After dinner came baths, and that was Marissa’s department. While she was making sure Meri and Mari scrubbed behind their ears and under their nails, Fisher would stand in front of the sink and wash the dishes using a Wash Stone he was financing. By his accounts, he still had three more years to go until it was paid off. And yes, he could just use Create Water to clean his plates, but the Wash Stone was a long-term investment. He didn’t know if his children would ever join Warden, and they weren’t blessed with the Create Water skill. If their dear, old father had it his way, he’d want his children to be safe and sound forever. To help with that, he planned on giving the Wash Stone to them when they came of age. As long as they had it, drinkable water was only a quick use away.  

Fisher also had a series of pipes running from the expensive stone to the rest of his house. Much like the one-way mirror, connecting a Wash Stone to tubes and installing mechanical control devices was an experimental technology developed in Westera. It was thanks to the late Parrel that such technology existed in Canary. The device was installed into every noble’s house. 

After dinner was devoured, bodies were washed, and plates scrubbed clean, it was time for the young girls to go to bed. That usually fell to Fisher, and it was something he enjoyed. Tucking his daughters under their duck blankets and reading them a story was his highlight as a father. Depending on what Mari and Meri were in the mood for, Fisher would tell them a tale about a ferocious girl who fought for justice, a hulking Kobold, who ran a school for good boys and girls, or a lovely poem about a cat who fought the world and became her own person. And if they weren’t in the mood for that, Mari and Meri would tell a story to Fisher, and he’d sit there and enjoy it as if he was listening to the world’s creator. 

Fatherhood was something no man could understand until they had a family of their own. It came with its own sets of challenges and trials, but it also brought a tremendous number of fears and worries.  

When Meri and Mari couldn’t keep their little eyes open any longer, Fisher watched as they laid back on their matching duck pillows. He stood up, walked to their bedsides, and gave each one a small kiss on the forehead.  

“Goodnight, girls.” 

Once the children were taken care of, it was time for their mother and father to spend a little personal time cuddling together on their bed. Fisher walked out of his daughters’ room, quietly closing the door behind them. Then he walked down the hall to the master bedroom. The first thing he saw was the striking figure of the woman he fell in love with. Dressed in her favorite nightgown, Marissa sat at the foot of the bed and drew designs on the carpet with her feet. 

“Are they asleep?” Marissa asked when she noticed his presence. Her long, brown hair playfully protected her ears. She looked up, meeting his brown eyes with blue orbs of her own. 

“Yeah,” Fisher replied as he took off his t-shirt, revealing a well-toned chest and muscularly defined back full of scars. He stretched his arms and raised them to the sky. “They wanted to hear a story about a Kobold.” 

Marissa stood up and walked to her husband, who was unbuckling his belt. She placed her soft palms on Fisher’s chest and kissed his neck. Fisher returned the affection by rubbing his hands down his wife’s back and playfully smacked her bottom through her thin nightdress.  

“Dear...” Marissa began to speak, and as she pulled her head away from Fisher’s neck, she was silenced by a deep, passionate kiss that lasted well over forty-five seconds. During which, his hands explored under her nightgown, rubbing her bare skin. When their mouths finally separated, there was a thick, wet, sopping line of spit connecting the husband and wife.  

For seventy-seconds, Fisher and Marissa touched their foreheads together. Her hands descended into the front of his pants and massaged Fisher’s manhood, and Fisher’s hands slowly made their way down Marissa’s stomach. Eventually, his burly, rugged fingers flicked against her drenched, moist peach. 

“Darling...” Marissa panted and kissed his lips. Her hands stroked harder, but she didn’t have that much room to work with. Fisher had started to tenderly spread Marissa open, but he had focused too much on the teasing and nothing else. His wife let him know that because she walked backwards to the bed and sat down. 

Instead of unzipping his pants and freeing the beast within, she took off her nightgown, leaned back, and spread her legs. She presented her husband with her bare body, and he burned it into his eyes. Even through two children and six years of being together, his wife was still the most beautiful woman in the world. She hadn’t changed at all, and she was still the love of his life.  

 Glistening love juice soaked her inner thighs, and Fisher kneeled down and proceeded to pleasure his wife for twenty minutes, making sure his tongue had a chance to thoroughly explore it all. Marissa’s moaning had gotten so loud that they were afraid a pair of sleepy children would come to investigate the disturbance.  

“Marissa... Sweetie... I need you...” Fisher panted as he came up for a breath of air. Just the sight of the orgasmic look on his wife’s face was all he needed. With one hand, Fisher fumbled with his breeches and kicked them off. The other lifted Marissa’s left leg up in the air. He did the same with the right leg, and they balanced on his shoulders as he eased himself into her tantalizing snatch. 

Fisher enjoyed his lover’s inner warmth as his manhood’s head became enveloped in sensual bliss. He took it slow and waited, concentrating on his breathing so that he could last as long as possible. Only when he felt it was safe did he dig ever deeper until his 18-centimeter rod was all the way in. Eventually, his moans combined with that of his wife’s, who somehow managed to remove her legs from his shoulders. She reached up, grasping at Fisher, and he leaned down to give his wife a kiss. 

His hands went with him, choosing to focus on Marissa’s impressive chest. Her whole body was warm to the touch. She lifted her legs and wrapped them around his waist, locking him in. Marissa’s body became sweaty as their passion reached a new level of lovemaking. He leaned up, wrapping his arms around her body, and picked her up. Fisher’s waist was still pumping away the best he could, but he couldn’t drag his mouth from her. His and his wife’s tongue played with each other, swapping spit and salvia and possibly other fluids in the process.  

Each time he thrusted into his wife, she moaned and huffed with pleasure, and each time he started to remove his throbbing rod, Marissa just wouldn’t let him. She clenched her legs, gripping her husband’s thick manhood because she did not want him to leave. 

While still connected, Fisher walked to the wall and pressed his wife against it, using the support to get a better angle. Suddenly, he felt her tighten up, and the strength in her legs gave out, causing her to almost fall as warm liquids drenched her thighs. But her hero was right there, catching her under the legs and supporting her shaking body with his masculine hands. Even though she had reached the pinnacle of pleasure, Fisher had not. He focused his breathing and continued to thrust, filling the room with the scent of their lovemaking. 

He walked back over to the bed and sat down. Marissa slightly trembled, and she finally removed her tongue from his mouth. Sweat had wetly stuck her brown hair to her forehead, and in most cases, she would have looked miserable. But that playful grin and satisfied expression revealed it all. Her chest heaved, moving along with her hasty breathing. She wrapped her arms around Fisher’s head and started to kiss and nibble at his neck. At the same time, he placed his hands under her bottom and slowly lifted her up. 

He heard the squelching of his rod and felt the cold air attack it, but before it could taste freedom, he maneuvered his waist upward, stabbing until Marissa had taken all of his meat. She stopped her nibbling and cried in a passion of ecstasy. Again, Fisher felt his wife quiver, loving the passionate sounds she was making. It only served his rob harder and longer. After Marissa had quieted down, Fisher took it as a sign to start moving. Every millimeter of her inner folds lovingly squirmed around his throbbing member. 

It didn’t take long for the pressure in his crotch to start building, and his wife knew it. Whenever her reason came back to her, she grabbed Fisher’s head and whispered in his ear. “Darling... I want it in me... Don’t pull out... I... I want you to fill me up... Darling.... Darling....” Her tone and voice increased in urgency because she knew the chalice of pleasure would be unlike anything she had experienced before. Fisher was an impressive lover, but he had never taken the initiative like lifting her up and pressing her against the wall. 

Marissa tried to take control and bounce on his waist, leaving her perky breasts jiggling in front of his face, but that didn’t last long. Her nipples were a weak spot, and it only took a few seconds for her pleasurable moans to increase in volume. If there was anything to say about his darling wife, it was that Marissa was a vocal lover. Fisher kept his grunts and pants to himself, for the most part, at least. But before the stork delivered Meri, Fisher once joked to his wife that he needed earplugs whenever they made love. 

“Marissa... Marissa... Marissa...” Fisher repeated his lover’s name when his breath quickened. Marissa did the same, chanting Fisher’s name over again as she somehow found the strength to grind her waist. She felt hot. He felt hot. Steamy sweat drenched both of their bodies, adding a silky sheen to Marissa’s chest. Fisher’s hands quickly monopolized her bouncing breasts as his mouth was occupied by her tongue. 

And then it happened. Fisher grunted, straining himself as his hot seed flowed into Marissa. One wave—three waves—five waves—it took seven waves of increasing pleasure—it seemed as if his white liquid would never end. Fisher found himself falling back, smacking his wet hair into a dry pillow. His arms remained extended, still fondling his wife’s bosom. And like a robot who had run out of juice, Marissa fell forward until she laid against her husband’s chest. Fisher’s erected manhood slowly returned to its sleepy state, and a wave of white flowed from Marissa’s crotch. It stickily stained her thighs, his legs, and the bed, but neither of the two were in any state to move. At least, they required another five to ten minutes for reason to return to their minds. During that time, he wrapped his hands around her back and tightly hugged her. 

When reason did return, Marissa pushed off Fisher’s chest and adorably stared down at him. He reached his hands up and parted her brown hair, then he leaned up and gave her a passionate kiss. “Marissa, I love you,” he said. 

“And I love you, Fishy...” she whispered. 

“Fishy? Really?” 

“It's not the first time I’ve called you that.” Marissa grinned and laughed. 

“Well... As long as it’s you... I’ll always be your little Fishy.” 

After sharing one more kiss, Marissa seductively hopped off of Fisher’s waist, but he immediately jumped up because she wobbled backwards. He caught her by the hand and pulled her close. She pressed her chest against his and looked up, cupping her palm around his chin. “Sorry, dear. I guess I’m a little dizzy,” she whispered. As she spoke, she felt her husband’s seed dribble down her thighs. 

“Do you want me to carry you to the bathroom?” Fisher asked.  

“If you wouldn’t mind, dear,” Marissa said. She giggled when Fisher wrapped his strong arms around her bag and legs. Like an esteemed prince carrying his princess, Fisher escorted his wife to the bathroom attached to their room, and after a bit of persuasion, ended up joining her. Fisher just couldn’t break away from Marissa’s curvy body, and she had a way of getting him all sorts of excited.  

There wasn’t that much washing, but there was a lot of lovemaking. Fisher ended up giving his wife his seed three more times before the exhausted lovers emerged from their sultry exchange of lust. 

“Sweetie, I know there’s something on your mind,” Marissa whispered. She was lying down on her bed with her pretty head supported by a pillow. A beige-colored blanket came up to her waist, and her upper body was bare naked. Fisher was there, resting his head on his stomach as her hand feathered his hair. He, too, only had the cover up to his belly button, but he snuggled his cheeks against his beloved wife. 

After exhausting themselves in the shower, Marissa and Fisher dried off, changed their bedsheets, and slid under the cover to enjoy each other’s company before falling asleep.  

“Marissa... I... I had to imprison two of our guards today.” 

“Did it have anything to do with that incident near one of the city gates?” Marissa asked. “I overheard a few people talking about that while I was out shopping at the market.” 

“Yeah... Sea and Jeri... I can’t reveal who they attacked or why, but the victims were innocent. But it was like they didn’t care at all. There were over seventy witnesses, and they saw what happened. When Sea and Jeri took the vow, they promised to forever protect Canary and its people, but...” 

“I can’t even imagine the sorrow you’re feeling, but I know there is something else. You and I are a team, but I won’t force you to talk about it. I just want you to know that I’ll be here when you’re ready.” 

“You’re right... There is something else bothering me... Remember... Remember when I told you about my past? About the awful things I’ve done?” he asked with a shaky voice. 

“I do. Why?” Marissa swirled her index finger around his brown hair.  

“It’s a lot to say, but I’m just going to blurt it all out because it’ll be the easier that way… Before I met you, I… I did something awful to this Kobold and his village. His wife and daughter nursed my wounds, and… And…” Thick, fat, regretful tears started to flow from the corner of his brown eyes. Fisher’s face scrunched up like someone was squeezing a sponge, and everything he kept repressed flowed out.  

“I… I slaughtered them all in the name of false justice… I did what Arnold and I wanted… But… My sins…they came back to haunt me… Do you remember all those refugees that arrived a few days ago?” 

His lovely wife’s tone shouldn’t have surprised him, but it did. She had vowed to stand by him just like he pledged to stand with her, but he still couldn’t believe someone as gentle as his dear Marissa could exist in this reality. “I do, sweetie. If I recall, Governor Blasé took care of it and gave them jobs in the city and surrounding villages. There were a few fights and brawls, but it wasn’t anything overly serious.” 

“That’s right… But they wouldn’t have been refugees if not for me… I’m the reason behind everything… All of their blood… Everyone died because I sickeningly chose to wipe out a village of peace-loving, farming Kobolds… It’s been years and years since it happened, but it all caught up with me…” 

“…” 

“Sakdu… That was the name of the Kobold who led the Mafia, and I was the one who set him on that path… My sword stole his daughter and wife away from him… The people he killed—sacrificed— along his way in the name of revenge… It’s as if I took their lives myself. I—” 

“Darling, how could you have possibly known this? Who told you this?” 

“But that’s not all,” Fisher kept speaking, even ignoring his wife’s question because he had to say what he needed to say. Even if it had to come from a nearly indiscernible voice, he had to keep talking. “There was an army marching towards Canary… An army 15,000 strong, and Sakdu was the commander. That was his hatred towards me, and he planned to burn Canary to the ground just because I was here. He intended on harming my girls, and he had horrible plans for you… I’m strong, but I’m don’t have the power to handle five thousand men…let alone 15,000… Just the thought of losing and being forced to watch while he robbed me of all that I hold dear… … I couldn’t handle it… I just couldn’t! 

“If that person didn’t come along… If that girl didn’t get kidnapped… If they had just decided to go somewhere else… Canary wouldn’t be here… You and our precious children wouldn’t be here… I wouldn’t be here… I… I— I owe everything—our safety and our lives— to them... Canary’s existence owes everything to them, but they wouldn’t have had to endure that hell If it wasn’t for me!!!!” 

For the first time in a while, Fisher was so emotional and choked-up that he couldn’t speak at all. He slightly turned his body and cried into Marissa’s stomach. His body trembled with every weep, groan, and whimper. Nasty snot ran down his nostrils and stained his wife’s tummy.  

But she didn’t stop rubbing his head for a moment.  

“Fisher, sweetie… I’ve told you before, but I forgive you. I’ll always forgive you. You were a different person back then—a man who followed the blind hate in his heart, but you aren’t that man anymore. You truly know what it is like to have something you love even more than life itself. That’s just how I feel about you and our little sparkles of joy… I love you, my darling husband. I will always love you, and there will forever be a Fishy-shaped spot in my heart for you.” 

For the next fifteen minutes, the room’s only noise came from a grief-stricken guard.  

Eventually, silence took over, and only the sound of a pair of lovers breathing could be heard. Fisher had fallen asleep on his wife’s stomach. Before she drifted off to dreamland, she had a few words to say.  

“Fisher, I think I know what’s mostly disturbing you. You’re afraid another shadow of your past will rise up and plan to strike you down. This… This army had awoken you to that possibility. I must admit, I find it hard to believe what you said, but you’re not the type to lie to your family… So I know you spoke the truth.  

“I’m sure if you were alone, you wouldn’t have to worry… But now that you have a family, you’re worried about us… You’re afraid they’ll bypass you and come straight for us… This is one of the times I wished I had just a sliver of your strength. I wish I could fight by your side… But you and I… Me and you… We’ll protect our daughters from whatever may come and strike us down… Fisher, you’re the most important man I have in my life… I love you. Sweet dreams, my darling.”