The sitting room was dim and silent when Flames awoke me early the next morning, by stretching and snuggling down. Normally, you shake or rock a sleeping person to wake them, but it was her lack of rocking up and down which my body noticed as different, which caused me to wake.

“Morning,” I whispered softly, in an attempt to make certain I didn’t wake any of the others.

Leaning forward, Flames kissed me long and passionately as her means of saying, ‘Morning.’

“Feeling better?” I asked, once she finally untangled her lips from mine.

“I’ve got an odd tingle all over,” Flames frowned, “like static electricity keeps dancing across my skin, but otherwise I feel okay. What happened?”

“The evil scientist laboratory,” I answered, dead faced. Seeing Flames raise an eyebrow questioningly, a smirk twitched across my face. “Seriously. It was the evil mad scientist lair you were in yesterday,” I repeated, trying hard to not grin over Flame’s expression.

“The alchemy building?” She sounded and looked as confused as I normally feel — all in all, it was rather amusing, I thought.

“It’s shielded and…”

“And disrupted our blood bond, resulting in a spiritual instability occurring in the part of the submissive bond!” Slapping herself upside the head, Flames interrupted me almost instantly, as she immediately put all the pieces together that quickly.

Just how damn smart is this girl? My jaw was now the one dropping open, as she rattled off some elaborate theory over what, when, why, and how something something interacts with whatta notta to hootcha cootcha a wheezit. I have no damn idea what she actually said, but it sounded right to me.

“Uh huh. Uh huh. Yep,” I agreed several times, then interrupted with a practical concern. “Just one thing,” I said. “How the hell are you going to keep it from happening again next week?”

“Hmmm…” Stopping in the middle of her technical ramble, Flames bit her lip and chewed on it gently. When she’s not talking, she really does have the perfect body. I couldn’t help but find her thinking face very attractive.

“A two-fold approach, I think is the best way to begin to address the issue,” Flames decided. “First, I’ll spend the night before and fill myself with as much of your seed as possible. It contains your essence and should help alleviate the degradation of the bond somewhat.”

“And second,” she smiled, “I’ll have to limit exposure to as minimal a time as possible. I’ll rush in a few moments late, rush out a few moments early, and seek you out for a break around midday.”

Thinking of her coming to my reading class in her birthing suit, and trying to possibly do lewd things to me, made my hair stand up on the back of my neck. Quickly, I tried to come up with an alternative. “Instead of that…” I paused, thinking for a moment before offering, “Why don’t I simply come spend the day with you?”

“Your learning alchemy is much more important than me attending a class for reading.” Seeing Flames start to say something, I quickly placed my fingers across her lips and made a shushing sound. “Shhh… It’s okay,” I assured her. “I know how important it is to be able to read and write, and I still plan on learning it. I just don’t need to sit in a classroom to do so.” Please Gods, let her buy my reasoning; I really don’t want to go back to midgetland. “I think you and the other girls can tutor me quicker and more efficiently anyway,” I added.

“We probably can,” Flames agreed, nodding. “Often, I finish a semester’s study in the first handful of classes, leaving me bored and waiting for the rest of the semester before I can move into the next required course. Usually, I spend about two hands worth of class time just doing independent study.”

Goddamn inaccurate method of measurements! I hate this damn world sometimes! If I can translate what she’s saying properly, Flames often finishes the whole semester’s work in the first month or so, and then spends the next two months just studying whatever she wants on her own, as the class catches up.

Once again, I found myself wondering just how smart the damn girl was! Einstein level? Or maybe even higher? If I just had access to a damn encyclopedia from the world of my dreams, who knows what she’d be able to figure out and learn! With just a few points of reference to draw on, she might be able to start a new industrial revolution!

But, no need to dwell on what might could’ve been. There’s more important things to focus on, like what is going to be. Pulling her up tight, I passionately kissed Flames as hard and deep as I could, then I stood up and sat her down on Victoria’s couch opposite where we sat.

“Go wake up Red and Jewel,” I ordered her. “We’ve got important matters to discuss.” Turning, I headed down the hall and to Victoria’s room. I figured waking one tired and cranky woman was better than going and waking two.

Going into Victoria’s room for the first time, it was nothing like I’d expect for a noble woman. The very first thing to draw my eyes was Victoria’s nude body sprawled out shamelessly atop the covers of her bed. The second thing I noticed was several racks prominently displaying various armors and weapons lining the wall. The frilly stuffed animals and glittery girl stuff I was expecting to find were nowhere about; raw steel and jagged iron menacingly took its place.

Ignoring the menacing aura of her “not so girly” bedroom, I eased up on my tip-toes and crept across the floor. The other morning, she might’ve surprised me and tossed me on my head, but I was prepared now. The time, I’ll wake her in a manner that’s sure to surprise her!

Creeping ever so silently, I eased over and ever so gently, so as to not shake it, I laid down in the bed with her. Scooting forward inch by inch, I eased my body until it was as close to Victoria’s as possible, without touching her. Then, rising myself up on one elbow, I slowly leaned forward and planted my most passionate “good morning” kiss on her.

The reaction was instant. Victoria’s eyes flew open at the touch of our lips, and the room flared up in the brilliant green glow of her magic. In a nanosecond, I was rolled onto my back like a helpless turtle, and Victoria was sitting astride my chest with a look of shocked murderous intent on her sleepy face. If it wasn’t so damn frightening, it’d be hilarious!

“Umm.. Friend?” Smiling innocently, I tried my best to appear helpless and unimposing, while at the same time attempting to burn that bewildered expression of hers into my brain.

Blinking several times, Victoria laughed suddenly, as she realized who I was. “Are you finally in here to fuck me?”

Laughing myself, I had to point out the obvious. “Aren’t you the one on top? Seems like all you’d need to do is squirm your hips back a few inches, and you’d be the one fucking me.”

Blushing bright red — something I’d never seen her do before — Victoria quickly rolled off me and got up from the bed. Turning her back, she fiddled nervously with her hair and offered a meek, “Sorry.”

And that’s when I finally started to understand — Victoria wasn’t naturally such a vulgar talking lady. She only turned on the crassness when her emotions flared up. Anger, shock, and — as I had just proven — embarrassment, were all sufficient to bring out her crude, defensive side.

Easing up, I took advantage of her embarrassment to continue my relentless harassment on poor Victoria. Closing the few steps between us, I pressed myself tight against her back — being careful not to actually penetrate her buttocks with my ever ready member. Wrapping my arms warmly around her waist, I crossed them over her chest and freely grasped a breast in each hand, squeezing them softly.

“I was just trying to wake you for a team meeting,” I whispered, softly kissing Victoria’s right ear. “But, if you really want me that much,” I stressed teasingly, “I can always make a little time for a team mate.” I placed extreme emphasis on the word mate, to make certain she caught my reference.

Pulling out of my arms, Victoria quickly ran away towards the door. “Noneedtomaketheotherswaitrightnow.” Something almost indecipherable quickly spurted from her mouth, as she rushed out the door and towards the sitting room.

Laughing merrily, I completed two important goals this morning. One, I got my revenge for being body slammed by a sleeping woman; and two, I got to witness another incredibly beautiful and honest side to one of the girls that I hadn’t seen before.

Whistling merrily, I waited a few moments examining the weapons and armor in her room, to give Victoria time enough to compose herself, before heading into the sitting room.

Getting back into the sitting room, Red and Jewel were snuggled sleepily together on one couch, while Flames sat on her knees, on the ground, in front of my chair. Victoria was on her couch, as usual, but was sitting prim and ladylike, with her ankles crossed demurely, and hugging a throw pillow tightly in her arms. Nothing at all like her normally sprawled out self!

Smiling, I continued to whistle merrily to myself, as I nonchalantly strode over and took my seat atop my normal throne. Reaching down and gently stroking her hair, I told Flames, “Sweetums, be a dear and roll one of those blank blackboards from your lab in here. Get Victoria to help you, if it’s too heavy for you to push alone, and don’t forget the chalk.”

“Sure.” Hopping up, Flames didn’t ask why. She simply started towards the storerooms like a good servant. Glancing over at me, Victoria quickly got up and followed her, even without being asked. My whistle grew ever merrier.

A few minutes of sitting in silence later — both Red and Jewel’s apparently too sleepy to ask questions — Flames came walking back in, with Victoria pushing the blackboard behind her. On rollers, it really wasn’t difficult to push across a smooth stone floor, though I’d imagine it had to have been hell for the slaves to get it up the stairs.

“Right there’s good,”. I told them, pointing to an open spot before the couches. “Flames, you stay up there and be my hands for this. Victoria, come on over here and have a seat with me. My arms are lonely without somebody to hold in them.”

Coming over and blushing ever so slightly, Victoria gingerly reached down and pushed the tip of my erect member up to my chest, before snuggling back in my lap. It was a little more uncomfortable than Jewel’s sheathing it inside her own body, but not any more so than normally wearing my pants. I couldn’t help but smirk, knowing that Victoria was definitely more aware of it than I was.

“Flames, I need you to draw me a nice large box on that blackboard.” While she did so, I wrapped one arm around Victoria’s waist, pulling her back against my chest, as I used it to gently caress her breasts and nipples. My other hand, I just gently wrapped around and rested it softly between her knees. Her most precious parts were right there at my fingertips, but I wasn’t going to push my luck. Nothing in the world was actually stopping Victoria from getting up and moving, if she wanted too.

“Now, divide that into five rows and six columns,” I told Flames, as if everything was perfectly normal. If it was Jewel in my lap, everything would’ve been perfectly normal, but this was Victoria. I felt as if I had a wild animal in my hands — one that could bolt at any moment, but didn’t. Slow and steady were the keywords here.

“Now label those from one to thirty,” I ordered Flames. “Count left to right, top to bottom,” I specified. Taking a deep breath, I stilled my hands. Firmly cupping both of Victoria’s breasts, I held them tightly and tried to focus my thoughts. Time to get to work and be fully serious for a change.

“Good job,” I praised Flames. “Now count off the days since I became leader of our team, and circle that number.”

As Flames did so, I told everyone, “That’s today, and that’s why I woke you all up. As a team, the Moonblazers need a way to organize and keep our schedules on track, so we can plan for future events. This is how we’ll do that.”

“With a blackboard?” Flames — ever curious — was the one to speak up and ask.

“With a calendar,” I corrected. “This is going to be our means of tracking everyone’s time,” I assured her. “We’ll use six days for a standard week — one row,” I explained, nodding towards the blackboard. “And five weeks will represent a month.”

“Twelve months will represent how long it takes for the planet to rotate once fully around the sun, though…”

“The planet rotates around the sun?” Flames interrupted, moving across the floor to pick up her glasses from the coffee stand and push them upon her nose. “Doesn’t the sun rotate around the planet, from east to west everyday, until the moons take its place?”

Sighing, I let go off Victoria and gently pushed her up out of my lap. Easing up, I walked over and pushed Flames into the center of an open area. “Here, you pretend to be the sun,” I told her. “I’ll pretend to be the planet.”

“Okay.” Staring intently, she stood still and waited to see what I was going to do next.

“Now, pretend my pecker is a person. Look left, and all you see is my body. Look right, up, or down, and it’s all the same. Just me — the planet — in all directions. All directions that is,” I laughed, “except outwards.”

“Which is where we agree the sun is, correct?” Smiling, I watched Flames’ expression. So far, it seemed as if she was following along with my demonstration.

“Correct,” she agreed, starting to move around me in a circle. “Which is why the sun looks as it does to us, as it rotates around the planet.”

“Wrong.” Laughing, I reached out and stopped her from moving. “Your idea could only hold true under the assumption I was a completely static object. I’m not. The planet isn’t,” I corrected, letting go of her. “What happens to your idea if I’m rotating instead?”

Spinning slowly clockwise, I made several revolutions before expanding upon my point. “If you’re peckerman, how does the sun outside look like it’d behave to you? Wouldn’t you still see it first to the east, and last to the west, as the planet rotates in place?”

“You would,” Flames agreed, frowning a little in thought. None of the others were saying a word, though from lack of understanding or indifference to what I was saying, I didn’t know.

“One revolution of the planet makes a day,” I assured Flames. “And one revolution of the planet around the sun makes a year. Of course, I can’t walk and spin in the same time, so you’ll have to imagine it yourself,” I told her, going to sit back down in my chair.

“It’s this interaction, and the fact that the planet is rotated on its axis, that produces our seasons.” Waving my hands slightly, I shrugged apologetically. “Honestly, I don’t know the most about why it works like that,” I admitted. “I just know it does.”

“How do you know?” Pushing her glasses back upon her nose, Flames stared intently at me.

“That…” I shrugged apologetically again. “I can’t tell you. I can’t tell any of you, yet,” I sighed. How the hell could I ask any of them to believe that this was all fairly common knowledge in a world that existed only inside my dreams? “The best I can suggest is to take it like you would new knowledge from an old book. You never know for certain if the book is right, until you test its contents and verify them yourself.”

“Are you saying books can be wrong?” Flames gasped, as if I’d just insulted her religion.

“Of course they can,” I laughed. “If I wrote what I told you down, would that make it any more or less truthful?”

“But…” Flames was chewing her lips hard now in thought. “Books are subjected to review by hundreds of scholars. They can’t all be wrong.”

“They can be,” I snorted, “if they’re all taught wrong to begin with. Let’s say Victoria gets angry at me picking on her, and she beats the shit out of me. I limp to the healers with the bone in my arm stuck up my ass, and they ask what happened. Not to seem unmanly, I tell them I was injured fighting off an assassin which invaded our room. You guys wouldn’t contradict me, and Victoria might be too embarrassed by her over reaction to say anything, so everyone calls me a hero from that point on. It’s not the truth, but it’s popular belief.”

“Books can be just as wrong as the people who write them,” I assured her, “but that really doesn’t affect us this morning. All I really want to do before class is get everyone used to using The Moonblazers’ Calander.”

Explanations continued uninterrupted after that, though the questioning look never once left Flames eyes as she continued to stare relentlessly at me.

In the end, everyone got on board with my new calendar. Six days of the week were named and decided on — Hisday, Redsday, Jewelsday, Flamesday, Torisday (pronounced Tori’s day), and Noday. Noday was reserved to be changed, after we got our last member of the team, and I wasn’t certain I preferred Hisday over Tomsday. Everyone else had a day named after them, why shouldn’t I?

“Because it sounds odd saying your name, instead of my lord,” was the girls’ answer.

And, since Mylordsday is a stupid sounding mouthful to me, Hisday was born instead. Sometimes it sucks to be the guy in charge.

Six days of the week. Five weeks in a month gives thirty days, which over twelve months gives 360 days in a year. I don’t know the exact amount of time it takes for the planet to revolve around the sun, but we’ll deal with those missing days with a team holiday or something, if we need to.

And why six days instead of seven? It just fit the school schedule of four days of classes with two days off, nicely. That, and it made the grids for the calendar easy to draw and keep up with.

Flames was tasked with charting the moon’s cycles and recording the equinoxes and solstices, in an attempt to expand the usefulness of our calendar over time. In the end, I was very happy with what we accomplished! We finally had set our own standard for discussing a timeline of events from now on!

Now if I could just figure out how to implement hours, distances, and weights. I might not be able to change the world, but I can at least make dealing with my own team reasonable.