"I can't believe you took someone in," Lily followed the words by bringing up her hand and pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration. Only to throw her arms wide open a moment ter while she walked. "Let's save the world!" An intense undercurrent of sarcasm colored the st statement but any other jokes Lily might utter were cut off by a shove from Juniper.

  "Oh, come on. Is it really that surprising?” Considering who Juniper was or how she bound her Pals.

  "I was a little skeptical myself," Vesta offered from the other side of Juniper.

  "See? Vesta knows!"

  "Hush, you two. What's done is done. I wasn't going to leave that poor woman alone on that beach to fend for herself. She needed help."

  "Uh-huh, sure. That’s definitely the only reason."

  Juniper's eyebrows furrowed at the implication and she quickly felt another shove building in her muscles "I haven’t done anything untoward if that’s what you’re getting at. I’ve been nothing but a good host." She turned then and fixed Vesta with a look of exasperation that begged for some backup. “Right?”

  The Foxparks only stared back for a few moments but finally shrugged her shoulders in defeat. “She’s telling the truth.”

  "Not yet,” Lily quipped. “I’m gone for a few days and you bring some newbie back to your camp. Honestly, Juniper."

  So, was that why Lily was so bothered by the newcomer? Suddenly, it clicked in Juniper's mind. Was she perhaps…turning a little green? "I see what this is about."

  "What?" This time it was Lily's turn for her face to twist into something akin to confusion. "Your recklessness?"

  "No," Juniper corrected. "I think you're jealous."

  "What!?" Lily repeated the word but this time raised her voice. “I am not jealous!”

  “Suuure, you aren’t.” Juniper nodded incredulously before taking a step closer and taking up one of Lily’s hands in her own. “Don’t worry, you can still cuddle me in bed tonight. She’s been sleeping off to the side, anyway.”

  “She’s been sleeping in the bed too!?”

  ---

  Unfortunately for Lily, Juniper managed to flip the script and tease her all the way back to camp. Naturally, Mist soon joined in the fun and even Vesta cracked one or two jokes at the woman’s expense. It was all in good fun though and the conversation and jokes helped pass the time. Which was welcome considering how long it took. By the four walked back into camp, the sun had already begun to dip below the trees.

  To their shock, they found the dining room table pced out by a fire that was roaring and well-fed with wood neatly id out a safe distance away. That’s right! Juniper took Vesta with her so that meant the trio would have to make do with the normal way. Which was impressive. It seemed that Aoi may be full of surprises, after all.

  Speaking of the woman, Juniper didn’t see her or the Pals out and about and continued in towards the shack and the table. However, before the group arrived, Aurora stepped out of the shack and immediately threw her hands up in surprise. “Oh! You’re back!” A wide smile kicked up on her lips and she ran over to meet them all. “And you brought Miss Lily and Mist!”

  A moment ter, Flora stuck her head out of one of the windows to observe the same. Most likely because of all the commotion coming from the Lamball. She ducked back inside a moment ter and soon emerged with Aoi in tow. That was all Juniper saw before Aurora practically smmed into her seeking out a big hug. She would’ve gone to the ground but used the momentum to swing the Pal around in a circle, ughing the whole time. After finally setting her down, Juniper stole a quick kiss before reaching up and patting her head.

  “Welcome home!”

  “Yeah, thanks, Aurora. Good to be home.”

  Once she’d gotten her greeting from Juniper, Aurora turned and tackled Vesta to the ground to repeat the process all over again. More ughter quickly followed and Juniper finally peeled her eyes away from the antics in time to greet Flora in a much more reserved, but no less appreciated, manner.

  “Welcome back, boss.”

  “Thank you, Flora.” The Glumos stepped up and got her own peck before stepping to the side and bending down to wrap her arms around Aurora’s chest. “Alright, alright. Let her breathe, Aurora!”

  Pals aside, she noticed that Aoi hung back a few steps, nervously fidgeting with her hands.

  “Don’t worry,” Juniper started before her expression shifted to a warm smile. “I don’t expect that kind of greeting from you.” Her eyes shifted to the table, and the fire, and indicated the setup with a nod of her head. “Looks like you’ve been busy. I take it you had a successful day?”

  She could’ve sworn something like disappointment passed over Aoi’s features before the younger woman turned her head to look over her shoulder. “Oh…yes! We found a lot of useful pnts today. Dinner is ready as well.” When she was done speaking, Aoi returned her attention to Juniper for only a moment before gncing Lily’s way. However, whatever she found caused her to immediately look back to Juniper. When Juniper turned to see what exactly had caused that reaction, she found Lily’s face currently struggling to decide whether it wanted to scowl or be stunned.

  “Right, where are my manners? Aoi, this wonderful dy is Lily.” Juniper reached out and shoved the woman as she spoke before returning her attention to Aoi. “I promise she’s not as weird after you get to know her a little bit.”

  “I’m not being weird!” Lily huffed and shook her head before collecting herself and stepping forward to extend a hand in Aoi’s direction. “I’m Lily like Juniper said.”

  “Aoi,” came the response as the two shook hands. “Juniper has told me a lot about you.”

  “Is that right? Only good things, I hope.”

  “Only good things. I promise.” Once she dropped her hand away, Aoi’s shoulders seemed to rex and a small smile broke on her lips before she turned to regard the Katress. “So, this must be Mist, right? Your Pal.”

  “Her handler, more like it.” The Katress tipped her head in greeting before bringing up a hand and pcing it atop Lily’s head. “Please excuse her behavior. I’m still working on her manners.” This finally drew out a giggle from Aoi who only shook her head in response.

  “Think nothing of it.”

  This time, Lily only grunted in protest before crossing her arms. It was about that time that her face finally decided on an expression. A scowl it was.

  “Alright, alright,” Juniper interrupted. “Introductions are complete so let’s see what Aoi and the girls have made for us.” Juniper cpped for emphasis and then began corralling everyone towards the table, and the few things that were piled neatly atop it. However, Lily caught one of her hands and stopped her while everyone else continued on.

  “What?” Juniper’s eyes searched the other woman’s but Lily kept her mouth shut until she used her leverage to turn them away from everyone else. Whereupon she dropped her voice low. “You didn’t tell me she was so freaking cute!”

  “You little…” Juniper shook her head and brought a hand up to run over her forehead in frustration. “You were too busy freaking out!”

  “I was not freaking out,” Lily hissed before sneaking a peak over her shoulder. “Seriously though, no wonder you brought her back. I’d have a hard time not breaking my own rule if I came across her on the beach.”

  “Oh yeah? Must’ve been an easy decision for me, hmm? Just send Juniper the Ogre on her way, huh?” One of Juniper’s eyebrows rose and she fixed Lily with a stare that told her to choose her next words carefully.

  “What? No!” Lily stood tall and brought her hands up in a pcating gesture. “That wasn't it at all.”

  “Really? Please, enlighten me.” Now it was Juniper's turn to cross her arms and she tried her best to channel her inner bitch into that stare.

  “It’s different, you're different. You have an air of confidence about you that says ‘Watch out, I'm coming through.’ Not to mention you’re hot, Juniper.”

  Oh, how she loved watching the woman squirm under her gaze. Finally, she couldn't help it and burst out ughing. “I’m just messing with you.” She reached up and gave Lily’s shoulder a squeeze before pcing a kiss on her cheek in condolence for pulling her leg. And perhaps for all the nice things she'd said. “Good save, though. Feel free to compliment me like that anytime.” With a light smack of Lily’s butt, Juniper finally pulled away and began walking toward the table while beckoning for her friend to follow.

  Once they finally joined the others, Juniper's mouth fell open at the selection of different foods on dispy. Leafy greens, nuts, roots, and yes…berries.”

  “I hope you like it.” Aoi csped her hands behind her and briefly scanned the selection. “Aurora and Flora were a big help today; I couldn’t have done it without them. This is only what we have for dinner tonight, too. We have more stored away and Flora and I came up with a growing pn while you were gone. The beginnings of one anyway.” When she finally stopped speaking, Aoi looked up at Juniper as if waiting to judge her reaction.

  “Aoi this is amazing!” Juniper honestly couldn't believe it and finally moved around the table and gave the younger woman a side hug, pulling her close. “I knew your expertise would be invaluable.” Such hard work deserved a reward! So, Juniper leaned down a little and pnted a soft kiss on her cheek. Which caused it to turn bright red only a few moments ter.

  “T-thanks, Juniper. I just want to help that's all.”

  “And help you did. I can't wait to see what else you can do.”

  “This really is impressive, Aoi.” Lily stood with her hands on her hips and looked over the selection before continuing. “Thank you for getting all this.”

  "It was no problem, I swear.” Aoi brought her hands up to wave back and forth, trying to dismiss all the attention.

  “No way!” Aurora suddenly broke in. “You should’ve seen Aoi while we were out looking. It was amazing. She knew about so many different pnts.”

  Flora nodded in agreement before turning her and smiling Aoi’s way. “Even things I didn’t know. Mostly uses beyond food since that’s what I focus on most of the time.”

  By this point, Aoi looked as though she wanted to melt into a puddle on the floor so Juniper reached back out and squeezed her shoulder in what she hoped was a comforting gesture. “Okay, I think we get the picture. Now, let's actually eat some of this food instead of gawking at it.”

  “And please,” Flora started but paused to start handing out a stack of items that looked remarkably simir to her hat. Except they were upside down. “Use these. I made them myself.”

  “Are these…bowls?” Lily asked after taking one and holding it up to better examine. Juniper quickly did the same and as far as she could tell, they were exactly that. Solid on the inside with nowhere for liquid, or anything else, to escape.

  “Sure are. Well, they're technically acorn tops but they'll work just fine. We tested them out to make sure.”

  Food and bowls. Maybe Juniper should go away more often if this is what she got to come back to. After the dishes were passed out, everyone moved around the table filling them with various things to eat. Juniper loaded her own bowl before coming across a red sauce in an old gss bottle they'd scavenged from the beach that st time. “And what's this?”

  “Oh, that's just some berries cooked down to a liquid. I know eating straight greens can be a little…challenging. It's not the best without some sugar or honey but it isn't like we have anything else lying around.”

  “Really? You did that over a fire?”

  “I did,” Aoi nodded before pointing to the tin can still by the fire. It had a branch stick out of it that looked like it was scrapped clean of bark.

  “Wow,” Juniper excimed. “Must've taken a while.”

  “I'm patient. Though, I didn’t have a strainer so it’s probably not my smoothest batch.”

  Huh, did this kind of thing often, then? Either way, Juniper drizzled some of the berry juice over her assembled greens and moved to sit by her fire. Everyone soon followed suit and found seats and conversations with those around them. Well, when they weren’t busy chewing! By the time she finished with the meal, Juniper felt full. Not just sated but pleasantly satisfied as well. So much so that she id back on the sleeping bag she currently sat on and let out a contented sigh.

  “That was so good.”

  “Just wait, it gets better.” Lily’s assertion had Juniper's head turning until it found her starting to rummage through her pack. “As soon as I actually manage to get to everything…”

  As she searched, Lily pced her belongings out in a neat row, giving Juniper a chance to glimpse further into her life. Her undry was neatly rolled for travel. Some pstic cases that held who-knows-what. There were even personal hygiene items in a pstic baggie that definitely caught Juniper’s eye.

  “Ah-ha! Now we’re at the good stuff.”

  “The good stuff?” Juniper asked as she sat up and scooted closer.

  “Yes, you’re…presents.”

  “Presents?” Aurora perked up from the other side of the fire and then came bounding over to sit on the sleeping bag as well. “What kind?”

  What kind indeed. The other Pals followed Aurora’s example and crowded around Juniper so they could watch Lily reveal the items one by one. Well, except for Mist who seemed content to keep her butt firmly pnted in one of the chairs by the fire. Of course, she’d no doubt seen all these items already. Even Aoi’s curiosity got the better of her and she too came a little closer.

  Now that everyone was assembled, Lily stopped and eyed them all where they sat. “Jeeze, I feel like I’m giving out gifts to a bunch of children or something.”

  “Well, that depends on what you brought. Are there toys in there?” Juniper’s question had Lily chuckling to herself but whatever the reason was remained a mystery. She rummaged around a little more and then smiled to herself once her hands settled on something. “This one is very appropriate given the circumstances.” From her pack, she pulled a medium-sized pot completed with a lid that followed soon after.

  It didn’t appear to be in the best condition and Juniper probably would’ve repced it had she been home. However, in their present circumstances, her face lit up with excitement. “Oh crap!” She excimed before leaning forward and taking it from her friend. “No more cooking in a tin can.” Not that they were doing much cooking before this but if tonight was any indication, it seemed that Aoi would change that in the future. So, once Juniper inspected the cookware, she handed it to the young woman to take a look at.

  “No more,” Lily affirmed. “And next…” She then removed what looked like a thick, rolled-up piece of leather before setting it down on the ground and undoing the tie that held it closed. Now free, Lily unrolled it to reveal a small set of basic tools. Screwdrivers, tweezers, and other assorted items of varying quality. “Oh, and don’t forget these.” Lily hastily reached back in and pulled out a hammer and a hand axe. However, in contrast to the set, those two items looked handmade. Of course, Juniper couldn’t give two shits where they made as long as they worked.

  After looking over them herself, she passed them to her Pals to see and then shook her head in disbelief. “How could you afford all this? Or well, barter for it, I guess.”

  Lily shrugged and sat back down on her haunches. “Well, I don’t exactly need a lot myself so I have quite a stash saved up. All it took was a few guns.”

  “A few?” The trade suddenly felt lopsided in the opposite direction. No matter how valuable the tools were, surely a gun was more important? Juniper could acknowledge that fact even if she didn’t like the things. Then again, you couldn’t hammer a nail in with a bullet.

  “Well, I’m not finished. The next items are a little more…personal.”

  “Personal?” Juniper asked.

  Lily nodded before reaching into her bag but paused to look over at Aoi. “Sorry, if I’d known the good Samaritan here was going to find you on the beach, I would’ve brought more.” With that, she removed a few clothing items neatly rolled like the others. A few pairs of underwear, a tank top, and another pair of athletic shorts. These didn’t appear homemade, though. The clothing was nice and looked like something you might find in a big-box store back home.

  “Oh! Wow, that’s…no wonder you had to trade that much. Where did you even get this?”

  “Remember the shipping containers I mentioned? Well, sometimes they are full of clothing. As you can imagine, it fetches a very high price.”

  “No kidding…”

  “Even that is not as valuable as the st thing.”

  There was more? That really got everyone’s attention and all eyes were on Lily’s hand as it reached into the bag once more. A moment ter, it pulled out a small pstic tote bag that looked like it was meant for travel. After she handed it to Juniper, her eyes went wide and her mouth formed into an “O” out of sheer disbelief.

  “No way! No way!” Inside she found small travel-sized bottles of shampoo, a little box of soap, a mini toothbrush and toothpaste, and even a comb. “I can’t believe this!” Juniper unzipped the bag and went through the few cleaning items with a smile on her face. She’d have to use them sparingly but even temporary relief would be worth it. When she was done, she looked up and her lips transformed into a big, bright smile. “Thank you, Lily. Seriously.”

  “Don’t mention it. I’m just happy to see you thrive, Juniper.”

  And thrive she would with everything Lily brought her. With the end of the gifts, the conversation once again shifted to smaller groups who were either commenting on the tools, working on ideas about how to use them, or talking about the food again. Juniper participated in all three at various points before sidling up to Lily a little ter in the evening. At her side, she reached down and took her friend's hand, causing her to look over in confusion. Mist as well but the look on Juniper’s face needed no real expnation. Still, she offered one anyway.

  “I’m just going to borrow Lily for a few minutes. I have something to show her.”

  “Very well,” the Katress smiled and then shifted her gaze to the newbie among them. “It’s time I had a chat with Aoi anyway.”

  “Oh, the chat?”

  “I guess that depends on how much you told her, but something like that.”

  “Hmm, not much,” Juniper admitted. “I was honest with how I bound Aurora, Vesta, and Flora but anything beyond that. Try not to scare her too much.”

  “No promises.” With a wink, Mist turned and sought Aoi out, tail gently wagging behind her in that slow, confident motion.

  With that, Juniper tugged Lily’s hand and started them walking in the direction of the shack.

  “Where are we going?” Lily asked curiously, perhaps not picking up on Juniper’s mood like Mist had.

  “You’ll see.” Juniper steered them to the side when they got close and went past the door, opting to go around the side instead. Once they got toward the back wall, Juniper pulled Lily around and shoved her up against the wall.

  “Hey–”

  Before she could so much as get a second word out, Juniper was on her, pressing their lips together furiously. She dropped her hand then and shifted it to the blonde’s waist, pulling her body closer. Once the initial shock wore off, Lily fully reciprocated and found purchase on Juniper’s body with her own hands.

  As the impromptu make-out session continued, both women threw themselves in with abandon. Breasts were grabbed and fondled, tongues swirled and danced, and Lily was kind enough to lend her thigh in an effort to help Juniper get off. Finally, both had to break for air but their lips remained only an inch or two apart.

  “I just wanted to thank you for bringing all that back,” Juniper said between deep, ragged breaths. “Thank you for helping me even if I know it’s not easy.” Not that she was trading tools for sex or anything. It was simply that Lily was so wonderful Juniper couldn’t stop herself.

  “I’m happy to help. You just...make me want to.” Lily brought a hand up and rubbed a thumb along Juniper’s cheek as she spoke. “Now, let me really take care of you, okay? I bet it’s been a few days…”

  A few days since what? Juniper didn’t have to wait long to figure out exactly what Lily meant. Those fingers didn’t stop moving and soon traced over her neck on their way down. She didn’t even bother stopping at Juniper’s chest and only slowed once she reached the waistband of Juniper’s shorts. The hum of conversation could be heard around the corner but Lily was right, it had been a few days since Juniper had some relief. Any of the remaining willpower immediately drained from her the moment Lily arrived with her goodies. So, in the pause given to seek Juniper’s permission, she brought her own hand up to grab Lily’s wrist and shove the hand inside her underwear. That was all the approval the Lily needed and before starting in earnest, she spun the two until it was Juniper’s back to the wall. Now that their positions were reversed, Lily coated her fingers in the juices she found and began searching out Juniper’s most pleasurable spots.

  Of course, Juniper couldn’t help but moan from the pleasure before Lily quickly muffled the sound by pressing their lips together again. Her hands, like her mouth, were fucking magical and they soon halted their exploration and headed straight for her clit. In response, Juniper couldn’t help but grind her hips to increase the pressure. It wasn’t long before she could feel her climax building between her legs and she had to break the kiss to try in vain to bring in more air.

  “Fuck, fuck…” The words were low and Juniper reached up to run her fingers into Lily’s hair before they closed and she used her hold to bring the woman’s ear closer to her lips. “Don’t you fucking stop. I need it.” More moans poured from Juniper’s mouth but they barely went further than that back wall. She simply wanted Lily to know how good she was. How much she was driving her crazy!

  It couldn’t have been longer than a few minutes before Juniper’s whole body shuddered and the release she so desperately sought came crashing down. It was a good thing she was pressed between the wall and the other body because it felt like her legs were going to give out by the time her orgasm subsided. Of course, Lily held her throughout, wordlessly pressing little kisses to any bit of exposed skin she could find.

  “Wait, where are Miss Juniper and Miss Lily?”

  Juniper recognized Aurora’s voice and the question was posed loud enough that they could both hear it.

  “I guess they finally noticed we’re missing,” Lily noted with a ugh.

  “It would seem so,” Juniper agreed.

  “Think they’ll know what we were up to?” As she posed the question, Lily straightened and took the opportunity to fix Juniper's pants from where they had been shuffled around from all the motion.

  “I can’t imagine it would be hard to guess.” Juniper simirly chucked and then brought a hand up to fix Lily’s hair where she’d grabbed it. “They’ll probably be jealous they missed out.”

  “Even Aoi?”

  Now, that was an interesting question and one Juniper had pondered at various points since the woman had joined her merry little band. “I’m not sure yet. I haven’t pressured her to do anything and have even held back my…fun, with the Pals.”

  “Mm, I figured as much. Considering how quickly you finished.”

  “Maybe you’re just that good, hmm?” Juniper stepped closer and pced a gentler peck on Lily’s lips. “For now, I think I’d like to focus on getting her a Pal of her own. She’s good with Flora but I want to be able to take her with me too on trips.”

  “Yeah, getting her a Glumos would be valuable considering her skills.”

  “That’s exactly what I was thinking. But come on, let’s get back to everyone.”

  Juniper reached down and took Lily’s hand just like she’d done to lead them here. They were soon coming around the shack and joining the crowd once more, to a chorus of “ooos” like they were two teenagers caught at a party or some such nonsense.

  “Yeah, yeah,” Juniper sighed before bringing up a hand to wave the jeers away. “I know you missed us.”

  “Where did you two go?” Aurora asked with a knowing smile.

  “A dy doesn’t kiss and tell, Aurora.”

  “A dy?” Mist responded before raising a hand and indicating Aoi sitting next to her. “I only see one of those around here. You two–” The Katress' hand shifted to point at both the women simultaneously. “Are something quite different.”

  In response to the taunt, Mist received two tongues extended from their owner’s lips. To which she smiled and sucked in her teeth. “Keep it up and they’ll both be mine.”

  “Not much of a threat, love.” Lily quipped before bringing her hands up and cpping a few times. “Alright, now that everyone has enjoyed themselves, it’s time to clean up and get ready to turn in early.”

  “Early!?” The chorus of confused responses came back excitedly and even Juniper turned in curiosity at the announcement. “Oh? What for?”

  Before she answered, Lily turned and looked straight at Aoi who also looked on curiously. However, she shied away now that the attention was on her.

  “Tomorrow, Aoi is getting her first Pal.”

  ---

  AnnouncementJust a heads up, for the near future this will be updated about every two weeks. Thank you for your patience and I hope you continue to enjoy. See you for the next chapter!