Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was the end of another busy day in the Demon Castle. Mountains of repairs, paper work, and event flags had been dealt with; budget emergencies and hostage management had been cleared without a hitch. In fact, nothing much had gone wrong at all today. As the one in charge of all the wheels of demonic bureaucracy, Twilight settled into bed, satisfied to have finished up another hard day's work. As he closed his eyes to drift off to sleep, he even remarked to himself just how quiet his royal hostage had been today – the sign of a good day indeed.

Of course, such a sentiment could only lead to trouble.

The sound of his chamber door creaking caused Twilight's eyes to snap open. There was only one creature fearsome enough to breach the inner sanctuary of the Demon King in the middle of the night. With an ever-growing sense of dread, he looked slowly towards the door without turning his head. Just as he suspected, a small human woman with long silver hair was in his room. With an undignified yelp, he sprang upright, pulling his blankets to his chin to shield himself from Princess Syalis seeing his night clothes. If he had to endure another lecture about the inappropriateness of having a member of the opposite sex in his room again, he might just give up and abdicate.

As if she had heard his inner turmoil, the Princess grabbed his nearby desk chair and jammed it roughly underneath the handles of his doors. Somehow, this didn't make Twilight feel any better. She clearly didn't want to be interrupted and that was bad news for him.

“P-Princess?” he asked, voice nearly breaking as she turned to him. Her expression was as placid as ever. Quietly, she padded over to the bed; upon reaching the edge, he could tell by the way she was moving that she was slipping out of her houseshoes. Once they had been left in the floor, she climbed up as though she belonged there, pulling the edge of the covers up and slipping underneath.

“I had something I wanted your help with,” she said bluntly, covering her lap with the blanket and sliding in beside him. While Twilight had an immediate titillating thought about the position they were in, he shoved it down, hoping against hope that he wasn't blushing. He wouldn't know exactly what he was supposed to do in that sort of situation anyway.

“C-Couldn't it wait until tomorrow morning?” he asked, dreading whatever it was she wanted help with.

“No,” the Princess said flatly, dismissing any concerns he might have had and barreling on. “I've been reading some books I found in the castle library and several of them talk about a special kind of sleep that you can only get with another person. So I needed a partner and thought you'd be a good fit.”

Now, Twilight had less than no experience with having a woman in his bed. Demon Kings traditionally reproduced by simply creating a smaller but slightly different version of themselves once they had accumulated the requisite amount of power, so there was no need for him or his predecessors to even know a little bit about such human problems. Of course, he had read some books on human physiology (for scientific hostage husbandry purposes only!), but they didn't really go into great detail on the subject either. So while he had some inkling that he was in danger, he had no real idea just how bad it could possibly get.

“What, like an exercise routine?” he offered, reluctantly going along with her enthusiasm. The Princess thought about it for a second before nodding.

“It's something like that,” she replied. “They all seem to agree that brides get the best sleep of their lives on their wedding nights. A wedding ceremony doesn't seem to have anything to really do with bedtime though, so I figured we could just skip the boring parts and get right to falling asleep.” At this, Twilight had to stop to think for a moment. What was it that would make brides sleep well on their wedding night? After a few moments, realization dawned on him. He covered his mouth with his hand, eyes wide, and looked back over at the Princess. She was staring at him expectantly.

“Princess, do you know what that means?” he asked in a conspiratorial whisper. She looked deadly serious as she answered.

“Yes, of course,” she replied. “They have a romantic evening in bed and then fall into a deep and blissful sleep.” She was still dancing around the point but he had an inkling she at least knew what she was talking about. She was blushing, after all, and he figured he was too. But there was no way he was going to admit that he had no idea what he was supposed to do – he was the Demon King, after all!

“And… you know what all that involves, right?” he asked. If he passed it off as testing her knowledge, maybe the Princess would accidentally inform him of what she wanted. As hoped, she nodded confidently.

“When Mother talked to me about it, she said she simply laid back and thought of the Kingdom of Goodereste,” she said serenely. Twilight nearly choked on his spit.

“Do… Do the books say that?” he stuttered. Her mother's advice was worse than useless.

“The books say we should take our clothes off and kiss,” she replied softly. She turned away and wouldn't meet his eyes, but that was fine. Twilight was sure he looked mortified anyway; he covered his face with both hands, splitting his fingers to peek back at her anyway. The Princess seemed to be undoing the tie on her dress, which caused him to snap his fingers shut again immediately.

“A-And you chose me for this why exactly?” he asked, voice creaking. He could feel the Princess sliding closer to him; when she answered, her breath hit his cheek and he felt a shiver of pleasure slide through his body.

“Because I like you,” she replied simply. “Obviously. When I was reading those books, I thought of you.” When he brought his hands away from his face and opened his eyes again, Twilight could see clearly down her collar. She was leaning on her hands into his personal space, crowding close to his face. Her dress was so loose that her flawless pale skin was visible down to the waistband of her modest panties. He had to force himself to keep still and not pull away.

“But I… I kidnapped you and…” He began to list his own faults but stopped as the Princess's hand went to the collar of his shirt and began to tug at the tie.

“Yes, and the accommodations were inexcusable,” she scolded mildly, “but I solved that problem already. So I forgive you.” She pulled his collar open before seeming to realize that it didn't come off that way. After a moment spent considering this new information, she moved to the hem and began pulling it up. And Twilight, to his credit, did hesitate for a second; his instinct was to scold her and tell her to stop, but something stopped him instead. Every sense of propriety and duty he had told him he should stop her, but the self-indulgent part of himself refused to let him. So after a moment's internal struggle, he went ahead and let her remove his shirt. Even as the cloth went over his head and the Princess tossed it aside, he still felt the need to try and talk her down, if only symbolically.

“You… you have a fiancé,” he prevaricated half-heartedly. “It’s.. It’s not right…” The Princess looked completely unimpressed as she slung a leg over his lap. She seated herself facing him and smiled softly, tilting her head to the side. Her pale silver-violet hair fell over her shoulder as she slipped her nightgown down over her arms. Twilight almost choked at the sight of her bare breasts; they were small but perfectly round, with attractive tight pink nipples. Possibly out of a sudden bout of self-consciousness or maybe because she'd caught him staring, the Princess drew her arms in, shielding her bare skin from view, but he had already seen whatever she was hiding. Curious, he reached over and gently wrapped a hand around the wrist closest to him, noting again how delicate it was. She relaxed and lowered her eyelids before meeting his eyes again.

“But you're going to beat the Hero, right?” she asked coyly. “When you defeat the Hero, it won't matter because I won't have to go back.” Twilight nearly felt like he was being manipulated, but the thought passed quickly; in fact, he had never really given too much thought to what would happen to the Princess once his battle with the Hero was over. Maybe he had assumed that he would just send her back home once everything was done. He felt guilty thinking about it and not for the first time, he regretted treating her as a pawn to achieve his goals. But if she genuinely wanted to stay in his castle, he was obligated to honor her request.

“I have no intention of losing, Princess,” he said gravely before looking back up into her eyes. She was smiling, her expression quite open as she leaned forward.

“That's the Demon King I know and love,” she replied proudly. Twilight was so distracted by what she'd said that he barely noticed her eyes drift closed. The heat rushed to his face as he tried to parse what he'd just heard – did she mean that like it sounded? But he didn't have time to question it because in the next moment the Princess's hand was on his cheek as she leaned forward to kiss him.

Twilight's mind raced as their lips made contact. What was he supposed to do now?! He'd barely even imagined he might do something like this with the Princess, and now here she was, kissing him while sitting astride his lap. He'd never even kissed anyone before, let alone on the mouth! Hands trembling, he struggled to think of where to put them; he released her wrist and finally settled with sliding them down her sides and letting them rest on her hips. As they kissed, the Princess's small hands fluttered over the skin of his neck as she threaded her fingers into his hair. Worse still, her firm, round bottom pressed into his lap; it was warm and exciting, but it also caused his pajama bottoms to feel suddenly more awkward. Each time she shifted, Twilight bit back a gasp; he wasn't entirely sure what was happening there, but the whole experience was thus far fairly pleasant. Hesitantly, he gave her bottom lip a tiny nip, scraping the soft skin there; in return, he received a small prod from the Princess's tongue.

Finally, the Princess pulled away, barely opening her eyes as she touched her lips with her delicate fingers. They were damp and an attractive pink color, slightly swollen from their kiss. Twilight found that his felt slightly cold now that she had pulled away. He didn't move his hands away from her hips, though; he kept them right where they were, hoping to keep her on his lap. It felt nice and that way she wouldn't realize that he currently had a small but growing problem down there.

“Hey,” he whispered, glancing away from her. “What else are we supposed to do?” The Princess also seemed abashed, not meeting his eyes as he squeezed her hips gently. She sat back, pressing her soft little butt into his lap and sending a jolt up his spine; Twilight shivered, wondering if he was too warm or too cool. It was an odd feeling, but the place she sat was almost too warm, while the air hitting his bare skin was almost too cold. The Princess seemed oblivious to the effect she was having on him, instead concentrating on what he'd just asked. In fact, she seemed almost embarrassed.

“Well,” she started, her pale skin painted with a bright blush. “Most of them mention stroking something long and hard…” Twilight nearly choked; he could certainly think of something that might apply to at that moment. But what she was suggesting meant that she'd have to move and….

“S-So, can I…” the Princess began, uncharacteristically shy for her, “…can I touch your horns?” Twilight's mind stopped functioning for a second. Was that what she thought that meant? Or was this a complete non sequitur, divorced from what he thought she was talking about?

“Princess, I don't think--"

But she didn't stop to listen. Instead, her delicate little hands reached up and grabbed him by the horns while she looked curiously up at him. Twilight fell silent as she began to rub both lightly, the frisson from her touch intensified by the bouncing it was causing against his lap. As she rubbed and squeezed his horns, her expression changed from one of curiosity to one of quiet determination. Perhaps she didn't know what was supposed to happen and was compelled to find out. Whatever effect she thought it would have, it did manage to wring a muffled moan from the helpless king. That only encouraged her; the devious grin she gave him just then would have made a lesser man faint. Rather, Twilight's fingers curled more firmly into the Princess's hips, pressing her securely into his lap. That, more than whatever she was trying to do with his horns, was causing his hips to buck against her bottom.

“Princess, something's…” Twilight lost his train of thought almost as soon as the words passed his lips. Now his whole body felt hot, with the source being where the Princess sat on his lap. The final nail in his coffin was hearing the small gasp that escaped her, her breath brushing against his cheek.

“Good boy,” she breathed, one of her hands traveling all the way to his scalp to stroke his head. Her fingers curled slightly, tugging the hair between them as she petted him. “Good boy, good boy…”

It was strange. What she was saying was so innocuous, but the effect it had on Twilight was disproportionate. Despite having so many retainers who were very careful of his feelings, Twilight had rarely been directly praised, even as a child. Hearing the Princess tell him so freely that he was, in fact, a good boy shot him right through the heart. His fingers relaxed, moving quickly up her sides and around her back to pull her in close. He clutched her to his chest and in one smooth motion captured her lips again; this time, though, he wasn't going to go easy on her. He brought a hand up to cradle the back of her head, threading his fingers through her fine, soft silver hair. The Princess squeaked her surprise, but her hands fell still. Instead, she slowly brought them back to Twilight's face, lightly cupping his cheeks as she returned his kiss.

This time as they kissed, Twilight forgot to be as gentle. He nipped the Princess's lower lip again with his sharp teeth, using the opportunity to taste the inside of her mouth with the tip of his tongue. She gave a muffled squeal from the intrusion before apparently taking it as some kind of competition and kissed back even harder. At the provocation, he nearly overpowered the smaller human woman, but it didn't seem to bother her at all. Instead, she growled her dominance at her larger demon lover.

After several more seconds of this, Twilight noticed that something strange had happened. His lap, where the Princess sat heavily, had begun to throb; the place where she was pressing into him was suddenly hot and damp, sending waves of heat throughout the rest of his body. He had to retreat to get breath, pulling away from the Princess's kiss to gulp in air. Instead, he pulled her close to his chest as he caught his breath. He buried his face in her hair as they both went entirely still.

“What's wrong?” she whispered. “Did you give up? Are you ready to sleep?” Twilight felt like he was holding onto her for dear life. The sensations going through him were so alien – but so pleasurable – that it felt like he might drown. But he didn't. As the seconds passed and the feeling subsided, he breathed more steadily.

“Y-Yeah,” Twilight responded. “Let's… Let's go to sleep.” He offered the Princess a friendly smile before releasing his grip on her. Suddenly, the awkwardness hit him – would she think it was weird if he kept clinging to her like that? He gave her a pat on the shoulder and even resisted the urge to try for a dignified handshake. What about that wet spot? He thought she might have one too, but there was no way to tell underneath the pile of nightclothes gathered around her waist.

The look she gave him was inscrutable. Half-curious, half-contemplative, the Princess cocked her head, allowing her silver hair to fall over her chest again as she clearly thought about it. Had she gotten what she wanted? Twilight suddenly felt guilty for some reason; he wasn't sure what about that was supposed to be a sleep aid, but he couldn't deny that he did feel a bit sleepier than normal.

After several seconds of consideration, the Princess finally smiled up at him.

“Hnh,” she hummed, letting her eyes drift shut. “I'll go ahead and sleep here, then.” Twilight began to protest, but saw that the Princess was already snuggling against his bare chest, placing one hand over his heart while subtly nudging him back down towards the pillows. As he got comfortable, and the Princess got comfortable on him, Twilight couldn't help but wonder what exactly had just happened – did she actually mean the things she'd said?

Twilight had fallen asleep nearly as soon as his head hit the pillow, but Syalis stayed awake a while longer. Cuddling against his bare chest wasn't exactly as comfortable as Furry Dog's was, but it was nice in a different way. He was warmer, smelled better, and his chest moved up and down softly as he slept. Still, she couldn't help but be confused and a little frustrated.

She had done everything the books had said to do – hugging, kissing, “I love you"s, sitting in his lap, stroking something long and hard. Yet she hadn't noticed a real change in her sleepiness level; the only thing that had changed was that now her panties were embarrassingly wet. She’d noticed the same thing happened to Twilight, too, but if he wasn't going to mention it, then neither was she. Come to think of it, that same wetness had happened a little bit when she'd read those courtly love novels too, but it was nothing compared to this. If she was being honest, it was actually an annoyingly nice feeling, especially when she rubbed her legs together. But other than that, Syalis still felt the same amount of sleepiness as she did when she had first entered the room. As her eyes drifted shut, admiring the lines of Twilight's pecs, she wondered if it was possible that she had made a mistake somewhere.

Well… they would just have to try again until they got it right!

Chapter Text

When Twilight next woke, the Princess was nowhere to be found. His desk chair was where it had always been – not shoved underneath the handles of his door – and nothing else of note was different. The only indication that she had been there at all was the fact that he was nude from the waist up and there was a suspicious dried spot in his pajama pants. Shaking his foggy head, he wondered if she had even been there at all.

Maybe his degenerate mind had imagined it all? He'd never actually had a wet dream before, but from everything he knew about them, his memories of the previous night seemed to fit the bill. But it wasn't like there was anyone to give him any information about such things. His father had never had nor needed a wife, the Demon Cleric avoided anything sexual in nature like the plague, and Red had been neutered as a pup. The best he could hope for would be to eavesdrop on some of his lower-ranked demons and hope they discussed girls. Whatever the case, he would certainly not be asking the Princess about it directly, if at all.

Before he could worry much more about it, there was a firm, strong knock at the chamber door. It would be Great Red, entering for his morning toilet and debriefing. Heart pounding against his ribs, Twilight grabbed his shirt and shoved it back on over his horns.

“My liege?”

“C-Come in!” he called. Whatever he'd actually seen or done the night before, he had to push it to the back of his mind and focus on his daily business now. Whether it was real or a perverted dream, he certainly wasn't about to tell anyone about it.

Focusing on the daily business of running the Demon Castle was easier said than done after the strangeness of the night before. Twilight was finding himself more and more exhausted as the night-like day wore on. Finally, he'd rescheduled the tours that required his presence for later in the week and had retreated to his desk to do paperwork until time for dinner. The paperwork was mind-numbing and repetitive, and that was perfect for his weakened mental state.

Of course, it was all the Princess's fault. She had been missing for part of the morning, but was finally apprehended and returned to her cell. She'd apparently been hiding in the royal library, which wasn't that odd, honestly. But Twilight felt his stomach flutter at the memory of the night before. Whether it was a dream or not, his hostage admitting she liked him like that was a bit much for his constitution. Especially if others found out. Of course, he wanted to be known as a grand and evil ruler. But he didn't want to be misunderstood as the specific type of evil that would take advantage of an innocent human girl – or whatever type of human girl the Princess was. That type of evil also seemed particularly weak-minded to him; how would he keep his demons' respect if they knew he was weak to the charms of a human woman?

Then there was whatever reaction his Guardians would have. The Demon Cleric would undoubtedly either try to curse him to death or simply leave the castle again. Great Red would be less-than-thrilled, as well, especially in light of how many rules that would violate. Twilight wasn't overly familiar with it, but just thinking about doing anything with a half-clothed Princess probably broke at least five rules on fraternization. And his father… his father would either organize a coronation for the Princess or a state funeral for Twilight, maybe even both!

But he also had to confront the possibility that he had just imagined it all, too. What did that say about how he felt about the Princess? Would he eventually lose all his common sense around her, like his men who had become besotted by her? He already let her get away with literal murder on a daily basis, would having a weird crush on her undermine his authority even more?

Twilight groaned as he came to rest his head in his hands. His elbows leaned against his desk, scattered with paperwork and quills, with an inbox nearly equal to the outbox. This mental tug-of-war was exhausting. After a few moments of rubbing his temples, he cracked his eyes open. As he looked towards his feet, he saw something glittering between his knees. The two little angry purple pinpricks were staring intently at him from the space between his legs. Twilight’s eyes popped open in fright before he picked his head up and whipped it towards the office door.

They were alone and the door was locked. He had already cleared his schedule for the afternoon, so they were unlikely to be interrupted. Whether that was a good thing or not, he couldn't tell. All he could hear was his heart suddenly thumping in his ears.

“How did you get--"

“…no horns…”

She sounded like a wraith, come straight from the Underworld to haunt him. In response, Twilight instinctively drew a sharp breath in between his teeth and leaned back in his chair. He put his hands on either arm and nearly dug his sharp nails into the wood through his gloves.

“Wh-What--"

The Princess’s delicate little hands rose from the darkness underneath the desk and came to rest on Twilight's thighs. She squeezed, at once thrilling and nearly hurting him. Looking down, he could see she was in her black, long-sleeved business dress; her pale hair fell down the off-the-shoulder front, but he could clearly see the skin of her cleavage. The outline of her perfectly round little breasts was just visible beneath the black fabric, and he could swear he could see just the barest blush of her pink areolas. But what he could see of her face looked angry, with pinched eyebrows and a pout.

“Human men have no horns,” she finally continued, her voice accusatory.

“Of course not,” Twilight answered with an awkward laugh. “What does that--"

“The books I read were about human men,” she continued. “So what other part of a man would be long and hard? That both human and demon men would have?”

Twilight could feel the blood rush from his face. He was fairly sure that he was nearly as pale as her for just a moment as they made eye contact. But the part of his body she was referring to just then, that little traitor seemed to thrill at her position. He very nearly snapped his knees shut, but her firm little hands kept them open to her.

“Princess, y-you can't… that is, I don't--"

But he was stuttering and it didn't actually string together into much of a coherent thought. Ignoring him and still angrily pouting, the Princess ran her thumbs up the inseam of his pants. As she reached the place where the legs joined, Twilight thought those pants were suddenly awfully tight. The Princess seemed to notice as well.

“It's that part, isn't it?” she accused. “The one you guys are always hiding.”

“L-Ladies aren't supposed to look at that!” Twilight almost squealed. But those strong little hands were already at his fly, pressing him through the fabric. He could even see her sharp canines as her pout became a sharp smile and she gaged his reaction. It strained against his pants and towards her hand, clearly wanting to go along with whatever this wicked human had in mind.

“I knew it,” she said. “This part was hard last night, too, when I sat on you.” The pad of her thumb pressed into Twilight's quickly growing erection, causing him to nearly gasp. Instead, he could feel his face burn at her touch.

“You… So last night… you really…”

Finally, the Princess's expression was neither angry nor devious. In fact, she cocked her head curiously as she gave the length of his shaft a firm stroke with her thumb. Their eyes met and Twilight understood: it wasn't a dream his diseased mind had conjured up. His hostage had really come to proposition him – twice, now.

“Yes?” she said. “Did you mistake me for Bussy?” She didn't move her hands away at all while she asked casually about her body double. But Twilight could have sworn that her voice sounded just a bit disappointed – maybe even hurt. Contrary to the sound of her voice, though, her stroking got a bit more insistent as she added the rest of her hand to her thumb. Her other hand moved towards Twilight's waist to start unfastening his belts.

“Of course not!” he squawked, his voice coming out higher than he'd intended. “I can tell you apart! I just thought….” He heard the clink of his belts just a moment before the pressure of his pants lessened. As soon as those were loose, the Princess walked her fingers up and pushed his trousers open in the front. Even as she revealed his erection to the cool air, she didn't break eye contact. Twilight was sure his face was pure red instead of its normal chestnut color by then.

“Thought what?” Why did she have to sound so innocent while she was doing such debauched things to him?!

“I thought it was a dream.”

At this, the Princess's eyes demurely slid away, looking off to the side as she blushed just a bit. Her free hand drifted back to her lips, her slender fingers gently brushing the curve of her lower lip. Twilight felt his stomach flip as she glanced back at his face. If her other hand hadn't been stroking his most private place so firmly at that moment, he would have thought it a perfectly regal expression of flattery.

“You dream about doing things like this with me?” she whispered.

“N-No, never!” Twilight answered. It was honest, but the premise of the question left him flustered. It wasn’t that he wouldn't have wanted to; it was just that he hadn't yet. The Princess's eyes narrowed as she sensed weakness.

“I'll get Hypnos to look into your dreams,” she threatened, delighted.

“Not fair,” he breathed. “I h-hadn't before! Now I probably will…” The Princess smiled coyly.

“You're sweet,” she cooed. Twilight felt his heart in his throat again. He gripped the armrests of his chair for a different reason now, trying not to encourage or discourage his new human lover. Not that she needed anyone to give her strange ideas, anyway. As the situation stood, the Princess was using only her hand to keep Twilight glued to his chair while she firmly stroked his length. His eyes squeezed shut as he focused on the strange sensations she was making him feel.

“I'm going to try something I read about,” the Princess whispered. She didn't release him as she sat up on her knees; instead, she leaned into the space between his legs. As the Princess’s head descended towards his lap, Twilight fought the urge to panic. Why was her face so close to his little problem?!

“Princess, what are you-?!”

And then she breathed on it and he thought he might pass out. He forced his eyes to stay open, though, and watched as she bent towards him. Her lips had barely brushed his skin before her wet, pink tongue darted out to touch him. Twilight fought the urge to yelp from the shock of the cool air hitting the wet spot; instead, she followed that by sliding her warm mouth to the tip of his shaft. In another moment, he was inside her, past her lips and being caressed by her tongue.

He was defenseless. The mighty Demon King - ruler of all demons, feared by all humankind - made utterly helpless by the mouth of one tiny little human princess. The sound he made at that realization was completely undignified: a deep groan, welling up from within as the heat from the Princess enveloped him. Reflexively, he moved to cover his face with his clawed hands, as if he was trying to hide. He would be absolutely ruined if anyone saw her doing this to him, reveling in his weakness. She would probably be disinherited at the very least, having her mouth around something completely unbefitting a princess.

And that realization somehow thrilled Twilight even more.

“A-Ah-! Princess-!”

His hips rocked towards her as she moved rhythmically along his shaft. He uncovered his face and his clawed hands then found her head, threading fingers gently through her hair. He didn't want to hurt her, but he couldn't get enough of what she was doing, either. And the little sounds she was making – little muffled gasps and moans against his skin, sending jolts of pleasure throughout his body. He was hot, burning up all over, just like whenever he used a lot of his powers. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he curled over her, teeth gritted, as the Princess continued her terrible ministrations with her mouth. Gently sucking, taking him in, all of him…

And then, Twilight felt like his fever had just broken.

A wave of coolness washed through his body, from his horns down to his toes. He gasped deeply, trying to take in as much air as physically possible. It was a powerful feeling, close to what he'd felt the night before, but even more intense. The place where the Princess was tormenting him was now even more wet; her mouth was full of something that he was certain came from him. As she slid him out of her mouth and pressed her lips closed, Twilight's suspicions were confirmed. His member pulsed, slick with thick, white strands covering it and a dribble of the same coming from the tip. Trying hard to catch his breath, he rushed to tuck himself away.

As he came down from the rush of the Princess's harebrained idea, Twilight had the horrifying realization that she was sitting before him with her mouth full of whatever it was he'd done in there. Without bothering to buckle his belt again, he reached into his vest to draw out his handkerchief and quickly put it against her mouth. Nearly immediately, he felt her fill it with wet warmth.

“Sorry,” he said quietly. “I don't… really know what happened.” She met his eyes with a mischievous glance, her cheeks dusted with a rosy blush. She took the handkerchief from his hands and finished delicately wiping her lips.

“You enjoyed yourself,” she said, clearly trying not to giggle. Twilight blinked, secretly relieved that she wasn't angry at him.

“Did you?” At this question, the Princess did actually giggle.

“Isn't it obvious?” she asked. “You're so cute when you're helpless.” Twilight knew he should be terrified by her seeing him while he was defenseless, but honestly, the Princess was also cute when she wasn't murdering demons. Before he could ruminate much on that thought, though, the Princess looked up at him, catching his eyes. Without waiting for permission, she sat up on her knees, leaning between his legs again, and pressing her lips against his.

The kiss tasted strange this time. Last night, she had tasted like milk and egg custard, sweet and mellow. Today, the Princess's kiss tasted more tangy, salty and thick. After a moment, Twilight realized what exactly he was tasting: it was his own essence mingling with hers. He also realized that this taste was proof of what she'd just done, and that only the two of them would know.

As she kissed him, he felt the Princess's hand move down his chest and towards the still-open top of his pants. She deftly slid the soiled handkerchief into the opening, tucking it right in front of the part of him she'd been playing with just a minute ago. Then, as though nothing untoward had happened, she brought that hand up to mirror its twin on the other side of his face before pulling away.

“I can't put that in my laundry without getting you in trouble,” she whispered. Twilight stared wordlessly at that confession. She was right; whatever was in the handkerchief notwithstanding, just the fact that she had it would raise questions.

Before he could respond, though, a sharp knock came at his office door.

“My liege!” It was Great Red. Twilight exchanged a look with the Princess; an understanding passed silently between them.

“Come in, Red.”

By the time the demon dog had opened the office door with his key, all that was visible was a weary Demon King behind his desk (fully dressed) with a somewhat more lively human Princess in her formal attire standing beside his chair.

“Oh, excuse me, my liege,” Red began again. “I came to inform you that the Princess had disappeared again, but it seems you've already apprehended her.” Twilight offered a somewhat awkward smile as he addressed his Guardian.

“Something like that,” he said.

“I came by to help with some paperwork,” she said with a smile and a tilt of her head. The Princess gave Twilight's shoulder guard a small squeeze of reassurance. He just hoped that Great Red didn't sense anything strange. Every twitch of his whiskers made Twilight nervous.

“If there's nothing else, then I'll escort her back to her cell,” the dogman said. Twilight nodded his agreement.

“Sure,” he said, reaching for a quill. The Princess seemed to be fairly cooperative since she'd gotten what she wanted. Just as she'd gone around the desk and came even with Great Red, Twilight raised his head and thought he should say something before she left.

“Ah, Princess?” he continued. “Can I… borrow that book you mentioned?” Her smile just then was the same as a monster cat who'd found a whole dish of cream.

“Of course, Twilight-kun,” she replied, the deviousness barely just beneath the surface. “I'll get it to you by tomorrow night.”

Chapter Text

Twilight sighed as he flopped against his pillows. He'd retired early the night of his rendezvous with the Princess in his office, only to find that she had already left one of her “instructional manuals" (a human romance novel) on his pillow. He hadn't seen her enter or leave at all; if she wasn't already a Princess, she would be an excellent spy.

In fact, he hadn't seen her at all since that day in his office. He assumed she had been giving him time to read through what she'd left him. Twilight had always been a relatively quick reader, but between work and tours and guiding the Hero's party (lost twice in the past two days!), it had taken him three nights to complete. As he snapped the book shut finally and laid his head back on the pillow, he tried to process what it was trying to say.

The main character was a beautiful girl who had been traded by her father for his debts to a cursed human prince. The prince had been condemned to be a hideous monster by a witch; he had terribly long hair, huge claws and teeth, and horns. Twilight found the description of the ‘hideous monster' to be a little too close to home for his comfort, honestly; he was clearly meant to be a demon in everything but name only. But either way, the human girl fell in love with him and turned him back human with a kiss. After that, they were married and had a honeymoon scene that Twilight found thoroughly confusing; there was a lot of talk about weeping petals, turgid members, burning cores, and hardened manhoods.

The one thing he did manage to figure out – mostly through first-hand experience – was that the release he'd experienced with the Princess was what caused the newlyweds a “blissful night's sleep". Which, as far as he knew, the Princess hadn't managed to achieve yet. So if he ever wanted to know peace again, he had to figure out how to make the Princess have the same experience. He actually felt a little guilty that she had expended all that energy on him and hadn't even really gotten any benefit from it – neither a climax nor the sleep that would theoretically follow one.

About the only part of the novel that he truly understood was that somehow, all the released essences and bouncing beds resulted in human children in the epilogue. Which honestly caused Twilight a small amount of panic. He needed to do more research on the topic, possibly even visiting the human nations to get more reading material. There was no one he could trust to find this information for him. Either way, the appearance of a little half-breed from the Princess – while it would be incredibly cute – would be undeniable proof of their guilt, and he absolutely wasn't going to have that. Besides which, he was only ten years into his reign – ideally, he wouldn't need to think about an heir for at least another couple hundred years!

“Now I get why the Princess was confused,” he sighed to himself. Twilight was answered by the sound of a pair of giant scissors blocking the handles of his chamber door shut. His entire body went rigid from the noise, fingers curling against the bedsheets as he gritted his teeth. At least it wasn't his desk chair this time.

“I see you finished the book,” the Princess observed, padding softly over to the bed in her houseshoes. Twilight sat up to look at her. As expected, she slipped off her houseshoes and pulled up the cover of the bed. In a moment, she was under the covers with him, just as if it was her bed, too.

“Yeah,” he said, looking away from her. “You were confused, too, huh?” He could feel the Princess move and, being slightly concerned, turned to see her with her arms folded, sulking.

“I was mostly disappointed,” she huffed. “There was no need for him to become human again at the end. His monster form was better!” Twilight stared openly at her.

“Wha-"

“There was no need!” the Princess repeated, clearly angry with that plot revelation. “I wanted her to have a love scene with him as a monster!” Twilight felt as though he'd just learned something strange about the Princess and wasn't totally sure how to feel about it.

“Uh, should I read anything into that?” He was only half-way joking. Syalis gave him a curious look.

“Why?” she asked. “You aren't going to suddenly become human, are you?” The curiosity seemed to give way to a dawning horror. Twilight couldn't hide his sudden distress, either.

“You're picturing it, aren't you?” he said, aghast. “Stop! Don't think about that! I'm never going to be a human!” She looked genuinely relieved, and Twilight figured that was as much of an answer as he was ever going to get to that question. But with that reaction, she didn't really need to say anything.

“A-Anyway,” he carried on with a small smile, “You blocked the door because didn't want to be interrupted, ri--"

“I want to try it again.”

She looked him right in the eyes, determination shining through her starry purple gaze. She was so forward that Twilight couldn't help but blush.

“Okay, but lis--"

He was interrupted by a rather forceful kiss. This time, the Princess tasted like warm cinnamon tea; she must have stopped by the cafeteria on her way there for a cup. Even though he had to stop her before she had her way with him again, Twilight couldn't help but lean in to her kiss for just a moment. She already had one hand entwined in his hair; he returned the favor with his left hand while covering the one in his hair with his right. He squeezed and pulled it away, reluctantly breaking their kiss prematurely.

“Listen,” he continued, a bit more breathily than before. “I wanted to ask you a question. About what we did before.” She looked up at him, confused and possibly a bit frustrated at being thwarted so easily. He really did need to remember that he could overpower her if he actually needed to. Sometimes it slipped his mind, for reasons he considered obvious.

“Yes?”

“Those other times… did it make you feel anything?” he asked. “I mean, down there.” The Princess stared as though he were speaking another language. In return, Twilight felt himself flush; he was really going to have to spell it out for her, wasn't he?

“Are you asking if I had fun?” she asked. It was clear she hadn't experienced anything like he had, and that gave Twilight a brief moment of anxiety.

“No!” he said. “If it wasn't fun, I don't think you'd do it more than once! I mean this place.” With that, he took a chance on leaving her right hand unattended long enough to press into her lap with his left. There was a gap in Twilight's vocabulary that he had just become painfully aware of; he had no proper word for what that was on a lady, nor did he even really know what it looked like. He knew there wasn't a penis there. But outside of euphemisms that were too embarrassing to use (“syrupy petals" being the one that sprang immediately to mind), and strictly medical terms, ‘down there' would have to do for the moment.

He gave the front of it the softest little stroke while watching the Princess's face turn bright red. “Did anything happen for you down here last time?” She even picked up a shank of her long, beribboned hair and hid part of her face behind it.

“A gentleman isn't supposed to ask about that,” she murmured, a small tinge of embarrassment in her voice for once. “Or touch it. You brute.” She didn't actually sound offended, though, and if her come-hither eyes were anything to judge by, she was probably just teasing. If anything, Twilight was struck by the hypocrisy.

“You did a lot more than touch me there!” he protested. “Anyway, it's not fair.” At this, the Princess cocked her head to the side and stopped hiding behind her hair.

“You're right.”

“I'm glad we s--" he began. “Wait, which part?” Twilight was just a little suspicious.

“You got a good night's sleep both times,” the Princess hissed accusingly. “I even checked on you after the time in your office! I couldn't wake you and you had the dumbest grin on your face.” Twilight knew his face had to be bright red.

“That's your fault!” he squawked. “A-And don't be in here while I'm asle--"

“And I was up way too long afterward,” the Princess fussed. “Even the night I slept in here. It was too warm… umm… down… down in… in my underwear…” As she drug out every word, she also began to turn bright red. By the time she whispered the word ‘underwear', she was very nearly purple. Twilight could tell she was probably fighting with every bit of propriety she'd had drilled into her since birth.

“Anyway!” she recovered. “That has nothing to do with you!”

“It has everything to do with me!” he answered quickly. Then, thinking better of it, Twilight realized he had to find a way to convince her of his plan that would actually appeal to her interests. “Remember what happened in the office? What I did? I-In your… in your mouth?”

Once again, the Princess covered her blushing face with some of her hair, and gave the smallest “I do" Twilight had ever heard.

“That's what makes you go to sleep,” he explained, gaging her reaction. The Princess blinked a few times before putting her hair back down. She delicately touched her fingers to her lips as she looked away.

“I don't think I have the right, ah, parts to do what you did.”

“I know that,” he said flatly. “But I think you can do something similar. That's why you couldn’t sleep. You were, ah… turned on and didn't finish it.” Syalis seemed to be absorbing this new information before looking up shrewdly at her captive audience.

“So if you rub yours against mine somehow…” she reasoned slowly. The look she gave Twilight just then chilled him to the bone. Unfortunately, the annoyance in his pajama pants didn't feel the same way; in fact, that part seemed delighted at the prospect. Before she could outflank him, he scooted back, waving his hands in front of his chest.

“N-No, we aren't going to do that yet!” he squeaked. “O-Or at all! I don't want to cause you to… I mean… we shouldn't do that without being really ready first!” He didn't want to tell her he suspected that might cause them to produce an heir when they definitely shouldn't – mostly because it might have made her more aggressive if she knew a cute baby could happen from it.

Besides which, he had another idea of what might work instead. If she could finish him off with her mouth, he should be able to, too!

“What I'm trying to say is, you have to let me see it. Inside your underwear, I mean.”

Without another word, the Princess began to crawl away, back the way she came. Quicker than he even thought he could have, Twilight grabbed her by the hips and pulled her back.

“Don't you dare!” he squawked. “You little coward!” She was pulling at his bedsheets, flailing desperately to get out of revealing herself. After the way she'd manhandled him, he wasn't about to let her slink away at the first sign of embarrassment.

“Bully! Demon!” she squealed, trying to claw her way away. “Masher! Pervert!” As she continued calling him increasingly old-fashioned insults, she kicked out with her legs, neatly slamming her foot into his face repeatedly. Struggling to see, Twilight tried grabbing onto her nightgown to keep her calm. Instead, she had rolled onto her back to get a better position to kick him from. This caused her nightgown to ride up her legs, revealing her panties, right down to the cute character on the butt.

Well, it would have revealed her panties, if Twilight could see past her feet in his face. One particularly sharp kick, however, connected right into his forehead. He lost whatever balance he had left and tipped forward, landing squarely between her legs with his face directly in her panties and his horns pushing her thighs apart. This, at least, gave the Princess a moment of pause.

With a groan, Twilight picked his head up and looked up towards the Princess's face. She was watching him nervously as well, attempting to hide part of her face behind her pulled-up nightgown. Furthermore, she seemed to be blushing and embarrassed, but at least she wasn't pushing him away anymore.

“Don't look,” she murmured quietly.

“You saw mine,” Twilight countered gravely, bringing his first two fingers on his right hand to press against the cotton fabric.

“That's different,” the Princess pouted, looking anywhere but at him. “You can already see yours. I can't see mine. What if it's not befitting a princess? What if… what if it's weird?” He gave the outside of her panties a firm stroke and felt her shudder.

“You're already weird,” he observed, internally adding ‘and a control freak.’ “And I wouldn’t know the difference anyway.” It was warm – warm and damp, even through the gusset of the underwear. The Princess even whimpered a tiny bit, but she didn't struggle or push him away this time.

“Okay… I guess you can look,” she finally whispered, looking off at any other place in the bedroom. “But if you tell anyone what you see, I swear I'll make you pay!” Twilight rose to his knees and backed away, keeping his fingers right where they were. The Princess didn't snap her legs back together as he moved, and he considered that a good sign. After another few firm strokes, he moved his hands to her waistband and hooked his fingers into it. Sensing his intent, the Princess moved her legs close enough for him to slide the panties off.

“I'm not going to tell a soul,” he replied gently. To be perfectly honest, there was no one he could tell, at least without ruining both their reputations and possibly getting tried for some type of war crime. But the Princess didn't need to hear that just then. Instead, she hesitated only a few more seconds, then finally spread her knees back apart. They weren't open to the extent that they had been – not open enough to see anything, at the very least – so Twilight gently pushed them apart with his hands at her knees. She didn't resist; in fact, she peered at him over her nightgown with a look of mingled curiosity and dread.

“Well?” she whispered. “Is it…. Is it okay?”

The place she'd been hiding all this time was a simple, smooth slope, dusted with fine silvery hair. Either she had trimmed it neatly, or the hair just naturally grew that way, but it was extremely tidy. Twilight knew he certainly had never paid that much attention to the hair between his own legs. Beneath that, directly between her legs, was a thin, pink line; there was a puffiness on either side, as well as a slight blush compared to the porcelain white skin on either thigh. At the top was a little swollen area, also bright pink and about the size of an expensive pearl. Twilight tilted his head to the side, curious and just a bit confused. His expression must have startled her, because the Princess's legs began to tense and move against his hands.

“Is it that bad?” she whispered. She was clearly beginning to panic.

“N-No, it's… it's fine!” Then he realized that wasn't exactly reassuring, so he amended it. “What I mean is, it's… really cute, actually. Elegant, even. It's just…” None of this seemed to be calming her fears, so he said the first thing that came to mind.

“It's not the same as I have.”

The Princess's anxiety seemed to vanish, replaced with a touch of annoyance.

“Of course it's not,” she replied. “I don't have a pe—a… a… a pulsating manhood.”

“Please just say ‘penis',” Twilight sighed. “I promise I won't tell anyone.” He figured nothing could be quite as unromantic as listening to the Princess use language she'd gotten from dirty novels.

“That's undignified,” she huffed, cheeks puffing. Rather than argue with her more, Twilight used the pad of his thumb – being careful to avoid using his sharp nails – to press into the pearly area he'd noticed before. He made eye contact with her just as she made the most undignified squeaking sound he'd ever heard come from her. Her muscles tensed and her hips shifted slightly, but she didn't move away.

“You were saying?” Just to emphasize, he pressed down again, feeling some hardened piece of cartilage or sinew slide underneath his thumb. The Princess's eyelids drifted down, not quite shutting, as her lips parted in a soft intake of breath.

“I-I'm still dignified,” she stammered through another press of Twilight's thumb. “It's just that it's very, ah, sti-stimulating, i-is all!” The truth of the matter was, though, that Twilight knew firsthand that there was no dignity to be found here. Rather, it was much more likely that the Princess was nervous over being at another person's mercy for once. With a kind smile, he rolled his thumb over the swollen little rosebud one more time, enjoying how the human woman writhed against his hand.

As he continued pressing and rolling the smooth flesh beneath his thumb, Twilight could see, feel, and even hear that the Princess was becoming more and more damp. The thick, clear fluid seeped from between her lower lips, coating his thumb and even making the skin he was touching slick. Curious, he moved his thumb down the line of her slit, feeling the moisture gathered there. With a gentle motion, he pulled one side slightly open, just enough to see what was beyond her outer lips. It was pink and damp, clear juice gathering in beads and strands along the folds.

The thought occurred to him that he could probably slide a finger in there, if his nails were trimmed. More than that, the idea that another part of him was probably better suited to going in there brought a great deal of heat to his face. That would have to be a task for another day, though, even if the part in question seemed very eager at the moment.

No! Instead, he was going to stick to the original plan! Doubling down on his determination, Twilight bent forward to get closer to his target until he could almost touch it with his nose. Then, using his other thumb, he pulled both edges apart to more fully reveal the Princess. She squeaked again and shifted ever-so-slightly, but still hadn't rejected him.

“That's so… so close,” she protested weakly. Twilight glanced up, but could no longer see her face behind her bunched up nightgown. That was probably intentional. So in response, he gave the Princess just a tiny little puff of breath against the damp, open area between her legs. The noise she made then was less a squeak and more of a muffled, high-pitched moan. She squirmed again, this time moving in a more coordinated way; her back arched a bit as her hips rocked forward towards his face.

Letting his eyes drift shut, Twilight leaned into it and parted his lips ever-so-slightly. It was a bit like a kiss, pressing into the soft, slick flesh of the Princess's outer lips. Curiously, the tip of his tongue brushed her pink skin, eager to see exactly how it tasted. For some reason, Twilight had expected something between honey and rosewater, but it was neither; it was a bit like mildly salty water, if anything. As he processed her taste and went for another lick, the Princess pressed against his mouth. He received a muffled, needy whimper; she must have been trying hard not to sound too wanton. The motion of her body told another story, though.

In answer to this unspoken request, Twilight let his eyes drift shut again and gave her another long, deep lick. He used his thumbs to pull her outer lips apart and pressed his tongue between them. Inside, just past where he could see, was much deeper and wetter than it looked from the outside. It was softer than the outer skin and clung onto his tongue in a possessive way. In another moment, he had slipped out, moving back towards the part that the Princess seemed to respond to the most. But he couldn't deny that what his tongue had just touched was thrilling, promising more that they could do later on.

Finally, he moved up and settled in on the little pink nub that he'd pressed down on earlier. He drew it between his teeth, letting them scrape it before bathing the swollen skin with his tongue. He was rewarded with a muffled squeal and the Princess pressing harder against his mouth.

Each touch of his tongue caused the Princess to squirm more; she seemed to be angling to meet his mouth. Twilight not only obliged, he also slid one thumb up to press into the swollen pink flesh at the top of the Princess's slit. As he rolled it beneath his thumb and bathed the area just beneath with his tongue, he could hear the Princess respond with a shrill gasp. She clutched the sheets underneath her and wrapped her legs over Twilight's shoulders, crossing her ankles just behind his neck. Certainly, he had done something right.

Therefore, the logical thing to do would be to do it again. He was rewarded with the Princess's heavy breathing and soft gasping, coming at regular intervals now.

“D-Don't stop,” she panted. “Twilight-kun! Don't stop! I… Something is…”

She arched to meet his mouth, allowing him to give the delicate little rosebud a nice, long suck. Twilight could feel her leg muscles stiffen against his neck as she made an adorable little mewling noise. Suddenly, her little lips pulsed, the muscles inside throbbing strong enough that Twilight could feel it from his position at her entrance. He realized just then that she was much wetter than before. At first, he thought it might have been from his tongue, but as more came out, it became evident that it was simply the excited Princess creating more juices on her own. Dutifully, he went to work, licking her clean while listening to her deep, even breathing.

After a few more quiet moments spent cleaning the Princess with his tongue, Twilight felt her legs relax against his shoulders. With a curious hum, he pulled away and balanced his weight on his hands. The Princess lay among the crumpled bedsheets, hair splayed around her blushing face with her eyes half-lidded and drowsy. A dreamy smile painted her delicate lips. Her calves slipped down the side of Twilight's shoulders, falling bonelessly to the bed. She was devastatingly beautiful like this, even if it wasn't particularly dignified.

Although his body was wound tight – hot, hard, and ready to go – the Princess's state of relaxation gave him total pause. Instead of doing anything else, Twilight swallowed his excitement and moved her legs back together and pulled her nightgown back down to cover her legs. The Princess simply sighed and adjusted her laying position lazily. As he came to lay beside her – and adjusted the blankets to cover them both accordingly – Syalis met Twilight's eyes.

“That was a good job,” she sighed sweetly. “Twilight-kun did such a good job. I don't want to move anymore.”

“You don't have to.”

On impulse, he pulled one of her delicate little hands into his, curling his black-tipped fingers over hers. Gently, he brought her fingers to his lips for a small kiss. The corners of her mouth tugged up lazily, but Twilight suspected the Princess was well on her way to already drifting off to sleep. His idea really did work.

Well, it worked for her, anyway. Unfortunately for him, his body didn't exactly get what it needed to slip into the same state as the Princess. As he lay there - wide-awake and still turned on despite his better judgement, with no way to fix the situation – he realized he was about to find out exactly what the Princess had been complaining about before.

Hopefully he wouldn't be too sleep deprived the following morning to head out to the human kingdom. He had to find out how they completed their coupling, as well as how to prevent any tiny humans from happening.

Chapter Text

“My liege.”

When next Twilight woke, he opened his eyes to see his disapproving Siberian staring down at him with his arms crossed. Red looked disgruntled and it wasn't hard to see why – the Princess was still in bed with him, holding his hand, fast asleep. Eyes snapping open, he sat up in a mild panic before the memory of last night returned to him.

The Princess appeared fully-clothed, at least, and that was the most important thing. He could easily hide the discarded panties that were under the blankets until Red departed.

“A-Ahh, g-good morning,” he stammered with an awkward smile. He dislodged his hand from the sleeping Princess's and greeted his retainer.

“Good morning,” the dog-man returned drily. “I took the liberty of removing the scissors blocking the doorway. You slept through that, it seems.” Twilight had no idea how he had even managed that, and he wasn't keen on asking.

“Oh, ah, th-thank you,” he said, still trying to placate his Guardian. “The Princess invited herself over for another slumber party last night, so…” Red sighed deeply and ruffled the fur behind his ears.

“I can see that,” he replied. “Sire, don't take this the wrong way, but you really should be stricter with her. She's spoiled and I don't want her to push you around.” Twilight wanted to heave a sigh of relief, but held it in. It seemed that Red had misinterpreted the Princess's intentions, which was honestly a brilliant stroke of luck. If anyone was going to catch them, it would probably be him; his sense of smell might give their game away if they weren't careful. Fortunately, there wasn't much of anything to clean up this time.

“I'll keep that in mind,” Twilight replied with a small, awkward smile. “If you could take her back to her cell for me, I'd appreciate it. I have some errands I need to run.” He could feel the hem of her panties underneath the blankets of the bed just then. Quickly, he gathered them into a ball with his fingers and moved his hand imperceptibly underneath his leg. Red quirked an eyebrow, but otherwise made his way around to the Princess's side of the bed.

“Setting event flags for the Hero again?” he asked nonchalantly. Twilight was thankful for the change in topic, but didn't drop his guard. He couldn't let Red know the true purpose of his excursion.

“Yes, of course,” Twilight said with a friendly chuckle. “I'm sure they're lost again, so it might take a while to get them on the right track.” Red reached down to pick the Princess up off the bed, pulling her from underneath the covers. Twilight watched intently, hoping that her nightgown stayed down far enough to hide the fact that her panties were hidden underneath him at the moment. Luck was on his side and her dress stayed down around her knees as Red picked her up. The giant dog cradled her against his chest with one arm, almost in a sitting position. She stirred a bit, but ultimately fell back asleep with a cute little smile.

Twilight realized he was staring – and if the heat on his face was any indication, blushing as well – and looked away with an awkward laugh. Making sure that the panties were still well-hidden by the blankets, he moved to leave the bed and stand.

“Understood, sire,” Red said with a nod of his head. “I'll move today's meetings accordingly. And I'll get this delinquent back to her own bed.” Twilight smiled and moved towards his closet as Red moved toward the door.

“Thank you, Red,” he replied. Then, a few seconds later, his conscience nagged him into saying something else. “And, ah… don't be too hard on her, okay? She wasn't really hurting anything by being in here.” Red looked at him quizzically, and Twilight thought that maybe he should've just kept his mouth shut.

“With all due respect, sire, I don't think I need to explain how others would see her being here, alone with you at night,” Red said sternly. “I know it probably didn't occur to you, because you aren't the kind of man who does such things, but it would reflect poorly on you. We all already know the Princess doesn't care about her reputation here.” Twilight had to face his open closet doors so that Red wouldn't see his nervous expression. Every word was like an arrow in his back with the knowledge that his best friend and companion would be seriously disappointed in what he'd been doing – and fully intended to continue doing – with the Princess.

“R-Right,” he said. “I'll be careful. Thank you, Red.” Of course, he meant to sound appropriately abashed after the scolding, but the real emotion was closer to nervousness that he'd had another close call. Either way, he'd just been hoping to end the conversation at that point. Thankfully, Red apparently took the hint, because the door clicked shut shortly after. As Twilight pulled out his traveling clothes, he heaved a sigh of relief. He could only imagine how much worse it would have been if the Demon Cleric had walked in instead of Red. Luckily for him, Leonard had been on an extended tour of their outer fortresses for the better part of a week, which probably explained why the Princess was suddenly a lot bolder than she would otherwise have been.

An hour or so later, Twilight teleported directly out of his chambers and into a wooded area on the outskirts of Last Zone City. He frequently used this same spot when he had errands to run in the human world, due to its seclusion – the wooded area was perfect for sneaking undetected into human domains. As a matter of fact, he'd used it the last time he'd brought the Princess and his courtiers here to get her a vibrating pillow. And just as he had that time, he'd outfitted himself with his traveling pants, boots, tunic, a nondescript cloak, gloves to hide his naturally sharp and black fingernails (which he'd freshly trimmed this morning for a certain someone), and the oversized turban he wore to hide his horns (reinforced to keep them from poking through). As he took a deep breath of the clear, forest air and looked out towards the city, he realized that his mission today was quite different.

He was here to learn exactly how humans reproduced, and how to keep the Princess from doing anything of the sort with him (hopefully without keeping her out of his bed altogether). As he took his first steps toward the city, though, a cute little voice stopped him in his tracks.

“Oh, are you going shopping? I want to go, as well!”

Twilight froze, eyes wide, and slowly turned to find the source of the voice. He saw the Princess in her traveling shorts and cloak, hair braided in twin tails, and holding a corner of his traveling cloak.

“Did you just… sneak into my room again?” The satisfied look she gave him just then sent a chill down his spine – and not necessarily in a bad way.

“Furry Dog said you were visiting the human world for work today,” she explained. “So as soon as he left, I got dressed so I could tag along!” The casual way she explained her actions was somewhat relaxing, at least.

“Why… Why did you want to come, though?” he asked, beginning to walk towards the city. “I go to the human world to check on your Hero all the time and you hardly ever ask about it.” She shrugged as she followed along.

“I have no interest in that,” she said simply. “But you usually only make quick trips. If you were going to be out all day, I was a little curious.” Twilight sighed, wondering if he should just take her back then and there. He surely had the excess power to make multiple trips, but it might give away what exactly he was there for.

Then again, maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to let her in on his little scheme. She was deeply involved already, after all.

“Are you all by yourself?” he finally asked. “No Teddy Demons tagging along or anything? No one else knows where you're at?” The Princess sidled up to her companion with her eyebrows arched conspiratorially.

“We're all alone again,” she purred. Taking the insinuation, Twilight gulped as his face heated up. The Princess seemed to know how nervous she'd made him and slid her arm around his.

“The… The truth is, umm,” Twilight stammered, trying to get used to the feeling of the Princess being on his arm, “I came here looking for information. About, umm… about human sexuality.” The look he received in return was positively devilish.

“I see,” the Princess replied. “It's a good thing I came along, then.” Twilight looked away, choosing to focus on a particularly interesting tree instead.

“It's not like you're an expert, either,” he scoffed. “And I can't ask my advisors. You know how Red reacted already.” At this, the Princess's eyebrows pinched together as she kicked a pebble down the forest path.

“I got a lecture when I woke up about protecting my ‘virtue' and about making sure I was worried about your reputation,” she huffed. “But we're both adults, so I don't see what's so wrong with doing those sorts of things with you. I couldn't even enjoy waking up after the wonderful sleep you gave me!” Well, she wasn't exactly wrong, Twilight reasoned. But she was being overly optimistic.

“Surely you know it'd be a huge scandal if we got caught,” he replied softly. “People would probably think I forced you…” He trailed off without finishing that thought, but the look on the Princess's face told him he didn't need to. She looked as though she had heard bad news.

“So you… Do you want to stop…?” She genuinely seemed distressed by the idea and Twilight had no intention of turning her away anyway.

“N-No!” he squawked. “Not at all! I just don't want to get caught, is all!” This cleared the Princess's expression right up.

“Then we'll just have to keep being sneaky,” she whispered happily. Twilight couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm as they walked together towards the city.

It was still only mid-morning when the pair reached Last Zone City. Their disguises seemed to be working, as they blended seamlessly into the crowds of people thronging the streets. The humans here were going about their daily business, buying and selling, going to and from their jobs or other assorted errands. Twilight was reminded again of how it honestly wasn't much different from how he'd seen demon cities operate.

“So where did you have in mind to go?” Syalis asked, looking around them curiously.

“I'm not really sure,” Twilight admitted. “Maybe a bookstore?” All sorts of information were stored in books, after all, and if he could find accurate anatomy textbooks, all the better. The Princess seemed to consider this as well, with her fingers on her chin.

“I think that's a good idea,” she reasoned. “Did you want to find more courtly love novels?” Twilight shook his head.

“No, I think we have enough of those in the castle library,” he replied. “I'm looking for something more… straightforward. Realistic.” Syalis seemed contemplative, as well.

Neither of the royals had any need of such education during their tutoring years. It was assumed Twilight would never need knowledge like that during his reign, after all. And he figured, based on his research so far with those human love novels and with Syalis's lack of anything resembling familiarity with the subject, that it was probably human custom for the male of the species to handle all the logistics. In their case, since neither of them had any functional knowledge of love-making and Syalis was infamous for her strange flights of fancy, it fell to Twilight to figure things out correctly.

“Hmmm,” she seemed to be considering this information. “So… something like marital aids…” Twilight cocked his head at this new combination of words. But they were already right in front of a traditional bookstore, so that was where Twilight began heading.

“What's that?” he asked as he approached the door.

“I heard some of our knights talking about it once,” the Princess whispered as they crossed the threshold into the little bookstore. “I think it's things they use with their wives. You know… when they’re together in bed. Playing. I used to think they meant things like playing cards or ping pong to get a better night's sleep, but now I'm not so sure…” Twilight gave her a warning look; they were in a smaller area now and could easily be overheard. And even though they were well-disguised, he didn't want anyone realizing he was a demon in this human settlement, either.

Besides, the only other person in the bookstore was a bored-looking, middle-aged shopkeeper lady, and Twilight didn't want to attract her attention. She bid them welcome and then went back to the book she was reading behind the counter.

“I'm not sure that's what we need,” he said quietly as they wound their way through the bookshelves. “I was thinking more of medical texts. They would be more accurate.” Syalis's eyes widened as realization dawned on her. As Twilight perused the shelves, they came to a stop before several shelves of medical and healing texts.

“Oh, that makes sense,” she said. “What about this one?” She plucked a book with yoga positions off the shelf and opened it to a random page. There were full illustrations of a pair having intercourse in an odd, uncomfortable position: the man held the woman up off the floor by the waist and penetrated her from behind while her pose looked vaguely reminiscent of a floating pyramid.

“That can't be normal,” Twilight whispered. “Can it…?”

“Do you want to try that?” Syalis asked quietly. She seemed skeptical of it, though. Twilight pushed the book closed in her hands and moved it back towards the shelf. The Princess took the hint and put it back. As he looked, though, Twilight found a book with “The Discerning Bride's Required Guide to a Good Ride" written on the spine. Curious, he plucked the book off the shelf and flipped it open. Surprisingly, there seemed to be useful diagrams, fully labeled for the reader's convenience, and helpful lists of vocabulary words and definitions. Twilight snapped it shut right when he noticed the Princess trying to read over his shoulder.

“This one should work,” he squeaked. She gave him a sly smile.

“We need more than one,” she whispered back. Then, as though she had suddenly found something precious, she showed Twilight the book she was holding: “Your Changing Body: Puberty for Mages". He resisted the urge to ask her who she knew that was a Mage and nodded.

“I brought enough gold for that and more.” At this admission, the Princess's eyes widened and her little mouth tugged up with a smile.

“Do you think this is enough?” she asked, looking back at the rack. Twilight looked skeptically at the books before glancing back at his companion.

“That's all that looks good here,” he said. “But we can go to other bookstores if we need to.” Syalis nodded.

“True,” she replied. “And if we don't buy a lot of souvenirs, we can get snacks, or a room at an inn for the afternoon.” Twilight felt himself blush from his horns to his toes.

“You… want to rent a room?” he asked quietly. He wasn't just quiet to keep from alerting the shopkeeper; it was more that he was nervous from the suggestion. Syalis slid her eyes in his direction with a mischievous smirk.

“It would be a shame to waste such an opportunity,” she observed. “Since there are no nosy retainers nearby.” He didn't even reply, simply met her eyes with a knowing look and nodded. And with that settled, turned to head to the check out counter.

As the middle-aged lady rung them up, she looked at the pair quizzically out of the corner of her eye. Twilight noticed it, wondering nervously if she had somehow realized he was actually a demon – were his horns showing from the corners of his turban? But as she finished bagging their books, her curiosity became clear.

“Two hundred and fifty gold,” she read the total with a placid voice before glancing back up at Twilight. “Are you two newlyweds?” Twilight blushed fiercely, but before he could formulate an answer, Syalis took the initiative and answered for him.

“Yes,” she tittered, “We’re beginning our honeymoon today.” Twilight wanted to be surprised, but he should really have expected it. Then, the Princess leaned into the counter to whisper to the shop lady. “Our families disapproved, so we eloped!” Twilight felt compelled to participate, so he decided to add his two gold pieces.

“W-We're trying to stay inconspicuous,” he said with a smile. “So if anyone asks about us, we weren't here.” The shop keep covered her mouth with a hand as her eyes glittered with mischief.

“How romantic!” she whispered, matching the pair's conspiratorial tone. “I hope you have a wonderful time here. Since you're just married, have you been to Lovers’ Castle yet?” Both royals exchanged a very interested look before focusing back on the clerk.

“Not yet,” Twilight answered. “Umm… what is it?” Perhaps he was picturing some kind of park or restaurant where couples could go for a nice, romantic stroll. If the Princess's expression was anything to go by, she probably had a similar idea.

“Oh, ahh,” the shop keeper seemed a little shyer now. “Well, it's a rather large shop for, ah, married couples. It's full of nice things for your, um, bedroom.” The Princess was fully engaged with whatever it was.

“How do you get there?” she asked eagerly. The older human smiled warmly at them and pointed towards her left.

“Go four streets to the west and take a left,” she said. “It's just outside the red-light district, so don't go too far down. But you really can't miss it! The outside is decorated a bit like Castle Goodereste, if you've ever seen it.” Twilight laughed nervously.

“O-Oh no, n-never been there,” he lied brazenly. “But I'm sure we won't be able to miss it!”

After gathering their books and making their way back to the street, Twilight turned to see Syalis looking incredibly enthusiastic.

“Did you hear her?” she said, practically vibrating. “They have bedroom items! Do you think it's high-quality pillows and blankets? Will you buy me some for my room?” Twilight thought back to the lady's directions. Would she seem so shy just over some pillows?

“Hmm,” he said slowly. “What if it’s the marital aids you were talking about earlier?” But it seemed to have fallen on deaf ears as they turned to walk down the main thoroughfare.

“Do you think we could bring a bed back, if they have nice ones?” she asked. Twilight nearly coughed from shock.

“Absolutely not!” he squawked. “First of all, you aren't even supposed to be here! If you showed up with a new bed, people would ask a lot of questions!” The Princess pouted at him.

“Secondly, I'm not carrying a whole bed back with us,” he said firmly. Syalis’s expression showed her disapproval, but she seemed convinced nonetheless. Feeling a little guilty, Twilight decided to add a bit more. “But if there are smaller souvenirs you can hide from Red, we'll get them.” This improved her disposition markedly.

Finally, after another couple minutes of walking, they made it to the street from the shopkeeper's directions. This part of town was markedly seedier than the one they had just been to. It was crowded, with shop windows either shuttered or shining red lights through them. Barely dressed shop girls called from doorways, and ladies in lingerie danced in the open windows; because the Princess was possessively clinging to his arm, they largely ignored Twilight. But he could see human men that looked as young as him being cajoled by the pretty ladies. He had no doubt that if the Princess hadn't tagged along, he'd be in their sights, too. For once, he was deeply grateful for her meddling.

Speaking of the Princess, Twilight glanced down at her. He half expected her to be casting nasty looks at the other women, but she wasn't. In fact, she seemed mesmerized by their openness.

“Have you ever been to a place like this, Princess?” he asked. She shook her head and looked up at him with a smile.

“Of course not,” she replied. “I never had time back home, and no one would show me something like this anyway.” Then, with an awestruck expression, she looked up at Twilight. “Have you? I-I thought you were more innocent….” Twilight looked at her stunned.

“O-Of course I haven't!” he stammered. “A-Although I did wander off from my caretakers at Hell Kusatsu and wound up at their red-light district once…” Syalis seemed spellbound.

“Did you go… you know…” she asked, discretely pointing at what Twilight could only assume was a very early opening brothel. Twilight felt his cheeks burn.

“Of course not!” he said. “I-I was only thirty-one at the time, they shooed me right out of that area!” Syalis looked confused for a moment.

“How old are you now?” she asked. Had he really never told her?

“Sixty-three,” he answered, confused by the question. “Why?” Syalis covered her mouth and gave him what he could only describe as a suspicious side-eye.

“Old man,” she murmured judgmentally. “Old man with an eye for young women…” Twilight nearly choked.

“We don't age like you do!” he hissed, trying not to be heard by the other humans. “I'll have you know that I'm barely even considered an adult myself! You're probably physically older than I am!” The Princess gave him a confused look for a moment.

“Then… I'm the cradle-robber?” she asked, slightly horrified. Twilight shook his head and clucked his tongue and led her towards the gaudy castle. What a strange thing to suddenly worry about.

Lovers' Castle was the largest storefront on the street, and true to the shopkeeper’s word, it was impossible to miss. The flat façade was made to look like Castle Goodereste, and it certainly dwarfed the small souvenir shops, strip clubs, and brothels that surrounded it, but the reds and pinks painted on definitely made it look different to the royal palace. As they came to a stop before the shop, the Princess's strange look didn't change.

“It's not like Castle Goodereste at all,” she complained. Twilight couldn't hide how unimpressed he was, either.

“I'm embarrassed for you.”

“Well, I hope the inside is better,” she finally said. They both stepped forward, heading towards the door.

The inside was large, but it didn't appear markedly better. It wasn't bedroom furniture, like the Princess expected, at any rate. The floor was beaten earth and the walls were barely stained wood. But the store certainly didn't lack for stock or decoration. In fact, as Twilight looked around, he could barely keep his mouth from hanging open.

There were mannequins lining the walls, each wearing a different sexy outfit. Clothing racks nearby held the outfits they wore, in all different sizes. A quarter of one wall had a display of what looked like weapons – bullwhips, floggers, little leather maces and the like. Another whole wall was dedicated to books, magazines, and recordings, many of which had black wrappers obscuring the covers. The shelves in between were stocked with pastel boxes, strange cans, and all manner of potions, equipment, and items that Twilight couldn't begin to imagine the use of. He almost would have believed it to be some sort of magic shop if everything didn't seem to have some sort of erotic flare to it.

As he felt the blush rise to his face again, he glanced at Syalis. She, too, seemed fascinated by what they'd walked into. In fact, she let go of his arm and made a beeline towards the rack full of black magazines, probably curious of the wrappers on them. Twilight watched her go and considered what he should look at first. But before he could step off to follow whatever caught his eye, he was hailed by the shopkeeper: an older human man with a bit of a shrewd face.

“Good morrow, young man,” he greeted him. “Is there anything in particular you and your young wife are looking for today?” He did his best to hide his nerves and gave the human a friendly smile. He was a king, dammit, he should be able to navigate this!

“Ah-aha, actually,” he began. “You seem knowledgeable about all this…” The older man nodded.

“You're inexperienced, hmm?” The recognition pained him a bit, but the understanding in the man's voice kept Twilight from being too nervous. He reached up to scratch the back of his head, feeling his hand blocked by his thick turban.

“You can tell, huh?” he said, following the older gent as he walked back to his counter. “We're newlyweds, so…” The human chuckled.

“You have that air about you,” he confirmed. “I'll try to answer any questions you might have.” And then he looked expectantly at Twilight. He seemed sincere, so Twilight hoped he'd be a good source of information. So, he glanced briefly to see what Syalis was up to – she was engrossed with trying to see behind the black cover of a magazine – and finding her distracted, he leaned closer to whisper his question.

“We're not really in a position to start a proper family just yet, i-if you know what I mean,” Twilight said. “So do you know anything that would, ah, help prevent that? Just for now?” The older man's eyebrows rose as he placed a finger on his chin. He seemed contemplative for a moment before responding.

“Can your wife handle potions very well?” he asked, looking for something behind his counter. Twilight thought about it for a second before shaking his head. No way was he going to leave anything up to the Princess, and he certainly didn't want to risk her having a bizarre reaction to anything again.

“I don't think so,” he said with an apologetic smile. The shopkeeper nodded at him and brought out a small black box, placing it quietly on the counter. With a knowing look, he pushed it towards him.

“Then these should work,” he said seriously. “You put one on before you take the little lady to bed, then throw it away when you're done.” Twilight contemplated it for a moment. That could very well work, whatever it was. The only thing he was hesitant about was leaving any evidence behind, but he figured if he was extra careful, it shouldn't really be an issue.

“I'll take it.”

Before he could reach for his coin purse, though, Syalis came running up with one of the black-wrapped magazines in her hands. Upon closer inspection, it had writing all over it – he was too far away to make most of it out, but he was sure he saw the words “hostage princess" on the front. Twilight felt his blood run cold at the prospect of what the Princess had found.

“Darling!” she chirped, holding it out to examine. “Look what I found!” Sure enough, it seemed to be an X-rated magazine featuring pictures of a “hostage princess" who'd been suspiciously kidnapped by an unnamed “demon king" and his army. Twilight forced a smile, trying not to appear nervous.

“O-Oh,” he replied stiffly. “How… interesting!”

“Can we get it?”

He very nearly said no reflexively. If it was what he thought it was, Red finding that among the Princess's belongings on one of his frequent room searches would be a swift end to any outside activities Twilight may have planned.

He'd have been lying if he said he wasn't curious, though.

“Oh, young madam, if you like that one, you should get it right away,” the shopkeeper chimed in. “You'd be surprised how fast it sells out.” Twilight couldn't help how fast his eyebrows went up.

“It's popular?” he asked in spite of himself. The old man took the book from Syalis and rang it up as well.

“Oh yes,” he said. “That publisher has several in that line. They're all hot sellers. Surprising for a city that hates demons so much, honestly. But I suppose the missing Princess is a popular topic. You know, the young madam here resembles her a bit, doesn't she?” Twilight knew from his tone that he was just making conversation, but he couldn't help the bit of fear that bubbled up from that observation.

Fortunately, Syalis just seemed to enjoy the attention. She put her hands on her cheeks and looked down at the floor bashfully.

“You really think so?” she asked, putting on an adorable performance. “I've never heard that before…” She might frequently forget herself in front of the demons, but Twilight couldn't help but marvel at how well she conducted herself around other humans. The old man simply smiled and rang up his till.

“Of course,” he replied before turning back to Twilight. “You're a lucky young man. In any case, your total is seven hundred and fifty gold pieces.” Twilight nearly balked, but handed the money over anyway. He could see that Syalis’s little book was at least six hundred of that – it must have really been in high demand.

As soon as they had said their goodbyes and made it out of the shop, Twilight had to keep the black bag out of reach. Upon taking a single step outside, Syalis had immediately made to grab it, presumably to tear the cover off and begin reading in the street.

“Nuh uh,” Twilight scolded her. “Not until we're alone.” She looked frustrated at first, but after a moment she met his gaze with a renewed twinkle in her eye.

“Do you still have enough for an inn?” she asked with a little smile. Twilight swallowed hard.

“I do,” he said warily.

“Do you want to go to the same place as last time?” she asked, looking up and down the street. Twilight thought about it for a moment. Last time they were here, there was a fireworks festival making everything more expensive than it probably should have been. That particular inn had been a thousand gold per head. While they could afford it, there'd be nothing left for an emergency. Maybe they could check around for a better price?

Just as he was about to suggest that, he spotted what looked to be a small inn just down the way. It seemed inconspicuous among all the bars and clubs, but it was also decorated in much the same style.

“There's one over there?” he offered. The Princess also saw where he was pointing and curiously began walking in that direction. Twilight followed close behind. As soon as they were close enough, he could see a little better why the inn was situated where it was.

“Oh,” the Princess said, reading their signage. “They charge by the hour.” With a wry smile, Twilight placed a hand on the Princess's shoulder.

“We'd only need it for two or three hours, right?” he asked, giving her a knowing look. She smirked in return.

“That sounds like a lovely nap.”

Chapter Text

Before anything else could be said, the Princess checked that the door was firmly locked and proceeded to snatch the black bag away from Twilight. He briefly wondered what she'd think of the mysterious black box he'd bought at their last stop, but she ignored it to go straight to the magazine she'd asked for. With it in hand, she left the rest of the bag in the floor to go sit on the bed. Twilight reached down to collect the bag again before heading to the opposite side of the bed himself. Instinctively, he began removing his shoes, but the Princess seemed to have no such compunction.

“I know this is just a rental, but at least take off your traveling shoes,” he scolded, earning him a somewhat annoyed glance. Still, she did as she was asked.

“I'm going to take off more than that in a moment,” she teased slyly. Twilight tried to fight a nervous blush. He reminded himself that he couldn't get distracted just then; he had to take a few moments to read through the book he'd gotten and hopefully get a handle on exactly how the Princess's body worked.

Luckily, she was currently distracted by the magazine he'd bought for her. Twilight silently thanked the Dark God that he had; she seemed fascinated by it, and that would give him a little time to study before she asked anything of him. But judging by the cover that he could now see – a very dark, muscular man whose face was cut off by the title of the magazine, holding the wrists of a topless woman that had a passing resemblance to the Princess – it was clear it was something that was going to occupy her attention for at least a little bit. Raising an eyebrow, Twilight noted that one of the main differences between the real Princess and her actress was the size of their breasts; the actress was much better endowed.

But it didn't seem to break the immersion for the Princess at all. Syalis was already engrossed in her magazine, blushing deeply underneath her wide eyes. She lingered over each page for a while before turning, clearly studying whatever was on there. Twilight was sure she'd show him, whether he wanted to see it or not.

While he was given a small reprieve, he began by removing the turban that hid his horns. He'd managed to reinforce the parts his horns tended to poke through, perfecting the disguise properties of the headwear. Even for as good of a disguise as it was, it was still fairly heavy to wear. Setting it aside onto the floor beside the bed, Twilight followed by cracking his neck several times.

Then, he reached for the bag that contained his books.

He started with the one he'd picked out, the Bride Guide. He first went to the Table of Contents, noting that there were a lot of things that didn't apply to him – how to wear makeup, how to coordinate a wardrobe, how to do your own laundry. He skipped right to a chapter titled “What to Expect on Your Wedding Night" and began reading from there. This chapter proved the most useful thing he'd read so far.

It began with the anatomy diagrams he'd seen before, showing him the proper terms for both him and the Princess. Then, it had a list of slang terms for everything from body parts to intercourse. Following this was several common positions, along with their names. Twilight's face began to burn as he read all the alternate terms for his anatomy; he probably wouldn't use any of them in his daily life, but it was good knowledge to have on-hand. Besides which, one position in particular gave him a good idea of how they could use their lodgings that afternoon.

Then there was a small section on how to conceive a child. ‘As you may already know by now,’ it began, ‘intimacy leads to children, whether you're married first or not!’

‘Yes, I figured that part out already,’ Twilight thought drily.

The fortunate part, it seemed, was that human women could only conceive children for a few days every month. The worse part was that it was impossible to tell which days it was without either a magical contraption or strict timekeeping. Glancing at his royal affair partner, who was still absorbed in her hardcore pornography, Twilight realized that she would probably manage to defeat either method easily. Finally, the statistics at the end – which were apparently meant to be encouraging to new brides – seemed especially grim to him. Without taking any precautions, about eighty-five percent of couples could expect a baby within a year.

“What the hell are these humans doing?” he grumbled quietly to himself. “How do they get by like this?” The Princess was so absorbed in her magazine that she didn't even raise an eyebrow at him.

There was good news, at least. So far, they hadn't done anything that would lead to that outcome. His guess had been correct; he would have to put his cock into her snatch and fuck her until he came (all new words he'd learned)(Twilight wasn't even sure if he liked the way they sounded)(he was sure the Demon Cleric would wash his mouth out with soap just for thinking that). Since nothing close to that had happened – yet – they were safe so far. And fortunately for him, the next page had instructions on how to prevent such an outcome.

There was a long chart of ‘contraceptive methods' and their effectiveness rates. Things like potions, pessaries, and diaphragms were all listed. Here was where Twilight realized his mistake; the book said that most of those things were available at a pharmacist or potion shop. This was valuable information, though. If he was correct, some of those things could be bought at Hell Kusatsu, too! Next time, he didn't have to go to the Human World to get supplies! Another thing occurred to him; the man at Lovers' Castle had clearly given him something along those lines. Curiously, he reached for the black shopping bag again.

Taking the matte black box out of the bag, Twilight looked it over. There were no real markings on the box, just an inconspicuous logo with a grey circle and a little simple crown. Upon opening it, he could see thin little packets inside with circular rings underneath their wrappers. Comparing them to the description and pictures in the book, he now knew these were condoms. He figured they would work for him just as well as any human man, from the looks of them.

Before he could do anything else, though, he heard the Princess shift on the bed next to him. Twilight snapped the box back shut and placed it on the table beside the bed. Looking over, he could see the Princess with heavily lidded eyes and a deep blush all over her face. She was holding up the magazine, open to a certain page. Twilight could hear the blood thundering in his ears as he realized that she was about to show him what she'd been looking at.

“Twilight-kun?” she asked, her voice a little more breathy than normal as she met his eyes with a pleading look. “Can we… Can we do this?”

She flipped the magazine around to show a full-color glossy photograph covering one page with a prose story covering the other. The picture showed the male actor from the back – the large, fake black horns on his head told Twilight that it was loosely based on him. The man was a few shades darker than him – probably dramatic lighting, he realized with a gulp – with a way more imposing and muscular physique. If he had to compare, he'd say the actor would have been better cast as Fire Venom Dragon than him. There was no real way to compare their lower equipment, though, considering the model was about halfway inside his partner. Even without seeing all of it, Twilight was certain this human was bigger than him there, as well.

Looking at the “Princess", it was obvious she was the main attraction. Her resemblance to the real Syalis was little more than in passing; she had a sturdier, less royal frame, in addition to the much larger breasts. Her skin was a few shades darker than the Princess's milk-white, pale skin; the tone was even, though, so he assumed it was just a very nice tan. Her body hair was completely missing, and judging by her dark eyebrows, she was probably wearing a wig. It was high-quality and looked like real hair, nonetheless, and the photo itself was very nicely shot – erotic, even. Twilight just couldn't get over the disparity between the glossy picture and his real life.

Because the other thing that immediately jumped out at him was just how scared the actress looked. Her partner was gripping her by the wrist and her pretty princess dress was torn in several strategic places. Of course, she was acting. But he couldn't imagine such a timid, frightened look on Syalis's face. In example, at the moment she was looking at him with a pleading, needy look from across the bed. Face burning, Twilight shifted his eyes to glance back at the matte black box on the bedside table. Theoretically, they certainly could do such a thing that afternoon…

“Princess,” he finally replied, his voice perhaps breathier than he'd intended. “It'll be our first time doing that. I don't… think it's really appropriate for a woman like you to go that far in a place like this.” ‘Place like this' obviously meant ‘a cheap, dirty love hotel', but the Princess looked disappointed nonetheless. Twilight couldn't stand it, so he leaned towards her, putting his own book aside and placing a finger underneath her chin.

“Besides,” he continued in a low, conspiratorial tone. “Wouldn’t you rather fuck me back home, in my own bed?” It sounded incredibly obscene to his genteel ears and nearly made him want to curl into a ball and die. But what use was learning all that fascinating new vocabulary if he didn't actually use it at some point? And it wasn't like anyone was around to potentially hear them.

To Twilight’s utter surprise, it worked; Syalis's eyes widened and it seemed like she agreed. In fact, she almost dropped the magazine completely at that point. Of course, he'd also used her love of premium bedding against her; a cheap inn's low thread-count sheets couldn't possibly compete with the luxury offered by a king's bed. If Princess Aurora Syalis was going to allow herself to be deflowered by the Demon King, it should at least be in an environment befitting her. But as soon as the moment of shock had passed, her expression became even more mischievous, as though yet another rotten scheme had occurred to her.

“Then, since we're all alone for the next little while,” she said slowly, bringing the magazine up to cover her mouth as she glanced away. “Can you show me your body? Completely nude, I mean. I want to compare a little.” Stumped by the odd request, Twilight leaned back into his own space.

“You've already seen my body,” he said, confused. The Princess shook her head and moved to leave the bed.

“I haven't seen the whole thing at once,” she corrected him. “The closest I got was that time at the hot springs. And even then, you hid the interesting bits.” Twilight realized she was right. He had been fully-clothed in his office, and had never stripped off more than his pajama shirt in bed with her.

“Okay,” he agreed slowly. “But you'll show me all of you in return. Deal?” As he looked up, he could see that the Princess had already pulled her shirt up over her breasts to take it off. She wasn't even a little shy about that part. To match her, he undid his traveling cloak and let it slide off the bed to the floor.

“Well, you've already seen the part I was always supposed to keep hidden,” she whispered, looking at him slyly as she dropped her shirt on the floor. “So I don't have anything to be shy about now, right?” As Twilight pulled his own shirt off over his horns, he marveled at her logic – especially after the way she'd kicked him the night before.

“Right,” he huffed before standing and beginning to undo his pants.

In another few moments, Twilight was completely naked, reclining against the pillows of the cheap bed. He fought a blush and the urge to fold his arms over his chest to preserve some measure of his modesty. But he didn't hide; instead, he lay there, already more than half hard and avoiding Syalis's eyes. He knew she was studying him and for some reason he couldn't quite explain, that only made his body more eager for her.

Perhaps more frustrating was that when he did glance at her, she wasn't even completely nude. She'd gotten a pair of black bikini panties from somewhere, in a much more flattering cut than her normal woolen undies. Surely she'd planned to show them off to him today when she'd followed along.

Regardless, the Princess was studying his body intently while holding up the magazine from earlier. It was obvious what she was doing, and it was making Twilight a little self-conscious.

“Well?”

“Well what?” she asked innocently. Twilight leaned on his elbows and sat up to address her, finally gathering the courage to meet her eyes.

“What's your verdict?” he asked nervously. The Princess smiled.

“I like you better,” she said sweetly. “The model in this magazine is a bit scary – and very big – and that's fun to look at. But I would rather do these sorts of things with you.” Twilight couldn't help the wry smile that spread across his face at this new information. At least he'd beaten a model in a dirty magazine. Seemingly unaware that she'd said anything untoward, Syalis made her way back to the bed and sat on her hands and knees. As soon as she did, Twilight watched in fascination – and then borderline horror – as she threw a leg over him and straddled his hips.

If it wasn't for the thin panties she was wearing, she would have basically sat right down on his cock. And considering how good it felt pressed underneath her weight, he probably wouldn't have even stopped her. Twilight could feel the color drain from his face and his mouth go dry. She really was trying to kill him today.

“Things like… like what…?” He croaked, reaching up with shaking hands to hold her in place. The less she moved, the more willpower he would have. The Princess seemed to sense his weakness and smirked as she pressed down against him, slowly rolling her hips to imitate that she was riding him. She had to know exactly what she was doing.

“Like fucking me like an innocent commoner girl in a dirty little inn,” she replied with a coy smile. Filth like that coming from the Princess's mouth was so wrong that it took Twilight's breath away. He'd be a hypocrite if he held it against her, though, considering he was probably the first person she'd heard speak like that. His fingers curled into her hips, instinctively pressing her down against him. He wanted to move his hips up against her so badly, but he didn't dare.

“You are an innocent girl,” he whispered, looking intently at her eyes to avoid seeing much else. “And I want you, so badly.” At this admission, Syalis gave him an honest smile and bent down to lean against his bare chest with hers. Her erect nipples and small breasts pressed into his chest at the same time as a few stray silken hairs from her braids brushed his skin. If she continued like this, he would lose this battle.

“Then take me, Twilight-kun,” she breathed, a hair's breadth from his lips. “Please say yes and fuck me right now?” The Princess leaned in and captured his lips, kissing him hungrily. Twilight felt his self-control deserting him. Instinctively, he relaxed his fingers and moved them up the Princess's hips and to her waist. Her kiss and the pressure of her small body laying on top of his distracted him so badly that he barely noticed that she was moving her hips and one of her hands away from him.

In a moment, faster than he even noticed, she had hooked a finger into her waistband and had her panties down around her thighs. As soon as he realized what she'd done, Twilight felt a bit of the haze clear from his mind; if he wanted, he could simply adjust himself a bit, thrust upwards, and take her right there. And the idea was so tempting that he very nearly threw all his planning out the window and did it. But that was only a passing impulse; within another moment, though, his grip tightened on the Princess’s waist as he broke their kiss.

“Not today,” he breathed as he sat up and readjusted the Princess to sit on his thighs. She looked frustrated, so he attempted to bargain with her. “Be good just this once, and I'll reward you in a different way.” Her other hand trailed down his stomach and lightly gripped him, giving him a slow, languid stroke. Just the act of sitting on him had taken Twilight from only half-hard to rock hard, and she seemed pleased with her work. Then, with a small smirk, she looked back up at him.

“This part of you wants to be bad, though,” she murmured. Twilight shuddered, took a deep breath, and let his hands run up her back. Then, he swallowed his hesitation and brought his right hand around to show her what his gloves had been hiding.

“I use these to fight, you know,” he said evenly, showing the Princess his black fingernails. “But I cut them short on this hand this morning. Why do you think I'd do such a thing?” If her confused face was any indication, she had never given the idea any thought at all. And why would she? She had no idea how hard he'd worked to not scratch her last night. So to give her a demonstration, he moved his hand around to her back again and trailed it down to cup her bottom. He met her eyes with a mischievous smile as he slid two fingers towards her wet slit from behind.

Syalis’s expression changed from confused, to surprised, to embarrassed and demure in just a second.

“Y-You didn't do it like that last night,” she whispered, clearly enjoying the attention. She leaned against his chest, forgetting what she was doing a moment ago to angle her hips towards his hand. It allowed him better access and he rewarded her by sliding those two fingers a bit further inside. The Princess's body was warm and soft around his fingers, offering no resistance as he worked back and forth. The motion caused the wetness inside her to seep out, making her much more damp than she was the night before.

His gamble had paid off. Twilight was back in control and had her in the palm of his hand – literally. So before she got any more strange ideas, he figured he should go ahead and get her into the position he'd decided on earlier.

“I'll lay back down,” he said, withdrawing his fingers and leaving a slick trail on her bottom. “If you turn around with your head towards my feet.” She looked slightly dazed, her eyes heavily lidded as she looked up at him expectantly.

“What should I--?”

“You'll put your knees on the bed under my arms,” he said. “Get into position and I'll put my fingers back.” She blushed attractively, but for once moved to do as she was asked. In another few moments, he lay back against the pillows as Syalis sat where she was told.

Once she was turned away from him, though, it seemed like she still didn't quite get it (although the view of her round little bottom was nothing to complain about). She had sat right down on his chest, letting him feel every damp part of her slit against his skin.

“Like this?” she asked shyly, using one of her braids to cover her face. To her credit, she did reach out for his cock with her other hand, causing his eyes to drift half-shut at the sensation.

“Not quite,” he sighed. Twilight reached up and placed both hands around the Princess's waist. Then, smoothing down over the curves of her hips, squeezed her thighs just a bit. “Lean forward.”

Syalis cast him a curious look over her shoulder before doing as she was told. She rested her weight on her elbow as she leaned closer to Twilight's erection. Since she leaned forward, he smoothed his hands over the swell of her bottom.

“You're so close,” she said nervously, sounding as though she just realized that her most intimate area was just a hair's breadth away from Twilight’s face. He smiled, having a much better view than he'd had the night before; the lighting in this inn was much better than in his bedroom, even with the lack of windows. Now he could clearly see every little pink, slick fold as he pulled apart her outer lips with his thumbs – including a tiny sliver of thin flesh ringing her opening that he hadn't noticed before. From the diagrams he'd seen earlier, he knew that was her maidenhead. And all of it was soaking wet.

“That's the point, Princess,” he said, blowing a small puff of air across her wet skin. “Unlike last night, we both have access now.” She cast him one last look over her shoulder as understanding dawned on her. Then, with a small nod, she bent down her head and touched her tongue to the tip of his shaft. It was all Twilight could do just to keep still while she went to work on him with her mouth.

Biting back a sigh, he went to work as well. He started again at the little pink pearl nestled at the top of Syalis's slit, drawing it into his mouth with a bit of light suction. Immediately, he was rewarded by the feeling of her thigh muscles clenching against his chest and a cute little squeak that reverberated down to the base of his cock. But there was no way he was going to simply repeat last night's performance. No, this time he had an extra weapon in his arsenal.

As he sucked at her swollen little pearl, Twilight pulled Syalis's lips apart with his left hand, careful to avoid the untrimmed nails there. With his fully-trimmed right, he slid his pointer and middle fingers back in, facing no resistance. The sensation must have been nearly overwhelming, because as soon as he did, the Princess pressed back against his face and moaned deep in her throat. It was almost a whimper, the muffled sound carrying all the way into his shaft as she continued using her mouth.

Rather than slide back out easily, though, he found that her slick inner muscles actually provided resistance. She gripped his fingers as they pumped in and out of her, spilling her juices down onto his lips and chin. Twilight dutifully moved up to where his fingers were and began cleaning with his tongue. Once he was satisfied that she was reasonably clean again, he paused, leaving his fingers fully inside.

“So you were this hard up, even though I gave you such a good sleep last night?” he asked. He didn't expect an answer, really; it was just fun to taunt her. For as much trouble as she always caused him, he figured it was only fair. Besides which, he knew full well that once she came, she would probably stop all the lovely things she was doing with her mouth.

Twilight was rewarded for his audacity with an angry, needy moan and a hard squeeze around the base of his cock from Syalis's hand. She even pressed harder onto his fingers, urging him to continue. The sensation was delicious, but her message was clear – he needed to shut his mouth and keep servicing the Princess.

“Yes, your highness,” he murmured. “I'm at your service.” Dutifully and slowly, he returned to using his fingers and mouth on her. But the things she was doing to him, that he couldn't see, were causing him similar wanton reactions. He was now moving his own hips in time with her mouth; she couldn't get everything in, but it was enough that it was warm and satisfying. He briefly imagined that what he felt on his cock was the part of her that he was so eagerly pumping with his fingers. That association brought his ass up off the cheap inn bed and his cock deep into her mouth. He gripped her a little tighter with his left hand while driving deep into her with his right and was rewarded with a tiny, high-pitched moan. He answered with one of his own, directly against his lover's clit.

That was it. That one stray thought was all he needed to finish. The sensation was much more powerful this time, starting down in his balls and traveling through his body like lightning. A rush of heat overtook him as he gave one last thrust into his human lover's mouth, spending himself there. For a moment, everything disappeared as he closed his eyes, except the pounding in his ears.

Down below, Syalis gave a muffled little squeal and then froze. Twilight's mouth was still firmly on her clit, but as his consciousness fully came back to him, he realized that she was gripping his fingers much tighter than before. Her thighs were tense and her pussy was much wetter than it had been just a few moments ago. He could even hear her deep, quick breathing as she took care of what he'd done in her mouth. She must have been incredibly close to her own orgasm just then.

“You have to come, too, Princess,” he murmured, pulling away from her clit. It was half a request and half a command. To whit, he gave her a few extra deep, slow strokes with his fingers. She pulled his cock from her mouth and arched her back with a squeal, clearly sensitive to what he was doing with his hand. Taking a deep breath, Twilight replaced his mouth with the pad of his thumb and pressed into her little pink pearl again.

This seemed to do the trick. Suddenly, she had gripped his fingers so tightly that he doubted he could pull them out again, even if he wanted to. Then, he could feel her heartbeat; her inner walls pulsed, slowly and rhythmically, just like he knew they had last night. But this time, he could fully feel them, gripping and then releasing his fingers. Realizing their work was done, he pulled them out with some resistance, watching with fascination as slick, thick fluid trailed behind them, dripping down to the top of the Princess's slit and then sliding down onto his chest.

Just as predicted, she sank to rest her head on the top of his thighs. Rather than sleepy, though, she seemed dazed, breathing as though she'd been sprinting. Feeling a little guilty for the mess he'd made, Twilight adjusted her hips ever-so-slightly and went to work lapping at her.

“You don't have to,” she said. Her voice was full of drowsiness already. “I'm going to shower before we head back.” But she didn't move.

“You cleaned me this time, didn't you?” Twilight objected, pausing just long enough to speak. He could feel her fingers curl against his legs. Realizing that he knew she'd swallowed his seed must have embarrassed her.

“I did,” she whispered. Raising an eyebrow out of genuine curiosity, Twilight paused again.

“Did you like it?” He could swear he felt her cheek get warmer against his leg. It was almost a rhetorical question; he certainly liked how she tasted. It wasn't exactly sweet, but it was unique to the Princess, and that was what made it special to Twilight.

He was only able to keep Syalis awake until they reached the outskirts of town. She had strolled back out of the red-light district with him, drowsily clinging to his arm and leaning against him. Twilight was at least thankful that no one would recognize them here, because the Princess was being much more affectionate than he'd ever seen her. Not only that, but judging from some of the more approving looks passersby were giving them, it was fairly obvious what they'd been up to. Perhaps she wasn't fully awake, even when they left the inn.

Still, by the time they'd reached his preferred forest clearing, the Princess had fallen asleep. Twilight carried her on his back, piggy-back style, with no trouble at all. Her contented doze was perfect for taking her back home and depositing her back in her cell before anyone was the wiser. Not only that, but he could ensure that she didn't keep any conspicuous souvenirs of their trip and spare them both another lecture from Red.

He would let her keep Puberty for Mages, though. He was sure no one would question that one, considering her already eclectic tastes.

Chapter Text

It had been a week since the excursion to Last Zone City and Princess Syalis was more frustrated than she'd ever been in her life.

It wasn't just the normal frustration of not being able to sleep well or often enough. Of course, that was there – she laid awake far too long now, for no good reason other than thoughts of what she could be doing instead. No, that low grade insomnia was still present, but not what was truly bothering her.

It also wasn't that the new color magazine she'd acquired from Last Zone City had vanished immediately upon returning to the castle; it was gone when she woke up in her cell after their trip. She assumed Twilight was borrowing it – and she couldn't blame him – since Furry Dog hadn't come barking at her about it. If he lost it, there would be Hell to pay, but that still wasn't what was eating at her.

No, that would be the fact that she hadn't seen the Demon King by himself since they came back from their day trip.

It seemed like every time she saw him now, that damned Furry Woof Woof was hovering nearby. If it wasn't him, Leo-kun had returned from his trip and was there if the dog wasn't. Every night that week, Syalis had attempted to stealthily enter the Demon King's chambers, and every night she'd been caught by his guard dog and walked right back to her cell. Several times now, she'd almost lost her temper badly enough to give away their secret, only biting her tongue out of sheer force of will. She wasn't exactly one for delayed gratification, but a pitched battle against the guard dog would probably result in their secret being exposed – and that would mean she'd be sleeping by herself on a more permanent basis.

But Syalis wasn't a quitter. It was obvious now that she would have to try a different tactic if she ever wanted another peaceful night's sleep. So that was why, after a week of frustration and setbacks, she decided to approach Twilight in the cafeteria at lunch. The best place to hide was out in the open, after all, and the best place to speak without being overheard was somewhere everyone was already talking.

She knew what time he usually showed up, and she wasn't wrong today. There he sat, at his usual table, eating his ramen by himself. Casually, she acquired her own bowl – one of the new spicy ones – and slammed it on the table right beside his. To his credit, he only jumped a little as she seated herself at his right hand.

“Good afternoon, Twilight-kun,” she said coolly, breaking her cafeteria chopsticks apart as she addressed him without looking at him. From the corner of her eye, she saw him whip his head to his left before looking straight ahead again, pretending that she hadn't just spoken to him. He raised a stickful of noodles in front of his face before replying.

“Princess, where have you been?!” he whispered before shoving the noodles into his mouth. Syalis raised an eyebrow as she tried hard not to look at him slurp at his ramen. That noise caused a little heat to flash at her cheeks. She raised her own large, steaming hot bowl up to her lips to give a plausible explanation for the dusting of pink she was sure was there now.

“I haven't been able to make it,” she said behind her bowl. “A certain furry dog keeps turning me away.” It felt like he released a deep breath as he put his chopsticks back into the noodles. Most likely, the dog hadn't been telling his master that he'd had an ‘unwelcome' late night visitor. Perhaps he was just as frustrated by the situation as she was.

“I'll try to distract him soon,” he whispered, dropping his head to make it look like he was concentrating on his ramen. “I'll send word when it's a good time.” This answer caused a small pout to form on Syalis's lips, but she tried to school her expression in case they were approached. When would be a good time? She was already quite upset at having to sleep alone every night. Now she would have to wait some indefinite length of time, as well?

Should she use the iron fist or the velvet glove to get what she wanted? Raising some noodles to her mouth, she spoke briefly behind them, giving her co-conspirator a glance beneath her silver lashes.

“Twilight-kun, can I tell you about a story I read the other day?” As he gave her a nod and she put the noodles in her mouth, Syalis slipped one foot out of her house shoe and slid it over top of Twilight's armored foot. The little jolt she felt from him told her he could feel her even through his metal shoes. Since there was a long tablecloth at this table, the chances of her being seen doing this were non-existent. Before she began speaking again, she gently caressed the metal through her sock, making sure that he knew her intentions were less than pure.

He kept up a good front, though, and continued eating his noodles with a straight face while listening to Syalis's story.

“Very well,” she began. “It was a story about a princess who was awakened from a cursed sleep by a kiss from an evil prince. He took her into his castle and at first, he was kind to her. But eventually, he started to bully her. He would lure her into out of the way places where no one would disturb him and began to do such scandalous things to her. Sometimes she would be bent over a table or forced onto her knees. Sometimes they were even just barely hidden from other people.”

She switched the hand she was eating with to hold her chopsticks with her right hand. Now, with her left hand free, she slid it underneath the tablecloth. Her hand settled on top of his leg, feeling the fine fabric of his pants for a moment before pressing against his thigh and sliding down towards his knee.

To his credit, it only sounded a little bit like he was choking on his ramen just then. But it was deeply amusing to Syalis to torment him like this in public – especially with how her plans had been frustrated at every turn for the past week. It was the least he deserved, even though it wasn't actually his fault.

Almost demurely, Twilight hid his mouth behind a napkin as he spoke.

“And… how did that go for them?” he asked. “Did they get caught?” Syalis smirked as she played with her noodles with the hand holding the chopsticks. She didn't look at him, but her other hand gently squeezed his thigh, fingers curling into the inside of his leg.

“Of course not,” she continued. “And the Princess came to enjoy it quite a lot. She even began to seek him out because she liked doing such filthy things with him. The Prince became much nicer after a while, as well. But he never stopped bullying her, even after they were married. What do you think of such a story, Twilight-kun?”

“I… I suppose it might be fun to be bullied by someone you love,” he said from behind his napkin. “If it's clear they're playing.” Sliding her eyes over to watch him surreptitiously, Syalis trailed her hand up to his lap. The corner of her mouth tugged up in an almost imperceptible smile as she brushed against the placket of his pants with the back of her hand. Well, well – little Twilight-kun was clearly enjoying story time.

Syalis gave a satisfied hum and left her hand right where it was.

“I thought so, too,” she said, pulling more noodles out of her bowl. “Tell me, Twilight-kun – have you read any good books lately?” He paused with his chopsticks hovering above his bowl, suspending a curtain of noodles in the air. She could see his one visible eye slide over to watch her as a bead of sweat trickled down his cheek. So he did have her book!

“I have, actually,” he whispered from behind his noodles. She brushed her hand against the front of his pants, applying just a little pressure for his honesty, and relished in the barely disguised shiver she received.

“And what happens in it?” With her other hand, she took in a bite of ramen.

“Hmm,” he stalled for a moment, probably checking to make sure he wouldn't be overheard. “There was a hostage Princess trapped in her captor's – a Demon King's – chambers. He used her body ruthlessly and refused to let her leave until he was satisfied. I thought it was a dignified kind of relationship, outside of the obvious problem of treating a hostage that way.” Syalis finished swallowing a mouthful of noodles, letting her eyes drift closed as she listened to him speak. He sounded a bit nervous at first, but if she wasn't mistaken, he was finding his footing within their little game.

“Oh?” she finally responded. “Dignified? How so?”

“Obviously, a Princess should be treated properly,” he mused, stirring his noodles. “Maybe a dark hallway or a dusty library corner is suitable for a maid, but a woman of such stature should be handled respectfully, right? Even if she's a hostage. Obviously, he was selfish with her – but isn't that a little romantic too? When you want to be with someone so badly that it's hard to stop yourself.” She held back the pout she wanted very badly to wear just then and shifted in her seat instead. Damn Twilight – he was still so very noble, even when negotiating how best to render her senseless with his prick.

“But what if the Princess isn't overly concerned with her dignity?” she sniffed. “Isn't that just forcing her into something against her will? Perhaps she'd prefer a dark corner of the armory, or a hidden cell in a dungeon? Perhaps she is selfish and impatient, too? Especially if she can't find a way into his room at night.” Although he didn't look at her, Syalis suddenly felt the soft fabric of a glove cover her hand. Twilight had slid his right hand underneath the tablecloth and covered hers, right where she was pressing into the front of his pants. He gave her a gentle squeeze before retreating back to the tabletop.

“If she actually wants a good night's sleep, it should be some place she won't be disturbed,” he whispered back. “So she should continue being patient. Besides, hostages should be forced into things, shouldn’t they? Maybe you'd like to borrow the book I read tonight instead?”

Syalis felt her cheeks heat up again. He'd somehow managed to turn things around on her; now she was the one being bullied, and she wasn't sure she hated it. She certainly wasn't happy being made to wait more, but having her book returned would at least cut down on some of her angst in the meantime.

“I would,” she replied, trying to hide her pout. “I would like to be able to keep it, actually.” As the words left her mouth, Twilight grabbed his ramen bowl without looking at her and began to rise from his seat. Syalis withdrew her hand to her own lap, but then noticed that he had bent over as he rose until he was nearly even with her ear. As his breath hit her, she couldn't help the shiver that ran up her spine.

 “Dinner time!”

The Scissors Sorcerer entered Syalis's cell with a silver tray between his hands, laden with her normal dinner fare. She sat upon her bed, brushing the fur of a few of her favorite Teddy Demons. Since she'd seen Twilight that afternoon, she'd been able to free the mental space to start a new project – using the shed fur of the cute bears to make yarn that she would crochet into a thick blanket for the coming winter. It could potentially take weeks to complete, so at least she'd have something to keep her mind occupied while her partner drug his feet.

“Oh, thank you,” she said, looking up to acknowledge her smiling friend. He gave her a nod and sat the tray down on her bedside table. Her curiosity almost getting the better of her, she glanced eagerly at the tray; there, underneath her main entrée, was a thick, leather-bound book with a bronze clasp holding it shut.

“Oh, that,” Mr. Oh-My said as he noticed it catch her attention. “The Demon King asked me to bring it in with your dinner. He said you were expecting it.” Syalis's eyebrow rose along with her pulse, but she didn't openly show her interest on her face. Still, her thin book looked quite different now.

“I am,” she said, nodding. “We've been exchanging books together lately.” Her friend gave her a kind smile and a nod as he lifted the plate and handed her the book underneath.

“That's quite wholesome,” he said. “Well, then – enjoy your dinner and your book!” Syalis couldn't fight the smile that tugged at her lips just then. She held the book close to her chest protectively.

“Oh, I certainly will,” she replied, adding silently to herself, ‘just not in the way you think.’

As soon as the cell door clanged shut behind him, Syalis turned in her bed to face the wall and began clawing at the clasp holding the book shut.

The book itself was nothing special – a legendary history of the founding of the current dynasty of Demon Kings, by the looks of it – but it was what she was certain was inside that interested her more. Sure enough, just as she opened the covers, the pages fluttered and out fell the beautiful dirty magazine she'd found in Last Zone City. A piece of high quality, expertly folded stationary also floated down to her lap along with it. She very nearly tossed it aside along with the thicker book before realizing that it was probably a note with instructions from Twilight.

Unfolding it confirmed her suspicions.

My dearest little human,

Please keep this book safe inside its covering unless you are reading it. I hope it keeps you company when I cannot. And if, perhaps, you find your hands wandering while you read it, please imagine mine in their place.

Yours,

DK

Syalis's eyebrows pinched as she finished reading the note. On one hand, the high-brow, clichéd prose could only belong to Twilight, and she felt a touch of second-hand embarrassment reading it. On the other, it really was very sweet, so she supposed she could forgive him.

On a third, less amusing hand, the note contained no further instructions or information about when they could meet again. Syalis couldn't contain her frustrated growl as she realized it, but something about the note still nagged at her.

…please imagine mine in their place.

Imagine his hands instead of her own? What did that even mean? She checked again, even on the back of the letter, but there was nothing written there. Well, if he was going to be cryptic, she wouldn't bother decoding it now; there were far better things to do.

Such as reading her delicious magazine.

Glancing back over her shoulder, though, she saw the doe-eyed Teddy Demons staring back at her curiously. Maybe the magazine could wait until after dinner…

“Grwr?”

“Oh, ah, no,” she hurriedly soothed them. “It's nothing suspicious. Just a book from the Demon King.” She carefully placed the magazine back inside the latched book, using his note as a bookmark, before shoving the whole thing under her pillow. Then, she turned and patted one of the curious bear demons between their ears. They were far too cute to know about what kind of sordid dealings she had with the master of the castle.

With dinner over, her dishes removed, and the adorable Teddies having floated off to their beds, Syalis was left alone in hers. She'd acquired a reading lamp and hooked it to her headboard. The light of the lamp mingled with the faint, ever-present moonlight streaming through her window, giving her cell a romantic, blue tint. It was a shame there was no one about to share it with – especially no one with large, black horns – but that was something of an advantage for her now. She could read her magazine in peace.

Rather than pick up where she left off, Syalis decided to indulge and start over from the very beginning. The prose accompanying the photos was quite lusty, more so than the courtly love novels she'd found in the castle library. It was much more forceful and vulgar than any of those, but she found that she quite liked this style, too. Perhaps this magazine was intended for men instead of women? The framing of the Princess in each photo, with how her breasts, vulva, and bottom were always the focus of each picture, told her the answer to that question.

It was a shame, though. The fictional Demon King was always at least partially hidden, without his face even being visible in most shots. That frustrated her a bit, but it was always clear what he was meant to be doing. That part was not disappointing.

As the story went, this alternate Princess was not given her own cell or much of anything else when she was kidnapped. She was brought straight away to the Demon King's chambers and tied to his bed by the wrists. Of course, she was frightened, but as the story went on, she enjoyed herself more and more.

“No, please – that thing won't fit!”

“I hate you! But… But I feel really good, too…”

“I-If you keep doing that, I might start to like you…”

The Demon King, as well, delighted in calling out her most eager and wanton responses.

“Haha, are you pretending to weep? This part of you is wet, as well!”

“You seemed so timid when you first arrived, but now you’ve taken all of me! What a greedy Princess you are!”

“What a magnificent performance. You are certainly worthy to bear my children. You should feel honored.”

Although she was absorbed in the melodrama, Syalis was struck by how similar this other Demon King sounded to Twilight when he was at work. Or rather, how much Twilight tended to sound like a generic villain when he performed for the Hero and the other humans. It was nothing like how he truly was – an adorable, innocent man with a sweet, kind, and pure manner – but at the same time, this was how her countrymen knew him.

Of course, that thought faded as she continued reading and looking at the full-color pictures as the story concluded. The other Princess rested against a mountain of dark pillows, completely ravished and satisfied, with a small river of white fluid pooling underneath her open legs. Recognition dawned on Syalis – that was what Twilight had done inside her mouth those two times! Was it supposed to go down there instead? What would that feel like? She felt her face heat as she wondered.

There was heat spreading to other places, too. Determined to finish her story this time, though, Syalis puffed up her cheeks and continued reading. She resisted the temptation to rub her thighs together, at least for a few moments.

The Princess in the story seemed quite satisfied with that outcome, either way. She decided to cooperate with the Demon King from then on, especially in his bed. The conclusion saw her crowned his Queen while she carried his child. The final photograph was a set piece with the Princess, now dressed in a transparent black skirt and jagged, pointy crown, happily riding her new demonic husband for the pleasure of the reader. Her bare breasts and swollen belly were practically dripping with jewels, perhaps to make the scene just a bit more decadent. She knew it was probably done with practical effects or even a bit of photo editing to make the actress look bigger at the waist, but the end result was quite erotic and charming.

Syalis marveled at the last picture, several thoughts competing for her attention as she lingered on it. First of all, she knew that interbreeding between certain demons and humans was possible – one of her friends in the kitchen was half-human, after all. But to see it presented as a possibility for her personally was still a bit shocking. Yes, she probably could carry Twilight's child. She immediately dismissed the thought, knowing he would say no – no matter how cute the resulting offspring would be. He would probably insist they go public with their affair before anything of that sort, and neither of them were quite ready for that. It would also be a world-wide scandal, with many times more adventurers coming for his head than already were. Even if she were fully freed and instated as an official diplomat instead of a hostage, the bad implications would probably still remain.

Still, the idea of such an ending, where she became his queen and bore their child, caused heat to spread throughout her cheeks, her heart, and lower yet. They were still just playing around together, like adults do, but the thought of such a thing was terribly tempting. She couldn't see it as a bad ending for her at all.

This triggered another thought; certainly, the last two pictures should have been considered cause and effect. That would mean that if that warm, white fluid went inside of her most private place like that, it could create a child. Twilight had seemed quite uncertain of what he should do when they were together in Last Zone City and even unwilling to go that far – maybe she should warn him? Or perhaps he was already aware? She did still want to do all the rest with him, though, so they would simply have to find a way around it. She wanted all of him, after all, and was tired of having to settle for his lips and fingers.

Finally, she wondered that a book depicting such things about a member of the royal family would be allowed to be published at all. Perhaps this thought was meant to distract her from the rest of her lewd thoughts, but there was simply no way the Crown's publishing bureau would ever approve of a book suggesting that, not only would the Crown Princess enjoy doing such lewd and filthy things with the Demon King, but that she would happily agree to bear his half-breed children. She was actually quite certain that the contents of that book would constitute libel at the very least, if not actual treason in the Human World. She wondered at it, then closed the book, searching for any kind of royal seal that most books would need before being sold in shops. Of course, there was nothing of the sort, so it had to have been published extra-legally. That would certainly explain the black bag it came wrapped in.

If her father saw it, he would definitely attempt to prosecute everyone involved, including the kind old shop clerk that had sold it to them. With a tiny smirk, she thought that it was a good thing he didn't know about either the book or all the lewd things she had actually been doing with the innocent, shy Demon King. Father would certainly try to do more than just prosecute him.

Satisfied with (and perhaps more than a little turned on by) the conclusion of the magazine, Syalis shut it and tucked it back into the leather-bound book. She clasped it and wedged the entire thing between her bed and the wall, right within reach. Then, turning the reading lamp off and allowing the blue moonlight to overtake the room, Syalis snuggled in and prepared for sleep.

But once again, sleep refused to come to her.

She rubbed her knees together, wrapping her arms around the pillow she kept to hold at night. The heat between her thighs hadn't dissipated, leaving her damp and frustrated. Even the little knot that Twilight seemed to like to play with was swollen, driving her to distraction. Thoughts of the contents of the book kept running through her mind. Even worse, the silence of the normally busy castle had focused her thoughts to a sharp point, to the point that she could nearly feel the things she was thinking about.

“What an absolutely wicked little Princess,” she imagined Twilight whispering to her. “I bet she'd like to become my Queen tonight, wouldn't she?” Syalis shrugged her blanket up further until it nearly covered her face. The memory of him breathing in her ear earlier that day came rushing back, causing heat to spread through the curve of her ear as well as her thighs. Nearly squealing, she curled her knees towards her chest, tucking one of her hands between her legs. She normally only did this when it was chilly to warm her hands, but this time it felt different. This time, it felt… exciting. Especially as her hand approached the top of her legs.

Suddenly, recognition struck her. The note she'd been sent mentioned this!

If… you find your hands wandering… please imagine mine in their place.

There was absolutely no reason she couldn't satisfy herself with her own hands, just has Twilight had on previous nights! The things he had done with his fingers, she could just as easily do with her own!

Willing to try anything once to rid herself of the tension keeping sleep at bay, she rolled onto her back and spread her knees apart underneath her blanket, causing her voluminous night gown to ride up to her waist. Even if someone passed by, perhaps they’d just think she was sleeping in an odd position. Then, curiously, she slid her hands over her thighs and up to the gusset of her underwear. Pressing on the outside of the fabric, she could feel her private area had gotten very warm and damp. So, if she was correct, all she needed to do was work her fingers inside herself down there just like Twilight had. Then she could make herself have a release and go to sleep!

Curiously, she brought her hand up to her waist and slid it inside the waistband of her panties. Wasting no time, she pushed her fingers down until they were nestled between her outer lips, feeling the slickness that had begun seeping out. Sliding her first two fingers down between her lips, Syalis sucked in a quick breath of air. It felt good! Not as good as what Twilight was able to do, she realized bitterly, but that meant her fingers could potentially work after all!

But as she worked those two fingers in and out, coating them with the eager honey she'd been making, it felt like something was missing. It felt good, but not great, and she wasn't entirely sure she could finish herself off like this. Curiously, Syalis began pressing against her inner walls, sweeping in a circular motion to see how touching each area would feel. When she found a particular spot that felt better than the others – somewhere near the top – she gently pressed it over and over. She curled her fingers to better rub at that sensitive spot, combining that with the motion of her hand. The friction made her gasp as she moved her hips ever-so-slightly against her palm. She realized then that she was unintentionally rubbing against something on the outside that was even more intense than what she'd found on the inside.

The pressure from that motion caused a jolt of pure pleasure to flash through her body.

Determined, she did it again and her back arched from the sensation. As the small, swollen lump shifted under the heel of her hand, she realized that this was the part that Twilight paid so much attention to the other times. Equal parts curious and determined, she added her right hand to the mix, pinching the little nub between her index finger and thumb.

Heat flooded the entire area, right down to the tops of her thighs. She paused in working her fingers into the pleasant spot just past her entrance and focused almost entirely on the hard little jewel she'd just found with her right hand. With just a small movement of her fingers, it rolled back and forth, causing her to gasp at the intense sensation.

She could do it now! If she kept rolling this little piece of flesh underneath her fingers, she could make herself come! Then a deep, pleasant sleep would finally be hers!

But as she continued, she realized that the feeling had plateaued into a dull, constant sort of pleasure. It felt wonderful, of course, but it wasn't quite enough to push her over the edge into drowsy bliss. Eyebrows scrunched in thought, she tried to find her next move. Perhaps she needed to engage her mind somehow, like she had with those books?

…Imagine mine in their place.

Syalis tried it. She tried imagining Twilight’s hands instead of hers, pressing her hard as she bucked against them. Of course, he would have to be seated squarely between her thighs. His hard cock would have to be pressed between her outer lips, as well, ready to enter her. As she imagined it, it was almost as if she could feel it, just a little bit – a phantom sensation against her inner thighs and outer lips.

“What a naughty, wanton little Princess! Is this what you want? My cock all the way inside you?”

With her left hand, she lightly stroked the outside of her slit with the pads of her fingers. In her imagination, perhaps that was what the head of his cock would feel like as it parted her lips. She bit back her gasp as she imagined it; even with as dark and quiet as it was, she didn't want any wandering passersby to realize what she was doing.

Still, the mental image and faint feeling it caused, of Twilight burying himself deep inside her, caused Syalis to bite her lip. Yes, imagining him bullying her like that was just as delicious as she'd thought it might be. She was just an innocent, delicate little flower, being sullied by a wicked, lusty demon. The thought alone caused her to whine softly in the back of her throat. Yes, she was so close!

“You feel so good that I can't hold back for much longer. I'm going to pour everything into you, Princess. Will you accept it?”

In her mental fantasy, Syalis imagined herself quaking and crying, calling ‘no, no!', like the Princess in her magazine, even as she bucked her hips against her blanket. But even the imaginary Syalis secretly wanted just exactly that; of course, that was where her mental movie was going to end up. She pressed hard against herself with both hands, simultaneously rolling the little jewel at the top of her slit with one and hitting the tender spot just inside with the other. As she did so, she reveled in the tension of imagining herself making her phantom lover spend himself inside of her.

She tried to imagine what it would be like. From experience, she knew that it would throb just as his milk poured out, coming out in little spurts. It would be warm, too, just enough to notice as it filled her up. As Syalis let her mind create the sensations she wanted to feel, she could have sworn she even heard the man in her imagination hiss as he came. Yes, that would be what it was like – so sinful and shameful, yet that was exactly what they both wanted.

With a small squeak, she felt the familiar heat from her other encounters with Twilight course through her body. She pulsed down below, feeling a little dribble of her own release discreetly leak out. This felt slightly different, however; softer, gentler. Even with as strong as her imagination was, her body knew that those were her hands and not her lovers'. With the spell of her fantasy broken, Syalis took several deep breaths, relaxing her legs into the bed as she removed her wet fingers from her panties and laid both hands lazily on her stomach.

This was it. This was the sleep spell she had been searching for. Turning away from the barred front of the cell and rolling onto her side with a happy sigh, she could feel sleep settling in on her. Oh, it was so delicious! But how much more delicious would it be with her chosen partner with her? She was satisfied for tonight, but knew she'd be even more determined to share it with him from here on out.

Only a few minutes later, just as she was nearly completely asleep, Syalis barely registered the sound of heavy footsteps just outside her cell. With the hazy curiosity that only sleep could bring, she listened as her cell door was gently opened and the intruder took a single step inside.

“So she is here.”

Syalis hummed softly to herself at the sound of Great Red Siberian's stern voice. As soon as he confirmed that Syalis was truly in her own bed, he stepped back and refastened her cell door.

“I suppose she finally gave up,” he mused to himself as he locked the door behind him. “Good timing, then. Wouldn't want her interfering with my liege's sleep before his training trip tomorrow.”

On the cusp of falling asleep, Syalis smiled to herself. A trip, eh? What a wonderful opportunity to get her lover alone, away from his annoying guard dog.

Chapter Text

Twilight raised his head and smiled as a sunbeam fell over his face. Late morning sounds of birds chirping, animals scurrying, and water splashing filled the air. He fully intended to have a pleasant day of special training, by himself, in a soothing spot he'd picked a while back.

The area itself was at the edge of a riverbank, near a waterfall. He figured the sound of rushing water would mask any weird sounds that might happen, and the river was wide enough that he only had to watch for trespassers from one direction. Even so, he'd come to this isolated mountainside specifically because few people came here anyway.

He didn't want others to see him training in his Second Form.

Sure, with the Princess's help he'd been able to show it to his troops without fear, but that didn't mean he was very good at using it yet. He still needed to practice, especially with regulating his mana consumption. The ultimate goal was to be able to switch into his Second Form effortlessly without turning into a child the next day. If anything drastic happened while he was indisposed like that, it would be a massive security risk.

There was also the small matter that being stuck in his child form meant having the Princess stay out of his room at night. A little heat crept across his nose at the thought. It was frustrating that he'd been apart from her for so long already and the very thing he was trying to avoid was going to keep them apart today, too.

Until they returned from their secret trip to Last Zone City, he had thought they were on very good terms. But then she'd quietly stayed away from him for the better part of a week. Even though he'd been anxious about it, it was difficult to approach her with his concerns – how could he ask her if she was angry he hadn't given her what she wanted in that hotel room? Or if that's all she wanted from him? He didn't want to seem too forward and he was used to her coming to him, whether he wanted her to or not. Learning that Red had actually been turning her away every night and that she wasn't really avoiding him was pretty comforting, though.

Still, her approaching him in the cafeteria like that was brazen, even for the Princess. He couldn't say he disliked it.

With his thoughts as stirred up as they were, how was he ever going to be able to concentrate enough to train today?

With a sigh bordering on a groan, Twilight sat down the duffel bag containing a change of clothes and some shower supplies in the middle of a copse of sheltering trees. He felt a twinge of relief in his shoulder at being unburdened; was that bag always that heavy?

Well, it wasn't a big deal. He needed to change out of his training sweats before he transformed anyway, or else they'd be ruined beyond repair. He'd lost a good cape that way one time! So, knowing he was protected from any passersby by the trees just in case, he began stripping. Then, with his clothes folded neatly, he knelt by the bag, concentrated his mana, and grew to twice his normal size.

As usual for this form, he didn't just get taller. His hair got longer – well past his waist – his horns got wider, his eyes glowed, and his skin bore stripes up and down his rib cage. As expected, the neatly trimmed nails were replaced with sharp claws, and his hands and arms all the way past his elbows were dyed black. More than anything, his body crackled with dark mana, slowly escaping as he maintained that form.

That was exactly the problem he was trying to correct.

With a deep, calming breath, Twilight tamped it down as far as possible. After a few more steady breaths, he reopened his eyes and reached for the zipper on the duffel bag. He'd packed some bed sheets to wear during training, but as he unzipped the bag, he chided himself. He really should have some clothes tailored for his Second Form at some point. It wasn't like he wanted to fight the Hero naked or wrapped in a bed sheet.

What he found when he opened the bag, however…

“Haaaaa~! That was a nice nap!”

The Princess sat up, rubbing her eyes, and stretching one arm over her head. She was dressed in her gym clothes, with her hair pulled into a high ponytail on her head. Twilight watched her, dumbfounded.

That explained why the bag was so much heavier than it should have been.

More importantly, though, he was sitting in his Second Form, stark naked in front of the Princess. At this realization, he scrambled backwards, shaking the tree that his back slammed against.

“P-P-Princess! Wh-Wha-?!”

She opened her eyes and regarded him happily.

“Twilight-kun!”

And then her eyes trailed lower. As they wandered lower than his pecs, a devious smile spread across her face.

“Oh, ah… your clothes… were you waiting for me?”

At least she still had the decency to look away. But Twilight knew that look. He wasn't going to leave this place unmolested. Instinctively, he sat forward and rearranged himself with his arm between his thighs. No way was he going to show her that without putting up a fight!

“They were supposed to be in the bag!” he squawked. For a brief moment, he felt a rush of panic as he thought the Princess might have thrown them out to fit herself into the bag. Instead, she held up the corner of one bed sheet.

“Oh, this?” she asked innocently. “I didn't know why you were taking sheets with you to training, but they were nice to sleep on.”

“How did you know I–“ he began before thinking better of it. “Never mind. Just hand them over.” There was absolutely no way he was going over there, naked as he was.

Rather than doing what she was asked, the Princess gave him a sly look.

“What do I get in return?”

No, no, no! He had to control his mana! His entire body felt hot at the provocation, as though he was experiencing a whole-body blush. Twilight knew he had to have looked like an absolute moron as he stared blankly at her, horrified that she was really flirting with him in this situation. What the hell was wrong with her tastes!? He was a damn monster, and here she was, looking like a starving woman at a buffet!

“Will you let me see it?” the Princess purred, climbing out of the bag like some kind of vengeful ghost. “Your whole body, I mean.”

“You're gonna see everything when I get up to change anyway!”

Twilight briefly considered just transforming back and taking her home. But worse than the fact that she was approaching him on hands and knees was that if he changed back just then, he would have wasted the entire trip. At least if he stayed in his Second Form, he'd have an excuse not to do anything too drastic with her. They were definitely physically incompatible this way; even his mouth and hands would hurt her in this form.

Or at least that was what he told himself. The Princess didn't seem to have any such compunction. Then again, the Princess was famously short on common sense, too.

Surprisingly, when she reached him, she draped the sheet over his knees instead of tormenting him more. Then, she sat back on her legs.

“You're right,” she said, looking at him expectantly. “Anyway, don't be mad I followed you, okay? I didn't realize it was this kind of training.” Twilight clutched his sheet before standing with his back to her and tying it around his waist. When he looked back over his shoulder, Syalis was looking up at him with starry eyes and a keen smile.

“What kind of training did you think it was?” he asked before realizing that was probably a dangerous question. She looked away demurely as he went to approach his duffel bag.

“Just the regular kind you martial artists do,” she said lightly, cupping her cheeks with her hands. “Maybe going out and defeating bandits while you look for a stronger opponent.” How did she make such a short sentence sound like four separate old-school anime?

“How is that ‘regular’?”

“Then, when you were all done,” she continued, “of course you'd be all sweaty and dirty. So I came to help you clean up at the end.” Twilight found what he was looking for in the bag and pulled it out: the second sheet he'd packed to act as a cape. It seemed like it wouldn't be totally necessary anymore, so he unfolded it with a snap of his wrists.

“I’ve been thinking it for a while, but have I told you before that you have really strange tastes?” he said, his voice flat. “Especially for a human princess.” He shook out the sheet and laid it on the ground underneath the tree he'd backed into a few minutes ago.

“I can't help it,” she cooed. “You smell nice after you've been working hard.”

Deep breaths, deep breaths! Twilight had to be careful with his emotions in this state, or he'd expend way more mana than he intended.

Maybe the Princess was an excellent training partner for this exercise after all? If he could handle her provocations, he'd be able to handle himself easily in battle.

As if she'd sensed that thought, as soon as he sat down on the sheet underneath the tree, Syalis scrambled to get something out of the bag. Before he could appreciate the sight of her cute bottom peeking out of her gym shorts, she rushed back with her prize in her hands and climbed into Twilight's oversized lap. It seemed to be an opaque black bag with a drawstring.

“H-Hey,” he protested weakly. Of course, the Princess ignored him. She leaned against his ribcage, letting her eyes flutter shut for a few seconds. He couldn't let his concentration slip, but his lower body had no such thoughts. The tiny creature's presence on his lap had already made him half hard, and without underwear on, it would be incredibly obvious if it got any harder.

“Hmm, you still smell normal,” she mused before turning to look up at him. “Let me see your left hand.” She had seated herself on his right thigh, so he reached across his body to let her inspect his left hand. It was such an odd request that it took him off guard. She examined his sharp claws for a moment curiously before turning to look up at him.

“Are these like normal fingernails?” she asked innocently.

“As far as I know,” Twilight replied, puzzled at the direction their encounter had taken.

“So if I cut a couple, it won't hurt you?” At this point, she'd wrapped a hand lightly around his middle finger and was gently running her palm up and down the length of it. Understanding dawned on him at what she was implying.

He couldn't say he hated the idea, but he felt the need to protest anyhow.

“H-Hey,” he said with far less conviction than he should have. “If you play around like that, I could really wind up hurting you.” The smile he received in return looked almost normal; Twilight knew almost exactly how lewd the Princess was on the inside, though.

“If it's you, I don't mind,” she said sweetly. “I might even like it.”

“Not like that, you little pervert!” he squawked. “Although in this form, that's probably true too! I mean my body is leaking dark mana right now!”

“Even right now?” She looked as clueless as though he had just explained some high-level physics equation to her.

“Yes, even right now!” he said. “It's only a little right now because I'm calm. That's why I came out here anyway.” It seemed like something dawned on her just then.

“Oh, so… like meditation training!”

“Yeah,” he said with a sigh. “I was planning on having a really quiet day, but…” By this time, Syalis had taken a pair of normal toenail clippers out of her bag and was seeing if they would cut his thick claws. Deciding they wouldn't, she slid them back in the bag and looked up to Twilight's face.

“We'll have a nice picnic instead,” she said happily. “Although it probably won't be quiet.” Surely he was blushing now. His skin felt flushed as he desperately hoped the Princess wouldn't notice the small tent that was forming near her. It was her fault, after all!

Lucky for him, she seemed clueless. Instead, she brought out a pair of her sturdy shears and tested them against his middle finger's claw. It provided some resistance, but they managed to snap through. It was a clean cut, but the edges were still very sharp; she'd just moved the problem a bit. As Twilight wondered what she was going to do about it, she brought another tool out of her bag – a hand-held magic-operated grinding file, the kind groomers used on dogs.

“More importantly,” he asked, watching her file the points off his nail with the Dremel tool, “Why did you bring a dog grooming kit?” She didn't look up as she finished up with the grinder and pulled out a regular 200/400 grit nail file.

“It's just a manicure kit,” she said dismissively, smoothing the edge of his nail with the 200 grit side. “I thought your nails might have grown back since I saw you last time, but I didn't think it'd be this bad…”

“Who uses a grinder in their manicure kit besides Red?!” he squawked. Twilight was a responsible pet owner, he knew what he was looking at! Syalis flipped to the 400 grit side of the file and began smoothing the surface to a nice sheen.

“Quilly,” Syalis answered simply. “I keep it in here for when I do his nails. Oh! We're all done! I'll do another one, just in case.” As though nothing out of the ordinary was happening, she started in on his index finger.

For now, it truly was a nice, peaceful picnic. Twilight figured if things continued like this, he wouldn't have to fear the unfortunate snapback effects of his transformation tomorrow morning. Of course, the Princess had no intention of letting him go with just a manicure. Even if she would have seemed totally innocent to anyone else, Twilight knew her true intentions.

Besides, how could they have a picnic with no food? After a moment of watching Syalis happily file his long nail down to nothing, he realized what she expected him to eat.

Dammit, her depravity had infected him, too! His face was probably too big to even do that properly now, anyway!

Still, he couldn't deny that it was tempting. It was the first time they were alone in over a week. If she had just revealed herself five minutes sooner, it wouldn’t even be a question. But in his Second Form, if he lost his concentration, it was possible she could be badly injured or even killed. And the idea of explaining how that happened to the Demon Cleric was enough to dampen any romantic thoughts he might have.

Well, not entirely. As Syalis admired her handiwork, her eyes lit up with some kind of realization.

“Oh,” she said. “I should get the dust off.”

Under normal circumstances, that sort of thing would be handled by running water or a damp cloth. Twilight watched as Syalis used her mouth instead. One at a time, she licked the tip of each finger. Then she slid the middle one into her mouth up to about the second knuckle, let her eyes drift shut, and gently began to suck. Just as heat began to seep into Twilight's groin, she slid the finger out of her mouth and looked appraisingly at it.

“H-Hey,” he nervously said. “That dust might… have some of my mana in it…” The last thing he wanted was to accidentally make her sick from consuming something with concentrated dark mana in it. There was no telling what it'd do to a little human woman.

“It's bigger than normal,” she casually remarked, ignoring his hesitance and causing his stomach to flip. “I wonder if I could handle two…” To test it out, she slid both in at once, causing her to look a bit like an overambitious chipmunk. Twilight could no longer stay still; he forgot his hesitation and, against his better judgment, gently flexed his fingers, pushing down on her soft tongue to elicit a muffled squeak. She even brought her hands up to encircle either side of his wrist, guiding him just as though she was eating him.

Working his fingers back and forth past her lips was more erotic than it had any real right to be. His lower body agreed with the sentiment; just watching the little Princess diligently clean his fingers had him fully standing at attention. Dealing with that was going to be another issue entirely.

A bead of sweat trickled down Twilight's temple. She was just too small. Hands, mouth, anything else, it wasn't going to fit. Did she expect him to take care of it himself? She'd probably want to watch, too. Twilight used his right hand to cover his face; the entire situation was beyond humiliating and there was a limit to what he could bear. He hadn't quite found it yet, but he still had his royal dignity to consider, dammit!

But the heat and wetness of her mouth as it wrapped around his fingers was so very distracting. As she licked and sucked his fingers, it was as if she was showing off how much her technique had improved while they were apart. Or maybe it had been just as good when they were in that hotel together?

Leaning into the tree trunk, Twilight groaned. Due to his current physical state, it came out a lot harsher than he'd intended, too.

Finally noticing something was wrong, Syalis looked up at him curiously. She gave the space between his fingers one final, light lick for good measure and then removed them from her mouth with a small ‘pop'. A thin string of saliva glistened between her tongue and the tip of his black fingers, sending a shiver down into the pit of Twilight’s stomach.  He watched her watch him through the split in his fingers, seeing the corners of her mouth twitch upward. Then, her eyes wandered away and Twilight's heart skipped a beat as he realized what she was looking at.

“Oh,” she said with a cat-like grin. “I was curious about this.” She placed one delicate hand on the covered tip, where a damp spot was already beginning to grow, and petted it like she would a dog.

“You didn't really let me see it earlier. And I didn't get to see it when you transformed before.”

His breath caught in his throat at the gentle accusation.

“It's no different than before!” he said, looking anywhere but at Syalis's face.

“You would look ridiculous if that was true,” she said cheerfully, giving it a strong rub. “Like an old-fashioned statue.” Her hand caused a thrill to race up Twilight's back, but it also felt strange. It was so small it couldn't fully wrap around his equipment at his current size.

Still, Syalis didn't seem to be deterred. She continued to pet him, increasing the pressure of her hand for a few more moments. Her eyes shone with mischief as she glanced back up to meet his one visible eye. Finally, swallowing his saliva, Twilight used the hand she'd just trimmed to wrap around her wrist and stop her.

“There's nothing you can do with that,” he said softly. “Not with me in this form. Even your hands are too small right now.” Syalis's cheeks puffed up like a little blowfish at the rejection.

“Not fair,” she grumbled. “How can you let me see this but not let me play with it?” Twilight flinched at the accusation. Sensing his weakness, Syalis pulled the sheet aside to reveal his erection to the morning air. He looked down at her in horror, freezing in place.

It wasn't so much that he was ashamed of it already being hard; she had to know she was provoking that kind of reaction when she sucked his fingers a moment ago. Besides which, as soon as she revealed herself in his training spot, it was a foregone conclusion that they would wind up fooling around. It was just that he wasn't truly used to every part of his Second Form and having something like that between his legs was embarrassing.

Because now, his cock reached nearly to his navel. He'd been in this state in front of Syalis many times now, but it had never looked quite like this. It was several shades darker than the skin of his thighs, a ruddy shade of blushing red mingled with dark brown. Veins stood out along the shaft, and the head was still half-hidden by foreskin. And a clear little stream of precum was dribbling from the tip, an essence of dark mana slowly escaping the thin liquid. It looked, frankly, monstrous to him and he wouldn't have blamed the Princess at all if she ran away in fear.

But she didn't. Rather, she gazed open-mouthed at it before lifting both hands to hold it. It was too big around for her fingers to touch, close to the size of her thigh.

“It's amazing,” she said slowly, as though she had just opened a treasure chest full of gold. “Even better than normal! Truly the pride of the Demon Race…” Twilight couldn't understand her or bring himself to move away to discourage her. All he could think was that the Princess's tastes really were just trash.

“Is there something wrong with your eyes!?” he finally snapped, coming back to himself. “There's nothing you can do with it in this shape! And even if you did, it'd probably poison you! I have to take care of it myself.” Even as the words left his mouth, Syalis used both hands to slide his foreskin away from his swollen glans, freeing the head completely to the cool air.

“Are you even listening to me?!”

Syalis glared up at him as though he was interrupting her reunion with an old friend. In fact, she was practically hugging it, burying his cock against her chest with her arms wrapped around it.

“So you're saying you’ll play with me a little until I'm tired and then go hide and take care of this yourself?” Her voice was particularly low and dangerous. “That's not fair, either!”

“It's not about what's ‘fair'!” Twilight protested. “It's about being safe!” Just as her eyes widened, Twilight thought he'd finally gotten through to her. Then she pouted and pulled away from him, holding his cock at arm's length.

“S-So if you understand…”

Instead, she leaned in, stuck her tongue out, and licked a wet trail along his skin where the precum had already settled. Twilight groaned in mingled frustration and pleasure, covering his face with both hands as he leaned back hard against that poor tree. The branches and leaves shook from his efforts at holding himself back. After another few moments, he cracked his eyes open to see her glaring up at him from behind his erection.

“It's making my tongue a little numb,” Syalis mumbled against his skin with a slight slur.

“You idiot! I told you not to!”

She answered him by sucking in a mouthful of skin on the underside of his prick and teasing it with her tongue. Twilight closed his mouth so fast he almost bit his tongue. She glanced up at him hungrily and, assured he wasn't going to complain anymore for the moment, she trailed her tongue up towards his tip again. This time, rather than say anything, she opened her mouth and moved to take him inside.

She barely even got the tip of the head in. Realizing it was going no further, she pulled away angrily.

“I… I'll make it fit!”

Twilight watched in horror as Syalis rose to her feet, kicked off her shoes, and pulled down her gym shorts. As soon as she'd stepped free of them, he lunged forward and grabbed her firmly around the waist. Gently, worried she might break, he turned her around, lifted her over his legs, and pressed her back against his chest. He tried his very best not to pay any attention to the fact that her naked bottom – which was suspiciously damp – was seated right above the base of his cock.

“Stop it,” he bent to whisper in her ear. “You really will hurt yourself. We just aren't compatible right now.” Even saying that, she still reached forward to gently stroke him with her hands open, running them up and down the length of his shaft.

“It's really not fair,” she grumbled for the third time. “Your fingers will still be fine for me, but you're stuck like this. Does it hurt at all?” Twilight jolted from the question as she looked up at him with sad eyes. Was that the real reason she was so insistent? Because she wanted to help him?

With a small surge of sentimentality, he wrapped his arms around her and made sure to control his strength as he squeezed. She was too short for him to even lean his head on.

“No, it doesn't hurt,” he said softly. “It feels pretty good right now, actually.”

“Mouuu,” she complained, scooting down to wrap her thighs on either side of his phallus. “It's like having a beautiful chocolate cake you can't eat.”

Twilight sighed. Well, it wasn't like he expected her to have purely noble intentions anyway. Still, her legs felt nice wrapped around the root of his cock like that. With a little bit of heat stinging his nose, he pulled her back up his belly as he pressed his back against the big tree behind him. The feeling of her legs stroking him as he moved her made him want to buck his hips, but he fought the urge.

“H-Hey!”

“Stop using your hands for a second,” he said, fighting his shame. “And open your legs for me. I'm going to take care of you.” She pouted and looked away.

“They feel good like this,” she complained, squeezing his firm flesh between her knees. He hated that she was right; it did feel very good. Still, he would have to press her a bit to get her to cooperate properly. So he used one oversized hand on her stomach to hold her tightly against him, and used the other to slide between her legs. The well-trimmed middle finger found its target easily: the slick fold of skin between her legs.

Syalis whined with a little grunt as he rubbed against the swollen nub sticking out between the cleft of flesh. Then, he went further, sliding his finger down just past her entrance. It couldn't go past there, though; her thighs were too close together.

“Spread your legs, Princess,” he repeated. “I promise it'll feel good.” Even Twilight was impressed by the depth of his voice just then, but when he felt the Princess shiver, he knew for sure that he'd done a good job.

Reluctantly, she finally did as she was told. He immediately rewarded her by entering her with his thick, long middle finger.

“It's tighter than usual,” he muttered, the words escaping before he had a chance to think about them. Even still, he worked his finger out and back in again, reaching further back inside her body than he'd ever done before. Syalis gave him a heavy breath in return as she curled her fingers into his right arm.

“I-It's not,” she said sheepishly. “You're just really big right now, you… you big dummy.” Even though she was being fairly salty, there was no venom in her words. In fact, she seemed to be watching his hand in fascination, pressing into it with little, barely noticeable movements.

He couldn't resist teasing her a little more.

“It's a good thing you were already really wet, then, right?” She covered her face with her hands, forgetting all about holding onto his arms.

“That's your fault!”

The sounds his finger was making inside her mingled with her heavy breathing. It was enough to cover up the natural birdsong around them and nearly even drowned out the waterfall nearby. But as Twilight continued to work his finger back and forth, he could feel a small puddle growing underneath the Princess's bottom.

After another few moments, she forgot her embarrassment and moved her hands back to his arm. Her eyes drifted shut, and with a needy mewl, her thighs opened just a bit wider. Obliging her, Twilight managed to fit the entire finger in, all the way down to his fist. Her body clung to him greedily, even with her legs so far apart.

‘If she had just revealed herself five minutes earlier,’ he found himself thinking. It was less of a bitter thought than a wistful one; he'd have to bring her back here sometime, at a proper size and with some proper tools. Doing this with her, out in a lovely natural setting… rather than undignified, Twilight found it beautiful. Romantic, even.

Still, the way she pressed against his hand like this was deeply satisfying, too. After pushing deep into her, over and over, for a few more moments, Twilight let a little curiosity take hold. He flexed his finger, curling upwards, and pressed gently against the top of Syalis's inner walls. Strangely, the effect was sharp and instantaneous; she bucked against his hand with a gasp.

“A-Ahh-! That… That spot-!”

Curious, he pressed it again, rubbing softly with the flat pad of his finger. He was immediately rewarded by the tight squeeze of her soft inner flesh and a desperate, quiet mewl from the Princess. She was so wet now that he thought a small flood might happen when he withdrew. Still, her cute voice as she whimpered was way too low.

A devilish smirk settled on Twilight's lips. He had her.

“You can be louder,” he suggested, rubbing that particular spot again. “It’s not like the castle - there's nobody around. No one will hear us out here.”

He knew she didn't care about being overheard - she'd proven she didn't care as much as he did about being caught a while ago. But the way she bit her lip, just rebelling against him on instinct, was so adorable that it made him feel a jolt of pleasure race down his spine himself. He rewarded her with another gentle stroke to her sensitive spot.

This time, she really did cry out loud.

“Don't… Don't stop…” she gasped, covering her eyes with her hands again. “It feels good… but weird… I feel like…”

Even he felt good just listening to her – her moans, her whimpering, the wet noises his finger was making inside of her... In response, Twilight carefully pressed into that spot and rubbed, making sure to control his strength. The Princess's hips bucked from the stimulation as she gave a choked squeal. Her voice was finally coming out louder.

“N-No, I can't--"

Suddenly, there was a gush of warmth around Twilight’s finger. It was thinner than the honey the Princess usually made and there was a lot of it; so much, in fact, that it pooled on his stomach and began to slip down onto the sheet below. Even with that happening, her soft muscles clenched around his finger in a familiar way, signaling that she'd climaxed.

He froze and everything except the loud heartbeat thundering in his ears faded away. The Princess hid her face behind her hair and hands, clearly mortified. Other than her gasping and the occasional hiccup, she was silent. If it hadn't been for the way her body still clung to Twilight’s finger, it would've been like a bucket of cold water was dumped on them both. If he'd forced her into having an accident, he wasn't sure either of them would ever recover.

Shaking slightly, he withdrew his finger. Even more juice flowed out, soaking them both.

But glancing at the drops falling onto the sheet underneath them, Twilight noticed something that saved the whole situation: that liquid was clear. There was no offensive smell, either. With a jolt of recognition, he hugged the quivering Princess a bit tighter with his free arm. He'd read about this before, in that book he got in Last Zone City!

At the time, it hadn’t seemed like something Twilight would need to worry about, and he had a lot of other things to learn, so he'd forgotten about it. But with the trembling little Princess currently dying of embarrassment in his arms, he'd suddenly recalled that strange information that he'd only skimmed before: Some women, under certain circumstances, could cum all in a gush, like men.

“It's alright,” he cooed into her ear. With the shiver his breath caused, Twilight realized he could still save this situation. “You just came.”

Syalis's eyes slid over to look at him while she hid the rest of her bright red face. Tears, either of embarrassment or possibly anger, gathered in the corner of her eyes.

“N-No, it's… different…” she whispered. “It felt like… I think I just…”

“No, no, no, no,” he answered, shaking his head as his finger stroked gently between her puffy lower lips. “It still feels good, right? I read about this once – you came like I do this time.”

Whether in shyness or frustration, the Princess squeezed his hand with her thighs. In another moment, Twilight realized what she was doing: she was starting to turn over on his stomach. Once she was curled on her side with her legs together, he slid his oversized hand out of the way. Instead, he used it to pull her up his chest until the top of her head was tucked firmly underneath his chin.

“It’s sweet of you to lie like that,” she whispered against his collarbone. “But you don't have to.” Air caught in the back of Twilight's nose as he breathed in indignation.

“I'm not lying!” he squawked. “I'll show you the book if you want!”

Instead of responding aggressively as normal, the Princess was suddenly very docile and demure.

“Don't… Don't tell anyone,” she said. Twilight could feel his whole body flush hot, just as if he'd been plunged into a scalding bath. Why was this what it took for the Princess to actually act like a princess?! Either way, he couldn't help but find it incredibly erotic.

“Who… Who the hell would I even tell?!” he blurted out. He was floundering from how adorable she was when she was embarrassed like this. Even worse was the fact that he was still rock hard; her new cute behavior wasn't helping that situation any.

“My dignity…”

“Since when did either of us have ‘dignity’ in this situation?!” Not that Twilight had a lot to begin with, but Syalis seemed to have made it her life's mission to steal what little he had anyway.

“But…” he finally stammered, swallowing the lump in his throat. “If you're gonna act as cute as this, you can cum like that every time from now on.” Her big, watery eyes as she looked up at him were like a shot through the heart. Was she terrified or excited? With her weird tastes, there was no telling. But such a delicate, adorable expression was so much of a turn on that Twilight temporarily forgot that he was twice as big as normal.

“H-Hey,” he managed to say, “If you look at me like that…” Rather than finish his sentence, Twilight used his left hand to tip Syalis's chin up towards him. Her eyes widened as he lowered his lips over her. Yes, he was still too big and it could barely be called a kiss, but she raised one shaky hand to caress his jaw in response.

Surprisingly, she returned his kiss with vigor. Pushing a little squeal into his mouth, Syalis sucked Twilight’s bottom lip, scraping and holding it with her teeth. Then, after a few seconds, she released him only to open her mouth to kiss him more. As she pressed her tongue between his lips, hard, he held himself back. To stop his hands from trembling, he pressed them into her hair and shoulders, hugging her tighter. Even doing something as simple as a kiss in this form was dangerous for her.

But she was clearly determined that they weren't done. She brought her other hand to cup his cheek as she explored his much larger mouth, slowly smoothing it back until her fingers threaded through his longer hair. She didn't even pull away to breathe; instead, hot, panted puffs of air flowed over Twilight's lips. As they continued, it sounded more and more like she was actually moaning. It was all he could do to keep from biting her like this.

As he held her to try and dispel his nerves, she twisted against him, rolling from her side to lay flat against his chest. Face to face like this, her thighs still barely straddled him just below his ribcage. But if Twilight was at his regular size, she would be in the perfect place to take him from above. That simple thought made his stiff cock throb.

As Twilight pulled away from the Princess, her open mouth and half-lidded eyes made him ache. It hurt even worse to gently push her back when she tried to seek him out again. After being turned away and realizing he'd ended the kiss on purpose, Syalis blinked at him, half-confused and half-offended.

“I, ah…” he stammered, no longer willing to meet her eyes, “I’m… it's not… I’m… going to go for a few minutes, so…”

Maybe he could just soak in the cold mountain stream for a little while to get that monstrosity to go away. But Syalis's cheeks went from delightfully pink to once again resembling an angry pufferfish. She pushed against his chest, sitting straddling him as her gym shirt fell to cover most of her otherwise naked body. If anything, her angry glare seemed to be indicting him for ruining the mood.

Still reluctant to let her go, but also unwilling to meet her accusing stare, Twilight put his hands around her waist and held her in place. At least that way she wouldn't try anything potentially dangerous.

“Are you still trying to hide and take care of that yourself?” she asked angrily. “Let me take responsibility!” He met her fierce gaze, trying not to flex his fingers against her soft waist.

“Princess, you--"

“I said I'll take responsibility, didn't I?!” Twilight couldn't tell if she was actually concerned or just so horny she'd lost all common sense. Maybe it really was the latter; normally she'd have already passed out after one climax. Right then, she seemed wide awake, pressing into her shirt with one hand while her cheeks shone bright red.

“But it's… it's impossible…”

Why did she suddenly look like she was facing down a dragon?!

“While you were playing with me just now, I remembered a story I read in the library recently,” she said breathily. “It was about two men in antiquity – a King of Conquerors and his strategist.” Twilight looked at her, stumped.

“What does that have to do with--"

“That King was twice the size of his strategist,” she continued, her eyes burning with determination, “and they still did it!”

Twilight had so many questions, but they all only amounted to one word:

“H-… How?!”

With a satisfied smirk, the Princess began removing her shirt. Once it was tossed behind her, leaving her puffy little pink nipples exposed to the morning air, she rolled her hips once against Twilight's midsection before moving to sling her leg over him and stand. Confused, he simply let her go.

Syalis looked as if she was considering something for a moment before walking a few steps towards the big tree Twilight was leaning against. Then, looking at him with a devious grin, she dropped to her knees, bent over, and leaned against the tree with one arm. Her other hand poked playfully between her thighs.

Chapter Text

Kisho the Rune Fencer sighed as he watched the clear mountain stream in front of him. It flowed from a small waterfall to his left and was so clear he could see the fish in it. As he watched, the reflections of his and his companion, Waker the Mage's, faces stared back at him.

He'd come to this mountain days ago with his traveling companions to collect the feathers of a certain magical hawk, a specific flowering herb, and a particular type of pine cone. They'd had pretty good luck with everything but the pine cones, so he and his companions had been wandering around aimlessly for days, just looking at trees. What any of this had to do with finding and rescuing their missing Princess was anyone's guess, but Dawner seemed invested in it.

Looking at the stream before him, he wished he'd brought a fishing rod instead.

But since they had found a good source of water, Kisho went ahead and unfastened the canteen from around his waist. He uncapped it and sank it into the stream, letting the flask fill with the cold mountain water. If they returned with nothing else, at least they'd have something nice to drink.

Just as he withdrew the flask and brought it to his lips, the sound of wood creaking came to his ears. Taking a quick look around, Kisho could see that Waker was just as startled and clueless about what the sound might be. Before either one could ask, they were greeted by the sounds of rustling leaves as well.

“There!”

It was a tall tree on the other side of the stream from them, full of bushy leaves, and they were all shaking violently. Strangely enough, none of the nearby trees – one of which looked like it might have the pine cones they needed – seemed to be affected. Just before Kisho could move into the water to take a closer look at the pine cones, though, he noticed what was causing the shaking.

There was something moving at the bottom of the tree. It was hidden by the thick underbrush, but the one part that was visible behind the trunk and other brush was a pair of huge, black, glowing horns. Once he noticed, he couldn't stop watching it.

“Is that…” he began, not truly sure what he was looking at. “Is it some kind of magical giant ox?”

Just as Waker met his eyes – why did he look so nervous suddenly? – a faint male voice from across the river dispelled that notion.

“Nngh-! Yes-! That's… haah…!”

Oh .

“Two… Two mountain oni, then…?”

How awkward. Of course, there'd be something like that going on right underneath the tree they needed for their side quest. Like hell was he going to interrupt that, especially with only Waker to back him up. The mage himself looked like he wanted to beat a hasty retreat, too – whatever it was, it was way too high level for them to interrupt its mating rituals. That much was easy enough to tell, even from across the river.

But then, another voice carried across the water, making Kisho rethink the whole situation.

“Right… Right there! Just like that! Good… good… so good…!”

Both adventurers felt as though a bucket of ice water had been thrown over them, probably for very different reasons.

“An… An oni and… a forest fairy?”

How did that even work?! That thing with the horns was huge and the voice of the fairy sounded so tiny! Who would even believe them?! Most importantly, how the hell were they going to finish this stupid pine cone side quest with two degenerate mountain spirits getting frisky underneath the tree they needed to check?!

Even though Twilight's grip had caused part of the tree's trunk to splinter, he was honestly holding himself back. Tamping down his dark mana while vigorously thrusting between the Princess's thighs was a difficult balancing act, but so far, he was pulling it off well.

Syalis was right, though. Unbelievably, her legs were just the right size to stroke his cock between them. One of her hands leaned against the unfortunate tree that Twilight held in one hand while resting his forehead against it. Her other hand closely hugged his prick as it came up nearly to her chin with each thrust. Her release from earlier provided enough lubrication that moving was easy.

“Tw… Twilight-kun… Me, too! Put it in me, too!”

He was so dizzy that he barely registered what she'd asked of him. But after taking a moment to think (and several deep breaths), he knew what she meant. With his free hand, the one he'd hooked onto her hip to steady her, he trailed around her upturned ass and easily slid his middle finger back where it had been before. He was immediately rewarded with a sharp gasp and a tightened grip on his cock.

A deep, satisfied groan escaped Twilight's lips.

In the position they were in, it was almost identical to them actually having intercourse. With each thrust between the Princess's legs, his finger dove deeper and made her squeal. In fact, this was probably the loudest and lewdest he'd ever heard her. Not for the first time that day, he was extremely glad there was no one else on this mountain.

Feeling curious – and just a bit devious – Twilight slid his neatly-trimmed index finger inside of the Princess, to match his middle finger. The needy, keening sound she made in response sent a shockwave through his body, resulting in a small gush of precum from him. He bit his lip and held back against any more, though – he couldn't stop here!

Still, as he stroked her deep inside with each thrust, she was noticeably fuller. The way she held his fingers was almost too tight; he could still move them along with his body, mostly owing to just how wet she'd become, but just barely. And her voice…

Every time he pushed forward, it was urgent, high-pitched, and loud. It made him realize that he was no longer moving alone; Syalis was frantically pushing back against him, too.

“It's good like this,” she said, gasping thick breaths and sharp moans. Twilight's fingers that were grasping the tree trunk dug in just a bit further, the untrimmed nails making deep gouges in the bark. He had to be more careful – if that tree fell, no one would really care, but it might bring an immediate end to their ‘picnic’ if it landed the wrong way.

The way she was clearly at his mercy was so erotic, though. It was becoming harder and harder to control himself. Even as he unintentionally put just a tiny bit more strength in his hand, Syalis gasped at the particularly hard stroke. He had to be careful – this repeated in Twilight’s head like a mantra. The effort made him groan.

She was obviously enjoying herself, too. Along with her urgent moans, her thighs had begun to squeeze him just a tiny bit more. Her free arm pressed the end of his cock firmly against her belly and chest, keeping him warm against her skin while the cool air hit the opposite side. It felt so delicious that he barely registered the slightly sharper cry she suddenly made as she pressed hard against him.

“Hold… Hold still,” the Princess whispered, quivering as she pressed back against Twilight. His fingers were fully inside her, to the point that he was sure he could feel her breathe. Still, he did as she asked, fighting the urge to move with a low, miserable moan.

He could feel her squirm just a bit, holding his prick so tightly with her thighs that he imagined for just a second that his blood flow might stop. Rather, though, she ground the swollen area right at the top of her slit against the root of his cock; if his senses weren't already sharpened to a fine point from what they'd been doing, he might not have even noticed it.

“Hey,” he whispered, his voice husky. “Are you cumming again?” Her response was a strangled gasp, so Twilight pushed down with his knuckles into the soft swollen flesh at the top of her sopping wet canal. He could feel her gently press harder against him in response. The veins on his other hand began to bulge from the effort of holding still against that poor tree.

“What happened to taking responsibility for me?” he teased breathlessly. “My Princess is selfish.”

“Bully,” she whispered, her voice shaking.

To be perfectly honest, Twilight’s cheeks burned from the teasing. It wasn't like Syalis would see it, though. He thought for a moment that she might well turn around and smack him, but she held firm. She breathed heavily, pressing against him even harder for another few moments before throwing her head back and issuing a shaky cry.

Then, her soft, slick muscles pulsed around his fingers again. Her thighs trembled and he could feel her grip on him go slightly slack. After a moment, she regained a bit of her composure, clutching him with her hand, but her heavy breathing let him know she wasn't entirely responsive.

It was all Twilight could do not to slam into her with all his strength. Instead, he withdrew his shaky fingers, watching with fascination at the honey that poured out after them. The liquid felt good on his skin, wetting his legs as it flowed down. Even better, it seeped down between the Princess's thighs, making it easier for him to slip through.

Holding back with all his might, Twilight settled his hand back on the Princess's hip and curled his fingers into her flesh.

“Don't fall asleep yet,” he huffed. “And hold onto me tight.”

The muscles that had gone just slightly slack tightened back up again, squeezing him ruthlessly. That was all the encouragement he needed; huffing, he slid back until he was almost free of her thighs. After another small breath, Twilight slammed his hips forward, winning a surprised squeak from the Princess. Between his hand and her general stubbornness, she managed to keep enough strength in her legs to stay still as he moved roughly against her again and again.

It didn't take much more of that until he was finished, leaving the wanton human girl laying underneath him. She had finally collapsed on her back, quivering legs splayed open lazily. The Princess breathed hard and struggled to keep her eyes open, even though she was drenched with his release. Looking over his handiwork, Twilight leaned back, gasping for air.

It had been a simple matter for Twilight to carry the light, drowsy Princess to the river while in his Second Form. There was a secret chamber behind the waterfall that he headed right for to clean up. Once seated firmly in the cold water, he took a deep, shaky breath, and reverted to his normal size.

Of course, the Princess sitting beside him was shivering and looking at him with a somewhat hurt expression. He assumed she was angry that he wasn't letting her sleep instead of cleaning up.

“I-I-It's cold,” she stuttered, clutching her bare arms with her hands. With no preamble, Twilight wrapped his arm around her shoulder and sat her gently in his lap. Since he was certain it was too chilly for his body to react, he felt totally comfortable to have her there.

“The water is colder up in the mountains,” he said plainly. “Sorry about that. But we have to clean up before we head home, right?” It didn't actually bother him much – he had plenty of experience bathing in streams, after all – but he could understand why the coddled little Princess might be uncomfortable. It never occurred to him that he might actually be the oddball in that situation.

“I'm going to take a long, hot bath when I get home,” she complained softly with a pout. “I feel sore and my legs feel like jelly.” Twilight swallowed a laugh with a little snort.

“It's your own fault,” he chided her, putting his chin on her head. “I really don't know what you thought you were doing.” Rather than just cuddle her – which was what he honestly wanted to do – Twilight began scooping water over her body to wash away the evidence of their affair. Of course, she shivered as the cold water flowed over her skin, but they needed to hurry. He was certain he would be hit with the snapback effect this time and he wanted to get home before he inevitably reverted to a child.

“Shut up,” she pouted. “You're just really sexy sometimes, okay?”

His eyes went wide behind his hair and his hands faltered, letting the water slip right through his fingers.

“Then, are you…” he began, not knowing how to phrase his question. “Hey… this wasn't… a sleep aid for you this time…” She didn't answer. Rather, she seemed to be pretending to be drowsy, looking out at the curtain of water separating them from the forest.

If she didn't want to answer, he wouldn't push her. Instead, he dutifully cleaned her as quickly as he could to get her out of the cold water faster. If the Princess caught some kind of cold, that would be worse for their plans than his unavoidable child form was already going to be.

More than that, he didn't like to see her so uncomfortable. It was regrettable; if the water wasn't so cold, the secluded spot behind a waterfall would've been truly romantic.

Yes, romantic…

Twilight barely noticed the chill of the water anymore, since his skin was so hot. Why did he keep having such weird thoughts like that? It wasn't like she thought of him that way… right?

Just a few quiet minutes later, both he and the Princess were dry, dressed, and almost ready to go. Unlike when they were in the water, the Princess's eyes seemed a bit brighter as she snuggled into her relatively clean gym clothes. Twilight had also donated his baggy training jacket to help warm her up, and she seemed pleased by it; he caught her sniffing it when she thought he wasn't looking, at least three times by now.

“Hey,” he began trying to talk to her again, moving with his bag over his shoulder. He lightly wrapped his other arm around her shoulder. “We should go soon.”

Syalis had been quiet since they'd come out of the water. He suspected it was because she was cold or even sleepy, but now that she wasn't as uncomfortable, it was clear she was thinking about something pretty deeply.

“Uhn,” she replied simply, tucking her head against his collarbone as she wrapped her arms loosely around his waist. Wasn't she being a little too cuddly, especially since she'd already gotten what she wanted earlier? Twilight faltered for a moment before letting his arms pull her in for a light embrace.

“I'll probably turn into a little kid soon,” he murmured against her head. “I'm sure I used too much mana just now.” Her fingers curled into his shirt, but she otherwise remained silent. What in the hell was wrong with her? Was she sad?

“I won't sneak into your room tonight, then,” she said quietly. “Although I might spy on you, just because your kid form is cute, too.” Was that what she was sad about?! Twilight sighed, but before he could say anything else, he was interrupted by the sound of rustling bushes and voices.

“I'm telling you, it was over here!”

“I don't see any giant oni, though!”

 “He knocked that whole tree down!”

Twilight felt his blood freeze. He knew those voices way too well. As he slowly turned to look over his shoulder, he clutched the Princess tighter, pressing her into his chest. To her credit, she didn't struggle at all, instead blinking owlishly at the four human adventurers facing them from the other side of the fallen tree.

“No… No way,” the ronin, Kisho, said. Why did he look so horrified, and why was he talking about a giant oni knocking down that tree? Twilight knocked that tree down himself!

And as soon as he realized that, the horrible realization that he'd been caught with his pants down – literally – dawned on him.

“It… It was you?!” Kisho continued, all the blood draining from his face. Fortunately, the other three party members seemed to be taking it better – Dawner and Sunrise only blinked in confusion while the silent mage, Waker, seemed to be trembling quietly in his cloak.

“And the girl with you was… that's…” Kisho fell to his knees as he realized exactly what he'd witnessed earlier. He clutched his head with his hands as his eyes widened. “Oh my god.”

“That's the Princess!” Dawner exclaimed, clearly just happy to see her and having no idea about the mental anguish his friend was enduring. Syalis blinked in his direction as though she had no clue who he even was. “And you're… wait…”

“Do… Do you not recognize me if I'm not wearing my cape?!” Twilight shouted in indignation before narrowing his eyes and getting back into character. He couldn't let them catch him any more off-guard than they already had – and truth be told, the Hero not recognizing him straight away was more than a little frustrating for him. They’d shared so many experiences together! So with a flourish of his track suit, he swept his right arm out while holding the Princess close to him with his left.

“Mwahaha-! That's right, my dear Heroes – it is I, the Demon King!” In response, the Hero drew his blade, and he was fairly certain he heard Syalis stifle a laugh with his shirt.

“Get your filthy hands off the Princess, you foul demon,” Dawner said seriously. “She's innocent! I'll fight you one-on-one!” Kisho, still staring at the ground, shook his head and didn't even bother looking up.

“She's definitely not innocent,” the samurai remarked. Twilight fought hard to keep the heat out of his face at that remark. Still, there was no way he was going to engage in combat at the moment, with his mana being as unstable as it was. Especially not with the Princess in tow.

He was just about to make a stylish exit when Syalis piped up at his side.

“Oh, you caught us earlier,” she said plainly, watching Kisho have an existential crisis on the other side of the fallen tree from them.

“Did you just now realize that!?”

All eyes were on the Princess as she stared back at them all.

“Caught… you?” Dawner asked, clearly having no clue what was going on between the Demon King, the Princess, and his Rune Fencer friend. Syalis didn't even acknowledge he'd spoken. Instead, she put her hands on her cheeks and lowered her eyelashes.

“That's right,” she said sweetly, looking off to the side. “The Demon King is… my lover.”

Oh no. She must have sensed weakness and decided to utterly destroy the poor Rune Fencer and possibly the rest of the Hero's Party. Twilight had a moment of anguish as he had to decide between helping the Heroes he'd worked so hard to raise and being true to his feelings for the Princess.

“That… That can't be true,” Dawner said, his eyes wide with some unnamed emotion. Twilight wanted to reassure him, even if it was a lie, or even apologize, but stopped as the samurai spoke again.

“No, that… that sounds accurate.” Then, after a beat, he continued. “Poor guy can't face reality… And she’s your fiancée, too… What… What are we even here for?” Twilight chanced a look down at the Princess. Her smile was absolutely predatory.

However, just as Twilight thought Dawner might finally buckle, his expression regained its determination.

“I'll never believe that!” the Hero shouted, raising his head. “She must be suffering from some horrible demonic brainwashing technique! Princess, don't worry! We'll rescue you right now!”

Twilight wryly thought that if he could have brainwashed her from the start, they would never have been in this situation to begin with. Still, that was some impressive willpower, to be so blindly optimistic in the face of overwhelming evidence that his fiancée was involved with another man.

“Don't worry, I'll handle this.”

Twilight watched as the one person in the party that actually gave him pause in this situation brushed the Hero aside and stepped forward. She had been quietly observing until now, but as her princely face and white uniform shone in the sunlight, Twilight felt his heart drop.

Sure enough, when he looked down at her, the Princess's expression had changed from predatory to star struck.

“Sun… Sunrise!”

Syalis took a step towards her idol, but still didn't let go of Twilight’s shirt. His face darkened. Instinctively, his fingers curled defensively into the back of the jacket he'd lent her. There was no way he'd win against that woman in a battle for the Princess's favor.

“Princess, it's an honor to finally meet you,” she said, giving her sovereign a perfect slight bow. Then, her expression dropped as though she'd heard some bad news. “But is it really true?”

“Huh?”

“That you're involved with that… that demon?” she asked, as though there were other, worse words she wanted to use. “He can't be treating you well.”

It was like a spear right through the heart. Twilight watched nervously as Syalis looked up at him with wide eyes. There was no way she'd take his side on this, especially if it was her beloved idol asking. Every sin he'd ever committed against this woman suddenly flashed before his eyes, from locking her in a cell to sharing a hotel room with her alone. This really was the end.

As she addressed Sunrise with a hand covering her round cheek, time seemed to slow.

“In a manner of speaking, he torments me every day,” Syalis said sadly. Twilight’s eyes widened as she spoke. It didn't seem like she was bad-mouthing him, but he didn't know where she was going with this. The Prince across from them pinned him with a satisfied smirk, though.

“He makes me beg and plead, yet still never gives me what I want. I don't know how much longer I can live like this!”

Wait…

Twilight’s expression grew skeptical as he listened to the Princess ham it up. There was only one situation where she begged him for anything…

“Don't worry, Princess,” Sunrise said firmly, taking a step forward and drawing her saber. “I'll teach that bastard some manners.”

“Manners are precisely the problem! The Demon King is a perfect gentleman,” Syalis sighed, sounding disappointed. “Too much of a gentleman, if you ask me!”

“Wha-?”

Both Twilight and Sunrise responded at the same time.

“He only uses his mouth and fingers on me,” she said mournfully. “Like he's afraid I'll break. He hasn't even deflowered me properly yet!”

Was that response better or worse than what he had been expecting? Twilight couldn't tell if she was ruining his reputation or saving it. He looked back and forth between her and his adversaries, trying to gage what their reaction was going to be.

“I feel like I've learned forbidden knowledge,” Kisho deadpanned from his place on the ground. “Even more than before. Wait – then what the hell were you doing to her before?!” Waker gave him a comforting pat on the shoulder. Dawner seemed confused, as though he was completely lost in their conversation. But Sunrise…

Sunrise's face actually seemed to be full of determination.

“Princess,” she began breathlessly, “Using fingers and lips is the sign of a truly cultured nobleman. Demon King, I underestimated you.”

“A… what-?”

“You don't think he's being unfair?” The Princess asked, her voice carrying a sad tinge. Did she actually expect one of the Heroes to take her side on that one?!

“If anything,” the regal woman responded, “He’s being too fair to someone like me, in holding himself back that way! I'm surprised that such a monstrous beast could be so refined. It isn't like he's human…”

Twilight swallowed the insult without flinching. It honestly didn't even phase him anymore. While he wanted to be loved and admired by normal citizens, he was well aware that enemy human combatants regarded demons as sub-human. With how much trouble he'd personally caused this bunch, it was a wonder Sunrise hadn't said anything worse. But when he looked down at the Princess, he was stunned to see her face.

She was actually angry.

“In fact,” Sunrise continued smoothly, “I'm willing to bet my technique is far superior to that savage's.” Twilight glared, but stayed silent. He expected insults like that when he realized they'd been caught.

What he didn't expect was the small angry noise the woman beside him made.

“Don't,” Syalis said firmly, her mouth turned down in a frown. Her idol stared back at her, blinking in confusion.

“Huh?”

“Don't talk about Twilight-kun like that,” she said seriously. “I won't tolerate that kind of disrespect against my lover.”

“Princess…”

He was certain he looked like a fool, but at that moment he really didn't care. Twilight watched the angry little Princess with open admiration for a second before pulling her tighter against his chest. Then he looked over just in time to see the smug Prince falter briefly before clearing her throat and correcting her expression.

With a devious smirk, he decided to twist the knife like a proper villain.

“That's right, Heroes,” he crowed, feeling genuinely giddy. “You're welcome to try, but this woman belongs to the Demon King now – body and soul! Forever!”

Dawner was the first to react, indignant from the provocation.

“You monster!”

But Sunrise only looked more determined.

“Very well,” she said seriously. “Challenge accepted. I won't lose to the likes of you. Princess, wait for me.”

When Twilight glanced at her again, though, he saw the Princess looking at him from beneath lowered lashes. A warm blush stained the otherwise white skin of her nose and cheeks.

“I didn't know Twilight-kun could be romantic like that,” she whispered huskily, so low that only he could hear. Twilight's eyes widened – what part of that was romantic?! Oh well, who cared!? She could call it whatever she wanted, as long as she kept looking at him like that!

Deciding to push his luck one more time, Twilight bent over to whisper against her ear.

“I don't have much time left today,” he confessed. “But I'll give you what you want next time.” If he hadn't been clinging to her for dear life at the moment, he was sure the Princess's knees would've buckled. Taking the opportunity while she was distracted, he quickly opened a warp gate behind them and moved towards it, casting a glance back at the Hero’s Party.

“You can keep waiting and trying, Heroes,” he addressed them, slipping back into his villainous persona. “But you're never getting the Princess back!” And in another second, they were gone. The Heroes watched the Demon King and his hostage – lover? – disappear from sight, dumbfounded.

“His… His name is actually Twilight?” Dawner asked, his brows pinching together as he processed the spectacle they'd just witnessed.

“That's what you took away from that?” Sunrise asked him caustically. “Then again, who would've thought that monster even had an actual name?” Dawner's blue eyes widened as he addressed the regal woman.

“They really are on a first-name basis!” he said, wonder mingled with horror. Kisho snorted, still looking at the dirt as if it was the most fascinating thing he'd ever seen.

“Oh, they're way closer than that,” he remarked, mostly to himself. Magical pine cones weren't any consolation for the mental damage he'd had to suffer today.

Silently, Waker simply shook his hood as he leaned on his staff. The mage – or rather, the demon controlling the ‘mage' – wondered to himself if he should just find another job already.

Chapter Text

As expected, Twilight was a child again the next day. It wasn't as bad as it could have been – he wasn't fully a toddler and was firmly elementary school age – but it still hampered his ability to get his work done. Fortunately, neither Red nor the Demon Cleric asked any questions about how he'd found himself in that state. They simply assumed the training didn't go very well.

The cause of the training's failure hadn't shown her face all day, though. Twilight thought she'd appear at least for lunch (to tie him to a highchair and feed him probably), but she didn't. He spent the entire day looking over his shoulder but only finding the Demon Cleric, Red, and his father.

He couldn't breathe a sigh of relief, though. As dinner came and went, he began to actually worry about the Princess. He needed to do a bit of ‘construction' work near her cell anyway, so he went ahead and visited her – or rather, the hallway near her cell, while casting curious looks in her direction.

Surprisingly, she was actually in bed for once. The hallway was quiet except for the occasional passing messenger or Teddy Demon. In fact, just as Twilight had finished his planned work in the hallway (leaving a little brick marked with a chalk pair of horns), he saw a Teddy Demon hovering just outside of the Princess's cell.

Curious, he toddled over.

“Is the Princess sleeping?”

The little Teddy lowered its eyes apologetically and nodded as it cooed.

A pang of remorse struck Twilight. What if the Princess was sick because of him? Even if it was just exhaustion or a cold from what they'd done the day before, he'd feel incredibly guilty – especially because he was the one who had dunked her into a cold river to clean her off.

So, nervously, he approached the cell.

“Princess?” he half-whispered, watching the lump of blankets shift slightly. He was answered with a low murmur that still sounded half-asleep. With just a bit of panic, Twilight turned to the Teddy Demon.

“Can you open the cell for me?”

As the little flying bear did as it was asked, Twilight watched the corner of the blankets peel back. The Princess peeked out at him over the edge, her eyes widening.

“Twilight-kun…”

She sounded faint, so he hurried to the bed as soon as he was inside the cell. Just as he was within reach, though, a pale, white hand reached from under the covers and pulled him into the bed. Twilight found himself being cuddled fiercely by the delighted Princess.

“Princess, y-y-you-!”

Her voice came from the top of his head, where she'd buried her face and was giving him a happy sniff.

“Forgive me, Twilight-kun!” she said, squeezing him with more strength than was totally necessary. “I was all worn out today, so I stayed in bed. If I'd seen how cute you are, I'd have come out for sure! I’m sorry I didn't come out to take care of you…” He could feel his face burning.

“N-No, it's okay—”

“Big Brother played so rough yesterday and made Big Sister tired…”

“Who… Who do you think ‘Big Brother' is?!”

“I know,” she sighed, placing a hand on her bright red cheek. “But I have to wait til Twilight-kun is older to talk about such things!” Why was he at all surprised when she coddled him like a child in this form?

Still, having her snuggle and pepper him with tiny kisses wasn't bad.

“I'll be back to normal tomorrow,” he whined, not feeling motivated enough to struggle.

“Then I only have a little while to cuddle you like this,” she said firmly, burying her face in his hair again. “I have to make up for lost time!”

With a sigh, Twilight decided to let her have her fun. He stayed until she drifted off to sleep, feeling guilty for some unnamed reason. It wasn't like he'd really caused her to be exhausted or sick. Rather, seeing how happy she was at his small form made him uncomfortable, like he was keeping something away from her that she wanted. Even so, he snuggled against her and dozed off, as well, unwilling to wake her so he could leave.

The next morning, Syalis woke feeling refreshed and warm. It was just as though she'd been sleeping in a pool of sunshine. Looking out through the bars of her cell, she smiled to herself.

Today could be the day.

It was hard to wait, but having patience also felt nice, didn't it? So she went about her business, gathering DIY materials and making various bedding items as the day passed. Some of the demons didn't seem happy about her extra peaceful nature today, as she only removed a few parts of their bodies for her crafts, but maybe they just didn't appreciate her spirit of generosity.

At lunch, she went for a little stroll to the cafeteria. Sure enough, Twilight was eating his lunch at his normal table, at his regular size. Syalis grabbed a couple cups of steamed monster bird egg custard and slid into the seat beside him.

She smiled as she watched him nearly drop his chopsticks. But he recovered quicker than last time; a little smile even appeared on his lips as he coughed into his hand and glanced over to her.

“People will start to talk if you keep approaching me like this,” he said. His tone didn't suggest he was upset by it, though. Syalis felt comfortable enough to take a bite of her custard.

“Maybe they'll be jealous,” she retorted after she swallowed. Twilight coughed as though his ramen had gone down the wrong way and looked away. She knew he didn't want that, but she couldn't help but tease him. He was so cute when he was flustered.

“Eh heh,” he chuckled awkwardly. “A-Anyway, do you feel better today?” Syalis looked down to his lap. She wanted very badly to run a hand over his thigh, but held herself back. It'd be more fun to make him wait to be bullied. Instead, she smiled contentedly and slid her finger around the rim of her custard cup.

“I felt fine yesterday,” she said. “But today, I'm very full of energy.” Was he blushing? It was hard to tell behind his hair.

“Did you finish up your work?”

She wasn't sure exactly what he had needed to accomplish, but it seemed like there was some work he wanted to do before they could spend more time together. Raising an eyebrow curiously, she could see that Twilight seemed to be concentrating on his ramen as he answered.

“It's all done,” he said. “I finished it yesterday. So…”

Syalis straightened her back regally and smiled, trying very hard to contain her excitement. Today was the day! As much as she wanted to hug him (or do other, less couth things), she held herself back; they were in front of the underlings, after all.

“I can come over tonight?” Twilight put his chopsticks in his bowl and surreptitiously glanced side-to-side before answering.

“You're gonna stay up a little while, right?” he asked, giving her a bit of side-eye. “Don’t just come over to go to sleep right away.”

The rest of the afternoon dragged on. Syalis even tried taking a short nap, but couldn't settle down enough to doze comfortably. She wound up doing a variety of things around her cell – crocheting, sewing, constructing a scale replica of the castle out of toothpicks. At one point, she even tried reading the history book Twilight had sent her (she hid the other, more interesting book very securely underneath her pillow). By the time dinner arrived, she was kicking her feet in the air as she listlessly read about the Demon King six generations ago and his ground-breaking negotiations with the Dragon Clan.

“Oh, are you almost done with that one?” Mr. Oh-My asked casually as he set up her dinner tray.

“Very nearly,” Syalis replied without much thought. Under normal circumstances, it probably would have put her to sleep; today, it only killed time for her.

“What a coincidence!” he said, seemingly oblivious to her boredom. “His Majesty has sent another for you this evening. Here you go.” Syalis raised an eyebrow as she snapped the thick history book shut and set it aside. Scissors Sorcerer took a smaller hardbound book from his tray and handed it to her.

It appeared to be a historical collection of woodblock fashion prints from the tailors in Hell Kusatsu – what the hell was wrong with his taste in books? Couldn't he at least send her a murder mystery or a red-label romance novel? Still, Syalis figured it was just a means of sending her a little letter, so she schooled her expression and thanked Mr. Oh-My before sending him back on his way again.

When she finished her dinner and opened the book, though, she realized her mistake. It wasn't just fashion prints as she'd expected – it was old-timey erotic prints. Pictures of male and female demons in the latest fashions from 200 years ago, in various stages of copulation, now in three-to-four colors!

What the hell was wrong with his taste in smut?!

The Demon World really needed to get better quality pornography – like what she’d gotten back in Last Zone City! She made a mental note to have Twilight put in a request with his archivist to order at least a couple new racy novels or something. The courtly love selection in the castle library was already pretty small and tame, so spicing things up a bit wouldn't hurt.

Syalis scowled as she held the old-fashioned book in her hands before turning it upside down and gently shaking. A neatly folded sheet of high-quality stationary floated into her lap, as expected. Her frown relaxing, Syalis turned her back to her cell door and unfolded it.

My Dearest Human,

At 9pm, touch the brick with the chalk mark across the hallway from your door. I have a surprise waiting.

DK

Syalis blinked several times in a row. Unlike last time, there was no flowery prose or vague instructions – it was clear and concise. That timeframe also left her just enough time to take a long bath and dry her hair before sneaking out.

Things usually settled down around 8:30 and the lights were turned down just before 9, so really, that was what she was waiting for. As expected, she saw Furry Dog pass by her cell as she was drying her hair, probably wanting to make sure she hadn't snuck out to approach Twilight again. She pretended not to see him as he glared at her, instead patting her hair dry with her towel and preparing for bed like a good little Princess.

The guard dog paused before her cell door and watched her for a moment as if he had something to say. But as Syalis ignored him, he simply shook his head and continued on his way. A few moments later, the hallway lights nearly completely shut off for the evening, leaving only a few red lamps glowing here and there.

She tamped down her impatience and waited quietly for a few more moments. Normally, Syalis couldn't care less if anyone saw her leave her cell, but tonight was different. Tonight she was going to see the boy she liked, so she had to be extra stealthy. The moments passed with the clock ticking like the beat of a very loud drum.

Finally, after about five minutes, Syalis sprung off her bed, shoving some of her pillows into the rough shape of her body underneath her blanket. Then, she put a wig she'd made from shed fur at the top, creating the appearance that her hair was sticking out of the top of her blankets.

The one lone Teddy Demon left in her cell looked at her with curious eyes; she gave his head a gentle stroke and smiled. She knew it wouldn't judge her for the bright blush across her face at the moment.

“Go ahead and sleep without me,” she said quietly. “I'll be back in the morning.”

And with that, she set out from her cell, silent as a ghost.

The paper had instructed her to find a brick marked with chalk, and after a few moments of scrabbling in the low light, she finally noticed it. It was much lower than eye-height and had a crudely drawn demon face with Twilight’s horns scratched into it with white chalk. She supposed he made it while he was small yesterday. Still, she had to crouch down to touch it.

As soon as Syalis's fingers touched the brick, it glowed with a soft purple light for just a moment. Then, right next to it, the bricks shifted, rearranging themselves into a narrow opening in the wall. She looked left and right for a moment before standing before the crevice; the inside was black, covered with a shimmering purple membrane, like a dark soap bubble.

Syalis poked it with a finger, just to see what would happen. The magical film felt cool like water, but otherwise insubstantial. She wasn't overly familiar with this particular magic, but it seemed just fine letting her in, so she stepped through.

The inside of the passageway wasn't as dark as the outer screen would have led her to believe. It was lit enough to see the stone steps stretching before her and curving as they went out of sight; the glowing crystals inside were green and purple, giving the dark stairwell a soft, cool glow. As Syalis ascended the stairs, the bricks shifted back into place behind her. She was sealed inside the stairs now.

Syalis was familiar with every nook and cranny near her cell and she was certain these weren't here before. This must have been the ‘work' Twilight was talking about earlier; he wasn't the only one who could remodel the castle, but it was easiest for him. Still, Syalis briefly marveled that he could make something like this, even in his reduced state.

It only took a minute or two to reach the top of the curved stairs. Unlike the bottom, with its special doorway, the top had a simple black curtain hung over its exit. There was no bubble here, though; she simply pushed the curtains aside and emerged into a dark, but somehow familiar area.

It was then that it struck her: This was the back of Twilight's room. She had never really gone back there before because it was hazy and seemed to contain nothing interesting. Looking around now, though, she could clearly see the back of his bed and the better lit places across the room.

“Oh!” he said, drawing her attention. The Demon King himself was standing by his wardrobe; it looked like she'd walked in on him changing, since he was shirtless and holding his pajama top. Too bad she was still too far away to see him properly. Still, she didn't pout. Rather, a small smile painted Syalis's lips as she tilted her head and approached.

“Twilight-kun!”

He placed the top into his wardrobe and shut the door. It wasn't like he'd need it, really – if he'd bothered putting it on, Syalis would've just torn it off of him anyway.

“Hey,” he said warmly. “You got my letter, right? What'd you think of the surprise?”

“It was very clever,” she replied, giving Twilight a coy smile. “You made that all yesterday?”

“Not entirely,” he said, pulling her with him to sit on the edge of the bed. Syalis climbed into his lap, throwing her legs over his thighs, instead of sitting on the bed itself.

Twilight fought the hot blush that crept across his face. Then again, there was no way anyone else but the Princess would see it – he'd made sure of that already. “I put the finishing touches on it yesterday, but it took a little while. Speaking of, only you and I can enter it. But others can still see you go in, so be careful.”

What he hadn't said was that he'd spent the past few days creating a powerful web of spells across his entire room and the shortcut he'd installed between their rooms. When activated, the magic would redirect anyone who intended to enter his room with a mental haze before they touched the door – the magical equivalent of forgetting why they'd come into a room. The key brick across from Syalis's cell also contained a strong magic that would only activate when she or he touched it, and the barrier on the shortcut would only allow the two of them inside it.

Essentially, they were in their own little bubble and no one could hear, sense, or interrupt them until it was deactivated automatically after its time ran out – about nine hours from then. That was plenty of time to do whatever they wanted and then still have a good night's sleep without making his subordinates too suspicious.

“So no one can bother us?”

The look she gave him as she traced invisible lines over his pecs would have been chilling to anyone else. Even Twilight felt a thrill run up his back as she grazed one of his nipples with a fingernail.

“No one will bother us,” he confirmed before dropping his voice. “I soundproofed the room, too, so no one can hear us, either.” There was a devious light in her eyes, and Twilight was sure his expression matched. Since he was already watching her, he dropped his head to give her a kiss.

He thought his frustration from the past week and a half must have been pouring out while he kissed her. He'd had to hold back again and again as soon as he realized what exactly they were supposed to be doing, and the only time they'd been together since then, he'd been too grotesque to do much more than go along with her.

But now, here Syalis sat, happily wriggling her little butt across his lap while he kissed her. He greedily tasted her mouth – it was cinnamon tea this time – while running his fingers through her hair. As the softness distracted him, Twilight could've sworn he felt a tug down at the bottom of her hair. She was still being strangely docile for someone that was usually so aggressive.

There was something he intended to talk to her about before they properly started playing, though – two things, actually. So, reluctantly, he gave her a last small, playful nip with his teeth and drew back. The hazy, dark gaze he received as he opened his eyes nearly made him reconsider; before he could even speak, she was already nudging him to lay back while one hand caressed his hard stomach.

Twilight felt his back hit the soft bed compliantly. Before Syalis could do anything else, though, he grabbed her wrist and then slid his hand down to thread his fingers through hers.

“Wait a sec,” he whispered. “I wanted to ask you something.” Her pout was adorable.

“I don't want to wait anymore,” she fussed. Then she wriggled against his lap, as if to rub his face in the fact that his body was already ready to go.

“I don't either,” he replied. “It'll only take a moment anyway. Then you can do whatever you want.” She had moved over a bit to the point that she was now properly straddling his waist. As she sat heavily across his lower stomach, he almost lost his concentration entirely; he could feel the place between her legs, hot and damp behind her panties, pressed against his bare skin. That distracted him to the point that he didn't notice her free hand rubbing his other wrist.

“Can't you talk while I work?” she asked, giving him a small roll of her hips. Twilight sighed; she was going to be difficult on purpose. He watched her sultry expression while she drew their entwined hands to his chest.

“You're too distracting,” he said, ignoring her while she brought his hands together. He had to be honest with her, though, so he pressed forward. “But I just have to know something – do you… did you know… that humans make children this way?”

That question actually gave her pause. She didn't release his hands, but she did tilt her head curiously.

“I think I know how it works now,” she said thoughtfully. “Well… the courtly love novels were a little vague, but the magazine you got me was more explicit about it.” Twilight's eyebrows pinched.

“So you really didn't know before, either,” he said. Of course she didn't – the poor thing thought he'd get off if she rubbed his horns enough before. “You don't… want to…”

It was hard to talk. She was too distracting and it was embarrassing. But before he could finish the question he really wanted to ask, Syalis smiled and let her eyes drift shut.

“Twilight-kun,” she said sweetly. “I would love to have your child.” His breath stuck in his throat and he was sure his heart stopped beating. “But I don't think we should do that right now. You'll get in a lot of trouble, won't you?”

Then, holding both his hands together, she bent over his chest to whisper in his ear.

“We can do everything else, though, right?”

His heart started beating again, but what she'd said had made his body unbearably hot. He swallowed a dry gulp as he watched her pull away to sit back upright. Mostly, he was relieved that she'd come to the same conclusion he had.

“Y-Yeah,” he said. “I got something special for that. A-Anyway, I have one more question.” She was doing something to his hands, but he was so nervous he couldn't pay attention.

“Hmm?” Syalis looked vaguely concerned. “If you're still asking questions, maybe I'm not stimulating you enough…” That sounded almost threatening, but Twilight's legs were hanging off the side of the bed, so he didn't think he could get the leverage to roll her off.

“You aren't doing this just to go to sleep anymore, are you?” he asked. “I asked last time, but you didn't answer. So… Do you… I mean…” She looked slightly confused.

“No?” she replied. “I'm doing this because it's fun. And it feels good…”

“That's not what I wanted to ask!” he blurted out, cheeks burning. “I'm not gonna stop you if it’s not what I want to hear, but… h-how do you think of me?” Syalis stopped whatever she was doing to his hands and tilted her head to the side like a curious little cat.

“What do you mean?” she said. “Twilight-kun is Twilight-kun.” He shook his head. Why was it so hard to just ask her?! It had been eating at him for days, especially after they'd confronted the Hero Party together, and he just couldn't stand it anymore.

“I mean…” he began, forcing himself to get the words out. “Do you… actually like me, or…w-would you do this with other people? Or is it because of our statuses…?” She stopped and stared at him directly, losing the curious look she'd had earlier. If anything, she looked like someone who'd been caught doing something she shouldn't have been.

Then she looked away and touched her fingers with her lips demurely.

“Ah, I see,” she said after considering the question for a second. “You're afraid I'll lose interest once we do it.” Twilight felt like a little kid being scolded just from that observation, but he didn't dislike it. In fact, he even felt a little thrill when she questioned him like that.

“Y-Yeah….”

Her hands squeezed his wrists gently as she turned back to him.

“Maybe,” she confessed with a bashful smile. “You know I sometimes lose interest in crafts once I complete them. And sometimes I chase things furiously until I get them. Then I get bored.” His heart sank, but he reminded himself not to be disappointed. At least she was honest?

“But…” she hesitated a second, as though she were choosing her words. Then she lowered her voice. “I like you a lot, Twilight-kun. I really, really like you. I don't think I'd ever want to do this with anyone else, so…”

His expression brightened at her clarification.

“That's what I wanted to know,” he said with a smile. “Thank you, Princess.”

As he reached towards her to bring her back in for a kiss, though, he finally noticed something was wrong with his hands – specifically, his wrists seemed to be stuck together. Just as he brought them up to look at them – they were tied together tightly with one of the Princess's hair ribbons – he felt her weight leave his lap.

Chapter Text

“H-Hey, what…”

She left the bed and turned to look at him with a mischievous expression and both hands on her cheeks.

“Silly Twilight-kun,” she said with a wicked smile. “You're so cute when you're jealous, but you ask too many questions. Now you have to sit still while I bully you a little.”

He was sure he had enough core strength to sit up or tear the ribbons if he wanted, but Syalis was truly enchanting when she was being evil like this. She turned her back to him and began undressing, letting her outer nightgown layers fall around her legs. Even when all he could see was her hair, falling down her back like a snowy wave, it felt like she was watching him with a sinister grin.

“But you… you walked off,” he protested weakly. His body was already reacting to the vicious neglect; there was a tent in his pajama pants that was growing damper by the second, begging to be taken care of.

“That's your punishment for doubting my intentions,” she sniffed, her voice thick with fake injury. “Besides – you like it when I tie you up, right?” His horrified expression said one thing, but his dick was definitely saying another.

“Th-That's—!” he squawked. “You're the one that likes it!” It was just a coincidence that she had already tied him up so many times before! That was totally platonic bondage! Right? Syalis's last layer fell to the floor and she bent down gracefully to begin removing her knee-highs. Twilight could hardly stand it.

“I'm just protecting myself,” she said lightly. “Who knows what diabolical things the Demon King might do to this innocent Princess if she didn't tie him up?” As she turned around to face him, she had her arms in front of her bare chest and wore only a skinny pair of black panties and a guileless expression. She was too good at playing a helpless damsel when she wanted to.

“You—!” Twilight began to protest and then thought better of it. At this point, he knew he could probably trust her if he told her to stop doing something she was doing. So why not go along with it for a little while? “Heh… When you untie me, it's all over for you, Princess…”

She padded over softly with a keen smile and lowered lashes. Then, as though she was doing something she'd wanted to do for a while, she bent over between his open legs with each hand squeezing his thighs. Her lustrous hair fell over her shoulders, nearly distracting Twilight while her hands tightened against his legs.

“I'm going to subdue you before I untie you,” she said, running her hands up along the silk pants before reaching the waistband. With a little tug, she untied the drawstring there, and as soon as it was loose, her hands came back down his legs again. Her fingers curled into the watery silk, tugging it down over his hip bones. Twilight closed his eyes as his cock sprang out, already fully erect. Almost involuntarily, he hissed and lifted his back off the bed, allowing her to slide the pants down his legs until they had restrained his ankles like his wrists.

It was hard to fight his embarrassment and maintain his bravado at the same time.

“Princess, you…” he breathed, trying not to look at her and failing spectacularly. “You think you've won, but I'm not gonna be satisfied with just once…” As he spoke, Syalis seated herself on her knees, pressing the silk pants into the floor and firmly trapping his legs in place. She looked as graceful as if she was attending a royal banquet as she reached around and pulled him to her by the hips.

“We'll see who stays awake longer, then,” she said. One of her hands lingered an overly long time on his hip, squeezing the tense muscles there. The other one, however, had already made its way to his shaft. She squeezed and stroked, making a satisfied purring noise as she leaned forward to trace him with her tongue. Twilight gritted his teeth and swallowed a heavy groan, squeezing his eyes shut.

He was afraid to watch her take him into her mouth again. He could feel everything, though – her soft lips curving over his glans, her saliva wetting him as he filled her mouth, her little tongue lapping at him. She squeezed his root with her delicate hand while taking him deep into her hot mouth, and the sensation alone was enough to make him throw his head back. Teeth bared and breath heavy, Twilight knew that if he watched her, he'd probably cum that instant.

Still, even as he fought the urge to thrust into the Princess's cute little mouth, he knew that if his hands were untied, they'd be buried in her beautiful hair. He'd wrap it around his fingers, forcing her head down onto his cock until it erupted in the back of her mouth. Just that thought made him groan from the stress.

“Haah—!”

She wasn't on her knees, servicing him. Rather, she was helping herself while he was helpless.

Syalis's mouth released him for a moment while her hand stroked harder, tracing along his length with her lips and tongue. His shaft was wet with her spit, making a tantalizing noise as she moved.

“This is just the appetizer,” she said, nearly panting. “Once I make you cum like this, I'm going to put it in for real. And you can't stop me this time.”

There was another, quieter sound coming from below. Curious, Twilight finally cracked his eyes and looked down. The Princess was completely absorbed in her task, red little lips parted and cheeks flushed as she stroked him with one hand. He could feel her breath on his wet skin as he thrust between her fingers. The sight of her taking him into her mouth again sent a jolt through his body, but he clenched his muscles and held himself back. Instead, he pushed as far as he could into the back of her hot mouth and stayed there until she pulled back herself.

But he still couldn’t see where her other hand was. As he followed the curve of her shoulder down and out of sight, it dawned on him.

“Princess, you—!” he stammered. “No fair! Hh…Hnngh!”

The realization that she was playing with herself while sucking him was enough to make him gasp. Twilight squeezed his eyes shut as she pulled away again and the cool air hit his skin; she released him with her mouth, but her hand still retained a fierce grip as her strokes gained momentum.

“I learned it from you, you know,” Syalis whispered huskily. “Twilight-kun was a good teacher.”

“You little—”

“I'm gonna do it right in front of you,” she continued. “While you can't touch me…”

“Haah—!”

“…or watch me…”

“Ha… Hnn..”

“I feel so good right now, even though Twilight-kun isn't touching me…”

His back arched at her cruel tone, thrusting into her hand. It was just like that time in the cafeteria, when she teased him over and over while he was helpless to stop her – he enjoyed being taken advantage of by the wicked little human Princess, if he was honest about it.

“I'm almost there,” she moaned. Her voice was like a jolt of electricity coursing through Twilight's body. A surge of heat went through him, wringing a loud, startled cry from his throat. His back arched as he felt his orgasm pulse through his body. He swallowed deep gulps of air before his eyes could focus again. Looking down, he could see thick strands of his release across his stomach; a few pearly drops rolled down Syalis's flushed cheeks, as well.

Her eyes were unfocused as she smiled and gave him a few more hard strokes before letting go. Then she leaned against his inner thigh and panted hard, grazing him with her teeth; from the squirming, he could tell that she was trying hard to achieve her own climax.

Twilight's eyes narrowed. Like hell was he going to let her have her way now!

He twisted his upper body to the side, propping himself up with an elbow while he worked at the cute hair ribbon on his wrists with his teeth. Fortunately, she hadn't tied anything other than a normal bow there.

Then, he dropped the wet ribbon from his teeth and called out to her.

“Princess,” he said, his voice huskier and more desperate than he thought it'd be. “Princess, it's still hard. Come up here and help me.” It wasn't a lie – even if he had actually gone totally soft, she was still down there making obscene sounds and biting his thigh. He'd have recovered in a moment anyway. As soon as she raised her hazy eyes to look at him again, it twitched, eager to have her.

“Twilight-kun is so cute when he's helpless,” she said sweetly, taking the bait. Clueless, she pushed up between his thighs and climbed onto the bed. In just a moment, she'd gone back to her previous position, straddling his waist. As she sat on him, her thin little black panties still in place, she nestled his cock right between her wet lips.

Twilight drew in a sharp breath and almost forgot what he wanted to do. It was hot and damp and wrung a shallow thrust from him. That was as far as he intended to go just then, though. He wasn't done playing with her, and he had to pay her back.

“Princess is cute, too,” he said with a slight smile. “Cute and small and… light.”

She had just enough time to give him a curious look before his now-free hands grabbed either side of her waist and pulled, rolling her to the side. In just a moment, their positions had reversed, with Syalis's back against the fluffy bed and Twilight crouched above her on his knees, his pants having been left in the floor. He propped her ass up on his thighs, making sure her shoulders stayed pinned to the bed with his weight.

“T-Twilight-kun!”

There was a hint of panic in her voice and it made him smirk. Her wide purple eyes looked at him, confounded.

“Gotcha,” he said. “Don't think I won't pay you back for that just now.”

“O-Oh no,” she whispered, the corners of her mouth tugging up as she quickly gathered his intent. “What are you going to do to me?” Contrary to her words, however, Syalis made sure her thighs were very far apart. In fact, if he leaned over in just the right way just then, they could begin immediately.

Like hell! There was no way he'd let her off easy if she just batted her eyes at him.

“The same thing you just did to me,” Twilight said evenly, pressing against her and pinning her even harder. “Sometimes you forget I'm stronger than you, huh? I don't even need to tie your hands.”

To be fair, Twilight often forgot he was stronger than her, too.

At that moment, though, there was something else he needed to do.

So, he leaned forward and pressed her hard into the fluffy sheets. The pressure at her bottom, where he'd nestled his cock snugly between her damp lips, separated only by her thin panties, kept her pinned to the mattress. Even though the coquettish look on her face told him what she expected to happen, Twilight was actually only reaching for something he'd tucked away on the headboard of his bed – that matte black box he'd bought in Last Zone City.

In another second, the little square packet from that box was between his fingers; he brought it to his teeth and tore the top while the Princess looked up at him in newfound curiosity. As though she was impatient, she tried to roll her hips up, pressing her wet panties against his cock. Twilight only gave her a little smile as he pulled back slightly.

“What's that?” she finally asked. Twilight took the pressure off her body and settled her further down on his thighs while he worked. Even though he was no longer pinning her down, her awkward position wouldn't allow her to wander off. In the meantime, he spat the packet out (a cool move, he thought) and took the latex ring inside it in his left hand.

“The thing I told you I got earlier,” he said vaguely, moving quickly to put it on. He rolled it down over his cock, working it flat with his hand, and continued. “You aren't gonna get this yet, though. I'm still mad at you.” He honestly wasn't, but he wouldn't actually be happy if he didn't bully her back for at least a little while. And he knew exactly how to do it, too.

Once he was satisfied that he was properly covered, Twilight pulled away from the Princess entirely. Planting his hands on her lower back, he intentionally kept her off-balance with her bottom in the air, hovering above the bed. The damp place between her thighs, however, was on full display. The Princess must have realized that, too, because her expression grew steadily more nervous as Twilight lowered himself to crouch between her legs.

Even when Syalis was being a tyrant to him, she still didn't exactly like when he turned the tables on her in certain ways – especially if it meant he could actually see all of her clearly.

“Twilight-kun should just forgive me,” she said in her best pathetic voice. Even Twilight couldn't tell how much of it was genuine contrition. Not that it mattered. “I'm just an innocent girl, and I'm very sorry and needy right now…” If it was her attempt at apologizing, it wasn't working.

“Innocent, my ass,” he said. Keeping her hips steady with his left hand, Twilight used his right to pull aside the skimpy black panties. She was soaking wet, her lips swollen and flushed an attractive dark pink color. As he ran his short-clipped fingers through her slit, he decided to taunt her a little more.

“What ‘innocent princess’ would let a man see something as lewd as this?” he continued, sliding his first two fingers inside. “It’s like you're desperate for me to put it in already.” She squirmed and whined as he pushed his fingers in as far as they would go. Even Twilight huffed out a warm breath as he felt her soft muscles clench around his fingers.

“I am!” she fussed. “I don't just want your fingers this time!” That just made him bare his teeth in a smile while he worked them back and forth in sharp strokes. From the feverish look on her face, he could tell Syalis was enjoying it despite herself.

“You didn't already make yourself cum, did you?” he taunted. “It already looks really hot and messy…” As he listened to her try and stifle her moans in response, he looked for the specific place he'd found on accident the last time they were together. It felt completely different since his fingers were much smaller now, but he knew roughly where the spot was.

Sure enough, as soon as he felt the slightly springy place at the top of her canal, the Princess's hips bucked and she squealed. A look of genuine fright, mingled with arousal, flashed across her face as she realized what he was going to do.

“T-Twilight-kun, y-you…”

“I didn't get to see it last time,” he replied, ducking his head nearly to where his fingers were. “You can't be embarrassed after how you treated me just now, right?” No, she definitely was; with just a glance up, he could tell by how she was blushing and looking at him nervously. She even tried to wriggle back for a moment before he steadied her again with his left hand. Even if he wasn't holding her down anymore, he wasn't going to let her run away.

So instead, she covered her burning face with her hands. In response, his fingers pressed her hard in that spot, working it over and over again while her breathing became sharper and sharper. Finally tearing his eyes away from her face, he concentrated instead on where his fingers were pushing into her; her rosy pink pearl was standing at attention, jutting up every time he pressed into her. Letting his eyes drift closed, he leaned forward and took it gently between his teeth, sucking it between his lips and tracing it with the tip of his tongue.

Her skin was damp and hot, slick even before his tongue came into contact with it. She was reacting, too, pushing firmly against his mouth and chin while he kissed her, almost as if she was riding him. Even if she looked embarrassed, the Princess was really shameless when it came to this sort of thing.

That little spot inside her, though, it was starting to swell as Twilight played with it. He rubbed it insistently, moaning against her when it caused her hips to buck. Glancing up, he could briefly see that her face was a mixture of agony and pleasure.

“I-I can't,” she muttered, her breaths becoming sharper gasps. “Twilight-kun, don't look!” He had to fight the smile as it crept across his lips.

“I'll show you mercy and close my eyes while you finish,” he murmured against her clit. In response, he felt her clinch around his fingers while he pressed hard against that soft, swollen spot. She was putting pressure on him now, thrusting hard in time with his fingers. But Twilight kept his word; his eyes drifted shut as he continued the torment.

It wasn't just her lower body that had responded to him, either. As he sucked at her, he felt fingers curl into his hair; just as he'd wanted to do earlier, the Princess was pressing him against her, squeezing his hair while she rode his mouth. The noises she was making – sharp moans and gasps – were erotic enough to send a rush of pleasure through him, too. It made his fingers press into her even harder.

A few long moments later, he was rewarded. Her muscles squeezed Twilight’s fingers extra hard for a few seconds before the Princess gave a sharp, trembling cry. Feeling just a little bit more devious, he traced his tongue down to where his two fingers had entered her and slid it between them. Before he could bring it back up in a long lick, a warm gush of mild, thin liquid washed over it. It flooded his tongue and dripped down his lips and chin.

Knowing full well it would make Syalis weak, Twilight lapped at it, even scraping her gently with his teeth so she'd know just exactly what he was doing. It was quite an effective punishment; he could feel her squirm and hear her unsteady gasping from above.

“Y-You bully,” she whined weakly. “Ta-Taking advantage of a girl's weakness… Pervert…”

Satisfied, Twilight pulled away with a small smile and sat back on his legs.

“You started it,” he countered, giving her another light stroke before taking his fingers out; as soon as they left, they were followed by the small river of honey they'd been holding back. He pulled her back up onto his thighs so he could lean over her again, pressing his hands down on either side of her head, but the Princess was too dazed to really react. Since he'd made her cum in such an undignified way, her whole expression had changed. She wasn't just pretending to be weak or demure anymore – now she was genuinely trembling and wet-eyed as she looked at him through lowered lashes.

It was that side of her that turned Twilight on the most. When she acted like a wilting little royal flower, it made him simultaneously want to protect and tease her, against his better judgement. Besides which, he'd been humiliated by the Princess on a daily basis for so long that any little drop of humility he saw from her was precious. It was especially precious when she had that shy expression while laying sprawled on his bed with her bare legs wide open.

“Hey,” he said, his mouth dry. “If you forgive me, can I put it in now?”

She was watching him closely with those dewy, lidded eyes. Her red lips were parted just enough to allow her to hold her curled finger between her teeth, and her cheeks were flushed. Syalis made a barely perceptible sound as she nodded.

Twilight shuddered. She was so sweet just then that he thought he might die.

Keeping one hand beside her head, he leaned back and used the other to guide himself right between her wet, swollen lips. Gathering a bit of the slick liquid that was still there, he slid his glans over her slit a few times. Then, he nestled into her entrance and paused.

“If it hurts, tell me and I'll stop,” he said, looking back up to see her reaction. It was almost imperceptible, but she seemed to be pouting now.

“If you stop halfway, I'll slay you myself,” she grumbled. To emphasize, she moved just slightly forward, pressing his tip a little deeper between her folds. Even through the thin barrier, he could feel how hot and wet she was.

“Then I'll go extra slow,” he breathed, knowing it would irritate her. Sure enough, she gave him a short, small whine of dissatisfaction; as soon as he slid himself between her lips again, she stopped and lowered her eyelids. Her delicate little hand rose and curled around the wrist he'd pressed into the bed, as though she was bracing herself.

Taking a deep breath, Twilight pushed forward.

He'd been inside her before with his fingers, but that was only a small taste of what he was feeling now. As he sank into her, the Princess's snug, wet walls clung to him, holding tight in every direction. It felt so delicious that he very nearly forgot to open his eyes and check how she was doing. When their eyes met, he froze.

If she was alluring before, Syalis was absolutely devastating now. Her breaths were coming in short, sharp gasps; her bare breasts rose and fell quickly while her hand gripped his wrist tightly. Her gaze was hazy and far away and for a moment, Twilight was afraid he actually had hurt her. But then she moved closer to him, dispelling that notion.

She was actually enjoying herself.

“Is it all in?” she whispered, finally meeting his eyes. Twilight shook his head just a bit.

“Not yet,” he replied, trying to breathe evenly. The pressure on his cock tightened at his answer, nearly preventing him from moving at all. But a moment later, she relaxed again and her expression seemed to say she was both nervous and concentrating at the same time.

“It doesn't hurt,” Syalis continued shakily. “Keep going.” At this little command, Twilight pushed as far as he could and was rewarded with a sharp, high-pitched moan and the feeling of being completely swallowed by heat.

He barely wanted to leave, but the urge to move was also irresistible. After a long moment of settling himself inside her, Twilight bent forwards, covering the Princess's body with his own, and shifted just enough to press into her again.

His lips brushed her ear before giving her another gentle, slight stroke. She shivered as his breath grazed her.

“It's all in,” he whispered. Her thighs wrapped around his waist in response. “How do you feel?”

The arm she was holding lowered to press his elbow into the bed instead; Syalis trailed her trembling hand down his wrist to cover his hand. She laced her fingers through his and shuddered.

“It's good,” she gasped, sounding as if she was about to cry. “You… We're really…”

Curious, Twilight moved back enough to see her expression. The Princess seemed to be on the verge of tears, but not unhappy. Rather, her face was red and her lips were slightly parted.

“Move more,” she said, meeting his eyes. Even if she looked feverish, her voice was more steady now. To emphasize, her eyes drifted shut again and she leaned forward to catch his lips. And just to keep him focused, she gave him a demanding nip with her teeth. Drawing in a quick breath, Twilight backed up just a little so he could better distribute his weight and then sharply pushed himself forward.

The effect was instantaneous. The Princess kept her eyes shut and cried out. Twilight thought he was still being fairly gentle and he tempered his strokes as best he could. But seeing the way she was trembling and moving rhythmically with him, he couldn't help but to go a little faster. Even better, every time he fully buried his cock inside her, she made a wonderful half-gasp, half-squeal that was like a little reward. Even though he was moving back and forth, that little rhythmic noise made him want to stay completely covered to the hilt inside her.

Judging by her delighted squeals, though, he must have been hitting a spot that she particularly enjoyed. With a little smile at the corner of his lips, he jabbed and prodded it over and over. With any luck, he'd see that cute expression of hers again soon – this time from a position right above her.

His neatly clipped right hand, the one that had been punishing the Princess earlier, traced down her side and made her shiver. As Twilight panted, he dug those fingers into her slight hips, using that hand to keep her ass just slightly above the mattress as he drove into her. The idea of leaving red fingerprints on the Princess's milky white skin in such a secret place sent a jolt through his cock; her skin was perfect and shouldn’t be marred, but if it was him…

His lips parted as a bead of sweat rolled down his chin. He couldn't hold back the harsh groan that came out of his throat at that thought, either. Both of them were so absorbed in each other that there was no need to say much anymore. Soft pants and moans accompanied the low sounds of the bed creaking and wet flesh joining together.

So it was like this. The act he wasn't truly built for, the thing he probably wasn't supposed to do with this small human woman at all – Twilight was doing it all so naturally. Not only that, but if the fat little tears rolling out of the corner of Syalis's eyes were any indication, he was doing a fine job of it, as well.

He pressed deep into her, putting his weight on her and pinning her down. That hand that had been clutching her slight hip came around to the place they were joined. Never breaking eye contact with her, Twilight found what he was looking for; he pressed his thumb down against the swollen pink nub at the top of their union. The Princess opened her mouth as if to protest, but he could feel her tighten around him at the stimulation.

“Tw-Twilight-kun, you…”

“You're gonna cum again, right?” he said all in a hurry. “While I'm still inside you? I wanna know what it feels like…”

He timed the rhythm of his fingers to match his hips. At this rate, he wasn't going to last much longer himself, but she didn't need to know that.

“No fair,” the Princess panted. “It's too much… I…”

“Next time…” he began, breathing heavily. “Next time, you can bully me as much as you like.” The instant tight feedback around his cock was almost enough to make him stop right there. But he continued playing with her, only drawing back a little bit with each hard thrust.

“When you're on top, though… It's too good…”

“You can even tie me up again,” he promised, causing Syalis to squeal. “So you can take me all on your own.” With a sharp gasp, Twilight realized he couldn't draw away much anymore; she had caught him so tightly that he was nearly unable to move.

Looking down at her face, he could see her eyes squeezed shut as she panted. Her mouth was slightly open, with just the tip of her tongue barely visible. And the small keening sound she made when he pressed her again with his thumb…

Dammit!

Twilight gritted his teeth, determined to hold on. Finally, just before the last thread of his patience snapped, that strong pressure let him go for a second. He huffed a long-held breath out as she tightened back down, but it was too late; she couldn't keep the pressure up as her orgasm overtook her.

Swooping down while her lips were still parted, he pushed his own groan into the Princess's mouth. Utterly relieved, Twilight parted her lips with his tongue. Down below, he drove into her as far as he could before his own release; it was almost like drowning in their shared heat.

Syalis was so distracted that she barely kissed back. Rather, she ran her fingers through his hair, pulling at the strands while clutching his other hand tightly.

Chapter Text

Great Red Siberian had had a bad feeling since earlier that day. Something was wrong with the Princess, and he couldn't quite put his paw on what.

The Demon King had been no help when he'd asked. Other than weakly defending her from time to time, he'd had no idea of anything that had changed with her, either. He seemed largely unaware that the human girl had been trying to sneak into his room at night, but he also seemed entirely unconcerned about it, too. Apparently, it had been a harmless quirk of hers for a long while, as badly ill-advised as such a thing was.

The thing was, even for the Princess, trying to sneak in every day for a week was a bit much.

Then there was the fact that she'd also gone missing during the Demon King's training trip. For nearly twelve hours, she just didn't seem to be anywhere in the Demon Castle at all. Then suddenly she showed up just in time for dinner and then immediately went to sleep without answering a single question.

It was too suspicious, and Red couldn't help but feel like his King was in danger somehow.

This thought carried him towards Twilight's bedroom, just to be sure that everything was okay. But as he neared the door, his eyes lost focus and his consciousness turned hazy. Before he knew it, he was back down a couple of floors below, near the Princess's cell, unsure of how he got there. Shaking his head, he tried to recall where he'd just been, without much success.

As his thoughts became clear again, he passed the Princess's dark cell. Eyes narrowing, he looked through the bars at her bed. She had seemed very pleased with herself when he'd passed by earlier, brushing her hair and humming to herself. He couldn't shake that suspicious feeling.

Watching the lump on the bed, Red realized it wasn't just his imagination – something was definitely strange. Maybe she was just sleeping deeply, but there seemed to be no movement coming from the pile of blankets. Shouldn't he at least be able to hear her breathing? Nose and ears twitching, he quietly unlocked the cell and opened the door.

“Princess?”

He was being a bit quiet, so maybe she didn't hear him. But as he came closer, a little Teddy Demon popped out from beneath the blankets and sleepily hovered over to him.

“Grwr?”

He looked at the innocuous creature skeptically.

“Is there something wrong with the Princess, little fellow? She isn't responding.” The little bear seemed startled for a second before it began shaking nervously.

Well, then. What could possibly have this demon so frightened? Red's eyes narrowed; he had a guess.

“Why don't we check on the Princess?”

The Teddy Demon shook his head frantically, but Red ignored him and reached for the Princess's head. Just as soon as he touched her hair, it shifted, slipping down to the floor in a silky heap. Nostrils flaring, he reached for the corner of the blanket and pulled.

As expected, it was a pile of vaguely body-shaped pillows and nothing else.

“This girl—!”

As the blanket came off the bed, though, another sound caught Red's attention. It was the sound of crisp paper fluttering to the floor. Looking down with his bushy eyebrows raised, he could see the moonlight reflecting off a dark, glossy magazine with a half-naked woman on the cover – apparently, it had fallen from underneath one of the pillows.

With a shaking paw, Red reached down to pick it up. As soon as he could make out the writing on it, everything became clear and a pang of terror struck his heart.

The ‘demented little human' was currently seated firmly on the Demon King's lap, facing him and rocking back and forth to take his cock from above. Her wet little black panties had been discarded and forgotten somewhere in the dark room long ago. Twilight had allowed her to tie his hands again, and those were slung over her shoulders and behind her neck, gently holding her against his chest. Syalis had tucked her face into the crook of his neck, where she had peppered little love bites all along his jugular vein and collar bone.

Tonight, she was facing slumber resentfully. For the first time in a very long time, she simply wanted to stay awake as long as she could. But, scratching his chest lightly, she realized this was probably their last round. As much as she wanted to keep going, she didn't think her body would continue without falling asleep.

But she had already done a great job, as far as she was concerned. The Demon King was covered in little possessive marks that only she would know about; from the love bites on his inner thighs to the scratches on his back and chest, no one would see them but her.

“Haah— Harder… please…”

The muscles on his forearms twitched against her shoulders. Syalis knew if she hadn't bound him, he'd have dug back into her hips with his fingers and slammed her down hard himself. She already had lingering purple marks from where he'd gotten too excited and done that earlier.

What a rowdy boy! It was good he had someone calm like her to keep him under control. Not that letting him run wild wasn't fun, too – getting held down and fucked by him was already the highlight of her night.

“Twilight-kun has behaved himself so well,” she whispered against his hot skin. “So I'll make him cum one more time.” He hissed and Syalis got to feel his muscles clench as she put more force into her strokes. As she ran her fingers through his hair and they bumped against something hard and cool, though, something else occurred to her – something she'd forgotten from the first time she'd snuck into his room for illicit activities.

“Oh,” she murmured. “I'm going to play with these, too.” The look she received just then was rife with confusion. But as soon as she ran her hand along his right-hand horn – squeezing lightly, just like she'd treated his prick earlier – his face turned red and he shuddered.

“Th-That's…” he muttered. “Wh-Why does it feel good this time?!”

Syalis continued to stroke and bounce as she tucked her head back against Twilight's neck. She figured he could use one more bite mark on his throat.

“Next time, I'll touch them when everyone is around,” she said deviously. He liked being teased like that; the small squeal and shudder she received was proof of that. Then, satisfied that she'd left a nice, dark purple mark on his neck, she reached up to kiss the side of his mouth lightly.

After the fourth time Red had wound up in a random place with no real memory of how he’d gotten there, he realized there must have been some kind of strong magic at work outside the Demon King's chambers.

It had to be the doing of that devious human Princess! She had access to at least one grimoire that he was aware of, so it wasn't out of the realm of possibility that she had cast such a high-level spell. The problem was, even though he'd attained a regular level of sentience through the Demon King's magic, he wasn't that well-versed in it himself. So, he did the most reasonable thing he could think of.

He dragged the Demon Cleric out of bed to have him check it out with him.

“Yes, there's certainly a lot of magic at work here,” the goat demon said skeptically. The two of them were situated at the end of the long corridor leading to the Demon King's chambers. The Demon Cleric had been roused from his bed and had followed Red there wearing his pajamas, houseshoes, and a night cap, and clutching a pillow; any threat against his young ward was serious enough that he didn't see the need to dress properly.

Red didn't dare show him the magazine he'd found, though. That shameful thing would probably be burnt before this was all over. For now, it was rolled up tightly and shoved into the waistband of his jacket in preparation for the moment he could confront that damned human girl with it.

“Do you think it's something a human could manage?” Red asked, his eyes narrowed behind his monocle. The Demon Cleric narrowed his puffy eyes as though he found the question odd.

“That's… highly unlikely,” he said skeptically. “But if she's in there, we do need to check in on them. Just in case.” To Red's memory, it was usually the Demon Cleric who had found the Princess intruding in this area the many times she'd done it before. Who knew how often she'd done it while he was out recently, before Red had caught on to her mischief. It was a harrowing thought.

Just as the Demon Cleric had begun to draw out certain spell slips and prepare his magic, there was an inaudible ‘click' in the air. Red's ears perked up as the two demons looked at each other. It was as if the atmosphere became lighter instantly, like the weird haze that hung in the hallway was gone. They could see clearly without distortion now.

“Did it just…?”

“Probably a time-limited spell,” the Demon Cleric said thoughtfully. Then he checked his pocket watch. “Seems like it was set to expire around 6 am.”

Red couldn't read the look he gave him just then, but he knew that probably meant they could approach.

“Let's try it,” he growled.

Cautiously, the two archdemons approached their King's bedroom door. This time, Red felt no mental haze or any other desire to wander off; instead, it was an easy walk over to the door like normal. It offered no resistance as he pulled it open.

The inside of the room was no different than any other morning at this time: dark, dreary, and peaceful. The only thing odd about it was that the smell had changed, as though someone had been sweating and tried to clean it with a washcloth. He could also hear a second person breathing deeply in that bed; it wasn't hard to figure out who that might be.

Before Red could stomp over and snatch her up, though, the Demon Cleric softly padded to the King's side of the bed. He'd cast a little light spell in the palm of his hand; the purple glow especially deepened the shadows of his face. If Red didn't know him better, even he'd have been frightened by him just then – he looked just like a vengeful spirit from the Underworld.

Red looked away from that ghastly sight to find the Demon King sleeping peacefully on his back as normal, albeit without a shirt on. What concerned him, however, was the little Human Princess snuggled comfortably under his arm; she was at least clothed, even if her nightgown looked a bit askew. Her hair wasn't fully tied and she seemed to be missing a ribbon or two, but he reasoned that maybe they'd come undone at some point while sleeping.

He heaved a sigh, disappointed, but figuring at least it wasn't a total disaster. The look on the Demon Cleric's face seemed to disagree, but he was also looking somewhere further down his side of the bed, too.

“Sire, wake up, please,” Red's flat voice broke the silence. The sound caused Twilight to snort, then cough, then bolt straight up in bed. That morally degenerate human stayed peacefully asleep, though.

“R-Red!” he responded with an awkward smile. “Eh-heh heh, g-good morning!” Red simply folded his arms over his chest and shook his head.

“She… She snuck in here again, ah hah, y-you know how she is!”

Red barely registered that the Demon Cleric had bent to retrieve something from the floor.

“My liege,” Red said seriously. “You need to set firmer boundaries with the Princess. She's going to get the wrong idea if you don't stop her.” His hands were up, palms out, as though he were placating someone.

“R-Right, we… we wouldn't want her to get the wrong idea!”

Twilight was babbling, probably still foggy-headed from just waking up. It was obvious that he didn't notice the waves of killing intent coming from behind him as the Demon Cleric rose back up from where he'd bent over. Red simply raised an eyebrow at that – was the Demon Cleric really that put out by the Princess sleeping in here?

“Wow, it's… really cold all of a sudden…”

“And what idea might that be?” the Demon Cleric asked from right behind the Demon King's head, causing him to squeal and jump a little. His voice was like if glaciers could talk. And Red knew what the look on the Demon King's face was; that was the expression rule breakers wore right before he apprehended them. With a sinking feeling, he watched the Demon Cleric grab the Demon King by the horn and pull.

“What idea might that be, Twilight-sama,” he asked again, shaking his head just enough for his earring on the opposite horn to jingle. It was only on very rare, serious occasions that the Demon Cleric addressed their King like that. Red's eyebrows were now in his hairline.

“Demon Cleric, I don’t think…”

“O-Oww, m-my horn…”

A little ball of black cloth came to rest on the blankets across the Demon King's lap. He looked like he'd been given a cursed object as he squealed and tried to scoot away. As soon as Red realized what the Demon Cleric had just tossed on the bed, his head whipped to glare at the human girl, still sleeping peacefully through all the ruckus.

“I doubt it's the idea you like wearing women's undergarments, right?”

“This little… degenerate!” he roared, causing the aforementioned degenerate to snort and smile in her sleep.

“Get dressed, sire,” the Cleric continued, his voice still as cold as the middle of winter in the Ice Zone. “I think we all need to have a little talk.”

Unfortunately for Twilight, a ‘talk' actually meant an emergency meeting of his Guardians. Red sat as his right and the Demon Cleric sat on his left. The two were silently fuming, both at him and possibly even at each other. Most of the rest had shown up, freshly rolled out of bed or their morning workouts. Even worse, for some reason, this time even has father had shown up; the preschool sized man sat in the chair beside the Demon Cleric, with several pillows underneath him to allow him to reach the table comfortably. He was certain the Demon Cleric was the one who'd fetched him.

Twilight simply sat with his face behind his interlaced hands. It probably appeared that he was brooding, but the truth was that he was sweating harder than he'd ever sweated before.

Several minutes of tense silence were finally ended when Poseidon spoke up.

“Are you gonna tell us why we're here or—?”

Twilight was about to speak when he felt a rush of cold air from his left side.

“There was a bit of an… accident… with the Princess,” the Demon Cleric said. Twilight chanced a glance at him. His face was drawn into a tight smile and his hands, which were joined together in front of his chin, were strained to the point that his veins stood out sharply. Twilight winced; it was obvious his Cleric wanted to throttle him.

“Then just heal her?” it was Sand Dragon this time. He and Fire Venom Dragon both had towels draped around their necks, clearly having just come from the gym.

“I don't see why we'd need a meeting for that,” Fire Venom Dragon observed. Red pinned them both with a sharp gaze.

“It's more like…”

“The, ah… The Princess and I have, umm,” Twilight stammered. He had to get this out, but he really didn't want to. “I guess you could say we have, ahh, b-been having an inappropriate, umm… relationship.”

Everything was silent for a moment. Maybe they were all still sleepy, but they didn't seem to quite get it.

“That's… all?”

“We already knew that, didn't we?”

“Nothing she does is ‘appropriate’ anyway.”

Oh, Dark Gods, he had to spell it out, didn't he?

Before he could clarify, though, his father put his little hands on the meeting room table and stood in his chair. Twilight flinched when he saw how fierce his expression was.

“You what?!” the little guy roared. “With your hostage?!” His eyes were flashing furiously.

“Lord Midnight, I'm sure you've misunderstood,” Sand Dragon said calmly from his side with a smile. “It's definitely not something like that.” As Twilight stayed silent, he looked nervously at his father, who was fuming.

“It's… not, right?”

One by one, every demon in the room turned to look at him. Their expressions became horrified as the realization dawned on them.

“It's… definitely like that, isn't it?”

All Twilight could do is grimly nod at Sand Dragon's question.

It was like a bomb had detonated. There was a thick silence for just a second before everyone seemed to speak at once.

“Your Majesty, how could you?!”

“That's right, you kidnapped her and then did that?!”

“I've failed as a father!”

“I can't believe I got drug out of bed because dumbass Twilight got his cherry popped!”

“Shut up!”

Red stood rod-straight from his chair, slamming his hefty paws on the table. Then, in a fit of pique, he pulled a rolled-up magazine from his jacket and tossed it on the table. Twilight watched it unfurl in horror. His complexion paled as he fought the urge to cover his face with his hands.

“Is this… porn?”

Fire Venom Dragon and Poseidon both raised their eyebrows as they leaned over to look.

“Whoa, no way…”

“It looks just like…”

“But she's bigger up top…”

“Don't… look at that,” Twilight protested weakly.

“I got this from the Princess's room,” Red said, voice grim. “It was hidden in her bed.”

“You stole her porn?!” Poseidon said, flabbergasted. “How could you?!” Red's fur stood on-end.

“What in the-!” he protested before clearing his throat. “Listen, that's not the point! I won't sit here and listen to our Demon King be denigrated like this! Did you know I also caught her trying to enter his room every night for a week before this? If anything, she's the one at fault!”

Even though he knew he should defend the Princess's honor, Twilight still looked up at his faithful dog with teary eyes. At least someone was on his side!

“Red…”

Before Twilight could say anything else, though, that oppressive wave of murderous energy hit his back again.

“Is that so?” the Demon Cleric said, lifting his head with a smile.

Twilight felt his life flash before his eyes, along with the string of bad decisions that had brought him here – especially the part where he thought it was a good idea to kidnap a human princess from her bed at night.

Calmly, the Demon Cleric unwove his fingers and tapped the glossy magazine with his pointy fingernail.

“Did you look closely at this, Great Red Siberian?” the Demon Cleric asked coolly. “Isn't this a human woman?” The dog's eyes pinched.

“Of course it is,” he grumbled. “The actress is supposed to be portraying the Princess, after all.” The Demon Cleric’s eyes turned up into crescents as he continued.

“Doesn't it stand to reason, then, that this pornography was produced by humans?” The rest of the table listened, enraptured.

“Humans… make this kind of thing?” Sand Dragon asked hesitantly. “About us?”

“How lurid,” Neo Alraune said, cupping her cheek and blushing.

“And who in this room routinely goes to the Human World for business?” the Demon Cleric asked pointedly. “Hmmmm?” Red's ears flattened against his head as he looked away from Twilight in confusion.

“Maybe… she smuggled it in somehow?” Fire Venom Dragon suggested. Undaunted, the Demon Cleric pulled a few pieces of paper from his vestments. Twilight held his breath for a second, thinking it was his spell slips, but as they fluttered to the table, he realized it was even worse than that.

“Maybe,” he said kindly. “But when I took her back to her room this morning, I found these in her bed, as well. Demon King, would you care to explain them?” Cold sweat poured down Twilight’s temples.

“That's…”

“Shall I read them for everyone's benefit?” he asked, tipping his head to the side. “Let's see, this one starts, ‘My dearest little human, please keep this book safe'…” Twilight reflexively reached to snatch the paper, succeeding in capturing it and then cradling it against his chest.

“D-Don't read that!”

At this point, as he looked around the room, he could feel the disappointment from Red, the cold anger of the Demon Cleric and the mounting explosive fury of his father. Beyond that, the rest of the Guardians seemed transfixed by the drama unfolding before them, like patrons in a movie theater. A bucket of popcorn wouldn’t have been out of place.

Twilight groaned and dropped his hands to his lap. It was time to face the music.

“It was both of us,” he said miserably. “A-Although I'm the one that's more in a position of responsibility, so I should've, umm… I should've known better. I'm sorry…” Everyone was silent for a moment until Midnight spoke up.

“No, I…” he started. “Surely I'm at fault. I should have taught you better.” Twilight's eyes swelled with tears as he looked at his sad little father. He really had given up on him this time.

“Father…”

“I didn't tell you about such things at all. There's no excuse for my failure as a parent…”

“No, I… I'm an adult, so…”

“My work was finished/ But the things I overlooked/ Woe, this father weeps…”

“Why are you composing a death poem?!”

“Oh, are we on an apology tour over last night?”

All eyes turned to the Princess, who had just entered wearing a big, dark pair of sunglasses – Twilight suspected it was because her eyes were puffy from being woken up early. The effect was for her to look like a celebrity caught in an enormous scandal.

Rather than wait to be seated, she pulled a chair over and sat on Twilight's left, between him and the Demon Cleric. He would've been grateful for the barrier if he wasn't so mortified.

“P-Princess…”

She gave him an intimate smile and then placed a hand on his leg, right above his knee. Then she squeezed.

Of all times—!

The worst part was, Twilight could still feel the blush rise to his face from it.

The Princess used her other hand to clear her throat before she spoke.

“Let me begin by saying,” she said with a smile. “I'm not sorry. And I'm going to do it again.”

The room was silent again for a few moments while everyone processed this new information. Twilight most of all simply stared at the Princess, open-mouthed at her audacity.

“You… what?!” Red finally yelled. The Princess looked at him and shrugged.

“We're both adults,” she said curtly. “We can play around if we want.”

“But Princess,” Alraune said from the far end of the room. “You're a human… a-and he’s your captor…. is that really alright…?” Syalis blushed cutely and hid her mouth behind her hand.

“It's alright,” she said shyly. “He lets me tie him up, too.”

“Don't tell them that!”

“Princess,” the Demon Cleric spoke as if Twilight hadn't said anything at all. “If he pressured or deceived you at all…” The Princess blinked innocently behind her glasses before turning back to Twilight.

“Well, I did the pressuring, really,” she said, subtly lifting a hand to stroke one of his horns. “We really only got to do it once and then it ended up like this…”

This was a different type of torture than before, and Twilight wasn't sure it was better. If she didn't stop, though, he'd either start crying or grab her and run out of the room – maybe both.

“Oh, my magazine!” The Princess said suddenly, finally noticing the magazine on the table. She blithely pulled the full-color pornography into her grip as the demons watched her awkwardly. “That's where it went!”

“You little—!” Red growled. “That's evidence! And it's obscene!”

“If you want to borrow, ask first,” she scolded lightly. “It was a gift.” Both Fire Venom Dragon and Poseidon raised their hands briefly, but Red shot them a withering glare before the Princess could acknowledge them. Twilight changed his mind. He wanted to die.

“Princess,” Midnight said gravely from his place at the table. “If… If it's true that you were both willing, then… Then I'll contact your father and…”

With a trembling hand, Syalis pulled her glasses down. Her eyes looked blank suddenly, as if her soul had left her body.

“Do you want to die?”

For once, Twilight's father was left speechless.

“But I—”

“If you do that, we'll really all die,” she said quietly. “Well, you'll die. He'll probably ship me off to a deserted island somewhere.”

Twilight came back to his senses and waved a hand to placate his father.

“Let's… not do that right now,” he said weakly. “We should only contact the humans to change her status as a hostage.” If they jumped straight from ‘hostage' to ‘lawfully wedded wife' like his father apparently wanted, it would definitely be a total disaster. The Princess seemed to consider this for a second before turning back to Twilight.

“You should defeat the Heroes first, right?” she said sweetly. “Then I'll naturally become a foreign diplomat instead of a hostage.” Knowing her, she probably just wanted to silence the group that had witnessed them in the forest for good.

To be fair, Twilight did too.

As he looked around the room, though, everyone except Red, the Demon Cleric, and his father seemed to have accepted the situation with a shrug. The first two seemed gloomy, while Midnight had climbed down from his chair and had moved over to lay his head across the Princess's lap with tears in his eyes, quietly chanting ‘daughter-in-law' under his breath. She gave him head pats as if he wasn't one of the most fearsome demons in history.

And that was how Princess Syalis came to be named as the Official Human Ambassador to the Demon Castle – on paper, for a little while, at least. And also how she came to sleep in the Demon King's room every night without being bothered.