Chapter 7: Nervousness Arbitrio Sanguinis – LittleFallenPrincess       “Coffee it is then! Give me a bit, sweetie. Sorry… everything is in a bit of a state.” “Don’t worry about it, you saved me after all. Take all the time you need!” I replied, smiling up at Fiona, who seemed a bit flustered now I had agreed to stay for coffee. “I was only expecting a quiet evening, I was just processing some orders and creating some last minute bouquets, then I saw her… and you.” “Yeah don’t worry about it. I’m glad you did see us though!” She smiled at me, before nodding slightly and walking off into a room in the back. Taking a deep breath, now that I could finally relax and let my guard down, I looked around the gorgeous, vibrant flower shop Fiona owned. Flowers and plants everywhere, as you’d expect from a flower shop, of all sizes and shapes and colours… honestly it all kinda dwarfed the room, making it feel cluttered… but in a good way. As if you had stepped into one of those large public greenhouses.   I got a couple of minutes of quiet whilst I was looking around, with only a little bit of noise coming from the room she had gone into, before I started to feel a bit lonely. “I can’t believe you own this place. Didn’t think werewolves were into…” I said, raising my voice so she could hear me. “They smell good!” She shouted from the room in the back. “Huh?” I replied. “Sensitive noses! It’s not just soggy babies like you we can smell. You vamps just smell basic human things like blood and hormones, we smell everything. Flowers help me deal with the constant barrage of sweat, desperation, horniness, muck, rot… basically everything out there in the human world.” “I noticed you chose to open up in a human area.” “Yeah, apart from the bar across the street there isn’t really much monstrum activity around here. But then our kind never really buys flowers. Those who are into nature, like dryads and fey, all grow their own, often choosing the forests to make their home. So I figured I’d be better off just blending in with the humans, as they buy lots of them for various reasons.” “Yeah… I don’t think I ever received flowers from anyone before. Vampires just… well they just don’t do that. You’re right, no monstrum do really.” “Not even before you were a vampire? I assume you had a human life before you got turned?” Fiona asked as she walked back into the room, lowering her voice now that she didn’t need to shout through to another room. She walked over to me, handed me a full cup, then walked back over to a chair in the corner and sat down, nursing the mug in her hands to warm them up. “Thanks. And nope. I wasn’t… umm… people wouldn’t normally give people like me flowers.” “People like you?” She asked, raising her eyebrow at me. “Just… yeah.” I didn’t want to out myself this quickly as a trans woman, even if the magical process that helped me transition made it so I was virtually indistinguishable from someone who had been born a woman. I liked Fiona… but after what just happened at the bar, I needed to be somewhat careful. “I won’t pry. I’m sure you’ll tell me if and when you’re ready.” She smiled at me, putting me at ease instantly. “Thanks.” I smiled back at her. “So…” “So…” I took a sip of the coffee, before being surprised that it didn’t taste like coffee… “I…” She grinned at me, before quickly winking. “As if I’d give a little one coffee. No, you got a nice hot chocolate. Coffee is for grown ups, sorry kiddo.” I suddenly felt two feet tall, and no older than 2, as the woman grinned into her coffee cup, taking a sip of her ‘big girl drink’. I wasn’t prepared for this treatment so soon! That’s the only reason she made me feel that small! Honest! “I…” “Take your time, sweetie, use your big girl words…” “THAT’S NOT FAIR!” I whined, loudly. She just gave me one glance and I knew I was in trouble. How the hell did she have this much power over me already? Werewolves don’t have any hypnotic trance powers or anything, like other monstrum do, they’re just… well… beasts. Maybe it’s because it's been a while since someone outside my friend circle has talked to me like this… and maybe… just maaaaybe… it’s because I’m a subby little thing who has been waiting for this for most of her life. “I won’t throw you over my lap right now, I’m not that forward, but I will give you a warning. You don’t want anyone from across the street hearing you, not until that lamia has been dealt with.” She warned. “Sorry.” “Good girl.” Those two words… that’s all it took to make my legs feel like jelly. If I wasn’t already sitting down, I’d have probably collapsed to the floor. So… those ‘big sister’ vibes that I was getting from her whilst talking over text? Gone. There was no doubt in my mind that this woman was Mummy-material.  She may not be ‘proper’ and very feminine like Avery… but she still felt very maternal and playful, which apparently still resonated well with my little side. So I think it’s safe to say… I may have to make a very difficult choice in the near future, but for now I think I’ll just keep talking to both of them, especially given that neither seem to mind that I’m looking around and talking to other people. I know some people can get very defensive and expect you to focus on that one person when you’re putting yourself out there, but until I enter a relationship… I belong to no-one. I’ll put myself out there and check out multiple people if I need to, just so I find that right person. “You okay, munchkin?” She asked, in the soft cadence that makes me feel ridiculously little. “...Notta munchkin…” I grumbled back at her. “Oh I’m sorry, your highness…” She laughing gently. God… she has a cute laugh. Tucking her messy hair behind her ear as best she could, she took a sip of her coffee again and stared around, awkwardly, trying not to make eye contact with me. “You okay?” I asked. “Yeah… just…” She trailed off. “Just what?” “I’m awkward!” “No you’re not!” I argued. “Oh I am, and I understand that. I promise I’m not always this awkward though! I’m not very good at the early stages of dating, I’m scared of saying…” “The wrong thing? Yeah… me too. I’m a bit better over text, but I’m very anxious in person.” “Same! Glad I wasn’t scaring you off over our texts, I was a bit worried…” “I loved talking to you!” I replied, smiling up at her as she finally looked me in the eyes and smiled back. “I’m glad.” There was another awkward silence lingering in the air after she said that, with neither of us knowing what to say next. Then I heard something happening outside, so we both put our cups down and rushed to the window, pulling the blinds away slightly so we could see. “Who is that? Is that your friend? I can’t see her very well from this distance.” “That’s Beatrice.” I replied. “Beatrice? Sister of the owner of the Sanctuary? You know her?” “I do! Do you?” “Only by reputation. I think I could learn a thing or two from her on handling brats…” “PLEASE DON’T DO THAT!” I blurted out, quickly covering my mouth. She took one look at me, looking very serious, before her smile grew and she burst out laughing. “Oh then I definitely need to get to know her!” I quickly regretted calling Bea for help, but honestly… The thought of the two of them teasing me made my heart very happy as I watched Fiona’s cute face look out the window again. “She’s taking the woman away…” I commented. “Probably to find out where she’s living, and see if she has actually taken people for her ‘harem’. I can’t blame the woman though…” “Y… you can’t?” I said, my nerves suddenly jolting me backwards. “The thought of a bunch of littles, all in cute little uniforms with cute padded butts, waddling about, serving me… it’s a nice thought…” “It is…?” “Yeah. But she wants it without their consent. Which is a huuuuuuge red flag. My servants would want to be there.” My body’s fight or flight response kicked down from red alert into an amber warning. “But honestly… I’m mostly just thinking of getting you in a little maid uniform… provided you wanted that, of course.” She smiled, still looking outside. The amber warning was quickly returning to a comfortable state as it was clear she was big on consent. “I… wouldn’t say no…” I mumbled. She turned slowly to look at me… like I was prey. But unlike the lamia, she didn’t feel dangerous or sinister. Until she said…. “I’ll remember that, little one…” And my face turned bright red as she began to giggle at me.   Sitting in her shop for another half an hour, we were pretty sure the coast was clear now. Beatrice had gone off with the Lamia ages ago, so we were really just spending the time together and chatting about games and stuff, with her occasionally teasing me or calling me adorable. “It’s getting late. I don’t want you walking home alone this late, so if you’re okay with it… can I walk you home?” She offered. “Or to a safe spot! Maybe the sanctuary? I… sorry… I don’t want to be pushy, I just don’t want anything to happen to you on the walk home and I thought it was cute and something a caregiver should do and I thought it…” She was starting to ramble, clearly nervous that she had been a little too forward, but honestly… It was nice that someone cared that much about my safety. I know my friends do, but I’ve never had a partner who has felt like that with me before. “You can walk me home, if you want.” I interrupted her. “I can? Oh good! I… one second, give me one second then and we’ll get going.” “Wanting to get rid of me that quickly?” I joked, quickly regretting it. “OH NO! I’m sorry! I…” “I’m joking! Promise! But… I would like to see you again, if you want to that is…” “I’d love that! So how about I plan a date for the two of us sometime very soon, and then I ask you out on it?” “I’d love that…” I replied, blushing and smiling from ear to ear. “Right, give me a second to shut everything off and lock up, and we can get going. Do you live far from here?” “It’s a good thirty minute walk from here I think. If we ran we could do it in a lot less. Guessing you can move as quick as a vampire too?” I asked. “Only in wolf form. Still pretty quick in human form, but I wouldn’t be able to keep up with you unless I transform. Right, be right back, cutie!” She dashed back into the back room again, leaving me alone. There was nothing for me to do but wait, so I quickly pulled out my phone to check my messages. One was from Bea, saying that the lamia hadn’t gotten anyone yet, but she was still handing her over to the authorities, and one was from Nia, asking if the domme was any good or not. And one from Avery, but I opted not to check that one just yet.  I quickly replied to Beatrice, telling her thanks for sorting it all out, then one to Nia with a quick explanation of what happened… then I hovered over the message from Avery. ‘Should I be checking messages from a potential partner whilst with another potential partner? I mean this isn’t technically a date… and Fiona seems okay with me seeing other people to find the right person before I pick one… maybe it would be okay?’ I thought to myself. I opened the message and read it. Avery: Hey little one, just checking in that you got home safe. Been a bit worried about you, you haven’t messaged yet and it’s late. Sorry if this is a bit too forward or I’m overstepping, just… want to make sure you’re okay. Lucy: I’m okay, thanks! There was a bit of an incident, but that’s sorted now. Not home yet, spending some time with a friend in the city. She’s going to walk me home in a minute though, so I’ll be able to talk to you properly when I’m back, ‘kay? Avery: Oh good. I’m glad it wasn’t all bad then. Look forward to talking to you! Closing my phone just in time for Fiona to walk back through, holding a hoodie in her arms, I smiled up at her and she did the same back to me. Her face just made me want to kiss her, but I knew that was waaaaaay too forward for either of us, so I held back, hoping that maybe I’d get to do it soon. “You ready, munchkin?” She asked. “Uh huh.” “Did you not bring a coat?” “I… I’m not that cold.” “I thought so… here!” She said, throwing me the hoodie. “Put this on, silly baby. I know Vampires don’t get colds, but I don’t want you freezing.” “What about you?” “Darling… I’m a wolf!” “In human form! You don’t have fur right now!” “So I transform first then? Nah, don’t worry, just joking. Would be weird for you to walk through the city centre with a large wolf. But we do have a natural resistance to the cold. So please, wear it. I promise, it’s very snuggly.” Not wanting to disappoint her, I slipped it on over my dress… and she was not wrong, it was so snuggly! Helped that she clearly wore clothes a few sizes bigger than I did, so it dwarfed me and made me feel even smaller than I already did around her. Both figuratively and literally. “Come on then, let’s get going. Got everything?” She asked. I nodded as she held out her hand, so I instinctively grabbed it as she led me out of the shop, closing and locking the front door behind us.   “So you never beat the secret level?” She asked. We had been walking for a good twenty minutes or so, in the general direction of my house, just chatting about video games and movies and stuff. Talking to her just felt so natural, and we had so much in common that our conversation made the walk home feel like it took no time at all. The walk was made even more enjoyable with the warm, snuggly hoodie that felt like a huge hug from Fiona herself…  …It even smelled like her. “Nia has, but she’s a way better gamer than me. I still struggle to get past the guard.” I replied. “Oh sweetie, it’s easy! You just…” She stopped suddenly, gripping my hand tightly, pulling me closer as her ears perked up and she started looking around, sniffing the air. “What’s up?” I asked, quietly. “I think we’re being watched. Maybe even followed...” “Beatrice took the lamia. So I don’t know who…” Fiona grabbed my chest with her arm and pulled me back, against a wall, just as something flew past us, just where I was standing. “Oh shit!” I blurted out. Something else flew at us, I could sense it, and I quickly dodged it as it struck the wall. Both Fiona and I looked at the wall to see something sticking out… a bolt… a crossbow bolt. Ones with scarlet fletching at the end. I had seen that fletching before. Looking up at Fiona, I pulled the bolt out of the wall and gripped it in my hand. “Vampire hunter.”       ======================================================= Ruh roh. -------------------------------------------- Thinking of finally opening up short story commissions now too finally, now that my writers block seems to have subsided. If you haven't seen, I'm now up and running on Subscribestar! (Sorry for the reminder again, trying to get my subscribers back after the Patreon rubbish!) ======================================================== I hope everyone enjoys this chapter! Please leave likes and comments and all that fun stuff, I love reading them! If you want to read the next 4 chapters, thanks to two weeks early access to my main story and also soon-to-be exclusive access to short stories (or even have a chance at commissioning one when I add the tier for them!), why don't you check out my SubscribeStar! The basic tier gets early access and exclusive access to short stories (when they're written), higher tiers will be limited but get a short story each month (1-2 per month in total, also not yet running this tier yet, will announce when I'm starting!). Thank you to all my subscribers for their support over the past few years! Seriously, your support means the world to me. New chapters of my latest story every Wednesday/Sunday! Also just a quick note: I don't mind people saving this story for personal reading. But I'd appreciate it if people didn't post it elsewhere, even if you're just suggesting it to other people. If you want to show others, please send them a link to the first page of this post! Thanks!

Sugar

How can a country be called civilised, if the trial is determined by whether the Judge has the same political views as the defendant ?

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Beats