"That was a good shower," Kayda said, stepping out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped tightly around her horns and another loosely draped over her shoulders. Her wings shimmered slightly from the dampness still clinging to them, water dripping slowly down her exposed neck and collarbone.
Steam billowed softly into the room behind her, curling through the air like smoke from a dragon's breath. Her steps were slow and relaxed, like she was savoring the lingering heat on her skin.
"Good to know," I said flatly, looking at her from where I was seated on the edge of the bed. My tone was dry, edged with annoyance—not because I was angry at her, but because I knew exactly where this conversation was going, and I was already bracing myself.
"Now it's your turn," Kayda said lightly as she walked across the room and sat beside me on the bed, letting out a content sigh. Her tail flicked behind her lazily, and she leaned back, one hand propping her up.
"First, where am I sleeping?" I asked, eyes narrowing slightly as I looked her dead in the face. My tone was deadpan, but my brows twitched with restrained irritation.
"On this bed, of course," Kayda replied with a cheerful smile, patting the soft surface with one hand.
"Then, where are you sleeping?" I asked again, raising one eyebrow skeptically, although I already had a sinking feeling about what her answer would be.
"On this bed, of course," she repeated, grinning as she patted it again, this time twice for emphasis.
I stared at her. My ears twitched. "...No, seriously, Kayda. Where are we going to sleep?"
She tilted her head at me slightly, as if confused by the very question. "We are both sleeping on this bed together," she said, this time dropping the playful tone for a more direct, matter-of-fact delivery.
"And why would we do that?" I asked, folding my arms. My tail swayed low and slow behind me in annoyance.
Kayda gave a shrug, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Because we are soulmates."
I blinked. "Yeah, and?"
Her smile flickered into a small pout of confusion. "I thought it would've been fine if we shared the bed now that you know about it."
I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. "I understand. But I would rather not share a bed just yet."
Kayda frowned slightly and tilted her head. "Why?"
I blinked at her. "Because we've only been together for, what, a couple of hours?"
Kayda's brows drew together. "Okay… So we're together, but you would rather not share a bed with me?"
"Yes. "Yes, we are together," I said, nodding slowly, "but it feels like we are now dating." I guess."
"Dating?" she repeated, her tail curling up in thought. "I remember Amari explaining that to me…"
"Yeah. It's like we're together, but it's not a done deal yet."
"What do you mean, 'not a done deal'?" Kayda asked, eyes narrowing again in utter confusion.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Why do I need to explain this to you?" I groaned. "Sigh... okay. We are dating, so we are partners, but not married yet."
Her eyes lit up. "So, we're engaged?"
My smile immediately vanished. "No, no, we're before that. It's as if I'm struggling to find the words to explain what dating is. It's not like I've done it before…"
I mumbled the last part, feeling a sudden wave of embarrassment. My tail drooped behind me. The idea that I, someone who'd faced gods and monsters, was getting tripped up trying to explain something as mundane as dating made my cheeks heat.
"Ha-ha, don't be so depressed. I was just playing with you," Kayda said, laughing softly, her wings fluttering lightly behind her.
"You actually got me there," I said, letting out a defeated chuckle.
"And you said you could see truth from lies," Kayda added, clearly enjoying her victory as she puffed her chest slightly with pride.
"What does that have to do with this?" I said, still confused by how I got played like a fiddle.
"Remember what you said in the carriage? 'Because I—'"
"I know what I said," I cut in quickly, glaring at her as my ears twitched. "But that doesn't apply here. I don't even know if this world has the concept of dating, so I wanted to clarify that we're together but not that together."
"This world does have dating," she said smugly. "So you don't have to explain it to me."
"I see… So why are we still sharing a bed?" I asked again, though my voice had lost some of its edge, replaced more by exhaustion than frustration.
"Because I don't want to pay for two rooms," she said casually, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
I deadpanned. "But… isn't there a room with two beds?"
Kayda looked away.
"…You need to shower before you climb into bed, okay?" she said, quickly dodging the question as she stood up and started pushing me toward the bathroom.
"Hey! Don't ignore my question!" I shouted, digging my heels in slightly.
"Go shower," Kayda repeated, this time dragging me by the wrist toward the bathroom door.
"Tch. We'll talk when I come out," I muttered reluctantly, stepping inside and closing the door behind me.
(40 Minutes Later)
"I guess you weren't wrong about that being a wonderful shower," I said, stepping out into the room again while drying my tail with a thick, fluffy towel. The warmth still clung to my skin, and the minty soap lingered in my hair. I rubbed my scalp with the towel, only to realize the room was unusually quiet.
I glanced toward the bed.
Kayda was lying there, half under the covers, already fast asleep. Her wings, spread lazily across the bed, made it nearly impossible for anyone else to fit. She was completely out, one hand draped over the side, her face soft in slumber.
"…Is she sleeping?" I whispered, blinking.
I stepped closer and smiled slightly. "It seems so. I guess we'll need to talk about her wings being in the way someday."
'Though… I wonder… how does she look when she's sleeping?' I thought as I tiptoed around the edge of the bed, curiosity getting the better of me.
I leaned in, eyes landing on her face—and then my breath hitched.
My heart skipped a beat.
"…Yeah, definitely—ah shit, my nose is bleeding," I mumbled, tilting my head back slightly as I felt warm blood trickle down. "She looks adorable when she behaves this way."
'Crap. It's really pouring. I need to get away from her adorable face now before I die of blood loss.'
I stumbled back to the far end of the room and flopped down. With a soft flash of light, I changed into my smallest fox form—fluffy, round, and compact—and curled up tightly into a soft ball on the floor.
"…This is safer," I mumbled before drifting off.
(Next Morning)
"Hey, wake up! We can't have people see you like that," Kayda's voice rang in my ears as something nudged my side.
I groaned softly.
"Just five more minutes," I whined, voice muffled from my curled-up position on the rug.
"Sara will come up here any second," Kayda warned, her tone sharper this time.
With a reluctant grunt, I changed back into my human form and immediately collapsed face-first onto the now-empty bed, limbs sprawled across the still-warm blankets.
"No, stand up. You can't go back to sleep," Kayda said, grabbing my arm and tugging with enough force to nearly yank me off the bed entirely.
"Noooo… I'm exhausted," I groaned.
'I can't really tell her I didn't sleep because her sleeping face was too adorable and my nosebleeds kept me up all night,' I thought, feeling my cheeks warm again.
I buried my face deeper into the pillow.
Knock, knock.
"You two lovebirds, breakfast is ready!" came Sara's cheery voice from the other side of the door.
"Lovebirds?" I mumbled into the mattress, slowly turning to glare at the door. Then I turned to look at Kayda.
She refused to meet my gaze.
"… Did you tell her about us being soulmates?" I asked.
"No! But… it's probably how I acted last night," she said, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly.
"I'm coming in!" Sara's voice rang again before the door creaked open.
"Did we say you could come in?" I snapped, looking up to see her carrying a tray stacked with food.
"Sorry, sorry! I just couldn't keep my curiosity in check anymore, okay?" Sara laughed as she walked to the table and placed the tray down.
"Kayda, I don't think that'll be enough for Nova here," she added with a chuckle.
"No, that won't even be close to enough for both of us," I said, finally pushing myself up. "Kayda eats as much as me."
"Oh! Okay, I'll tell Dad to make more food," Sara said with a nod. She walked toward the door again, but just before exiting, she turned and looked at me.
"Thanks for clarifying your relationship last night," she added slyly, and they closed the door.
"…Huh?" I blinked. "What does she mean by that?"
Kayda looked just as confused. "What does she mean you clarified it?"
"I didn't do anything except throw some knives at her because she was staring at your butt," I said, quickly looking away.
"You did what!? More importantly, she did what!?" Kayda shrieked, placing both hands protectively over her backside.
"She was checking you out, and I didn't like it. So I threw some knives into the table she was sitting at," I explained, now panicking as I watched her expression darken.
"So… It wasn't me who told her. It was you," Kayda muttered.
"I guess it was," I admitted, rubbing the back of my neck awkwardly.
"And you wanted to blame it on me?" Kayda said, stepping closer.
"Well, you are known as Kayda the Sage, and I'm… not very likable. So I thought… you know, if people thought it was you, your name wouldn't lose credibility. " And, to be honest, you have a tendency to let secrets slip..."
I mumbled the last part under my breath.
"Oh, so you care more about my image, huh?" Oh, so you care more about my image, huh? No—wait—you mean that if my image falls, I become worthless and you can't profit from my name anymore!" she accused, grabbing my collar.
"Wait, wait! I didn't think like that!"
"You didn't?"
"No! It's more like… I didn't want the entire world to know about us while I'm still weak. If enemies come for us, I can't protect you. Or myself."
Kayda blinked. Then she let go.
"Oh… that actually makes sense. But I'm still punishing you."
"Punish!? Sorry, I'm not into those kinds of kinks," I said, stepping away quickly.
"Not sexual, you dumbass!" Kayda yelled, storming over to the table. "I meant to worry about me last night."
She sat down and began to eat.
'Don't tell me…' I thought, approaching the table.
Suddenly, her tail whipped out and blocked me.
"You stay there. "There's no food for you," she said in between mouthfuls.
"… Did you know you're a demon?" I asked in a deadpan voice, staring at her with betrayed eyes.