Senya stared across at the two blonde women, who had joined one another on the couch closest to the kitchen area. They smiled at him, pursing their lips and blowing him kisses.
They were Thriae. Thriae were, as Senya understood it, wasp-themed fey women that produced a dangerous substance simply called "honey" (he'd often wondered why they weren't more bee-themed, since wasps didn't
make
honey, but he'd never had the guts to ask anyone). Thriae were regarded as extremely clever, and
extremely
dangerous, by humans and other fey alike—particularly for their ability to brainwash someone simply by standing still and releasing a faint buzzing sound from their delicate gossamer wings.
Bobbin had left him alone with two of them.
Lata and Lala watched him with fond smiles. Lata squirmed slightly, pushing her enormous breasts up so they were supported by the back of the couch. She waggled her eyebrows at him, golden eyes gleaming with mischief.
Behind him, the tea kettle started to whistle. Senya snapped to attention, realizing he was getting lost in thought. He turned back to the kettle and quickly started arranging the three mugs. "S-so," he said, trying to keep his voice steady, "I was kinda surprised to hear we had three three..." He coughed. He heard them suppressing snickers at the stammer. "Thriae...
th-three Thriae
on the Ranch."
"Really?" Lala sounded surprised. "We've been here for super long, right, Lata?"
"Uh, yeah-huh, Lala!" He could practically hear Lata's rapid nodding. "Like, maybe a century!"
"Oh my gosh, has it been that long?"
"Um, I dunno." Lata giggled. "But I bet it was, like, close to that?"
Lala sounded equal parts amused and aroused. "Oh my
gosh
, Lata, you're such a
bimbo
."
"Uh, like,
you're
the one humping that cushion!"
Senya yelped as his grip slipped on the kettle, causing him to spill a bit of hot water on his wrist. He quickly set the kettle down and clutched his hand, swearing under his breath.
Immediately, he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Master, oh my gosh, are you okay?" exclaimed Lala.
Lata appeared on his other side, bee-stung amber lips open in mute horror. She took his hand tenderly and held it, looking back at him. She felt the uninjured fingers, softly caressing them. "Poor Master!"
Senya looked between them, suddenly feeling like a cornered rat.
"You should let
us
handle the tea," Lala purred, tugging him back by the shoulder. "You're our
guest
, silly Master!"
"He is being
awful
silly!" Lata agreed, smiling beguilingly at him.
Senya felt himself being pulled away from the counter. He was too surprised and confused to do more than stammer, and they seemed to take this as his consent. Fuck, it practically was. They were
so
close...
so
hot...
"Poor boy." Lata pouted, raising his hurt hand to her lips and looking up at him with puppydog eyes. "Want me to kiss it and make it better?"
"Um..." Senya's head was spinning. His heart was pounding. His shoulder was tingling just slightly where Lala touched him. "
Be kind. Rewind.
"
Lata blinked.
Lala blinked.
Their expressions went blank, and they each released him and started walking backwards. Their eyes were dull and vacant as they climbed backwards back onto the couch.
Senya took the time to put his hand in the cool water in the basin and finish pouring the tea.
"...such a
bimbo,
" Lala said.
"Uh, like,
you're
the one humping that cushion!" Lata giggled, and Senya turned to see her leaning against Lala, kissing her softly.
"Tea's ready," he said, trying to keep his injured hand from trembling.
They both beamed at him. "Master's so thoughtful!" Lata whispered.
"Making tea for his honey babes!" Lala moaned. Oh, gods. She really was still humping the cushion,.
Senya made his way back to the other couch—the one on the far side of the coffee table from theirs. Then, after a moment, he changed his mind and went for the armchair. It was closer to Lala and Lata, and it looked uncomfortably like where they would
want
him to sit—close to the fireplace, warm and soft—but it also avoided him having them sitting straight across from them. That seemed like a bad idea; it'd be too easy to get lost in their pretty, amber eyes.
As he walked, his mind was racing. The trigger had worked. It was one of several triggers Bobbin had given him, but it had worked just how Bobbin had said it would—compelling them to go back exactly fifteen seconds and resume whatever they'd been doing back then. They hadn't even noticed the time shift.
He took in a deep breath as he sat into the chair and immediately regretted both actions. The air smelled strongly of Lala's self-pleasuring, sweet and a little spicy. And as for the chair... well, he might as well have sat into a folded-up comforter, because he instantly sank deep, deep into the chair's warm embrace. This was a chair to fall asleep in. This was a chair for two.
Or maybe three.
He cleared his throat and leaned forward (with some difficulty), setting their two mugs in the table in front of them. "Here you go."
They beamed at him. They did not touch the mugs, but they did watch him as he raised his own tea to his lips.
Senya hesitated. Behind the mug, he bit his lip. They
looked
very keen on him drinking. But he'd kept an eye on the mugs the whole time! Even when they'd come up to him, they'd never been close enough. Had they?
He moved to drink from the mug, but something else stopped him. Who was to say that the water was good? He'd boiled it, but maybe that wouldn't do anything if they'd tampered with it. Or the tea leaves, for that matter. Surely Bobbin would have just told him not to have tea, if it really was so dangerous, but...
Senya decided to hold off, at least for now. He wasn't even that thirsty yet. He set the mug down on the table and leaned forward. "So... how did you end up away from your hive? I mean, I thought hives fought pretty hard to keep humans from messing with them."
Lata bit her lip. Lala looked at the floor.
"We were naughty," Lala whispered conspiratorially. "Like,
mega
naughty." She wrapped her arms around a suspiciously glistening cushion, as if remembering another past embrace. "Oh my gosh, Lata, remember?"
"
So