Pathfinder: Union of the Righteous

I suppose I could return that affection, Seelah thought, watching Arue as she dished two bowls of stew from the pot over the fire. I am between lovers right now, and if Arue is similarly uncommitted and has truly given up her former Evil ways...

"The young people you met," Seelah prompted after accepting a bowl of stew and a goblet of fermented goat's milk. "Did you lay with any of them, Arue?"

"Yes," Arue replied with a shrug. "Men and women, mortals all. None were that special to me, I was just teaching them to exchange love. I'm not sure if any of them resented this attitude from me, I thought ultimately pairing them off with each other was enough to avoid any negative consequences. Perhaps..."

"You're still finding your way," Seelah guessed, "and not doing it very well. Maybe if you sought out a more dedicated follower of Desna, Arue, you could learn better how to apply her traditions. Ramien is still at Pulurra's Fall, I think, and Wallflower's trio is back in Kenabres. I could take you to see them if you like. We can also go to a temple to Shelyn or Iomedae in Kenabres or Drezen, but they have different ethics than your goddess Desna. Do you like these ideas?"

"Perhaps we can seek Desna's clergy out in the morning," Arue replied. "Now's not the best time." She sat beside Seelah next to the fire and they concentrated on their refreshments as their conversation continued. "No monsters are nearby, right?" Arue asked after a time.

Seelah shook her head. She had not been followed on her latest journey by anyone unacceptable. A group of wandering mortal Bandits had accosted her earlier that day, but she'd driven them off. Traveling with Arue would deter further trouble. The former Demoness was an excellent archer and had some spellcasting ability also. "So we'll travel to Pulurra's Fall tomorrow?" Seelah asked after some discussion and consideration. The temple at Pulurra's Fall was closer than Kenabres or Drezen and seemed most comfortable for both of them.

"Sure," Arue agreed. "I'd like to stop by the village where my young friends are too, assure them I'm fine and in good company. If you'd back me on that, Paladin?"

Seelah chuckled and assented that she would make such endorsement. That was why the villagers shared those rumors with me, she realized. They wanted me to seek Arue out. They trusted my assessment of the situation with Arue more than their own. I am a respected holy warrior, and surely if I was not corrupted by this former Demoness, all would be well. Still... "Is someone in the village giving you particular trouble? An Inquisitor perhaps, or..."

"No one like that. Everything's fine." Arue put her dishes aside and placed Seelah's near them. "I'll wash those tomorrow before we leave. No, it's just a few concerned gossips. I tried to explain to them I only did what I did with my young friends out of certain needs, most seemed to understand that. The others told my friends to avoid me." She sighed. "Their plan worked, for the most part. The rumors remain. So do the needs, unfortunately. You know what needs I speak of, right?"

Her smile unnerved Seelah. Arue was a predator once, the Paladin reminded herself. Still is, in some ways. When she was a Succubus, she regularly excited lust in other beings and then drained them of life energy when they indulged in lust. That was her sustenance. Then Arue was motivated by Desna to give up her old ways and for a time, she was very repressed. She didn't want to harm others with her affection as she once did. Until the Commander helped her change her nature, then they were able to exchange pleasure freely. But now with the Commander dead...

"You didn't hurt any of these young villagers, did you?" Seelah asked Arue, concerned. She touched her holy symbol as she asked this question, casting a quick spell of truth compulsion.

"No, of course not!" Arue answered at once. "Not intentionally anyway," Arue then amended. Seelah smiled, sensing no lie.

"My touch no longer drains energy, as you know," Arue further explained. "My kiss no longer corrupts, my gaze no longer compels. Desna help me, I'm becoming an Azata now, a Good Being sponsoring freedom and pleasure. I sought this in my relationship with my young friends."

Seelah nodded in acceptance. Azatas, also known as Muses, were Good Beings like Angels, only not as lawful or pure. It was an acceptable path for a recovering former denizen of the Abyss. Probably still a slow process, Seelah thought. Arue might need help to keep from slipping. If she needs constant affection... the Paladin realized Arue was staring intently at her. Seelah did not want to think about the emotion in that gaze. Distract her, she thought, and myself. "Are you still having dreams, Arue?"

"Yes, of course," Arue answered, smiling happily.

Good, Seelah thought. Demons did not dream, they mocked imagination even when it furthered their cruel plans. If Arue had this opinion regarding dreams, it was a clear sign she was in little danger of backsliding into her old ways. The Commander and Arue shared a special dreamscape, Seelah remembered. I know a little about it from hearing them talk- there was a baker's table there, and some nightmare shadows they had to face alone. I wonder if... Seelah asked Arue if she was still having such dreams.

"No. Not as frequently." Arue shook her head. She gave the Commander's picture a long sad look. "Since he died, I have not been able to just step into dreams whenever I feel like it. Not as directly as before. But when I sleep, I dream... comfortably. He is there, so are our other friends. I like it, I want it again. Would you want that also, Seelah?"

The Paladin nodded after some consideration. "Of course." There was safety in numbers. Being alone was preferable sometimes, but comrades could give friendship and cover, backup in combat or other tense situations. Seelah preferred comradery to working alone. Friendship was nice also, particularly when friends could share dreams and other good things.

"Yes, I prefer to travel with friends," she said aloud.

Arue nodded in agreement. "We're friends, right?"

"Of course," Seelah answered without hesitation. Then she frowned, sensing the next question from Arue before it was voiced.

The former Succubus stared directly at the Paladin, smiled, then asked. "Do you think we could be... more than friends?"

Seelah blinked and looked back at Arue, calling upon her holy powers to stand firm. For some reason, the need for that was strong inside her. Her heart was beating faster and a heat was rising inside. "What do you mean, 'more than friends'?"

Arue looked away, then back at Seelah. "There was a series of questions Nenio asked me once. She asked the Commander the same questions. It didn't go the way she liked. So Nenio tried another experiment. Did she ever ask you these questions? 'How to be a friend, a checklist'. I think that was what Nenio called it."

Seelah shook her head. "I think I heard of something like that. Nenio never asked me the questions, though."

"Nenio wanted to know what friendship was like for her Encyclopedia," Arue explained further. "Her research revealed that friends support each other, gossip about each other, sometimes argue, drink alcohol together, and so on. She was also interested in friends sometimes copulating. I don't think that part of her research went well with everyone she asked about it. The Commander never copulated with Nenio, I'm pretty sure of that. Daeran did, however, when Nenio gave him the friendship questionnaire, and so did others. Nenio told me this."

Seelah blinked. She had not known the Kitsune Wizard had been intimate with others in their party. Not surprising she was intimate with Daeran. Others also.... "Did you copulate with Nenio?" she asked Arue.

"No," Arue replied, giggling. "I offered, but she turned me down. Perhaps she already had enough on the subject from Daeran and whoever else she got with. I hoped she would ask me again at some point, I could certainly give her a lot of material for relevant encyclopedia articles, but... she never did."

"Good." That fox was flightly, Seelah recalled. I was never really sure how I felt about her. Other party members were more welcome companions, others less. It's good that Arue avoided much of Nenio's attention.

"Still, though," Arue interrupted her thoughts. "Do you think I could be that sort of friend to you? Since the Commander died, and my young friends left me... I don't have anyone, Seelah. If we're going to travel together for a time, could we...?"

Seelah did not have to guess what Arue was driving at. She liked to tell people she had a wooden head, but that was as often a cover as the truth. The illusion of stupidity could be a useful tool at times. This was not the moment for it, however. She looked Arue over, admiring the former Succubus' figure and interested smile. The Paladin then turned away.

Goddess, Seelah prayed, what should I do here? I like Arue, yes. I haven't been with anyone since breaking up with Elan and then Janna. I am lonely. If Arue is truly a Good creature now, I guess she would be fine as a lover. I... the Paladin shivered as a wave of pleasure and acceptance assaulted her thoughts. Seelah glanced at her armor and saw it was gleaming and free of rust. I suppose that's permission, Seelah decided, recognizing the sign of Iomedae's favor. She turned back to Arue and smiled.

"Yes," the Paladin told the former Demoness. "It could be possible." Then she made another decision. "But I'm... unsure. I think we should..."

Before she could say anything else, Arue tackled her to the floor. The former Succubus' lips were kissing Seelah's cheeks and mouth, her arms grabbing her and pulling her close. Seelah gasped as Arue's lips met hers. She shivered, then realized that Arue was shivering also. Light, Seelah realized, she's as nervous about this as I am! Just hiding it with bold bravado. I... Inheritor Iomedae, please support me on this leap of faith... Seelah called up her courage and kissed Arue back. Soon both Paladin and former Demoness were hugging each other close, exchanging breath and tongue swipes with their mouths.

The heat of the moment caused them to separate briefly. "Am I going too fast?" Arue asked Seelah, once her breath had recovered. "If I need to slow down..."

"It's fine," Seelah answered after a moment of consideration. "It's been a while for me too. Just don't get too fast. If you come after me like my previous lover Amiri..." She chuckled at the memory of a past liasion with a certain Barbarian.

"I don't know who you mean," Arue laughed. "Was this person... rough with you?"

"Very," Seelah chuckled. Then she turned her attention back to Arue again. "You want my pleasure as well as yours here, right, Arue? And you're not trying to..."'

"No!" Arue insisted, shuddering. "I know what you fear! That's not me, not anymore."

"Good," Seelah answered. Then she looked at the Commander's portrait. "What about him? Are you mourning him still?"

"No and yes..." Arue answered after some hesitation. Seelah smiled, glad the spell of compelling truth she had cast was still working as she'd hoped.

"I... miss him," Arue continued, looking at the Commander's portrait and then back at Seelah, "but I mostly mourn what he could give me. I need it still, the... validation. That was why I sought the young people I was with here, and why I needed them. I did not harm them, Seelah, and it is not my intent to harm you."

Seelah nodded, relaxing. "Do you have any other concerns about me as a lover?"

"I..." Arue swallowed, then laughed. "I feared you'd want me to marry you, Seelah."

"Marriage is... not something I want to discuss right now," Seelah laughed in reply after some hesitation. "My goddess accepts love in general, there are just more ethics in place than your Goddess has. I must confess, Arue, I have considered you as a lover at times. It would have to be acceptable to my Goddess, obviously, and as you are now..." Seelah prayed again and received a wave of welcome, so she relaxed. "I think it would be fine."

"Good," Arue chuckled, smiling back at the Paladin. "I was worried. Desna tells me that Azatas can be as free with loving as Demons sometimes. Angels have to be purer, though. If you're like an Angel..."

"I am," Seelah assured her, "just not as pure as some Angels. I am still mortal, you know." Seelah smiled and shook her head, then made assurances to Arue. "When you're ready, we can embrace again. I am happy with it. Please keep committment off the table until I say otherwise, though, okay?"

I will leave Arue in the morning if this becomes too uncomfortable for me, Seelah decided. Watch over me, Iomedae. Please guide me through this. If you sense me falling, support me, please. If I must back off from Arue, please help me help her understand. Please. She whispered another prayer to sense thoughts, then opened her arms and turned her attention back to the former Demoness.

Desna, Arue was also praying. Please help my friend Seelah open her heart to me. Please remind her I'm her friend, and to become more than just that if it's possible. Help me get with her. Desna, guide my hands! Chuckling at this prayer, which she had repeated several times since hearing of Seelah's approach to her hut, Arue once again embraced her Paladin friend- friend soon to become lover, she reminded herself with hope and faith.

Seelah, who had sensed Arue's prayer to Desna telepathically through a magic amulet she wore, smiled as she heard it. Good, she thought. I will abandon myself now, to the apparent gift of pleasure before me. But please, Inheritor Iomedae, watch over me as I embrace it. Do not let me fall.

Seelah then turned back to her new lover. She kissed Arue before the fire, and Arue kissed her back. The fermented milk in their bodies motivated them to relax, as did the Heaven on their minds. Seelah sensed Arue's need to move quickly and decided to allow it. She wanted a liasion with Arue, and every prayer and other query she'd made so far supported the idea. So she would allow herself the freedom. Seelah nodded as she made this decision and continued kissing Arue. Her new lover was a former Succubus, Seelah also remembered, and thus an expert at giving and receiving pleasure. That would be enjoyable for Seelah and Arue both. If the liasion contined long enough... no, Seelah would not think about that now. It was too soon. Other matters concerned her more. Her needs and Arue's at the moment, for example. Arue's touches were blazing promises of paradise across her skin. Loving her will be a risk, Seelah thought, but then, as I often remind myself, there is no glory without risk.

She whispered her motto as she considered it, smiling. "No glory... without risk."

Arue nodded and took the fabric of Seelah's undershirt in her hands, her eyes casting an obvious query. Seelah nodded in reply, then pulled back from Arue and removed her undershirt and the leather bustier under it. Seelah was naked beneath the latter garment, her firm medium breasts capped by dark nipples shining with sweat. Her stomach gleamed with similar excitement. Seelah pushed down and removed her breeches next, revealing her athletic ebon legs and meticulously trimmed cunt.

"You undress yourself also," she bade Arue. "I would have difficulty with your wings."

"My... wings?" Arue paused, staring at the Paladin.

Seelah could guess what Arue feared. She had heard Arue talk in her sleep at camp often enough. She explained her intentions carefully to address her lover's concerns."You may keep your wings if we copulate, Arue. I just don't want to damage them or your clothing as I remove your clothing."

"Okay," Arue smirked, understanding. She then removed her own leather blouse and other garments. Seelah looked over the private areas of Arue's body as they were revealed, smiling at each vision of beauty. The former Demoness' nipples were as red as the rest of her skin, just a brighter shade. Arue's cunt was covered in thin violet hair, trimmed by her own nails. She had clipped those nails in preparation for this encounter. Arue stroked herself with her hands and tail as she disrobed, grinning as she eyed Seelah between discards of various garments. Seelah was patient throughout this, smiling back and keeping her gaze on Arue's body. She was pleased Arue seemed as excited as Seelah was herself.

Arue has a very pleasing form, Seelah judged. As every Being of her sort should, Azata or Succubus. I'm glad she's on the path to become an Azata now. Inheritor, may it ever remain so. And Inheritor, is it permitted for me to make love with an Azata? The wave of assent in Seelah's soul, backed by the shine of her silver armor, told her it was acceptable, long as the Paladin kept her overall moral karma in mind. Seelah nodded that she would do as directed.

When both Paladin and former Demoness were fully nude, they embraced once again. Arue's wings caped about them, providing Seelah some comfort and cover. Seelah smiled as she noted their warmth. Then she noticed other things. Arue's hands were busy roaming over Seelah's body again, rubbing various areas and exciting Seelah with every caress. Seelah smiled and took charge, directing Arue's attention to her breasts, her legs, and other places. She caressed Arue as well, stroking her new lover's bosoms and stomach. Seelah's hands also roamed to other lower areas- Arue's thighs and snatch. Both women's nipples and clits were equally prominent in the moment, engorged with the fervor inside them as they kissed.

Seelah's lips met Arue's as they cuddled, and their tongues exchanged licks again. They breathed into each other, their hearts beating faster. Seelah grimaced suddenly, feeling an unexpected pressure on her cunt from a certain angle. Arue's tail, she realized. Succubi often have prehensile tails, and Azata often have them also. They're not very common among Angels or mortals, except the Tieflings. I've had a few lovers of that sort, enjoyed their tails. A prehensile tail is in play here... should I... she was glad Arue was sensing her hesitation. Seelah nodded quickly, then smiled as her new lover's tail entered her from behind. She quivered as Arue's tail penetrated her cunt, shaking as the appendage caressed her insides. "Not so fast, not so hard," Seelah urged Arue cautiously as the tail moved a certain way. "Keep it... tender... please."

"Okay," Arue replied, smiling back. "Sorry." She withdrew her tail from Seelah and replaced its probing attention with that of two fingers. "Is this more comfortable for you?"

Seelah nodded, smiling. "Yes." Thoughts flashed in her mind and she gave them voice. "Your tongue would be welcome also, Arue. And your tail, if you can keep it under control." Seelah had enjoyed Tiefling lovers before, and their appendages of similar nature. She reminded herself of this as Arue's tail approached her again.

"I'll do my best." Arue began kissing Seelah again with her lips. She moved down the Paladin's body, paying attention to Seelah's throat, chest, nipples, stomach, and thighs. One hand remained on Seelah's cunt, two fingers penetrating and rubbing the clit and other areas. Arue's other hand was roaming, as was her tail, caressing Seelah's backside and arms. Arue kept Seelah wrapped in her legs and wings as best she could while moving, holding her new lover in close proximity.

Seelah welcomed this affection with smiles and moans. She moved her hands to direct Arue, rubbing her new lover at appropriate moments. She kissed Arue's lips when they met hers, then kissed the former Demoness on her forehead when that area was more accessible. Seelah also rubbed Arue where her wings joined her shoulders, caressed Arue's legs and wings as they encircled Seelah's body. She rubbed Arue's tail when she could too, and her arms also.