Soul Merger

Fili's heart was trying to escape her body as she waited next to the houseboat she'd been crashing at. Alissa had asked if she would join her for dinner. And of course she'd said yes. "Don't read too much into it." She tried to tell herself repeatedly. "It's nothing serious yet." But her body refused to listen.

Her heart wasn't the only treacherous organ. Her skin was sliming the inside of her robe to the point she was almost worried it'd saturate. She'd grabbed something new, but sexy dresses were a no go. It was well prepared robes or nothing....

Another reason not to get obsessed over this being a date.

"Hey." She looked up to see Alissa had arrived. The woman was wearing her usual cloak that hid some of her figure, but she'd let the hood down. Even ignoring her body, the striking red hair and gold eyes would charm anyone interested in women.

Fili caught herself staring and forced herself to try to seem casual. "Hi! I'm ready if you are."

"Yeah." Alissa waited for her to stand before starting towards the restaurant. "Sorry for sticking to the 'hide in shadows' look. But I don't think either of us want the attention I'd get in a dress."

"It's fine. It's not like I have anything fancy," Fili said quickly. It really was a shame. But as much as she might fantasize about looking cool magicing away Alissa's unwanted suitors, that was something better for cheap romance novels. Not reality.

They headed down towards the waterfront where the restaurant was. Fili searched for a good way to break the silence. "Um, so you got this place from Rosalina?"

"Akari actually," Alissa replied. "It's apparently an eastern style restaurant, but it's too small for Rosalina to drag everyone into. I figured it would be interesting to visit."

"Oh." Fili nodded. That made sense. Still it was nice for Alissa to choose to ask her out of their group. She ignored the little dip her heart made and forced herself to keep a smile. "I'm guessing it's seafood based?"

Alissa grinned. "Supposed to be the 'best' way to eat fish. At least according to our foreign friend. I guess we'll find out."

The shop was fairly close, and small was a perfect descriptor. Half of it was a counter where people were quickly ordering fish and getting slices straight from the chefs on the opposite side. Only a few tables sat around for those who wanted to take their time. Most of the diners looked to be sailors grabbing something before hitting the bars in earnest.

Of course Alissa's arrival got a lot of attention. Some even looked over at Fili, probably wondering what the slimy mage was doing next to the amazing beauty. But surprisingly the only person who approached was the serving girl. "Hello. Are you interested in a table?"

"Yes please," Alissa said with a smile.

They were escorted to the back table, where Alissa immediately headed towards the corner. Fili was a little disappointed that the woman wouldn't be in the good lighting, but it was fine in the end. She took the seat opposite and waited as the server set down napkins. "Today's fish are on the boards in english there," she pointed to the wall where a number of plaques hung. "Everything is freshly caught. I'm afraid if you want something unique like ningyo you'll need to make a reservation."

Ah that's right, Fili remembered. They were a bit more open about eating mermaids in the East. "That's fine." She wasn't interested in testing Alissa's willingness to eat odd monsters today.

After the two picked out their orders the server left them to their own devices. Fili looked around for something to start up the conversation again.

Alissa surprised her with a chuckle. "Huh, it's harder to talk about things when you already know all about work. We can complain on the clock there. Or whatever the equivalent for us delvers is."

"Yeah." Fili gave a weak giggle. "Um, well we also know about hobbies. Uh..." She tried to think about something else.

"I guess I'm curious a little about your past," Alissa said. "I don't think we talked much about that outside the bad parts."

Fili blinked. That was a good point. She was so used to working with people who'd grown up in a tower boarding school. "It's... well I guess it was boring to me. Some of the other kids said it was like an orphanage, but the food was a lot better. And we did have the teachers and the house lady as adult figures." Miss Carmen was more an example of what not to be, but she had been an example.

"What did you learn there?" Alissa asked. "I know you have some of the tower's religious beliefs, and that's pretty unique."

"Sorta." Fili shrugged as she tried to pull together an explanation around the tower's complicated religious details. "Basically Sundays always had a theology class. They don't press a specific religious idea. But, well, they've got a bias. And to be fair a lot of their reasoning has solid theoretical backing behind it." She wiped her hands free of slime on one of her kerchiefs. "But in the end it's a lot more about wanting to keep the rituals and legends alive. It's part of our heritage after all. Most of us aren't really attached to any specific belief."

Alissa considered that for a moment. "I think I get it. I knew a family that insisted in one of the pre Fall languages even though no one else uses it around here just as a tradition." She shook her head. "I imagine it's a lot easier to keep religious practices going since you have a whole organization backing you up."

Fili laughed weakly. "It helps, but they also get in big fights about archaic details and who's doing what right. That might be the other reason most of us ended up just following it off and on."

Alissa's cheery laugh made Fili's heart flip flop again. "Suppose no one can tell you you're doing a language wrong if no one else speaks it."

"Anyway," Fili tried to keep her composure perfect. "We also learned basic history, math, monster knowledge, writing, and magical knowledge."

"Hm, I see." The conversation broke for a moment as the food arrived. But the server quickly placed down the dishes then retreated into the back. Alissa poured tea for them both as she continued. "How was it learning with a group? I only had my aunt to work with."

"I imagine the personal attention would be good and bad." Fili sighed. "Homework was nonsense. We all hated that. But I suppose it was required to get practical experience in. Maybe. The nice thing was being able to work with friends. Sally and I were pretty close, so we helped each other through the hard classes."

Alissa leaned forwards a bit. "Oh, that's interesting. What about your other friend? Brian?"

"He joined later. He's primarily a swordsman but he put up the money to learn some magic theory." Fili smiled. "It was a little weird having someone join the monster research club so 'late.' But he's really dedicated." She hesitated. "So how was learning with your aunt?"

Fortunately Alissa didn't seem put off by the question. "It actually wasn't that bad. I mean it wasn't a good situation. But she was actually a much better teacher than my parents. She was a delver herself, who built up a solid amount of cash. So she could spend her time giving me personal tutelage. I think I actually did better than most."

Fili paused before asking. "How about your parents? How do you feel about them?"

Alissa gave a deep sigh. "I... I guess I'm happy they helped me move out quickly. Mom really does need to look after Dad. Someone has to. And it was better to have me move than linger around until one of us said something we couldn't take back. It hurts but it was the best choice."

"And how about you?" Fili froze as Alissa's golden eyes caught on her. "How do you feel about your family?"

"A good question." One that most tower students had to ask at some point. "I guess I kinda consider them kinda like distant relatives? They aren't really my family the same way other people consider it. But I don't hate them or anything."

Alissa nodded. "That makes sense."

The meal was good, and they were both happy when the check came. They spent the short walk back discussing which of the various fish had been the best.

They were almost back to their houses when Alissa pulled herself a little more upright. "Want to have a drink at my place? Dinner was great but I get the feeling both of us relax better in private."

"Sure!" Fili perked up before violently beating down her internal fantasies. It was just a drink.

Alissa might call the place a shack, but it was still nice and warm as they entered. The various wardings kept the heat in without making it stifling. Fili took a seat at the table.

And nearly died on the spot as Alissa removed her cloak. The miniskirt and breast band that the woman wore covered more that the leathers did. But it still left little to the imagination while giving her a more casual air. Fili wondered if she'd caught fire for a second given how hot her cheeks were.

Thankfully God was merciful because Alissa didn't notice Fili's distress. "Finally. Always a big load off my shoulders. Figuratively and literally." Fili forced herself to breathe as Alissa headed to the icebox and pulled out a bottle of whisky. "Bear brand sound good to you?"

"Sure," Fili managed to say. Focus on breathing.

"Okay." Alissa poured two glasses, than moved over to sit next to Fili instead of across from her. "Here."

"Oh- thanks!" Fili took the glass and made sure she was stuck to it before taking a sip. The fiery spirits didn't calm her down much, but at least she wouldn't need to worry about the glass falling.

They sat there for a minute or so, occasionally sipping. Then Alissa rubbed her forehead. "Ugh. Juli was right. I'm terrible at this."

"Eh?" Fili looked up at the woman. "What do you mean? It was a nice dinner."

Alissa looked back, then slowly buried her face in her hands. "Please don't tell me I never said the word date."

"Date?!" Fili's head swam. "Uh, what do you mean date??" She couldn't be hearing that right. There's no way a beauty like Alissa would-

Said beauty looked her straight in the eyes. "You like me right?"

Fili's brain was shutting down. "Well yes! I mean as a friend. And you're beautiful. But I wouldn't be so unprofessional. I mean I'm not like those jerks who just pester you because you're sexy. Not that you aren't sexy it's just-"

Her rambling was silenced as Alissa's lips touched hers.

It wasn't a soft chaste kiss. The taller woman caught Fili in a strong one armed hug, pulling them together as she caught Fili's tongue with her own.

Fili thought this had to be a fantasy.

At least until the position started to get uncomfortable. Dreams were rarely so annoying. She slapped that feeling down, and tried to enjoy the moment. But Alissa slowly broke away with a final lip press.

Fili's heart was flying, until she saw the slime residue left on Alissa's body from their hug. "Um- sorry, wait-"

Alissa silenced her again by leaning down and whispering into her ear. "You know you smell like strawberries when you're feeling romantic." Fili shivered as Alissa licked her neck. "Taste like it too."

Hesitantly, Fili put an arm around Alissa and pulled herself close. "Are you okay with me?"

Alissa slowly pulled them both to their feet. "Do you want me to prove it to you?" she asked softly.

Fili's heart was about to explode again, but this time she killed off the tiny voice gibbering about 'first dates' and 'being careful'.

"Yes."