Lucy
It was pitch black when I woke up. Something I found a little unusual at first? Because I don't usually wake up until the sun is up! My first thought was that maybe something had tripped my boundary ward, but it was fine.... Well, the only way to know for sure what woke me was to get up!
At least, that's what I thought until I actually started moving and felt something soft against my face. That's when I realized the wonderful truth - it was dark because one of Eena's wings had curled its way around me! Like the softest, downiest blanket in existence! And I was willing to bet Eena wasn't even aware of it - she'd probably done it in her sleep. She was always so cute like that! It was really a shame she couldn't see it for herself...
"Hrmmm.... Lucy?"
Oops. I guess I accidentally squeezed her a little in my excitement... which would probably be a huge problem with anyone but Devilla, considering how strong I was! Which... actually raised a question for me....
"Hey Eena? How do you control your strength when you're so much stronger than me?"
"Hmmm?" She shifted a little in my arms before yawning. A moment later her wings began to rescind, disappearing into her back again. "My strength? I'm afraid I don't know how to answer that... I've never had any particular issue with it."
"Really? I've always struggled! I smashed a lot of things when I was a kid, but thankfully Mom was really strong, too, so she could handle me! I think she had to exercise a lot to keep up with me as I grew, though."
"Perhaps that's it, then?" Eena suggested. "Your strength grew as you did, while mine has remained static since birth."
"Wait, you've been super strong since you were a baby?" I asked, eyes wide. "Wouldn't that make you really difficult to handle? Like, if someone tried to hold you, and your arms flailed about, then... I don't want to think about what could have happened!"
"Well, I suppose there is some ironic mercy to the distinct lack of people who held me in my infancy... at least from what little I can remember of the time. My mind was a little too underdeveloped to note much, but I'm fairly sure the few islands of warmth I can recall were the result of others handling me. Mostly for feeding. It seems to have gone without issue, though, if my memory is to be trusted."
"Wait, you remember being an infant?" I asked, eyes wide as I slid my arm out from under Eena so that I could push myself up off the ground.
"I have perfect recall," she informed me. "I can remember anything and everything if I put my mind to it... though any information that escapes my attention in the moment will be gone for good. I'm fairly certain I would remember pulverizing the bones of my attendants, though."
"That sounds useful!" I declared, giving her a smile. It fell off my face in a hurry when I latched onto another detail, though. "Wait, what do you mean
few
islands of warmth? Didn't people hold you and carry you around and stuff? I'm pretty sure babies need a lot of attention..."
"I'm afraid attention - of the positive sort, at least - has always been rather lacking in my life," Eena said with a shrug, as if it didn't bother her in the slightest. Which maybe it didn't? But it sure bothered me! "There's a reason I froze up when you hugged me, Lucy. To be truthful? I could hardly recall what one felt like. Disregarding the memories I inherited, the only hugs I can recall receiving came from Nivera... and that was back when I was seven."
"You mean during our reunion?" I asked, already moving to slide my arms around Eena again.
Eena nodded, then frowned. "Yes. Also, what in the world are you doing?"
She couldn't tell? She really must have been lacking in experience! "I'm making up for your lack of hugs, here and now! I'm going to show you exactly what it's like to feel loved and held until you can never say you're not used to hugs again!"
Saying so, I squeezed her tight against me. Of course, I made sure to move a little, so that her head would be between my boobs. I knew she liked them, after all, and this way she could have a double treat!
"...You're lucky I don't need to breathe," Eena mumbled, her voice muffled by my chest. I could still hear her, though, and it just made me want to hug her tighter!
I mean, if she didn't need to breathe, then I didn't need to hold back, right? Right!
***
Devilla
***
Having my head stuck between Lucy's breasts so soon after waking was... not exactly a terrible fate. It was soft, warm, and a little bit bouncy. Not to mention tempting - it took every ounce of my willpower not to start licking and nibbling at her.
It wasn't exactly a productive use of time, either, though - and there were certainly things I needed to do. Namely testing out my ability to replicate the cockatrice's depetrification... In theory, it should be as simple as shaping the holy magic within my body and then passing arcane magic through it. In theory. Except I wasn't exactly used to
using
my holy magic, which had largely remained dormant within me for the last twenty-one years. It obviously wasn't anything my past life memories could help with, either, so I had my work cut out for me...
Of course, there was nothing stopping me from trying to focus on it while Lucy hugged me, but something about the idea rubbed me the wrong way. It would be like spitting in the face of Lucy's kindness. I might have found her 'solution' to my lack of hugging experience a bit silly, but that didn't change the fact that her actions came from a place of love and a desire to be helpful. Pretending to go along with it while secretly working on other things just felt wrong.
So, with great reluctance - and maybe a tiny little nip to her tit, just to catch her attention - I turned my eyes up towards Lucy and spoke. "Don't you think there's more important things we could be accomplishing, right now?"
"Nothing is more important to me than your happiness!" Lucy declared. "...Except maybe ending the war and saving everyone? But it's not like we're actively fighting right now, so I think it's fine to focus on your happiness! Especially since you won't..."
"Yes, well, speaking of my happiness," I said, in an admittedly desperate bid to change the subject, "there's actually something I've been meaning to ask you. How should I wake you up on the frequent occasions I up first?"
"How to wake me up?" Lucy asked, successfully distracted - at least for the moment. "What do you mean?"