Suddenly A Succubus Ch. 16

Amara looked around the barren classroom as Tessa flicked the lights on. Rows upon rows of empty seats sat ready, perfectly positioned to give everyone a clear view of the front of the class. The floor escalated just past the first seats, each step containing another row of chairs, until ending at the back wall. Tall windows let in considerable amounts of sunlight, though the source wasn’t visible; it was just past noon, and the sun was high above them.

The girls looked at each other for a moment before heading towards the back corner. They’d decided that it would be best to avoid unwanted attention, though Amara had a feeling that Tessa would have chosen the same spot regardless of cult activity.

The witch was wearing a pair of black, baggy cargo pants, as well as her usual combat boots. A red tank top hugged her curves, bearing the distressed logo of some band Amara had never heard of. A black jacket that was several sizes too big completed the outfit, though it only properly sat on one shoulder, the other side bunched around her elbow as she sat down.

Amara had put considerably more effort into her outfit. After being forced to spend several weeks hiding her tail and horns, she was always happy to put together something cute when she left the house. A flattering pair of dark blue jeans showed off her beige ankle booties, the heels rather small to accommodate long walks across campus. Her cleavage was tastefully on display beneath her low-cut shirt, its gray heathered pattern mostly hidden underneath a deep orange cardigan that ended at her thighs. She didn’t join Tessa in a chair, instead taking the time to walk around the classroom while her friend opened her journal.

“I’m so fucking sick of these circles. I was hoping that finding more would make it easier to figure them out, but I’ve got nothing,” Tessa griped. They had decided to get to Tessa’s English class early, hoping to spend as much time as they could hunting for potential clues. In the meantime, since no one was present, she was pouring over her diagrams of the various magic circles they’d discovered.

“Well, what do we know? What are easy assumptions we can make?” Amara slowly wandered around the room, looking at all the different seats as she slowly moved towards the front of the class.

“I’m like, ninety percent sure each one is tied to a different plane. That’s the simplest way to explain why all the circles act differently. The most obvious was the circle under the cafeteria, that’s definitely connected to The Wilds.”

“The Wilds?”

“That’s what witches tend to call it, but it’s got a lot of names. It’s heavily tied to ideas of ground, earth, and the life that springs from it. Think lots of heavy forests, thick jungles, stuff like that. It’s home to a lot of magical creatures too. Werewolves, fairies, dryads, tons of others; if there’s a cryptid on our plane, it’s likely from there.”

“Y’know, I’d briefly forgotten how weird my life had gotten, so thanks for the reminder.” Amara paused for a moment, taking in everything she’d just heard. “Fairies? Really?”

“Welcome to the World of Magic! Population: Everything and anything you’ve ever heard of. You’re a succubus, just be thankful you have a way to fight back. Learning about magic means you’re fair game to a lot of creatures, and not everyone has that luxury.”

“I’m going to get attacked just because I know about magic?” Amara asked, looking back at her friend in surprise.

“Alright, well, it’s not quite that cut and dry. A lot of things, people and creatures alike, greatly benefit from magic being underground, and there’s an unspoken rule that you should try to keep it that way. However, once someone knows about magic, you can fuck with them without breaking that rule.” Tessa took a deep breath, her eyes briefly staring into the distance. “But it’s more than that. This world, Amara? Magic? It’s a giant fucking curse. For some reason, things always seem to go wrong once people join it.”

Amara leaned against the main desk in the front of the classroom. Those last words rattled around in her head, and her thoughts drifted back to Halloween. She felt herself starting to spiral, and she quickly shook her head to stay in the moment. “Right, so each circle is tied to a plane. What else?”

“That’s honestly my only good guess. These things are complicated as hell.”

“What about the Science Building? You said it was keeping things out?”

“Even if I’m right about that one, I have no idea if the other circles were built the same way. If they are, why was that one hidden the way it was? Why not use illusions like the other ones? Why are there so many?” Tessa groaned again, sliding back in her chair as she threw her head back.

Amara, unsure what else to say, instead circled behind the teacher’s desk and started rummaging through its drawers. Most of them were filled with insignificant office supplies, but she dutifully looked through every nook and cranny just to be safe. In the end, the most interesting thing she’d found had been a small bag of chocolates. She happily swiped a few, returning to Tessa in the back of the classroom and handing her some sweets.

“So what’s your plan? Are you seriously just planning on watching him teach?” Tessa unwrapped a chocolate and popped it into her mouth.

“Yes, actually. Why is that so weird?”

“It’s just so boring! If I had your powers, I’d only need 5 minutes alone with him and we’d get all the answers we wanted.” The witch’s tattoos lit up, and her pen started hovering over her notebook. “Look at this, how am I supposed to threaten someone with mild levitation?”

“Tess, when I first saw you do magic, you threw someone across a room.”

“That was a fluke! And I shouldn’t have done it in the first place, I overexerted myself and had a headache for days.”

A sound in the hallway caught Amara’s attention, and she suddenly recognized the march of students nearing the classroom. She reached out and pushed Tessa’s pen back to the desk just as the door opened, then whispered, “Well, let’s be thankful that I’m the demon here, not you.”

Tessa rolled her eyes but dropped the topic without a fuss. She reached into her backpack, pulling out her notebooks for the English class that was about to start, and sighed heavily.

Amara, on the other hand, pulled out a pair of stylish sunglasses. She felt a little silly putting them on, but she figured the worst-case scenario would be strangers thinking she was hung over. In truth, she was hoping to study the auras of everyone in class. The events at the Halloween party, coupled with her recently discovered night vision, had been a reminder that her body was still changing. Who’s to say that her senses would stay limited to reading sexual auras?

With her eyes safely covered, she let them flare and began looking around the room. She saw a young man saying goodbye his girlfriend in the hallway before entering class, and they’d clearly fucked this morning. A minute later, a smaller girl with a tight black braid walked in with a vibrant aura, but there were no traces of a second person; she’d definitely just finished masturbating. An incredibly fit boy in a varsity jacket in the front row was pining for a tall, brown-haired boy that had just entered. The taller boy either didn’t share those feelings or hadn’t noticed the athlete, instead staying glued to his phone while he pulled his books out.

Everything she learned fascinated her, it was incredible seeing such intimate details out in the open like this. Still, other than a chance to flex her improved senses, she didn't see anything noteworthy.

“Where's the teacher?” Amara whispered.

“He's always a little late,” Tessa replied. “I think he's got office hours right before this class, sometimes he gets here with a student or two.”

As if on cue, the door opened. Professor Luxnor hurried inside, but not before holding the door open for the last student. Amara vaguely recognized the girl walking in behind him, a tall redhead in a green, low-cut top. Her simple leather jacket clearly wasn't trying to hide her ample cleavage, and her posture implied that she was used to being the center of attention. A small handful of students grew noticeably excited at her entrance, though Amara was far more interested in the aura of this new student.

“Who's the redhead? She looks familiar.” Amara asked.

“Kylie? You danced with her at the Halloween party. I remember ‘cuz I was really fucking jealous.”

“Oh, I don't think it's me you should be jealous of.”

“What? Who?” Tessa leaned closer, but Amara didn't say anything. She simply gave a knowing look towards the teacher. “Mr. Luxnor?! Shut the fuck up!”

“Their auras are perfectly in sync; I’d say they finished within the last half hour or so.”

“I can’t fucking believe it! First the cult, but now he’s hooking up with a student? Man, he used to be one of my favorite teachers too…”

“You’re missing the silver lining here, Tessa.” Amara smirked, letting her eyes return to normal as she put her sunglasses away. “We can use this against him.”

---

After sitting through Professor Luxnor’s class, which dragged on much longer than Amara would have liked, she found herself with nothing to do for the rest of the day. Nick’s Tuesday schedule was packed full, and he wouldn’t be free until close to dinner. She thought about returning to her apartment to work on some homework, but being alone didn’t sound all that appealing. Instead, she pulled up Chloé’s number and shot her a text.

Amara: What’s up? Still in classes?

Chloé: Nope! I just finished up lunch and I’m handing at home

Chloé: Hanging*

Amara: Can I come over? Got nothing going on

Chloé: That sounds awesome!

Chloé: I’ll meet you at the entrance :)

Sighing in relief, Amara picked up the pace and made her way to her friend’s place. Chloé was the only one of her friends that actually lived in a dorm, so the walk was pretty short. She did her best to enjoy the feel of the sun on her face, but its rays kept getting swept away by the cool autumn breeze. As happy as she was to be immune to the changing weather, she was still vaguely aware that it was getting colder.

As she approached the building, she saw her friend leaning against the wall in the main lobby. She moved closer, opened the door, and the two hiked back up to the third floor.

It felt like ages since Amara had been at Chloé’s place. They used to hang out fairly regularly, but that tradition had been neglected in the chaos of Amara’s transformation. Thankfully, the trepidation creeping at the edge of her thoughts vanished as soon as she stepped inside. Everything looked unchanged, as if nothing had happened over the last few months. It felt like stepping into a time capsule, a relic of a bygone age where Amara hadn’t yet been swept up in demonic chaos.

Chloé led the way to her bedroom, then jumped on her bed and picked up her controller. She seemed to be in the middle of a game, and Amara happily let her start it up again while she made herself comfy next to her. After some careful rearranging of the stuffed animals on the bed, Amara ended up laying her head on a large plush shark while resting her feet in Chloé’s lap.

“So, what’s on the agenda for today?” Amara asked.

“Not much, to be honest. I’ve got a few things I’m waiting on for the charity, and I can’t really do much until those finish up. Until then, the day is mine! I was probably just gonna play games, eat dinner at some point, nothing much.” Chloé leaned back, resting against the wall as she talked.

Amara pulled out her phone, half-heartedly scrolling through various sites as she kept talking. “Hey, whatever happened with the guy you were into? Did you ever make a move?”

Chloé blushed, stammering for a few seconds before managing to speak. “N-no… nothing yet. We still talk somewhat regularly, but every time I try to say something, I freeze up!”

“Girl, you just gotta go for it! Put yourself out there!”

“We talked at the Halloween party! I almost asked him to dance, but I froze up and couldn’t think of what to say. Plus, later I saw him dancing with some other girl, and she was super pretty…”

“So? I danced with a bunch of people, even kissed some, but I’m not dating any of them. There’s a big difference between letting loose at a party and actually looking for a partner.” Amara playfully jabbed Chloé with her foot, “And how many times do I have to tell you how cute you are? You can’t keep comparing yourself to other girls like this!”

“Well, yeah, but… It’s not…” Chloé buried her nose in her sweater, blushing profusely as she failed to think of anything to say. Amara was used to these kinds of pep talks, and she knew from experience that trying to push further wouldn’t do any good. Instead, she decided to change the conversation and ask about the game she was playing.

Chloé’s mood immediately shifted. She loved video games, and loved talking about them even more. The change in her demeanor was so drastic it was almost comical; no longer was she nervously trying to be part of the conversation, instead she charged ahead as she happily shared her passions with her friend. Last year, when they’d first started hanging out, she’d been nervous about oversharing and dominating the conversation, but Amara had eventually convinced her that she loved listening.

In Amara’s opinion, everyone had a spark inside of them. A passion that burned bright, that could only be seen under the right conditions. Whether it was food, music, movies, or games, everyone had something that truly made them come alive. She loved to find that spark, to encourage people to share it, and she suspected that was one reason she felt drawn to photography. If she timed her shots well, if she asked the right questions, she was able to capture that joy and immortalize it in a picture.

Today, Chloé was playing a game about farming. She’d inherited a farm from her grandpa, and she had to get it up and running again while also getting to know the local townspeople. It was really cute, and at first Amara had thought it was an older game due to its pixelated graphics, but Chloé assured her it was purely an aesthetic choice.

After an hour or so of relaxing, with the girls talking about nothing in particular, Chloé’s phone went off. She paused her game and grabbed her phone, then her eyes grew wide.

“Amara!”

“Everything okay?”

“It got delivered! Quick, we have to go see it!”

“That… doesn't exactly answer my question.” Amara quickly moved her feet as Chloé jumped off the bed, running for her shoes. Confused, Amara joined her friend as she started down the hallway.

After a quick jog down the stairs, they left the building. Amara had expected this to be the end of the journey, but she didn't see any sort of package or delivery. Instead, Chloé kept walking. She was staring at her phone, frantically texting, and Amara had to steer her away from other students a few times as their mysterious journey continued. It took another ten minutes or so for Amara to realize where they were heading, and she did her best to steel her nerves.

The Jade Palace.

“Amara, look! There it is!” Chloé said excitedly.

With their destination now in sight, Amara finally saw what Chloé was so excited about. The Palace remained unchanged, its blackened walls a horrid reminder of her actions, but it was no longer alone. On the back of the lot, further away from the street, sat a massive green dumpster. Its metal was worn, the deep green paint clearly chipped in numerous places, and one of the shorter sides was designed with a latch. Amara watched as Chloé ran closer, undoing the hinge and pulling at the massive door. She was clearly struggling, and Amara ran in to help her out. She pulled the door open with ease, barely even registering its size.

“Thanks Amara!” Chloé said, gasping for air. “This thing is huge! It's just what we need!”

“What happens now?”

“We can begin cleanup! It's gonna take a lot of time, and we'll need a lot of help, but I already have that planned out. We can start recruiting volunteers now, designate specific cleaning hours so everything stays supervised, stuff like that. I just need to check in with some of the other members—”

Chloé continued talking, and after a few seconds Amara realized she was likely just talking to herself to keep her thoughts straight. Amara, instead, wandered closer to the burnt remains of the old party house, staring at all the destroyed lumber and drywall. She would definitely be needed to take pictures of the cleanup, that much was obvious, but it didn’t feel like enough. She closed her eyes, a deep breath filling her lungs, and flinched as the embers from that night brushed across her face again. She heard the house groaning and snapping, threatening to collapse on top of her. Her claws squeezed tight, Vee’s blood running down her—

No. That’s not who I am.

She shook her head, pushing the memories away as she wiped a tear from her face. Another deep breath, this one shaking with worry, and she turned to her friend. “Why can’t we start now?”

“What?” Chloé asked, her thought process interrupted by Amara’s question.

“The cleanup. We’re here, why can’t we start now?”

“Oh! Well, we don’t have any of the materials. Obviously we’ll need protective gear; safety glasses, gloves, hardhats, all that, but we’re also not dressed for it. Look at your clothes, you’d ruin them!” Chloé paused, looking at the remains of the Palace before continuing. “Plus, even if we had all that, I doubt I’m going to be much help. I lost a lot of muscle after I started hormones.”

“Right, silly question. I guess I’m just… I want to help.” Amara paused, moving closer to her friend and pulling her in for a hug. “You’re a good person Chloé. Thanks for putting this together.”

“You’re already doing so much!” Chloé hugged back for a moment before pulling away. “Want to help put together a schedule?”

Amara laughed, then politely declined. With nothing else to do here, they picked up their things and began the walk back to campus. They continued talking about the charity efforts, Chloé sharing updates on what they could afford at the moment, and Amara explaining how they could structure their social media presence. Before leaving the lot completely, she turned back to look at the burned ruins, her thoughts lingering on the cleanup that was ready to begin.

---

Chloé’s charity efforts lingered in Amara’s thoughts for the rest of the day. Even after meeting up with Nick and heading back to her place, she found it hard to concentrate. Seeing the dumpster, hearing Chloé talk about the money they’d already raised, it somehow made the entire effort feel so much more real than it had yesterday. It wasn’t just an idea anymore, it was reality. She let Nick lead most of the conversation, and she was pretty sure he noticed.

She wasn’t completely silent, though. There were still the updates about the cult, about the new circle they’d found and the conversation they’d overheard. Nick seemed just as surprised to hear about Professor Luxnor’s affair with Kylie; apparently he was familiar with the teacher as well and didn’t think him the type.

“What if it’s all connected?” Nick asked.

“What do you mean? You think Kylie’s a part of this cult too?”

“No, but what if he wants her to be? Or what if he’s trying to set her up to be some kind of sacrifice? There’s already a huge power imbalance at play here, and he has a great excuse to invite her to secret locations without her asking why.”

Amara gagged slightly even thinking about the idea. “Fuck, I hadn’t thought about that. Guess it’s a good thing Tessa and I are picking up the pace.”

“Are you sure there’s nothing I can do to help?” Nick asked, concern in his voice. “I know this is way outside my wheelhouse, but it’s frustrating knowing what’s going on and sitting on the sidelines.”

“You’re going to stay put and stay safe. We have no idea what these people are trying to do, and you’re just a squishy human. Tessa’s got magic, she’s the only one that can read the circles, and I recently confirmed that I’ve got super-healing. We can hold our own.”

“Wait, did you get hurt again?”

“I was testing a shapeshifting thing and cut my hand a bit, no big deal. Especially since it healed in seconds. Plus,” Amara pulled the shoulder of her shirt down, “Vee stabbed me right here, the blade went completely through, and there’s not a hint of it there. That sword was Enochian, too.”

Nick paused for a moment before responding, his face twisting in concern. “I… didn’t know that. At least it healed, right?”

His comments reminded Amara that she’d never actually gone through everything that happened at the Halloween party. She’d avoided sharing many of the details, especially the more painful ones, but sometimes it was easy to forget that Nick didn’t actually know everything about her. They looked at each other for a moment, an awkward silence filling the room before Nick finally decided to change the subject.

“Well, if I’m gonna be on the sidelines for this, I think I deserve a snack.” He grabbed his backpack from behind the couch and opened it up. “Make us some popcorn?”

“Do you actually have any? Or is this a setup for a terrible joke?” Amara watched as her friend pulled out a bag of microwave popcorn, then tossed it to her. “Shit, you were serious, alright then.”

The two of them were sitting on the couch, Nick on one end, Amara laying on the other with her feet in his lap. She started to stand up when he grabbed her legs, preventing her from leaving. “Ah ah, no cheating.” he said, waggling his finger.

“Do you want popcorn or not? The microwave isn’t about to grow legs and walk over here.”

“You’re not going to use the microwave.” he said sternly.

She stared at Nick for a few moments before the meaning of his words hit her. “No. Absolutely not!”

“You can’t just ignore who you are, Amara.”

“Says who? This stupid hellfire can't hurt anyone if I never use it!”

“And how are you going to do that? Can you honestly say you’re never going to get mad again for the rest of your life? What happens if a fight breaks out when you confront this cult?”

“I-I’ll figure something out!” Amara stammered.

“I'm sorry, but that's not going to cut it. This fire is a part of you; it fuels your shapeshifting, your ability to sleep and enjoy food. It's going to come out at some point, whether you want it to or not. When that happens, do you want to be scared of it? Or would you rather have the understanding to control it?”

Amara couldn't bring herself to respond, but her thoughts drifted back to last night. In her sleep, without realizing it, she'd manifested her true form. Who's to say the same couldn't happen with her fire?

She sighed, reluctantly meeting Nick's eyes. “…Fine.”

He released her legs, letting her swing forward and plant her feet on the floor. She grabbed the bag, tore off the plastic, and held it in her palm.

Alright Amara. An open flame would be too much, right? I need heat without fire, which I know I can do; I did it with Tessa when I was breaking through the Enochian seal.

Closing her eyes, Amara focused on her inner fire. It responded eagerly to her touch, dancing and flickering inside of her. Reaching out, she pulled it into her palm and tried to release a tiny fraction of energy. For a moment, she didn’t feel much of anything. She stared at the bag of popcorn, wondering if anything was going to happen, and eventually decided to push a little more. Within seconds, her hand, and then the bag, caught fire.

“Shit!”

She moved her other hand over the popcorn, trying to focus on controlling the fire. She felt the flames underneath her fingers, the warmth calling to her, and fought to exert her own will over them. Soon enough, the color turned as she regained control, and she extinguished the fire. There was a blackened hole in the middle of the bag, the kernels now visible, and Amara found a single piece of popcorn.

“Um… bon appétit?” Amara said, throwing the popcorn at Nick.

He stared at it blankly before looking back at her. “I think you can do better than that.”

“Well, I ruined the bag, so I guess we’ll have to try another time. Oh well.” She sighed dramatically, glad the experiment was over.

Nick, on the other hand, reached into his backpack and pulled out another bag, throwing it at her. “Sorry, you’re not getting off that easy. Try it again.”

“What am I supposed to do? I can’t feel heat the way you do! By the time I register anything, I’ve already created flames.” Amara grumbled as she opened the bag of popcorn, throwing the wrapper on the floor in frustration. Nick said nothing, his eyes on hers as he waited for another attempt.

Grumbling, she repositioned on the couch. Instead of grabbing the bag of popcorn, she let it sit in her lap while she looked at her hands. With her palms up, she summoned small flames in each of them, trying to focus on what they felt like. The heat was comforting, the small flames skipping across her hands, but she knew it was too strong. Despite her hesitations, she remembered when she first gained control over her fire, how she’d giggled and called them cute, and she tried to focus on that feeling rather than her fear. Concentrating on the flames, she tried to slowly pull energy away from them, urging them to grow smaller. It took more effort than she’d expected, but eventually she managed to snuff out the fire while keeping the connection alive.

Focusing on that feeling, she quickly grabbed the popcorn and placed it on her hand. She stared intently at the bag, remembering that popcorn normally took a couple minutes to cook. A count began in her head, slow and steady, as she continued focusing. The seconds ticked on, each one an eternity as she fought to keep the bag from igniting, but eventually she heard a familiar popping sound.

The bag jumped in Amara's hand, causing her to flinch. Thankfully, she didn’t drop the popcorn, and she moved her other hand on top of the bag to keep it steady as more and more kernels popped. Over the next minute or so, the bag continued inflating until the popping sounds grew less frequent, and she severed the connection entirely.

“Well?” Nick asked.

Amara waited a few seconds, then nervously pulled the bag open. To her delight, a fragrant, buttery smell washed over her. “I think it worked! Want some hellfire popcorn?”

The two of them took turns testing the food, and although they found a small handful of blackened popcorn, quite a bit of it was edible.

“Not bad for a second attempt!” Nick said, playfully ruffling Amara's hair. “Ready for the midterm?”

“What, there's more?”

“If you recall, Amara, we haven't eaten yet.”

“Ugh, what's for dinner? More schemes?” Amara said playfully, her mouth full of popcorn.

Nick pulled Amara off the couch, bringing her to the kitchen before opening the fridge. She saw that, at some point, he'd done some grocery shopping, and she now had a considerable amount of food ready to go. They decided on a relatively simple meal, but one that would push Amara’s concentration a bit further.

She started by boiling a pot of water, but this time she didn’t hold it in her hands. She kept it on the stove and summoned a small fire underneath it. She focused on this exclusively for a few minutes, testing how far she could move away from the fire while still keeping the heat consistent. Just like under the cafeteria with Tessa, it took more effort the further away she was, but she was happy to have any control at all. Once the water boiled, Nick put in some spaghetti and prepped the next step.

He placed a frying pan on the stove, next to the boiling water, and placed in two pieces of chicken. After a deep breath, Amara summoned a second flame under the pan, doing her best not to lose concentration on the first. This proved much more difficult, and the water boiled over a few times when her focus slipped, but thankfully Nick was helping out. He had taken charge of setting timers, flipping the chicken when appropriate, and cleaning up when needed.

Soon enough, the spaghetti was finished, and Amara moved on to the last piece of dinner. While still focusing on the flame under the frying pan, she held a piece of store-bought garlic bread in her hand and started cooking it. This proved to be the most difficult step; previously she’d had two open flames, but now she kept one flame alive while purposely snuffing the other.

At the end of the whole ordeal, the chicken had been slightly overcooked, and Amara had accidentally burnt three of their five pieces of garlic bread, but she was happy with everything they’d put together. She grabbed their drinks, sat down at the counter, and sighed in relief.

“Alright, I’ll admit it. This was a really good idea.” Amara said, biting into a piece of bread. “Honestly, it was kind of fun too. I’ve never been much of a chef, but maybe it's something to look into.”

“You seem more put together, if you don’t mind me saying.”

Amara paused, finishing her bite slowly before responding. “It… comes and goes. It still hurts, and I still wish I could talk with Vee, but at least I feel like I have a way forward now. You really do have the patience of a saint, you know that?”

“What can I say? I just like seeing you up on your feet.”

“Oh! Want to see something cool?” Amara manifested her tail, then moved the tip next to her plate. Focusing on her tail, she watched as the familiar, chitinous exoskeleton reformed. She altered the edge, and soon had a razor-sharp knife once more. “This is what I was telling you about earlier, with my shapeshifting!”

Nick watched in surprise as Amara started cutting up her chicken with her knife-tail. “Dang, that’s pretty sharp. Are you sure it’s clean? Where does this stuff even come from?”

Amara kept eating as she examined her tail. “Ooh that’s a good question. Is it a part of me? Am I summoning it from elsewhere?”

The two friends continued eating their dinner as they discussed theories about Amara’s shapeshifting. Nick was curious how Amara’s exoskeleton might compare to an insects, but she was adamant that she wasn’t going to break pieces of herself off for him to study. They eventually decided that, since magic was clearly involved, they were unlikely to get any real answers anytime soon.

Cleaning up the kitchen was a relatively quick affair, as Nick had been keeping things tidy while she’d been focusing on cooking. After they finished, he moved back to the couch and sighed in content while he sank into the cushions. Amara, on the other hand, wasn’t interested in the couch.

“Alright, time for second dinner!” She said, tying her hair back.

“What? You can’t possibly still be hungry.”

She smirked, then fell to her knees in front of Nick. “Little slow on the uptake, are we?" They locked eyes, Nick's aura starting to swell as understanding hit him.

“So, what will it be today?” Amara continued, “Tits out or in? Slow and sensual or hard and fast? Horns? Tail?”

“We just ate, so I think something slower will be nice.” Nick began undoing his pants as they talked, and Amara eagerly began helping. Soon enough, he was leaning back with his legs spread to give her space.

Moving in, Amara ran her hands up his legs as she watched his cock start to twitch. Kissing his thighs, she took plenty of time to tease him as she drew closer. After each kiss, she playfully licked his leg, finally stopping only inches from his throbbing member. Her hands continued to massage his legs while her tail, no longer a bladed weapon, moved in and wrapped around his shaft. She held it high, slowly stroking it while she leaned in and began teasing his balls, her tongue moving in circles as she pulled them into her mouth.

She moaned, knowing how much Nick liked her vocalizations, then pushed her hands higher. She massaged his chest next, enjoying the feeling of his muscled body as he tensed in pleasure. Her tail loosened its grip, sliding up until it was only holding the tip of his cock. Amara moved with it, her tongue reaching for the base of his shaft as she slowly kissed it. She turned her head sideways, lips eagerly sucking his length, as she began moving up and down Nick’s cock.

The feel of her lips seemed to be the turning point for Nick, and his aura was finally strong enough for her to begin feeding. Strength and vitality filled her senses, restoring her energy that had been spent cooking dinner. Last time they’d fucked she’d simply fed out of necessity, and she hadn't bothered taking more than she needed. Now, although her confidence was still shaken, she felt comfortable enough with her abilities to try and top off her reserves once more.

Deciding that Nick had been teased long enough, she pulled her tail off his cock completely and replaced it with her lips. She kissed the tip, a long, drawn-out affair that she spent far too long enjoying. Her tongue teased his cockhead, slowly pushing in and out of her mouth as she continued sucking. When she pushed her head down, pulling his cock further inside, his moans filled the apartment as he tried to thrust deeper still. She wouldn’t let him, and moved with his hips to keep his cock only halfway in her mouth. He tried again, eager for more, her throat more than capable of taking his length, and yet she continued to refuse.

When her tail wrapped around his neck and playfully slapped his cheek, he finally got the hint and stopped trying. He settled for running his hands through Amara’s hair, softly playing with it as she happily bobbed up and down on roughly half of his length.

It only took a few more minutes for her to decide that he’d waited long enough. With a deep breath, she pushed down again and felt his cock push against her throat. She gagged loudly, not out of reflex, but because she knew he loved it. Her tongue kept massaging his shaft as she stayed at that depth, his cock continually testing the entrance to her throat. She let herself gag playfully, over and over, before meeting Nick's eyes with her own. It was obvious how much he was enjoying himself; she didn’t even need to read his aura.

Amara pulled back one last time, teasing the tip of Nick’s cock before pushing down and opening up her throat. Her lips planted on his crotch as she successfully took the entire shaft, her tongue reaching for his balls and eagerly massaging them.

She began moving up and down his length, from tip to base, in purposely slow strokes to drive Nick crazy. His aura grew stronger with each pass, each push into Amara's throat, and she felt her inner fire roaring with renewed vigor. As she picked up the pace, knowing he likely didn't have much time left, his hands tightened in her hair. She let him guide her, surrendering her control to make sure he had the strongest orgasm possible. It only took another few seconds before Nick pulled her completely down, his cock twitching before unloading into her.

Nick unexpectedly pulled her back, his first load shooting into her mouth before her lips left him completely. He continued cumming, covering her face while she focused on drawing energy from his aura, now at its most potent. She playfully pushed her tongue out, the cum in her mouth dripping down onto her chin while his cock shot its last spurt on her cheek.

Soon enough, Nick’s breathing began to calm down. She stayed connected to his aura as long as possible, the energy of his climax filling every fiber of her being with infectious giddiness. She could feel her senses expanding, her body twitching with anticipation as she realized her body felt lighter than ever. Unfortunately, the moment passed quickly as Nick reached the end of his orgasm.

“Fucking… wow.” Nick panted, “That was amazing, Amara.”

“You’re the one doing me a favor, remember? Your orgasm is a lucky coincidence, that’s all.” Amara smirked, her sarcasm eliciting a chuckle from her best friend. When his laughter broke, he looked down at Amara just in time to see her pushing his cum into her mouth.

“Do you actually get anything from that?”

“Eating cum? I do, actually. It’s not as potent as feeding directly from the source, but your cum absolutely has traces of your aura.” She swallowed the last of it, then licked her lips clean and stood up again. “Plus, I hear guys love it. You're a bunch of perverts.”

Amara hopped back on the couch, grabbing her phone as she curled her tail around her legs. Nick, having finally caught his breath, took the time to get dressed while she checked her various socials. In particular, she was looking into Chloé's charity and the numbers it was getting. They were in a good spot at the moment, but the campaign was still in its early stages. The true test would be keeping momentum after the initial excitement, which was something Amara felt a lot of responsibility for.

By the time Nick was fully dressed, she’d already made a few notes for herself regarding posting ideas. He joined her on the couch, pulling her in for a hug as he pulled out his own phone. “So, what’s the plan for the rest of the night?”

“Eh, it’s already pretty late. Throw on some TV?”

Nick nodded in agreement, searching through their various streaming apps before settling on an old sci-fi show. Amara wasn’t as interested, but it was nice to have something on in the background that she didn’t feel obligated to pay attention to. The rest of the night passed uneventfully, the two friends happy to have a quiet evening, and soon enough Nick left to return home.

Amara took a long shower to ground herself, hoping her various soaps and lotions would keep her from lingering on unpleasant thoughts. She was pretty sure no water would ever be hot enough for her, but it was still nice to feel pampered.

Now alone in her bedroom, she set up her white noise app, double checked that her demonic features were absent, and was asleep the instant she hit the pillow.

---

Amara reached over, resting a hand on her date’s leg. She gripped it tight, savoring the feel of her soft skin under her fingers. She massaged her thigh slowly, watching as her girlfriend opened her legs ever so slightly, her bright red thong visible each time they passed a light. Her hand moved higher, squeezing and massaging the delicate skin, before they brushed against the silky fabric of her date’s panties. She gasped, the touch exciting her, before suddenly slapping Amara’s hands away, though not without a playful smirk.

“Alright, hands to yourself mister! Just a few more minutes and you can bend me over anything you’d like.”

Amara sighed, knowing they’d be home soon. She grabbed her drink, a half empty can of beer in the cupholder, and slammed the rest of it. She couldn’t taste it much anymore, the mixed drinks from earlier made sure of that, but it kept her primed and eager for the coming romp. She threw the can behind her, hearing it rattle as it landed amongst the others.

The road suddenly started shaking, and she assumed she must have hit a rumble strip. Without warning, however, her girlfriend screamed and grabbed the handle above her. Amara looked back at the road, but it was nowhere to be seen. A sea of grass and gravel stretched in front of her, and she tried to slam the breaks, but an unexpected ditch disoriented her for a moment. Suddenly, the car slammed into the edge of a protective barrier, and that’s when the rattling stopped. The car was airborne, just for a second, as Amara realized they were headed directly into a river.

The front of the car slammed into the water, throwing Amara forward as the airbag erupted in front of her. The force of the impact threatened to knock her out, but after a few seconds she regained her senses and looked around.

Water was pooling in the bottom of the car, its icy grip already creeping into her feet. In a panic, she undid her seat belt, pushed open the door and scrambled out of the driver’s seat. She fell into the water, no idea how deep it was, and desperately swam back to shore. Her clothes were soaked, and it took everything she had to keep breathing, but she collapsed with relief once she made it to land.

After giving herself a few seconds to catch her breath, she realized she didn’t hear anything else. Where was her girlfriend? Had she made it out? She shot back to her feet just in time to see the rear bumper of the car disappear beneath the river.

“Steph?! Steph!!” Amara screamed, her voice unusually deep. She wanted to run, to dive in after the car to try and save her girlfriend, but she couldn’t move. Her entire body locked up in fear, she could only think of one thing to do. Her hand reached into her pocket, grabbing her phone, and she prayed it still worked. Against all odds, she was able to turn it on and dial out. After the first few rings, someone finally answered.

“Do you have any idea what time it is?” The voice on the other line snarled, its contempt obvious.

“Dad, the car, I—”

“What did you do to my Bentley?"

“Fuck the car! It's Steph, she… I can't…”

The voice paused, sighing in frustration. “Ugh, just tell me what happened, Derek.”

--- 

Amara shot forward, her covers a tangled mess around her tail. Her breathing was heavy, and she didn't even register that her wings had torn out more chunks of drywall. The reality of what she'd just seen finally hit her, and everything clicked into place.

“They're not my dreams!”