“What are you two doing out here? Did you both sleep here last night?” Triska asked. Jovian and Jacqueline nodded as Falla looked back and forth between them.
“What? You two freaks were sleeping right next to me all night?” Falla barked out. Jovian and Jacqueline huffed with discontent, with Jovian then slapping Falla, causing the butterfly girl’s head to turn and face Jacqueline who then slapped her hard as well. Falla dropped back onto the bedding with a weak groan, her head aching from the hits that struck a lot harder than they appeared to.
“So rude,” Jovian scoffed. Jacqueline nodded then looked to the caravan where Specca was now standing up on the driver’s seat, the nixie watching as Lucky finally calmed down with Alyssa gently brushing his nose.
“And we couldn’t sleep in there last night, somebody snores so incredibly loudly, it was unbearable,” Jacqueline mentioned. Triska stood up and looked at her with a raised eyebrow then smiled amusedly.
“Oh, sorry about that. Yeah, Daniel’s a rather loud sleeper,” she agreed with.
“That’s putting it lightly, how could any of you sleep at all in there anyway?” Jovian asked looking to her with confusion. Triska smirked then looked to the caravan as Specca then reentered the cabin, the nixie’s tail swaying about gently behind her before vanishing into the ride.
“I guess that shows just how much we all care for Daniel, his snoring doesn’t bother us at all,” she replied calmly.
“It sounded like a tree being decimated by dozens of angry woodcutters, that didn’t bother you at all?” Jovian asked with disbelief. Triska giggled and shook her head.
“Nope, we don’t even notice it to be honest. I slept right next to him a night ago, it was the most peaceful and relaxing night of my life,” she said softly.
“And they call us freaks,” Jacqueline muttered before the sisters stood up and brushed off some grass from their clothes. Falla however was holding her head with both hands as those hits to her face left her a bit dizzy. Triska rolled her eyes then looked at the sisters curiously.
“Wait a minute; didn’t Lucky frighten either of you? He usually scares everyone we meet when he turns into his other form,” she questioned.
“No, he didn’t scare us,” Jovian said shaking her head.
“We’ve seen many different kinds of monsters and beasts during our travels, a simple enchanted horse didn’t cause any alarm for us,” Jacqueline reasoned with a shrug. Triska glanced between the two curiously then shrugged and turned to walk towards the caravan.
“Well, alright then, that’s good, I guess. Anyway, I’ll get some breakfast prepared for us now that we’re awake, after we eat we’ll be on our way again,” she said as she walked off. The sisters watched the teen as her hips swayed slightly with each step then glanced to each other with faint smiles as they licked their lips.
“I say we save our appetite,” Jovian suggested softly.
“I was just about to say the same thing,” Jacqueline giggled, the two then walking after Triska with hungry eyes focused on the teen’s ass. As they walked away Falla slowly sat up while holding her head, having a weary expression of anger on her face.
“Damn, those girls really hit hard,” she muttered. Looking around she noticed the girls had left her before she saw Alyssa walking over with a dull expression on her face.
“Hey, would you mind?” Falla said pointing to the vine that was tightened around her ankle. Alyssa stopped in front of her and just scowled at the butterfly girl.
“What?” Falla asked plainly.
“I was having the best dream about Daniel fucking me in my ass, and then you had to go and wreck it by upsetting Lucky with your damned yelling,” Alyssa snapped. Falla just raised an eyebrow at her then shook her head with annoyance.
“Hey, I just woke up to those two twisted sisters lying next to me; it was really creepy, alright? If you want to get mad at someone take it up with them,” she barked back. Alyssa narrowed her eyes at the butterfly girl, with Falla then leaning back away from her with an uneasy frown.
“C’mon, I didn’t want to wake up like this either, I never wanted to sleep out here to begin with,” she defended.
“If you ever come between me and Daniel, here or in my dreams, again, I’ll make you beg for mercy,” Alyssa growled through bared teeth. Falla glanced down to her vine shackle then to the witch while lifting her foot a bit.
“Fine, I’m sorry, ok? Now, would you please get this off of me? I have to pee,” she said dryly. Alyssa held in her grunt and turned to walk away.
“Then pee, not like I care,” she snapped before walking off towards the caravan. Falla growled with agitation then crossed her arms with a scowl while looking down to the vine holding her.
“I hate my life,” she muttered.
Alyssa walked over to the caravan and climbed aboard, hopping back through the entryway into the cabin where the other girls were busy getting ready for the morning. Specca was brushing her hair while looking in a small mirror, being very critical about getting her hair to look smooth and pretty for when Daniel woke up, while Triska was rummaging through her duffel bag near the side of the cabin. The black curtain was still pulled over, with Alyssa then walking back and slowly sliding it over with a careful eye. Triska and Specca glanced over as well, seeing the witch pulling the curtain aside to show Daniel lying sprawled out on his sleeping blanket while Squeak was curled up into a ball next to him. The ant girl had a blanket covering her body while her antennae were poking out from underneath, her abdomen sticking out the other way while she made quiet squeaks with each breath she took. Daniel was snoring with an open mouth as he lay on his pillow, with the other girls slowly approaching them while looking between the two curiously.
“Ok, show of hands, does his snoring bother any of us?” Triska asked quietly. Alyssa and Specca glanced to her then each other, with none of them raising their hands. Triska smirked and nodded while watching Daniel sleeping loudly as he always did.
“I guess that really does make us the best choices for his girlfriend,” she reasoned.
“I suppose so. I honestly never really notice it when I’m falling asleep. It’s so strange, I only hear it when we wake up before he does, yet I never pay it any mind,” Specca commented.
“Jovian and Jacqueline couldn’t handle sleeping in here with him, that’s why they left and slept outside with Falla,” Triska mentioned with a snicker.
“Those poor girls, I guess not everyone is able to tune it out like we can,” Specca said with a somewhat prideful tone.
“No, not everyone can. Something like this could be so irritating to others, whoever does want to be his mate has to be able to love everything about him, and I mean everything,” Triska reasoned smugly.
“I already do, I absolutely love everything there is about Daniel,” Specca quipped while glancing to the girl.
“Well I do more, there isn’t anything at all that could scare me away from being Daniel’s mate,” Triska replied with a challenging smile at her.
“There isn’t anything in all of Eden that could turn me away from him either, Triska, and I do say that I love him the most out of anyone,” Specca retorted with a smug grin.
As the two girls stared each other down with cocky smiles Alyssa continued to watch Daniel, seeing him sleep with a bit of drool coming down from his mouth while her heart fluttered with her rising emotions.
‘I’d go through hell itself for you, Daniel. Anything to show you how much I love you, anything for you to see me as the woman I am inside.’
Triska nodded then grabbed the blanket over Squeak and pulled it off to the side, the girls seeing the ant girl sleeping in her ball while wearing her normal tunic. Her boots and gloves were off to the side along with Daniel’s boots, although the girls were only concerned if Squeak had her clothes on still, and were relieved to see that she did.
“She always sleeps in her ball, even during her turn with Daniel,” Triska said curiously.
“That’s ho
w ant girls sleep, it’s just her way,” Specca reasoned.
“I know, I’m just saying. It felt good to sleep in Daniel’s arms when I had the chance too, but she doesn’t even give it a try, just seems like a waste on her part,” Triska pointed out with a shrug.
“Yes, I have to agree, sleeping with him so close certainly makes the night complete,” Specca softly agreed.
Alyssa looked at Squeak for a moment then to Daniel again while remaining silent, then held her hand out and summoned her staff over into her grip. She lightly tapped Squeak on the head a few times with the skull ornament, the ant girl squeaking quietly before slowly opening her eyes.
“It’s morning, Squeak, your turn is over,” Triska said with a slight smile. Squeak sat up with a yawn as she stretched her arms out then looked to seeing Daniel still sleeping while snoring next to her. The ant girl looked to the others curiously as they just watched her inquisitively.
“So, how was it for you last night?” Triska asked.
“What did you two talk about?” Specca inquired. Squeak looked back to her abdomen then shrugged with an innocent smile, a slight blush forming on her cheeks. Alyssa eyed her carefully then glanced to Daniel.
“You didn’t kiss him did you?” she asked cautiously. Squeak turned to her with a dull smile then pointed to Daniel.
“Daniel?” Triska guessed. Squeak nodded then pointed to her own lips. Specca blinked then showed a nervous expression.
“He kissed you?” she asked carefully. Squeak nodded and looked to Daniel with a warm smile as the other girls all showed surprise to that.
“He kissed you? But, why?” Triska asked with disbelief. Squeak looked to her with a huff and discontent, with Triska then showing a nervous smile and shaking her head.
“I mean… I didn’t mean to sound condescending, it’s just…” she stammered. Alyssa drummed her fingers on her staff then looked to Daniel with a distant gaze, her eyes fixating on the boy’s face as he slept peacefully on the floor. Squeak sat up with an arrogant huff then grabbed her boots and gloves before heading past the girls towards the doorway, avoiding eye contact with them before Triska spoke up.
“Wait,” Triska called out remorsefully. Squeak stopped at the entryway while looking ahead, waiting for the girl to continue. Triska looked to Daniel with concern then to Squeak.
“He chose to kiss you, right?” she questioned. Squeak glanced back to her with narrowed eyes and nodded with a squeak. Triska breathed out then nodded with a worried smile.
“Then… you deserved it, it’s ok,” she said softly. Squeak looked at her curiously while Specca’s eye twitched as she stared at Triska with disbelief.
“It’s ok? What are you saying; you do realize that her kisses make ours look horrible by comparison, right?” Specca reminded. Triska shook her head and glanced back to Daniel who was still asleep and snoring.
“Whatever happens during our turns, happens, you know that as well as I do,” she reminded solemnly, then looked to Squeak with a dull smirk.
“If he wanted to give you that kiss, then that’s fine, that was his choice. I don’t have any right to be angry at you for that. Just don’t go thinking you’ve won him away from us that easily,” she said somewhat challengingly. Squeak smiled a bit and nodded while Specca looked to Daniel with worried eyes.
“I suppose you’re right, we did agree that whatever happens during our turns is up to Daniel. Still, I don’t like thinking about her saliva being used to entice him like that,” she pouted.
“She’s got her tricks, and we’ve got ours, this isn’t over yet,” Triska said crossing her arms. Squeak smirked and shrugged to that before looking at Alyssa curiously, with Triska and Specca noticing that Alyssa was just staring at Daniel still.
“Alyssa?” Specca asked.
“You’ve been quiet this whole time, what’s up?” Triska asked. Alyssa slowly glanced to her then looked back to Daniel.
“Just thinking about my turn with him tonight,” she said plainly.
“Yes, your turn is with him tonight,” Specca remembered while watching the witch carefully. Triska nodded while watching Alyssa with a stern smile then pointed to her accusingly.
“Yeah, that’s right. Just remember, Alyssa, no-”
“No magic, no potions, no trickery. You think I’m like those other witches out there in Eden?” Alyssa snapped at her with anger. The other girls watched her curiously as the witch looked at Triska with frustration.
“I’m going to win his heart, fair and square, you can be damned sure of that,” Alyssa said sternly.
“Oh really? And what’s your plan for doing that?” Triska challenged while raising an eyebrow at the witch. Alyssa looked back to Daniel with a distant gaze, remaining silent as the other girls watched her and waited for an answer. At that moment Daniel snorted a bit then slowly started to wake up, his eyes opening while he stretched out on the floor with a yawn.
“Alyssa?” Triska asked. Alyssa looked down to her staff then glanced to Triska with a sly smile.
“You’d better hurry up and get our breakfast ready, we have a lot of ground to cover today,” she said calmly.
“Now you’re ordering me to make breakfast? Since when do you ask me to make food us, I thought my cooking skills weren’t up to par with your high standards,” Triska retorted with annoyance. Daniel slowly sat up while Specca and Squeak looked to him with small smiles, with Alyssa turning to him with a giddy smile of her own as she started to form her plan of winning the boy’s heart that night.
“They’re not, but I’m going to save up my magic today for a real treat for Daniel tonight, so we’ll have to settle for your cooking the best we can,” she said with a shrug.
Daniel yawned again then looked to seeing the girls already up for the day.
“Hey, good morning, everyone,” he said happily.
“Alyssa!” Triska yelled as she lunged over and tackled Alyssa to the floor, the two rolling around in a struggle while shouting at each other, the others just watching them with blank expressions. Specca then turned to Daniel with a smile and waved to him.
“Good morning, Daniel,” she said while Triska and Alyssa rolled over behind her. Squeak squeaked at Daniel with a bashful smile and waved to him, with the boy glancing to them then back to the two bickering girls with a raised eyebrow.
“Um, what are they fighting about this time?” he asked plainly.
“Does it even matter?” Specca asked tiredly as the three watched Alyssa and Triska rolling around on the floor, with Triska pulling on Alyssa’s hair and Alyssa biting into Triska’s arm.
*****
Outside on the grass seated around where the fire pit was the group was eating sandwiches of sliced ham, cheese, and lettuce while having an apple and cup of water each, all being served on small tin plates with napkins and a small piece of chocolate as well. Everyone was sitting on small red cushions as the magical vines and roots used last time were not being resummoned by Alyssa, the witch saying she wasn’t going to use any magic during the day if she could avoid it. Even Falla was allowed to sit with the group after having been released from her magical vine, the butterfly girl reluctantly eating while maintaining a dull expression on her face. Jovian and Jacqueline however were not eating, both having declined any food or water from the group and both still wearing their masks out of personal preference.
“Why don’t you two want anything to eat? We have plenty,” Daniel inquired before taking a bite out of his apple.
“I believe a more prominent question to be answered is how in the world did Triska pull all of that out of her duffel bag?” Jovian asked while looking to the duffel bag that Triska was sitting on. Triska glanced down to it with puzzlement then to Jovian.
“What are you talking about?” she asked. Jacqueline tilted her head with a puzzled expression while staring at the bag.
“You just kept reaching into that thing and pulled out all sorts of containers of food and water, not to mention these cushions for u
s which, although are very comfortable compared to sitting on the ground, should have taken up even more space in there,” she said with bewilderment. Again Triska merely looked to her duffel bag with confusion before around at everyone else.
“I don’t see what they’re getting at, do you?” she asked simply. Specca opened her mouth to speak, looked around at all the cushions, then to their food, then to Triska’s duffel bag, and then just glanced to Triska with a raised eyebrow.
“We do, however we’re having the utmost difficulty getting you to see it,” she answered shaking her head. Triska just looked at her with puzzlement while Daniel smiled weakly with a small laugh. He then looked to seeing Alyssa sitting next to him eating her sandwich while watching him with a curious eye.
“Alyssa? What did you mean you don’t want to use any magic today if you can avoid it?” he asked, with the group then looking to Alyssa as she smiled playfully at the boy.
“Because I want to be able to use as much magic as I need to for our night tonight, Daniel,” she answered.
“What? Hold on, you can’t use your magic to charm Daniel into loving you, that’s cheating!” Triska barked out.
“I always thought all was fair in love and war,” Jovian mentioned.
“Yes, isn’t that right, Squeak?” Jacqueline added with a giggle while looking to the ant girl. Everyone turned to Squeak as she smiled bashfully and shrugged while glancing to Daniel with a blush. Triska looked between the two carefully then at Squeak with an accusing stare.
“What’s she talking about, Squeak?” she asked. Squeak shrugged again before eating her apple with closed eyes, with Specca and Alyssa watching her carefully.
“Daniel, she said that you two kissed last night, that was intentional on your part, correct?” Specca inquired. Daniel jumped a bit then smiled nervously at her as all the girls watched him curiously.
Chronicles of Eden - Act 2 Page 43