“Can we not go back on the ship for a bit?” Cassiel asks the group which has since calmed down and resumed eating.

“Tired of the sea, Cass Cass?” Oleander asks.

“Yeah, I really am. Why don’t we just explore around here for a while? Stretch our legs and do something other than sit around, fish, and play card games.”

“Cass Cass doesn’t like losing,” Serra says.

“H-hey! Those games are stupid because they’re all luck! Olly always gets the best cards, so he’s probably cheating!”

“Or you just suck,” Oleander teases. “Shouldn’t Fenny be the only thing you’re sucking?”

Cassiel’s face burns bright as she glares at Oleander. Whatever peace there was is now gone.

Nell, sitting next to Fenrir, can’t help but giggle at the commotion.

“You look happy,” Fenrir tells Nell.

“I am, my hero! It is so lively with you all! I remember when you first brought me aboard The Shoebill to hide me, the way that everybody interacted with each other was so genuine and entertaining! I am just delighted to be a part of this now,” Nell explains.

“Glad to hear you’re enjoying it. Though, things seem to just be getting more and more lively. With Aiko—”

“It’s Nyaiko now, nya!” Nyaiko interrupts.

“With Nyaiko here now, things are probably going to get even more energetic around here. I wouldn’t be surprised if Serra sets her eyes on getting a new harem member sometime soon, too.”

“Are we officially calling our relationship Serra’s harem now?” Nell asks, not able to help back a bit of giggling from the thought of it.

“I mean, if you think about it, it kind of makes sense.”

Nell leans in to whisper to Fenrir, “Do not underestimate your own role in gathering us together, my hero. I have heard from both Serra and Cassiel how you found them and earned their love, and it is you whom has earned the title of my hero.”

It is a combination of Nell’s gentle voice whispering to him and her message that causes him to blush. But, he could hardly hear what she had to say.

“Uhh, just for future reference,” Fenrir points up at the two, canid ears atop his head. “You have to whisper up there if you’re trying to whisper into my ear.”

Nell’s face slowly grows red as she lifts some of Fenrir’s hair off from the side of his head. There are no human ears in sight. She looks over at Nyaiko, and Nyaiko lifts her hair to reveal the same thing: no human ears. “A-ah. I – I do believe that makes sense. Of course. You… have those ears on top of your head, so of course you would not have other ears. Silly me,” Nell says, nervously twirling her hair with a couple of her fingers while avoiding making eye contact.

This might be the first time that Fenrir has ever seen her look so embarrassed, and she is absolutely adorable.

It triggers Fenrir’s bullying side.

“What’s wrong, Nell? You look embarrassed,” Fenrir teases.

“It – it is nothing! I just feel very silly at the moment,” Nell says, leaning away from him.

“Are you sure about that? Your cheeks are pretty red right now.”

Nell covers her cheeks with her hands. “I – I do not know what it is that you are speaking of, my hero.”

Now that Fenrir thinks about it, there is something he has never done.

Those two, tall horns on top of her head have never been touched by him.

There’s no way that she would behave like some sort of fictional character if he touches her horns, right? She knows of that sort of stuff but isn’t exactly into it as far as he knows, so she probably wouldn’t know to act like that if he touches her horns.

But he tries it anyway.

Gently, Fenrir places his hands against her horns and allows his fingers to teasingly trace along them.

“My – my hero! What are you doing?” Nell asks, her voice panicked and eyes wide.

“I was just thinking that I’ve never touched your horns before. I was wondering what they feel like,” Fenrir explains.

“Now – now you know, so you may remove your – your hands now!” Nell pleads, her thighs rubbing together as her lips stay parted.

Fenrir immediately recognizes what this means, and he can’t believe his luck. “What’s wrong? I’m just touching your horns. Does it feel bad when I touch them?”

Nell whimpers and pretends to try and pull her head away from him.

“They look strong and powerful, but they’re actually pretty sensitive, aren’t they?” Fenrir teases, whispering into her ear now.

A soft moan escapes Nell’s lips whether she wants it to or not.

“If you want me to stop, I will,” Fenrir whispers, his voice slow and his breath hot as it brushes against her ear.

“Pl-please, my – my hero,” Nell whimpers.

“Please what?” Fenrir asks her.

“I – I… I want mo-mor—”

Cassiel clears her throat.

Both Nell and Fenrir look at the rest of the group and see everybody staring at them.

Now, they are both blushing as Fenrir casually removes his hands from Nell’s horns.

“Perverted doggy,” Serra says.

“I – I don’t want to hear that from you,” Fenrir replies.

“Perverted dog bastard,” Cassiel says.

Fenrir can’t use the same response against Cassiel since he always hears that from her.

“It’s nyot fair! I want service like nyat, too!” Nyaiko whines.

Meanwhile, Nell is still keeping her thighs pressed together and finding it impossible to look at the others while she feels like this. Fenrir may kiss Serra and Cassiel often enough both in real life and in-game, and he’s even had sex with them before, but Nell doesn’t get nearly as much sexual attention. This is the first time that she’s ever really been given any by Fenrir, and it just isn’t enough for her. She wants more. The only time she ever tried initiating something, she got interrupted as if it was fate that they never go beyond their current status.

But, would he think of her as a dirty girl if she said that? She may have her fantasies that she has no problem sharing, but she never actually puts herself out there nor tries to get anything to actually happen. As perverted as her delusions may be, she may also just be the most virgin one inside of this group and that causes conflicting feelings within her. She enjoys having an innocent, playful-at-most personality, and she knows that others find it cute, but she also wants to be treated like a woman sometimes. She wants to be lusted after by those she loves.

“Is something wrong?” Serra asks Nell.

“A-ah! No, it is nothing, Serra. Thank you for asking,” Nell answers, earning suspicious looks from everybody but Nyaiko.

The group finishes up eating. Fenrir sees Oleander whisper something to Serra at some point, but he can’t tell what they’re talking about. They’re probably just thinking of more ideas to torment him or something like that. Of course, he can’t deny that he enjoys their torment for the most part. Oleander knows how to be hilarious about it and Serra’s is usually just as funny, and when it’s not funny, it’s arousing.

“Cass Cass, you said earlier that we should explore around here for a bit, and I think that’d be nice. Would give Nyaiko more of a chance to get used to things before going back to the ship, too,” Fenrir says.

“You’re saying something smart for once, you perverted dog bastard,” Cassiel says with a huff.

“Come on, I wasn’t even saying anything perverted this time and I’m just eating.”

“I saw what you were doing to Nell’s horns.”

Nell straightens up while Fenrir blushes a bit again. “I – I was just teasing her. I can’t always just tease you and Serra,” he explains.

“You don’t even tease Serra! You just tease me!” Cassiel shouts.

“To be fair, you’re the easiest target to tease.”

“Are – are you calling me easy, you bastard?!”

Serra pokes Cassiel’s side, making her jump and squeak. “E z p z,” Serra says.

Cassiel looks down at Serra with teary eyes and crossed arms. “You too! You need to tease him more! Or tease Olly! He never gets teased!” Cassiel whines.

“Hey, I’m just an innocent bystander in all of this. And where do you think she gets a bunch of her teasing ideas from?” Oleander asks before high-fiving Serra.

“Can I tease her too, nya?” Nyaiko asks Serra.

Serra gives Nyaiko a thumbs-up.

“Nyaha! Purrfect!”

“Hey! Don’t be giving that perverted cow permission to tease me!” Cassiel shouts.

“I’m a cat, nya.”

“Not with those stupid things on your chest! You should be on a barn!”

Fenrir looks at Nell. This is when he would normally expect to hear some perverted fantasy from her involving life on a barn, probably starting to involve animals before he has to cut her off, but she stays silent and just stares at the crab leg in front of her instead.

Something is definitely wrong, but he doesn’t know what.

Serra and Oleander look at each other and nod.