High above the mainland, floated an island in the sky. By no means was it a serene place as you might expect; it looked like a gothic castle and a graveyard had been suspended in midair, floating aimlessly wherever it so pleased. Within this castle, a lone adventurer had been hacking his way through and, miraculously, had not perished yet. He was in way over his head, but seemed determined to press on.

 Shute stumbled forth, covered in his own blood. One final enemy remained before the Dark Lord's chamber, and thankfully, it was one of the more common foes littering the lair. It would be no threat, but this far into a dungeon, energy was a precious commodity. Shute was postively exhausted.

 "Haaaaah..." rasped a zombie, before taking the full brunt from the edge of a blessed claymore. Its head was cleanly severed, and landed a few feet away with a solemn thud.

 Shute turned his attention towards two massive obsidian doors across the chamber. It was rather obvious what laid on the other side.

 "You... bastard..." Shute muttered under his breath, and shambled his way towards the mammoth sized doors.

 ~~~

 Far below the event happening in the castle above, back on the mainland...

 A gorgeous field of plains and flowers makes an odd scene for combat, alas...

 Two women found themselves surrounded by bandits. One of them seemed nervous and skittish, whilst the other appears defiant and unfazed.

 The battle didn't last long-- the bandits had clearly underestimated their prey. However, one remained...

 Barth half-heartedly dropped his battleaxe. The corpses of his brothers-at-arms lay in various macabre heaps around. How could twenty men fail to take out two women? Well, the answer was quite simple. These were not ordinary women, a fact that would have been useful to know before engaging in combat.

 They turned to him, making eye contact. One was pale, dressed in nearly full black gothic attire, with a frilled skirt, and a hood draped over her head, helping to shield her from the sun. Beneath her hood, Barth could make out two eyes, slightly radiant on their own merit, with her irises slightly glowing yellow-- they quickly glanced away. He figured he knew what she really was, but in his heart, he couldn't accept the possibility. The other adversary, however, was a far cry different. She was dressed in elegant white robes, sparsely adorned with golden inlays, trinkets, and borders. By all accounts she seemed reminiscent of an ancient Cleric, but... why would a half-tiefling choose such a profession?

 "I... I surrender!" Barth yelled at the victors, and began into a full sprint in the opposite direction. He didn't get far, before a throwing knife penetrated his ankle.

 "AGGHH!" Barth screamed in pain, before landing on the ground.

 The two women walked over to him.

 "I'm sorry," the hooded one sheepishly apologized. She was promptly, but lightly, jabbed in her ribcage by her ally, the Cleric.

 "Don't apologize, Remura!" the Cleric scolded her ally, before turning her fiery gaze to the man writhing on the ground, "This little bitch is the enemy. They attacked us, we have nothing to apologize for."

 Remura held her head down, unable to think of anything else to say.

 "Anyway. It's about time for you to feed, isn't it, Remura?" the Cleric continued, still staring daggers into the prone bandit, who promptly went pale once he heard the statement.

 Remura merely nodded, very slightly. She didn't seem extremely thrilled about what was supposed to happen next.

 "Well, well... Did you hear that, you little prick?" the Cleric antagonized Barth, before stomping on his ankle. The wounded ankle.

 Barth screamed in pain, even harder than he did earlier.

 "Celeste! S-stop...! Umm... That's.. cruel," Remura interjected, and lightly pulled on the Cleric's shoulder.

 Celeste whipped her head back to face Remura, but her expression was that of a sadist. Her mouth was forming a cruel smile, and her crimson irises really showed off her demonic heritage. Being a half-tiefling, her skin was more the color and hue of a human, but she had horns framing backwards upon her head and a tail making its way out of the back of her robes. Besides those features, she otherwise seemed mostly human, with tan skin and dark brown hair.

 "Well, Remura? He's as good as any. Have one of your friends hold him up, I'm not sure if I can resist the urge to torture him any more," Celeste sighed, and took a few steps away, to begin looting corpses for anything useful.

 Left alone, Barth began to edge his way backwards from Remura.

 Remura whispered once again, but it wasn't in any language Barth was able to comprehend. Suddenly, four skeletal hands burst out of the ground from beneath him, and caught him by each limb.

 "What the fuck!?" Barth yelled aloud, as two skeletons emerged from the dirt and held him upright, in somewhat of a standing position. They were rather strong for being just bones, but knowledge of the undead wasn't really the specialty of a common bandit. One skeleton bent Barth's head at an angle, holding him as still as it could manage. Remura tentatively took several steps towards Barth after he was restrained.

 Once again, Remura spoke softly, "I'm... sorry, I hate doing this..."

 Remura briefly took down her hood, allowing Barth to make out more details of her appearance. She was just as comely as the Cleric, but more in an innocent way. Her irises were golden, and her skin was pale white, along with her hair, as well. She looked to be an older teenager, perhaps eighteen or so, but her expression was that of someone who had seen enough sorrow for several lifetimes. Finally, her lips parted, and it finally clicked in Barth's head exactly what was about to happen.

  Several minutes later, Remura made her way back to Celeste just in time to see the last coin drop into the Cleric's satchel. Celeste turned to meet her ally, and smirked.

 "You... uh.. got a little blood left on your chin, there," Celeste pointed out, and handed Remura a strip of cloth torn from the possessions of one of the bandits.

 ~~~

 Back in the sky...

 A window shatters at the top of the castle, a man flung by a blast of dark magic is ejected to his death. The shards of the window reform themselves, and Shute is sent into a freefall towards the mainland. 

 Shute, however, is lucky, in a sense, for he is unconscious for most of the fall. He only wakes up moments before impact...

 "...!? I'm falling!" I realized, before promptly smacking face-first into what appeared to be the giant leaf of a flower, which broke my fall just enough to make it non-fatal. Soon after, I eat dirt as I land on the ground below. I'm still fueled by adrenaline from my fight and subsequent flight, and I shoot up to my feet to take in my surroundings. It almost appeared to be a different world, for everything was many times the size than I remembered them to be. Every blade of grass was closer to that of a tree now, and the closest landmark I could make out was...

 I nearly choked on my own spit. "Is... that... a man? Lying on his back?" I pondered to myself. The man was positively massive, but... Whether I was in another dimension, or shrunken by the Dark Lord's magic, I figured I would need some assitance of some sort. However, while I would seem like the brave sort, I only tore through the Dark Lord's castle fueled by my own rage and desire for revenge, and even then I was lucky to make it to the Dark Lord's chamber. As I approach the giant, I begin to doubt myself. If this man's not friendly, I'd be done for, no two ways about it.

 "M-maybe.. maybe I shouldn't wake him," I began to rethink my plan, until I noticed something strange. The man was bleeding from his neck. I swallowed a lump in my throat-- this was a corpse.

 Suddenly, the ground was slightly vibrating with what felt like footsteps. Was someone approaching? I had no choice but to hide, somehow, and quickly decided to hide in the giant's coinpurse at his waist. I tugged as hard as I could to open the top, and thankfully, it opened up just enough for me to make my way inside and sit on top of a copper coin. I was sweating now, and actually felt a great deal of fear as the footfalls of some unknown wanderer made their way closer to my location. I steel myself, and listen.

 "Well, Remura, this is the last one. You forgot to check him for any valuables, I bet," a feminine voice somewhat booms from nearby. It's loud, but not loud enough to hurt my ears. It's... well, pretty intimidating.

 I break into a cold sweat as I realize exactly the implications of what the woman was saying. Whoever they were, they were obviously about to check this man for anything of use, and I was sitting on top of his damn money! Did they kill him? Was I about to be in danger, too? I start to hyperventilate, and wait.

 "I... um... don't like to touch... the dead," a softer voice replied.

 "You know, it's really weird to hear a necromancer admit that," the first voice retorts, in a sassy manner. "And I think it's also really weird how you thank your skeletons right before they crumble back to the ground, as well," she added, in more of a joking tone.

 A... necromancer!? Damn it, this can't be good! I've always been told necromancers and their associates are nefarious and evil.

 "Ah! Found the wallet," the louder voice announced.

 I felt myself being lifted into the air, along with the rest of the coinpurse. I was trapped, and about to meet... well, most likely, my end.

 ~~~

 Celeste opened the coin purse, and took a look inside.

 "What the fuck..." Celeste announced, and reached her hand inside.

 Remura perked up, just a little bit. "What is it, Celeste?"

 Celeste pulled her hand out, and opened it. There, in the center of her palm, huddled up with his knees to his chest, was a tiny, unarmed man, looking terrified, like a prisoner about to get beheaded in front of the King.

 Everyone stayed silent for a moment, but, Celeste broke the silence first.

 ~~~

 "What's up, pipsqueak?" Celeste taunted me, causing me to cringe and subtlely back up a little bit, only to be blocked by her fingers.

 I wanted to answer, I honestly did. But I found it very hard to speak. Being held so high off the ground, in the hands of a potential murderer who may have had a part in the death of the man below me... Well, there was no two ways about it. I was terrified. "H--... H--" I tried to form words, but failed.

 The other one, Remura, I think her name was, started to approach as well. I glanced at her, and recognized the tell-tale signs of a vampire. Luminescent yellow eyes which seemed to glow on their own, ancient attire. She was pretty skinny compared to the horned woman holding me, who seemed to be leaning a bit more on the curvaceous side. But, as attractive as either of them were, something told me: I was screwed. I quickly covered my head with my hands, and curled up into a ball. I wasn't sure what it would accomplish, but I couldn't think of anything else to do that would keep me from panicking.

~~~

 Celeste sighed. "Come the fuck on, pipsqueak, it's not like we're not going to hurt you," she said, sounding annoyed with the man curled up in her hand. He continued to clam up. "Ugh. Remura, hold on to him while I check this other guy. You're better at the whole being nice shit than I am. Maybe you can get him to talk."

 "Umm... o-okay..." Remura timidly replied, and held out a pale hand to collect Shute.

 ~~~

 I felt myself being deposited into the hands of the other lady, Remura. Instantly, while she seemed to handle me more delicately than Celeste, her hands were profoundly colder in general. She was absolutely an undead.

 ~~~

 I walked a short distance away from Celeste as she searched the fallen bandit. She seemed mean and short-tempered on the outside, but deep down I knew she had good intentions at heart. I carefully sat down, and unfurled my hands to speak to the little one. He looked up at me with fear in his eyes, and I wasn't sure whether it was because he knew what I was, or because I was so huge in comparison.

 ~~~

 "M-m-my name's R-Remura, what's... your name..?" Remura asked me, her voice quivering. When I made eye contact with the colossal vampire holding me, she quickly broke her gaze and looked elsewhere, almost everywhere else, except me.

 It was so strange. She seemed as scared of me, as I was of her, and I wasn't sure why. The circumstances, however, did seem to make it easier for me to actually speak this time. I was still shaking, but at least my voice was working.

 "My... name is, Shute, ma'am..." I squeaked out. It wasn't eloquent, but I was smaller than her thumb, and was thankful I didn't seem to be in any danger at the moment. If either of them wished it, I would be a trivial matter to dispose of.

 "...oh! Um, no need to refer to me so cordially, Mr. Shute," Remura replied, instantly breaking her own request by referring to me in a cordial manner. "May I ask... how you b-became so tiny..?"

 Again, her eyes were dancing all over the place, trying to do anything except look at me. Remura seemed to be as non-threatening as possible, which I was grateful for. I glanced, a bit nervously, at her ally in the distance: Celeste. She seemed to be a great deal more intimidating, and I breathed a sigh of relief I was able to speak to Remura.

 "I... lost a fight," I managed to reply.

 "Oh, is... is that so? I'm sorry to hear that, sir," Remura trailed off, before following up, "So they must have shrunken you... Who... um... was it?"

 I managed to point at the island in the clouds.

 Remura's face looked, well, shocked, for once. "You-- you fought... Him?"

 I nodded. "I didn't know he could cast such a spell. Or how strong he would be. I was a fool." I lowered my head in shame.

 "N-no, I'm impressed, a-actually. You went alone...?" Remura asked.

 Again, I nodded.

 "Wow..." she breathed, and cracked a small, sad smile. "I wish I were as brave as you are, s-sir..."

 I lifted my head, and she continued to avert her gaze. If she had any blood coursing through her veins still, I half expected her to have been blushing with the way she was acting at this moment.

 I found it increasingly difficult to remain scared of the giantess holding me. She was very gentle in her words, they were always soft, even to my small ears.

 "I'm... well, I mean, I'm not all that brave. You two... are the first people I've encountered since I've been shrunken. It's a bit intimidating, actually, so I'm sorry if I seem tense," I began to explain myself, while Remura turned her gaze fully on me for once. For all my merit, I tried to not let it scare me, having the full attention of someone who could squash me like an insect. "Please, please... I just want to live. You guys aren't going to um... hurt me, right?" I said, and motioned to the dead men around us.

 Remura broke her gaze, and quickly scanned the environment, seeming taking note of all of the dead bodies, before turning back to me. "Oh, no, no no no! They attacked us first, sir... I think they were just... bandits of some.. sort," Remura calmly explained. "We were just passing through, and mean you no harm," she replied, desperately sounding worried about getting their innocence across. 

 I breathed a sigh of relief. An image went through my mind of the man with the bloody neck, and it made a lot more sense now.

 "I um.. you said something.. earlier," Remura started.

 "Yes?" I asked, confused. As gentle as Remura was, I still felt like I was walking on eggshells. I wanted to be as compliant as possible, answer any question, and get on their good side. The power dynamic of a conversation is very different when someone is the size of a castle compared to you. Even someone timid like Remura still commands my absolute attention, whether she realizes it or not. No matter how respectful she was being, I hadn't forgotten my newfound stature.

 "You.. said we're the.. um, first people you've met after your... battle..." Remura recounted, and quickly glimpsed at me for my reaction.

 I scratched my head. That was exactly what I'd told her. What was so strange about it?

 "Y-yes, ma'am..." I answered, with a rising feeling of dread. What could it mean? I was out here alone, with no allies... could she possibly mean...

 I had no one else. I'd told her that they were the first people I'd run across. That means I'm in a vurnerable spot, with no witnesses to know if I were to randomly go missing now. She could do anything to me right here and now, and no one would even know. Besides her own ally, of course. Damn it.

 I felt myself starting to sweat... "I..." I started to speak up, before Remura finished her train of thought.

 "You called us... people..." Remura whispered, sounding like she was ready to cry.

 Huh? Was... that the wrong thing to say...? "I'm... sorry if I--" I began to apologize, before being brought abruptly toward's Remura's chest. "Agghhh!" I yelped in surprise.

 Remura held me in place, in what must have been some sort of bizarre hug. Her dress was soft, and being the thin girl that she was, her... um... breasts weren't very pronounced... But I found myself blushing extraordinarily hard at that point.

 "... Everyone just calls us monsters, mister Shute," Remura softly spoke. "T-thank you so... so much."

 I was at a loss for words, so, I just awkwardly returned the hug as best as I could, before eventually being moved back into the original position when she had me in her hands.

 "You're quite welcome, Miss Remura," I managed to speak up. She looked extremely embarassed.

 The moment, however, was cut short as Celeste made her way back to us.

 "Guy didn't have shit, to be honest," Celeste spoke, sounding exasperated.

 I instantly felt a chill run up my spine, and pressed myself into Remura's fingers. Remura was easy to relax around, but I wasn't sure how to feel about Celeste just yet.

 Both Remura and Celeste noticed my unease.

 "Ohh~ I almost forgot about him," Celeste announced, with an upwards inflection present in her voice. Remura looked a little concerned, but not entirely worried. She must have noticed my trepidation, though.

 "S-Shute... This is Celeste," Remura introduced me to the horned Cleric, who energetically started waving at me. I managed to wave back, weakly, causing a wide grin to erupt of Celeste's face. "She's the extrovert between the two of us, but I promise she won't hurt you," Remura attempted to soothe me.

 "Did you get him to speak yet, Rem?" Celeste asked, and sat down beside Remura.

 I had to fight the urge to shrink away, and felt Celeste's crimson eyes focus on me.

 "I-I did. This is Shute. He's actually... um... kind of nice," Remura admitted. I felt a little flustered at such a direct compliment, from someone so shy.

 Celeste's eyes went wide. "Oh, little man. You're lucky. If Rem's vouching for you, then you're all clear."

 I awkwardly chuckled, not really sure how to respond to that. What if I wasn't in the clear? My mind asked me. I decided it was best not to know the answer.

 Out of the blue, Celeste asked a question, "Can I hold him, Rem?"

 My blood turned to ice. Remura was a calming presence, and quite easily the sort of person you'd want to meet if you ever found yourself shrunken without having a friend nearby. Celeste, on the other hand...

 "U-um... W-well. Is that okay with you, Shute...?" Remura asked me.

 I looked to meet Remura's gaze. She didn't seem too worried, but she was obviously concerned about how I might feel.

 "Pleaseee, cutie~?" Celeste urged me.

 Her initial cold attitude from earlier seemed to vanish once Remura had vouched for me. I wasn't sure which of the two of them were in charge, but, if they were a team, and if I wanted to get some help, they were my best chance. I can't imagine I'd find anyone else in this vast plain at my current size, and in all likelihood, I would have probably died to some random animal if left to my own devices. My fate was sealed the moment Celeste discovered me, and I was going to need to be brave once more. Braver even than when I challenged the Dark Lord in the sky.

 "I... uh... yes ma'am," I squeak out. It does not sound brave in the slightest. In fact, it's probably the most pitiful sentence I've ever uttered in my whole life.

 In a near instant, I'm snatched out of Remura's hands, causing her to gasp. It was painless, but still alarming.

 "Celeste...! Careful with him, please," Remura calmly chided her companion.

 "Sorry, sorry, sheesh," Celeste retorted, while holding me in one hand. Unlike Remura, Celeste didn't cradle me in her palms. I was held in one fist, with all fingers wrapped around me like a coccoon, with only my head poking out the top. It wasn't... uncomfortable or anything, and I could breathe just fine. But it certainly felt way more confining and dominant than the other method. I stared up at Celeste, wide eyed, wondering just what I'd gotten myself into.

 "Cat got your tongue?" Celeste teased, punctuated with a smirk.

 I couldn't help myself, but my voice quivered when I answered, "S-sorry, C-Celeste... I'm j-just a little... um... scared, t-to be honest."

 Celeste didn't seem super concerned about my confession. "Oh. Do I scare you, little one?"

 I nodded, weakly.

 Celeste chuckled lightly and cocked her head to the side. "Well, that can't be helped. I already told you neither of us are going to hurt you, so why are you still scared?"

 Really? Does this woman lack any empathy? I'm being held by someone who could easily pull my head off my body and thump it away like a berry. And to make matters worse, she's still only someone I just met! Does she want me to just, trust her immediately without even getting used to how small I am?

 Celeste leaned closer to me, her lips only a few inches from my head, but completely dominating my whole field of view. "Boo."

 I visibly shivered, and Celeste retreated backwards and started laughing her head off. "Hahaha!"

 "C-Celeste, you.. um, you.. don't have to tease him, do you?" Remura asked, looking worriedly in my direction. I instantly missed being alone with her again.

 "But it's so fun~ what's the harm in it?" Celeste pouted, and moved her other hand to cradle her fist, while her closest thumb begun to pet my hair. If it was meant to make me feel soothed, it was hardly working.

 "He... um... called us... people, earlier," Remura randomly blurted out.

 Celeste kept stroking my hair. "Oh really? Shit, little one, are you trying to get Rem's hand in marriage or something?" Celeste cackled again, causing Remura to bury her face in her hands. Bizarre as the situation was, I guess it really did mean something to Remura earlier when I said that.

 Celeste stopped stroking my hair, and handed me back to Remura, who promptly whispered sorry rapidly, several times, for her partner's behavior. 

 "I'm just fucking with you two," Celeste admitted, before speaking to me directly. "And, you. Welcome aboard. You're with us now. Your membership is non-negotiable."

 Remura smiled sweetly at me, and I felt extremely lucky to have made some allies so quickly. I'd have absolutely been dead out here on my own.

 "But..." Celeste leaned in closer, "If you make Rem cry, or piss me off, I'll swallow you alive and you can spend your last miserable hour alive in my stomach regretting whatever the fuck you did." Her voice was cold and solemn.

 I stared at her, eyes wide, and fervently nodded my head.

 "Celeste!" Remura half-shouted, the loudest I'd heard her be since meeting her. Her eyes were, well, shocked, to say the least. I was slightly pulled further from Celeste, while Remura looked back down at me, looking almost guilty.

 "She... um.. she doesn't mean that," Remura apologized.

 Celeste kept staring at me, and then busted out laughing. "Damn it, y'all need to lighten up. I was. Joking... Kinda, maybe..." Remura returned to staring daggers at Celeste, who eventually relented. "Still, little Shute, we've been through enough. Rem needs the company. She's never befriended a man before, they've all kind of been... well," Celeste vaguely gestured at the field of corpses, "Assholes."

 In a roundabout way, it was starting to make sense why Remura was acting so skittish whenever she interacts with me. I just thought she was naturally shy, which, maybe she was.

 "I promise I'm not here to cause any trouble, ladies. T-thank you for um... helping me..." I managed to speak up.

 "Of course. You're on the team now, dum-dum. If you ever need anything, just let us know. And if we need something from you, we'll ask," Celeste replied.

 How could I ever be of use to anyone at this size?

 "But.. I'm--" I began to interject, before getting interrupted.

 "A valued member of this party," Celeste strong-armed back at me. "We don't let one of our own talk down about themselves. Are you depressed or something? Rem. Give him a kiss and cheer him up."

 Remura fidgeted nervously, "Celeste...!" Remura focused her gaze on me, briefly, as eye contact seemed to be her weak-point. "She's... going to be teasing us a lot, Shute. Please pay her no mind. She's just... like that."

 I found it becoming easier and easier to feel at ease in Remura's presence, and, while I wasn't entirely comfortable with Celeste just yet, I didn't entirely anticipate she would hurt me without having a good reason to do so, which, I never plan to give her one.

 "Well, Shute, I assume you weren't naturally born as small as you are, otherwise you might not seem so... jumpy around people our size. Did you tick off a demon or something?" Celeste wondered aloud.

 "I lost a fight against the Dark Lord," I sullenly explained.

 Celeste, for once, looked surprised.

 "Shute... you..." Celeste sounded actually angry for once, "you... went and attacked my Dad!?"

 A sinking feeling immediately took over my stomach. Celeste calmly worked her way closer to Remura, who instinctively curled her fingers around me slightly, but not enough to protect me from Celeste's gaze.

 "I-I d-did... I'm sorry if--" I began to babble, already feeling like I'd fucked up and Celeste would make good on her promise from earlier and send me on a one-way trip.

 But, to my surprise, she sounded sympathetic.

 "I fucking hate my Dad, too! We're going to be best friends," Celeste beamed. "Sorry for the outburst just then, but you could've died, silly!"

 The sinking feeling in my stomach was replaced with one of relief, and I exhaled a breath I didn't even know I was holding.

"Some demons know how to cast shrinking magic, including me, but for you to get hit by my Dad and live? You're really lucky, dude," Celeste explained.

 "Um... t-thank you. Do you know if there's a way to reverse it?" I asked, hopeful.

 Both Remura and Celeste went quiet for a bit.

 "I-I'm sure there is..." Remura spoke up first, sounding like she was trying to console me.

 Oh. Oh...

 "Well, we can talk and get to know each other more on the way home. We've set up shack in some abandoned cottage an hour from here, Shute," Celeste explained. "We should head back before it gets too late in the day."

 I gulped.

 "You... um, do you have any family you'd like to be..." Remura began, but I decided to quickly answer. It was a sore topic for me.

 "No, not anymore..." I spoke, dejectedly.

 ~~~

 "No, not anymore..." Shute spoke to us, however, it was the first time he actually sounded, well, full of sorrow.

 I looked down to my new, fragile friend sitting in my hands and felt something stir in my dead heart.

 He looked as if he was about to cry.

 I wanted to change the subject, I wasn't sure how long it's been since he'd lost his family. But, it makes sense to me now why he went on a mission to fight Celeste's father. Shute wanted revenge, and I couldn't entirely fault him for it.

 I stood up, as did Celeste.

 "We... um... We'll," I started to speak up, but found myself getting tongue-tied. Damn it, why is it so hard for me to speak around this guy?

 In a rare case of seriousness, Celeste finished my question for me.

 "We'll be your new family, Shute," she spoke, causing Shute to finally break down. It was hard for me to watch, honestly. I'd experienced a lot of loss in my life, but it never got any easier no matter how long I'd lived.

 "W-we're not a.. erm, replacement for them, but..." I stammered, "But I-- um, we will take care of you, sir..."

 Celeste raised an eyebrow at my statement. Did she catch my slip up?

 "T-thank you," Shute whimpered.

 ~~~

 It wasn't long until the three of us were making our way back to the place Celeste had previously mentioned. It would take an hour, if I recalled correctly. Of course, that was accounting that I wouldn't be walking on foot. I was way too tiny now to make any decent speed alone, and, thankfully, Remura jumped at the chance to carry me herself.

 I spent a lot of time asking questions, and having questions asked of me. Celeste was kind enough to heal up any injuries I had remaining from my short battle with her father, but she still managed to say very strange things to me. Remura promised me Celeste would not harm me, but at this point, I was just afraid of her in general. She was... eccentric.

 From Remura's palms, I was able to see the cottage in the distance. It was a little larger than I expected it to be, even two-stories tall and likely had a basement as well. Of course, even a closet would appear to be a grand structure to me now.

 "So, I forgot to ask, why were you in that bandit's wallet, earlier?" Celeste spoke directly to me, interrupting my musings.

 "Ah... heh.. I was actually hiding from you two, since I was scared and didn't know whether you were friendly or not," I explained.

 "Sorry bud, but that made for a very poor hiding spot," Celeste chuckled, "You're lucky it was us that found you."

 Remura merely nodded in agreement, and I found myself sharing the same sentiment. I shuddered to imagine what would have happened if one of the bandits had found me, instead.

 ~~~

 Finally, we had arrived at the cottage. It had seen better days, but for a wanderer, anything to keep rain off your head was good enough.

 "Home sweet home," Celeste sang.

 "I... I'm going to give him a tour..." Remura quietly informed Celeste. Of course, I heard everything, but I don't think Remura was trying to be secretive about it. She honestly just seemed like a soft-spoken lass, through and through.

 "Of your wardrobe's panty drawer?" Celeste immediately joked. She was met with a swift, yet harmless tap on her shoulder. Remura obviously wasn't going to feed into the fire, everything she said always seemed to give Celeste more ammunition to tease her with.

 I was on my hands and knees, balancing myself in the center of Remura's right hand as she opened the front door with her free hand. Her flesh was still very cool to the touch, and I wasn't sure how quickly I would get used to it. I'd never met a vampire before now, I'd never hoped to. I'd always heard tales that they were evil, undead always searching for ways to prey on humanity and fuel their own immortality. Of course, I'd already seen the aftermath of Remura's feeding when I ran across the first bandit corpse, but a vampire's feeding doesn't kill their prey unless they're actively trying to do so.

 "T-this is the first floor... Sir," Remura bashfully mentioned, "There's a living room and a kitchen, and the master bedroom."

 Something was bugging me.

 "Hey, um, Rem," I spoke up, trying to catch the attention of the titanic, shy vampire.

 As expected, she practically flew out of her own skin, as if the King of the land just ordered her execution.

 "Y-y-y-yes!?" Remura comically overreacted, eyes wide with surprise.

 "Can I ask a favor of you?" I urged. I still had reservations about Celeste, but Remura wasn't actually as intimidating anymore. Unless I were to be in her direct path, and she were to be unaware and accidentally crush me, I couldn't think of any other scenario where she was dangerous to me, as long as she was aware of my presence, I found it easy to trust her.

 She seemed extremely eager to please me, and ferociously nodded her head. "Yes, of course, sir!"

 "I feel like you're nervous around me," I admitted.

 Remura seemed completely caught off guard, but her lack of a reply was damning evidence that I was correct in my assumption.

 So, I pressed on.

 "Both you and your friend are hundreds of times my size. I feel as if it's a little bit backwards for you to be the one nervous around me? You've been very sweet to me so far, and you've also stepped up for me when Celeste picked on me on the way here. I appreciate what you're doing to make me feel at ease, and I was wondering if there was any way I could do the same for you?" I spoke, earnestly.

 "S-sorry, s-sir, I-- uh..." Remura trailed off, unable to think of a proper answer.

 I sighed.

 "It's okay, Remura! I don't want you to feel pressured, I just wanted to make sure you're okay," I replied.

 "It's... saying kind stuff like that, Sir, that, um," Remura spoke, another half-sentence.

 I understood what she was getting at, somewhat. She had no trouble speaking with Celeste, for the most part, but I was new and foreign to her. And apparently she was really awkward with the opposite sex, according to Celeste. I was beginning to see why.

 "Okay, how about we start with maybe referring to me as something more... informal?" I suggested. "You don't constantly have to refer to me as Sir, per se..."

 Remura cannot blush, but I could sense that her unused facial blood vessels longed to do so once more.

 "I-I'm sorry...! Is Shute fine?" Remura asked.

 "Yes, perfectly fine! You said it a few times when I met you earlier, so please feel free to continue! No need for the Sir, no need to add Mister." I explained, and smiled up at her.

 Remura awkwardly smiled back, and gave a slight nod. "Understood! Um... Shute... Sorry."

 "You also seem to be saying sorry a lot, when there's nothing to apologize for," I mentioned.

 "Um... sorry," Remura replied, with the barest hint of a burgeoning frown, as if she thinks she had upset me. I honestly wondered what could have started such a habit. People don't do weird things for no reason. I suspected she's had a rough time in the past to cause this behavior, but I wasn't going to grill her for it.

 "No, no, it's okay, Rem! Do and say what makes you comfortable, I was just letting you know that you don't need to apologize to me for trivial things. I'm not going to randomly get mad or offended at you, you know?" I mentioned.

 Remura slightly nodded her head, and then dropped the subject, continuing to showcase the layout of the house. She seemed only slightly less tense, so I chalked it up to a small victory. It would be a work in progress to completely get her at ease around me, and I was fine with that.

 ~~~

 Several hours later

 I abruptly woke from my slumber, my heart slightly pounding. I had a flashback of my time in the sky, and subsequent defeat. Perhaps I was in shock at the time, but I found myself a bit mentally scarred from the ordeal. If I seemed outwardly fine with being nearly killed and shrunken, it was an act. My face was wet with tears.

 I could have died.

 And now I'm cursed to be a lot easier to kill.

 I was, indeed, very grateful for being rescued so quickly by my two new allies. I wasn't quite sure what good I brought to the table, but they'd assured me it was no trouble. During dinner, before bed, both Remura and Celeste said they longed for the company of someone who treated them like normal people. I'd never once thought about doing or saying anything otherwise, the only thing that spooked me about them wasn't the fact that one was a vampire and the other was the daughter of the Dark Lord, but the fact that they were just massive compared to me. Even with the purest intentions, I could end up injured or killed if they're not always aware of my location.

 I hopped up from the small, makeshift bed I was given. It was a few, folded scraps of some soft fabric, but it felt better than anything I'd ever been accustomed to, growing up.

 I was in the master bedroom, where Remura slept. Celeste tended to sleep in the second story of the place, which gave me some small comfort.

 I glanced towards Remura's bed, and it was empty. Perhaps she was doing something else? Can vampires even sleep at night? She sure acted tired when we previously laid down in here.

 The bedroom door was cracked, so I made my way to it. It took a little longer than usual to reach it because I wasn't being carried around, but it felt good to stretch my legs again. I made my way around the first floor, and found no sign of Remura. But if she had gone outside, upstairs, or even into the basement, I wasn't going to risk going somewhere difficult for me to traverse.

 After awhile, I finally gave up searching for her, and made my way through the living room back towards the bedroom.

 But, from the shadows, emerged something I wasn't quite anticipating.

 Directly ahead of me, a short distance away...

 Was a spider.

 And it was facing me.

 I yelped and stumbled backwards and fell on my ass. Would it attack?

 The short answer is, I didn't know. But, the fact that it was quickly moving towards me scared me shitless. I was unarmed, and even if I were armed normally with some sort of miniture weapon, this thing would have been a difficult fight most likely.

 It got closer, and closer. I stood up, and ran full sprint away--

 Directly faceplanting into the end of an enormous leather boot. It hadn't been there a moment before, I was sure of it.

 I hurriedly glanced up, only to see Celeste grinning down at me with a look of amusement in her eye.

 When did she get down here!? I could have sworn I was alone, and the way she was just silently watching me was eerie.

 Wordlessly, she raised her foot above me. I felt ice run down my spine as I imagined the next thing that would happen.

 "N-no, C-Celes...! Wai--" I began to beg for my life, and hurled up into a pathetic little ball. I had no time to react, and running out of the way was hard because my legs felt like they'd turned to jelly. For some reason, instead of getting the hell out of the way, all I could do was freeze up. I shut my eyes tight and--

 *BOOM*

 ...

 ...

 ...

 ..?

 The vibration of Celeste's boot slamming into the floor finally left my body, but I was very much unharmed. I turned around to look where she had stomped, only to watch her foot rise again. Under her sole, was a gory mixture of spider guts and viscera-- half on her boot and half on the floor.

 She slowly returned her foot back beside her other foot, and finally spoke up.

 "Hello Shute~!" Celeste happily greeted me.

 "H-H-Hi," was all I could manage to choke out in turn. I was still mentally recovering from the image of being gruesomely crushed underfoot just moments ago.

 Celeste was beaming sweetly at me.

 "You're up late! Are you looking for Rem?~" Celeste asked me.

 I weakly nodded.

 "Aww~ that's so cute. But she's not here, sweetheart! She usually has to find someone to feed on every night. But don't worry, she'll be back by morning. And before you start to worry, she doesn't usually kill her victims, either," Celeste explained.

 I swallowed a lump in my throat, but found myself at a loss for words, "O-oh..."

 "I've been wanting to talk to you actually," Celeste explained, "You've been huddled up with Rem since we arrived, it feels like..."

 Well, there was a good reason for that. You spook the shit out of me...

 "S-sorry! I didn't mean to.. um, appear rude.. And, thank you for saving me," I admitted. She could have gone about it a little more tactfully though. "You, uh, scared me a second ago..."

 Celeste was still smiling, but the mirth wasn't present in her eyes. It seemed a little forced.

 "Uh, yeah, sorry about that~ but that was on purpose, little one," Celeste suggested.

 My fear never completely went away, but now it was creeping back.

 "Come again?" I dared to ask. My voice cracked halfway through.

 Celeste laughed, but it was more contained than usual. "Don't worry, Shute. You're safe around me, but, I am... well, how do I put this?"

 Celeste pursed her lips and tapped on her chin with one finger, to emulate 'thinking.'

 "... a.. sadist." Celeste put it bluntly. "It was cute watching you get frightened for a bit. I'm warning you, it's not going to be the last time, either."

 I subconsciously took a step back. Everything in my brain was screaming that this chick was batshit crazy. And, as if on cue, she provoked me again by raising her foot.

 "Shute, come stand underneath my boot," Celeste teased. "I don't care if you look up my robes either~..."

 "C-Celeste...? Are you..--" I began to ask.

 "I'm not kidding. Stand underneath my boot, please," Celeste stated, matter-of-factly.

 God damn it, where's Remura!?

 Should.. should I just run for it? No, we're in the center of a sparsely decorated living room. She'd easily capture me, or stomp me before I could get anywhere. Damn it.

 I cautiously walked underneath Celeste's boot, and refused to look upwards.

 Once I was completely in the danger zone, Celeste just held her foot still. If I wanted, I could probably reach up and touch the bottom of the sole. This was a different foot, so there wasn't any spider blood to be reminded of.

 Silence. For about fifteen agonizing seconds, neither of us said anything. I felt my heart pounding, the same type of fear one might expect when they're about to get executed at the gallows.

 Eventually, Celeste spoke up, "Okay! Now move back to where you were standing just a minute ago, and face me again~"

 She spoke in such an excited girly tone, it was a bizarre situation. As if it were a child playing with a toy.

 I followed orders, and turned about-face back to Celeste. Then, a moment later, she stomped the floor where I was standing. It was loud, thunderous, and most of all, terrifying. 

 I... I was... I was just standing there, a second ago, and then all of a sudden, just some random spot in the house became a zone I could've perished in.

 Celeste obviously did this to prove some type of point.

 "Aww, Shute~... You're sweating! It's soooo cute!" Celeste squealed with delight.

 I was speechless. I thought she was supposed to be my friend! This isn't... this isn't what friends would do!

 I tried to speak, but all that came out was a barely audible 'help me.' Celeste obviously didn't hear it.

 "That's okay, Shute. Take a minute to catch your breath. I'd piss myself if I were in your position, too," Celeste teased. "Can I just go ahead an admit something to you? I'm not a... um... good person. I mean, I don't think I'm as bad as my Dad, but I'd still consider myself a bit, uhh... evil? Like I don't plan to go oblierate a village or something like he would, but I absolutely love to be feared. It makes me feel~ er, nevermind. That's probably too much information."

 Celeste got down on her knees, and adjusted her robes to accompany the motions.

 "I smile a lot because I have a serious resting bitch face," Celeste admitted, and ceased the happy masquerade.

 Making eye contact was harder now. She looked... pissed. She looked like a villain. She gazed at me as if I were a lesser creature. She was still beautiful, but her beauty was greatly out-weighed by her expression now.

 "I've been told I look pretty scary when I stop smiling. But, I promise I'm actually in a pleasant mood~" Celeste purred at me. I wasn't sure if that was supposed to make me feel any better, but all I could do was stare back.

 Celeste yawned. "I'm pretty sure you get the point by now, little Shute... I'm a bit of a bitch at heart, but you're not gonna die. But, even if you do end up dying... Hmm. Oh! I've got an idea!" 

 Celeste quickly snatched me up. Again, it was more surprising rather than aggressive or uncomfortable, but I found myself securely held within her grasp. It was an all encompassing warmth from her smooth palms and fingers.

 Celeste held her free hand out over the dead spider, and it glowed with a white light for a second. Miraculously, the spider had been revived. I'd almost forgotten Celeste was technically a Cleric, but Dark Cleric sounded like a more fitting description.

 "B-but... it might c-come after me again...?" I managed to squeak out. And I honestly was worried about any pests roaming the place, now. Celeste, well, I was afraid of her, but I didn't really expect her to actually kill me while Remura was still in the picture. I wasn't even sure why they were travelling together at this point, to be quite honest.

 Celeste clicked her tongue twice. "Nah, I just wanted to prove a point, Shute." 

 Celeste promptly stood up to her full height, and stomped on the spider as it tried to scurry away again.

 And then, again. And again, again, again. She just kept stomping on the spider's corpse, which was quickly turning into paste.

 "S-stop... please," I whimpered. I wanted to throw up, thinking about how she could've easily done the same thing to me.

 Celeste either did not hear me, or chose not to.

 A few more hard stomps, and she did eventually quit. But apparently, she wasn't done.

 Celeste returned to her knees, and spoke to me, "I'm going to revive it again, I just wanted to get my anger out of my system." 

 ...? 

 Anger? What was she angry about?

 "Actually, I'm going to do something a little different this time, Shute," Celeste explained, and set me down, a little ways away from the spider paste.

 "I'm pretty good with magic. I inherited it from my father, you see..." Celeste spoke, almost bragging, in a way.

 Once again, Celeste revived the same spider again, and cast a couple extra spells on it this time.

 "What... were those?" I dared ask. At this point, I was just feeling fortunate to still be alive. Asking her questions seemed to be okay, though.

 And, sure enough, she explained herself with some sick satisfaction, "Well, I revived the spider, gave it human level sentience, and the ability to talk." 

 If I had been drinking anything, this is the point I would've spat it out in disbelief. "What!?"

 Celeste ignored me, and spoke rather aggressively to the spider. "Hey, bug. Were you going to eat him earlier?"

 The spider stayed motionless, but soon, a telepathic, androgynous voice emanated from its location, "Yes."

 Celeste wasn't smiling. And, there seemed to be a step further than her resting bitch face. Somehow, she looked even angrier than before.

 "Apologize to him," Celeste curtly demanded.

 "Why?"

 Celeste looked like she couldn't believe her ears when the spider spoke with such indifference to a direct order.

 "Fine, fuck it," Celeste spoke, her voice void of anything remotely friendly. She then quickly picked up the spider with two fingers before it could react.

 "This is what you deserve for trying to eat my friend," Celeste spoke matter-of-factly, and placed the spider on her tongue.

 She turned to face me.

 It was the middle of the night. I just wanted to find Remura. The house was silent as a grave. I was able to clearly and easily hear--

 *gulp*

 Celeste opened her mouth, and showed me both the top and bottom of her tongue. The spider was gone.

 And, then, her smile actually returned to her face.

 "All gone~" Celeste half-sang. "It also knows what just happened to it, thanks to the whole 'sentience' thing." She then pat her stomach. "Burn in Hell."

 Celeste had made her point. Earlier, I only suspected she was batshit crazy. Now, she had without a doubt confirmed it. What the fuck did I get myself into..?

 "Well, it's nice to finally meet you, Shute," Celeste explained. "The real me. Not the one you met in the field."

 I gulped, but my throat was feeling a bit dry. I had no other choice than to just go along with it for now.

 "N-n-nice to... meet you," I replied, failing to exhibit any hint of bravery.

 "Good boy," Celeste piped up, before standing up to her full height again. "I guess you're going to head back to bed since Rem's not here? Or would you rather stay up with me?"

 "I... um... What would you like--" I began to ask, before getting cut off.

 "Cute that you're even asking me, but cut the shit, Shute. No one would want to hang out with me," Celeste spoke, sounding actually dejected for once. She then started walking towards me, causing me to flinch, but just stepped over me instead, and headed towards the stairs, towards her bedroom.

 ...

 Was that it? I'm off the hook?

 I desperately wanted to run back to my makeshift bed and pretend everything that just happened was a dream.

 But, if I was going to be roommates with Celeste and Remura, it would be best to keep them both happy. Celeste had just thoroughly proven to me that she wasn't someone I wanted to make sad or angry. And, a part of my mind kept thinking about how she referred to me as her 'friend' before she executed the spider. Call me crazy, but I wanted to see if I could get her to ease up on me by buttering her up and humoring her.

 "I'll hang out with you," I shouted to Celeste once she had one foot on her staircase.

 Celeste froze, and took her foot back off the first step.

 "..." she was quiet.

 Did... I just fuck up, somehow?

 ~~~

 Even after everything I just did.

 Did he really just say that?

 I was certain, no one in their right mind would...

 ~~~

 "Shute, I wasn't kidding when I told you I'm a cruel, sadistic bitch," Celeste finally spoke up, after a short pause.

 "You called me your friend earlier," I objected.

 "... so?" Celeste replied.

 "So... friends hang out," I answered.

 "I might do horrible things to you, you know," Celeste replied.

 "I know," I answered.

 "Then why the fuck would--"

 "I trust you."

 "Are you mental, dude?"

 "Every single interaction you've had with me so far. You talk rough, but you haven't hurt me. Nor have you killed me, either," I pointed out.

 Celeste spun on her heels, staring directly at me, but I stood firm. Just like I did against her father.

 "Do you want me to hurt you?" Celeste asked.

 "I mean, no... But..." I trailed off.

 I walked towards her, causing her to be the one caught off guard. I stopped directly in front of her right foot.

 "Step on me, then," I challenged.

 Celeste's foot didn't move, but she did bend all the way over and swoop me up into one of her hands. Again, she failed to make it painful.

 She stared at me incredulously. "You have a lot of nerve, you... puny little shrimp."

 "Something about bones, but words can never hurt me," I japed back.

 Celeste was blushing from embarassment now. "How dare you! Little fuck! That's it. Time for you to meet the fucking spider again."

 With that, Celeste opened her mouth, and rolled out her tongue. I'll be honest, this is the point where I was starting to feel a bit less bravado. I was washed over with a hot, moist wind. Her mouth was coated and shiny with saliva, and her throat heralded the entrance to a dark fleshy tunnel that I really didn't want to explore.

 She wasted no time, thrust me into her maw, and shut her lips. I was tossed around, being coated in her saliva, which permeated everything about me. Everywhere. In my ears, nostrils, and even into my mouth. I coughed up, and tried to catch my breath, but all I was inhaling was Celeste's breath.

 A minute passed, but to me, it felt like half an hour.

 Celeste tilted her head back, causing me to slide on her tongue towards her throat. At this point, I began to panic and hold on to anything I possibly could, but nothing in this cavern was on my side.

 "AAGGHHH!" I yelled, terrified, as I lost my grip on one of her tastebuds.

 I slipped, and fell quickly towards her throat, and--

 My world once again flipped upside down, and I was released into her palm, coated and slippery, still covered in her spit.

 I knew it.

 I spent a few seconds coughing up saliva, trying to catch a fresh breath of air. When I finally managed to look up at Celeste, her face was awash with concern, which she quickly fixed into her usual smug smile.

 I knew it. I'm still alive, and besides a little bit of humiliation, I'm not even hurt.

 "Had enough yet?" Celeste asked.

 "*sputter* Let's... *hack* hang *cough* out," I answered, trying to catch my breath, still.

 "..." Celeste didn't answer me.

  ~~~

 "So, this is the attic. Over there's my bed, and all of the decorations in this room are stolen, ill-gotten gains from people I've murdered, sometimes even in self-defense," Celeste bragged.

 "Even so, you managed to pick out the most beautiful decor, and even took the time to arrange it in a very aesthetically pleasing manner, Celeste," I praised the giant half-demon.

 Celeste puffed her cheeks, and blew out her hot breath in my face with palpable sass.

 An hour had passed, and I'd learned two things. One; Celeste treated me a lot differently now that Remura wasn't around to have my back. Two; as long as I kept Celeste talking, I figured she wouldn't get bored and remember I'm an easy target to pick on. It seemed like her idea of 'hanging out' was more cat and mouse shenanigans between the two of us. I had no idea what her fascination was with exerting her power over me.

 At the moment, I was hiding underneath Celeste's bed, attempting to dodge her hand every time she reached in the grab me. It was actually a bit nerve wracking. Of course, I was the one that volunteered to come up here, but this little game felt like it had higher stakes than it probably did.

 Celeste's fingertip grazed against my shirt, and I narrowly avoided getting captured again.

 "Come out, please~? You'll be totally fine, I swear," Celeste half-begged, sounding disingenuous.

 "You're really having fun with this, aren't you?" I called out from beyond her reach.

 "Well, there might be a reason for that~" Celeste hinted. "But I'm getting a little bored. It just doesn't feel the same as actual prey feels, since I'm not supposed to... you know, actually harm you..."

 With that, a small hand formed of dark magic formed in front of me, grappled me, and threw me out from underneath the bed. I was sent tumbling into the open, and before I had a chance to react, Celeste snatched me up once more.

 She could've ended the game at any time, huh?

 Celeste brought me close to her bosom, and I felt her fall backwards onto her bed. I tried squirming away from her grasp and chest, but she just pressed down lightly on my back, forcing me closer.

 "Mmmph--mmpphh!"

 "I'm gonna keep you there until Remura returns and finds us," Celeste threatened.

 I struggled more violently. I don't want that!

 "Mmmph!!!"

 Celeste relieved pressure, and allowed me to breathe.

 "Kiss the breast you're lying on, Shute," Celeste ordered nonchalantly.

 I looked up at her with a bewildered look. I'd never been this close to a woman before yesterday. I was finding it incredibly difficult to just breach barriers I'd been set up with my whole life up until now.

 "Shute, care to explain why you're just staring at me, and not doing what I'm asking?" Celeste asked.

 "I, uh, well..." I trailed off.

 Celeste raised an eyebrow. Next thing I knew, I was hit with a small green bolt of magic, cast out of Celeste's left hand. It didn't hurt, but I couldn't tell what had changed.

 "Ohhh!!~ AWW, that's so sweet!" Celeste giggled, completely changing gears.

 "What just happened?" I asked.

 "I just read your thoughts, that's all," Celeste continued to giggle. "Something about you being a virgin, wanting to respect me or some shit, and then some sort of feelings for Remura were swirling in there, as well."

 Yeah, that pretty much hit the nail on the head. But having my mind read felt more violating than anything else so far, for some reason.

 "But you're not off the hook yet~" Celeste warned. "Make love to what you're lying on top of, Shute... or I'll make this more difficult, if you don't."

 More... difficult? How!?

 "I can still read your thoughts, Shute. That spell won't go away for a few minutes. Take a look at where you're at," said Celeste.

 Well... I was on top of Celeste's left breast, and the fabric of her white robes felt rather silky and soft, mostly leaving the contents underneath to the imagination. She was lying on her back, on her bed, and--

 "Yeah, yeah, you get the idea! Look, you've got to the count of three to cuddle and kiss your current position, or~" Celeste paused for dramatic effect, "I'm going to put you inside my robe, directly on my bare tit, if you don't."

 I gulped, and got to business.

 ~~~

 I cannot believe I just did what I just did. 

 Celeste sat upright on her bed, and sat me down close to her ass, just beyond the point where her bed was curving downwards from her weight.

 "Thank you for making love to my chest," Celeste spoke up, sounding smug. She knew full well how humiliating that was for me.

 I'd already learned to cooperate when asked a question, or spoken to. If I didn't play along, I was afraid I'd be getting introduced to her rear end somehow, and let's just say I wasn't in the mood to meet any more parts of her.

 I decided to play it off, and ask a counter question quickly, "Don't mention it. May I ask a question?"

 "You don't have to ask permission, dumbass. I might have been toying with you for the past little while but I don't want to become a complete bitch," Celeste sighed. "At least, not to you~"

 "A-actually, that's what I was wondering! Have you done any of this before?" I asked.

 "What, dominate other tiny people?" Celeste asked.

 "Yes," I responded.

 "A lot, actually," Celeste admitted, "I have similar powers to what my father has. I've shrunken people before. It's my favorite way to dispose of my enemies, usually. Remura never wants to take part, unfortunately. You little twerps are just so... fragile~"

 Whether this was some perverted power fantasy or fetish, I couldn't really tell which.

 However, everything Celeste had put me through tonight, I imagined all of it could've easily ended up differently if I were anyone she deemed an enemy. I'd been put into at least two or three situations I could've been killed by, and I was still moist from Celeste's saliva. I could've been crushed, eaten, or any number of things.

 But, I wasn't.

 Celeste had every chance to kill me, and didn't. She might label herself as crazy, evil, or morally callous. And maybe she's actually correct about all of that stuff, but I felt like I had a pass when it came to her wrath. Like jumping into a volcano, swimming in lava, and coming out fine-- something that shouldn't be happening, was. And I was thankful for continually being spared.

 The minute I see Remura again, though, I'm going to thank her for being sane and sweet. After tonight's events, I realized how good I previously had it with the vampire mistress.

 "You look lost in thought, Shute. I asked if you wanted to see?" Celeste spoke up, apparently for the second time. I must have missed something.

 "Oh, sorry, see what?" I replied.

 Celeste then leaned over, causing me to stumble, before opening a drawer in her nightstand and pulling out a small glass jar. She brought it closer to me, and I couldn't believe what was inside.

 "Ta-da!" Celeste celebrated.

 Inside, was a middle aged man, naked. He started tapping on the glass, and shouted something at me.

 "Run, you fucking idiot!" the man screamed at the top of his lungs.

 He... looked like his spirit was broken awhile ago.

 Celeste giggled gleefully. "I've been holding onto this one for a week, Shute. Sometimes I'll save them for special occasions."

 Celeste unscrewed the top of the jar, and dumped the man onto the bed. He immediately hopped up, fueled by adrenaline, and ran towards me.

 "Didn't you hear me!? Let's fucking go!" the man grabbed me by the arm, and pretty much dragged me to the edge of the bed. Beneath us was a pillow, which he obviously planned to use to break a fall.

 Celeste just watched the both of us with a twisted smile on her face.

 "What-- what's going on!?" I yelled, at no one in particular.

 "I've seen it before, lad. She'll let two of us run to try and escape, and whichever one she catches won't live to see tomorrow. The other will still have a chance to escape the house, but that rarely happens. If she catches us both, the second one just gets imprisoned again--" the man spoke quickly, trying to convince me as fast as possible.

 From behind us, Celeste spoke in a low tone, "Three--"

 "She's counting down!" the man seemed in a panic.

 I was grabbed, and tossed off the bed, and fell onto the pillow below. The naked man jumped as well, and landed beside me. The momentum of his landing toppled me off the top of the pillow, onto the floor below.

 "Two--"

 Was this man being serious? I thought hard about it. He didn't seem to be lying, and seemed to be in a blind panic. If he was telling the truth, Celeste was going to try and catch us, and I sure as hell didn't want to be the loser.

 Would... would she really kill me, though?

 "One--"

 I didn't want to wait around and find out. I immediately started sprinting towards the exit, only to get tripped by the naked man, and fall flat on my face.

 "HA HA HA HA HA!" he laughed maniacally as I struggled to regain my footing. "Have fun being that bitch's lunch!"

 He was already halfway to the door.

 "Zero-- here I come!" Celeste announced from a short distance away.

 Obviously, this was a betrayal. Why, naked man, why!? I trusted you with all of my heart and soul!

 I stood up, and started running again at full speed. The familiar booming vibrations of Celeste's footsteps, however, were rapidly getting closer.

 *Boom*

 *Boom*

 I was panting, and quickly starting to run out of breath.

 *BOOM*

 N... No! I run even harder, and catch up to the naked man in record time. He might have been a treasonous naked bastard, but he was quite obviously out of shape and not the best runner.

 But, he did something I didn't expect. He flung himself around, and swung a fist, connecting with my nose. Hard.

 "AGGGHHH!" I scream in pain, and fall to one knee, nose bleeding profusely.

 *BOOM*

 "Shit! C... Celeste, W-wait!" I began to beg, not wanting to find out what happens to the loser who gets caught first.

 But, something odd happened. Celeste just.. chose to step over me, and quickly caught the naked man instead.

 "Welp, looks like you got caught first sir~ you know what that means, I hope?" Celeste antagonized the now-frightened man.

 "No! He was behind me! You were... you were SUPPOSED TO CATCH HIM FIRST!" the man screamed, angrily.

 Celeste paused for a moment, before replying, "I was... supposed to?" 

 Celeste turned around, and looked back down at me. She just smiled sweetly, and started to wave at me, as if she were waving at a friend, before turning her attention back to the man struggling in her grasp. And from the way he was struggling, it seemed like it hurt a lot more than the handful of times I found myself in her grasp, likely on purpose.

 "YES! He was behind me!" the man screamed, furiously.

 "You're here, in my hand, telling me what I'm 'supposed to do'? I don't have to do anything. I don't have to act rationally. And I especially don't have to listen to your bullshit," Celeste spoke venomously, and lifted the man up to her mouth.

 "But--!" the man struggled, with fear now present in his voice. He was now being held very close to Celeste's lips.

 "Sorry, but this was a solo game. You were the only contestant, and I caught you fair and square," Celeste explained.

 She held the man under her mouth, and let some drool ooze onto him, causing him to fall into a coughing fit.

 "--but, you seemed to be wasting a lot of time assaulting my friend over there, costing you precious time you could've spent running away," Celeste explained, her voice low, and devoid of emotion.

 The man stared blankly at me, his attention completely shifted. "You're her FRIEND!? Do you even know what she does to people like us--"

 The man was not given a chance to explain himself, as he was promptly popped into Celeste's maw. She then made her way back to me, and healed my injuries, once again. My nose was no longer bleeding, and all the pain simply vanished.

 Celeste then knelt onto the floor, leaned towards me, and beckoned me over with one hand. Without a word, she maneuvered the nameless man in her mouth to allow his head to pop out of her lips.

 He was screaming in pure fear as he was slowly released from Celeste's lips. He managed to free one arm, and tried to pull himself further out. Slowly, he was making his way, and half of his body had already been freed.

 He noticed me, just standing, staring, awe-struck by the torture I was witnessing. "Don't just stand there, grab my hand! Pull me out!"

 I walked closer.

 "Thank you, lad! Thank you thank you thank you!" he continued to praise me.

 Once I'd gotten within arm's reach, I threw a sucker punch, landing a return blow on the man's nose, causing it to bleed instead. He screamed in pain, as expected.

 "AGH--!" the man screamed, but this time, his scream was cut short as Celeste sucked him back into her mouth, causing his cry of pain to become muffled instantly. A moment later...

 Celeste dry-swallowed the man fighting for his life in her mouth.

 "Phew!" Celeste sighed, and ran her fingers over her throat. She grimaced. "He's going down kind of slowly, it hurts just a little bit."

 Here she was, complaining about a minor inconvenience in her throat, while the man on the inside was being squeezed down her throat to his doom. The situation striked me as ironic.

 "Thanks for healing my nose, Celeste," I expressed my gratitude.

 Celeste looked touched, as if she didn't expect a thank-you. She glanced away at nothing in particular, and pouted. I feel as if she's not good at accepting gratitude.

 Suddenly, we both lingered in an awkward silence. For the better part of the night, she had been exerting her power over me, and now seemed to be time for a brief interlude. I studied her eyes for a moment, and she seemed to be getting a bit sleepy. However, it seemed the tranquil moment would not last for long. It's a strange world for sure, and it's even stranger when you notice a glowing purple light in the middle of the night through the window on the second story of a house.

 I pointed towards the window, and asked, "Celeste, why is there a purple light outside?"

 Celeste didn't look behind her. In fact, it was probably the first time I've actually seen her look, well, terrified.

 "God fucking damn it," Celeste muttered under her breath.

 "W-what is it?" I stammered. I didn't think I was going to like the severity of this.

 "There's no simple way to put this, Shute," Celeste spoke with a discernable seriousness present in her voice. She was talking to me straight, the teasing tone was gone. "This forest is haunted by... an entity."

 "An... entity? Like a ghost?"

 "Maybe. More like a folk tale, or an urban legend, though," Celeste spoke, nervousness clearly present in her voice now.

 "Is it dangerous?"

 "... Extremely, unfortunately," Celeste conceded. "We're already fucked, but, I might as well fill you in before anything happens. You deserve that much."

 I gulped, and felt fear rise up in my chest once more. A bit different from when Celeste was bullying me, because this time, she seemed certain like I might die.

 Celeste was now sitting on the floor, and beckoned me over once more. I cautiously approached, and she scooped me up and held me in front of her.

 "This wasn't supposed to happen for another year, but maybe time slipped my mind. I was too eager to play with you I that I couldn't rest tonight. So, I snuck downstairs, and to my surprise, you were awake. But, about this entity-- once every ten years, it manifests in the forest somewhere, and if you're awake, and notice a purple light, that means it's coming for you. That's why it's important to stay asleep," Celeste explained.

 "C-can it be... um, fought?"

 "I don't think so. Even my father expressed doubt that he'd want to tangle with it. It's known as the Gunt-Mahn. If I recall correctly, it kills its victims using mind control. I've never heard of anyone being able to survive an encounter with it, which, is strange how we even learned about its existence, if no one ever lives to tell the tale," Celeste lamented.

 I was sweating, now. I didn't want to die.

 "Is there any way to hide from it?"

 Celeste shook her head. "Shute, believe me when I say, we're fucked. The only thing I'm thankful for is that Remura wasn't here for this..."

 Celeste looked like she was ready to cry. "Let's... just go downstairs and get this over with. We need to make our bodies easy to find, Shute."

 "We... do?"

 Celeste smirked. Suddenly, she didn't seem as disturbed as she was earlier. "Yeah, we do. Just trust me for now, when I think that's the last, best thing we'll be able to do."

 I curled up in Celeste's hand, and felt the vibration of each step she took down the stairs.

 ~~~

 After a minute in the living room, the purple light got brighter and brighter, stopping in front of the front door. Celeste and I watched in equal parts fascination and horror as something passed through, and let itself inside.

 What I saw was complex to describe. It looked like a floating, amorphous blob covered in various eyeballs. When it moved, after-images followed suit, like a centipede through time.

 The Gunt-Mahn focused its many eyes on both me, and Celeste. I felt light-headed, and sleepy. My body felt numb, and I didn't feel like I could move my limbs any longer. Although... it seemed my hands were moving on their own accord, now.

 I want to die.

 The only thing in my mind now, was thoughts of how I could perish. My body moved to the edge of Celeste's hand, and looked to the floor below.

 I could jump.

 I wasn't in control of myself any longer. And, if I had to wager, Celeste wasn't either. It was a scary feeling, having your autonomy stripped away from you, and suicidal thoughts implanted into your head.

 I, or rather, the creature made me face Celeste. Tears were actually streaming from her eyes, and I noticed they were slightly aglow in a purple light, reminiscent of the one we saw earlier through the windows.

 Celeste raised her hand, along with me in it, to her face. Soon, her mouth opened, and she stuck her tongue out.

 I should go inside.

 I'm forced to watch my arms and legs carefully navigate Celeste's tongue, taking me back inside her mouth for the second time tonight. Although, this time, I had a feeling I wouldn't be coming back out.

 Strangely enough, I still had complete consciousness over my senses. I could feel the slimy, bumpy surface of her tongue. The overwhelming, moist heat of her mouth felt unwelcoming as it prepared to accept another miniture human.

 I crawled towards the back of Celeste's throat, and hopped in. I was powerless to resist, and believe me, I was trying.

 ~~~

 I swallowed Shute.

 I... actually did, this time...

 Damn it, damn it, damn it!

 There's a knife in the kitchen.

 I make my way into the kitchen as the sick creature in the living room finds the most irritating ways possible to get its rocks off.

 I should slash my throat.

 I pick up the knife, and hold it against my neck. This... this is going to hurt... isn't it?

 Remura... I hope you'll--

 ~~~

 Celeste's esophagus squeezed me all the way down, and deposited me into her stomach, to be processed like food. It's pitch black inside, and I'm guided towards a small pool of acid, and just sit in it.

 Time passes, and I feel Celeste walking somewhere. There's only two places left on the first floor, with one being a bedroom and one being a kitchen. Or, she could be heading outside, I have no way to know.

 More time passes, and I hear muffled gurgling noises. Suddenly, I have an overwhelming sense of vertigo-- I'm falling. Or, to be more precise, Celeste is falling.

 The movement is brief, and a huge vibration disrupts everything in Celeste's stomach. I'm thrown to the edge, and then fall face first into the bile again. My body doesn't move-- I'm fairly sure I'm going to suffocate at this point. It hurts, hurts so much...

 And, then, just when I give up hope...

 I feel liberated. Free! I quickly get up, and cough out the awful tasting stomach acid.

 "Who's... there?" the naked man from earlier weakly asks. He sounds like he's in real bad shape, with raspy breathing.

 I ignore him. I need to get out of here, as soon as possible. I make my way to the top of the stomach, which is easier to reach now that Celeste is in a prone position.

 "I... can hear... you. Heard you... coughing," the naked man spoke aloud.

 I reach the opening to Celeste's esophagus, and begin to pry it open with my hands. It's difficult, but I squeeze my way inside. This time, it's giving a lot less resistance than it was earlier. Celeste...

 I crawl my way up, slowly, forgetting about the man in Celeste's stomach. Pulling him out with me would be an enormous challenge, not to mention he seemed so eager to feed me to Celeste, earlier.

 "Burn in Hell..." I mimicked Celeste's words from earlier, and reach the root of her tongue.

 Soon enough, I crawl my way out of Celeste's mouth, and land on the floor.

 Directly into a pool of warm blood.

 I fight the urge to vomit, and turn around.

 And then? Well...

 I screamed.

 I was sitting in the corner of the kitchen now, with my head down. I wasn't able to tell if hours or minutes had passed. It appeared that the Gunt-Mahn spirit had long since left, its purpose fulfilled. I was in full control over my actions again and my mind didn't feel quite so cloudy anymore. If I had to guess, it probably just wrote me off as dead as soon as Celeste ingested me. Looking back on it, that entire situation should've scared the shit out of me. Maybe I'm lucky to be alive, but then again, if I was lucky at all, this thing wouldn't have even visited in the first place.

 Lost in my thoughts, I was startled to notice Celeste's blood was slowly creeping up to me again. Of course, I was already coated in it, but to linger in it seemed... wrong. I didn't want to touch any more of it. The image of the stuff pouring out of her neck, her eyes half-open, focused on nothing in particular, wasn't something I think I'll ever forget. There's no two ways about it-- she was dead.

 The front door in the living room creaked open, but the silence of the place combined with my diminutive stature seemed to amplify the sound many orders of magnitude than it should've.

 I gasped, and jumped up from my spot. Was the Gunt-Mahn back? If so, why didn't it just phase through the door like it did the first time? My questions were soon answered as Remura made her way into the kitchen. She didn't react like I did when I exited Celeste's mouth, no, she just stood silently, taking in the scene as calmly as possible. Her eyes did seem to be widened in surprise and horror, though, and her expression was shocked. Eventually, though, I started to make my way towards her, and she noticed me right away.

 "Shute! Are you okay? What happened?" Remura asked, her concern temporarily overriding her usual shy persona.

 "I'm..." I tried to answer, and found the words difficult to form. My throat felt dry, and then... it hit me like a ton of bricks. I'd almost died, and Celeste did die.

 By the time I reached Remura's feet, I just collapsed and started weeping from it all. Everything. From Celeste's behavior, to her cruel actions against living things my size, and finally, the near death experience. I harbored no ill will against Celeste since she never truly intended to harm me or do any serious damage, but my first night in this cottage was a traumatic one in every sense of the word.

 Remura knelt down, and scooped me up wordlessly. I was then lifted and held next to her sternum, and held in place with both of her hands in some manner of hug only a giant person could share with a smaller one. Of course, every time I make skin to skin contact with Remura felt cold, but I could tell she had a warm soul.

 After a minute, Remura spoke up, "Everything's going to be okay, Shute. I'm here. Take your time, and fill me in on the details once you're able..."

 I nodded my head once she was watching me again.

 "In the meantime... Well..." Remura trailed off.

 I was then placed carefully on the kitchen table.

 "I'm not like Celeste," Remura continued, "she's good with the healing magic. I'm not able to cast anything Holy, being... well, you know..." Remura gestured to herself.

 "Um..." I wondered where she was going with this.

 "She's able to cast Revival magics, which is fairly rare to find. I'm a more twisted version of that, though, Shute..."

 Remura produced an old tome from her backpack, and cracked it open in her left hand.

 "Have... have you heard of necromancy...?" Remura sheepishly asked. Her shy attitude seemed to be coming back.

 "I... uh... overheard your conversation with Celeste back when I was hiding in the bandit's wallet," I admitted.

 "Well... um. What do you think of them?" Remura asked, averting her gaze and biting her lip nervously.

 "To be honest, I only know what others have told me... It's never anything, well, good," I admitted. There was no point in lying. Remura looked quite a bit saddened by my answer as I spoke, so I decided to try and reassure her. "B-but, after meeting you, I think I had the wrong impression. You're very gentle with me, and you seem kind."

 Remura cracked a wide grin at that. "T-thank you, Shute... We're not, um... all bad. J-just like all priests and clerics aren't always good."

 Heh. That's an understatement. But I wanted to get something out in the open.

 "Remura, wait a second, please," I pleaded. "I think I'm able to... fill you in on what happened."

 Remura closed her tome, and turned her full attention on me. "Y-yes...?"

 ~~~

 "... and that's when you got here," I concluded. 

 I'd gone over everything that happened since I'd awoken in the middle of the night, all of my encounters with Celeste, the spider, the other man, and the Gunt-Mahn. Throughout the whole thing, Remura just stared at me, mortified.

 "I... I had... no idea she would... I thought I could trust..." Remura trembled over her own words. She seemed particularly stressed about Celeste's darker side. Apparently she had no idea Celeste was a sadist in secret. She just assumed she was more spunky than anything else.

 Remura looked back to Celeste's corpse, and then to me again. I knew what she was going to ask without her even asking. Was I comfortable with her reanimating Celeste? Honestly I'd be fine if Celeste were brought back to life completely, because Remura promised me she'd never leave me alone again.

 "It's okay, do what you will," I spoke up, "But... what exactly happens when you reanimate someone with Necromancy?"

 Remura replaced her concerned look on her face with a bit more of an unreadable expression. "Um... well, there's several types of ways to bring back the dead... I'm going to use the strongest one I know, but..."

 "But?"

 Remura looked embarassed to even say it. "This type of reanimation brings the soul back into their body, but they're... completely bound to my will..."

 "What exactly does being bound to your will mean?" I asked.

 My question seemed to cause Remura even more distress. "It... it means she's... going to be aware of everything, where she's at, and all... but she can't act without um... my permission, basically. I-I can't control her thoughts or anything but I'll mentally have to manage her for as long as this spell is active, which is... basically until I die, or want to stop..."

 "Remura, you seem... uhh..."

 "Yes, I am. I hate being in positions of power over anyone, it makes me... feel... well, not good," Remura lamented.

 Something dawned on me. Remura had been acting rather skittish around me ever since we met. Was she afraid of the difference in our power? I decided to test it.

 "So is that why you're so tense around me?" I asked.

 Remura jolted slightly, as if she'd been hit with a static shock. "I-is it t-that obvious...? I-I don't like being... intimidating, or dominant.. like, at all..."

 I sighed. So, that's why. I needed to handle this, if I could.

 "Listen... Ms. Remura, I already know what it's like to be, well... dominated. In the short time I've known you, I've only felt comfort from you. You go out of your way to speak to me as an equal, and I appreciate you for it," I explained.

 "...you're sure you're... not secretly scared of me, are you?"

 "In no way, shape, or form. Not because of size, or because you're a necromancer, nor even because you're a vampire. I hate to say it, but you do have a lot of power over me, even if I weren't shrunken as I currently am. Your words and actions have all given me every reason to trust you, and I want you to try and relax, like you keep trying to relax me." I monolouged.

 "... heh... It's kind of funny how you're the one having to... um, comfort me," Remura replied, trying to sound more cheerful.

 It was a strange situation, to be sure. But I'd told the truth. 

 I motioned towards Celeste. "So..."

 Remura nodded, and restarted her incantation.

 Soon, a glowing pentagram spawned on the floor underneath Celeste, and all of her blood began to seep back into her body. It began to flake off of me and my clothes, as well, and floated back down to the floor to join the rest. After a minute, Celeste began to twitch, before getting up from the floor with her hands and knees, then stood on her feet once more.

 "I don't have to say this out loud, Celeste, but until further notice, you have full permission to speak," Remura announced, looking guilty for even having to bestow someone the permission to talk.

 "Ah, you're home, Remura! Permission to hug?" zombie Celeste asked.

 Zombie... Celeste... Zeleste? Yeah. I like that.

 "Soon, but... I want you to... um..." Remura pointed to me, and Zeleste looked at me, shocked. She hadn't noticed me until now.

 "Shute! You're... but... I... I ate you! How did you...?" Zeleste stammered, obviously flustered.

 "I was able to crawl back out your throat after you... uh..." I trailed off. I think she got the point. The esophagus is a lot easier to climb back out of when the consumer isn't still alive or constantly swallowing their own spit.

 "... oh! Haha. I was wondering~" Zeleste replied, implying something I'd rather not think about right now. Or ever.

 "So, Celeste... I'm not going to command this because it would take the meaning out of it, but... you need to apologize to Shute. He told me everything he's been through since he's gotten here already," Remura spoke up in my defense. Zeleste looked like she'd been caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

 This was a fairly awkward situation. I didn't want to confront Zeleste about what had happened.

 "It's oka--" I tried to interject, but Remura suddenly stamped her foot, catching me off-guard.

 "Like Hell it is!" Remura interrupted, in a very uncharacteristic display of assertiveness for once. I suppose my stunned expression brought her back to reality, because she followed up with an apology. "S-sorry!... I mean, no it's not okay... She did some awful things to you, Shute."

 Zeleste was twirling her hair in one finger. "Okay, okay. I'm actually sorry to the both of you. For Shute, I shouldn't have put you through all of those things to satisfy my ego. And Remura, I'm sorry I kept my sadist acts hidden from you, as well as tormenting your new man."

 New man? What?

 "...way to call me out like that, Celeste. Please be more considerate before I make you mute for awhile," Remura muttered under her breath.

 Zeleste walked over and hugged Remura from the side since she was done with her apology. "Just tell him already, damn."

 "Um... yes?" I asked, "Tell me...?"

  "..." Remura paused for a long time.

 "Shute, I've been telepathically commanded to speak for Remura instead," Zeleste announced, causing Remura to slap her face. If that's the case, then Remura wanted to be subtle about it, but Zeleste seemed to be a blabber-mouth. "Remura likes you, like... affectionately, you dummy."

 "... O-oh.." I was honestly surprised. I mean, maybe not too entirely surprised. She did seem nervous around me, a lot.

 "I-is that okay, Shute..? Your reaction just then..." Remura spoke softly, starting to sound let down.

 "N-no it's perfectly fine! I just... our size difference, and... um," I began to make excuses. But it was time to say the hard stuff. "I also hadn't considered it because you're actually extremely attractive. Way above my league..."

 Both Zeleste and Remura just stared at me like I'd had an alien burst out of my chest.

 Zeleste was the first to speak up after a moment of silence, though. "Hey, hi Shute! I understand your reasoning, I honestly do. But," Zeleste leaned in closer towards me for a dramatic emphasis and whispered, "I don't think Remura cares about leagues or whatever the Hell else you're probably telling yourself in your head. Just give her a chance, pretty please?"

 This was surreal. I haven't known Remura but for like a day and I'm already being shipped with her? I mean, I had a very great first impression of her and she was definitely my type. Do these women really not socialize very much? It's a silly question I asked myself-- they seemed like the solitary type. I highly doubt any human settlements would readily welcome a vampire and the Dark Lord's offspring in with open arms.

 I looked at Remura's eyes, and she bashfully averted her gaze. I searched my heart for a moment, and I came up with the conclusion: I really had nothing to lose.

 "I-I'm fine with it, if you're fine with me, Remura," I finally replied.

 Remura returned her gaze and beamed a very warm looking smile. "O-of c-course I am!"

~