Dear Diary,

Something tells me this thing with Jack is gonna get weird.

Yeah, I know. Last Season I ate a Primordial Dragon from the Age of the Dinosaurs, and not long before that I dropped a modern Battleship on top of an Undead Dragon. Honestly, the more I think about it, the more I'm glad the girls managed to capture Baby. Otherwise I'd feel some kinda way if someday Dragons are Extinct and it's All My Fault. This way I guess I can at least say I tried to housebreak one. Not really thinking so much 'domesticating', because from what I saw the Mother of Water Panthers was full on sapient and shit. Civilizing, maybe? Yeah, that sounds like something that I could get behind.

Of course, we have exactly one Water Panther. Who, if I look at the other Dragons I've seen here and now, is clearly a Dragon, but the local name is Water Panther, so that's what I'm gonna call them. I guess a scientific sort would call them a River Dragon, but I'll leave that for Conrad or Saffron or, I dunno, maybe Vickerson at some far distant point in the future if she lives and retires and decides to go all academic. But that means if this works, if Baby actually starts acting like a civilized being instead of a dangerous Apex Predator, I'm gonna need to try and do the same for Swamp Dragons and Mountain Dragons and Ice Dragons.

Or, well, somebody will need to. Maybe Lindsey. Sometimes, when she doesn't quite grok that I'm listening, she seems to have a sort of Steve Irwin vibe. Not the over the top showman, but the kind of person who legit wants to meet nature on its own terms and preserve as much of it as we can without, y'know, actually killing ourselves. Like, dude wrestled alligators and shit, right? He didn't defang them or bind them up, he just wrestled them, showed people the cool shit about them from right up close and personal, then let them go back to their alligator things.

So I slept all of yesterday away, shifting to the Altar in my Temple late in the day. The waves of quiet Worship from people coming through the temple and seeing my new burns hit different. Like, this wasn't the kind of joyous awe I'd gotten used to at Revels, that idea that I would, without doubt, eventually spend time focused on each and every person who worked for or volunteered at my Temples. I guess that now that I've gone through them all, I'm gonna wind up revisiting some of them. Not sure how I'm gonna do that, or if there will be new folks in some of them, or anything other than the fact that I'm gonna keep showing up for my people. Because yesterday when I lay there unable to do much except groan in pain as I tried to sleep, they showed up for me.

Kinda funny. I know I go on about Karen's dress, and how Conrad obviously put it together to be as distracting as possible for me specifically, but you'd think I'd remember its other, non-trolling properties. I don't really think about how if I were to grab Karen the way I so dearly want to at times, and she wasn't into it, I'd wind up with a whole new set of scars. Ones that I absolutely would deserve, don't get me wrong. But like I said, I don't think about that very much.

So as I lay there at the end of the day, feeling a weird kind of tingle as my skin peeled and flaked and burned as the nerves healed under the pressure of all that proud, safe, loving Worship, I maybe wasn't in the best mental space when Karen walked over and leaned in, I guess to see if I was awake. "Goddess? Are you awake?"

I blinked a little, stifled a groan, and realized that the adrenaline from the fire, from the Dragon, from dealing with Jack had all definitely worn off. I managed to croak out, "Kinda wish I wasn't."

"Why?"

I didn't have the energy to hold back my leer as she bent over to put her ear nearer to me. "Might just scoop you up and nom you then. Sure as shit would feel way less guilty about wanting to, y'know, nom and fondle and fondle adjacent activities."

She laughed quietly, an almost crystalline tinkling giggle that slid down into a throaty chuckle. "I am your Priestess, Tabitha. Do with me as you will."

I snorted, then regretted it as it stretched the burns on my chest. "Nah. Consent's important."

She leaned even closer, way inside my personal space without quite touching me, deliberately letting her ongoing chuckle and her motion make everything sway. The tinkling bits of glass. Her hair. Her breasts. Yeah, the view was amazing. Thanks Conrad. "I know. My Goddess has made her views on that abundantly clear." She slow blinked at me and I had zero resistance left when she carefully enunciated each word, wiggling her ass and making everything jiggle, "That's. Why. I. Just. Did."

Kitten, happening? Was all I had time or energy to think as my hands practically moved of their own accord, pulling her down, roaming around her as my lips locked with hers. Any other time I might have felt some kinda way about her giggling the whole time. But I couldn't really get any kind of mad on as she let my hands roam, responded to the kiss as well as any giggling woman could. The only weird thing was that she gripped my waist and lifted me, which was a little bothersome because I'd really enjoyed the way her being bent over emphasized the curve of her hips, of her ass. Of course when she picked me up I could reach them better. Even better as she kept rising. Lifting. Glowing.

I didn't quite get that my feet were like half a dozen feet above the bed when she let go of my waist, throwing her head and arms back in what was absolutely a pose of religious and physical ecstasy. O face as Divine euphoric state. The power of her dress, my own power channeled through my Highest Priestess and pushed back into me, through me, filled me as I clung to her, my legs intertwining with hers, my hands grasping at her ass, the back of her neck.

As she settled back to the bed, a wave of joyous Worship washing over us from the faithful in the temple, I muttered, "Sorry. Didn't mean to, um..."

She looked me right in the eyes, the joy of my Worshippers painting her face, her arms twisting around to hold my hands in place as she sang, "it happens every time, though."

When my brain and mouth worked properly again, I muttered out, "I saw yours, guess it's fair you see mine. Sorry about that."

She laughed aloud. "Why? Because a side benefit of my hard earned position, my freely given worship, my beloved Holy Garb, is being thrust to the heights of Ecstasy any sunrise or sunset when I wear it?" She shook hear head, still laughing. "That's silly. Did it please you?"

"Yes?"

She half turned to face the faithful, some of whom sat in the rows of benches, some of whom had been walking past the Altar, some of whom stood in the connected Bar and Restaurant. "Did you all enjoy what you saw?"

I did not expect the laughing, joyous, and above all earnest chorus of, "let it be so!" from everyone I could see and hear.

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She turned back to me. "So there you have it. You asked. I agreed. You took what I offered, and I received your blessings, and everyone involved enjoyed themselves one way or another." She leaned in close and whispered, "and even though there were no Children here, even if there had been, both of us remained fully clothed, and any child whose parents are still as joyously wed as we try to encourage them to be has seen worse than their parents being affectionate."

"Affectionate?"

"I was quite affected. As were you."

She grinned at me, and something in me clicked. I realized that my burns, even the ones where my skin had split and bled and wept, had all healed over. Not even just scabbed over, but healed until they felt like the rest of my scars; a dull ache I lived with every day, one that I could ignore as long and as often as I had to. I laughed, then looked at her. "Did you do that on purpose?"

She smiled at me, growling just a little as she quietly said, "had you decided to do as you said you desired to, and torn bits of me with tooth and tentacle, to taste my flesh and blood, to consume me in the Mortal Realm as you do in my dreams? I would stand here now whole and hale." Then her voice dropped even lower, low enough I could barely hear her when she whispered, "you may do so now, if you wish. I will be restored at sunrise, so long as you find me worthy to wear your Holy Garb."

I swallowed, suddenly nervous. "Yeah," I whispered, "suddenly tempted to take you physically to my Maw and dip bits in to see if they come back in the morning."

I'd only ever seen that combination of terror and lust on my Darling, and hers rarely had the added layer of religious zealotry. I wasn't sure if that made it more or less appealing. "Do it then, Goddess. I am yours, I Consent." I froze. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"I really don't know whether to say, 'you don't get your feet back' or 'I have to go find a new Highest Priestess because I couldn't resist nomming all of you'."

"Oh, no. Not that," she deadpanned.

I snerked. "What, do all my ladies have death wishes or something?"

She shook her head, shrugged. "No. I simply trust you, completely. You will determine the destination of my Soul when I pass. Should you take me to your Maw to satiate your curiosity, but find that you cannot resist consuming me? It means that my Goddess literally found me irresistible, Body and Soul."

I shook my head. "I don't want suicidal Clergy."

She looked a little shocked. "I'm not suicidal. I've found that, now that I am Highest Priestess of a Goddess of Ecstasy and Passion, life is frequently fantastic. I enjoy it to the fullest as often as I can. But," she shrugged. "I am not a child. I am not stupid. I spent most of yesterday ferrying refugees from a disaster. Terrible things happen. I may die suddenly at any time, so I am determined to enjoy every piece of it I can until such time. And if my end is an irresistibly novel flavor experience for my Goddess? So be it."

I snorted. "Work hard, play harder, huh?"

Her face lit up with that zealot look again, like I'd said something wise. "Just so!"

I couldn't resist that look. I'd never really let go of her, so I dipped her and kissed her to... not 'thunderous' applause, because there weren't that many Worshippers in the seats tonight, but all of them cheered and clapped, except the ones who took that as a signal to get their own grope on. When I stood, she looked me in the eye and said, "so, will our Goddess be joining us for a spontaneous Revel tonight?"

"She will not," said Saffron, her arms wrapping around me from behind. "But we might be convinced to have dinner here, if the cooks are willing?"

Turns out they were absolutely willing. So Saffron and I had rare steaks and loaded baked potatoes, while Karen took some fried bar food back to the Homestead for the kids and women. Saffron and I talked about... nothing and everything. The girls, the Village reconstruction, gossip about Cailyn and George, about Jack and Adrienne. The weirdest thing had to be the tea about Mrs. Driver and Lenny Lancaster.

"We were working on the Muscogee Treaty; she offered, and he turned her down. I think he looked a little scared."

I blinked. 'Wait, wait, wait, Mrs. Driver and Lenny Lancaster?"

She shook her head. "Well, maybe. After. No, she offered up Mister Driver."

That had me sitting there, steak halfway to my mouth, staring. "Wait, what? Lenny didn't get all pissy about that?"

She shrugged. "Why would he?"

"Didn't think he swung that way."

She thought for a second. "You know, I'm not sure he does? I'm not sure he doesn't though. But honestly I don't think he was scared because of that."

"No?"

"No, I think it's because he's seen Mister Driver, and wasn't sure he'd survive if Mister Driver's manhood matched his overall size." She waited until I got a bite of steak into my mouth to say, "which it does."

I very carefully did not spit out my steak. After savoring it, because this was a good steak prepared by a chef who knew how to put on that perfect sear while keeping the meat melt in your mouth tender, I said, "How do you know that?"

She leaned in, "skyclad Revels where I should have been in bed, but snuck out to the rooftops to watch."

"So you come by that horny honestly, huh?"

Yeah, not my best line, but she took it and ran with it anyway. "Speaking of coming?"

"Shouldn't I be getting back to Jackville?"

She looked at me, "please don't? Not tonight?"

"What's wrong?"

She sighed. "I'm..."

Sudden suspicion gripped me. "Jealous?"

She pondered that for a disturbingly long time. Not all that long objectively, but I grew up hearing 'if they don't respond immediately, they're obviously lying', which is hard to shake. But she shook her head and said, "jealousy would mean I want you to stop happening to others. Which I do not. I find that... precious and wonderful in so many ways, not least of which being when it happens to someone where, if I am in a position to do so, I can experience both halves of the happening at the same time." She shook her head, smiling at me, reaching out to touch my hand. "No, love. I am not jealous. Far from it, but..."

"I have a sudden desire to fondle yours."

Her wicked Grin slid onto her face like a silk camisole sliding down to the floor. "Like you fondled Karen's?"

"Oh, no. Way less innocent than that."

She might have panted a little bit at that. Then took a drink as I smirked and ate more of my potato skin. "If you do not know before then, on Ledger Day you will know what Mister Driver's partners experience."

"Oh, shit. Are you gonna invite him along?"

"No."

I chuckled around another bite of potato skin. "Fuck it, we ball. So, not jealous, but...?"

She nodded. "I'm envious, perhaps? Wishing it had been me you took each and every one of those times?" She pondered a moment, then said, "No. Well, yes, but more to the point? I'm greedy. I want more of you than I can, in fact, handle. Or even perhaps survive."

"You want me to stop with the Revels?"

"Absolutely not. But..."

I leaned over just a little, interlacing my fingers with hers. "maybe a little re-enactment?" Her eyes lit up, she bit her lip, and she nodded. "Tonight?"

"Now?"

I teased her a little by tilting my head and thinking about it. "Technically these plates are ours, right?"

She shook her head. "Yours."

"Oh, okay then. Guess I'll bring them back later." I brought the plates and the food along with us to the Bedroom. Then made her wait while we finished. Okay, not entirely. But the re-enactments didn't start until after all the food was gone. I'd say 'and the plates were licked clean', but she kinda rubbed the plates all over her front, which meant I licked something else clean instead. Not complaining.

She folded right in the middle of re-enacting the twins, which left me giggling as one of her slumped over, out like an exhausted, sexy light, and the other just kinda evaporated. I left her tucked into the Bed, because she kinda needed a nap and a shower before the kids saw her. Then I spent the day playing with the kids. The first bit was just our normal thing, but right around lunch the girls asked me where I'd been yesterday. I told them about the fire, and assured them that their friends from Grandmother's Village were okay.

They all huddled up, then Menace stood and said, "take uth theyah."

I shook my head. "The Village isn't exactly safe yet. The fires are out, but there are a lot of half burned buildings and other things that aren't safe for kids."

Maze stepped up behind her sister. "So where are the Village kids then?"

"Muscogee."

Ria stepped up on Menace's other side. "If Muscogee is safe enough for kids who just lost their homes, it's certainly safe enough for us, right?"

So fuckin' proud of my girls. Even prouder when they went house to house, rousting out the kids, pulling them out to play. Reminding them that even if they'd had a tragedy, even if they had horrifying memories they wanted to forget, they were still kids, still allowed to run and play and, well, be kids.

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