Heather the Necromancer

Heather sat on the edge of her bed, staring at her interface while trying to make a decision. It was early in the day, and the girls were out, but Frank was on the balcony looking over the graveyard. He spent a lot of time there of late, staring over his creation as if longing for something more. Heather remembered the boyish stories of building a massive edifice dedicated to death. It was dominated by a vast pyramid-like tomb where he ultimately hid his lair. He had been talking about building something in the alpine valley beyond Paradise City, but he was vague about the details. It seemed he was more preoccupied with her and the other girls of late, something she didn't blame him for.

With a sigh, she looked across the room, catching her reflection in the mirror. She was in her devil form, with coppery skin, long red hair, and dark curving horns. She blinked her red eyes and carefully noted the slits she had for pupils. That was a feature Frank wanted, and Blackbast had been all too happy to add. He also loved the red hair, saying it was his favorite color, and he often ran his fingers through it when they were intimate.

Frank loved her for herself, but like all people, he had certain attractions, and her devil form fit several of them. He would prefer she had a tail, but Heather seemed to have no option to create one. She could summon wings but hadn't dared to share that with anyone yet. In fact, she was keeping several secrets from her loved ones, and now she started at the option that haunted her.

Thanks to the crown, Heather's human race was overwritten with one called a Lilithu Devil. This was a bit of a head-on brawler with a lot of fire powers. It was also a monster race, and like all monster races, it could evolve. Heather had an evolution a while ago but hadn't bothered to consider it. The conversation had come up once before, and Heather managed to dodge the bullet, insisting she would look into it later. However, recent efforts to identify the crown's magic caused a confrontation with the woman inside. She revealed to everyone that Heather had an evolution and that one of them was a succubus.

Now, Quinny asked her about it incessantly and urged her to take it. Breanne was indifferent but understanding of Heather's hesitation. Frank seemed more on Quinny's side, but that was the boy inside speaking. Of course, the man in their relationship would be in favor of Heather taking a class heavily focused on sex. Umtha was the only one who didn't seem to care, or perhaps she didn’t understand. She said that Heather should be what she already was, and that was Hathlisora.

The fact was Heather didn't actually have a succubus evolution. No, this was something far worse. It was called a Lilim, and its description called it the mother of the succubus. It was a dark goddess-like creature that had the ability to shapeshift like Jaina did but was limited to humanoid forms about her height. It had wings, a barbed tail, and, if she chose, cloven feet. Her hands could be soft and normal one second or strong with hooked claws the next. She could instantly produce two more arms and wade into combat with four, using a weapon in each hand or a mixture of spells and weapons. She had a bunch of offensive skills that would be decidedly useful in combat. She could boost her strength, become invulnerable for a short period of time and create a whip of fire that had a surprising range. But she also had skills that were based on the seductress class. She had a seducing smile, allure, and other skills designed to get people's attention and make them aroused. She was loaded down with charms meant to disarm people and make them fall in love with her.

Jaina had many of the same skills and once commented that her class and the succubus race were basically the same. The Lilim was probably also an evolution to the succubus, the two races sharing a common upgrade. Heather knew why this class had these skills because the Lilim had its own power pool. It was called lust and could only be recharged through carnal efforts. If Heather wanted to use these powers, she would have to be willing to do what it took to recharge the lust pool. Of course, she had lovers now. Frank and the others were there to satisfy her needs, but she was still a little timid about sharing her love with another woman. She also preferred to share it when she was in the right frame of mind, not because she needed to recharge a power pool. Of course, there was always the benefit of being able to earn experience by having sex.

She tossed her head, unable to make a decision. She had two other paths to go down, one being a tank-like brawler very much like Frank. The other was a fallen angel that would give her black feathered wings and unholy spells to wield in combat. She fancied that class as a kind of anti-paladin, but her attentions always came back to the Lilim. Frank was her whole world now, and she loved him dearly. She knew he wouldn't appreciate the burly brawler or the shadowy angel, but the seductive Lilim was right up his alley. It was nearly valentines day, and she was considering taking the class to surprise him. But was she prepared to live with the requirements?

“What are you doing?” Frank asked as his towering ghoul form entered the room.

“Nothing!” Heather shouted in a panic and closed her panel. “I mean, just looking at my class.

“Why is your face so red?” he asked, moving to stand before her. “Were you looking at those outfits again?”

Heather nearly choked when he mentioned the outfits. A day ago, Heather had been looking through player-created outfits in her panel and decided to be daring. Frank and Umtha walked in while she was looking at a dress that showed quite a bit of skin. Umtha loved it, and Frank offered to buy it for her, but she quickly put the interface away and told them she had picked it by mistake.

“No, I was just considering where to spend some points,” Heather lied.

“You're a terrible liar,” Frank said as he leaned over her, his yellow eyes focusing on her neck. “Why don't you take that collar off for a bit.”

“Why?” Heather asked and reached up to touch it.

“Because you need to get used to going without it,” Frank explained. “You all agreed you were going to return them to Blackbast.”

“I know,” Heather sighed and looked down. “But Frank, I really like wearing it now. I know it was just for the disguise, but now we need it. I mean, we can't keep pretending to be adventurers if I can't disguise who I am. Not to mention we are hiding my true devil appearance from Viylah.”

“I worry about that,” Frank agreed with a nod. “If your normal devil appearance turns out to be the woman she is waiting for, you will have a second Umtha on your hands.”

“And we don't need that,” Heather insisted. “Maybe I will remember something and change my mind, but right now, I want to keep her at a distance.”

“So take the collar and the crown off,” Frank urged. “You don’t need either.”

“I know that's the solution but Frank. You have no idea how good these things make sex, and before you say anything, there is something I want to tell you,” Heather said and stood up to lean into his chest. “I like pretending I am your slave girl like Jaina is to Roric. All this harem talk has gotten into my blood, and we girls are having fun being your pets.”

“I can tell,” Frank sighed. “And if we’re being honest, I am enjoying it too.”

“You are?” Heather asked and looked up to peer into his yellow eyes.

“This is a dream come true,” Frank explained. “It's so good that I keep thinking I am going to wake up any moment now and discover it was all a dream. It was already too much to believe you would love me, but to have all four of you….” He trailed off and had to look away as Heather felt him shudder. “I don't know how to say how much I love you all.”

“Oh, Frank,” Heather said as she leaned into him for a firm hug. “Just accept what we want to give you. Be our master and make us your slave girls.”

“You will obey me?” he asked.

Heather smiled as she doubted that would be the case. “I tell you what, I will try my hardest to be obedient, but you have to give me some time to practice.”

“Deal,” Frank replied as he carefully stroked the back of her head.

“So we can keep the collars?” Heather asked.

“You can keep them provided Blackbast doesn’t ask for them back, and you agree to do what I say,” Frank replied.

“Yes, master,” Heather said with a warm smile, then lifted her head as she saw an image from Webster's eyes.

“What is it?” Frank asked.

“Roric, Rajeen, and all the girls are outside the tower,” Heather replied. “My traitor spider is already in her arms, purring.”

“I wonder what they want?” Frank asked as Heather went to the balcony and looked over the side to see Jaina looking up. She waved to let them know she had seen them, then turned to Frank.

“They are with Breanne,” Heather said and took a finger of his hand. “Let's go down and see what they are doing.” Even before Frank could respond, they vanished in a flash of green and arrived at the base of her mountain tower, standing before the group. Everyone was present and smiling as Roric and Rajeen held hands like lovers. Heather found the tiger woman's gaze to be just as striking as Blackbasts and did her best not to stare. Gisley looked excited and was clutching Evalynn's arm. Chandice and Jaina were side by side, the two lovers nearly always together. Heather was surprised to see they were all wearing slave silks, and there was nothing exposed that shouldn’t be.

“So, what's going on here?” Heather asked as she wondered what brought them all out of their magical forest.

“We have come for the valentines day event,” Jaina replied. “We are told it is something special.”

“What valentines day event?” Heather said and looked at Breanne. “Is this what Quinny has been working on secretly for the past three days?” Heather pondered what trouble Quinny could get into with days of planning, especially with valentines day as her motivation.

“It is,” Breanne replied with a smile. “I wasn’t supposed to tell you about it until it was ready.”

“I can’t wait to see it!” Gisley cried excitedly. “Can we go?”

“I am looking forward to seeing this as well,” Rajeen purred and grabbed Roric's arm. “It has been too long since I had a proper date.”

“Well,” Heather said and looked at Frank. “Shall we go see what she cooked up this time?”

“I guess so,” Frank said as he scratched at his head.

Heather took a finger again, his hands far too big to hold. She walked at his side as they approached the bridge that led to Quinny's theme park of a forest. From here, everything looked normal, as it always did, but that rapidly changed as they went inside. Roses of pink, white, and bright red were growing in clumps beside the road. A nearby lampost was decorated in red and pink ribbons with crystal hearts dangling from strings.

Gisley commented on how pretty it was as Heather turned about to notice more heart and other ornaments scattered about the canopy of the trees. The first true attraction they found was a large well made of white stone covered in red and white climbing roses. A sign nearby said this was a wishing well and that players who threw in love tokens could make a wish.

“Where do we get love tokens?” Evalynn asked, echoing Heather's own question. Breanne explained that Quinny planned for players to start at the other end of the forest. By the time players reached the well, they would have dozens of tokens earned in special events.

They went to move on but only needed to take a few steps before noticing a woman standing on the road. She was dressed in a white gown with a bright red belt and had a fancy bow of golden metal in one hand. She waved them over, and Heather saw this was a strange archery range with targets scattered all over. There were three big ones at different ranges, but there were dozens of smaller ones on poles, hanging from trees, or even swinging on chains. The NPC woman explained that every player got five shots, and you were rewarded with tokens for every target hit and for how hard the target was to hit.

“You and I will clean up at this,” Evalynn said as she tapped Breanne's arm. “All elvish races have natural archery skills.”

“I actually spent points to improve mine,” Breanne replied as the two women each took a bow from the NPC. They stood at a low fence and drew their bows, aiming arrows with red hearts for tips. They fired, and each stuck a small target causing a shower of hearts to burst into the air. The NPC woman explained that the more hearts you saw, the more tokens you would get, and soon everybody tried to shoot.

Chandice missed all her shots, and Jaina only got one by accident. Roric and Rajeen did better, but Heather was surprised by Frank. He took his human form so he could use the bow properly and stood with a practiced stance. He landed four of his five shots with solid hits, only missing when he aimed for one of the moving targets.

“When did you spend points in archery?” Heather demanded. “You don’t even use weapons.”

“I didn't spend any points,” he protested. “I was good at archery in the real world.”

“Hmm,” Heather grumbled and glared at him as he shrugged. She knew real-world skills did seem to matter, even if they didn't appear on your character sheet. She had a tiny amount of skill in throwing after the barrage of rocks she threw to get a few apples. She also had one point of deception because of how many lies she had to tell to conceal her necromancer class. She thought it odd how you could earn skills by practicing them instead of buying them with points. If a player wanted to master a wide range of skills, all they needed to do was invest the time in learning them. She wondered if that were true for things like magic but put the thought away as the group returned to the NPC woman to collect their rewards.

Each person was handed a red silk bag that contained a number of glass tokens shaped like hearts. To Heather's delight, it also contained a few chocolates that she quickly fished out.

“Do you want mine?” Frank asked as Heather bit into a cherry cordial.

“Yes,” Heather quickly replied and held out a hand for him to pass them over.

Down the road they went, passing under vines of pink and red flowers while roses grew everywhere. The lampposts were all decorated, and there were decorations on every branch. They passed the side trail that would go to the haunted house, and Heather had a good mind to suggest they investigate it, but Gisley insisted she saw something ahead.

“She added a stream?” Heather whispered to Frank as they arrived at a funny narrow water channel with a long boat that would seat twelve.

“The tunnel of love,” Heather read from a sign. “Only those who dare loves embrace should enter.” She looked at Frank, who shrugged as Heather felt a sinking feeling in her stomach.

“Oh, we are so doing this,” Jaina said and grabbed Chandice by the wrist.

“Umm, what has she got planned?” Heather demanded as she turned to Breanne. “I am not getting in that thing until I know how I will be humiliated.”

“As far as I know, it’s just a ride,” Breanne said defensively.

“Quinny made it, so I doubt it's just a ride,” Heather grumbled. She waited for an answer, but Breanne insisted she knew nothing more about it. Jaina urged them to get in as she and her sisters sat in the front seat. Roric and Rajeen took the next, with his arm behind her shoulders. Heather relented and got in the boat with Frank between her and Breanne.

Nothing happened for a moment, and Heather hoped it wasn't ready to be used. But her dreams were dashed when the boat started moving, slowly traveling down the stream.

“I know I am going to regret this,” Heather whispered to Frank and Breanne.

“She put a lot of work into this,” Breanne whispered back. “But there was something more.”

“What do you mean something more?” Heather asked.

“It’s hard to explain,” Breanne replied. “She was getting emotional about some of the things she was adding. Almost as if it was hurting her somehow. She asked me to leave and let her finish, but I swear I heard her crying as I left.”

“Why would she be crying?” Frank asked as the trees around grew so dense they began to form a wall.

“I don’t know,” Breanne replied. “But keep an open mind as we go through her challenges. It might explain a little about what was going on in her mind.”

Heather sat back to ponder that thought as the forest around them became so dense it created a tunnel.

Pink, red, and white flowers grew everywhere and hung in long bunches. Colorful decorations of glass and crystal adorned the branches, some radiating rays of light. They began to pass statues of men and women kissing and went under archways of glittering light where rose petals rained down and adorned their hair.

“Oh, I like this,” Gisley said as she started to bounce. “She made this so pretty.”

“This is rather nice,” Heather agreed. “This is pretty tame for Quinny.” She hoped those words wouldn't come back to haunt her and swore she caught Breanne smirking. She was certain Breanne knew more about what was going to happen but wanted Heather to be surprised. That surprise came when the stream reached a fork, and the boat came to a stop. A large sigh of white and red hung in the center, explaining that they could choose the path to go down.

“Left to the passage of hugs and right to the passage of kisses,” Gisley read aloud. “Oh, I want kisses!”

Heather felt her heart twist and quickly voted for hugs. However, she was overruled by the mass of girls in front, who unanimously voted for kisses. Even Breanne turned against her, voting for kisses and causing the boat to turn right, going down a passage of darkness akin to twilight.

“You knew this was here,” Heather said under her voice to Breanne.

“You would never have come if I had warned you,” Breanne replied in as low a voice as she could manage.

“It’s just a ride,” Frank said to calm them both.

“Quinny didn’t call this the passage of kisses for no reason,” Heather insisted.

Ahead of them was a ray of pink light illuminated something to the side. As they drew closer, they could see the ghostly image of a man and woman locked in a simple kiss. Heather thought it was just something to look at until she saw the sign above it. Anyone who kissed somebody in the same pose would earn ten love tokens.

“Oh, no,” Heather grumbled as the women up front began kissing. Heather was frozen and began to blush when Jaina and the others looked back to see if they were kissing. She looked to Frank for support, but he was as uncomfortable as she was. Before she could say anything, Breanne was at his lips, kissing him as the image indicated. She then turned her gaze on Heather and stepped over him.

Heather blushed as red as the roses as Breanne's soft lips came to hers. It only lasted a few moments, and the boat moved on. Bags of tokens appeared at the feet of all the riders as the boat moved on to a new image, this one more passionate and with a firm embrace.

Heather shut her eyes, trying not to see the women in front easily copying the pose. Breanne was suddenly on her, wrapping warm arms about her body and pulling her close.

“Why are you so nervous?” Breanne asked. “You kiss me all the time now.”

“I do that in privacy,” Heather whispered. “Not with an audience of harem girls.”

“Well, you better get used to it,” Breanne said before planting the kiss that went on a little longer. When it parted, Breanne pulled at her arm and urged her to kiss Frank.

“Why can’t you do it?” Heather asked.

“He's your husband. Now kiss him,” Breanne insisted.

Heather was pulled to his arms and looked deep into those dark eyes. All she saw was love staring back, and suddenly she forgot anyone was watching. She wrapped her arms around his back and leaned in for her kiss. They came together for a moment of passion as Gisley made a squeal of approval.

Heather parted with a smile and sat beside him, leaning into his side. Three more statues went by, and Heather copied every pose, sharing a kiss with Frank and Breanne. Then the tunnel went absolutely dark, and a soft pink light illuminated the boat.

“What’s going to happen now?” Heather demanded as she turned her narrow gaze on Breanne.

“I am sorry,” Breanne laughed. “But she insisted on including this part.”

“What part?” Heather gasped. “So you did know what she had planned!”

“Just have fun,” Breanne said and nodded ahead as a sign of white and red appeared in the darkness.

“Oh,” Heather groaned as she read the sign and knew her impending doom. You could earn fifty tokens by kissing somebody you had never kissed before. She looked up to see the girls in front all looking back with wicked smiles. Then, one by one, they stood and filed to the back of the boat as Heather squeezed Frank's hand for support.

Evalynn went to Breanne, and Gisley and Chandice went to Frank. Heather looked up as a smiling Jaina descended on her and reached up to hold her face.

“I have been dreaming of this for a long time,” Jaina said before their lips were joined. Heather squeezed Frank’s hand even as he was locked in an embrace with Gisley. Jaina took her time, enjoying the kiss as Heather squirmed in her seat.

When they finally parted, Heather was so red she was sure she would burst. Frank didn't look any better, but Breanne was trying not to laugh at them. Thankfully that was the last challenge, and the boat came out of the tunnel to stop alongside the road so they could get out.

“I enjoyed that,” Jaina said with a glance at Heather.

“Can we ride it again?” Gisley asked as she bounced.

“No!” Heather said in a shout, then quickly regained her composure.

“Perhaps we can ride again later,” Rajeen suggested and swished her tail as she took Roric by the arm. “Let's see what else is offered.”

“Are you alright?” Frank whispered as they trailed behind.

“I just kissed Jaina,” Heather gasped. “And I think I enjoyed it.”

“I saw the kiss,” Frank said. “You two looked hot.”

“Oh, please don’t start saying things like that,” Heather groaned.

“What?” Frank asked and put an arm around her. “I can’t help it that you and Jaina kissing was beautiful.”

“It was rather heated,” Breanne agreed.

“And now you’re going to start it too,” Heather complained. “Why don’t I just kiss all of them for you.”

“I wouldn’t mind,” Frank said.

“Nor would I,” Breanne remarked with a smile. “But next time, use some tongue.”

“You’re both awful,” Heather insisted as Frank put an arm around them both.

“I love you,” Frank said as he pulled them close. “I love all of you.”

Heather smiled and enjoyed her embrace as they found the next game. This was a strange butterfly hunting game; only the butterflies were hearts of various colors. They darted about a large field, leaving trails of colored sparkles, and players had to catch as many as possible with a net. An NPC was on hand to provide nets and told them that some colors were rare and worth more tokens.

Heather and the others took up nets and ran about like fools, laughing and giggling as they chased after the elusive hearts. Gisley went wild for the event, flying after the hearts with her pretty wings and filling her net near to bursting. Heather realized she was having fun and enjoying the silly game. The air was filled with the sound of girls laughing as they played without a care in the world. After twenty minutes, they decided to call it quits and turned in what they had captured. The NPC gave them each a bag of tokens, with Gisley walking away with an arm full of them.

“Well, that was fun,” Heather admitted with a bounce and looked at Frank. “Did our master enjoy himself?”

“Master?” Breanne laughed. “When did you start calling him that?”

“Today,” Heather said as she stepped around him to lean into Breanne. “I got him to agree to keep us as slave girls.”

“How did you manage to pull that off?” Breanne scoffed.

“She promised to obey me,” Frank replied and looked down at the two women.

“Oh, so this is going to last a few hours at best,” Breanne said.

“Hey,” Heather protested. “I mean it. I will do what he says.”

“I will believe that when I see it,” Breanne laughed.

Heather jerked from her arms and tossed her head in protest to discover the group had stopped. They were gathered around a simple wooden bench under an archway of climbing flowers. A lovely woman with long blue hair stood beside it, smiling and beckoning them in. Heather read the sign to see it was a kissing booth, and you earned coins by kissing in it.

“There are twelve of these hidden throughout the forest,” Breanne explained. “If you kiss in all twelve, you get a special reward.”

“Oh, we need to find all twelve,” Evalynn said as she took Gisley’s hand. “I have a lot of kissing to do.”

“I am beginning to sense a theme,” Heather grumbled and looked around. She knew Quinny was probably in her barrow mound watching everything. She also knew that she could hear them, so she called out in a clear voice. “Quinny, I know you can hear me. You put all this kissing in so you had an excuse to kiss me, didn’t you?”

“Yes,” Quinny replied as the zombie woman appeared from behind a tree. Her dark hair was tied back with red ribbons, and she wore a short red dress with white hearts. She looked at Heather bashfully and tried to hide her smile.

Heather was struck but how pretty she looked in the dress and only woke from her daze when Jaina nudged her.

“Somebody really loves you,” Jaina said.

“Oh, what have I gotten myself into?” Heather sighed and walked up to the zombie woman. She took Quinny by the hand and led her to the others as they smiled. “Well, if it's kisses you want, you may as well come with so you can get them.”

Roric and Rajeen went first, sitting down like lovers and kissing passionately. When their lips met, a shower of rose petals fell about their heads, and a bag of tokens appeared before them. The girls took turns kissing and earning their tokens, and then Breanne and Heather sat together and kissed before Heather switched with Frank. Finally, Quinny got her turn, kissing Heather, and the two shared a much longer moment. Heather felt something odd in that moment, a kind of sadness from Quinny. She was in the collar, her disguise giving her pupils allowing Heather to see a twinge of pain.

“Quinny?” Heather whispered as they sat in the kissing booth. “Is something wrong?”

“No,” Quinny replied and looked away, quickly getting out of the both. Heather followed, wanting to press the question but not in front of Jiana and her family. She thought to pull Frank aside and mention it to him, but Quinny started talking.

“The next challenge is fun,” Quinny insisted. “I made a maze out of flower hedges, and special roses grow in it. You have to find them before the flower snitches do because they will steal them away and burn them.”

“What’s a flower snitch?” Gisley asked with big eyes.

“I based it on a gremlin,” Quinny said as they rounded a bend in the road and could see the maze ahead. “They are only three feet tall, but they run fast. You can steal the flowers back if you're fast enough to catch them.”

“And what do we do with the roses?” Evalynn asked as they approached another woman NPC with long pink hair and rosy cheeks. Quinny explained that you got a reward for every twelve you handed in and that the rewards contained tokens and boxes of chocolate. However, there was a chance of getting a magic rose, but it was a very rare reward.

Heather wasn't surprised that Gisley wanted a rose and readily ran into the maze to begin collecting. The little gremlins were indeed fast, but Heather found it easier to run them down than look for roses herself. Frank helped her trap the little beasts, who gave up the rose whenever they were cornered. She once again found herself laughing as all she could see were the heads of women above the hedges as they ran after the little monsters. She was well and truly enjoying herself but noticed Quinny wasn't participating. She was standing on the road watching with an impassive expression.

The girls began to amass flowers, and Gisley was the first to turn a bundle in.

“I want a rose, please,” the fairy woman said as she handed over her bundle, but she didn't get the rare treat. She looked upset but ran back to the maze to collect a dozen more as the others started to hand in their bundles.

“This is surprisingly fun,” Breanne said as she joined Heather at the turn-in.

“And a contest that ends in my getting chocolate is a good time,” Heather said as she collected her reward and immediately opened her heart-shaped box.

“I suppose Quinny is trying to repay you for all the cookies she has stolen,” Breanne said and handed her bundle in.

There was suddenly a blue light in the air as the women smiled and announced Breanne had gotten a rare treasure. She held out a single long-stemmed rose whose petals were like blue crystals. It was fabulously beautiful and produced a soft light as Breanne took it in surprise.

“Awww,” Gisley cried and dropped the half dozen roses she had. She fluttered over the maze to look at the rose with a heartbroken look in her eyes. “It's so pretty. I really want one.”

“I am sure we can get you one,” Roric said as he put a hand on her shoulder.

Gisley put her head down as her lips trembled, her disappointment palpable.

“Perhaps, this would look better in your arms,” Breanne said and held the rose out to her.

Gisley looked up with wide eyes that sparkled with purple light while her antenna unrolled to their full length.

“You mean it?” She asked while chewing on her bottom lip.

“After a look like that, I would stay here all day trying to get her one,” Jaina laughed.

“As would I,” Rajeen agreed.

“Here, take it,” Breanne said and handed it to her. “A pretty flower for a pretty girl.”

“Oh, thank you! I love it!” Gisley cried and practically danced with her flower before rushing in to hug Breanne.”

“You are welcome,” Breanne said as she smiled and enjoyed the warm hug. “Now, treasure it because it sings a little song when you hold it to the moonlight.”

“It does?” Gisley asked as she held it up.

“Did you put that in specifically for her?” Heather asked as she turned her gaze to Quinny.

“So what if I did?” Quinny said with a shrug. “I put the chocolates in for you.”

“So I get fat while she gets a magic rose?” Heather asked, causing a chorus of snickers and laughter from the other girls.

“You can't get fat here,” Quinny countered with a slightly better mood. “Now, common, let's go to the next event.”

Heather shrugged and ate another candy, falling in beside Frank as they walked. Of course, the next event was another kissing booth, but it was an easy way to get tokens. After the kisses were done, Quinny suggested they take a small side trail to where she had hidden a special feature. This turned out to be a flowered wall on which hung dozens of fancy valentines day cards. They were all lacy and ornate, with beautiful pictures and little messages of love written in them. Quinny demonstrated what the wall was for by plucking a card and then holding It up as she whispered a name. The card then magically came to life, flying like some kind of romantic bird to Breanne. It landed in her hands and allowed her to unfold it and read the message written inside.

“Now all you have to do is kiss it,” Quinny said. “When you do, the sender is rewarded with a small bag of tokens.

Breanne nodded and pressed the card to her lips, causing it to vanish in a puff of red smoke. A red silk bag appeared at Quinny's feet almost immediately, showing her card had been accepted.

“If you get ten cards sent to you, you get a special reward,” Quinny said.

“How far do these cards go?” Jaina asked as she approached the wall to look through the lacy things.

“Only as far as Gwen’s kingdom,” Quinny replied.

“Hmm,” Heather said as she and Frank approached the wall. She noticed Jaina take up a card and send it flying to Rajeen, who smiled at the contents before kissing it. Heather began to look through the cards, searching for the perfect one to send. She noted Frank sent one almost immediately to Quinny, then another to Breanne. He then paused at a card as if seriously considering it before whispering something. Heather smiled, waiting for her card to arrive, but it flew over her head and kept going.

“What? Who was that for?” Heather demanded.

“For Gwen,” Frank replied.

“Why are you sending valentines day cards to my mother?” Heather asked as she began to tap her foot.

“Because she's been very good to us, and it is a nice thing to do,” Frank replied as he took another card.

“Hmm,” Heather said again and waited for this card to come her way. Instead, it went the exact opposite way, flying off into the forest to vanish.”

“And who was that for?” she asked.

“Umtha,” Frank replied. “We probably should have asked her to come with us.”

“She doesn’t like these human holidays,” Heather protested.

“No, she doesn't,” Quinny agreed. “I tried to explain it to her and asked her for ideas, but all she suggested was a battle to the death with a goblin war machine.”

“I had better get a card,” Heather growled as she glared at her husband. “Or you’re going to regret your recent decisions.”

Frank took a moment to pick through the cards, discarding a few before finally settling on one he liked. He whispered to it, and it flew to Heather, who smiled as it arrived in her hand. She opened it up to see a scene of a man and woman standing in a field of flowers holding hands.

‘To the one who makes my life worth living and who is the source of my happiness. I wish you a happy valentines day,'

Love Frank.

Heather smiled and kissed her card just as another one arrived from Breanne. Hers was more inspirational in tone, but Heather appreciated it nonetheless.

“So this is all you did with valentines cards?” Heather asked as she picked out a card for Breanne.

“Well, no,” Quinny answered. “There are six special cards hidden in the forest and guarded by valentines day saboteurs. If you can find all six and turn them in, you get the super special reward?”

“Which is?” Jaina asked, now very interested.

“A sexy valentines day outfit,” Quinny replied.

Heather felt her blood run cold at that answer as she thought about the last special outfit Quinny had added to one of her holiday events. She was about to ask Quinny what the costume was like when Jaina and the others bombarded the poor zombie with questions. They desperately tried to get Quinny to tell them where the cards were, but Quinny insisted they needed to hunt for them. Thankfully Rajeen stepped in and insisted the girls would spoil their fun if Quinny told them where the cards were. Gisley pleaded with her, but Rajeen made it clear they had to play by the rules.

Heather liked their dynamic and how the girls looked to the two masters for guidance and support. She smiled at Frank, who was watching it as well, and thought of their conversation from earlier.

“Do you want us to play by the rules as well?” Heather asked him.

“You really should,” he replied. “Quinny did put a lot of work into it, and it would be nice to appreciate her efforts.”

Heather nodded and put her mind to work on how to find them. She knew this forest and Quinny, which meant that the cards would be in obvious but out-of-the-way places. She wasn't sure she wanted the outfit, but playing the games was fun, and being out with the other girls was a unique experience. She also wanted more time to talk to Quinny and find out what was bothering her. She seemed happy while explaining events but sad when they participated in them.

She walked up to the zombie woman in her beautiful red dress and took a gentle hand. She would play by the rules and hopefully figure out why Quinny was so sad.