As expected for an early morning, Selene, the town I lived in, was bustling with life (as much life as was possible in such a small town). The large carriage-sized streets were empty as usual, but plenty of people walked on the walkways on either side.

Buildings in this town were mostly made of blocks of rock taken from the massive nearby rock formations that nearly surrounded the town. Some houses had some wood detailing, but for the most part, they were solid grey.

We were far from any sustainable amount of wood, so it wasn’t practical to make houses or shops or any buildings for that matter entirely out of wood. My house was probably the building made out of the most wood, and that was because my father had spent a lot of money importing it from out of town.

“Sorry about wasting your time this early in the morning,” Kasey brought me out of my thoughts. His ears were all droopy and his tail hung limply between his legs.

“No, no, you’re fine,” I reassured him. “Like I said, I was heading out anyway. Plus, now that I’ve taken care of business, I don’t have much on my plate today.”

That last part was a little bit more of a lie, but it wasn’t entirely untrue. Ever since I graduated middle school many years ago, I didn’t have much else to do. I helped out my dad whenever I could and in turn, I’d get some money as well, but now that he was gone, and I had inherited a good deal of money, it’s not like I was in any rush or need for anything.

Even the ‘Business’ I was talking about could hardly be called as such.

“Business, huh.” He held both hands in front of him as he walked. “Must be nice to be out of school already.”

I quickly shook my head. “You say that, but you’re forgetting how grueling it was having to cram everything I was supposed to learn in the next years all at once…” I sighed. “Not to mention that I still sometimes wish I was still going to school. I feel like I’m missing out on a lot.”

There was only one real reason I decided to expedite my studies, and that was to spend more time with my dad. After my mom passed away, a part of me realized how quickly things could suddenly go wrong. I couldn’t let that slip past me again, so I studied as hard as I could and graduated almost four years early.

It was no easy feat, and I was certain I couldn’t replicate that now even if I wanted to.

“Hm…we probably would’ve ended up hanging out more, huh,” Kasey said with a smile. “Now you’re all busy all the time like some kind of adult.”

“Not my fault you’re such a child.” I rubbed his head as he laughed.

I’d only started interacting with Kasey the year after I graduated. While I was walking around town, I saw a group of guys surrounding him and beating him to the ground. Of course, I didn’t hesitate to help, and I promptly got rid of the guys and helped Kasey to his feet. He’d also been wearing those baggy clothes at the time, but not once since had I bothered asking what that was about. Neither did I ask the reason why the guys had attacked him like that.

With that in mind—

“So, what was the thing you wanted to talk about?” I approached the main subject.

“Ah…” he let out. After fidgeting for a few moments, he began. “It’s just…I’m having some issues with…things…”

“You’re going to have to be more specific than that.”

“I-I know,” he stuttered. He searched for the words to say then continued. “It’s…about my family.”

Unconsciously, I flinched at his words.

In the time we’d known each other, Kasey hadn’t spoken about himself almost at all. Whenever his family was brought up for any reason, he’d simply change the topic or find a way around it. I’d made it a point to not bring up anything that could lead down that road for his sake. But now…

“Did something happen?”

“It’s not like that…it’s more like they want me to do something…and I don’t know what to feel about it.” His hands trembled as he spoke. He bit his lips as he looked at the ground. I genuinely couldn’t remember the last time I saw him this distraught, if ever.

“Well, what is it that they want you to do? Is it something I can help with?”

“…they want me to get married…”

…

“…huh?”

***

Kishiko sunk slightly into the foot of the bed. As soon as she did, Misaki walked through the door that’d been left open for her. She quickly closed it behind her and stood silently before Kishiko, in front of the door.

She hadn’t fully planned out what she was about to do but seeing as they’d probably be together for the foreseeable future unless Starlin decided he didn’t want them anymore, she wanted to make sure of something. There was no other way than to ask her straight.

“Look, Misaki,” she began.

But before she could get any further, Misaki cut in, no emotion behind her voice, “Is this about earlier? I apologize if my comments hurt you in any wa—”

“No, it’s not that!” Kishiko yelled as her mind wandered back to the talk they’d had earlier. Collecting herself, she continued. “This is about something else.” Her expression turned serious as she stared into the elf’s blue eyes. “I’ve had this feeling since I first saw you…something like familiarity. I’ve been across many places, so I may be simply mistaking you for someone, but…” she trailed off for a moment, but she quickly picked it back up. “But it’s been bugging me. Something about your aura is familiar, and not in a way that I could confuse with someone else.” Finally, she asked the question she’d been trying to get to in a roundabout way. “Have we met before?”

Misaki stood silent as ever. Her beautiful dress that accentuated her features almost looked frozen in place as well. Eventually, she opened her mouth. “I have no idea what you’re talking about…and even if I did, you said it yourself, didn’t you?” Her eyes narrowed just the tiniest bit. “Associating myself with my past would only hurt my pride.”

 Kishiko furrowed her brow.

That was true. Even though she still thought about that time, she wasn’t a Celestia anymore. She didn’t want to be called as such and hoped that no one ever found out about that. Granted, Starlin said that he had been given a rundown about all of their situations, so at the very least he knew, but he hadn’t done anything to bring it up or exploit that.

It was insensitive and unfair to ask Misaki about her past when Kishiko was unwilling to reveal anything about herself.

She sighed, “Fine, I get it. Guess I’ll just live with the curiosity.” She crossed her arms.

Now that she had gotten through the main thing she wanted to speak of, she was about to tell Misaki she could leave, but before she could—

“Earlier…you mentioned something that was concerning.”

“C-Concerning?”

Misaki nodded. “Yes. About your sexual experience.”

Kishiko’s cheeks reddened in a flash. “W-What about it?! Is it that surprising?”

“Yes, but that isn’t the issue.” She took a few steps toward Kishiko. “The twins can get away with it due to their nature, but a woman like you must know better.”

“H-Hey, what are you…—!”

Before she could do anything else, Misaki placed a knee in between Kishiko’s legs and pushed her down onto the bed.

Misaki’s expressionless face was only a few centimeters away from her own. Her gentle breathing was only faintly audible in between Kishiko’s own heartbeat.

From this close up, Kishiko could really see how beautiful that girl was. Her features were perfect, her skin looked smooth, and her lips were just plump enough to reel anyone in. It was the complete opposite of her own tomboyish looks. The sharper features that although many had called cute, were anything but soft.

“Master will want to be the one to take your virginity, but you need to be able to satisfy him too,” Misaki whispered. “Will you be able to do that?”

She brought her face closer—and Kishiko pushed her back. “Why would I want to satisfy him?! He can satisfy himself if he wants, but I won’t be doing anything for him!”

Without any warning, Misaki reached down under and pulled up Kishiko’s skirt.

“What are you—Eek?!”

Before she could protest, two fingers brushed her private parts. Misaki brought her face closer and whispered, “I’ll only teach you a little to get you started.”