going to repeat everything that I say?"

"What do you mean by... 'not really?' "

"I have business here..." Aisha said slowly, trying to find a way to not aggress the sprite. "But I'm not a part of their… group..."

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There was a terse silence in the air as Aisha and the sprite stared at each other in the water. Aisha realized that she was in the middle of the potentially hostile sprite's lake, with no weapon, completely naked, and her entire body tensed. She tried very hard to not dart her vision back and forth, looking for a way out of the lake, to hide her panic from the sprite, when…

"Okay." The sprite muttered. "Fine. I believe you." Aisha's body relaxed, the pounding in her ears subsiding.

"What's your problem with the humes?" She asked.

"Their presence is poisoning this place." The sprite said, darkly. "Their magic. Their chemicals. Can't you feel the cries of Serith's roots?"

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Aisha stiffened as the sprite made mention of a natural fey ability. Being a fey, and especially one from the feywood, Aisha was supposed to be able to commune with Serith's tree, whose roots spread all over the world. But she couldn't… for obvious reasons.

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"No." She muttered. "I can't."

"What?"

"Can't do it. Don't have a soul."

The blue girl stood there in shock, mouth slightly open for a while at Aisha's words.

"S-seriously?" She asked. "No magic? No nothing? You said it like it was no big deal!"

"Yeah, well..." Aisha said lowly. "After a while, you get used to it."

"Wow." The sprite said in amazement. "That must be… terrible! I'm so sorry..."

At this point, all Aisha could muster up was a tired expression. That had been the response she had received her entire life, and yet all the nice sentiments in the world couldn't change a single thing.

The sprite looked uncomfortable, and although the tenseness of the situation went away, there was an awkward air between the two girls, thick like a mist over the lake. While Aisha was glad that the sprite wasn't hostile, the awkward silence was… annoying.

.

"Don't worry about it." Aisha said offhandedly. The casualness of her response seemed to relax the water sprite, who smiled at her. "I guess… sorry. Or something."

The sprite smiled at Aisha. "It's okay. You smell good. And you're cute! You and your friend can wash up inside my lake. It's my pleasure!"

"I… smell good?" Aisha said slowly.

"Your aura! It's nice. Feels like… A warm hug! I don't know. It just feels nice! I don't know how you have one, if you don't have a soul, but it's… kind of calming."

"Oh, ok." Aisha mumbled. "Thanks."

"Yep!" The sprite responded. "You can use my lake for a nice bath. I would like something in return, though..." The sprite giggled.

Aisha raised an eyebrow as subtly, the sprite's body began to blow up, becoming curvier and more generous in the bust and legs. She changed her pose to lay on her butt, arms propped up behind her, legs open a crack and inviting Aisha in.

"Do you play with yourself a lot?" Aisha said flatly. It took a bit for her implications to sink into the sprite, but as she realized, her sprite's nervous shuffling gave away the answer. Aisha rolled her eyes.

"Everyone's so perverted." She muttered. "I know why the succubus was so eager..."

"Hey! It's not my fault... " The sprite blushed. "There's not much to do when I can't leave this lake..."

"How do you even do it?" Aisha asked. "Your body is the lake, right? How can a lake get horny?"

"Hey!" The sprite squeaked. "W-well… I-I.. I.. I don't know, okay!"

"...How do you do it?"

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"Aisha!" Aless called from the lakeshore, as Aisha was splashed in the face by the playful sprite, holding up her hands as a shield. Both girls turned their head towards the voice as it travelled along the long lake.

"Aww." The sprite muttered to herself. "Well, thanks for hanging out with me. I don't get a lot of company."

"It's no problem." Aisha responded, beginning to swim away, spreading her arms out in preparation for a butterfly stroke, before the sprite called out from behind her.

"Wait!" The girl said in a panic. "My… my invitation still stands. Any time!"

Aisha cocked her head to the side. "Invitation?"

"You know." The sprite said sheepishly. "To fool around."

"Oh." She said simply. "Bye."

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Aisha rose up to her feet in the water, propping herself up with her arms on the rocky lakebed, and revealing her small assets. She frowned, looking down at her chest. She had never been the type to be conscious about her size, but she did wish there was a tiny bit of volume…

"Hey!- Cover yourself up!" Aless shrieked, covering her eyes at Aisha's naked body. "Were you just swimming around naked!?? What if someone was here!?"

"Well, there was."

"There was someone here!??" Aless said in horror. "What did you do!?"

"Well, we played around a bit." Aisha said casually, flinging water off of her arms. Aless looked at her judgementally, but Aisha missed the way that she looked at her, busy wiping her body off with her sash.

"...Whatever." Aless muttered. "Let's just go."

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Aless picked up a pouch, affixing it to her hip-

"Uh, there's a problem." Aisha said, staring at the ground.

"What?"

Aisha pointed to a set of footsteps, leading to Aisha's clothes, and then away from them, creating an imprint on the loamy soil. "The thing's gone."