Act IX

by Alexander Gordon

  “It’s not so much that we hate your guts, Clover,” Alyssa reasoned with a shrug. “It’s more like, we just don’t want you having sex with our man. Or with us. Ever.”

  “And what about me?” Kitten asked. “What must I do to earn your favor to be with my master? How am I supposed to form an emotional bond with all of you when I simply don’t care about any of you?”

  “You don’t see the problem there at all, do you?” Falla flatly assumed.

  “I wanna be his too,” Cindy spoke raising her hand up. “What do I have to do? Tell me. I want to be his mate and make babies with him.”

  “That would involve you eating others and killing them,” Specca replied. “Honestly, I’m not sure how you can have children while being a good girl, Cindy.”

  Star meowed from the archway, with the girls looking over to see her poking her head into the opening while watching them with curious eyes.

  “And then there’s the cat we can’t get rid of,” Alyssa sighed. “Even if we wanted to, which we do.”

  “Alright, we need to settle this tonight,” Specca declared standing up. “Daniel wants Doku and Clover to join us, and I can easily assume Star and Cindy are not going to leave him alone until he picks them as well. And Kitten… well we’re stuck with her anyway. We’ll have to work with Daniel on him being less charming to those he meets to avoid this in the future, but until then we need to decide how we’re going to handle this situation.”

  “Let Doku join and the rest can take a hike,” Falla suggested.

  “Give me a fucking chance to be nice to you, goddammit!” Clover yelled at her.

  “Clover, that’s not helping your case,” Doku nervously warned.

  “I’m not going anywhere, I can’t,” Kitten sneered. “I’m stuck with you, remember?”

  “I don’t wanna go!” Cindy whined shaking her head. “I don’t have anywhere else to go! Besides I love Daniel and want to stay with him, I’m happy being with him and he likes me even though I’m a monster. You can’t make me go now! I don’t wanna!”

  Star warped closer to the girls and meowed loudly while pointing to herself with a stern expression, obviously saying she wanted that same right they did as well.

  All the girls looked around at each other, tension running high in the steamy air as those who were Daniel’s lovers felt uneasy about the idea of even more joining them with their mate.

  “Kroanette’s left, isn’t she?” Clover asked. The girls turned to her as she kept a sharp eye on Specca. “She’s the last of his lovers to receive his seed today, isn’t she?”

  “That’s right,” Specca agreed. “He gave it to all of us before we came here, and he’s likely going to be giving it to her on this very night. She’s the last one of his lovers to receive his seed.”

  “That means if he satisfies her and is still able to walk afterwards, he can handle another mate,” Clover cautiously reasoned. “That is what you all agreed on, isn’t it? If he has the stamina to handle more then he can take another as his own.”

  “If he has the strength to take another mate and we approve of her joining us, then yes,” Specca sternly corrected.

  “I’m going to guess he can,” Clover replied. “In fact, seeing as how he fucked a succubus into submission I’m willing to bet he could satisfy all of us sexually. And if that’s true, all that remains is for us to form that bond before we can truly be his, right?”

  “I believe the latter of those requirements will be the most difficult,” Specca flatly commented.

  “So then tell us, what is it we need to do in order to make it work,” Clover demanded standing up before her. “Do you want me to beg? Is that it? Do you want me to pour my heart out before you right now? What do you want me to do, Specca? What do you any of you want me to do so I can be with him?”

  “We have to get along,” Luna answered with a shrug.

  “How?” Clover cried out. She grabbed Specca by the shoulders and started shaking the surprised nixie. “What do you want me to do? How can I get along with any of you? Tell me!”

  “Clover, stop!” Specca yelled.

  “What am I supposed to do?” Clover demanded with tears forming in her eyes. “Tell me, Specca!”

  “You just have to be nice to your friends! How is that so hard for you?”

  “I don’t know how to have friends!” Clover cried before breaking down in Specca’s chest. The nixie held her in stunned silence as the elf’s sobbing was the only thing being heard in the room. “I don’t know how to have friends, I never had any friends before! I only had Zoey, she was the only one I ever had in my life!”

  Everyone watched as Clover and Specca slowly lowered down into the bath, the nixie holding the crying elf with surprise while Clover struggled to control her voice.

  “Zoey was the only one I had before, she was the only one who ever liked me for who I was. I never had anyone else, I never had another friend. I couldn’t… I couldn’t do it after she died.”

  “Clover?” Specca quietly asked.

  “It hurt so much,” Clover whimpered with eyes shut tight. “Losing her, losing the only one I ever loved, it cut me so deep. I never got along with anyone else before, I never saw eye to eye with anyone. Growing up I was alone, I never had anyone who could stand to be around me. But she did, she saw past my stupidity and arrogance, she loved me for who I was. She made my life perfect, she was my everything. When she died part of me did too.”

  “Clover… I’m sorry,” Specca said while tenderly holding the elf.

  “I can’t lose this,” Clover whined shaking her head. “I already lost my loved one before, I can’t lose Dan too. I can’t go through that pain again. I need him, I need all of you, I can’t lose any of you.”

  “You need us?”

  “You’re my family,” Clover said looking up to her. The girls stared at her in awe from hearing such words as she slowly leaned back from Specca and lowered her head. “You actually care about me. Even after I was such a bitch to you all, to him, you all still care about me. And Dan… he wants to keep me with him, he loves me. You’re my family, the only one I have now. My home isn’t in Green Haven, it’s here with all of you. I can’t lose this, I can’t. I won’t survive my heart being ripped apart again, I’ll die for sure.”

  “Clover… we mean that much to you?” Luna wondered.

  “Yes,” Clover admitted looking to Specca, her eyes filled with tears and sorrow. “So tell me, what do I have to do to keep this? What do I have to do so I won’t be alone anymore? I’m fucking begging here, give me a chance, please.”

  Specca watched Clover while being taken aback, stunned to hear the elf confessing that they all meant so much to her. Clover whimpered and lowered her head, her heart aching from the lingering silence as all the girls remained quiet, except for Snapper who was of course still snapping her teeth with arms waving about. That lasted about one moment longer before Luna rushed forward and tackled the elf into the bath.

  “Clover!” Luna wailed as she surfaced again hugging the gasping and coughing elf. “You really like us that much? You mean it?”

  “Yes! Yes, I do!” Clover shouted as she flailed about and struggled to keep her head above the surface. “I admit it already, so stop trying to drown me!”

  Luna lifted the elf up and hugged her close, with Clover coughing out water and catching her breath before noticing the butterfly smiling gently at her.

  “Why didn’t you tell us before?” Luna asked. “Why couldn’t you just be honest with us?”

  “It’s not that easy!” Clover shouted before looking down and to the side with a deep blush. “It really isn’t… easy to talk about this. I’m not good at speaking my feelings or shit like that, alright? That was never something that came easy to me.”

  “Didn’t you speak such tender words to Zoey when you were together?” Doku wondered.

  “Not at first…” Clover sheepishly admitted. Glancing around she saw all the girls watching her curiously bef
ore she sighed and closed her eyes. “She… had to drag those words out of me too.”

  “Why are you so stubborn with admitting you like other people?” Specca asked.

  “I was afraid,” Clover softly said. “I was afraid then just as I am now. I’m afraid of how bad it’s going to hurt when I lose those that matter the most to me. Getting attached to anyone… leaves you vulnerable, you know? Being shot by an arrow or gutted by a rapier, that doesn’t hurt as bad as it does losing someone your heart wants.”

  “You never wanted to make friends before because you were afraid of losing them?” Falla asked.

  “It hurts like hell to lose someone close to you,” Clover snapped at her. “When my mom died it tore open my heart. It kills you to lose someone you love. I tried making friends when I was young, but it never worked out. And every time they left me it hurt more and more. You can only take so much pain in your life before you try to block it all out.”

  “So you blocked everyone out,” Doku empathized.

  “No, not everyone,” Clover said stepping back from Luna. “I took a chance with Zoey. I thought… it would be different with her. I thought we would be together forever. And I got an arrow through the heart for it. I felt so much pain from losing her, it was unbearable.”

  “Then what’s making you take a chance with us?” Alyssa asked. “If you’re so afraid of getting hurt again why are you opening up to us?”

  “Blame Dan,” Clover answered with a small smile. “He made me realize how horrible my life was, how horrible it is for all elves. That guy was so stubborn in being nice to me. He reminds me of Zoey.”

  “How so?” Doku asked.

  “She valued life, all life. She could see past someone’s outer appearance to who they really were inside. She made me so happy… just like Dan does. After losing Zoey I never felt this happy once until he came along. It’s because of him I’m actually smiling again.”

  Wiping her tears away she then looked around at all the girls in desperation.

  “So what do you want me to do so I can be his? What do I have to do to stay here with you? Tell me how to form that bond with you so I don’t have to lose another home.”

  “Clover, you already are his,” Specca said moving towards her. Brushing aside the elf’s hair she smiled curiously at her. “As for staying here with us, we just need to share that bond, remember?”

  “But how do I form that with you? Tell me!” Clover pleaded.

  “You already are,” Specca gently answered. Clover looked at her in wonder as the nixie lightly shook her head. “Clover, for the first time I really do feel closer to you. I can understand your pain and even why you have been the most abrasive person I’ve ever met in my life. I actually feel like I’m meeting you for the first time.”

  “But… why? What did I do?”

  “You were honest with us,” Luna said moving closer. “And you let us know you really do care about us. We didn’t know we meant that much to you.”

  “This is the girl Zoey fell in love with,” Doku reasoned as she came to Clover’s side. “This is the real Clover. And we like her. We don’t want you to hide her anymore, Daniel wouldn’t want you to hide her anymore.”

  Clover looked around at them in awe before she was hugged from behind and lifted into the air by Squeak. The ant girl held her close and shook her about playfully with a few squeaks before setting her back down, the elf turning to her in surprise then noticing Falla and Alyssa standing beside them.

  “That’s twice today you’ve cried your heart out,” Falla said crossing her arms with a smirk. “You must have been bottling up your feelings for a long time. How does it feel to finally get it all out?”

  “Honestly, a little embarrassing,” Clover replied looking around at the girls with a blush.

  “I’m still not ready to share my man with you just yet,” Alyssa dryly said, then smiled a little at the elf with a shrug. “But I’m less repulsed to share the bed with you now at least. That’s a start, right?”

  Clover watched the girls smiling at her then noticed Cindy doing the same while holding the energetic swarm in her arms. The sand wraith giggled and coddled the swarm close then looked at the youngling with loving eyes, watching as Snapper was snapping her teeth towards the girls with a wide smile. Clover then looked over to Star and saw the jinx crawling over to sit next to the sand wraith while also smiling kindly at the elf, seeming to approve her feelings just as the other girls were.

  “Clover?” Luna gently asked. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah…” the elf quietly answered looking around at them. “I’m just… this is… this is embarrassing! Stop staring at me like that!”

  The girls all laughed while Kitten continued sulking in the bath near them, the cambion lightly flicking water away with her hand while she sat against the edge with a low growl. Clover lowered her head and hid behind her hands before Luna lowered them and stepped closer to the elf.

  “No more hiding,” Luna playfully lectured. “At least not from your family.”

  Clover slowly looked around at the girls in wonder before turning her gaze back down with a flustered grumble and a deep blush.

  “She’s so cute when she gets embarrassed,” Falla giggled.

  “Shut up!” Clover yelled at her.

  “You’re really blushing, Clover,” Alyssa teased.

  “Shut up!”

  Squeak squeaked at her with an amused smile and shook her head.

  “I don’t know what you just said but shut the fuck up!”

  Luna laughed and tackled the elf into the water, holding the thrashing and cursing girl tightly in her arms while the other girls smiled amusedly at the sight. When Clover finally broke free from the butterfly and stumbled further away she turned to face the girls with a furious look in her eyes. She opened her mouth to yell what could only be assumed to be a tirade of expletives before stopping as she saw the girls still smiling at her. Luna giggled as she sat up and wiped the water off her face then tilted her head curiously as she waited for Clover to speak just as all the girls were. The elf hesitated for a moment then lowered her head with a growl, bangs covering her eyes as she struggled with what she wanted to say. After a while she sighed then glanced up at the girls from under her hair, a slight smile coming across her face as she relaxed her stance.

  “You’re all so fucking annoying.”

  “We’re your family,” Specca reasoned with a shrug. “It’s what we do.”

  “Yeah,” Clover softly said brushing her hair aside. “You are.”

  “Isn’t that just sweet,” Kitten bitterly commented. The girls turned to see her scowling down at the water, not even giving them a fleeting glance. “And yet another toy gets closer to being used by my master while I remain wanting over here.”

  “She’s not Daniel’s toy,” Specca argued in discontent. “She’s his mate, just like we are.”

  “Congratulations,” Kitten scoffed at Clover. “Oh, that’s from Triska by the way. She says she was moved by your tale and feels like you’re not such a bitch after all. As for me, I’m only feeling more disgusted I have to allow yet another whore like yourself to be with my master while I’m denied him entirely.”

  “How do you keep hearing Triska?” Cindy asked looking around. “I don’t see her still. Where is she?”

  “I wonder why you’re denied him,” Alyssa flatly spoke up. “Oh, that’s right. You treat everyone like shit and all you think about is having sex with Daniel.”

  “I’m a demon, what do you expect?” Kitten yelled at her. “My only purpose is to serve my master, to make him satisfied, to make him happy! He’s the only one I love, I love him more than all of you do combined, yet that apparently counts for nothing because he has so many toys to play with now!”

  “Your love for him counts for very little because the rest of who you are is total crap,” Clover countered. “You treat everyone like shit, way worse than I even did. That’s your problem.”

  “And now m
y master’s newest toy feels like she can lecture me,” Kitten hissed at the elf. “You just became remotely accepted by your fellow bitches and my master, don’t think you have any right to speak to me in such disregard. You should be thanking me for even allowing you anywhere near my master after all the shit you put him through.”

  “We’re not toys!” Specca shouted at the demon. “We’re not property, we’re not things; we’re people! We’re Daniel’s mates because he loves us for who we are, something you wouldn’t know anything about because he doesn’t love you at all!”

  “Shut up!” Kitten yelled standing up. “Or so help me I’ll roast you over a fire and feed you to my master!”

  “Kitten, calm yourself,” Doku pleaded. “Acting hostile towards all those around you isn’t going to earn Daniel’s favor with you. You mustn’t-”

  “Don’t tell me what to do!” Kitten roared waving her arm forward. A forceful wave of energy and water splashed outward and crashed against the girls, throwing them further away with screams while the demon’s wings arched back behind her. “Don’t you dare tell me what to do! The only one who can order me around is my master, the only one I’m going to love is my master, and the only one I want in my life is my master! I don’t give a crap about any of you! I’m barely tolerating having any of you around just because you can please my master… you please him even though… even though he has me and doesn’t need you at all!”

  The girls coughed out water and regained themselves then watched in surprise as Kitten hopped out of the bath and shook her wings and tail about, throwing water off her while she grabbed a towel and started drying her hair.

  “I’m only supposed to serve my master, not any of you! I shouldn’t even have to be groveling to any of you to gain his affections; he’s supposed to already have me and only me in his life! But no, I have to allow him to take toy after toy out here as his own playthings while I’m perfectly capable and willing to satisfy him all day every day! I have to stand aside while he fucks all of you and denies me any sensual touch in the least! I can’t have my master at all even though I’m his entirely!”