The pair shifted uncomfortably in their chairs. Going to marriage counseling was tough-enough as it was, but this is ridiculous. First of all, their "friend" had neglected to mention that the councilor was a lamia, something you would think probably should have been mentioned earlier. Secondly, that fucking smile she wore was far too creepy for a therapist. The face of imminent rape was framed nicely by golden streams of hair that barely reached her lower back while vibrant, blue eyes stared out from a face as gorgeous as either had ever seen. Her pantsuit did little to hide her curvaceous form, seemingly cut to be as revealing as possible while still pretending to acknowledge professional etiquette. She rested upon a thick pile of her own coils, their dark tans and browns contrasting nicely with her light skin. She sat behind a large oaken desk, a small plaque reading "Dr. Kate Schubert" the only ornament adorning its surface.
She had a hard time controlling herself when they came in like this. The way they shifted and squirmed under her gaze reminded her too much of prey, playing strongly on her predatory instincts. Still, she had a job to do, and would make sure to do it well. It wasn't easy, being a lamia marriage counselor. Most people had a hard time talking about their love lives in front of any monster girl, much less one that doesn't need to blink. She suspected that the couple before her never considered that she may not be human. Judging by their reaction, she doubted they would have even come if it were not the case. She set aside her indignation at being stereotyped and recalled what little information her patients had given her when they spoke on the phone.
Mary Bates had called her about a week ago to set up the appointment. She seemed confident when they had spoken earlier, but her current attempt at becoming one with the chair cast her as anything but. She was a thin girl, likely a runner. While her bust paled in comparison with that of her slithering psychologist, her hips spoke of an undeniably feminine form lurking under her conservative clothing. Her short black hair and patterned dress made her look like she would be more at home churning butter in a cabin than living in the city. Even still, she possessed a certain classic beauty that would have made her incredibly desirable the last time anyone had worn a dress like that.
Her husband, Ed, was little different. He was a handsome yet slightly unkempt man in a dull suit. Aside from his obvious youth and thick brown hair, he could have been mistaken for an economics professor, rimless glasses and all. He gripped his chair tightly, looking every bit as uncomfortable as his wife. The silence seemed to grate on him as it drug on, his eyes searching for anything other than the lamia before him to focus his attention on. Unfortunately for him, there was little in the way of furnishings outside of the chairs they were sitting in and the sparse desk in front. Kate had found that, without decorations, her patients had little option to escape from her gaze. It seemed as though her strategy was working quite nicely.
Apparently, the two had recently been having difficulty finding excitement in their lives. Although she rarely saw such complaints coming from a couple that had not yet reached thirty, their manner of dress made it unsurprising. She began to wonder if she may be dealing with the only Amish couple to ever live in a city when Ed finally broke the silence.
"Hi. I'm Ed, and this is Mary. A friend of ours recommended you. She ahh...said that she and her husband had seen you in the past, and that you saved their marriage. We were hoping that you could help us with our problems."
Mary nodded vigorously along with her husband's words, as if trying to convince herself that if she looked vigorous enough, she would not be eaten. Kate sighed lightly, trying to conceal her snake half below the large desk, hoping that Mary would open up a bit more if she saw a woman instead of a half-snake. It seemed to help slightly, but her unease returned with the silence that followed her husband's introduction. The silent ones were always the hardest to work with. If Kate wanted to pull teeth, she would have been a dentist. She chose instead to simply start talking, hoping that the couple would lighten up once they got rolling.
"Well, it's good you came to see me. Not many couples have the courage to ask others for help. That you came here at all counts for something. In any case, I like to try to get to know my patients before we really delve into the heart of the matter, so if you don't mind, I would like it if you told me some things about yourselves. What do you do for fun? What kind of activities do you do together? That sort of thing."
It was a slow start, but the conversation did start to pick up. Unfortunately, time ran out before they got anywhere important. They seemed like good-enough people, if rather uninteresting. Their relationship dynamic seemed was perfectly fine. Perhaps this would be an easy case. Kate figured she could use a break from the usual "I never married you" and "you just kidnapped me one day", or the ever-popular "she won't stop raping me". Such is life as a monster girl marriage councilor. For once, it was nice to talk to normal people with normal problems. They scheduled another meeting for the next week and parted ways. It was already past six, and Kate had no further appointments lined up, so she wandered wearily home.
She was greeted by nothing but the stillness of her empty home. With no one to object, she reheated some leftovers and threw herself down on the couch, still dressed in her work attire. The irony of being a yet-unmarried marriage councilor did not escape her. It wasn't that she didn't try, she just seemed to have a hard time holding onto relationships. Apparently, the combination of marriage councilor and lamia was simply too much for most men to handle. They always just seemed uncomfortable around her, as if they expected her to be judging them constantly. She wasn't just a councilor. Just because someone wasn't perfect, she wasn't going to hound him to fix everything. Really, she was just tired of being alone. With previous little to occupy herself with, Kate drifted into an uncomfortable sleep on the couch.
Their next few appointments went well. Kate suggested that they keep a calendar and set days and times to do activities together. They were both surprisingly outdoorsy, so their free time was quickly occupied with camping, rafting, and climbing. They also seemed to open up a lot more, even going so far as to tease each other lightly during their sessions. All-in-all, it seemed like they had little reason to see her anymore. After yet another session with no complaints, she recommended that they move on, since they had clearly grown a lot closer and seemed to be able to sort out any further problems on their own. As soon as she made the suggestion, their expressions shifted. They eyed each other nervously, as if they both wanted to say something, yet could not bring themselves to say it. However, neither said anything until Ed thanked her for her help and they stood to leave. Before they could reach the door, Kate called out. While she did care about her patients, she was mostly just curious as to what could make them react like that. They stopped when she asked and seemed to be debating what to do. They whispered quietly between themselves until Mary turned around, blushing profusely as she spoke.
"We were...wondering if you could...if you could recommend someone to help with...something else. You were great, really, but we're still...we feel like..."
"We need help with sex." Ed finished her sentence, though not seeming any more comfortable than she.
Bored. With sex. To a lamia therapist working in the heart of the most monster-ridden city in the world, the idea was completely foreign. In nearly a decade of practice, she had never heard anything of the sort. It was possibly the most adorable thing she could have imagined, particularly with how fiercely they were blushing. Her office was usually full of husbands begging their wives to stop raping them, stop using venom or magic, or stop doing...things with their tails. But this, this was something else. She fought hard to resist laughing, but the seriousness written over their faces made the prospect of her victory dubious, at best. She finally lost when Ed asked if she was alright, probably in response to the pained expression on her face.
