Four's a Party Chapter 9 & 10 (Patreon)

A/N:  This the last post of Four's a Party for this month. Normally, it would have been one chapter, but I couldn't quite fit it all into chapter nine and we were so close to a scene I've been working towards for a while now, so have a little bonus. 

Hope you all enjoy! 

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Chapter 9: The Ties that Bind Us

I sighed happily as Angelica combed my hair.

Our little party of four had returned to the fledgling village two days ago, and things were progressing smoothly. By that I meant, we had enough food that no one was going to stave, and we’d even made some small luxury goods like the comb in Angelica’s eager hands.

That being said, after literally walking to the capital, I was less comfortable about our current location.

Good thing Amy and I had held back from throwing up a full village worth of buildings and furniture via her power. I’d thought it would end up being necessary, but apparently the both of us had forgotten one simple truth:

People wanted to be useful. Even—or maybe especially—after a tragedy like being sold into slavery, people wanted to prove that they had value.

In the end, Amy hadn’t even had to knock down the trees.

So far most of the structures were temporary and ad hoc, but we did wind up having two carpenters in the small groups we’d managed to save. Amusingly, the human made sturdy things, like buildings and tables, while the demon did detail work. It was all turning out to be far more permanent than I’d originally anticipated.

I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.

Well, at least it was nice to have a comb. My hair was getting long and I hadn’t had a chance to cut it since well before I came to this world. It didn’t look like that was going to change anytime soon. I had responsibilities now, more and more with each passing day.

The cove we’d been thinking about for the ‘shipyard’ was a bust, it ended up being way too exposed. Which was kinda awkward because Cerik had come through with tools and some parts that were harder to make.

I’d have to think of something to do with all of that. First, I had to finish updating my stats though.

Points had already been assigned, and my new stat spread made my old one look positively anemic. With 24 levels in bard and 4 in Demigod, I was much stronger than I’d been only a few short weeks ago. It drove home just how much stronger Malori was than me, but at least I wouldn’t just fall over and die if our next alpha strike failed.

Last of course was the perks, which Malori wanted to go over with us today.

There was a knock on the door to my ‘cabin.’

“Come in!” I patted Angelica on the foot. “Could you give me a quick braid, sweetie?”

“Yes, Miss Taylor!” Her fingers quickly wound my hair into a simple three strand braid, folding the end into a loose knot.

“Good job.” I picked Angelica up into a hug, and she buried her face in my shoulder as I stroked her own short hair and smiled.

This was shaping up to be something far more than I could have anticipated, yes. But thus far, I couldn’t name a single regret.

Malori giggled, covering her mouth at my display. Amy just rolled her eyes.

I stuck my tongue out at her.

I took a seat on one of my chairs. Being a leader meant I had enough furniture for the four of us.

Well, so long as Angie sat in my lap anyway.

I still wasn’t quite sure what to do with my cute little kobold. She was so trusting, so willing and eager to fulfill my every request. It made me worried, and I didn’t know the first thing about… being a mother. In the end, I defaulted to treating her the same way I remembered my mother acting around me.

Well, minus the ‘little owl’ bit; that wouldn’t have made much sense. She was my good girl instead.

I’d known, intellectually, why Bitch cared so much about dogs. But now I was finally beginning to understand. They would do anything for you. Just scratch them behind the ears, give them a nice full bowl, and a dog would follow you to the ends of the earth.

Now distill that into a little girl with the floppiest golden ears and a too thin face, who was smart enough to figure out what you wanted and gave no thought to the cost to herself.

I… It was…

“So.” I coughed, hugging Angelica tighter for a moment. All I could do was my best. “Perks.”

“Right!” Malori clapped her hands. “Perks are super important! You only get them every twenty levels. Some people think it’s ten, but that’s just a joke that adventurers like to play on noobs.”

Amy snorted. “Uber and Leet would love it here.”

“Well yes,” I said. “But actually no.” Amy laughed as I turned towards Malori “So what should we do with our perks?”

“It’s important to pick a perk that you can’t just replicate with hard work.” Malori nodded to herself, gesturing to—when did she have the time to set up a chalk board?! “Bards, for example, can take the Melody on my Mind perk! It lets them remember tunes and carry a pitch more easily. But this is the worst type of perk to pick!”

“Really?” I tilted my head. “It seems pretty useful.” I’d taken it with one of my Demigod perk points. I’d gotten one of those every demigod level so far, so I’d had to pick ones that wouldn’t be too obvious, and also I hadn’t been able to ask an expert.

“Both of those things are stuff you can learn with practice!” Malori wrapped the white board, where a cute little drawing of a goat demon—a pooka? We had one or two in the village—was doing practicing things with an instrument. “And it doesn’t improve your stats, which is the one thing practice can’t do, so it’s a huge waste.”

That did make sense. I felt a brief pang of loss from my wasted perk point, but there was nothing for it now. At least the other demigod perks I’d picked hadn’t been ‘wasted.’

“For bards, it’s widely agreed that Musical Magic is the best perk.” Malori tapped a new picture, showing a bard pooka blasting a fireball from their lute. I still had no idea when she’d gotten the time to draw all of these. “While you still won’t be nearly as versatile as a sorcerer or mage like myself,” she raised her chin proudly, “this perk allows bards to cast some non-bard spells through their music.”

“No really?” Amy leaned forward. “I thought it meant bards would be able to make their spells musical. Oh, wait.”

I rolled my eyes.

Malori huffed. “Haha. You’re so funny!” She was learning well. “But really, it’s one of the most versatile perks that a bard can unlock, even if some people do advocate for—”

“Sold.” I opened my menu. “I’ll be taking that one.” I flicked over to my perk section, selecting Musical Magic with a quick tap. I heard a little jingle in my head as a new screen popped up. “What spells should I pick?”

Malori blinked. “But... II had a whole presentation comparing the Charismatic Charmer perk with Musical Magic to prove it was better…”

“Wow, and you managed to convince me without even having to do that, at all, ever.” I smiled. “What a great teacher.”

Malori looked at me, a betrayed expression on her face. Then she sighed. “Well, Bards can take spells two tiers lower than an equivalent level wizard. You get a new tier every ten levels. Oh, and some people call them spell ‘levels’ as well, but that’s confusing and my teacher called them tiers so I do too.”

I nodded, parceling away the useful bits of that while the majority of my attention was focused on the list of spells I could choose to unlock.

But anyway. “So, you’re saying you know what the best spells are.”

“I know what the best spells are for me.” Malori tapped her chin. “I focused on dps and battlefield control, plus a few barrier and abjuration spells ‘cause being squishy was a good way to end up dead in the tower. There are also several other options for spell layouts—”

“Battlefield control and damage output sound perfect.” I cut her off. “I already have more than enough support options, so having more force projection in my own right seems like an important next step.” After all, blinding people with insects was a prelude to, well.

I’m sure you get what I mean.

Malori paused, mouth still open. “Could you at least let me finish my lecture?” Her voice came out half as a whine.

I chuckled. “Last I checked we had important things to do.”

She sighed. “Whatever.” She folded her arms over her chest, pulling up her own menu. “I’ll send you my list of spells and what order you should prioritize them in. I mean, you might need to make some changes because you also have your bard magic but—”

“I’ll figure it out.”

Malori gave another little whine, flopping over in her chair. “Can’t you just let me teach youuuuuuu?”

I laughed. “I appreciate the help,” I said.” But don’t you have enough students? One of them is right here even.”

I ruffled Angelica’s hair and she beamed happily.

Malori just sighed. “She’s yours and we both know it.”

“That doesn’t mean she doesn’t appreciate your lessons.” I smirked. “Last night she spent a solid hour talking about all of the spells you’d taught her. She seems to be coming along quite well, isn’t that right, Angie?”

Angie nodded happily. “Miss Malori is a good teacher!”

I chuckled at Malori’s happy expression. She may be more than three times my combined level, but Mal was a straightforward person at heart.

I opened my menu, looking over the spell list she’d sent to me as Malori and Amy started talking about her Paladin Perks. Apparently, the church had records about older ‘holy’ classes, for all that there wasn’t much beyond priests these days.

At least we wouldn’t be flying completely blind. I made a note to look up some more of those holy classes. So far I’d seen no indication of gods, but there’d been no indication that Scion was actually there to kill my entire species, so I was keeping my ears open.

With one hand occupied petting Angelica, I picked out spells that Malori had recommended, plus a few others that I knew I’d be able to use effectively.

Far be it from me to turn my back on my old skills, just because I’d happened to pick up some new ones.

That left me with one bard perk to compliment my three demigod perks.

  ***

Perks

Bard

Musical Magic--Cast spells with   Music.

{Demigod}

Melody on the Mind—remember tunes and   songs more easily, allowing you to make better musics.

Terrifying Presence—Your Intimidation   level receives a 1.5 multiplier for any charisma checks.

Aura of Command—People will listen to   you, even if they normally wouldn’t. You will always have a chance to speak,   though what you do with that chance is up to you.

***

The demigod perks—first one that I’d taken aside—were powerful. I was still half convinced that Terrifying Presence was the only reason my debuffs had worked on some of the caravan guards at all. The perks weren’t the strict stat bonuses that Malori suggested I take per se, but they were all things that I couldn’t just “learn” how to do.

Aura of Command in particular, I wondered about. There were plenty of other perks I could have picked that would have enhanced my abilities, but taking Malori’s comments a step further, all of my abilities would get stronger as I practiced and leveled up.

Aura of Command seemed to be offering something completely unique.

Could I walk into a meeting between the King and his advisors, armed guards at his heels, and still be given a chance to speak? Because that’s what the skill suggested.

It was a perk that I hadn’t seen on the bard list at all, even scrolling through dozens of perks that were grayed out. It struck me as something unique, and so I’d taken it.

Call it… limit testing.

“Oh yeah.” My head snapped up as Amy poked me in the side. “Did you hear?”

With a huff, I closed my menu, all of those thoughts would have to wait until later.

“About what?”

Amy smirked. “About the demon and the human that were fucking in the storage shed.”

Malori’s face went red. On my lap, Angelica tilted her head. “Miss Taylor?”

I shot a nasty glare at Amy. “Yes Angelica?”

“What’s Fucking?”

I sighed. “Nothing you need to worry about right now. It’s something adults like to do.”

She frowned. “I’m an adult!”

I shot a nasty glare at Amy.

She just smirked, giving a casual shrug. You bitch, like you didn’t plan this whole thing.

“Angie, you’re thirteen.” I pulled her into a hug. “And I know you’re very strong, you’re already almost the same level as Amy and I! But that doesn’t mean you have to force yourself to grow up so fast okay?”

Angelica looked down at her lap, fists scrunching in her skirt, but after I petted her head for a bit longer, she calmed down with a nod.

“Why don’t you and Malori talk about what you should do with all of your new spell slots?” I asked her. “That way we can get ready for our next adventure.”

Angelica cast a suspicious eye at me. “What’re you gonna do, Miss Taylor?”

“Amy and I have some things to check up on. Apparently.”

Angelica hopped off my lap, and I pushed her towards a still blushing Malori. Then Amy and I were alone in my little hut.

“I’ll get you for that.”

Amy giggled. “Sure you will.” I didn’t glare at her anymore. It wouldn’t have served a purpose.

Instead I just stood. “What even happened?” I asked.

Amy shrugged. “I just heard a rumor. Apparently someone went to the storage hut for all the food because no one had brought out yesterday night’s rations, and that human guy was balls deep in that red demon girl.”

I pinched my nose. “They didn’t finish their job so they could have hate sex?”

“Oh no, they finished. Got everything neatly organized as well.” Amy grinned. “And from the sounds the girl was making, there wasn’t any hate involved, just lots and lots of sex.”

I sighed. “Amy, if you’re that thirsty, you could just make yourself a doll or something.”

She blinked. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“I’m just saying, there’s no reason to overshare just because you’re all hot and bothered.” I stood. “Least of which when you can make yourself a little partner to take care of your urges for you.”

“I—I would never!” Now it was her turn to glare.

I nodded, humming. “That’s right, there are a lot of blond humans here as well, aren’t there.”

Amy growled.

I reached out, patting her on the head. “Just remember that no means no.”

Amy huffed as I walked out of the room. “Frigid bitch.”

I smirked. “Well, one of us is, anyway.”

Amy sputtered.

I mouthed ‘bone dad.’

Amy sputtered harder.

I left as she started going dangerously red and went to take care of problems that had apparently sprouted up while I was solving the last batch. It was something new every day with these people.

At least this time I knew where I was going.

The red demoness, Imara as I’d learned after the initial incident, was still in the exact same storage shed as she sorted the day’s harvest. The crops that Amy made were set to be over productive for the first week, providing produce every day, before tapering off as the fields were expanded.

Soil fertility was important, though she was able to fine tune the crops to help in that regard as well, apparently.

“Imara.”

The demon jumped, almost dropping her too-small clipboard as her eyes snapped to me.

“Ch-chief!”

I nodded. “Hear you and Darren… got over your differences.”

She turned even more red, if that were possible, ducking her head beneath her short white fringe. “‘S not a bad guy…”

I hummed. “And you managed the crops and rations as well?”

She nodded. “I know what it looks like, but I swear I did it all!” She showed me her clipboard, paper filled with chicken scratch. And that was casting aspersions on the chickens. “Darren showed me the organization system everyone else was using, but I did all the entries!”

I took the clipboard, flipping through it as a strange feeling started to grow in my chest.

Well, if nothing else, I doubted anyone but Imara could read what was written here. By the looks of it, she’d actually done it herself. “And the pallets?”

She froze. “Well, you see.”

“Imara.”

Imara hung her head. “I…”

“It’s my fault!”

I glanced up as Darren dashed out of the storage shed. His shirt was off, and he was breathing heavily. Despite the first conclusion I might have come to, a quick once over showed that he’d been moving crates of food. I could see the scrapes on his hands and forearms from the wood and nails. That feeling continued to grow within me.

After a second, I thought I recognized it as… pride.

Granted, I could also see scratches on his sides that were from very different type of nail, which provoked a different type of emotion. But… it looked like he’d actually done what I’d told him to.

And they’d worked together on it?

I raised an eyebrow. It was time to catch this little cart I’d unknowingly set in motion and see just how it’d managed to make it so far.

“I…” Darren glanced to the side. “I’m not very strong, so there were some crates I couldn’t lift. It was my fault, if I were stronger, Imara wouldn’t have had to help me.

“W-well, if I was smarter you wouldn’t‘ve had to help me with the organizationing stuff!”

Imara stepped forward, between me and Darren. “’S not his fault, chief! I offered to help. He told me not to!”

“Because I didn’t want you to get in trouble again idiot!” Darren shoved at the demoness. But there was no heat in his words, and the glance she threw back to him was anything but annoyed.

If anything, she looked proud of him—of themselves—as well.

“That’s my business.” Imara said. “I’m… I’m not letting you get in trouble just for helping me! It was my own decisions, if anyone should get punished it was me, for getting us into this mess in the first place!”

Darren shook his head. “No. It was my fault. I did put you on that extra work crew as punishment, and that was wrong of me. You—”

“That’s quite enough.”

And then there was silence.

I stopped for a moment as I realized that everyone, including the small crowd that had formed around this little ‘repeat performance’ had gone dead silent at my words.

Was this the result of my new skill?

I felt a small smile flicker over my face.

‘what you say is up to you’ indeed.

Still, even that little tidbit couldn’t distract me from the feeling growing in my chest. I was proud of them, yes. But… it was more than that.

It was certainty.

I walked to the center of the impromptu circle that had formed, just like last time, when I’d first handed down my punishment on these two hard headed idiots.

I placed a hand on each of their shoulders.

“Well done.”

Imara and Darren blinked at me in surprise, mouths hanging slack, but I wasn’t done with them. They’d performed above and beyond my wildest expectations. If I was honest, I’d thought they would butt heads, inevitably fail, and resolve to keep their grievances to themselves after the entire village got mad at them for fucking up our food supply.

This… this was so much more than that I didn’t even know where to start.

So instead, I turned to face the rest of the crowd.

“They made mistakes. I spread my arms. “And they learned from their mistakes like we all should.” I felt a smile growing on my face, and I couldn’t bring myself to stop it. “If anyone believes that these two did not fulfill the letter and the spirit of their task, step forward now, or forever hold your peace.”

Of course, my skill all but ensured that no one would walk forward.

I never said I was against stacking the deck in my favor.

I nodded. “Instead of letting their anger consume them, Darren and Imara looked past their hate, their anger, their mistaken first impressions.” I felt the two hang their heads at that, shuffling closer to each other. Amazing. “They performed everything that was required of them and more.” My smile became a full-fledged grin. “They proved that we are better together, than we could ever be apart.”

A small murmur went through the crowd.

“We are one.” I turned, lifting up the sleeve of Imara’s jerkin. Around her bicep, there was a half ring of black burned tissue, a slave brand. “Bound together by the bonds we have broken.”

Darren had the same mark on his left arm.

“When one of us falters, we all feel their pain.” A murmur of agreement swept through the circle, growing louder. “When one of us is laid low, we are all made less.” I turned to face the crowd, voice rising. “And when one of us triumphs we are all made victorious!”

A cheer went up.

“Look at what we’ve already done!” I gestured to the village, even as I beckoned Malori and Amy from the crowd.

“We are all one people. Together, we’ve created something that we could not even dream of alone, and in that,” I bared Amy and Malori’s arms, “we create something that they can never take from us!” Malori’s brand was old, faded, but enough that I’d caught a glimpse of it through her normally loose flowing robes. Before, she’d always acted like it was something she wanted to hide. Now she bared it with pride.

Amy’s own tattoos needed no explanation. They were a brand she had made her own.

Something that she defined, instead of allowing it to define her.

“We are here,” I said. “Because of the chains that we shattered in our defiance! Is it not so?” A roar of agreement went up. “We are not humans or demons. We are the enslaved, the beaten, and the downtrodden.

“The chains that once bound our bodies now bind our hearts as one!”

The crowd roared again, men and women, mothers and children raising their arms in the air, revealing their own brands.

“If your brother is a slave, are you free, my sisters?”

“No!”

“If your mother is a slave, are you free, my sons?”

“NO!”

I nodded, the air rippling around me. I felt like I could barely breathe, the words tumbling out of my lips too fast to stop.

“Etch this upon your hearts, upon your minds.” I reached out, my fingers tracing the edges of Malori’s brand. “Upon your flesh.”

“All of us are free, or none of us are.” I felt a fire burning within me, one that had simmered for all of my time in this new world, finally sparking back into a conflagration I’d thought I had truly lost.

“And we will all be free.”

The people, my people surged forward, raising me up on their shoulders. And I could see it in their eyes.

The fire. The certainty.

The drive that I thought I’d lost, reflected back at me in a hundred eyes.

And this time…

{You have gained Devotion}

I wasn’t even surprised.

Chapter 10: Mature, Adult Decision Making Skills

I pillowed my head on my arms, looking over my status window. It was currently set to private. I was currently lying face down on a table. But that was no reason not to get some work done while I was waiting.

I hissed as a particular sharp needle poked my skin.

Granston Marbl let out a rumbling chuckle. “Apologies, Chief. We’re almost done.” He turned back to my back, tapping the ink into my skin, prick by prick.

I suppose I really should have expected the sudden surge in the popularity of tattoos, after my little speech. The way I’d equated Amy’s ink with my people’s own brands could really only have one outcome.

Of course, at that point, it was practically required that I get one as well.

I flicked through my status screen, looking over the options for devotion. My demigod level had gone up to five right after my speech. I’d received one devotion instead of a perk point, leaving me three to play with.

I bit my lip as Granston went over the lines on my back again.

He was a white orc. One of the more diverse demon races, orcs were renowned warriors, ingenious architects, and learned scholars, depending on the clan. Granston’s clan was known for their skill with tattoos, piercings, and other such decorations. He, along with three of his apprentices, had become celebrities practically overnight

With Amy on hand to deal with any potential infections—and just as eager to add another tattoo to her designs—I’d let people off for a few days so that no one would have to wait to ‘break their chains.’

That turn of phrase hadn’t been my doing. But it made a lot of sense.

Part of me wondered if I should even be claiming kinship with the rest of the villagers. I hadn’t suffered as they had, as Amy had even.

But then, they were still mine. I’d saved their lives on Gold Morning. This was just me, announcing my displeasure that the human kingdom undid my work.

That they hadn’t known was of no concern.

That they’d debased my people was.

And so, when Grasnton had offered to do my own tattoo, I’d accepted without hesitation.

“Are you sure you don’t want more color?” Granston asked me.

I hummed. “You’ve added the gold accents like I asked?”

He chuckled. “Indeed.” Ink, magic or no, wasn’t easy to come by, but I had a pocket Amy for that as well.

“Just the black and gold is fine.”

“As you wish, Chief.”

I nodded, resigning to be ‘Chief’ for the foreseeable future. Like Brian would have said, it’s all about rep.

I was awful at shaking off names, and I’d need all the help I could get besides, Demigod skills or no.

The window in front of me did offer such pretty powers though…

 *** 

Devotion

 Devotion is used to enhance your divine domains or unlock new   ones.

Unlocking a first level domain connected to your Mythos costs 1   devotion. Enhancing a domain costs 1*(new domain level)

Unlocking an unrelated domain costs 10 devotion.

***

I could see the draw of saving up for a completely different domain. Life, Death, Magic even… there were so many powerful fields I could dip my fingers into if I was willing to save up a bit. But that would require time I wasn’t willing to give.

So instead, I made a relatively simple choice. Upgrade Knowledge first. It had given me more insight into my surroundings and the people within them. Like a bargain bin version of Lisa’s power.

I chuckled to myself. Maybe if I’d had more time I could have locked in the full Undersiders set. All I needed was for Angelica to learn a spell that turned her into a giant lizard monster.

“Something funny, chief?”

I shook my head slightly. “Just thinking.”

“About?”

“The future.”

But as fun as that might have been, there was a much more interesting option. One that promised to serve me better than any power from Earth Bet.

Well, except for Contessa’s, but she was a dirty cheater.

With a press I selected to unlock my newest domain.

 *** 

Freedom.

You are the blade that strikes the chain, the fire that frees the soul.

***

A less helpful description than the others had been, but that made sense. This was a new domain, born actions in this world, instead of the last.

It would grow.

I stayed silent for a second, before the urge to get up and do something started to grow once again.

“How much longer was it?” I asked.

Gransten just laughed.

Luckily, the door to the room banged open before I could go truly stir crazy. “Miss Taylor, Miss Taylor!” Angelica darted in, skidding to a stop directly in front of me. “Look!”

She showed off her bandaged arm proudly. By the looks of it, she’d gotten a full sleeve. It was a bit much, but the entire village had been completely swept up in this trend. It had even turned into a little mini competition for who could come up with the most interesting designs. I held back a sigh at the thought.

God save me from stubborn idiots.

Wait, should that be “me save me?”

What a mess. I smiled all the same. “I’m sure it’ll look beautiful once it’s finished healing.” Amy could have healed them all easily as well, but, well, she already had enough to do. I’m sure it wasn’t just because the author hadn’t come up with a design for Angelica’s tattoo yet.

“Yep!” Angelica bounced happily, other hand ghosting just above her bandaged arm. “Miss Malori had Cerik help me draw it, too!” She wrinkled her nose. “He still kinda smells funny, but he’s a good artist.”

“Really?” I raised an eyebrow. “That’s not something I would have expected from him.”

She nodded. “Miss Malori says he practices drawing snakes and stuffing.”

I blinked. “…Stuffing?”

“Mmhm!” Her tail was still wagging too. “He even stuffed his hands into Miss Malori’s mouth! So he must really like stuffing things.”

Granston laughed.

I closed my eyes for a long moment.

“How would you stuff a snake though?”

That moment became slightly longer.

“Can I move my arm?” I asked Granston.

“Go ahead.”

Reaching out, I patted Angelica on the head.

Granston continued to chuckle.

“Why don’t you go have Amy check you over, make sure you don’t get sick.” The two of us had made this process as sanitary as we could manage, but we were still just a bunch of people in dirty clothes squatting in the middle of the woods.

Sanitary it was not.

“Okay.”

Granston huffed out one last laugh as she ran out of the tent again. “She’s a good kid.”

“The best.”

“Hope she turns out better than that Cer—”

“Talk about something else.”

I could feel Granston’s grin though my domain, it was so big. “So, I bet by the time we get more Kobolds, she’ll be strong enough to start her own little pack.”

I quirked my lip. “I heard canid demon packs can be… rough ”

Granston just smiled wider.

Well, we’d just have to wait and see.

I waited in silence as he added the finishing touches to the design on my lower back, before nodding in satisfaction a moment later. “Done.” He held his hand over my stinging skin. “Complete!” A blue glow rose into the air, throwing his features into stark relief. I blinked as the pain vanished a second later

“There we go. Wanna take a look, Chief?”

I stood slowly, but it didn’t hurt at all. My skin didn’t even feel different. “You healed it?”

He laughed. “More than healed! That’s a master artisan’s spell right there! A normal healing spell would have undone the whole thing.”

I blinked, before nodding. He could finish a tattoo just by calling it ‘done?’ That was a pretty neat skill, even if it was limited in scope.

“Over here.” He gestured towards the wall. “I managed to keep my old mirror; the slaving bastards took it from my house when they nabbed me.”

I moved over to the covered mirror, turning my back to it even as I held a small strip of cloth over my chest. It wasn’t much for my modesty, but my clothes had been ‘stolen’ by someone with a few too many levels in ‘seamstress’ for my comfort before they’d returned and given Granston a bag.

Somehow, I doubted my old clothes were inside.

Then Granston yanked the cloth off the mirror with a grin, and all of those thoughts flew from my head.

“Well?”

I have a shallow nod. “It’s perfect.”

“Hehe.” Granston rubbed his nose. “An artist knows his craft.”

That he did.

Starting at the small of my back, he’d inked a scarab in bold, thick lines. It was done in a style I’d described from half remembered pictures of hieroglyphs in my social studies textbook, making it look almost regal.

The scarab’s horn jutted up from where its head rested between my shoulder blades, spearing the golden sun at the nape of my neck. Its forelimbs came up to embrace the star, in a way that had me wondering just what the scarab planned to do with it, and I’d described the image to Granston in the first place.

What drew it all home was the burnished flecks of light that made it seem like my little beetle was basking in the light of that sun, sending the black ink shimmering against my skin.

A smile won out over my features. “It’s almost a shame to cover it up.”

“About that.” Granston reached down and picked up the bag he’d gotten earlier. “Don’t think the rest of the village has been sitting on our hands after all you’ve done for us.”

I shook my head. “I’ve barely done anything worth mentioning. This is more than enough.” I gestured to the design on my back.

“Well.” He grinned. “If’ya feel so strongly, feel free to send back their gifts.”

I frowned. “That… would be rude, wouldn’t it?”

“To demons especially.” His grin grew. “We don’t do things for others often, and less even than that for free. If a demon gives you something, it means they respect you at a level most never reach.”

I signed “Just… give me my clothes.”

The first thing that came out of the bag was a new pair of paints. The fabric was light, and it felt billowy around my thighs, only to narrow down the moment it hit my knees. “Odd design”

“Just wait till you see the rest.”

I shrugged, pulling the pants on. Next out was—

I stopped. “Amy did this.”

“Do you like them? She said they were considered high fashion in your hometown.”

I grit my teeth. “They could be called that.”

So, this was Amy’s revenge? The devious little tart. I’d pay her back.

I’d pay her back a thousand-fold.

Of course, that didn’t change the shape of the thigh high boots laying across my hands.

Where did they even get the material for this? Stupid question, pocket Amy. With another sigh, I pulled them fully from the sack. One thing they never tell you about thigh high boots is how damn stupid they look before you put them on. Now the tighter, thin pants made more sense. They were trousers cum leggings. I would have just put on my old boots, but those had been stolen as well. And if I knew Amy, she’d ‘repurposed’ the material already.

Well, fake it till you make it as they say.

I pulled the boots on, quickly lacing them up. Granston at least had the decency to avert his gaze while I was still topless, though from what I’d gathered, Demons had much less of a nudity taboo than humans did.

Well, at least the boots themselves were functional. They had sturdy soles and supple leather legs to make them easy to adventure in. If I was lucky, they might even breathe…

“And the top?”

He pulled out a thin piece of maroon fabric. I took it, staring at it skeptically. Then I blinked, laughing. “I guess you were right about not covering it up.”

Granston just shrugged, shit eating grin ever on his face. “You’re the one who told everyone you were getting a back tattoo.”

I gave him a wry look. “…At least I don’t have anything that’ll slip.” I muttered, tying my ‘shirt’ into place.

From the front, my new piece of clothing looked more like a thin, armless turtleneck. Or maybe the top bit of a leotard. It covered me from the middle of my neck, all the way down to my waist. From the front, being the operative term here.

The back was secured by two ties at the nape of my neck, and a thicker piece of material that I tied tightly right above my rear.

With a huff, I stood up, smoothing out the material.

I had to say, it did go together well. The maroon shift completement the jet-black pants and boots, and all it was all well fitted, without a wrinkle to be seen. It made me look sleek, like a bared blade.

As I turned, I couldn’t help but let out an appreciative hum. The fabric of my top framed the tattoo perfectly, hugging my sides as if it was complimenting the artwork, instead of just showing off skin for no reason.

With an idle thought, I took my hair and quickly did it up in a braid to the side of my head. When I let it go, it fell neatly over the front of my shoulder to about mid chest. That way, it wouldn’t ruin all of the work everyone had put into keeping my tattoo visible.

Well, I thought with a smile, I’d certainly had worse looks.

“What do you think?”

I spread my arms, smirking at Granston.

He clapped his hands. “Deadly as a knife and twice as sexy.”

I laughed. “That’s good. I’ll keep that one in mind for my next speech.”

Granston laughed as well, handing me a black cloak to complete the ensemble. Still, it would be a shame to get such a beautiful new outfit, tattoo included, just to hide it away.

I draped the cloak over my arm. “Shall we get to work?”

He grinned. “Speak for yourself! I’ve got another dozen appointments already lined up, Chief.

I nodded, turning to the door. “I’ll leave you to it then.”

Reaching out, I shoved them open, and stepped into the village beyond.

I couldn’t keep the grin off my face.

Time to get to work.

End Part 1