2.15 – Uh

Maybe a bit of a weird split, it's non-lewd until the scene break, and then it's a sex chapter.

Maple talked with Mirkham a while after that, going over everything she might need. He acted as a consultant, but it'd be up to Maple to make the decisions and do any of it. Or back out entirely, while she still could.

Her head spun with thoughts as she vaguely made her way back toward the inn. She needed spreadsheets, and that lack was the thing she dreaded most. It would quickly become a nightmare if she didn't have a good way to keep track of expenses and income.

If only she had a way to charge her phone. Maybe she could find some kind of [Lightning Mage], or, a [Low-Voltage Magician, Who Could Also Make Cables]. Either would be asking for too much, but she did pass a little stationery shop.

She popped inside and politely dismissed the employee who asked if she was looking for anything in particular, opting to browse on her own first.

The shop was clean, and not all that different from an office supply store from Earth. It smelled like paper, leather, and something slightly chemical that she assumed must be ink. There were aisles of leather bound notebooks, ink pots, cheap quills, expensive pens which worked through either sheer craftsmanship or magic, and what she immediately decided upon for her use: binders made of wood and leather for holding loose sheets of paper. She chose one of the cheaper ones.

Paper samples were displayed inside of binders near the front counter. A variety of thicknesses and styles were available, including kinds with lines already precisely inked on. They even had grid paper in a few different sizes, which she imagined would work nicely for keeping numbers and sums aligned.

That was the kind she chose after flipping through them all. Grid style #3, she memorized, and approached the clerk; a half-elf woman with a friendly smile.

"Find everything you need, miss?"

"Yeah, mostly. This binder, some grid style three paper, and...maybe some of your cheapest paper? My girlfriend can't speak and communicates by writing, so just something for little notes, you know? But also maybe a notebook for a gift, if you have one that's—cute? Maybe also a pen for her, but..."

She didn't have that much coin to spend. She did still have a few more pens in her backpack if Emma's ran out, but her notebook was much closer to its end. Mostly, she just wanted to buy a gift for her cutie. The clerk nodded and considered the request.

"Hmm. Have you taken a look at the ones over on that shelf? They're all nice enough for a gift. A local [Leatherworker] makes them. Did you want the grid paper hole punched for the binder? How many sheets?"

"Oh, I haven't yet. And yes please, like...20 sheets?"

It was a little expensive, but that many should be enough to last a while. The half-elf nodded and pulled out a device to do it. Maple wandered over to the shelf she'd indicated.

There were notebooks bound in leather like the others she'd seen, but these all had designs etched into the front. Some were just simple patterns that repeated, while another had a highly detailed head of a wolf. It was also highly priced.

They were nice, but none of them were really cute. Even one with a flower on it looked more like a botanical illustration than what she was looking for. Which would Emma like most?

Her eyes lingered on one with a nautical theme. An octopus sat in the center with its tentacles trailing off around it. The tentacles wrapped around other sea critters; a dolphin, a turtle, a starfish, and some other kind of fish.

Like the others, it looked more realistic than cute, but her gut told her it was the one Emma would like most out of these. When she tried to figure out why and put that feeling into words, well...Emma did like seafood, and she did like tentacles—

Maple set it back down and scratched her head. Another had a bird on it, and one had the two moons.

"Miss? I had an idea based on what you told me, if that's okay?"

"Yeah, of course. These are nice, but they're not really, uh..."

Maple shrugged. None of them stood out as perfect for Emma.

"Not cute like you wanted? Heh, I understand. My husband makes them actually, and that's what I'm always telling him. Have you considered a chalk tablet? We sell chalk in a variety of colors, and this pouch is sold as a set for just five silver."

Maple winced, both from the price, and from nearly being rude. The clerk handed the leather pouch to her, along with a small chalkboard. The writing area was around six inches, and had a polished wooden frame surrounding it. It'd be a little bulky to carry around, but it felt sturdy and Emma was her cutie with a [Bottomless Stomach].

"If that's too much, we also sell the chalk individually. The tablets come in a few sizes; this one is two silver."

"No, I think this is...ooh, it even has a little heart on it."

She hadn't noticed at first, but the leather chalk pouch had a heart embossed in the center. Inside, dividers were sewn to hold eight different pieces of chalk. Three of them were white pieces, while an assortment of colors made up the rest.

"These are both perfect. Thank you."

"I thought you might like it. Anything else I can help you with?"

That was all Maple needed. Only the best writing implements for her cutie. She paid, and then smiled to herself the rest of the way to the inn. Emma would love it.

Hopefully. A nervousness etched itself around her giddy feeling. It was the first time she'd picked out a gift for her. She'd probably like it.

Once everything was sorted and put away, she could finally get to what she'd been aching to do. It'd been a productive day by her standards, so she'd earned a reward. Maple sent a thought to Thera.

"I'm home! Now, how do I provoke you?"

If she tried to put the feeling into words—she wanted to poke and tease Thera until she was annoyed enough to jump up and chase her. Maple's heart would skip a beat, and then she would run for her life while laughing. Adrenaline and excitement would fill her veins as she tried to get away.

She'd look behind her and see Thera only a foot away. Eventually, both of them panting, Thera would catch her, pin her down, and give her the pounding of her life.

It was the kind of thing she would have done to Anemone earlier, but both sides of it were great. Thera was so much stronger that she naturally went for the opposite end, though their quickie in the spa restroom showed that Thera also enjoyed both. Maple would love to struggle against her and feel just how much stronger she was, let her 'have her way with her', and—

She sent most of these feelings unvocalized to Thera, along with some embarrassment. She had calmed down, but now she was working herself up again. She felt some amusement from Thera—but also arousal!

"Someone's in a mood, isn't she? I'm almost home. Why don't you...get naked for me, if you're just waiting around?"

"Mm, okay."

How could she say no to that? Maple stripped, put a towel down, and then waited impatiently. Rather, it was the perfect opportunity to 'provoke' Thera with lewd thoughts and sensations in their shared mind. And that she did, for five minutes. Thera responded positively all the while until she finally sent that she was coming up the stairs of the inn.

Maple cast [Phallic Transformation] on her from afar. She wasn't sure she'd be able to do that with most people without at least having line of sight, but her telepathic bond with Thera made it easy.

"Oh you're going to get it now."

The door slammed open, and then quickly shut behind Thera. Maple smirked at her. She was in her full set of armor, it would take her a minute to—Thera walked straight for her with an intense look. Maple yelped and got up to flee, but she had nowhere to run. Nowhere to play out her full fantasy—but Thera still grabbed her and pinned her to the bed from behind nonetheless. Maple was naked, while Thera—

"You're not even out of your armor yet!"

"Good thing I don't need to be."

Maple heard a piece of it clink to the floor behind her, and then flesh press against her. Maple moaned with a laugh.

"Mm, jeez, I didn't expect you to actually—mnn. Yeah, pound me—oh, I love it—"

Thera immediately thrust her cock inside and fucked her hard. She didn't hold back at all. Maple had already been plenty wet, and this—was exactly what she'd wanted. It felt even better once she remembered to cast [Enhanced Pleasure] on the both of them, and Thera stopped briefly to strip herself.

Then, Maple directed all of her thoughts, every sensation she could, into their shared mind. It became the focal point from which she experienced reality, and allowed Thera to feel her own cock moving inside of Maple, almost as if it were her own body. There was no room for uncertainty when Thera used Maple's arms to pull her harder against her cock—she loved it, and Thera knew exactly what else she'd love.

Thera mimicked the technique and experienced reality almost entirely through their shared mind. They almost formed a single entity, temporarily losing their individual egos—it felt like they could have if they pushed it a little farther. They both kept it just before that point in an unspoken agreement.

Close as they were to that, when Maple urged Thera to spank her, she couldn't tell if she was moving Thera's arm herself or if Thera had just matched the thought so well that the action felt indistinguishable.

And the pleasure—it was a cacophony filled with both of their sensations. Maple clamped down around Thera's cock, felt her body cling to it and try to suck it back in, felt Thera's cock throb on the edge of orgasm. Reality was left for uncontrollable moans and gasps, but Maple provoked Thera in their mind.

"What's wrong? Going to cum already?"

"I think you are."

That'd already been a real possibility, but Thera reached an arm around her to roughly fondle Maple's clit. She knew exactly where to touch, and all of Maple's thoughts on what to avoid to last just a little longer were read by Thera and used against her. That went likewise for Thera, and when they felt both of their pleasure at once like this—their orgasms ended up being simultaneous.

"Mm, fill me up—pump it all in—"

Thera shot it all inside, making the hot liquid nearly overflow. Maple felt each spurt of Thera's cock, her own body shaking in pleasure, her mind going blank—Thera collapsing on top of her and embracing her from behind.

"That was amazing, now hold me, and cuddle me, and—"

They lay like that a while, keeping Thera's cock inside and their minds connected. Non-verbal lovey-dovey bliss filled the space. Maple fought off the impulse to put I love you into thought-words, and focused on the sensations. The experience was raw, intimate, vulnerable; they were in each other's minds, and could see everything.

With anyone else, except maybe Emma, Maple would have expected that to be scary. With Thera, it wasn't. She felt Thera's own affectionate feelings, astonishment at the uniquely intense sex they'd just had, and a hundred unrelated mind wanderings. She somehow felt safe completely sharing her mind with her.

They cuddled in a more comfortable position for a bit, and then Maple canceled the spell she had on her.

"Yoink. Now it's my turn—or did you want to..."

Maple blushed and mentally sent some positions for Thera's consideration, most of them gentler than their first bout had been. She could eat her out, try the scissoring thing if Thera would be fine with that, several other things, even just see how far they could push the telepathy—Thera laughed and pulled Maple's face to her chest. She pet Maple's head, making her melt against her in cozy bliss, and answered.

"I think we have time for most of those."