Schedule change! Thanks to all the positive response, I'll be posting chapters bi-weekly through the end of August, and weekly starting in September!

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When it was finally time to go back out and meet Nat, Dennis rattled the cupboard again. This time, the magnets just read KISS GIRL.

“Et tu, Dennis?” Aspen asked sourly as they left.

Lorek must have carried him out, because Tano didn't remember the trip back.

He woke up in the Duke's palace in a large feather bed, feeling only moderately like death, which was admittedly an improvement. When Tano groaned and forced his eyes open, he saw Doctor Banu - a gnome who had served as the Duke's personal physician for many years - sitting by the side of his bed.

"Ah! You're awake!" Banu exclaimed, his weathered, brown face crinkling into a smile that made him look like a dried apple.

Thanks to another note from Mum, Aspen discovered that the freezer was full of individual portions of food locals had brought over after Aunt Marcy’s funeral. They were still trying to decide which of the leftovers they wanted to eat when another knock came at the front door.

“No rest for the wicked,” they sighed as they closed the freezer and went to open the door.

Quick author note: the first few chapters got such a good response that I'm changing my posting schedule - new chapters will be posted every other week! Thanks to everyone who's read so far!

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It was ten minutes before Aspen convinced their suddenly uncooperative limbs to wobble them downstairs.

The breakup must have been written all over their face because Becks put down her phone and enfolded them in a tight hug. “Oh, Aspen. I’m so sorry.”

The feeling of floating detachment persisted long enough for Aspen to trudge past the gleaming, sharp-edged monuments to finance that surrounded Bay Street station, board the subway, and ride the several stops to their transfer. However, they could feel the terrible grief starting to claw its way into their chest as they exited at Bloor-Yonge to change lines. They did their best to keep that awful feeling at bay as they navigated the crowds, but the tears escaped anyway – hot and painful and humiliating.

Author's notes: As always: (1) I don't care what the devs say, Alisaie is absolutely not 16. By 6.0, she'd be about 23. (2) In a world where no one is explicitly gay or trans, that means anyone can be. Therefore, Alisaie and G'raha are T4T.

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7.0 - SHARLYAN

G'raha was losing his mind.

Both because he badly missed his partners, Savvel and Alisaie, who had set sail for Tulliyolal two weeks and five days ago (the longest they'd been apart since making their arrangement 'official'), and because it was the longest he'd been celibate in... well...

Author's notes:

As always: (1) I don't care what the devs say, Alisaie is absolutely not 16. By 6.0, she'd be about 23. (2) In a world where no one is explicitly gay or trans, that means anyone can be. Therefore, Alisaie and G'raha are T4T. (3) My WoL is a non-binary viera.

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