Suddenly A Succubus Ch. 04 - Reflection

Ah, Chapter 4. I've thought about this one a lot ever since it went live on Literotica. It's my lowest rated chapter, by a considerable amount, and while I'm happy with how it turned out, I understand why.

There is, of course, the obvious reason - it's the first chapter without any sex in it. But even apart from that, I can't deny it's a bit of a slower chapter. The last stretch is mostly Amara searching through an empty building, which I'm sure isn't the most engaging content.

Before I get too far ahead of myself, though, let's start at the beginning. The whole opening scene with Nick is something I'm really happy with. He's a big supporting character, but it's not often we hear his thoughts or see his side of things. I thought it was important to show him wrestling with Amara's change, especially since he's not the type of person to confront her about his worries. 

I had a blast writing about his adventures through the middle of nowhere. I'm sure quite a few people know exactly what signs he sees while driving, since they're all over the place here in the states.

Returning to Amara, I think the scene in the cafeteria is pretty strong. We haven't had a lot of time with Chloé, but I've got a huge soft spot for her and I'm always happy to find room for her in the story. Learning about her and her dreams gives me all sorts of warm fuzzies. We also learn what Amara is up to, which I felt was pretty important to establish since she's, y'know, at college. She's got to be studying something.

Tessa arriving was also fun to write. I've got a pretty specific idea of how Amara's physiology works, and this was an important chapter to explore some of that. Watching her slowly piece together that her senses have expanded to perceive sexuality was really neat, and I think it adds a great extra dimension to her abilities.

And then, at long last, the final stretch of the chapter. Amara feels that strange compulsion again, follows it into the Science Building, and gets trapped in the magic circle. I had some difficulty with this scene, as it needed to be paced pretty differently than most other scenes I'd written. Most other scenes had pretty distinct goals, the characters want something, or are reacting to something, and there's stuff going on. 

I couldn't have Amara just waltz into the Science Building and immediately jump into the circle, that wouldn't feel right. I wanted the compulsion to be an enigma - Why is she driven to explore? Is this another new ability? Is there a clue here about her past?

If I could take another crack at this chapter, I might try to rework it so that something else happens, something to add a bit more action, but I honestly don't know what that could be. In the end, I am honestly happy with the chapter, even if it's not going to be anybody's favorite. I think it has a lot of fun, interesting information, and it sets up the conflict of the next chapter beautifully.

Plus, I'm really happy with the last few paragraphs. Amara realizing she's stuck, trying to break out, completely unsure what is holding her. Ending the chapter with single word, Amara desperately calling out "Hello?" was also something I felt worked really well. 

Onward to Chapter 5!

Nyx <3