A Simple Life Ch. 60-71

Chapter 60

As I approach my door I can already hear Winona and Brayden bantering within. There was no aggression in their tones, it wasn't an argument, but they were definitely busting each other's balls.

I step through the door and swing it closed behind me. As I place my backpack beside the closet I announce. "I'm home."

Appearing from out of my kitchen comes a Winona shaped cannon ball. The next thing I knew her hands were jammed up into my armpits and I am lifted up off of the ground and pushed back against the door. Leaning her chest into mine she pins me there with her weight and her impressive upper body strength, my feet dangling half a foot from the floor. Her hazel eyes glimmer as she gazes into me.

"Um. Hi." I smile.

"Hey." She smiles back. Keeping me pinned and suspended her eyes circle around to check me out as best she could at this close distance. "Nice poncho."

"Thanks." I giggle. "You're getting wet."

"You ain't lyin Sprout."

The very next moment her lips are pressed hard into mine. "Mmmmm." I melt to her touch.

"Jesus! Get a room or something." Comes Brayden's voice from the living room but neither Winona nor I pay him any heed.

"Mmmm." We hum as the kiss lingers on and on. Ohhhh. What a way to come home!

With a smack her lips leave mine, the smooch ending as suddenly as it began and leaving us both breathless.

"Miss me?" I ask.

"Just a little." She says as she gently puts me down. Stepping back I can see that she was wearing a relaxed fitting and low hanging blue v neck blouse and blue jeans. It was simple and casual but that woman could make a garbage bag look cool. "Mmm." She rolls her lips around, savoring my taste in her mouth. "Welcome home."

"Wow!"

"Where's my kiss?" Quips Brayden.

"Get your own man." Winona quips right back. She pats my chest. "Come on. Check it out." With that she disappears back through the kitchen.

My head whirling and still catching my breath I hang up my poncho and take up my pack to follow. I had put in the leaf for the dining room table before heading out to work and Winona had used every inch of the extended space. On the end she had set up the Fable Master's screen and behind it she had piles of books and notes. On the other side there was laid out a vinyl mat with a hexagon grid that took up most of the rest of the table. A stack of blank character sheets sat in the center of the mat. With every chair in the place around the table we had just enough for the group. I notice the jade colored set of dice Winona had given me already sitting out in the spot just to the right of the screen.

"Th-This will work?" I ask.

"This is great." Winona says. "I'm going to put Briar on the other end so she can help the newbies."

"We're all newbies." I say as I begin pulling out the snacks and drinks. "Except for her."

"Good." She nods. "A fresh slate to work from."

"I don't know why you guys can't just play online like normal people." Brayden grumbles.

This starts another back and forth between the pair which I leave to them. I put the drinks in the fridge and lay out the snacks in bowls.

"I'm just gonna f-freshen up." I say to Winona and she shoots me a thumbs a up in response. As I pass by the living room I pause and give Brayden a double take. He was in a clean pair of jeans and a recently ironed collared t shirt which hugged his body. His hair was brushed, his face shaved, and was that a hint of cologne I smelled? He looked better now than he did for his job interview.

He looks up at me annoyed. "What?"

"N-Nothin." I grin and keep walking.

I quickly change out of my work clothes into something more comfortable then pop over to the washroom to brush my hair and my teeth. It was when I was doing the latter that Winona's head appears through the open door. "Mind some company?"

"Uh..." I spit the foamy paste. "...no?"

"Thanks." She slips in and closes the door behind her. Shaking her hands in front of her she whispers. "Ahhh! I'm so nervous!"

I rinse my mouth then wipe it. "You're g-gonna be great." I assure her.

"I dunno Avery. This is my first time. I am so under prepared. And Briar's been under all these experienced Fable Masters, Cain watches the best of the best every week, and for the rest of you it's up to me to leave a good impression of the game. Gah!"

"You two bangin in there?" Calls Brayden. We ignore him.

"You are gonna be amazing." I say. "I know you will. A-And we're all here to have fun and play a game, not to judge. It's gonna be okay."

"Rrm. I guess." She sighs. "You're right. It'll be fine." She stands a moment then blurts out. "I gotta piss." Stepping past me she lifts the toilet lid and seat. Pulling up the hem of her blouse she unbuckles, unbuttons, unzips, then unleashes the mighty serpent that lives in her pants.

Despite myself I gawk. I still wasn't used to seeing one so big.

Catching me staring she glances over and winks. "Ya wanna hold it?"

"Wh-What?"

"Ya wanna hold my dick as I go?"

I consider the offer then answer as clearly and concisely as I can. "Yes. Yes I do."

"All yours." She lets go of her cock and lets it swing free. "Better hurry though or shits about to get wet."

I rush to her side and grab her warm, soft penis in my left hand. My right slips around her waist. I point it at the bowl, really loving the feel of her flaccid member in my hand. I just loved her dick, soft or hard it was amazing. Right now it was so soft and squishy and spongy, and much thicker than mine at my best despite her being totally soft. Holding up her shirt with her right hand she puts her left arm around my shoulders. A moment later I feel the surge of urine along the underside and a moment after that a thick stream of yellow.

It was an odd sensation holding another's penis as they went piss. It was kinda like holding my own yet totally different. I didn't get the relief of the emptying bladder, the only feeling I had of it was coming through my fingers, the angle was different so I had to be extra careful to keep the stream steady, and, in the case of Winona, the stream was just so much more.

This probably should have felt at least a little nasty and yet nothing about this was unclean. She was clean and at no point do either of us catch any spray. It was odd to be sure but the strange intimacy of it made it also kinda fun. The stream dribbles to an end and I give her a squeeze and a shake to finish the job then even go the extra mile to tuck her back away again.

Winona nuzzles into my temple and kisses me. "Thanks Sprout."

"Your welcome."

She zips up and walks around me to wash and dry her hands despite not touching anything, I follow behind her and do the same. She looks at herself in the mirror and stands tall, her natural confidence reasserting itself. "I got this."

"You got this." I echo from beside her. "You'll be the best Fable Master ever."

She turns to me. "That means a lot Avery." Her brows crinkle and her focus zeros in. "What's this?" Before I can do anything Winona licks her thumb and gives the concealer under my left eye a firm swipe. The hard, bright lights of the washroom had given me away. Her smile disappears in an instant as my ugly bruise is revealed and the fire that I see ignite inside of her frightens me.

I cover my eye and turn away from her. "A s-s-st-stick poked me when I was ex-exploring."

Grabbing me by the shoulders she turns me and pushes me back against the wall opposite the sink. Taking my chin she turns my face, her other hand pulls mine away. She takes a close look at the bruise, her eyes hard and probing behind the lenses of her glasses. "Who did this to you?"

"N-N-Nobody. I was c-careless."

"Bullshit!"

I flinch at her aggressive tone and shrink back against the wall. "Mmmm!"

Struggling mightily to control her tone she says. "Just tell me who did this to you Avery. Okay?"

"I-I was ex-exploring..."

"Why are you lying?"

"I'm n-n-not..."

"Where were you exploring then? What part of the island? When did it happen? Was it before or after work?"

"Uh...um...mmm...l-last n-n-night..."

"You were out at sea last night." Her voice crackles with barely contained anger. "Did your Grandpa hit you?"

"NO! He w-would never."

"Who? Tell me!"

"Ummm...ummm...hmmmm!"

"What the hell you guys doin in there?" Brayden calls.

Like a terminator machine acquiring its target Winona's head snaps toward the sound of my roommate's voice. "Was it fucking him?"

"No! N-No." I whimper. "Stop! St-Stop it. It w-w-was my f-fault. It was a br-br-branch."

Seeing me fall apart with distress her expression softens and her tensed body relaxes. She takes a long, deep breath. Laying a hand over my chest she says in a very gentle voice. "Shhh. It's okay Avery. It's okay."

I cover my face again and turn away from her feeling ugly because of the bruise, ashamed because of my lie, stupid for thinking she wouldn't notice, and retched for ruining what could have been a fun night. "It w-was a st-stick."

After a few seconds of still she reaches up and softly pets my hair. "Aw Sprout." A moment later I am pulled into a warm embrace.

***

Chapter 61

There in my washroom I stand with Winona's strong arms around me. Gradually I relax into the embrace, lightly resting my head on her shoulder, and at that point she hugs me even harder.

"It hurts extra bad when it's someone close." She whispers. "The blame, the shame. Not wanting to be seen as a problem or a victim. Not wanting the attention. Thinking it was just a misunderstanding. Thinking that maybe if you'd done something different it wouldn't have happened. Thinking that maybe you deserved it somehow." She kisses my head. "It's not your fault."

I look up at her, touched by the insight of her words. "You?"

She shakes her head. "Russell. They always find the quiet ones."

"Russell?"

She nods. "His first girlfriend."

"G-Girlfriend?"

"It happens. You never hear about it but it happens more than you know." She says. "He was such a big guy nobody even suspected. Not even me." Her face twitches as an old pain resurfaces. "Not even me." After a tense moment she blinks the memory from her vision and focuses on me again, her features softening once more. "You're not alone Avery. When you're ready to talk I'll be here." She pets my hair and strokes my cheeks and dips down so that she can look into my eyes. "Okay?"

I nod.

"Okay?" She gently probes. "Okay?"

"Okay." I whisper.

"Okay." She smiles a warm smile. Stepping back she smooths out my shirt. "You're with me now Sprout. You don't gotta be afraid of nobody no more." She turns us so that we faced the mirror, her arm around my shoulders. She stands tall and squeezes me to her side. "Damn do we look good or what."

"Yeah." I say, my spirits lifted by her caring words. And despite my ugly shiner she didn't look at me any differently.

"You still up for this?" She asks. "I could make up something. We could just hang out if you want."

"No!" I say. "I w-wouldn't miss this f-for anything."

"That's my guy." She gives me a shake and a hard couple of pats to my chest. With a deep breath and a nod she lets me go and leaves the room. Immediately she and Brayden are back at it again.

"Enjoy yourselves?" Brayden says, his voice dripping with insinuation.

"Damn right. Hey, you guys got any breath mints or something?"

"Breath mi...? Awww, nasty!"

Winona chuckles. "You want that kiss now."

"NO!"

"Come here you."

"Get away from me!"

I giggle as I listen to the pair of them spar. Though I felt less ashamed of it I reapply the concealer anyway, just to avoid the questions. I wanted tonight to be all about Winona's game, I knew what this meant to her.

Unsurprisingly Briar is the first to show up. When I open the door for her I find her dripping wet in a bright yellow rain coat with an equally bright smile on her face.

"Hello Althea." She chirps cheerfully as she steps in.

"He he he! Hi."

Brayden was suddenly right behind me. Reaching past me he offers his hand. "Hey. I'm Brayden."

"Oh!" She unslings a satchel and then wipes her hands on her soggy pants then shakes his hand. "Briar."

"You're right" He slaps my shoulder. "She's cute."

"Oh!" Briar blushes and so do I.

"Th-This is m-my roommate. H-He'll be in the living room." I give him a look. "Quietly." I take her coat and hang it for her.

"Hey Briar." Winona greets her as she approaches the table. "Did you walk or something?"

"Yep." She says. "Oooo! You got the Master's edition set! Nice."

"Huh? Oh, yeah." Winona takes up one of the large black and green tomes sitting behind the screen. Opening the front cover she says. "Number 61 of a hundred."

Briar positively fawns over the book, praising the feel of the pages, the quality of the binding and cover, and the richness of the art. Winona was in her nerdy glory to have someone as into this stuff as she was. Brayden attempts to interject himself into the conversation but the pair of them were off and running speaking in a language only they understood.

Cain and Riley were the next to show. When I open the door my ears are left ringing as Riley exclaims. "Happy Game Day!" Held in front of her was a long plastic container. "I brought cup cakes and brownies!"

"And pizza." Cain says from behind her, a stack of two huge pizza boxes in his hands topped by a pair of six packs of soda. "I hope you all are hungry."

"We are!" Brayden calls.

"Y-You didn't h-have to." I say. "I h-have snacks."

"Never enough." Riley winks. Attracted by the sound of other female voices Riley hurries past me to join the chatter.

Cain steps in and passes me the boxes. "She insisted."

"It's c-cool." I grin.

From the entry way Cain steps into the living room. "Bray."

"Hey man."

While hardly friends the pair of them knew each other from school and start up a polite conversation. I hover near the peripheries and play the host, busying myself with bringing out plates and glasses and opening up the cupcakes to lay out near the other snacks and starting the kettle for a pot of tea. All the while though I listen to the others talking and laughing and joking around and soak in their upbeat energy. When was the last time this apartment sounded like this? Had it ever?

And fashionably late, as usual, Kayla is the last to roll in. When I open the door she flips up her shades and open her arms. "Eyyy pal."

"Hi Kayla."

We hug. Keeping her voice low she says. "So what happened?"

"Happened?"

"After the party." She pokes my belly. "You and Winnie. She wouldn't tell."

I smile bashfully and shrug. "Nothin."

"I know that smile." She pinches my cheek. "You dog." She hugs me again. "I'm so happy for you both."

"Thank you."

"If she gets to be too much you let me know, okay? I can talk to her."

"I w-will." I say. "Thank you for b-being my best friend Kayla. You r-really mean a lot to me."

"Awww! Oh my God, of course Avery. You mah boy. You know that."

"Sorry." I say with a sheepish grin. "I'm just feeling k-kinda...blessed right now. I-I've never had p-people over like this. Everyone's so h-happy. It's n-nice."

She pokes my chest. "Didn't I say that people would like you if you just let them in?"

"Yeah."

"And your Gramps."

"Yeah."

"Sometimes we actually know what we're talking about."

"Yeah."

"KAYLA!" Cries Riley so loudly that I wondered if we'd be getting complaints later. "Get in here! Save me from the geeks!"

"Too late for that Riley." Winona laughs. "You're one of us now! Bwa ha ha ha!"

With the party assembled the group gathers around the table, initially eating pizza and chatting about what kind of characters they were each going to make. I cannot help but smirk as, now that Kayla was here, Brayden had clammed up completely. Three times I notice him try to muster the nerve to initiate something with her and three times I watch him back down again. Poor guy. I always knew he lusted after her but I never realized just how bad he had it for my bestie. On the other end Kayla is oblivious to it as she was too busy trying to hit on Briar, who in turn was way too caught up talking about FoF to notice the flirtations as anything more than friendly chit chat. The whole thing was actually kinda hilarious to watch. More than once Winona and I glance at each other and share a chuckle. It all culminates when Brayden finally gives up and sparks up a joint.

"Oh!" Briar says right away. "I didn't realize this was a smoking place."

"T-Technically it's not." I say.

"I'm sorry. Mmf." Briar's nose crinkles and twitches like a bunny's. "Sorry...I can't stay if..."

Kayla swoops to the rescue. "Brayden was just taking it outside." She glares at him. "Weren't you Brayden?"

Brayden, joint hanging from his lips, stares at Kayla a moment. I cringe as I expect the next words out of his mouth to be 'fuck you'. Instead, my wise cracking roomie who had so recently claimed that he never simps, nods and quietly excuses himself to the balcony.

"Thank you Mr. Brayden. I appreciate it." Briar calls as the balcony door slides closed. She then turns back to us, a tiny woman with a humongous smile. She claps her hands and rubs them then dumps her dice bag out in front of her. "Alright! Let's roll some characters!"

***

Chapter 62

Her slender fingers fidgeting with a triangular iron token Althea the elven wizard sits at the big central table of Rudolf's Rest, an all services inn and general store that sat at an important crossroads near the edge of civilized lands. On the back of the chair beside her is perched a glossy black raven. It tilts its head and lets out a low croak.

"They'll be here Touka." Althea whispers. "Mistress Ara said they would be here and they will."

And so Althea waits for the four strangers whose fates were about to bound to her own.

With the legendary Mayhems fading into retirement the realm had need for a new group of heroes. While nature abhors a vacuum the blight of evil thrives in it. And as the Mayhem's great deeds pass into the tomes of history all of their good works had already begun to unravel. Monsters stirred once more in the dark corners of the map and corruption stamped out now smoldered again. The world needed a new band of heroes that could be turned to when times were dire. And where there was a need there was profit to be had.

Though each member of that celebrated group were already wealthy beyond the dreams of most mortals they were still shrewd enough to see a financial opportunity where there was one. While they had each moved on to another phase of their lives the Mayhem name could still fill a purpose and so the original trio had chosen their successors to carry on their important work under the same famous banner, with a mere twenty percent cut off the top for brand usage.

"Still waiting?" Asks the barmaid as she passes by. "Who ya waitin for darlin?"

"Heroes!" Althea smiles.

The wench chuckles. "I'll let ya know if I see one."

Just then the main door swings open and a soft breeze scented of sun warmed forest flowers freshens the room. Framed in the open space by is the hour glass figure of an extremely voluptuous woman. Her curvaceous hips were nearly as wide as the opening and her massive tits seemed to sway under a gravity of their own. She had fawn colored skin, glimmering green eyes, and a curly length of red hair. Sprouting up from that hair stretched two long rabbit's ears. Her strange outfit wasn't just skimpy, it was barely there! It consisted of a single length of pink cloth leading up from her white belt over one breast, around the back of her neck, down the other breast, and ending back on the belt again and then two more pink scraps barely a foot across to hang down from the belt to cover her crotch in the front and the crack of her big round bottom with its little puffball tail at the back. She carried with her precisely three objects. Around her neck she wore the symbol of her healing god, the Great Lepus. In her right hand she held a wooden club carved in the shape of a huge carrot. And in her left she clutched a triangular bit of iron.