I may have had more experience with the Jhashaira than Rei, but calling it experience may have been overly generous. Sure, I had the memories and the dreams that I had had of my Jhashaira and those memories were crystal clear to me, in fact, they were a lot clearer than a lot of my memories as Caleb. There was a bit of a disconnect with those memories though, maybe it was because I knew that they weren’t really mine and that I hadn’t really experienced those things, or maybe it was the clarity of the memories themselves. I had noticed that my racial bonus for memory made me remember everything that clearly, all my memories of being Taelya were easily accessible to my mind, and that made me think of Taelya’s memories as happening in the game and not real because my memory had never been this good in real life.

So, understandably, this was like experiencing it for the first time for me. Not the sex part of course, since I had been doing that the past few nights with Rei, both from the girl-girl and girl-guy perspectives. What I really mean is the whole comradery and companionship through sex that is so much a part of the Fae social dynamic. It’s not just about physically pleasuring themselves, it’s about sharing that pleasure, giving it to others, and getting to know others on an entirely new level.

That being said, as open as Fae are sexually, there are certain lines that we just won’t cross. The first of those is family. Sure, Fae might see family members naked or having sex at some point, in fact, with events like this it’s almost a given. Family, you know your whole life and they care deeply about you and know you better than anyone. So, not only do you not need to have sex to get to know them better, but family is associated with childhood, especially parents and siblings. To Fae, sex is about being an adult and moving beyond your childhood, but your childhood will always be important to the core of who you are. Changing those close childhood relationships could drastically change who you are as a person and damage those relationships as well, so it’s one of those taboos that’s obeyed but not really spoken of. If a person was an important figure in your childhood or you were an important figure in theirs, whether related by blood or not, it’s just not done. Most Fae won’t even have sex with very close childhood friends that aren’t related to them by blood.

Secondly, there’s the whole age thing. The Fae strictly believe that you must be an adult and exhibit both physical and mental discipline to have sex. As much fun as it is, it can also lead to parenthood for those of us who are extremely fortunate so it is a responsibility as well, one that a person needs to be prepared for. Sex is as much a part of that great balance that we Fae are dedicated to as much as everything else in our lives because it can lead to creating new life and in that balance, it is the opposite of death, one of the greatest threats to the balance of nature.

Other than those two things, pretty much anything goes so long as all participants involved are willing and/or eager. So, as soon as Rei and the other supplicants were given consent to begin things got underway. Things started slowly, kind of like that first school dance when you’re a child who’s fast becoming an awkward teenager but instead of girls on one side and boys on the other, it was the experienced Fae waiting for the supplicants to approach them. The supplicants were all anxious, uncertain of what to do or say, and were trying to work up the courage to approach us. Since they didn’t make the first move it was up to us.

My fiancée was looking as nervous as all the others, possibly more so, but that wasn’t a surprise given that she wasn’t Fae and since she had remained in her Kitsune form at first, rather than taking on a Fae form. Because of this, she was getting a lot of curious glances which was only making her more nervous. I was a bit nervous myself, not because I had any sort of modesty thing going but I think that Caleb, my human side, was holding on for dear life and insisting that public sex and nudity was wrong. I just gave that side of me an indignant sniff and thought, “Humans.”

Okay, I know how that probably sounds but I thought that there was a lot wrong with humanity before my brain was rewired to Fae in the game. “Prudish” was just another new mental addition to a list of unfavorable characteristics of humanity that had been growing since my father left us when I was a child. It was a large part of the reason that I didn’t really understand other people and only really spent time with my sister and fiancée. As a species Humans have a lot of flaws, they’re selfish and often hateful, but I also think that most Humans can be nurtured and taught a better way with the right influence.

The more time that I spent in the game the more I found that I really did prefer being Fae; things made sense to me, I loved my connection to magick, and I liked myself much more as a person than I ever had before, even while I was still experiencing body dysphoria. It was like now that I wasn’t Human I could accept those flaws because I didn’t have to count myself among them. I think that that is what bothered me most about my growing suspicions about Moira and the game, especially since I had no real proof to back them up. It made me question how much was suspicion and how much was wishful thinking. Until I knew for sure it was better just to try and bury those lines of thinking as soon as they emerged.

I shook those thoughts away as I looked toward where Rei and the other supplicants were looking uncertainly across the clearing at those of us with experience. Nobody was going to rush them, they needed to do things in their own time and way. Still, it would be easier once things actually got started and the ice was broken. With that in mind, I gave Rei a come hither look and waggled my eyebrows playfully. Her night vision was almost as good as a Fae’s so with that big bright moon I could tell that she had taken the hint as soon as her cheeks flushed and she swallowed that lump in her throat.

I was certain that my fiancée would have the hardest time overcoming her inhibitions since she wasn’t Fae like the others and still had a sense of modesty. No matter how much she wanted to do this, that and a lifetime of somewhat conservative human social conditioning was going to make this hard for her, even if it was just in a game. With how eager and excited she had been beforehand though, I had no doubts that she would get over that fairly quickly once we got the ball rolling and she began to relax. So I had plans for Rei.

“Nobody is doing anything,” she spoke hesitantly, in a near whisper, as she approached me.

“Because they’re all as nervous as you, and those of us who are experienced won’t push any of you into doing anything until you’re ready,” I told her after kissing her tenderly. “Once someone starts then they will relax and get involved at their own pace. So why don’t we help things along?” I whispered softly in her ear, allowing my warm breath to bathe her sensitive fox ear. Then I lovingly trailed my fingertip along the underside of her jawline before following up with a deep and passionate kiss.

Rei’s breathing quickened and she let out a soft and sensual moan against my lips as I continued to kiss her and softly kneaded her right nipple between my thumb and forefinger, lovingly pinching and pulling enough that she gasped in pleasure and broke the kiss. My other hand had already reached behind her and I trailed the tip of my fingernail with agonizing slowness downward along her spine from the back of her neck to the base of her tails. It just barely touched her flesh, just enough to elicit a shiver of pleasure as she leaned forward to kiss me. Her lips trembled briefly against my own and her eyes darted about uncertainly before closing as she gave in to the desire and the soft touch of her lips against mine became an insistent assault.

We stood there together for several minutes as I kissed, caressed, and teased her with ghostly touches. Anywhere that I could reach was fair game as I held her close and lovingly stimulated her until her pulse and breathing were rapid and her flesh warm with excitement. “Now remember to pay attention and learn my love, because I expect to be on the receiving end of some of these techniques as well,” I whispered with a giggle as I suddenly swept her up in my arms and then oh-so-gently lowered her to the ground, climbing atop her to look deeply into her eyes as our breasts touched. Her hard nipples pressed into my breasts as her chest heaved in excitement and I kissed her again.

I could have started to make love to her then, she was certainly eager enough to begin since I could both feel and smell the hot wetness emanating from between her legs. This was an important night though and she was so eager to accept and be a part of my Fae nature that I wanted to make this time special before we both found other partners. I wanted to relax her and show her that no matter who else we had sex with, that when it was me and her it wouldn’t be just sex, it would always be making love.

So, as other people began to get into the spirit of things now that the ice was broken, I eased Rei into it with passionate kisses, playful licks, soft caresses, and paying attention to every part of her body so that nothing was left out, no erogenous zone left unteased. Then I made use of every technique that I could think of for one woman to pleasure another, my lips, tongue, fingers, and even toes constantly teasing and bringing her to the very edge of climax before moving on to something else so I could bring her to that plateau again. I wanted to take her to heights that she had never dreamed possible before.

Fae have very nimble fingers and that was a big benefit as I played with her body like a musician with a prize instrument. Though the sounds that she made were not quite musical, though I will admit that I did enjoy each and every one. They were expressions of her pleasure; gasps, moans, groans, her breath catching in her throat, and the occasional whimper or primal growl. Only once Rei asked to climax, in a throaty and near desperate voice that I found so goddamn sexy, did I finally take her over the edge, her back arching and hands clutching at the ground as she screamed out in ecstasy. I didn’t stop there either, I did so again and again until she was a trembling puddle of Kitsune on the ground. With each scream, each pleasured moan, I told her that I loved her.

We took a short break then as I held her in my arms and whispered softly in her ears, tenderly kissing and caressing her as she returned to her senses. Only once I had made sure that we had both drank some juice to replace lost fluids did we move on to round two. That second round was more give and take, equally pleasuring each other while Rei showed me what a very good student she was. When that eventually turned from lovemaking to a more playful romp I motioned for Naerysse to join us.

There were several reasons why I chose Naerysse. First, she was between partners having already worn out her first. Secondly, she wasn’t a complete stranger. Rei was familiar with her, she had shown interest in both of us before, and I knew that Rei would be in good hands with her. Thirdly, she was a Nymph and as much as they love being on the receiving end of the pleasures of the body, they love giving that pleasure just as much. Seriously, it’s like an art form to Nymphs and I suspected that Naerysse was a true artiste.

Naerysse was every bit as talented as I had suspected. Rei and I both thoroughly enjoyed her ministrations and gave back as best we could in a tangle of female bodies until I whispered one last, “I love you,” to my fiancée before slipping away to leave her to get used to participating sexually with others without me there. I didn’t jump right back into things myself, I wanted to watch Rei for a bit first and make sure that she truly was getting used to it and enjoying herself. So I had a drink and a few bites to eat to get up my energy for the remainder of the night as I did that. Only once Rei and Naerysse had parted and Rei had accepted an offer to join a handsome Nyiir'dhraí did I try to find a bit more fun of my own.

I wasn’t lacking on offers but I had been half-fearing that Narek would have jumped on this opportunity. Instead, he seemed to be trying to avoid any such thing. He would hardly even look in my direction and only offered a polite greeting, telling me how happy he was that I was participating tonight and that Amoiraishe had allowed my intended to as well. He was kind of acting like Amoiraishe had been since I had first convinced Rei to come and get things started, trying not to get too involved in what, or who, I was doing and making sure that there was a healthy amount of space between us if I was with someone.

That kind of behavior was completely understandable for Amoiraishe since that was a standard parental reaction at an event such as this, but having it come from Narek stumped me. After all of that hitting on me before, it was a little hard to get used to from him. It sort of cemented the suspicion in my mind that it all had been an act from the start, pushing me to react emotionally and testing me to ensure the Winter Court that I could be trusted to act like a Fae and not a Human when push comes to shove. But why wouldn’t he be interested in me? Even putting the whole princess thing aside, I was a young and attractive Yseil'dhraí and that reaction just didn’t make sense to me. I felt like I was missing something important.

Speaking of Narek and my Mahair, they spent quite a bit of their time that evening entertaining one another. I tried to ignore that though, since the mere thought of that disturbed me for two reasons. Firstly, I couldn’t really picture it because of how hostile they had been to one another since Narek had arrived. I mean, what would angry Fae sex even look like, and no, I had absolutely no interest in watching to find out. When they walked off together they had been tender, almost affectionate though, even if there was still some anger there. I tried to find my own fun since the second reason it disturbed me was that just the thought of them having sex hit me right on the “Ewww” button for some reason.

I guess I would have had that reaction to anyone who paired off with my Mahair though. I mean, I’m well aware that she has sex and enjoys it as much as any other healthy Fae, but like any child, I just don’t like my brain to go there when it involves my mother, and she had become very like a mother to me and my sister. I wasn’t alone in my reaction either because from a brief conversation that I had with Nishalle when the moon was high in the sky and we were both between partners, it seemed that she was trying to avoid seeing, or thinking about, Amoiraishe ‘dancing’ too.

That conversation was way too awkweird with her being my sister. I didn’t want to think about her having sex either, though she seemed to be really enjoying herself. So we changed the topic to something we could both get behind, juicy gossip about a good friend. “Venika seems to be enjoying herself too,” I offered with a smile as I thought about how I had seen her smiling and holding hands with one of the rare male Sprite players in the game. I had been trying to let her have her privacy as much as possible, just as I had with Nishalle and Amoiraishe, but it was nice to see her enjoying a guy’s company. From what my sister and Lissany had told me she hadn’t had anything like a relationship, even a brief fling, in far too long.

“You saw her with Phinik too, huh?” My sister asked, baring her fangs in a wide grin. “Nick works at Pegasus Entertainment too, he’s in my department, one of my artists. He’s a nice guy but he’s really quiet and shy and I think he’s been crushing on her for a while. He asked me to find out what kind of character she was going to play before he chose his own, so I wasn’t surprised when I saw that he chose to be a Sprite too. It’s nice to see them both happy. He’s a good egg, it’s about time that he made a move.”

“That’s sweet, I hope that it goes well, for both their sakes. If anyone needs to get laid and find a nice guy, it would be Venika,” I replied smiling back in happiness for our Sprite friend.

Nishalle took a sip of her juice before nodding. “You got that right, this might be just the thing that both of them needed, and it would be good for Lissany too. The poor kid feels responsible for her mother’s lack of social life, though Venika adores her and would never blame her for it.”

“Speaking of Liss, I really hope she’s having a good talk with Kinara,” I said with a sigh. At the Tokh'dhraí’s raised eyebrow of inquiry, I quickly explained and pointed to the bracelet of braided hair encircling my wrist. “Kinara asked her for a lock of her hair, but some stuff was lost in translation so I had to explain to Lissany what it means. I told them both to have a serious talk about it, so hopefully, they’re doing that as we speak.”

“They’re a bit young, but Kinara does seem smitten with Lissany and I think they’d make a cute couple,” my sister offered. “I’m worried that it may be a problem when we leave the game and Kinara has to go back to London though.”

“Yeah, Lissany was worried about them becoming too close in the game too,” I agreed with a nod, “and what happens after. Though she was kinda freaking out more about Kinara finding out that she’s not biologically female IRL and taking it badly.”

She shook her head. “I don’t see it. Kinara and Maekin don’t seem the type to react like that, they’re pretty open-minded people.”

“That’s what I told her. I also told her that she’s a real girl everywhere that counts.” I said before downing the last of my fruit juice.

Nishalle put her own drink aside and wrapped me up in a hug. “That’s what I love about you, Sis. You care about everyone and you’ve just come so far out of that shell that you used to keep yourself in since we’ve been in the game. I loved Caleb, but you seem so much more natural and at ease as Taelya, and you don’t just care but actively try to help people and make the world a better place. I like myself better here too, I can be myself and people accept me for that even when I’m being an intimidating bitch.”

I just hugged her right back. “I love you too sis. You may be intimidating sometimes, well maybe a lot of the time, but you’re never a bitch. You’re my sister and my best friend. You’re always looking out for me, even when I don’t think I need it, and anybody who ever calls you that to your face is going to see just how much of a bitch I can be.”

My sister’s cheeks flushed a dark purple. “Yeah, well, somebody has to look after you while you’re looking after everyone else. I’ll never let anything happen to you on my watch, Sis, no matter what happens. I should go and… ummm… y’know, the night is still young and there’s still lots of stuff I can still learn.” She released me from her arms and wandered off to find a bit of action, leaving me blushing as well.

With that, I called off my self-imposed break as well and approached Lourke, one of the other player supplicants for the evening. He was a handsome Nyiir'dhraí with long ash-blond hair and bright green eyes who, from all the accounts I had heard was very gifted with a bow. Looking over his naked body I could see other ways that he was gifted as well. We teased and played, getting to know the secrets of one another’s bodies as we learned more about one another. Most of the things that I told him were things about my life as Taelya though, Caleb had no place here. The only thing that I really told him about my life outside the game was that I was a computer programmer and IT specialist.

Lourke seemed like a nice enough guy, and he was very attentive to my needs and desires, but he admitted to being a bit of a geek in real life. He was studying computer sciences in college and he seemed genuinely pleased that we shared a similar interest there. I was relatively certain that he was a virgin in real life, so I was glad that he was able to have his first time among Fae who would want to make him enjoy it as much as we did and I decided to make this as memorable as possible for him.

I was giving my all to keep him on the edge of pleasure through foreplay and was almost ready for the main event when he asked, “Y…you’re engaged right?” I nodded an affirmative and he added uncertainly, “So why are you doing this? You seem really nice, but I don’t want your fiancée to get mad at you.”

I let out a throaty giggle in reply. “I guess that you could say that I’ve embraced my role here, I feel good not just receiving pleasure, but giving it as well. As for my fiancée, I would have not participated had she wished it, in fact, I was prepared for a quiet night in, just the two of us. She wants us both to embrace the Fae culture though because she knows how much I love it. She’s the Kitsune if you didn’t know, and we’re both here tonight because this is what she wanted. She’s been having as much fun as I am, I assure you. She did have one stipulation though.”

He seemed surprised by my answer and asked tentatively, “What stipulation?”

“Well, we’re about at that time so it’s probably easier to show than tell,” I told him with an impish grin. Then, as I had with all the males that I had been with that night I used a small bit of my stored mana and directed my thoughts. “Kaida liantuir ikandiir aentuire!”

He let out a surprised gasp as the warmth and faint vibration of the magical field covered his manhood. I had made them in a few colors throughout the night, but I made his green, like his eyes. “I..is that…?”

I attempted to control my giggling as I nodded. “Yup, it’s a magical condom. Safe sex and all that. I’m not quite ready to get pregnant in this game yet unless it’s Rei’s.” I didn’t mention that Rei would also be casting cleansing prayers over both of us after the night was over as well, and any time we had sex with anyone other than each other to prevent us from catching anything. He didn’t need to have the night ruined by the thought of the admittedly low chance of contracting a VD.

“Umm…. Does it have to glow… or vibrate like that?” Lourke asked, looking down at it with a quite frankly hilarious look on his face.

“The glow lets us know it’s there, and working. I could try to get it to make lightsaber sounds when you move too, but that costs extra,” I teased, causing him to laugh. “The vibrating is due to the nature of the spell, not any desire on my part, it’s kind of an energy sheath to keep what’s in you, from getting in me. Don’t worry, you’ll be able to feel everything and I’m told that the vibration, in addition to the other more natural sensations makes things very interesting. Now, show me what you’ve learned tonight.”

I kissed him and teased him a bit longer to get him worked up and then I let him take the lead. I had the feeling that he lacked confidence with girls and I figured that letting him control the pace and try to use what he had learned to pleasure us both might help him in that regard. Not that I was laying back and doing nothing. No, I was kissing him, teasing him with nimble fingers, and doing everything else that I could to make this the best sexual experience that he would ever have.

Lourke was not the last of my partners that night. We all enjoyed ourselves until the moon was getting low in the sky and then, in the cool darkness of the very late night/early morning, we wandered off by ones and twos to sleep. Rei and I were walking back to the manor with Nishalle keeping a close eye out for trouble when I stopped to kiss my fiancée at the gates. “Thank you, my love, for being there, for wanting to go through this for me, with me. I only hope that it wasn’t too awkward for you. You’re not really Fae so…”

She silenced me with a kiss of her own. “I was nervous at first,” she admitted, “but you made me feel so relaxed, wonderful, and special that by the time that it was just me and Naerysse I was comfortable with where it was going. I’m understanding the Fae point of view more and more now, and I really enjoyed myself tonight. I managed to shake a lot of my hang-ups too, they just didn’t feel important with everything that was going on. It feels so liberating, and now I’m going to crawl into our nice warm bed with you and that’s all that matters to me at the end of any day. I love you, and I always will, Taelya.”

“You two are so sappy,” my sister said with a chuckle. “It was a nice night though, I think that I like being able to let loose and enjoy myself like that. I’m really looking forward to tomorrow night though.”

“Don’t you mean today?” I corrected, frowning as I thought of the day ahead. “We’re not going to get more than a few hours’ sleep and I’m going to have to go through another sword lesson with Narek. I’m still sore from the first one. I am not looking forward to that. What’s got you looking so happy?”

“Well, Amoiraishe will be giving all of us newbies who participated our Faerie Dance skill and I’m looking forward to showing Pete everything that I’ve learned.” The Tokh'dhraí flashed a bright white smile as we proceeded through the gates and toward the house.

“Does Pete know about this?” Rei teased.

My sister gave an innocent smile that was everything but innocent. “Not yet, but I think he’ll enjoy the surprise.” She was still giggling in anticipation as we went our separate ways and toward our beds.

I looked around carefully as I appeared at my hiding spot just outside the Glade, began shedding the human clothes I had been wearing, and placed them in the small hollow beneath the roots of the large oak. I couldn’t allow anyone to see me in such clothing, and to be honest it was a relief to remove them. I was still not used to wearing such clothes during my visits with Seamus into the human village and the fabrics were coarse and uncomfortable. I sighed, in both relief and uncertainty, as I finished hiding the human clothes. My day had not been a good one and my cheek still stung.

“Your Highness, please, you must put an end to this. You cannot see him anymore. You endanger not just yourself, but all of the Fae. Think about your duties to the Autumn Court. Please, you need to…”

I was woken from my dream, and what very little sleep that I had managed to get by digital beeps and boops that were probably intended to sound like music, but this early in the morning it was just torture. It absolutely refused to stop and let me sleep, playing over and over again until I sat up, rubbed my bleary eyes, and tried to figure out the source of the annoying sound. Rei protested beside me, “Turn off the alarm honey, I don’t wanna get up yet, just five more minutes.”

I didn’t blame Rei for wanting to sleep longer, it was just barely after seven in the morning and we had only gotten to bed less than three hours ago. The source of the sound turned out to be the altered cellphone that Grell and Ashura had issued me after the players’ meeting. “Who in hell would call me at this hour? Whatever this is about had better be a matter of life or death,” I grumbled as I snatched up the offensive device and tapped the icon to answer the call. “Mmmmhello?” I mumbled sleepily.

“Taelya? It’s Tien…” I could barely hear the young Vietnamese woman over the background noise of crashes and screams, not that I was really conscious enough to focus that well anyway. Her next words though, managed to pierce the fog of sleepiness and brought me wide awake. “We need help, the village is under attack!”