Light noises made Sybari open her eyes. She lifted her head from the pillow, pushing up on her elbows. Seeing she was alone in bed, she expected to see May sweep aside the bedroom curtain. Instead, it was a blue-skinned dark elf with black hair.
"Hello," said Sybari.
The girl squealed. "I'm sorry. I didn't know there was anyone in here."
"It's okay. I don't think many demons know I'm here. Who are you?"
"I'm Mirthly. Princess Deploria just appointed me in charge of cleaning her chambers. I came in to get the sheets, but I can come back."
"Oh, sure." Sybari threw the covers off. "It's about time I got up anyway. I can't sleep all day." She swung her feet to the floor and stood up, walking across to her pack to dig something clean out so she could take a shower. She eyed the doors to May's giant wardrobe. "Uh..."
"Something wrong?" Mirthly asked, pulling off a pillowcase. She seemed only briefly perturbed by the fact Sybari was naked apart from a delicate lingerie corset.
"I'm not sure if I should steal a pair of clean knickers or not. I don't have any of my own you see. May's been giving me hers. But I'm not game to take a pair without asking."
"Oh, do you need some? I can send someone to buy some for you."
"I don't have money for things like that," Sybari explained.
"Not from your money. On behalf of the Princess." Her face fell. "Although, I think I have to ask her. I'm not sure how this works. It's my first day, you see. I've come out of the laundry and I've no idea what I'm doing."
"It's okay. I'll ask May when she comes back."
She could just sit on a towel. She didn't have her chains anymore, so she wouldn't make such a mess. Where was May anyway? She was already gone when Sybari woke up earlier and she couldn't see a note left anywhere.
"Um, do you take clothes for washing too?"
Mirthly nodded.
"Could you do mine, please? I don't have much and I'm running out of things to wear." Sybari gathered up a bundle of her dirty clothes and left them by the door on her way to the bathroom.
>*<
Mayhem tapped her quill on the edge of the ink well. She was only half way through her report on the western territories she'd visited and she was incredibly bored. The worst part was Depravia probably wouldn't even read it all. May could have just told her what was going on in a couple of sentences.
"Here you are. Working hard already?" said a smooth voice behind her.
May glanced at Despondia, giving her a weak smile. "I thought I'd better get it out of the way."
Despondia slid onto the bench beside her, close enough that their thighs touched. "Are you sad because your squawky bird is gone?"
"Not overly. I've been without her for months."
"And you have your little succubus now. That's nice. You'll have a lot of fun with her."
May sighed. "I don't know how long Sybari's staying, Dessy."
Despondia put her arm around May and kissed her hair. Unlike Depravia, who May suspected was a psychopath, Despondia could be genuinely nice on occasion. Their older sister meanwhile was only capable of façades, at least with anyone other than Despondia. The two of them were only six years apart and quite inseparable, ruling more like co-regents, though Depravia held all the real power.
May allowed herself to be held, though she chided herself at the same time. Despondia was the closest thing to a mother she had left. The demons that raised her had all moved on, leaving her abusive sisters as the only kind of family love she had. It was why she liked to have long-term relationships, rather than flings. Having someone else there to ply her with attention meant she didn't go seeking her sisters' toxic brand of affection.
"Are you nearly finished?" Despondia picked up the sheet. "Just add a couple more sentences. It needn't be so complex. She'll barely glance at it."
"I know."
She'd also complain if it wasn't lengthy. The Queen was impossible to please.
With her sister humming at her side, Mayhem finished her report. As soon as the quill was back in the ink, Despondia jumped up.
"You may as well give it to her now," she said.
"Can't you just take it if you're going back to her?"
"She'll want it from yoooohooo," Despondia sang.
"Pedantic."
She chuckled.
Begrudgingly, May went with her to the domed room they used for entertaining. As customary, she let her go in first. The Queen wasn't alone however. Two male demons occupied chairs by the fountain.
"The little Princess has made a report from her travels," Despondia said as she swept through the room.
May held her distance, now unsure if she should continue. The way the Queen's expression changed made it clear she shouldn't.
Depravia took one look at her and pointed at the door. "GET OUT!" May took a step back as she continued. "Don't come in here unbound. We are entertaining guests!"
"Oops, I might have forgotten to tell you that part." Despondia flashed May a gleeful smirk.
She was such a two-faced bitch.
May scurried from the room, hurrying through the castle to her chambers. She needed the solace of her own space right now. Remembering Sybari was there brought a smile to her face. The girl would happily give her a hug if she asked. Hell, she was a succubus. She was willing to do way more than hug.
May was feeling less aggressive when she got to her suite. The walk had calmed her down a bit, though she was still edgy. Her hooves clicked on the marble, but Sybari must not have heard over the fountain. She was curled up in the window box reading a book, only looking up when she sensed someone there.
"May." Her face softened with warmth. That she was so pleased to see her made Mayhem feel instantly better.
May sat her report down and came over to squeeze her shoulder. "Find something you like?"
"It's all right." She closed the book and set it aside, adjusting the skirt of her black dress, which sat bunched about her hips so it wasn't underneath her.
May scratched her head. She might not understand the succubus's ways, but she wanted her lovers to be comfortable and was always happy to accommodate their cultural traditions no matter how weird they were to her.
"Is that towel okay? Can I get you one of these special ones you mentioned?"
Sybari glanced down at her thighs and the towel she'd stolen from the bathroom. "Oh, I just...I do have one actually, but it needed to be washed. Your little cleaning girl came in earlier. Awfully timid she is. Anyway, she said someone could get me some panties. I didn't want to take yours without asking."
May rested her head in one hand and let out a groan. "That's right, you have hardly any clothes." She sighed. "Sorry, I should have asked if you wanted me to send for some."
Here she was thinking how odd it was for her wanting to sit on a towel, when the poor girl didn't even want to be doing so.
"Well, I was asleep, so I don't know how you would have done that."
