Coye 4.15 (Patreon)

Chapter 15 - Fully Exposed

Suzette and Byng were staring. No matter how long they did, they still had trouble processing what they saw. Their regret was somewhat overshadowed by the interest and fascination one experienced when looking upon a Fae, but their awkwardness remained. Neither knew what they should say to her, so they continued to marvel without a word.

Coye was now seated, hoping dearly that the situation would stay as calm as it was. His anxiety was doing a number on him, but he knew whatever he was experiencing must've been nothing compared to Shayla's state of mind. Coye wished there was something- anything- he could do to go back and stop this from happening, even if he had no idea how he would even accomplish that.

Shayla broke the silence with a shrug, then started a round of sarcastic clapping as she said, "Welp, you did it. Congrats. Sorry to tell you there's no prize or anything, just little ol' me. Just to get it out of the way, I'm telling you girls now that I don't see what all this meet and greet is gonna accomplish. If the big guy didn't make it obvious, I'm not cool with getting to know other people. Don't like 'em, probably never will."

"Shayla..." Coye frowned and clenched the fabric of his shorts nervously, earning only a subtle leer from the Pixie that told him she would be as rude as she damn well wanted.

"It's all right, Darling. Quite alright. Our approach was... not the best way to go about this. She has every reason to feel the way she does."

"You know, that level of self-awareness would've been real swell a couple of minutes ago," Shayla spat.

Suzette's guilt became heavier, but Byng grabbed the older woman's thigh under the table and reminded her, "Suz, the pie?"

"Oh, yes," Suzette reached for the dinner basket and retrieved a small pie from inside. She reached across the table and set it close to Shayla, but not too close. "You like sweets, don't you?"

"...Y-Yeah, and? What's it to you?" Shayla asked with significantly less venom than her previous comment, saliva already pooling in her mouth. She gazed at the lukewarm pastry, its apple cinnamon scent staring through the air and into her nose. Everything about it tantalized her, from its crisp, golden brown perfection to the thick layer of crystallized sugar sprinkled on top of the crust.

Coye's hope rose the longer she stared had it, a small smile appearing on his face. He was happy they thought of this. Shayla was easily bought off, but he worried it might not be enough.

"We got this for you!" Byng clarified. "It was Suz's idea, but I helped pay for it... so it's from both of us! Y'know, as a nice to meet you present? Are those a thing? Fuck it, they are now."

Shayla frowned. She didn't expect things to start with them being so nice to her, but then again, she expected the worst. In a rare turn of events, Shayla was the one who was confused and looking for guidance. Glancing over her shoulder, she stared at Coye with doubt and waited for his opinion.

Naturally, the docile boy was supportive. "Go ahead. Have some."

Shayla became frazzled and tried to save face even as her feet unconsciously carried her closer and closer to the pie. "What, you think I need your permission or something?! Dummy! I... I was just making sure you didn't want any!" Shayla lied.

"I'm full," he said, stifling a small laugh. Suzette and Byng were also somewhat amused, but they kept it to themselves since they didn't want to upset the Pixie. "It's all yours."

With all pretenses out of the way, Shayla moved within striking distance and dug into the pie that called her name in sweet, seductive whispers. To Coye's lovers, this proved to be something of a spectacle. Neither expected a girl as small as Shayla could absolutely pack it away in such a short amount of time. As she ate more and more, her belly ballooned to a comical extent. Coye was used to the sight, but the others didn't know what to make of that. Byng and Suzette both exchanged a look of disbelief, and somehow by the time they looked back, Shayla was already sitting in the middle of an empty pie tin and was as thin as the moment they first laid eyes on her.

The awkward silence returned in full force after Shayla was done until she felt pressure from the disappointed boy behind her. Knowing exactly what he wanted, she figured it was best to just get it over with.

"Thanks," Shayla mumbled as she forced herself to look up at the girls. "It wasn't bad, I guess."

"Really? That's wonderful." Suzette smiled nervously. "If we weren't so busy, I would've made you one myself. Next time, for sure."

Shayla blushed. Again she felt the effects of kindness and drew a blank over what to do about it, choosing ultimately to remain as aloof as she could get away with. "Go ahead. It's not like I won't eat it..."

Suzette patted Byng's knee under the table, signaling that it was her turn to try and break through the Pixie's defenses. Byng brought out her best casual and friendly smile, then pointed at Shayla and Coye back and forth. "So, uh... how long has this been going on?"

"About two weeks," Shayla sighed. "I lived in the woods but wanted out. The Human world is dangerous for a girl like me, so I needed a partner to keep me safe. After watching lucky Coye here for months and months on end until I knew I could trust him, I made contact, and everything snowballed from there."

"Now, when you say partner..." Suzette started to ask.

"It means I fuck him, yes," Shayla sighed. "Just like you guys do."

Byng started to blush as she looked at the two of them. "Uh. Cool, cool. Question. How does that-"

"She's stretchy," Coye mumbled and hung his head with shame.

"Right," Byng nodded absently. "I mean, she would kinda have to be, gahaha..."

The awkward tension in the room was now at suffocating levels, and Shayla felt it most of all. She stood up and started pacing around the table while looking for the right words to say before steeling herself to confront her two onlookers. "Look, can we just cut the shit and sort out the thing that actually matters here?"

"What do you mean, dear?"

"Whatever else you take away from tonight, I want you to make damn sure you know none of this is his fault-" Shayla pointed back at Coye. "Don't be mad at him for cheating on you with me, or not telling you about me, or whatever. All of that junk is my fault- all mine. I've got issues, and I was the one who insisted on the secrecy, so if you're gonna-"

Byng propped her elbows on the table and leaned over it, frowning. "The heck are you going on about, Shay? I thought we were both pretty damn clear how we didn't give a shit about any of that. Right, Suz?"

"Well, I wouldn't say I don't give any shits, but the exact number of them relies on a number of variables. Now that I have a better view of everything, I see that there was a good reason for the secrecy, making me the bad guy..." Suzette sighed. "For further clarification, is it true that Shayla's been up in your hat every time we've interacted this past week, Darling?"

"Pretty much, yeah..." Coye nodded meekly.

Again, Shayla did her best to shield him from any accusations. "Before you go worrying about who did what, my role is mostly limited to giving advice and pushing the big guy to do crap he wouldn't do otherwise. Think of me as more of a magical, sagely cheerleader than a nefarious puppetmaster. As far as seducing the two of you goes, most of it was him."

When they looked at Coye to verify, Byng and Suzette found he was starting to sniffle and fight back oncoming tears. "I'm sorry for lying to you both," he whined. "I never wanted to."

"Whoa, c'mon, short-stuff! There's no need for the waterworks."

"It might be better for him if he says what's on his mind," Suzette suggested. "Go on, Darling."

"I've just been worried that if you found out Shayla was helping me all along, you would've thought differently of me. I don't know. Like, maybe you'd see how fake I am and how I couldn't do this on my own, and then you'd end up regretting being with me because I'm not the person you thought I was..." he managed to look up at the girls, but he was a sorry sight. Coye's Half-Elven beauty was ruined by tears, a red face, and a runny nose. "But... at the same time, it's true. I couldn't have done any of it without Shayla's help!"

Coye didn't know it, but he had a face that could get away with absolutely anything if he cried hard enough. Byng, Suzette, and even Shayla each felt like they'd been punched in the gut just from a single look at the poor boy.

"Baby..." Shayla bit her lower lip and flew to his shoulder so she could place her hand on his cheek and comfort him. As upset as she was, it was just in her nature to spoil him when he needed it most. "They get it. It's not your fault. Right?" She looked back at the others, who got the message crystal clear.

"Yes, Darling. She's right. Please, there's no need to cry." Suzette reassured.

"Really...?" Coye whimpered as he wiped away some tears.

"Seriously!" Byng agreed, her conscience begging her to make this boy feel better at any cost. "It doesn't change a thing. Okay, well... maybe it changes a couple things, but they're so minor I don't even care."

"Look," Shayla sighed, and after giving Coye a couple more reassuring pats, she flew back on the table. "If you guys have any questions I can answer to make this transition easier, just... say the word, I guess..." She shrugged. The Pixie discovered it was hard to remain aloof and defensive of her sensitive little femboy at the same time, but dammit, she had to try.

"Okay, I got a question," Byng scratched her chin.

"Shoot." Shayla looked her dead on.

"The other day... when that floorboard wobbled under our feet out of nowhere..."

"Nope, no idea what you're talking about. Next." Shayla coughed into her fist and looked away, but Byng could smell the bullshit and started laughing. This created a chain reaction, cheering Coye up a decent amount when he joined in with some chuckles of his own.

"I knew that was shady as fuck! It was way too fucking convenient. At first, I thought it might've been short-stuff trying to get back at me for the morning prank, but after what happened next... well, no offense, but we both know you don't have the balls to dry hump me in public."

"None taken," Coye awkwardly grinned.

"Looking back, If that was actually a prank, then it's pretty fucking funny. No way were you expecting it to spiral out of control the way it did, gahaha!"

Shayla stayed quiet for a few moments, but there was no helping her show-offy nature. When faced with praise, she had to indulge. "Yeah. It was pretty funny of me, wasn't it? You pulled off some pretty decent pranks yourself, too. Least from what I've seen." She and Byng shared a slight smile that lasted only a moment, but it was progress all the same.

"Speaking of pranks," Suzette cleared her throat. "You had quite an adventure the night my Darling first stayed over. Would you mind clearing the air with me regarding that little incident, Shayla?"

"Fuck," Shayla cursed her past self. "Yeah, so... about that. Fair warning is due. I'm not your run-of-the-mill whimsical little forest Fairy who likes to dance and sing and sit on flowers all day. Specifically, I'm a Pixie."

"Yes, Darling said as much in the half-truth he told me to get into my pants," Suzette snuck in a quick glare at the boy, shaming him just enough to make him hang his head.

Shayla brushed off the comment with a wave of her hand. "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, that means I do bad things sometimes, and you just kind of have to go along with it because it's in my nature to want to fuck with people at every opportunity. Plus, I was soooo fucking bored that night... and a little annoyed after watching you two get all cutesy with each other. Mostly bored, though."

"So you mean to say you rifled through my belongings, magically transforming my old clothes, altered the contents of my books, raided my pantry, and devoured nearly an entire shelf's worth of candy... all because you were jealous and had nothing better to do?"

"Yes," the Pixie felt attacked, crossed her arms, and looked away. "Other inexplicable things of similar nature are gonna keep on happening in the future, too, so I'd suggest you get used to it. I'm not apologizing."

"Shayla, why are you being so difficult?" Coye frowned. "Suzette isn't trying to get on your case about this. She's just trying to understand you."

"It's true. If I were mad, I'd wager that would be a good deal more obvious. If anything, I'm astonished at what you were able to make of all those clothes I had lying around. Your alterations are nothing short of delightful, dear. I'm only confused why you would do something so nice for me."

"Because I'm not like all the other Pixies. Sometimes I feel like doing nice things, and sometimes I don't," Shayla replied with unnecessary sass. "You just got lucky. Don't go reading into it too much or anything."

Her standoffishness was back in full force, causing Coye to feel even worse. He raised his voice at Shayla and said, "What did I just say? Can't you chill out a little bit?"

Her temper flared, and all of a sudden, she spun around in place to stare right at him. Shayla's negative emotions came bubbling to the forefront as she spoke. "Oh, you want me to chill out? I'm sorry, baby, but I can't just chill out. This is hard for me! I can't pretend it isn't!"

Coye soon found himself staring at the floor and clenching his fists in frustration. He thought there might have been some progress with Byng, owing to how much the two had in common, but he underestimated how deeply this ran. Upon closer inspection, Shayla was having trouble breathing. Her anxiety spiked. Given that she was his better half, he soon started to feel the same as her. Coye became visibly distraught, prompting a lack of optimism to spread throughout the room.

Even with her upbeat personality, it was more than Byng could bear. She collapsed against the table with a colossal shrug. "Fucking dammit," she sighed. "Much as I hate to say it, maybe we should head home and try this again some other time...?"

Suzette was of a similar mind, but she pressed on despite that. "If that's what you would prefer, Shayla, let us know. We can be patient."

Feeling three sets of eyes firmly trained on her, the Pixie could feel all sources of pressure mounting. Eventually, she asked something that was on her mind from the moment this conversation began. "How the hell did you even figure out about me, anyway? I know Coye gave up some vague details to you the other day," she pointed at Byng, still sour over his loose lips. "But other than that, I thought I covered my tracks pretty nicely. What gives?"

"Actually, I didn't know what was going on until Suz pointed it out to me," Byng said. "Not the whole picture, anyway. I'm not dumb. I knew something was up, y'know? I ain't an expert on Karnallian magic, but I was pretty damn sure you were full of shit about your new powers. I always heard that Mages at least have to point their hands if they're not casting their spells out loud, right?"

"Uh... right," Coye confirmed.

"Thought so. Magic crap kept happening around you in directions you weren't even looking. There's 'convenient,' and then there's 'something fucky is going on around here.' On top of that, your shoulder armor was all shiny and sparkly between rounds during our Zurgarrah. That's that dust coming off of your wings, yeah? I'm guessing that's where you plant your ass."

Shayla unconsciously stopped beating her wings, her face filling up with red hot blush due to a hot wave of embarrassment washing over her. "I go to all that trouble to make sure my Pixie dust doesn't end up in your hair, and I straight up forget to do the same for your gear?! Gods, I'm such a fucking... agh!" Her rage boiled over, and she kicked the pie tin away, which was a more amusing sight than it should've been. Once enough of her humiliation had cooled over, she turned her attention to Suzette and asked, "And what about you, mama bear? How'd you solve the puzzle?"

"Perhaps we're better off talking about that another time," the older woman looked off to the side. She didn't know if the angered spirit could handle another blow to her ego.

"I fucked up again, didn't I?" The Pixie groaned and slumped her shoulders. "Because if I did, stop tiptoeing around and just tell me. I can take it."

"Fine," Suzette nodded. "The night you messed around in my home, you came back into the bedroom after finishing up with your mischief. Surely you remember? You fluttered over to Coye's face and whispered something or other to him before giving him a kiss on the lips."

Coye started to blush. "Wait, you kissed me while I was sleeping?"

"Aww," Byng cooed. "That's cute as fuck, right there!"

"Shut up, both of you!" Shayla snapped, steam practically funneling out her ears. "Even if I did do that, how would you have known?! I made damn sure you were sleeping before I came back!"

"I was sleeping,"

"But I... I was quiet! How did you-"

"There's no easy way to let you down on this, so I'm just going to say it," Suzette sighed and blushed from secondhand embarrassment. "Honey, you glow in the dark. Who wouldn't wake up when there's essentially a lantern not even a foot away from their face? It's a miracle Darling didn't so much as stir, for that matter."

Even though Byng knew it was the last thing Shayla needed to hear right now, she couldn't hold back all of her laughter. Some of it snorted through her nose while Suzette looked askance, hiding the humor she found from the situation behind a steely face- which would've worked if only Shayla couldn't sense the truth. Even Coye was amused and happy, though it was mostly over his joy from knowing Shayla kissed him in his sleep.

Shayla didn't pick on any of these nuances, though. All she saw were the smiles and the way they were laughing at her to her face. Her wavering emotions seethed to dangerous levels, causing the Pixie to take action.

Shayla walked over to where Coye had set his hat on the table. Next, she lifted it, entered, and curled up in a little ball underneath it. "That's it, I'm fucking done. Enjoy your orgy. G'night, folks."

"Hey, did you learn this trick from her?" Byng asked inappropriately against her better judgment.

"Byng, not the time!" Suzette chastised.

"Sorry, sorry..."

"Shayla..." Coye frowned and tried to scoop up the hat but found her magic was keeping it held tight against the table. It wouldn't budge without her permission, not without him putting some effort into it. "Okay, fine. You don't want to come out. Would you at least let me take you outside so we can talk for a couple minutes? Alone?"

Only silence came from the hat, at least initially. Over time, Shayla couldn't ignore Coye on the other side. She kept thinking about that pouty face of his and how upset he must've been. Even when she felt as bad as she did, Shayla couldn't ignore him.

"Whatever," she grumbled and released her hold on the hat. "But if you think you gonna pull that puppy dog eye shit on me, then you've got another thing coming. It's not gonna help you against my deep-rooted anxieties, baby."

"Shayla, come on. I really do just wanna talk, that's it. You girls don't mind, right?"

"Uh, no. Of course not." Byng scratched at her significantly less itchy scalp.

"Take as long as you need," Suzette added with love and support. "We'll be right here."

With their permission, Coye snatched up the hat and clutched it, along with Shayla, against his chest. They left the front door and straightaway in the cool evening summer air did wonders in helping Coye regain a more stable frame of mind. It was calm and relaxing out here away from town, and knowing that this place was now his own made it all the better. He hoped Shayla would think the same. Coye closed the door and walked over to the edge of the hill so he could sit and dangle his feet off it. Once comfortable, he lowered the hat and discovered Shayla was still curled up in her little ball and refused to look up from it.

"Hey," Coye poked the small of her back with his fingertip, rolling her ever so subtly. "Are you gonna talk to me?"

"I let you take me outside. I didn't say I was gonna talk back."

"Shayla..."

"What do you care? You should be balls deep in one of them by now, you stupid dummy... you need some action, don't you? Forget about me. Go take care of yourself before it gets any worse. I mean, it's not like I can help you with it."

"Shayla, seriously. Don't be like that! You're obviously way more important to me than having sex." Coye said. Despite feeling a sense of urgency in his lower half that threatened to border on pain at any given moment, he truly meant it.

This honesty caught the Pixie's attention, appealing directly to her ever-present need for attention and validation. She lifted her little head up, staring at the boy with skeptical eyes. "Promise you're not just saying that?" She asked more to get him to repeat it than to actually confirm.

"Of course not. I'm serious, so will you at least sit up and talk to me about how you feel?" He pleaded. "If not, I can still ask them to go home if you need me to."

"You don't have to do that," Shayla shook her head and unfurled herself from her ball. Once again, she fell victim to this boy of hers and his occasionally silver tongue. Hearing him so upset was terrible for her heart. Even though she had every reason in the Realm to react the way she did, it still made her feel like the bad guy for acting out. "Not yet, anyway. Depends on how this little chat of ours goes. Whatever it is you wanted to say, now's the time."

Coye searched for the right way to express himself, but it proved a strain on his simple mind. He would have to settle with his typical rambling. "I just... I know this is going too fast for you-"

"You don't say,"

"But... like you said, the cat's already out of the bag. I don't see why you aren't trying to make the most of that. Yes, I understand you have issues that I don't fully grasp, but... when it's just the two of us, you tell me how much you like Byng, and even though you make jokes about her, I know you like Suzette, too."

"Yeah, so what? It doesn't mean I was ready to be ripped out of my comfort zone and forced to interact with them."

"I think you're looking at it wrong."

"And how the fuck do you think I should look at it? Huh?"

"This is your chance to face your fears and change for the better, Shayla. Just like how you helped me, I can help you do the same!"

"Change this, change that, I swear. It feels like changing as a person is all you ever think about sometimes!" Shayla looked directly into his eyes with an expression Coye couldn't recognize. She was upset at him- maybe even angry. "Do you think everyone needs to change somehow before they're happy with themselves? Because I got news for you, baby. Some people don't want to change. Some of us are fine with the miserable way we are."

"But... you're obviously not fine," Coye retorted.

"And what makes you so sure? Huh?"

"Because if you really were fine with your old self, then you never would've reached out to me in the first place."

Her guard lowered ever so subtly, but Coye picked up on it. "...I told you already multiple times that you're special," Shayla stressed. "An exception to the rule, that's all."

"Yes, I get that," Coye nodded. "But you're giving them a chance to be exceptions, too."

"Wasn't aware I had to."

"You don't, but..." Coye was at a loss. He didn't know what to say here, as he was playing without a full hand. There was obviously some more profound reason for Shayla's behavior and lack of trust, something she hadn't yet told him about herself. It wasn't like he didn't understand that, but given everything she had done for him, he felt it would be wrong if he didn't push her to better herself in the same way she did for him. Wasn't that what partners were for? To truly help, though, Coye knew he needed the truth.

"Can you tell me what made you this way, Shayla? As much as you know about me, you've only ever told me bits and pieces of your life before we met. Help me understand why you're like this."

His desperate pleading led the Pixie to unravel even further. He hit a nerve, Coye was sure. "I've told you all about how your Mages and your Alchemists use and abuse any member of the Fae they can get their hands on- in some cases literally putting us into a grinder for dust! Isn't that enough for you to grasp why I might be afraid of people finding out about me?"

"Sure, I get that. Really, I do! But you wouldn't be so scared if you didn't have some personal experience, right?"

"Baby, now is not the time to ask me about my tragic fucking backstory," she rubbed her temples, deflecting his inquiries as her stress continued rising exponentially. "Inside that cabin are two bitches who feel really bad about fucking tonight up. Leave me alone and go take advantage of them. Have fun, and do whatever. Just... go, alright?"

"No. Right now, you're the only girl that matters, and I'm not going back in that house until you feel even a tiny bit better."

Coye was making that determined face again, the one that said he wouldn't back down. Resisting against it was no use, especially not when it was coupled with words that made her feel more special than anyone else. She sighed and hung her head in defeat.

"You know that telling you about my past will make me feel like shit, right? If you're trying to make me feel better, you're going about it in a pretty ass-backward way."

"I can't make you feel better unless I understand you better."

"And what if it turns out you can't make me feel better, even after you understand me better?"

"Then, at least I tried."

"Fuck it," At last, Shayla gave in. She exhaled deeply and met his eyes. "You want to know more about my past? Well, strap yourself in and prepare to cry because I'm gonna catch you up on all the Shayla lore you missed out on and then some."