I opened my eyes a a pillow under my head. As I looked around I realized I had been asleep for a while, the sun showed mid afternoon at least and I felt very well rested. I y on the soft moss, though further from the water than I had been. I was also now a quite fortable.

  I could hear people talking and ughing and there beat music pying somewhere nearby. I sat up and stretched a arms slip around me from behind. Carmil’s voice purred in my ear “Did you rest well, beloved?”

  I smiled and turned my head to kiss her “Mmm, very well. How did things go after I zonked out?”

  She gently turned my head to a group of about twenty people all hanging around and chatting, a few folks dang. Our tribe was among them. Red and Brigg danced slowly, smiles on their faces. I think they had e to a decision and seemed happy about it. Weren was at a massive grill to the side cooking while the two kissing men from before helped her get things on ptters and brought to a few nearby long tables set up some time while I was out. The smell of grilled fish and citrus was in the air and made me look forward to the meal.

  Jaina was sitting in the p of a tall human woman I didn’t know, nibbling at her neck softly. “I see our slut has no problems making new friends?”

  Carmil ughed and kissed me again. “Fourteen.”

  “That many?”

  “Some with her hands while her tongue did other things, but she was absolutely coated iar by the time she finished.” my elemental chuckled and squeezed me.

  “Oh, where is-, oh there’s our love.” I said as I saw Luvetra and the elf girl from before sitting together and ughing. I waved and they both got up and came over, blushing and smiling.

  “H-hey Esme. This is T-Tilly, she’s a f-friend I’ve known for a w-while. P-Part of another E we m-met up a lot in travels.” she grinned.

  Tilly stepped over and offered her hand. I briefly looked to my elemental beloved and the look she gave me said what I o know. I pulled the elf into my p and kissed her deeply. She moaned into the kiss immediately aur with enthusiasm. I kept it going for a while before pulling bad looking intzed over eyes. “It’s wonderful to meet someohat shows such affe for my beloved Luvetra.”

  She bit her lip and aking a breath and shuddering before she smiled “I-, okay I’ve liked Luv for a while but I always felt like…” She turo look at the half-troll who sat dowo us. “Like she didn’t want affe? She was always so distant. But then I saw you all with her and she was actually joining in and I just, just had to take a shot. You know?”

  Luv leaned over and kissed the elf as deeply as I had and smiled “Esme and Carmil m-make me feel like, like maybe I really do deserve love. S-so I’m trying to accept it because I don’t want to think of them as wr-wrong.”

  Tilly grinned and nuzzled her face against my cheek, her long ears wiggling happily as she turo kiss Carmil over my shoulder, my elemental love returning the affe as I had. Ohe kiss broke she giggled “Well I owe you both so much then.”

  I just smiled “Well lets keep things somewhat more chaste for the moment, I just woke back up and want to actually meet people and enjoy something other than an asm induced a.”

  “Oh of course! From what I uand we’ll probably have a couple of weeks at least to get to know each other anyway, so o rush.”

  We all stood up ao meet and greet. Apparently there were more encves here than normal because the elders were all present. Wot around that something was happening and Dekarru would be in town so people rushed to the city for the ce to see the Oracle of their goddess and their Path. Some details about an angel and an unknown Champion got out and so people realized this would be a longer visit. It didn’t take long for the people in the District to realize I was the Champion iion, but Red and Brigg and Wen spread the word that I was one of theirs and no one questioned me at that point. If the Oracle said I was okay, the Path more or less just accepted it.

  People were quite friendly, though I did get a lot of questions about my dick. Most of which were funny, the rest more ical in nature. No one had proven rude or insiderate as of yet, which made everything just so much more rexing.

  Weren and the two men worked their tails off to cover the massive tables in food before letting out shrill whistles to announce meal time and suddenly a couple hundred nudists desded on the area to eat.

  It was surreal to both see so many naked bodies of men and women of various ages and races and shapes and just feel… fortable. I had the distinct feeling it was because I was one of them, like I was just another naked weirdo in a group of naked weirdos and it felt good. Like I was home.

  I met so many people who’s names I will forever struggle to recall, but Mahrk and Divh I think I’ll remember. The gay couple I’d seen when I first ehey were extremely nid the first to voluo help if some random thing needed dohey had e from the Blue Bounty regiohey had a successful fishing business with their ehey had lovely things to say about me and Luvetra and how we’d stared into each other’s eyes while someone else was between s. True romantics, both of them.

  After we ate, our tribe and a dozen or so others we’d made friends with all marched into one of the stoructures which I discovered held tents. I got a crash course on how to put up a yurt, which thankfully I didn’t o do much of besides hold ropes. But I learned anyway in case I o do more iure.

  Ohe almost ically rge yurt , we filed into it and spread out carpets and cushions and bo prepare for bed. The sun was still an hour or two away from the horizon but it was better to do this before we were tired enough to . Once we were done we just rexed and chatted with our new friends until they all had to head out to their ows.

  Some time after the su, our tribe y in the yurt and just rexed, enjoying some time to ourselves. It was nice, quiet, intimate. My head y in Luvetra’s p, Carmil’s y in mine. Jaina and Wen were cuddling as the two looked through a book of fish recipes that the boys had lent our cook. The only ohat were restless were Red and Brigg.

  I turned my head to them and waved, getting their attention and then being them over. Ohey sat o us I offered them a smirk. “I take it sitting on my face helped you e to some decision?”

  Red snickered and Brigg blushed heavily “Ya don’t have to put it like that ya twat.” the dwarf grumbled “But… aye. Yes. We, we still want to talk to ya but… we think-,” She cleared her throat.

  Redagga squeezed her wife’s shoulder. “We would be honored if you would sider giving us a child, Esme.”

  I gave them a warm smile, but my face held apprehension. They saw it and the worry was matched with my own “I’m not turning you down.” I quickly made clear as I sat up and turo face them both. “I’m extremely happy to have your trust in this. But… the thing is, we’ve known each other what… uwo weeks?”

  They both looked at me fused, Red almost ughing “What? No it’s been-…?”

  But thearted to think and I could see the same realization as I’d started to have. “Yeah, ten days I think. But it feels like I’ve known you all so much longer.” Everyone was sitting up and looking at me now. “I think… I think maybe one of more of my Skills, or maybe something about me being a Saint, is making me bond with people way faster than normal.”

  There were looks of worry and Luvetra started to reay hand, hesitating and looking scared for a moment. “D-does than m-mean h-how you feel isn’t-, it’s not r-real?”

  I took her hand and pulled to to my face, kissing it and rubbing her palm against my cheek. “No. How I feel for you is so very real. I am utterly in love with you Luvetra and want you in my life forever.” and I saw her give a small smile “I am worried however that it might be uionally affeg how you all feel about me.”

  There was silence hanging in the air for a time, broken by the yurt fp opening and Dekarru walking in looking tired and grumpy. “You all better have something good to… tell… me…” She looked around at the faces gathered and came to sit with us. “Okay, fill me in.”

  I told her my worries and she was quiet for a time. I felt my shoulders slump as she looked more troubled than I was hoping. I wanted her to tell me is was just a Path thing, that I was overthinking it. But she seemed to be taking it seriously. “So? Am I messing with people’s heads without meaning to do you think?”

  She huffed “If you are it’s something very strong and very subtle. I don’t feel anything. What exactly made you think this?”

  “Well, I’ve been w about it for some days now holy. But Red and Brigga asked me to give them a child.” the shaman’s brows shot up and she turowards them. “But I remember them saying they would only be able to ask someohey trust implicitly. How could you trust me that much after so little time?”

  Carmil squeezed my arm. “We have also had the worry that I was altered to love Esme magically. Not that I would ge it, but it has been something we have discussed.”

  The old seer took a deep breath. “I o uh the Green Mother on this matter. But I will tell you that I trust you. You’ve not lied to us, you’ve not used us, you’re even bringing this up when you could just keep quiet and be from it if it’s true. S some absolutely insane reveal, you’re still a member of my encve and our tribe. So keep that in your too damned smart Saint head. Got it?” she said before leaning over and drawio a passionate kiss to let me know she meant it. Ohe kiss was broken she looked into my eyes and I gave a small nod. I believed her.

  I let myself rex and Luv suddenly tugged me into her p and squeezed me. “I l-love you anyay. I don’t c-care about some m-magic.”

  Carmil joined us and kissed my cheek. “I wholeheartedly agree my beloved. Even if something accelerated the feelings others have towards you, I believe them to be pletely ho and true.”

  I kissed my elemental lover and my giant lover and we id in a pile with each other. Just holding one another close. I think that moment was when I realized that how I felt for Carmil and Luevtra was the same. I knew I loved Jaina, and Red and Brigg and Wen and Dekarru, and I still had burning embers of my feelings for Henna. But Carmil and Luevtra? They were points of light and warmth for me that glowed brighter. I sidered feeling guilt about putting them higher, but Red and Brigg where the same for each other, right? Maybe that was just something that happened? Even iionships like ours, some people drifted towards certain people more than others.

  I think I was okay with that. Especially since I retty sure Carmil was also falling madly in love with our half-blood lover just like I had.

  I smiled as I rested my head on Luv’s chest, her heartbeat lullio sleep.

  The pond was calm and tranquil, dragonflies buzzing across the surfad frogs filling their air with their natural song. I reached beside me and put the baku’s head softly as it y o me nibbling on some rolled up nightmare absently.

  Wait.

  “Baku?” I smiled and turo hug my dream friend “Baku! Oh my goooosh it’s so good to see you again!” it wiggled happily and patted my head with it’s trunk. “Oh man, baku seems a little insulting, I wouldn’t want someone just calling me human all the time. Do you have a name?” It shook it’s head.

  “Hmmm, well I’ll have to give you one. Wait, are you a birl or something else?” it reached out and poked one of my boobs and nodded. I giggled at the poke “Okay, a girl, got it. Hmm. Oh, how about Daisy? Simple but pretty.” She nodded happily aed her head in my p and immediately got more pets as a result.

  “OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOSH!” I heard someone yelling and then realized the world had shimmered and the nice calm day had turned into a beautiful night. Suddenly Vei’Ryn plopped dowo me and started to give Daisy pets as well. “So cuuuuuute~ I always loved Baku, they are so cute and friendly and rexing. Is this the ohat lead you to me?”

  I smiled and his is Daisy and she is a very good friend.”

  “She sure is.” The goddess grinned and giggled and Daisy very clearly ehe attentions. But after a minute my Goddess lifted her head and looked at me. “Dang it, she’s so cute I fot why I bubbled you to e visit! Okay so, I have amazing news!” She then tilted her head and looked less happy “Or catastrophiews.”

  “That’s… vague?”

  She snhed “Oh jeeze, okay so, I did what I said and looked into the dreams of a bunch of the Green Mother’s priesthood and followers right? What I saretty encing since she seems super empathetid friendly. So…” She breathed deep and slow “I took a big dumb risk a her, well, the divine equivalent of a letter. I kind of ‘hey wanna be friends? y/n’ deal. I asked her how she felt about things and her response came just a couple of ho!”

  “Was it good?”

  “Potentially! Right so this is either going to go incredibly well or incredibly poorly. No middle ground.” she ractically vibrating with excitement. “She invited me to her REALM. Which probably means nothing to yht. Okay so a god’s Realm is a pocket of divinity where the god that created it is like, a super god within it. It’s a home where they reign supreme. Mostly. One of the few ways to kill a god is by destroying their core iheir Realm.” she rambled worse than Weren, literally boung ihe stars in her skin rushed around madly and lightning fshed rapidly iorm-cloud hair.

  “Maybe you should breathe and rex a bit, my Goddess?” I said, stroking her shoulders softly to ence her to calm down.

  She took my advid leaned against me. “Okay, okay I am calm. Thank you my Saint.” She smiled and kissed me softly “Okay so, to expin. Inside a Realm is a god’s core, it’s both why they are far, far more powerful there and also why Realms are so protected. Not with defenses of course, but with ck of invitation. See, you ’t get into a god’s Realm without an invite, period. Even other, more powerful gods ’t get in without getting direct permission.”

  “So… that means she trusts you?” I smiled

  “Or she’s lurio my death. It’s hard to kill a god without access to their core, but not impossible. The power boost a majod like her would get in her Realm would in fact probably be enough to end me permaly.” She said with a morbid chuckle.

  “Buuuuut…?”

  She grinned “But I don’t get the impressiohe plotting type, so I am optimistic.” She then pulled me into another kiss, this one less soft and far less chaste. There was a goddess’s tongue in my mouth. MY GODDESS’S tongue in my mouth. It tasted like a happy, vaguely erotic dream and no I ’t expier than that. When the kiss broke she smiled at me “A small reward for your work. But don’t worry, assuming I don’t get deleted by an angry nature goddess I still pn on rewarding you properly with a boon after I get back.”

  “Oh, okay, uhh…” My mind was still a bit bnk from the kiss, but something occurred to me “Will you tell me what you’re up to then?”

  She blinked “Oh! You know what? Fuck it. Either this works or I die and we’re all screwed very shortly anyway so I’ll just tell you now. My pantheon is invading your world.”