La Petite Mort

“Are we ready?” Mike asked. The others nodded, each one at their stations. Tink had tied Beth to a chair which had been placed in the fountain, standing behind her with a knife at the ready. Abella was out of sight, watching from up above in case everything went wrong. She had explicit instructions to do whatever it took to protect the members of the house. Naia stood behind Beth, her lips a crooked smirk.

“We are ready.” Cecilia said, standing next to him. Mike took a deep breath, taking Cecilia’s hand and stepping into the fountain with her. Even though her feet penetrated the water’s surface, no ripples emanated outward.

“I think you’re crazy,” Naia told him. “And I love you for it.”

“I just hope this works,” he muttered. He looked over at the doll they had placed on the opposite end of the fountain. Beth had nearly woken up several times, but Naia had kept her in a magical slumber. Simple magic, she had informed him. “Wake her up.”

Several colorful bubbles floated free of the water’s surface, circling Beth and popping near her face. She opened pitch black eyes, scowling menacingly at Mike.

“Ok Jenny, this is your last chance.” Mike addressed the spirit in Beth’s body with anger. “You can leave her body now, or we will make you leave.”

“You can’t touch me,” Beth hissed, the water at her feet spraying upward. “No refunds, no take backs, no cuts, no butts, no alligator guts. This is a good body, and I want to keep it forever and ever and ever. And I know you aren’t going to hurt it, so there’s nothing you can do about it!”

“I think you underestimate not only me, but the women here to help. Beth was a good person, but if I have to make a choice between letting you cause trouble or killing her...” Mike shook his head, his sentence unfinished. “I don’t pretend to fully understand where you are coming from, but I’ll be damned if I let you bring trouble to this home.” He looked at Cecilia, who was staring daggers at Beth. “Let’s do this.”

Cecilia leaned in, twirling her body to face Mike, her skirt flaring outward as she placed her lips against his. They were soft and cool, and already he could feel the static building between them, little sparks dancing between their lips. She pressed herself against him, playfully biting his ear. “Do you honestly think this will work?” she whispered, her cold breath raising the hairs on his neck.

“You’re the one who said that her senses are extra sensitive right now.” He whispered back, watching Beth. She was pretending to ignore them, but that was where Naia came in. The nymph was kneeling behind the chair, stroking the surface of the water, sending glimmering bubbles into the air, bubbles that popped with the scent of lilac and raspberries. “Are you ready?”

Cecilia responded by playfully biting his ear. Planting light kisses on her throat, he shifted the strap of her dress to one side, exposing her shoulder. Her clothing tugged at him, fighting to return to its proper position, but Mike pulled even harder, exposing her entire shoulder and the curve of her breast. The seduction magic wasn’t just affecting Beth-every whiff of raspberry and lilac sent a direct message to his groin, the pressure already building inside of him. Cecilia was immune to the effects of the spell, but not so to the light pressure of Mike’s lips on her skin. The banshee sighed, her hair billowing outward around her. The water around her ankles froze into icy discs, so Naia raised the temperature of the fountain, steam rising around Mike and Cecilia.

“Let’s take our time,” Cecilia suggested, leaning back to give Mike better access to her chest. Mike nodded his agreement, lifting her up to kiss the top of her breasts. Using his free hand to fight the clingy fabric, he pulled her dress down farther and farther until her breasts were close to fully exposed. The more he revealed, the harder it became to separate spirit from cloth, and though he could feel her hard nipples through the fabric of her dress, he was unable to expose them. Slightly frustrated, he contented himself to kiss as much of her cool flesh as he could, his dick growing harder with every soft moan of delight from Cecilia.

Even though her head was turned away, Beth’s dark eyes kept flicking back to Mike and Cecilia, unable to resist watching. Her breathing was deeper now, her cheeks slightly flushed. Tink had moved outside the fountain, watching Mike with interest, but always a wary eye on their captive. The whole fountain was steaming now, swirling vapor circling Beth’s lower legs.

Cecilia slid her hands up beneath Mike’s shirt, revealing the thin, patchwork lines of his scar tissue. Mike ran his fingers through Cecilia’s hair, pulling her mouth to his once more. Her cool fingers toyed playfully with his nipples, sending shocks through his body, straight to his groin. Mike moaned softly into Cecilia’s mouth, marveling at how her tongue caused his to tingle, like licking a 9-volt battery.

“What are you two doing?” Beth demanded, squeezing her thighs together. Water vapor was clinging to her skin, cool droplets that slid beneath the fabric of her dress, pulsing gently with Naia’s magic. “What are you…ngh!” Beth’s cheeks flushed, her breath becoming ragged. “Oh, shit…” Her voice was a hiss, the sudden stimulation derailing her train of thought.

Cecilia pulled her mouth away from Mike. “I wonder how many years we will get to spend together. How many nights we will sit on my porch, how many nights we will count the stars.” Her hand slid down his stomach, her ethereal skin passing through the fabric of his pants. Cool, electric fingers wrapped around his cock, Cecilia’s thumb teasing his frenulum. “I wonder how many ways we can fit together.”

“I…guess there’s…only one way…holy shit!” The magic surged through his legs, feeding sensual energy to his core, and the sparks inside his body wrapped around it. His cock was leaking large amounts of pre-cum, the wet spot on the front of his pants growing bigger. Between Cecilia’s touch and Naia’s magic, his cock was so hard that it was starting to hurt, pressing against the fabric of his pants with tremendous pressure. “Please… take it… out…”

“That I can do for you, my stōr.” Cecilia undid the button on his pants, tugging them down while her lower body floated up. “For you, I think I can do anything.” Cecilia licked her lips, floating forward so that the head of Mike’s cock parted them, pushing its way toward the back of her throat. The icy cold sensation of her mouth caused Mike’s hips to buck, and he felt his balls tighten, his dick ready to fill Cecilia’s mouth until it burst.

“Not yet, lover.” Naia’s voice came from a nearby bubble. Tendrils of water wrapped up his legs, tightening around his balls. Her magic relaxed his body, sending his orgasm away. “Save it for the main event.”

“Fuck,” Mike whispered, watching the banshee pump his cock with one hand. Tiny bubbles burst next to Cecilia, and Mike could just barely hear Naia’s whispering voice from each one, encouraging Cecilia and directing her movements. Cecilia’s grip on his cock changed; what had started as frantic pumping was now more relaxed and gentle. Water tendrils pulled Mike’s pants down even farther, and Cecilia used her free hand to massage his swollen balls. The pressure inside was unbelievable, but the magical block was in place. Mike threw a frustrated look at Naia, but he only had himself to blame.

After all, the whole thing had been his idea. Groaning in sweet agony, Mike placed gentle fingers on the back of her head, pushing himself ever deeper down her throat.

Beth was openly panting now, dark eyes staring at Mike’s cock as it disappeared and reappeared from Cecilia’s mouth. Tied to the chair, her fingers clenched, driving nails into the wood. She was rubbing her legs together even harder, but Naia’s magic was delaying the inevitable. Naia stood behind her, lightly stroking Beth’s breasts, caressing the soft skin of her cheek. Shifting her weight, Beth spread her legs to press her ass into the chair, grunting in frustration.  Cecilia continued sucking Mike’s cock while Beth rocked in her chair, desperate for stimulation of any sort.

Mike grinned, the look of desperation on Beth’s face giving him hope. He curled his fingers in Cecilia’s hair, allowing the electricity to build between them. Cecilia licked the head of his cock, actual sparks jumping from her tongue to the delicate skin of his dick.

“I can’t wait any longer,” Cecilia told him, the slight lilt of her voice making his cock twitch. She flipped over in mid-air, her skirt billowing outward as she twisted to face away from Mike. Mike grabbed her by the waist, pulling her close against his body. Even though he felt a desperate need to bury himself inside of her, they still had a show to put on. Fighting the ethereal lace of her outfit, Mike ran his fingers up the cool skin of her legs, pulling her crotch toward his face. Half of it was lust, the other half curiosity, but a single sentence had been reverberating in his head since last night.

“I wonder what banshee tastes like.” Her skin practically glowed at his touch, Mike planting light kisses on her inner thighs. Pulling aside her panties, he marveled at the odd hue of her pussy, the fact that it didn’t change color as he spread her open to look inside. Her inner folds had no definition to them, perfectly smooth on the inside like she had just been built. Taking in the ghostly scent of rain and ionized air, he buried his tongue inside of her wet snatch, his entire body going rigid at the sudden connection between them. His fingers trembled as her magic permeated his body, sparks jumping back and forth between them.

Hanging upside down, Cecilia took his dick in her mouth again, completing the circuit.

“Mmph!” Mike mumbled loudly, his mouth full of banshee cunt. Cecilia’s cool flesh pressed against him, and he fought to keep his mouth on her cool folds, pleasure making his entire body go rigid. Her clothing attempted to shove him away, but Mike pressed forward, running his tongue around her outer folds, slipping it inside and back out again. He could taste nothing other than the pure electricity of her being, his hands sliding beneath her panties to squeeze her ass cheeks, pulling her tighter against him. Cecilia was doing the same, pulling him in deep, the banshee lacking any sort of gag reflex as she swallowed his cock. Her throat became extremely narrow, the bulge of Mike’s dick moving beneath her skin, visible as a large bulge in her throat. His mind going blank, technique went out the window as Mike sucked on Cecilia’s clit, eliciting loud, throaty moans from her. His dick vibrated like a tuning fork in her mouth, that familiar pressure building once more while her tongue fought to hold him still.

The tendrils squeezed all along his legs, slowing his building orgasm. Mike held on as long as he could, desperately sucking on Cecilia’s pussy, delighting in the vibrato of her moans along the length of his shaft, before they finally broke apart. Mike’s cock was leaking heavily, unable to contain the cum that had built up within. Lying down in the fountain, the water beneath him vanished so he could lay flat on the cool marble. Cecilia knelt above him, gathering her skirt tightly in her hands. Mike shoved her panties aside as she sat, watching his cock pierce her icy pussy.

“Fuck!” Mike hollered, his whole body shaking. Cecilia rode him hard, her entire body aglow in foot long sparks that zapped the ground around them. Grabbing her own breasts, Cecilia’s hips bucked back and forth, a fog blowing in around the fountain, the temperature dropping dramatically around them. He could feel it building inside of her, desperate for a release of his own that he knew wouldn’t come.

“Ah...ah...AH...AH!!!” Cecilia gasped, taking in a deep breath, her chest expanding enough that her breasts strained the fabric of her dress.

Everyone plugged their ears except Naia, who used her hands to cover Beth’s ears. Abella flew up into the sky, vanishing over the roof. Cecilia screamed, the whole world shaking with from the blast. The windows overlooking the garden spiderwebbed, and the water in the fountain billowed outward away from her. The temperature dropped, fog swirling around them in a vortex. Cecilia slammed her pelvis into Mike, cumming one last time with a spray of ectoplasm before bursting into tiny motes of light that scattered into the fog like fireflies. The world became eerily silent, other than a slight ringing in Mike’s ears.

Abella returned, her hands still cupped around her ears. Seeing that Cecilia was gone, she uncovered them. Tink had already shaken off the scream, dagger at the ready. Naia moved back from Beth, stepping to the side to admire her handiwork.

Beth stared at Mike’s upright, twitching cock, her mouth slack, a tiny bit of drool in the corner of her lips. She was shifting her weight back and forth, grinding her ass into the wood of the chair, clearly at her wit’s end. Naia leaned forward, reaching from behind to grab her breasts.

“Ah!” Beth moaned, pushing her breasts hard into Naia’s hands. Naia squeezed them gently, kneading them with her slender fingers. Water trails crawled up Beth’s legs, and she let out several gasps. Whatever Naia was doing was highly effective.

Tink crept up behind the pair, using the dagger to quietly cut the bonds holding Beth in place. Mike stood, the water splashing back in around him, his whole body one sexual, electrical charge. When the last bond was cut, Tink ran out of the fountain. Naia released Beth, sinking below the water to disappear.

“I hope this works, I hope this works…” Mike muttered to himself. Beth rose, hungry eyes fixated on his cock. Part one of his plan was an obvious success-Cecilia had said that all of Jenny’s senses would be hyper sensitive, the result of being without a body for so long. Between the magic and the water trails, Beth’s body was overstimulated, and Jenny had no idea how to cope with it. Even knowing that Naia was stirring things up with her magic, it was everything Mike could do to wait for Beth to come to him. He was all charged up on banshee power, ready to unleash at a moment’s notice.

Beth stumbled forward, hands outstretched. Confusion, lust, and abandon were written on her face as she walked forward, hiking her skirt up around her waist. Staring at those long legs, at how toned those forbidden thighs had been, Mike knew he wasn’t going to last long.

“I…I…” Beth’s voice was more prevalent now, Jenny’s hold on her body already weak. Her hands closed on Mike’s dick, gripping it tight. Mike pulled her close, burying his face in her neck, dragging his tongue up her skin, relishing at the tiny sparks that jumped between them. Beth let out a shriek of delight, gasping when Mike’s hand found her pussy, rubbing her gently through the soft fabric of her underwear.

“Oh! Oh yes, please!” She ground against him, nearly knocking him over. Mike spun her around, forcing her onto her hands and knees. Pushing her skirt up, he grabbing tightly to her hips as his cock rested on the top of her ass. Using one hand, he tore her underwear off, tossing the soaked garment to the side. Placing his dick at the entrance of her pussy, he briefly wondered what Beth would think if she knew this was happening.

Right now, however, he was too horny to care. He pushed forward, Beth’s folds parting remarkably easy, sliding into the warmth of a human woman for the first time in years. Her cunt was hot, gripping him with tenacity as Beth cried out, moaning unintelligibly as Mike drove into her. He could already feel the charge starting to build, Cecilia’s sexual energy seeking a release. Beth’s arms shook, her first orgasm rolling through her lower backs and hips. It wasn’t hers that mattered, not yet anyway. Naia’s water coiled tightly against his balls, the pressure from within almost unbearable.

From his current position, it was everything Mike could do just to hold on to the bucking woman in front of him. Luckily, Naia was there to help. Magically appearing from the water beneath them, she ran her hands lovingly up Beth’s thighs, gently stroking the delicate skin around her clitoris. Beth was gasping again, a second orgasm rolling through her.

“I think it’s about show time,” Naia informed him, sticking out her tongue and licking the cream off of Mike’s dick. “Ooh, this one is yummy!” Gently stroking Mike’s balls, Naia retracted her magical blockage, latching her mouth above Beth’s soaking mound.

“Oh shit.” Mike felt like a thunderstorm had formed in his gut. The hair on his body stood up, the water in the fountain moving away from him as sparks formed on the tip of his body. They danced along Beth’s back like little electrical tornados, the whole world swimming in and out of focus as Mike’s orgasm built. “Oh shit. Oh shit!” His balls pulled up into his body, an eerie blue aura covering his skin as he erupted into Beth.

“Oh…oh..OH!!!” Beth let out a howl as the electrical wave washed over her entire body, circling her skin with nowhere left to go. She howled, her words meaningless, rising up on just her knees. Mike pulled her backward, still driving into her from behind as Naia rolled over, getting a better angle on her slit with her tongue. Beth came hard enough that she screamed herself raw, sending the energy back into Mike.

“FUCK!” Mike, his dick instantly hard again, blowing a second load into Beth. Beth screamed, spraying Naia’s face with cum of her own, the energy jumping back into Mike. Mike clawed at Beth’s breasts, shoving himself forward, his thighs covered in both of their fluids. Naia pushed back on Beth, helping Mike to stay buried deep inside her as he came a third time. When the energy jumped, Beth let out one, long, final scream, and a misty light fled from her body, jumping across the fountain and into the Jenny doll. A softer, gentler light left the doll, entering Beth’s body, her dark eyes fading back to normal.

“OH MY GOD!” Beth came again, and this time they all fell over backward, collapsing in the cool water of the fountain. Mike’s stomach hurt so bad, he thought he might throw up, and he had to fight for every gasp of air. The woman on top of him had gone motionless, hanging limply off his body.

“Beth?” He asked, trying to sit up. Naia leaned over both of them, a smirk on her face.

“Oh, she’s out.” Naia snapped her fingers in front of Beth’s face, nodding in satisfaction. “I used some of that sexual energy to knock her out for a few hours.”

“It seems weird that your magic includes making people fall sleep,” Mike said, swallowing between breaths. His throat suddenly dry, his cock slid free of Beth, splashing water across her legs. A large glob of semen followed, pooling up between her thighs.

“How do you think I drown people? Much easier to do it that way.” Naia waved her hand gently in circles over Beth’s abdomen. She groaned in her sleep, and Mike watched a giant puddle of cum appear beneath her as every ounce of his spunk was forced out. “And that will keep her from getting pregnant. You came quite a lot, you know. I’m a little jealous.”

“Yeah, good thinking. Birth control wasn’t part of my plan,” Mike admitted, his heart finally calming down. He looked over at Tink, who stood scowling at Jenny. “I’m just glad it worked.”

“I am too. A normal person can barely handle that kind of biofeedback-I’m not surprised that Jenny got scared and bailed with her senses extra raw. That was a phenomenal idea, much better than killing the host.” Naia waved a hand, the cum washed away by fountain water. “Jenny probably did think she was going to die, for real this time.”

“It is called ‘the little death’ after all.” Mike grinned, struggling to stand. “Hey Abella, a little help?”

Abella walked into the fountain, hefting Beth with ease. Mike stood with Naia’s help, climbing carefully over the side of the fountain. Abella set Beth down on the chair they had brought out earlier, carefully adjusting her dress to cover her up a bit more. Tink walked up to Mike, Jenny clutched tightly in her hands.

“Jenny go back to Vault,” Tink declared, shaking the doll in Mike’s face. “Jenny in huge trouble.”

“Give me a minute,” Mike told her. “I want to see the Vault for myself.” Mike stretched, trying to pop a sore spot in his back when he noticed it. Dark vine-like growths, all across the edge of the yard, twisting through the bushes. Before they had started, the yard had been clear, but now it was covered in the stuff as far as he could see round the corner of the house.

“Shit.” The Mandragora had returned, searching for a meal. It moved slowly, the ground covered in a cold frost, so Mike felt like he wasn’t currently in any danger. Still, he moved a little bit quicker than he had. “C’mon Tink. Abella, go ahead and bring Beth inside, I’ll figure out what to do with her when I get back.”

Tink nodded, clutching Jenny tightly in both hands like she was going to run away. It made Mike wonder if she even could, the doll appearing to be nothing out of the ordinary. Mike changed into the spare pants he had left by the side of the pool-he had expected to get more than a little wet. A wary eye on the Mandragora, he went into the house, following Tink through the front room and back through the kitchen. She opened a door just past the pantry, illuminating a concrete flight of steps. He followed her into the darkness, squinting at the hanging bulb that swung above an old freezer. The concrete basement was empty-Mike spun around in circles looking for an additional doorway.

“Where is the Vault?” He asked, looking behind the freezer. He half expected a tunnel behind it.

“Vault like all special place. Have to know secret.” Tink squatted next to the freezer, pulling out a piece of chalk. Mike watched her draw a large rectangle on the concrete wall, complete with a doorknob. Tossing the chalk back beneath the freezer, Tink knocked three times, waited, then knocked twice.

The concrete drawing turned into a wooden door with a flash of light. Mike’s jaw hung open when Tink pulled the knob of the magic door, opening it into a large room full of random objects. Long tables and shelves made Mike think of a pawn shop. Keeping a safe distance outside, he watched Tink stand on a steel to set Jenny up on a shelf in the back of the room.

“You stay there,” Tink announced, scowling at the creepy little doll. “Think about what you did.” Scrambling back out, Tink closed the door. After a couple of seconds, it turned into concrete once more.

“How many rooms in the house are like that?” Mike asked.

Tink frowned. “Tink try remember, but fuzzy in head. Remember Vault when see Jenny. But lots.”

Mike sighed. “Yeah, of course.” Shaking his head, he followed Tink back upstairs. It was time to take care of their unexpected guest.

-

“Ow.” Beth’s bathroom came into focus, her eyes opening against the suddenly harsh bathroom light. Wincing, she sat up in the bath, one hand immediately on her sore vagina. Struggling to stand, she managed to grab her towel off the rack, wrapping it delicately around her mid-section. Her legs were weak, like she had run a marathon.

Her ankle felt sprained, a weird, half memory of running through a cave and twisting it in the back of her mind. She put a hand against her throbbing head, wondering why it was pounding so hard. Shuffling out of the bathroom, she kicked the empty merlot bottle on the floor. Kneeling down to pick it up, she dropped it in the trashcan next to the sink, crying out when it cracked another empty bottle within, the sound bouncing around her skull like angry ping pong balls.

“Shit.” Had she seriously downed two bottles by herself? Why? She hadn’t done anything remotely blackout drunk since freshman year of college. Rubbing her lower belly (which was oddly sore), she walked out of the bathroom and into the cool, dark apartment.

“Ah geez.” Shaking her head in disbelief, Beth didn’t know whether to laugh or throw up. Strewn about her apartment was the majority of her dildos, strapped to the bed, suction cupped to the tile beneath her kitchen counter, the Delightful Dragon suctioned to the floor in the middle of the room. Moving carefully, she nearly slipped in the puddle of lube that had formed by the side of her bed next to the overturned bottle.

Pulling some Tylenol out of her nightstand, she swallowed four tablets. As best she could tell, she got absolutely hammered and then gang banged herself all over the apartment. She didn’t know if she was horrified that she had taken it so far, or mad that she had no memory of it. Her stomach and leg muscles hurt, making her regret all of the orgasms she couldn’t remember.

Well, there was one. She had been having a weird fantasy, Mike plowing her from behind while a woman with blue-green hair had eaten her out. The whole world was a mess of sound and light, and her vision had gone dark when she came, no doubt stumbling to the bathtub after. Shivering in delight, she sat in bed, deciding that it was best to clean up the mess tomorrow-she had no desire to do anything else with her evening, and she was obviously hung over. Peeling back the covers of the bed, she realized that her copy of The Hobbit was sitting by itself, the Jenny doll missing.

Icy fingers crawled up her spine, ran through her hair, down the sides of her neck, and all along her body. There was something about the doll, something she really didn’t like. Looking around the room, she realized that she didn’t see it anywhere, an idea that triggered a suddenly strong sense of paranoia.

Crawling beneath the covers, her only thought on the matter was that it had probably creeped her out while she was drunk and fucking herself. Promising that she would look for it in the morning, she put the matter out of her mind and fell promptly asleep.

-

Mike had dozed off in his Uber. The driver, a twenty-something wearing a black vest, gently shook him awake.

“We’re at your destination, sir.” The Uber driver held the door for Mike. Mike slid out of the car, his muscles protesting. “I hope you and your daughter have a good night.”

“Thank you,” Mike said, Tink sliding out of the car behind him. The hoodie she had borrowed from Mike was pulled up over her head, covering most of her face. Mike had laid the groundwork when the driver had arrived, explaining that his daughter had just participated in a Youtuber’s video about Lord of the Rings or Dungeons and Dragons, he wasn’t sure, but hey, she made a hundred bucks. The driver had paid no attention to Tink whatsoever-children didn’t get to rate Uber drivers. Watching the man drive away, Mike marveled at how easy it had been to get home, definitely the easiest part of the night.

They had driven Beth home in her car, and it had taken some work to get her into the house. They had to wait until it was fairly late, Naia keeping Beth in magically induced sleep for the whole evening. Tink had helped Mike get Beth to her room, and then the two of them had trashed the place, making it look like she had gone on a bender. Tink was the one who had discovered the briefcase in the closet. Even without her goggles, she had been able to get it open before Mike had finished filling the bath. For whatever reason, Tink took great delight in attaching the dildos to every surface she could find, even asking Mike if they could take one home. She had grumbled at him when he told her no.

Cecilia greeted them at the door, vanishing from sight as they crossed into the home. The whole house felt tired, a spiritual exhaustion that had settled in once Jenny had been trapped back in the doll.

It was a long climb up the stairs, Mike clutching the railing tightly, pulling himself upward. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt so tired in his life. Tink was even slower, the little goblin mumbling to herself as they crossed the threshold of the bedroom.

Naia had a warm bath waiting for them both. Mike and Tink got in, and the two of them took turns washing each other’s backs while Naia sent jet-like pulses through the water, targeting sore muscles. Gone was any sexual energy, the day having sapped away all of their strength. Mike leaned back in the tub, Naia acting as his pillow, while he waited for Tink to wash her hair.

“Today was too much.” Mike sighed, Naia’s fingers gently massaging his shoulders. “I was feeling better this morning, but I just feel rotten now. I screwed up-someone almost got seriously hurt.”

“You’ll get the hang of this life. All of the caretakers have.” Warmth seeped into Mike’s weary bones. “You’ve only been here a few days after all.”

Mike stared at the ceiling. Had it really only been a few days? It felt like weeks already. This house was full of so many mysteries, and he hadn’t even made the effort to explore it yet. His thoughts turned once more to the Mandragora. He needed to stop forgetting to deal with that plant. Lost in thought, he jumped when Tink dragged her claws up along the bottom of his foot, tickling him.

“Husband too serious,” she informed him, gathering a mouthful of water. She stood up in the bath, striking a sexy pose and spit the water out, fountain-style, hitting Mike in the face. “Now Tink is nymph too,” she informed him, grabbing her breasts and playfully squeezing them. “Use water magic, make sexy time for everyone.”

“I don’t think so,” Mike replied, making a scoop with his hands. Placing his thumb on the top, he squeezed, launching a spray of water between his thumbs at the goblin. Tink ducked, but was hit in the face anyway. Laughing, she took a deep breath, vanishing beneath the surface of the water and biting Mike on the foot.

“Gah!” Mike yanked his foot out of the water, pulling Tink with it. He grabbed her by the horn, splashing water in her face with a free hand as she fought to defend herself. Tink twisted around, biting Mike’s forearm as she kicked water at him. Laughing, Mike tickled Tink’s bare bottom, and she let out a laugh of her own, falling back beneath the waves. Mike tried to pull Tink above the water, but Naia joined the fun, summoning several watery fingers that tickled both of them from underneath. The bathroom filled with laughter and more splashing, Tink and Mike struggling to dunk Naia, who simply disappeared beneath the water’s surface every time they shoved her.

Several minutes later, Mike stepped out of the bath, a large grin on his face. He helped Tink out, placing a gentle kiss on Naia’s lips before she sank below the water, disappearing from sight. Mike and Tink dried off, Tink sliding into her sleep shirt and Mike into boxers. Lying down on the bed, Mike let out a sigh as Tink grabbed onto his arm, using it like a giant pillow.

He was going to make screw ups and have rough days. It was a fact of life, everybody had them. However, it mattered more how he spent his time between those awful moments, because that was where he would plant his happy ones, making memories that would become more precious than gold. Lying there in bed, listening to the goblin next to him breathing softly, he couldn’t help but feel a little blessed to be surrounded by such magical creatures.

“You sure do keep my life interesting,” he whispered. Tink gently bit his arm, and he smiled. She shifted her body, scooting up closer to his face. Her hair smelled of lavender, and her skin was soft to the touch. Letting his body relax, he took in the scent of the house itself, allowing its smells to permeate his soul and guide him to sleep.

The world faded away, his body sinking into nothingness as sleep claimed him. Drifting away, one more scent tickled his nose, suddenly there and gone, like a match struck and then blown out.

It smelled of sulfur.