A New Morning

"...And so then that's when I created pumpkins into the world to- Eep!" I heard a woman shout as I felt myself fall and land in a chair.

"Ow ow owwww," I said, rubbing my butt from the soreness.

"Oh, it is just Darling Maria coming by." I looked around and my gaze was met at chest level to Seqora. "How nice of you to drop in. Would you like some tea?"

"Ah, oh, um, sorry!" I stammered, looking around.

There was a group of several people sitting around in cushioned orange chairs. The one who "Eep'd" was a woman of, if I had to guess of Hispanic origin. She was pretty and I guess that she looked to be around her mid-30s. Though, her fashion style seemed like something from thousands of years ago. If I had to give a rough estimate, maybe 6,000 BC. Speaking of BC, that's about where her cup size was too.

To her left was a man dressed very formally in a large mustache, tuxedo, and a top hat. He gave me a British air to him, likely from the Victorian era. He was pretty handsome, but not my type.

His arm was around a woman who was wearing a jacket with the USSR flag on it. She was larger than him in height and bulk, but looked comfortable with him on the chair.

To the right of the Eep woman was a man who, given his shirt with the continent of Africa design and in big bold letters, along with his dark-skin, I assumed was from some place there.

Seqora was pouring tea from a large kettle in the center before turning around and handing me a cup. I thanked her and she took a seat between me and the African shirt fellow. There were also a few empty chairs around.

"So, this is the Maria lass that we've been hearing so much about?" the Victorian gentleman said.

"Huh? Maria is yes. I mean! Yes, Maria I is! I. Urk." I gave up and just started sipping my tea. I just wanted to sink away and disappear.

"Oh quit putting so much pressure on her. She hasn't been a Ringmaster that long," the man in the African shirt said, tossing a pillow at the Victorian gentleman.

"I, um, what?" I said, stammering before Seqora put a hand on my shoulder.

"Everyone, this darling here is Maria O'Conner, the current Ringmaster," Seqora said, her voice relaxing my muscles a little. "Darling Maria, these are other Ringmasters from the ages." She gestured to the man in the Africa shirt and then moved from left to right. "That is Dmitry Barnes, Rene Luque, Otis Thompson, and Zotova Danilovna." The four of them all waved at me.

"Ah, um, hello everyone," I said, giving them a wave back.

"Quite the fall you had there," Otis said, looking upwards. "Generally, most people use the doorways rather than teleporting in." His face was met with another pillow from Dmitry.

"Ignore him. He thinks he's all high and mighty just because he found Blackbeard's treasure and got the ring," Dmitry said.

"Blackbeard was a ringmaster!?" I blurted out in surprise.

"No, not him," Rene said, piping up and sitting more comfortably in her chair now. "It was Marnix Bilman who had the ring. But, when he died, the ring was buried along with Blackbeard's treasure and lost until Otis found it."

"It was quite the accomplishment, if I do say so myself," Otis said, dusting off his tux.

"Yes, he is quite the accomplished man," Zotova said, giving Otis a big squeeze.

I chuckled along and drank my tea, hoping not to stand out any more than I already was.

"So, what brings you here tonight, Darling Maria?" Seqora asked, turning everyone's attention back towards me again.

"Um, well, I don't really know what brought me here or why," I said, looking down at my hand where the ring would be. I also suddenly noticed that I was clothed in a T-shirt and sweatpants as opposed to the definitely nakedness I was in when I passed out.

"Well, it would seem to me that you're getting a lot better with the Ring," Rene said as she leaned forward, giving me a lovely view down her cleavage. "You're growing stronger much rapidly than most others."

"Oh, um, thanks," I said, giving her a soft smile back. Her grin was infectiously beautiful.

"Darling Maria here is becoming quite the natural Ringmaster," Seqora said, reassuring me further with a pat on my back. "After all, in just a few days, she already has had sex with five different ladies." That made me spit out my tea.

"How do you know that?" I exclaimed after wiping my chin.

"Seqora here knows everything that happens with the Ring and the current Ringmaster," Zotova said.

Seqora turned and gave me a knowing look. "Yes. Every thought, every action, whim, change caused or from the Ringmasters, I am aware of. My dear Regina shares a similar trait with me. She's such a wonderful daughter." Seqora chuckled and her expression switched to a giddy one as soon as she mentioned Regina.

"But, isn't it weird watching your daughter, you know, um," I couldn't bring myself to say it.

"Take it in every hole?" Dmitry said, completely casually.

"Devour carpet like it's a plate of rice and chicken?"

"Work the shaft like a piston?"

"Finger like she's playing the guitar?"

"Okay, let's not make Seqora any more uncomfortable by talking about Regina's sex life!" I said out loud, my own face completely beet red. I turned to see how Seqora was doing, but she just had that giddy expression on her face from before.

"Ah, my dear Regina is simply the best," she said with a chuckle. She idly stirred her tea while humming to herself.

"She's lost in her thoughts again," Rene said. "If you've got questions right now though, we'll try and answer them."

"Oh, um, questions," I said, looking down at my empty cup of tea. I had so many of them swimming around in my head that I wasn't sure which one to ask. But then one came to the surface. "How do I get back here? The two times that I have been here was when I was asleep." I said, gesturing to the grand room around me.

"Oh, that's an easy one," Zotova said. "Sometimes it happens subconsciously and your mind will just be pulled here. But, if you intentionally want to be here, you just need to think about the Hall of Ringmasters and allow yourself to be pulled towards it."

"It takes some getting use to to control it," Otis said, "But, with enough practice, you'll be able to do it on a whim faster than you can say 'United Kingdoms of America.'"

"United- huh?" I said, trying to make sure that I heard Otis right. "Could you repeat that last part?"

"I bet at your rate, you could be molding the dunes of the Panama Tundra within the week."

"The Panama what?" I said, even more shocked than what Otis said. I went to turn to talk to Seqora when everything began to blur together. "What's going on?" I heard myself slur as my vision stirred together until everything went black.

Then, I woke up.

Sunlight beamed in through the small cracks of my blinds, just so perfectly landing right in my face. I groaned from a combination of waking up and the strangeness of having revisited the Hall of Ringmasters. I have got to start going there intentionally, and stop going when I sleep. I yawned and stretched, my hand running into something soft that wasn't my pillow.

I turned over to see Vanessa, sleeping calmly and turned towards me. She had a gentle smile on her face and looked peaceful. Her gorgeous brown hair contoured around her cheeks, as if to outline them. Her breath was soft and relaxed, still fast asleep.

I looked in the other direction at my phone to see what time it was. Only 9 AM. No notifications that really mattered as I swiped them off my screen. I sighed and looked up at my ceiling, the memories of last night still fresh in my mind. A small tingle went through me as the sensations washed over me again of how Vanessa and I made love to each other.

But, there was still something else that felt weird and strange to me. It was almost like I wasn't me. I held my hand up in the air and looked at the Reality Ring. For so long, I had been single romantic Maria, without any real serious relationship partner. And now, I had six girlfriends. For the first time in awhile, I had no idea how I was going to spend my weekend. What did I normally do?

I thought back to last weekend and what I did then. Watch TV or streaming. Work on my screenplay. Work on schoolwork. Eat. Sleep. My Goddess, was I really that boring? I sighed again and lowered my hand.

I mean, was there anything wrong with wanting a simple life? Getting to work on things that I love and watch what I enjoy? To me, that sounded like a really good life. I shouldn't feel bad for wanting something simple, right?

"Mnngh."

My train of thought was interrupted as Vanessa shifted in her sleep. She reached her arms around and wrapped them around mine, snuggling up tight to it. I couldn't help but smile at her adorableness. She was positively wonderful and she was mine. Well, part of my polycule, anyways.

My mind wandered to the other girls and began to think about how they were all now affected by becoming part of the polycule. Vanessa had no issues at all. Danna and Summer seemed completely content with it. There was no doubt that Regina loved it. As for Lexi and Tae, I wasn't sure. This must be really new to them. I hope that they're adjusting well. Oh yeah, I wonder how things went with Regina and Lexi last night. I haven't heard from Regina since lunchtime yesterday. I wish I had a better way to talk with her.

I winced a little as the ring flared up based on my thought.

"Huh? Maria? Is that you?"

"Regina?" I could hear her voice, but she wasn't anywhere in the room. It was like I was hearing her in my head.

"Ooooh, telepathy between us. That's what happened," Regina thought. "Well, not the first time a Ringmaster's done this."

"Ugh, I have got to get better control of this thing," I thought back to Regina. "It keeps activating subconsciously."

"Again, you're the one who controls it," Regina responded. "And it's not like you can't undo anything you've done either. But undoing isn't training, so keep that in mind."

"Thanks," I mentally said. "So, how were things with you and Lexi?"

"Oh, she's so much fun, Ringmaster. She'll let you do pretty much anything to her." I could almost hear the purr in Regina's thoughts. "She's a good little toy who loves to be played with."

Thinking of Lexi being a willing submissive slut got me a little wet. Ugh, it was only 9 and I was already getting horny.

"Though, you and Vanessa had one hell of a night together. Now that's what I call lovemaking."

"H-How did you know?" I asked, nearly blurting it outloud.

"Ringmaster, you forget that I'm aware of every change that you make, right? Including the change you made of making it so that you never forget that night. All the details and sensations? All etched into the changes of this reality." I couldn't see it, but I just knew that Regina had a massive grin on her face.

"You said this reality, right?"

"Yeah? What about it?"

"Last night, I visited the Hall of Ringmasters again. And I met some of the previous Ringmasters. Um, I think they were, like, Dmitry, Zotova, Otis and Rene. Do you recognize those names?"

"Man, I haven't heard about them in a LONG time, some of those longer than others. Those were some wild nights with them," Regina chuckled.

"Well, they were bringing up things like the United Kingdoms of America and the Panama Tundra. Those don't exist."

"Maria," Regina started off. I gulped a little. Regina only usually called me by my name when it was more serious. "The artifact that you wield is called the REALITY Ring. People who have used it before have altered the fabric of reality and the timelines to their whim. In fact, the world and timeline that you live in? That was the state that the 608th Ringmaster left it in. I think that the last change they made was creating something I think was called velcro?"

"So, this world isn't the first?" I could feel a strange tension in my chest. "There have been multiple timelines and restarts?"

"Look, Maria, don't think too much about that kind of stuff, alright?" Regina said. "The important thing is the here and now of what's going on. You have several lovely girlfriends, myself included. Focus on here and now, okay?"

"Okay, you're right," I said with a hearty sigh. I still felt that strange tension in my chest, but it was a little less now. "Thanks Regina."

"No problem, Ringmaster," Regina said. "Oh, mind giving me a key to your apartment? I'd appreciate it."

"Oh, sure," I said. I focused on the ring and Regina's hand, editing the world so that a key to my apartment would appear in her hand. The ring slightly flared up.

"Thanks Maria. I'll talk to you around. Hit me up if you need me, girl." With that, I felt Regina's mental presence disconnect from our telepathic phone call.

I sighed and turned over to Vanessa, just admiring her beauty. Gently, I leaned forward and gave her a kiss on the forehead. Though, she just happened to be my Sleeping Beauty, since she woke up as soon as my lips left her forehead.

"Good morning, Maria," she said, pulling me in for a firm kiss on the lips. "How did you sleep?"

"I... I slept wonderfully," I said. No point in telling her about all the craziness of the ring and reality altering and all that. "How about you?"

"Mhmmm," she softly moaned as she nuzzled into my arm. "Oneiroi blessed me with a wonderful dream of us and the rest of the polycule."

"Onei- Oh! Right," I said with a bit of a chuckle. "I forgot you were a Helleist for a second."

Vanessa curled up into my arm again and held it close. "I can't blame you. I don't bring it up that much." She turned up and looked at me with those beautiful emerald eyes of hers. "Did you have any plans today?"

I thought about the different school work that I had to do... only to realize that I didn't have any work at all. Benefits of being a very studious student.

"Uh, nope. I finished up all my homework and projects for now. So, I really didn't have anything planned," I said to her as I turned to better face her. "What about you?"

"I had some cheer routines that I could practice," Vanessa said. "They want me to come up with something new for the big rally happening in a few weeks."

"Man, it must be such a tragedy," I said sarcastically and dramatically. "Figuring out ways for ladies in nice, tight short clothes to dance all around for the enjoyment of others."

Vanessa lightly nudged me in the shoulder and giggled. "I could perform some for you, if you wanted me to." Her eyes went down, tracing along the curves of my body.

Instinctively, I felt myself attempt to cover up a little. I know that it was Vanessa and this wasn't the first time that she's seen me naked, but part of me still felt ashamed. I mean, compared to her, she was absolutely stunning and I was slightly above average. I felt kind of inadequate. But then, Vanessa gently moved my hands out of the way. She nuzzled her head against my stomach and softly hummed.

"You, um, really find me attractive?" I asked her, not quite sure where I should put my hands. I settled on stroking the back of her head.

"100%," Vanessa said, running her hands along my thighs. My legs shook a little in delight at her touch. I couldn't help myself, so I pulled her up and cuddled her close, burying my face in the top of her hair. She chuckled and nuzzled back. "I love you, Maria."

"And I... bleck! Stink!" I exclaimed as I caught a whiff of myself. It took me a few seconds of thinking to realize that I hadn't showered since before I got this ring. "You don't mind if I get a shower, right?"

"Of course not," Vanessa said as I released my grip on her. "I should probably get one too."

Lamenting that I had to get up, I got up and went over to my closet. I picked out a simple blue T-shirt with white pants and laid it down on my bed. I pulled out a clean pair of panties and bra and set them aside of my clothes. I headed into my bathroom and turned on the water, waiting for it to reach the right temperature.

Right as was I was entering the shower, I felt something soft come up behind me.

"V-Vanessa?" I squeaked out in surprise as her breasts pushed against my back.

"What? I mean, hey. This way, we'll save costs on the water bill," Vanessa said with a chuckle as her hands ran along my hips. She reached up and began to stroke my hair with the water.

"I... ahhh..." A gentle moan escaped from my mouth as Vanessa's hands playfully soaked my hair. "That feels nice."

"You have very lovely hair, Maria," Vanessa said as she spread her fingers, scrubbing the water more into my hair. "It's so beautiful."

I could feel my crotch quivering with need and want as Vanessa's hands continued their work. My body was starting to get hotter, not helped by the steam from the shower.

I managed to squirm around to spin and face Vanessa. That was probably not the wisest idea as my foot slipped out from under me. Thankfully, Vanessa was there to catch me.

"Whoa! Be careful, dear!" Vanessa said as she helped me get upright. I panted a bit, catching my breath. Ugh, messing around with each other in the showers always seemed so much easier in videos. But, then I looked down at the Reality Ring.

Neither Vanessa or I can slip or fall in the shower.

The ring flared up a little, offset mostly by the pouring water. I breathed a bit of a sigh of relief as I readjusted myself to facing Vanessa once again. "Don't worry. Won't happen again," I said as I pulled her in for a kiss. She happily accepted the invitation as I ran my fingers through her hair, making sure her head was soaked too.

I reached over for the shampoo and put some in my hands. I had intended to put it in my own hair, but Vanessa had other ideas. She slowly got down to her knees and guided my hands to her head.

"Huh? What are you doing?" I asked, just resting my hands above her head.

"Well, we're getting a shower, so we have to shampoo our hair after all," Vanessa said, giving me a flirty wink. "So, go ahead and shampoo me." As she said that, she spread my legs and ran her tongue along my pussy.

I moaned in delight, as this was the first time that Vanessa had eaten me out. I could tell by the way her eyes lit up that she loved the taste of me. She hungrily licked and ate me out with such energy, I leaned back against the wall. Her tongue parted my lips as she sucked on my clit. I rubbed my hands into her hair, pulling her in deeper and closer to me. Vanessa groaned happily as she looked up at me. I scrubbed her hair, lathering it up. She clearly must have more experience at this than I did because it didn't take long for Vanessa's tongue against my clit to bring me to orgasm. My thighs clenched around her as I came on her face.

"Mhmmm!" I groaned as I looked down at her, panting.

Vanessa stood up, a wide smile on her face as she made out with me, the water still pouring on top of us. But, my lust was not satisfied. I spun her around and pressed her up against the glass, hearing her tits squeak against it.

"Ah, Maria, what are you doing?" she asked, lust pervading in her voice. She moaned louder as I ran my hand along her back and between her ass. Then, I reached down, feeling her wet pussy with my fingertips, before thrusting them inside her. Her moaning increased as I began to work my hand in her.

"I'm just making sure that all parts of my girl are clean," I said, using my other hand to tug gently on her hair, also washing out the soap. She spread her legs wider for me as her back arched. Her panting got faster and faster, fogging up the glass even more. I leaned over and began to cover her back in kisses.

"Mhmm, yes, just like that," Vanessa moaned as her hips bucked in lust. Her hand reached back and felt around for me. I guided her hand up towards my breasts, which it happily began to fondle them. I sped up my fingers, pumping them in and out as Vanessa moaned more and more. "M-Maria! I'm... I'm gonna cum!"