Fantasy Cursed Island

[Darkling0096]

Jerry used her knife and fork to eat, trying to say without outright saying that he should use the utensils.

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Hydras were definitely more active predators than most snakes, running around a lot. But the hydra had already eaten a very large meal today in the form of several mice and two of its twin siblings, there was no room in the snake's digestive track for a lump of meat. It sniffed at the meat, and nibbled at it, but didn't take it before descending around Erina's shoulders to huddle up in her hair.

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta watched her for a moment before catching on. “Ah...” He looked at his food as he put it down before picking up the utensils and awkwardly trying to use them.

—————

“Mm, not hungry, huh? Alright then. I suppose I’ll just take you to meet the others.” Erina let the hydra settle before heading back to the table.

 

[Darkling0096]

Jerry nodded, "Thank you." She smiled and tried making smalltalk over dinner. "Before we met, what was life like?"

-------------

Lyak and Nyah scooted away as Erina returned with the snake. "I forgot to think of names," Adran facepalmed.

 

[Fangs9090]

“Hm...” Asta took a few moments to think back. His mind was different back then, so the memories from that time were odd. “It was...plain. I patrolled my territory and hunted what I found. I slept when I was tired.”

—————

Erina smiled at him. “There’s not really a rush for that. Something will come to us.”

 

[Darkling0096]

Jerry thought about that, "Were... were the goat and snake good companions?"

-------------

Adran shrugged, "Are we naming all five heads or just the whole snake?"

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta thought about it for a moment before he scowled slightly. “Mm... The snake was almost brainless and the goat was too smart...”

—————

“That’s a good question. Maybe just one name. It’s not like we’ll ever address them individually without including the other heads. And that’s more names we’d have to come up with, remember, and call out when we need them.”

Niudisa looked over. “Why not one name with five syllables? A syllable for each head.”

 

[Darkling0096]

Jerry frowned, that sounded off. "I've always been told snakes were schemers, when it came to monsters." She'd been called a lying snake many times.

---------------

"We could try, I'm open to suggestions," Adran shrugged.

 

[Fangs9090]

"Perhaps in general. This one, however, was not. If it had any schemes, they consisted entirely of 'poison the thing so it dies.'"

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The table was quiet for a bit as people thought about it before Emil spoke up. "What about Eleonora?"

 

[Darkling0096]

That did sound accurate to their encounter, "What about the goat? Usually goats are stupid."

------------

"That's a girl's name," Adran pointed out.

"Hydras are hermaphroditic, the sex of the serpent has no bearing," Joanne shrugged and sipped from her cup.

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta shrugged. "It was more intelligent than it needed to be and could cast magic, which it did boast about." He sighed and shook his head. "They were company at the time I hadn't ever thought of being separate from them, but compared to this group I'm with now, I don't..." He paused. "Actually, if I had to compare them to this group, the goat would be Niudisa, and the snake would be Shuffle, so just imagine having those two attached to your body."

----------

"So, it works then." Erina looked at the hydra, booping each nose in turn. "E, Le, O, No, Ra.~"

The Shuffle's looked confused for a few moments before looking at Joanne. "Herma-what?"

 

[Darkling0096]

Jerry made a face, "I see..." Having Shuffle sticking out of her butt and Niudisa out of her back definitely didn't sound pleasant in the slightest. "Well, for what it's worth, I'm glad the lion is what survived." Having a homicidal serpent or a know it all goat being infatuated with her would probably only lead to trouble.

-----------
The hydra flinched at the booping, confused. If it had hands, it would probably be rubbing its noses, it was certainly making its best approximation o that facial expression.

"A hermaphrodite is a being with both male and female reproductive organs," Joanne explained, "Many monsters possess the trait, in addition to asexual reproduction. It is what allows them to continue to flourish despite being hunted to near extinction many times."

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta smiled. "Thank you. I was the one holding it all together after all." Without the serpent and goat, all that remained was the mildly egotistical lion. At least he valued Jerry more, otherwise he might brag far more.

----------

Erina giggled before looking to her food again.

Shuffle and her reflection stared before asking the question no one wanted her to ask. "What's a reproductive organ?"

 

[Darkling0096]

"We're both pretty good at holding things together, then," Jerry smiled and held out her glass for the spell servant to refill. She shook her head and giggled, "Lion and dragon, doesn't get much more ego in one space, does it?"

--------------

You could almost hear the blinking. "I will tell you when-"

"Nope," Adran shook his head, "This is one of those things where if she figures it out on her own she's gonna do so in the worst way possible." He looked at the Shuffle, "A reproductive organ is you use to make a baby, it's between your legs."

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta chuckled. "I suppose not. And we have each other to keep boosting it higher." He shook his head before taking a drink.

----------

Both Shuffle's looked before leaned down to try and check, simultaneously falling off whatever they'd been sitting on, bumping the table on the way down. Deciding they could check later, one of them poked her head back up. "They come from eggs, right?"

The other came up, too. "I have to make those?"

 

[Darkling0096]

Jerry smiled, "This is good, we're doing it right this time." She nodded and looked down at her, now, empty plate. She was by now a few glasses of wine in and acting more talktative than normal, and a bit more moody. "Asta I... I'm sorry I potioned you," she shook her head, "If I'd have known you'd become intelligent, I... I would have done it differently."

----------------

"Some do," Joanne nodded. "However I doubt you possess any form of reproductive system."

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta nodded. "I know. But had you not, it's likely one of us would have died, and at the time you couldn't risk it being you. Sitting here now, I can't complain about how it happened."

----------

"So, I can't make eggs?"

Emil spoke up. "It's likely, but we don't know for sure. You shouldn't try just for the sake of finding out though. It comes with a lot of responsibility. Besides, there's nothing wrong with just not doing it."

 

[Darkling0096]

"Yeah but," Jerry held out the glass for another refill, "You were pretty much my slave for months before I came to my senses."

---------------

Adran nodded, "That's one of those things you're too young to learn because you haven't learned other things first," he added.

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta nodded as he took another drink. "Hm, true. But we all have our flaws and our mistakes. And I'm willing to forgive yours."

----------

Emil nodded. "So, don't feel like you have to push the matter. You have plenty of time, and it can wait."

"Mmmmm.... Alright."

 

[Darkling0096]

"Mm," Jerry twirled the rim of the glass with her finger. Then she momentarily brightened up, "I think I have another potion! You can get me back!" Definitely the wine doing the talking.

-------

"In the meantime," Adran stood and cleared the table, "It's getting late."

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta chuckled again. "I don't think it works like that. Besides, if this setup is any indication, I don't need a potion to get you." He smiled at her and took another drink.

----------

Erina gave a nod. "I think we all could use some rest. Before we move on."

 

[Darkling0096]

Jerry looked confused for a moment, and then indignant, "And what's that supposed to mean?", she demanded, now standing up and leaning over the table so her face was a few inches from Asta's

------------

Veo nodded, "Yeah," she'd slept most of the day, so she probably wasn't going to be able to sleep through the night, but she walked over to her tent with Emil. "You still haven't been punished," she warned Emil.

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta smiled as he leaned towards her. "It means you wouldn't go through all this trouble if you didn't feel something for me."

----------

Emil looked at her. "Ah... Truth be told, I haven't been trying to avoid it. I'm simply awaiting my fate."

 

[Darkling0096]

Jerry stood there and swayed for a moment, color rising to her cheeks from the wine, "Well, you're right." She raised a shaky arm to poke Asta's chest, "And it's your fault for being so damn... shit." Jerry's sense of balance failed her and she fell forward into Asta. Fortunately, the unseen servant had already cleared the table or she'd have ruined Erina's work mere hours after receiving it.

------------

"Good," Veo smiled, "Sent Aria away and we'll get started." She dropped the tent flap and bolted it so they wouldn't be interuppted.

"Good night, guys," Adran called as he made his way to the pools with Beri, "Sleep well!"

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta put his arms around her as to catch her, taking a moment to finish what remained in his glass before lightly tossing it to the table. That probably wouldn't break it. Right?

----------

Emil nodded and looked to Aria. The muse dipped her head before swimming out through the tent. "Alright, she's gone."

Shuffle and her reflection waved to Adran before they stopped to send the reflection back into the mirror.


Niudisa fluttered after Joanne. "I'm sure you saw this coming, but I have question for you. Again."

 

[Darkling0096]

"Hehe," Jerry started giggling, "How do we always end up on the floor?"

------------

"Good," Veo smiled and pushed Emil back onto the bed.



"Of course," Joanne nodded, "But I doubt you will find my answers satisfactory."