An Adventuring Succubus Ch. 01

He watched as Lily rummaged through his pack, laying out the clothes and looking at them appraisingly. "Hm. Well, they'll have to do. I can get something nicer once we're in town. Oh, there's the potion! Wonderful." She unstoppered the vial and drank. The horns and wings vanished and her ears lengthened to points -- in a moment she was no longer a demon, but a stunningly attractive elf woman. She pulled one of the tunics over her head, then stepped into her undergarments, trousers, and boots, her original outfit vanishing as she went.

The girl straightened up, holding out her hands. "Well?"

Brennan blinked hard, then looked her over. It was much easier to think without there being so much of... her... on display. "What are you asking?"

"Do I look normal? I mean, could I go into a human town like this?"

He shrugged. "I suppose." Her chest strained suggestively against the cloth of her tunic, but she didn't look like a demon. "Why? Are you going to attack someone?" Gods above, what was he helping her to do?

"Hmm? Oh, no. I'm going to become an adventurer!" She beamed at him.

Brennan stared. "You're... I don't understand. You're a monster, you can't join an adventuring guild."

The demon pouted, batting her eyes at him. "But it's so boring out here! I don't want to wander around the woods forever, seducing some scruffy lumberjack here and there. The last adventurer I met talked about how exciting it was -- traveling the world, going on quests, meeting interesting people."

The knight opened his mouth to speak, but she kept talking. "So I thought, I could do that! Only I don't know how to, and people would attack me if I went into a city. But now I have you! For the disguise, and the potion, and to teach me how to adventure."

It was too much to take in. "But I can't," Brennan said. "I don't even know where to start. You'd be caught, and I'd be ruined. I can't go walking into Highwater with a demon in tow. Even if no one noticed, it would be suspicious, a high-level knight pairing with a first level... whatever."

She scowled. "I beat you."

"Well, that's different. You can't seduce a hydra." He paused. "Can you?"

She shrugged. "I'd rather not try..."

"And if you use your magic to win fights, you'll give yourself away. It won't work." He hesitated, trying to gather his resolve. "Look, I got what you wanted. I'll just go back to town, and you can plan out whatever you're doing."

She walked up and pressed herself against his chest, sliding her arms around his neck and resting her head on his shoulder. "Don't you want me to stay with you?"

Damn it. "No, I -- we can't just - " He could feel his heart beat accelerate.

She pushed her leg against his groin. Despite their recent activity, his body responded, immediately and feverishly. "It would be an exchange. You'd help me, and I'd take care of you." She put her lips to his ear. "I'd let you cum for me, every night. Wouldn't that be nice?" she whispered.

He couldn't fight her. "Y-yeah. Alright," he choked out. "Okay."

Lily pulled away from him, smiling. "Great! Let's get started, it'll be dark soon. Oh, this is so exciting. I've never been to town before." She waited for Brennan to collect his bag, then set off a few paces ahead of him, half skipping with glee. "What class do you think I should be? Or, do I get to choose?" She produced a black ribbon from somewhere, tying her hair into a ponytail as they went.

The knight answered her questions while they walked back, still mulling over how he could get out of this. At this point, he wasn't sure he wanted to. He felt warm and alive just being around her, even with her aura dimmed. He knew the attraction, the way his body was drawn to hers, was part of her magic. But maybe that didn't matter. For the moment, at least, he needed to plan what they'd do in town. He'd never had an apprentice before; if only his situation were that simple now. How was he going to explain where he'd met the gorgeous elf he was following, and how was he going to train a succubus to be an adventurer?

"I owed him a favor," Brennan was explaining to Sully. Both of them were watching Lily, who was talking animatedly to a pair of men at one of the tables in the Roughshod Rose. "So he called it in, said his daughter wanted to be an adventurer. The elves don't have guilds, not the same way we do, so he brought her here and asked me to help her get started."

"Huh." Sully glanced at the kitchen behind him, then returned to watching the girl. "She's something, that one is. You two, uh. You aren't..."

Brennan had been expecting this. Even dressed in rough travel close, Lily was still supernaturally beautiful. "No, of course not. It wouldn't be appropriate."

"'Course not. Sorry, had to ask." Sully rapped his knuckles twice against the heavy oak bar. "I hear you, gods damn it," he bellowed at a group of merchants. "No need for that language, I'll be over with another round in a moment." He huffed in irritation and began filling mugs from the tapped keg.

"Brennan!" Lily called as he walked over. "Dane was telling me about their last contract. A wyvern!" Her face glowed with excitement.

"Well," Dane said, leaning a well-muscled and heavily scarred arm on the table, "Early start tomorrow, should be turning in soon. Got a room upstairs -- could finish the story there, if you like."

Lily started to speak but Brennan cut her off. "Same for us, I'm afraid. Another time."

Dane gave a cautious nod, downed his last swallow of ale, and pushed off from the table before making for the stairs.

Lily's brow was furrowed. "I wanted to hear the rest of the story," she complained in a low voice. "It was so interesting."

Brennan sighed. "He wanted to sleep with you. That's what he meant, inviting you upstairs."

"Oh. Why didn't say that, then? I'd have said yes."

"That's not how it works, I guess. With most people." The knight shrugged. "But listen, you can't have sex with everyone we meet."

She nodded pensively. "But why not? I mean, not with everyone. But I like having sex." She smiled lewdly. "A girl's gotta eat, after all."

"It's, ah." How could he put it so she'd understand? "If you're an adventurer, you'll often work as part of a group. And relationships can cause division within that group, especially if they're complicated by one person tying all those relationships together." Did that make sense? He wasn't sure.

"Oh. You mean people might fight over me?" Lily grinned. "That sounds fun."

"Right, but maybe the next time you try to join a group contract, people don't want you in the group because of all the infighting? You don't want a reputation as a troublemaker."

"So I need to be discreet. That makes sense." She kissed him quickly on the cheek. "I'm so glad you're here, to tell me things like that."

Brennan bit his lower lip and nodded, trying to keep himself calm. The warmth of her lips tingled where she'd touched him. "Yes. Well. I rented rooms for both of us," he said, handing her a worn brass key. "Last door down, second floor."

"Oh. We're not sleeping together?"

"It would be inappropriate," he said, lowering his voice and keeping an eye on Sully. Luckily, the man hadn't been paying attention. "Because of the story I used. People would think I was, you know. Taking advantage."

Lily winked at him. "Don't worry, darling, you can take advantage later. Alright, then. Bedtime."

Brennan waited till she'd left the bar, then exhaled slowly. The first day in town had gone better than he'd expected.

"You two leaving first thing tomorrow?" Sully asked, walking over while cleaning a mug.

Brennan nodded.

"Safe travels, then. Till next time you're in the Crossing." He lowered his voice, leaning in conspiratorially. "I'd take care with that girl of yours, Bren. Maybe just intuition, but I think she might be sweet on you."

The knight gave him a tight-lipped smile. "Thanks for the heads up. Goodnight."

Brennan woke to the sound of his door closing. He began to carefully reach for the sword he kept beside his bed, until he recognized the silhouette passing in front of the window.

"Move over," Lily whispered, slipping under the covers and snuggling her butt up against his crotch. She pulled his arm around her and sighed contentedly. "That's much better, don't you think?"

Her hair smelled of petrichor and wildflowers, and Brennan found himself nuzzling against her neck, taking in her scent. "The morning," he murmured, still half awake. "When we leave the room. People will talk."

She laced her fingers through his, stroking his hand with her thumb. "So they'll talk," she said. "I don't mind. Do you?"

Brennan decided that he didn't.