Rough Draft - Coye 4.9

There was a knock on the door, startling Coye awake. His instincts never failed to rouse him when he needed to, even now. Shayla was in the middle of touring the kitchen for the fourth time, making mental plans on what she wanted to do with the place. She dropped what she was doing in a sudden panic, rushing off to find Coye’s hat just as soon as he was getting up to put it on his head.

“Darling, it’s us. Are you decent?” Suzette called out to him.

‘Damn it,’ Shayla mumbled. ‘Just when I almost had my mind made up on where we’re gonna put cabinets…’

Once she was sufficient concealed, Coye responded. “Yeah, I’m good. Come on in.”

The door to his home opened and in walked his beautiful older lover, her skin glowing with youthful vigor and her curly hair shining from the light coming in behind her. She had changed into a cute summer dress in the time she was gone, and in her hands she held onto a large basket of what smelled like delicious food.

“Wow, did you go to a bathhouse?” Coye asked in wonderment. He added in,  “Your hair looks even fluffier and usual.”

Suzette laughed at how odd the comment was, but appreciated it all the same. “Yes, we went and got ourselves cleaned. I also took the liberty of picking up some dinner on our way back. Is roast chicken fine with you, Darling?”

“Yeah,” he smiled at the generous thought, but his brain soon caught up with the implication and he began to worry about his other lover. “Wait a second, where is Byng? Is she ok?!” He rushed forward to Suzette, catching her by surprise.

“She’s fine,” Suzette insisted as she sat down the basket on the table and pulled out a chair. “She’s just being dramatic. Are you coming in or what?”

Coye heard Byng grumbling out past the door. “I don’t want to! I look stupid!”

“You look amazing,” Suzette corrected. “I’s sure Darling will agree once he gets a proper look at you.”

More disgruntled grumbling was the only answer Byng gave in response.

‘Go check her out, baby. Something tells me this is gonna be good!’ Shayla laughed.

Coye walked out the door and saw Byng leaning up against the cabin’s exterior, pouting. She was wearing a pale yellow dress with an orange sash tied cutely into a bow wrapped around her midsection. She still wasn’t wearing shoes. Even more noticeable was the fact that Byng’s hair, which was usually arranged in a gravity-defying series of upwards facing curls, was now fully straight and fell down to the base of her neck. Its matted and dirty locks were now shiny with gloss, making the purplish hue of her black hair stand out even more.

‘Holy fuck,’ Shayla was not displeased.

Byng looked like an entirely different person, the difference was so jarring. He stared at her in silence, a rosy blush appearing on his cheeks.

“That fucking bad, huh?” Byng groaned and sunk to her knees, squatting. “I knew it, I just knew it!”

“N-No, you look good!” Coye insisted. “Just different. That’s all.”

“Sure you’re not just saying that?” She peeked at him from the corner of her eye.

“I wouldn’t lie,”

Byng sighed and stood up. “No, I guess you wouldn’t…” she admitted. “You can thank Suz over there for making me go native. Enjoy it while it lasts, because I don’t plan on doing it again anytime soon!”

“We’ll see about that,” Suzette giggled from inside the cabin.

Byng cringed at the thought. Before they went in together, Coye took Byng’s hand and asked, “Besides the dress up play, are you ok? She made you take a bath, didn’t she…?”

Byng blushed and squeezed his hand. She loved how he cared enough to check, but she had to put on a tough act about it as was her nature. “Yeah, things went great. No big deal…”

‘Uh-huh…’ Shayla added with doubt.

“Probably gonna start doing it more often, I guess. It wasn’t that bad… yeah…”

He was unsure of what to say initially, but he decided to give her a reassuring smile and tell her, “For what it’s worth, you look really beautiful, Byng.”

Her pouting seemed to stop just as soon as his praise began. “Oh, yeah? Uh. How so?”

“I like your normal hair, but it’s really shiny and healthier looking now…” Coye smiled innocently as he brushed her hair with his fingers, admiring the softness. “And your skin… wow… you’re so much brighter! I didn’t know that it would make so much of a difference.”

Byng was already blushing like shelf never blushed before, and then he leaned in and tilted his head. “Why are your eyes red, though?”

“Because my warning didn’t stick…” Suzette sighed. “Next time I’ll have to use no tears shampoo.”

“Wait, so now you’re telling me there’s a painless kind?! Why the hell isn’t that the default?!”

“Because it’s for children,” Suzette laughed.

“So? You’re telling me that when you grow up you’re just expected to start using hurts your eyes shampoo just because you’re older?”

Suzette paused and cupped her chin. “You know, I’ve never actually thought about it like that…”

‘Poor non magical folk,’ Shayla clicked her tongue. ‘They’ll never be able to appreciate how good it feels to just snap your fingers and remove all the hassle from hair care.’

Coye stood there, keeping silent over how he just about never had to take care of his own hair on account of being a Half-Elf.

Eventually Byng sighed and dropped the matter before looking back to him and frowning. “Whatever… so… do I really look pretty?" She asked, blatantly fishing for compliments.

Coye didn't mind. He found this needy side of her cute, so he was quick to assure, "Of course I mean it."

"Hmm, alright. Good to know..." Byng at last cracked a small smile and headed into the cabin. "Guess I've got no choice but to start getting a bath more often, Suz."

"You'll live," Suzette teased. "Now come on and eat, children. It'll be cold by the time you're done flirting."

Coye closed the door behind them and together, they joined Suzette over at the table. Suzette was taking out the food from the basket and arranging it nicely. There was a wide selection, but not nearly as wide as there would've been if Suzette cooked dinner herself. After his nap and a long day of housework, Coye was incredibly hungry and he tore into the feast almost as hard as Byng did. Suzette fought the uphill battle and tried to impart more manners on the girl, and even though Byng made a bigger attempt to try and learn this time around none of ot seemed to stick.

Shayla prepared ahead of time for this. She stored away some of the food they brought Coye in her magic storage space and helped herself to some dried fruits and a handful of roasted almonds glazed with honey. It wasn't candy, but it was the closest thing Suzette had ordered. That was enough to please her for now.

Besides that, dinner was largely uneventful and it was more or less a repeat of breakfast the other day. That is to say, it was comforting and fun and Coye was so happy that he didn't want it to end. Suzette was the last one to finish her plate, unsurprising since she ate more than the other two and at a slower pace.

When she was done, Coye asked, "How late are you guys planning to stay?" Despite feeling backed up down below, he was asking it with innocent intentions. "It's really fun being with you both."

Suzette and Byng looked at each other just as the older woman finished wiping her mouth off with a tablecloth. He still didn't get it. It was equal parts funny, worrying, and adorable. They had a silent conversation about who was going to be the one to tell him that ended with Suzette being the one to clue Coye in.

"I would've thought our intentions were obvious, Darling. Why do you think I dragged Byng off to the bathhouse, hm? We both intend on staying the night." Suzette said with a mild laugh, her cheeks blushing when she actually said it out loud.

Coye stared blankly at Suzette, then at Byng, and then both of them at once. "Wait. Both of you? Together?"

His eyes practically started bulging as the girls both took on sincere and lewd smiles.

"Did you really not think this was a possibility, gahaha? You're a man. I woulda thought you'd have pushed this sooner, honestly!"

"I... I had no idea that was an option..." Coye felt ashamed and hung his head. He'd had fantasies about group play before, including dreams, but they were never concrete and he didn't dwell on them for that long. The possibility may as well have been a brand new one.

Meanwhile, Suzette and Byng recoiled at his wholesomeness. Given how much they were looking forward to their first threesome, they felt a little ashamed that he wasn't on their level.

Coye started to breath heavily as he looked back up at the girls. He was already on the brink of getting what he needed, and then hearing this only made it a hundred times worse.

'Geez, try to keep it in your pants for a bit, why don't you?' Shayla crossed her arms. She was excited to witness the oncoming lewd activity, but as always, it came with the feeling of being left out to a certain degree.

Suzette stepped in to temper his expectations as she began piling up the dishes. "The night is still early, Darling. I know you're in need of relief, but there are some things we need to talk about before we get into any fun."

Coye was taken aback. Something about the way she said it left him feeling nervous, especially when he saw the serious look on Byng's face. Shayla felt it too. Something was off here.

Suzette dumped the dishes in a basin of water she'd left on the counter earlier and went back to the table. She sat down again and looked at Byng, who nodded in confirmation at her. She took in a deep breath and said, "As I said, we both want to stay the night with you... but..."

"We wanted to say that it, uh, doesn't have to be just the two of us if you wanted." Byng finished the thought for her.

Coye was more puzzled at this than anything else, meanwhile, Shayla had just about frozen in her spot.

"I don't understand? Who else would stay the night besides you two?" He asked.

Byng sighed and looked to the ground. "You remember that friend of yours you were talking about the other day? The one you said pushed you into asking me out?"

Coye now shared Shayla's response and started to grow more panicked. "Y-Yeah? What about her- um- them?"

'Fucking damn it, Coye...' Shayla groaned to herself.

Byng crossed her arms and thought about a way to phrase things so that what she was actually saying would be left vague. "I'm just saying that if she was to randomly show up here right now, then neither of us would really care... if you catch my drift."

"Byng...?"

Suzette decided a more direct approach was necessary. "Let's say that she was already here, hiding somewhere in this very room. If that was the case, we wouldn't be mad. We only want to introduce ourselves and have a proper talk."

If there was any lingering arousal in the boy, it was gone by the time he put things together and realized that they knew. Both Suzette and Byng were looking up at his hat with small frowns on their faces.

He stood up from his seat, the chair falling back down to the ground behind him as he panicked. He raised his hands defensively, acting on impulse as he said, "I-I'm sorry, but I don't know what you're talking about. Even if she was here, she's... she's really sensitive and has her reasons for hiding! Also, you can't speak a word to her about anyone- ever!"

Shayla remained quiet despite his feverish defense of her, simply staring through the enchanted hat to look at Coye's lovers. They looked at each other in doubt now, a feeling of regret washing over them when they saw how passionate his response to this intervention was.

"I knew this was a bad idea," Byng muttered to Suzette. "He's way too honest. He wouldn't hide her like this if there wasn't a damn good reason..."

Suzette looked away, a little ashamed that this was all her idea. She nervously reached her hand to play with her wedding ring but only now remembered she'd tossed it days ago. "You're just as curious as I am, dear."

Coye grew more and more worried as Shayla continued not to speak a word. He needed to be alone with her so she could talk and tell him how she wanted to handle this, he thought. "Look, I'm sorry it has to be like this but... I-I don't think staying over tonight is a good idea." He said, feeling a painful stirring in his balls as if rebelling against him for not seeking their comfort.

If he wasn't already upset, Byng was significantly more so now. She didn't like that this intervention was seeing their chances of sex drying up, especially not after she pushed herself to try and get over her fear of water. She was about to say something, but Suzette cut her off.

"I'm very sorry," she frowned, a slight tremble in her voice. "I didn't mean to come off as so adversarial about this. If your friend happens to be listening, I... I want her to know that if she really has her reasons then I'm sorry. There are some ethical implications I'm caught up on regarding her involvement in everything that has transpired this last week, but they absolutely pale in comparison to how grateful I feel for her inspiring you to pursue me."

"And me too!" Byng leaned over the table passionately. "Hell, I don't even care if she was watching, or telling you what to say or however the fuck this all went down."

"Exactly," Suzette nodded. "But if after hearing our feelings your friend wishes to remain hidden, we'll go home tonight and the next time you see us we'll pretend as if this never happened. I promise. Neither of us will say a word to anyone else, obviously, and-"

Coye was becoming emotional as the speech continued, but he fell quiet as he heard the sound of Shayla snapping her fingers. His hat suddenly fell off of his head. He was speechless, his mouth fell open as Shayla and Byng stared at the pixie standing on top of his head. Shayla looked off to the side, refusing to make eyecontact even after her sudden reveal. She had her arms crossed and a troubled expression. Equal parts spiteful and sad.

"Shayla-" Coye gasped, kneeling over to pick up his hat and attempt to cover her, but she was already flying to the table by the time he sat up.

Shayla landed where Coye had been sitting, and she summoned a gust of air to sit his chair right side up so he could sit on it. She jerked her head at it while looking at him, prompting him to sit down and make use of the seat. She figured this might take a while so he might as well get comfortable.

Meanwhile, Suzette and Byng did all they could to process the sight of the little winged girl standing on the table. Shayla looked none too happy about this, but she wasn't attacking them with magic or trying to escape. Coye naively hoped things would remain as calm as the initial moment of discover was, even if he realistically knew things were likely going to go badly.

"Well," Shayla shrugged, putting her hands on her hips. "You found me. Congrats. Like the big guy said, I'm really, really not cool with the idea of getting to know other people so I don't see what else this meeting will accomplish." Her index finger repeatedly tapped against her side.

"Shayla, you don't need to be so rude..." Coye frowned, only to get leered at by the Pixie.

"No, no, Darling. It's quite alright." Suzette insisted, then put her hand inside the basket and retrieved a small mini pie. She set it down in front of Shayla, who looked at it with suspicion. "If I remember correctly, you happen to like sweets... isn't that right, ah... Shayla?"

Shayla looked at the lukewarm pastry and inhaled the apple cinnamon scent as it wafted towards her. It was burnt to golden brown perfection and she could see a thick layer of crystalized sugar sprinkled on top of the crust. She gulped, then finally looked up at Suzette.

"Yeah, and? What's it to you?" She asked out of habit, even as she felt the saliva begin to pool in her mouth.

Wanting to be included, Byng spoke up, "We got this for you! It was Suz's idea, but I helped pay for it... so it's from both of us."

Unsure of what to think, Shayla continued to frown and she looked back over her shoulder at Coye. It was clear she was confused about what to do here and was looking for guidance. He was supportive, saying, "Go ahead. Eat."

She became frazzled, desperately trying to save face even as she inched closer towards the pie, "I-I don't need your permission, dummy! I was just making sure you didn't want any." She lied.

He clarified he didn't want any and all pretenses were gone. Shayla moved closer and started to devour the pie that was calling her name. This was the first time either of them had seen a fairy, let alone one eat, so they were shocked to watch the way such a small girl could absolutely pack it away in such a short amount of time. Her belly ballooned out to a comical extent, and neither girl knew what to make of that. Byng and Suzette exchanged a look of disbelief, but by the time they looked back, Shayla was sitting in the middle of the emptied pie tin and she was just as thin as ever.

The quietness continued on as they stared, until ultimately Shayla felt the pressure coming from the disappointed boy behind her. "Thanks," she mumbled, forcing herself to look up at the two girls again. "It was good."

"Yeah? That's wonderful. Next time I'll have to make you one myself." Suzette smiled nervously.

Shayla blushed but was intent on remaining as aloof as she could get away with. "I'll eat it, so whatever."

Byng mumbled something to Suzette about how this wasn't going to plan, and Coye could only watch as their first interaction continued to go as poorly as it could've. Suzette patted Byng's thigh under the table, telling her it was her turn to try and break through the Pixie's defenses.

"So, uh... how long has this been going on?" Byng pointed at Shayla and Coye, her typical friendly smile seeing great use despite it masking how uncomfortable she was.

"Bout two weeks. I wanted out of the Gnarled Woods, but I needed a partner to keep me safe. I picked Coye here after watching him for a long, long time. It's the only way I knew I could trust him."

Both girls felt the sting in Shayla's words and the guilt began to pile up. Desperate to work through it, Suzette began to ask, "Now, when you say partner..."

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

Byng blushed and looked at the two of them. "How does that even... um..."

"She's stretchy," Coye hung his head in shame.

Shayla was feeling the awkward tension in the room more than anyone else, and it was starting to make her feel bad. She sighed and started pacing around for a moment before steeling herself to confront the two onlookers. "Look, I know this is all kinds of weird, but let's make one thing clear." Shayla pointed back at Coye. "Don't be mad at him for cheating on you, or not telling you about me, or whatever. All of that junk? All me. I've got issues, I insisted on it."

Byng frowned and leaned over the table closer to Shayla as she propped her elbow up. "What're you going on about? I thought we were both pretty clear how we didn't care about that. Suz?"

"I wouldn't go that far, but I'd say my disappointment is open to negotiation. From what I understand, there was a good reason for all the secrecy and by forcefully breaking it I might come off as the 'bitch' in this situation..." Suzette frowned. "But it's true that she's been up in your hat this entire time, Darling?"

"Most of the time, yes." He continued to stare at his feet.

Shayla again tried to shield him from any accusations. "Gonna step in here and clarify. Most of the time, my role is limited to giving advice and pushing him to do crap he wouldn't do otherwise. I'm not up there giving him a play by play of what to do and say. Most of it is all him."

Byng and Suzette both looked to the boy, who was beginning to sniffle as he fought back tears. "I'm sorry," Coye whined.

"Whoa, there's no need for that, short stuff!"

"Really, Darling. Why are you so upset?"

"I... I've just been worried that if you two found out about how Shayla has been helping me, then you would think differently of me. I don't know. Like, maybe you'd see how fake I am and regret being with me..." he managed to look up as he wiped some of the tears from his eye. "I don't want that to happen, but I just don't think I could have ever started anything with either of you if it wasn't for her help..."

"Darling, you're worrying yourself over nothing."

"Really...?"

"Yeah, dude. This doesn't change a thing." Byng smiled, but then she stopped and corrected herself. "Ok, well, maybe it changes a couple things but they're so minor I don't even care."

"If I can do anything to make the transition easier, just... say the word, I guess..." Shayla spoke up and frowned. It was hard to remain both aloof and defensive of Coye at the same time.

"The other day," Byng tilted her head. "When that floorboard wobbled under our feet out of nowhere..."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Shayla coughed into her fist.

"I knew that was weird! I thought first it might've been short stuff, but there's no way he would've had the balls to do what he did afterward. Ah, no offense."

"None taken," Coye frowned.

"It was pretty funny, looking back. I bet you weren't expecting it to spiral outta control like that, gahaha!"

Shayla was quiet for a moment, but eventually, she couldn't help but indulge in her show-offy nature. "Yeah, it was funny, wasn't it? You've pulled off some pretty dope pranks from what I've seen, too."

Byng looked down at Shayla and the two shared a small smile for the briefest of moments, until Suzette spoke up.

"Speaking of pranks, you seem to have had quite a go of things in my home." Suzette said darkly.

"Ah, uh... yeah... fair warning, but I'm not an ordinary whimsical little fairy. Specifically, I'm a Pixie. When I do naughty things, you kind of just have to go along with it because it's in my nature to want to fuck with people at every opportunity. Plus, I was bored. And annoyed after watching you two get all cutesy with each other. Mostly bored, though."

"So you transformed my old clothes, messed with the contents of my books, raided my pantries and stole candy off of my shelves because you were bored?"

"Yes, and other inexplicable things of a similar nature will likely happen in the future too so I'd suggest you get used to it." Shayla crossed her arms. "I'm not apologizing."

"Shayla, why are you being so difficult?" Coye frowned. "She's just trying to understand you. If she was trying to get you to apologize, she'd be a lot more direct about it."

"It's true," Suzette sighed. "I'm not mad. If anything, I'm astonished at what you were able to do with my clothes, dear. I was so happy when I saw what you did, but then I was confused by everything else you did during the night... so I didn't know what to make of it at the time."

"Sometimes I feel like doing nice things, and other times I don't," she replied with sass. "You just got lucky."

Coye was growing a little fed up at her behavior, and he raised his voice. "Shayla, what did I just say?"

Shayla took in a sharp breath of air and turned around to look him in the face. "I'm sorry, baby, but I can't just pretend everything is fine when it's not! In case you need me to remind, I didn't just up and talk to you out of the blue one day. No. I stalked you for months on end before I was damn sure that you were the one, because... because I couldn't risk it otherwise!"

Coye didn't know how to respond. He was distraught.

"Aw, geez..." Byng collapsed against the table. "Maybe we really should head home for the night... I feel like we ruined everything..."

Suzette was of a similar mind, but she pressed on. "We can be patient, Shayla. However you want us to handle this, just let us know."

Feeling three sets of eyes firmly trained on her, Shayla could feel pressure mounting. Eventually, she asked something that was on her mind. She wanted to know how all of this even started. "How did you even know about me, anyway? I know Coye gave up some of the vague details to you the other day," she pointed at Byng. "But I'm still confused. Fill me in, and that might be start."

"I didn't actually know until Suz pointed it out to me," Byng started. "At least not entirely. I knew something was up. I ain't an expert on Karnallian magic, but it was pretty obvious you weren't casting spells. Even when you're not using incantations you still gotta point your hands and stuff, right? Magic crap just happened around you all the time, and during our Zurgarrah your shoulder armor was all shiny and sparkly between rounds. That's fairy dust, right?"

Coye looked to Shayla, who felt a hot wave of embarrassment wash over him. "I go to all that trouble to enchant that stupid hat so pixie dust doesn't build up in your hair, and I straight up forgot to do it to your gear...? Gods, I'm a fucking- agh!" Shayla kicked the pie tin, which made for a sight that amused everyone. "And what about you, mama bear?" She asked, turning her attention to Suzette.

"Yes, about that..." Suzette looked off to the side. "I'm afraid my reasoning is... well..."

"Did I fuck up again somehow?" Shayla groaned, wanting to get it over with.

"Do you remember after you finished up with your mischief? It was the dead of night, and you fluttered up to my Darling's face and whispered something to him before kissing him on the lips."

"Wait, what did you say?" Coye asked.

"T-That's not important! Are you telling me you weren't actually sleeping?!"

"No, I was..." Suzette frowned.

"Then how did you-"

"Honey," Suzette put it as gently as she could. "You glow in the dark. I believe most people would wake up when a torch is only a foot away from their face."

Byng held back a bunch of laughter, only for it to snort back in her nose. Suzette looked askance, and Coye tried his hardest not to express how funny her failure to remain a secret happened to be. They were laughing at her. Making fun of her. Shayla's cheeks burned, and she took action.

Shayla walked over to where Coye put his hat on the table, lifted it up, and curled up in a little ball underneath it. "I'm fucking done, enjoy your orgy. Goodnight, folks."

"Shit-" Coye frowned and he scooped up the hat, clutching it to his chest. "Would you guys mind if I stepped outside for a second?"

"Take your time, short-stuff." Byng said, feeling remorseful for being so amused.

"Of course," Suzette nodded as he experienced similar sentiments.

Coye took the hat and Shayla outside, the cool evening summer air helping him regain composure as he swallowed a nice lungful. He closed the door behind him and tilted the hat forward so he could talk to his partner. He found her there, still in her ball and refusing to look up from it.

"Shayla-"

"Did I stutter or something? I told you to go and fuck their brains out, you stupid... dummy..."

"You're more important to me than having sex right now," he said despite still feeling a vague sense of urgency in his balls.

That caught Shayla attention and spoke to her desire to feel important. She lifted her little head up and looked at him with skeptical eyes. "You're not just saying that, are you?"

"Of course not. Can you at least try and talk to me about this, Shayla?" He pleaded.

Shayla sighed as she knew once again she was weak to this boy, seeing him so disappointed wasn't good for her heart. It made her feel like the bad guy despite having every justification for her reaction. She sat up and allowed him to scoop her out from beneath with his hand and he brought her closer to his face.

"I'll try, but I just don't know what there even is to say about any of this."

"It's like you said, they already know the truth now, so I don't see why you aren't trying to make the most of it and get to know them. You told me before how much you like Byng, and you even like Suzette a bit, too. This is your chance to grow and change, Shayla. Just like I did."

"Do you think everyone needs to change in order to be happy?" Shayla folded her arms. "Some people are just fine with the miserable way they are."

"You're not."

"And what makes you so sure of that, huh?"

"If you were, you would've never have reached out to me in the first place."

"I told you. You're special. An exception to the rule."

"I get that, but what I don't get is why you're so adamant about not even giving them a chance to be the same."

Shayla had nothing to say to that, so she looked away and tried to ignore the implication. It was obvious that there was some deeper reason for her behavior and her lack of trust, but on some level he felt she was being hypocritical given how often she encouraged himself to change yet refused to make the same effort in regards to herself. It wasn't like he could point a finger at her and outright say this, though, as that would only make things worse. He needed to understand.

"You've never really told me much about your past, Shayla. Just bits and pieces. Did... um... did something happen to you?" He asked.

Shayla subtly twitched at the question. "I've given loads of examples about how your kind uses and abuses us members of the Fae, isn't that enough for me to be so against interaction?"

"Sure, and I understand all those... I'm just asking if there was anything in specific that made you so afraid."

Shayla stood up and rubbed her temples out of stress. She took a long deep breath and exhaled it for a long time, then looked him in the eyes. "What, you want to hear my tragic backstory? Is this really the best time? You've got two bitches back there just waiting to fuck your brains out, y'know."

"If there's something that will help me understand the way you are, then I want to hear it. Please."

He was making that determined face of his again, and Shayla couldn't stand it. "When I was little, the Pixies in the forest were a lot cockier than they are now. We've always had up and down periods where we fuck with the humans more and then something bad happen and we chill for a bit, mostly because most Pixies don't learn and eventually they forget what happened the last time they got too adventurous."

"When was this?" Coye didn't want to interrupt, but he saw this as a chance to clear up another question he had on his mind.

Shayla raised an eyebrow. "Really subtle attempt to get my age off of me, you little brat. You want me to add numbers and specific dates to my tragic backstory, baby? Would that make things more convenient?"

Coye blushed and hung his head. "S-Sorry..."

Funnily enough, the distraction and the opportunity to tease the boy ended up easing her mood a little bit, making her more comfortable. "I'm just busting your balls, Coye. This was like eighteen years ago, and I was seven or eight at the time. If you really wanted to know."

"Huh." Coye tilted his head.

Shayla's temper flared as she cracked her knuckles. "The next words outta your mouth better not be something about you thinking I was a lot older than that!"

"N-No, I'm just happy to hear we were that close to the same age... you're a spirit so I wouldn't have known if you were a few centuries old or not..."

"That's pretty rich coming from a Half-Elf." Shayla gave him an accusatory stare, causing him to back down. "Are you going to let me tell my story now, or what?"

"Yes, sorry," he backed down, though he was still secretly satisfied that she was old enough to be his older sister as opposed to having hundreds of years of life experience more than him.

Shayla eased up on him and took on a more relaxed posture. "Things got really out of control for a few years there. Pixies were going crazy, sneaking into Cransmere or the roads leading into it and pranking the shit out of humans in all sorts of ways. Sometimes it got aggressive, even fatal, but... my kind generally doesn't care about that, as long as it's funny." She sighed, her frustration increasing just by recalling others of her kind. "You know who does care about that kind of thing? Humans."

Coye gulped.

"Hold your horses there for a second." Shayla raised her finger. "I know what you're probably thinking, and no, I don't blame the humans for doing what they needed to do. The blame is totally on all the idiots back at the Fleeting Bough who don't know how to leave well enough alone."

"So, what happened, then?"

"That's where we need to talk about my mom," Shayla sighed. "She was a weird one. Even I thought so when I was little. She didn't like pranks, and she liked using her magic to help others whenever she could. Some of my family even thought she was a normal fairy, who got swapped into the Bough as a prank, but she eventually shacked up with some stupid dipshit and they had me. When I was a kid, I was a whole lot more into the Pixie routine than I am now. I thought everything was some kind of joke and that nobody else got it, especially not her. I called her stupid for not understanding my pranks. It didn't help that during this frenzied period everyone else was encouraging me to go out and fuck with humans... I never listened to her. Not even when it got reported that Cransmere was calling in a lot of Fairy Hunters from across the realm... I had this really epic idea for my ultimate prank ever. It was some stupid kid thing, I don't even remember what it was after all this time... probably because what happened when it went wrong was so traumatic it kinda blocked everything else out from my memory, but it is what it is.

I left the woods even though my mom was telling me not to. Somehow I made it past all the monsters and was on the road into town when I saw a group of freeriders I could make into the targets. Amid all the knights, there was a Fairy Hunter mixed in... just waiting for something like this to happen. I high tailed it out of there, and he followed me back into the woods... almost had me too, if it weren't for my mom showing up at just the right time to save me."

Shayla grew quiet, distant. Coye could feel her body trembling in his hand for just a moment until she fought back against it and calmed herself as best she could.

"There was a fight. It was a bit flashy, my mom wasn't exactly a fighter or anything but she was a lot stronger than I am now... but all I remember is the end. Her mana was used up and she fell out of the sky... right into an iron cage held out by the hunter. I saw her hand reaching out to me in the distance, and then I ran..."

"Shayla..."

"You'd think that'd be a big wake up call, but it wasn't. Not right away. I came back, told everyone what happened, and they all said I was in the right and she shouldn't have been so careless. My own dad said at least she won't get in the way of our fun anymore- and... and I fucking laughed. I laughed, Coye." Shayla started laughing right now, too, but all it did was bring pain to the boy's heart.

"It took me a couple of years to really see how fucked up everything was. Everyone around me got all hyped up on this stupid, selfish goal to fuck over everyone else as long as it was funny started to get to me. I realized that my mom was the only one who wasn't sucked into this weird radicalized hive-mind, and I... couldn't live there anymore. You know how the rest of the story goes by now."

"So, your hesitation with other people comes from what they did to your mom?"

Shayla nodded. "I don't even know what ended up happening to her. I think that's worse than knowing. Maybe they just killed her. Maybe she ended up in a potion, maybe-"

"Shayla..."

She took in a deep breath. "Sorry..."

"I'm the one who's sorry." Without a word, Coye brought her to his chest and carefully wrapped his arms around her. She didn't struggle or act bashful, instead reciprocating in turn.

"Nope, still me, big guy. If this wasn't just pulled out of nowhere and we worked up to it, I bet I could've eased into it and gotten comfortable with the idea of befriending the girls... but..."

"Putting you on the stage without warning was the worst way to go about it. I get that." Coye frowned as the hug ended and he looked back down at the girl on his palm.

"Pretty much." Shayla agreed with a sigh.

As sad and as heavy as the atmosphere was, Shayla must have rubbed off on him, or maybe Byng, because a dark yet humorous thought occurred to him and he cracked an innapropriate smile.

"What?" Shayla blinked and then felt defensive. "What's so funny?"

"N-No, I shouldn't... um..."

Her hands were suddenly on her hips and she was giving him the stink eye. "Out with it, big guy."

Weak to pressure, he admitted, "I was just thinking you got stuck with a really shitty fetish for someone who went through everything that you did."

Shayla raised her eyebrows, taken aback by his comment. He almost thought he offended her for a moment, until she started laughing. She'd had these same thoughts many time throughout the years and often wondered if her incident left some sort of indecent mark on her psyche. "Everyone deals with trauma differently. Just because I'm into the big folk sexually doesn't mean I can't be scared of them! You were scared of girls but you were into them, too."

"T-That's," Coye thought about it and then chuckled. "I mean, I guess that's fair..."

She smiled back up at him, and for a moment, all was good between them.

"We've been out here a pretty long time," Coye commented. "How do you want to deal with them?"

Shayla's anxiety spiked a bit as she remembered the two waiting for them inside. Her secret was out in the open now. Whether she liked it or not, two more people in town knew of her existence. They suggested they could pretend this never happened and go on with their lives, but that wouldn't erase their memory. Even if Shayla had the ability to do that with her magic, she doubted that would be the right answer anyway. It still made her uncomfortable, but there was really only one way to go about it. Being a total bitch to Byng and Suzette wasn't going to endear her to them and make them want to keep her secret. Now that she was less emotional, Shayla understood that, and the path forward seemed obvious.

"I want to try this again," Shayla told him.

"Are you sure? I don't want you to think you need to do this-"

"But I do," Shayla shrugged. "Cat's out of the bag and I gotta roll with the punches. Let's get back in there and try things differently."

"Ok, then..." Coye nodded and tried to show he was more concerned for her than he was relieved that she'd give things another go.

For a moment, he continued to look at her until this confused her. She asked, "What are you waiting for? Get in there, baby."

"I was just wondering if you'd tell me more about your mom sometime. She sounds like she was a really nice person."

Shayla was surprised, but nodded her head. "She was. I'm sure the topic will come up again sometime, but don't worry about it for now."

That was good enough for him, so he smiled and opened the door back up and walked in. Byng was at the table playing with her newly shiny hair, while Suzette was washing the dishes with a deeply stressed look on her face that faded as soon as she saw the boy and his pixie reenter.

"Sorry that took a while. Everything's alright now." Coye insisted.

"Hey, short-stuff and... uh... even shorter stuff." Byng said.

"Hey, yourself." Shayla casually nodded at Byng.

Suzette was filled with great anxiety as she wiped up her hands with a nearby towel and walked back over to the table. When she looked down at Coye's palm, she felt even worse. "I'm so sorry, dear, I-"

"Don't wanna hear it," Shayla sighed. "Have a seat."

There was a moment of hesitation, but eventually Suzette worked past it to try and move things along. She sat down and she and Byng looked closely at the Pixie who at a glance seemed just as standoffish as she had before.

Shayla was the one to start the dialogue, saying, "Before you both try and trip over yourselves with apologies, I'll admit that I handled this really, really bad on my part. I didn't appreciate the whole 'gotcha' shit you two tried to pull, but it's not like I'm without any guilt here, either. I get how it kinda looks bad with the whole me helping Coye out and spying on you thing-"

"Still actually don't mind that part," Byng laughed.

"And I can dismiss it as well given the context and benefits its brought into my life," Suzette added.

"Noted," Shayla nodded. "Still. I've got issues. I've had bad experiences with you big folk before, and It’ll take a while for me to warm up to you. I don’t know where to start with all this, but…”

“You could start at the beginning,” Suzette said with a smile. “You know all about the both of us already, so maybe a more detailed introduction is in order?”

“Wait, you uh, want to know more about me?” Shayla shirked back and took a step towards Coye, who patted her on the shoulder with his hand.

“Why not? It’d be good for you.”

“Yeah! I wanna hear all about how you two met,” Byng pointed at the both of them, showing off her sharp smile. “And don’t spare any of the details!”

Shayla looked again towards the boy and when she saw how supportive he was, it was hard to turn him down. She sighed and shrugged her shoulders, but a smile soon cut its war across her lips.

“You wanna hear how this all started, huh? Alright. I guess it’s a pretty good story, so get comfortable.” Shayla said, and then she began to talk.