Mack, Rick, and I spent most of the morning going around, trying to sell off some of the looted gear to the other adventurers staying at the inn.

It was a tough business, not very many had money to make the trade worthwhile, and also, a lot of the equipment had come from the Boggles and were too small the people we encountered. Even when we did come across a fairy species, they nearly all were mages, thieves, or clerics. They just didn't tend to go in for heavily armed warriors.

But we did off load a few pieces, freeing up some inventory slots, and I felt like we'd accomplished something by the time we sat down to lunch.

Trogia and Sulin were already at the table.

"Where are the others?" I asked.

Trogia seemed to pout, but Sulin answered, "Crystal wanted to check out the situation outside." It took me a second to realize she was talking about an ambush from Teresa and her gang and not just the weather, which was on full display around us out in the beer-garden. (It was another clear, sunny day.) With a big sigh, she continued, "Cherry and Ellie are in the private room."

"Still?" Rick said, his annoyance coming across.

They'd spent all night in there, and although I appreciated the stamina they had, there were other people who wanted to use it. Rick and I hadn't been together since yesterday morning, and sure that wasn't very long but once we got back out on the road, it could be days before we'd get another chance.

"They did come down for a late breakfast," Sulin said grimly. "But went back up with a new playmate."

I raised my eyebrow in question, but as just like the old saying of speaking of the devil, our two team members came out with Tania the Leprechaun in tow. That was unexpected. 

When Tania saw that her friends weren't with us, she said her farewells and went to look for them.

The two tiny woman sat down. They both looked drunk with slightly unfocused eyes and stank of sex. (Cherry looked particular stunning today. They almost seemed to glow.)

Trogia shook his head in disgust.

But before we could talk about what was going on Crystal joined us.

"Bad news. They're camped right outside. They're not even hiding. Just making it very clear if we want to leave, we have to go through them."

"Damn," Rick said.

"Maybe something will drive them off," I said. "Not many games like you just parking some place. And everything outside these walls is considered wilderness and open to random encounters."

There were a few grunts of ascent but nobody seemed hopeful about the possibility. The party of mean girls were just too overpowered for the area. It was hard to believe a pack of wolves or some bandits would make them flee.

I'd been playing a thought over in my head since yesterday, and was a bit embarrassed by it, but decided to bring it up anyway. "I did have one idea on how to beat them."

Several eager faces looked at me, waiting for me to continue.

"Teresa said that none of them had had sex. Which would mean none of them would have unlocked their special skills. Some of us might have something that would be an unexpected advantage in a fight."

Everyone stared down at their hands or off at the scenery by the river pretending not to have heard me, except for Trogia and Sulin.

Sulin seemed curious. "Mine's still locked. Are the special skills good? What does yours do?" she asked me.

"Um ... unfortunately nothing that would be helpful in a fight."

Sulin rolled her eyes.

"But everyone's is different," I said. "I think we should share what we have to work with. There might be something."

Mack grumbled, "Why should we tell when you won't?"

"Because really, mine has nothing to do with combat. Rick can vouch for that."

Rick looked very uncomfortable. "I don't think anyone really wants to talk about this. Perhaps we can just let it go."

"I don't mind starting," Ellie said. "Some of you already know about it. I have Pixie-Dust. With it, I can shoot a cloud of sparkles out of my skin. It boosts the Life Force and Life Balance of everyone around me, but also makes them ... how to explain it?"

Cherry said, "It makes you want to follow her and obey her commands."

"Well, awesome," Mack said. "Do we let you do that on us and become your thralls, or on them, so they can be healed?"

"I'm not saying we use it, just what it is. Blossom, why don't you go next?"

 Cherry looked around startled. "Well, I ... my first one's called: Nectar of Life. It means that when I ... ... ... I ... er ... orgasm this ... er ... fluid comes out of me that heals and boosts Harmony and Stamina points temporarily." They said nearly the whole statement staring down at the table in front of her.

Nobody said anything for a while. We just looked at each other. Maybe I was wrong about bringing this up. These were pretty humiliating to talk about.

It was Mack that broke the silence. "For the record: I don't care if I'm dying, I'm not going to drink that."

"I suppose it's a good resource to have," Rick said, but quickly added, "If we're really desperate."

"Wait," Mack said. "What did you mean by the first one?"

I said, "We got a passive skill to make us more attractive when we were blessed by Nymphara. That's what you meant, right?"

"Yeah. That's it. That's all the special skills I have. Who's next?"

It was so painfully obvious they were lying even I could tell.

Ellie turned to her. "Did you get a third! Cool! What is it?"

"It's not cool. And I really, really don't want to talk about it." She'd already been blushing. Now, her face turned so ready it looked painful.

I couldn't help asking, "How did you manage to get another one?"

"A reward from Nymphara. I just got it."

"A reward? For what?"

Mack said, "They've only been doing one thing since we got here. Take a guess."

"You got rewarded for having sex?!?"

"I don't want to talk about it!"

Realizing how humiliating this one must be if they were willing to talk about her healing ejaculate, I decided to shift the focus from them. No matter how hard it was to get the words out. "Mine is Experienced Lover. I gain experience points whenever I lower my Arousal Potency with a partner."

"You gain experience by fucking!" Mack exclaimed way too loudly for the public space. "That's no fair! I want that! What are you? Level thirty by now?"

"No. I haven't had that much sex." Now, it was Mack's turn to roll her eyes. "Also, because it's tied to my AP points, once they're down to zero, I stop earning experience. What about your skill?"

Mack said, "I vowed never to speak of it, and I'm a woman of my word."

Cherry said, "Since when?"

"I'll tell you what, you spill about your horribly embarrassing skill, and I'll tell you mine."

Cherry pondered this. "Screw it. Deal! It'll be worth it to see you blush about something. My other skill is Sex-Toy. It just makes me enjoy sex more and heal from any physical discomfort sex causes quickly."

Mack started giggling. "What?"  It grew into laughter. "What?" Tears ran down her face as her mirth reached an uncontrollable level. When she finally recovered herself a little, she said, "Oh God, I thought mine was humiliating. It's nothing compared to that. God damn, a sex-doll skill."

"Sex-Toy," Cherry grumbled. "So, what's yours then."

Mack stopped laughing entirely. I could almost see the inner debate raging inside of her as she decided whether to actually tell us or to renege on the bargain. Finally, she said, "Fine! It's Heat. I can release a pheromone that will bring allies to me if I'm in need."

Now Cherry started giggling. "Your skill is to become a cat in heat? Don't you basically act like that all the time."

"Fuck you, sex-doll!"

Ellie stepped in and said, "Well, that just leaves Rick and Crystal. So, my friends, time to put your cards on the table."

Rick put a hand to his forehead as though banishing a bad thought. "Mine's Magic-Wand. It gives me extra Mystic Energy when I'm ... um ... hard."

Crystal said, "Damn it, man! You mean you've been running around the battlefield with a woody on purpose!"

"Not on purpose. It just sometimes happens. Now, it's your turn."

"Hell, no! I'm taking mine to the grave." Rick was about to protest, but Crystal added, "To the grave!"

Sulin said, "Well, I want to thank you all. I don't think I'm ever going to have sex now."

* * *

After eating, a few of the party were having a second beer, while the rest of us finished our first.

The conversation had never really gotten going again after all our reveals. Everyone seemed turned inward. There were a few sputtering attempts at banter, but they all petered out. It was Ellie who got us talking again in earnest.

She cleared her throat and said, "We've been together a few days now although it feels like a few years, and now that we've just shared some of the most intimate details of our current selves. Well, most of us did anyhow," she said this looking at Crystal. They were close friends and the secrecy probably hurt a bit. "I think it's time we had that talk."

I assumed she meant a discussion about staying a party or not, so it came as a surprise when she said, "The game has mixed up our genders and we've kind of just gone with it, but I think we should state how we feel about ourselves, so everyone can be respectful of it." Mack groaned, but Ellie ignored her. "For myself, I'm a woman and would appreciate you using she/her pronouns. I'm also pan-sexual." She sounded quite proud about all of this.

Rick said, "Really? Are you sure about that? I know when we started ..."

"Yeah, when we started I wasn't sure. But I've never been more comfortable than I am like this. I mean, I wouldn't mind being taller but this is really right. I know what I want now."

Crystal said abruptly, "This, I'm happy to talk about. I don't give a shit about what body I'm in, I'm a man. So, he/him, if you please. And I still like women, whatever that makes me considering the equipment I've been given."

Mack, Rick, and Trogia all quickly came out as cis and straight.

Sulin stared into her empty mug. "She/her, and I'm mostly straight."

"Mostly?" Rick asked.

"I've experimented," was all she gave in way of an explanation.

I decided to speak next. "I'd like to keep using she/her. Although I don't know if I'm really a woman. I suspect I'll go back to he/him when we get out of here. But for the time being I'm enjoying this. Maybe that makes me fluid. Or maybe I'm just a good role-player." I smiled awkwardly. "Also, it's become pretty clear to me, I'm bi."

Rick grabbed my hand sportively, but there was a look on his face I couldn't quite interpret. Was he disappointed I was bi or turned on by it?

With my declaration out of the way, only Cherry was left. They seemed ill at ease and sweat beaded their forehead. Ellie said to her, "It's okay. We'll respect whatever you say. And my feelings for you won't change."

They put their face in their hands, "I really don't know. Before Feronia, I would have said I was a straight male. But now ... I don't know. I feel more me like this than I ever did in the body I was born with. I was always ashamed of it and uncomfortable with it. Maybe it was dysphoria all along and I never recognized it. But I'm not ready to think of myself as a girl either. I just don't know."

Ellie leaned against them and put her arm around them. "It's okay. Maybe you're enby. Or maybe you're still discovering who you are. Are they/them pronouns okay with you for now?"

They nodded and seemed to be too choked up to talk.

"All this emotional talk," Crystal said. "Is making me need another drink."

Rick said, "Keep it up and your going to be day-drunk."

"Sounds like a plan."