Melisa hummed contentedly around Isabella's dick. The familiar weight of it on her tongue was as comforting as it was arousing. Isabella's fingers tangled in her hair, directing her rhythm.
Finally, she could calm the fuck down for a little while.
"Gods, I've missed your mouth," Isabella groaned. "It's been way too long since you've given me proper attention, you know?"
Melisa responded by hollowing her cheeks and sucking harder, earning a delicious shudder from the kitsune.
"UGH! That's it," Isabella encouraged. "Make it up to me for ignoring me these past weeks."
Melisa pulled back enough to catch her breath, raising a brow.
"I didn't ignore you," she protested. "I was dealing with an ancient magical artifact."
Isabella rolled her eyes.
"Details, details. Less talking, more sucking."
Melisa grinned and obliged, wrapping her lips around Isabella's shaft once more.
Through the open bedroom window, she could hear the sounds of everyone else enjoying the sunny afternoon. Raven and Armia's voices drifted up from the garden. Hazel's excited squeals punctuated the air as she chased something—or was being chased. Equally likely.
From the kitchen below came the clink of glasses and bursts of adult laughter—Margaret, Melistair, Kimiko, and Javir enjoying wine and conversation. It was the first time in weeks that everyone had gathered at Javir's house, a celebration of sorts now that the Memory Snare business was finally behind them. When Javir, Melisa, and Jaylin told the others, no one believed them.
Life was returning to normal. Or as normal as it ever got for Melisa.
She focused her attention back on Isabella, using every trick she'd learned about what drove the kitsune wild. Her hand cupped Isabella's balls, gently massaging them as she took her cock deeper.
"Fuck, Melisa," Isabella gasped, her legs trembling. "If this is your apology, maybe I should let you ignore me more often."
Melisa hummed around her length, sending vibrations that made Isabella's eyes roll back. She was just picking up the pace when a loud knock echoed from downstairs.
Isabella groaned in frustration.
"Ignore it."
Another knock, more insistent this time.
"It might be important," Melisa said, pulling away reluctantly, a strand of saliva still connecting her lips to Isabella's cock.
"More important than this?" Isabella gestured to her glistening erection, standing proudly at attention.
"I'll be right back," Melisa promised, wiping her mouth and straightening her clothes. "Don't go anywhere."
"Like I have a choice," Isabella grumbled, flopping back on the bed. "But hurry up. I'm not getting any less hard over here."
Melisa made her way downstairs, passing the kitchen where the adults were deep in conversation, oblivious to the knocking. Javir caught her eye and raised a questioning eyebrow, but Melisa waved her off.
"I've got it," she said, continuing to the front door.
The knocking came again, rapid and desperate. Melisa pulled the door open, readying a polite dismissal for whatever salesperson or missionary had interrupted her afternoon activities.
The words died in her throat.
Vira stood on the doorstep, her red eyes wide and frantic, her normally neat appearance disheveled. The last time Melisa had seen her was after the confrontation with her brother Koros. They'd parted on uncertain terms—not quite enemies, but their brief friendship absolutely shattered.
"Vira," Melisa managed, shock rendering her momentarily speechless.
"Melisa." Vira's voice cracked slightly. "I need your help."
An awkward pause stretched between them, broken only when a cool breeze reminded Melisa that they were standing in the doorway.
"Come in," she said, stepping aside.
Vira entered hesitantly, her eyes darting around as if expecting an ambush. She flinched when she heard laughter from the kitchen.
"Is there somewhere we can talk?" she asked softly. "Privately?"
"The study," Melisa decided, leading her down the hallway to Javir's small book-lined office. She closed the door behind them, then turned to face her unexpected visitor. "What's going on? How did you find me?"
Vira's hands twisted together nervously.
"Finding you wasn't hard. Everyone knows where the nim mage lives."
[That's... concerning.]
She took a deep breath.
"It's about my brother."
Melisa stiffened.
"Koros? What about him?"
"They're going to execute him." Vira's voice was barely a whisper. "In three days. Queen Aria ordered it." S~eaʀᴄh the NôvelFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
"I... see." Melisa chose her words carefully. "Vira, you know what he did. He organized attacks against humans. People died."
"I know," Vira's eyes welled with tears. "What he did was wrong. I've never denied that. But... he's still my brother, Melisa. My only family."
An uncomfortable silence filled the room.
Melisa wasn't sure what to say. Part of her sympathized with Vira's pain—she couldn't imagine losing a sibling. But another part remembered the terror and destruction Koros had caused, including the attack that endangered Melisa's own family.
She couldn't forgive him for that.
"What exactly are you asking me to do?" she finally asked.
Vira's gaze met hers directly.
"Speak to the queen. Ask for mercy. She listens to you."
The statement caught Melisa off guard.
"What makes you think that?"
"Everyone knows you have her ear," Vira replied. "You're the nim she trusts. The one who helped expose the Shadow Mages and all that." She stepped forward, desperation etched on her face. "Please, Melisa. I'm not asking for his freedom. Just... not death. Imprisonment, exile, anything but execution."
The pain in Vira's voice was genuine, as was the plea in her eyes. It was hard to take in. Hard to look at.
"I can't promise anything," Melisa said slowly. "Koros organized attacks that killed people. He tried to burn down a house with my family inside."
"I know," Vira whispered, a tear slipping down her cheek. "And I'm not excusing what he did. But you, of all people, understand how the world has treated nim. What it can drive us to."
Melisa felt a pang of guilt.
"I need to think about this," she said finally. "It's not a simple request, Vira."
Hope flared in Vira's eyes.
"But you'll consider it? That's all I'm asking. Please, just consider helping him."
"I'll sleep on it," Melisa promised. "That's the best I can offer right now."
Vira's shoulders slumped slightly, but she nodded.
"Thank you. I'm staying at the Full Moon Inn in the lower quarter. Room twelve." She moved toward the door, then paused. "For what it's worth, I never lied about enjoying our time together. That was real."
[... Neither did I.]
Before Melisa could respond, Vira slipped out, leaving her alone with tangled thoughts and the distant sounds of her family and friends enjoying their afternoon.
She stood there for several long moments, weighing her options. Approaching Aria about clemency for Koros would be risky. The queen had been merciless with the Shadow Mages, and Koros's crimes were well-documented. Yet the thought of Vira losing her only family...
A tap at the study door interrupted her thoughts.
"Mel? You coming back or what?" Isabella's impatient voice called through the wood. "I'm starting to think I need to find another mouth to fuck."
Despite everything, Melisa smiled.
"... Be right there," she called back, closing the door.
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