#demonwoods

"You're the most stubborn sick person I have ever met." Merilwen declares with crossed arms.

Prudence mimics the move from her four-postered sick bed, "Good to know being sick isn't affecting my evil ways.".

A sigh drops from Merilwen's lips as she fights the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose. Truth be told, she never thought Prudence could get sick, that it just didn't mix with her effortless elegance, that any sickness was far too scared of her, like everyone else they'd met, save for the other members of the guild, to even try to infect her. Unluckily for her girlfriend, Merilwen was clearly wrong. So instead, she sits shoved up against her black goose-down pillows, pouting like a child.

"While it's good to know you're clear-headed enough to be snarky, you still have a fever and you need to take your medicine."

"No I don't."

"What do you mean no you don't?"

"No I don't. Simple as that."

"Yes, you do. You've been burning up since sun up!"

"Well, that's normal. I am a Tiefling, Merbear."

"Well more than usual, Pru!" she lifts Prudence's blankets higher, up over her shoulders, "And you need your rest!".

"Nuh-Uh." Prudence retorts in lieu of an actual argument.

"Nuh-Uh?"

"Nuh-Uh." she repeats with a curt nod.

Merilwen drops her hand with a sigh, "Why are you being so difficult?".

"Because it's fun." Prudence answers with a mischievous smile. Her smile widening when Merilwen narrows her tired eyes at her. Instead of dignifying it with a response, the wood elf settles herself on Prudence's bed with a soft thud.

Watching her little legs dangle off the side, Merilwen comments "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you want something.".

"Oh?"

"Yes," she turns to Prudence, "and I have a proposal for you.".

Prudence gasps, "Really, Merilwen? I mean this is all so sudden!"

Merilwen levels her with a fond glare, "You know what I mean.".

"I do." Prudence admits, leaning back against her pillows with a smug smile.

Merilwen shakes her head of the distraction before pulling herself closer, "So I was thinking, if I get you what you want, you will take your medicine and rest.".

Prudence leans closer, stretching her hands out like a cat after a nap, "Are you sure? It might be more than your true neutral heart will allow." she teases with a flash of her fangs, sending a delightful shiver down the wood-elf's spine.

Merilwen's hands pull into fists, crumpling the sheets under her, "I'm sure.".

"Well then, I will take my medicine if," she lifts a pointy nail, "you kiss me.".

Merilwen almost laughs at the simple request, "That's it?".

"For the medicine, yes. But! I want more in order to rest.".

"Oh?" Merilwen probes dryly, tilting her head forward with a fond look.

"Yes, in order for me to rest, you have to forget about anything you wished to do today and lie here with me."

That manages to drop the joy from Merilwen's face, "Aw, what? I wanted to plant my carrots today!".

"Well, too bad!" Prudence remarks, folding her arms again, "I want cuddles!".

Not wanting to argue again, Merilwen relents "Okay, I can always plant them tomorrow.".

A smile lights up Prudence's face before she schools it down into a mischievous look, "Exactly. And isn't cuddling with me so much better than toiling away in the sun and dry grass?".

Merilwen can't hide the grin spreading across her face, "It is very nice. Or should I say very evil.".

Prudence hides a giggle behind her hand before she can turn it into a "Boo, that was cheap.".

Merilwen shrugs, "Eh, I liked it.".

Prudence slaps the spot on her bed next to her, "Oh, just get over here!".

Merilwen does as she's ordered, crawling up to the pillows and plopping herself down next to her girlfriend. She reaches up and guides a strand of hair out of Prudence's face, then runs her hand down her jaw and hooks a finger under her chin. Not used to being on the recieving end of flirting, her diabolical dear turns a darker shade of red as she leans in. Their lips meet and they all but melt into each other, Prudence wrapping her arms around Merilwen while she pushes her hands into Prudence's dark hair.

Much too early for the tiefling, Merilwen pulls away, leaving Prudence's lips to trail after hers. Pressing a finger to Prudence's lips with a giggle, she reminds "Now you have to take your medicine.".

Prudence groans like a teenager being told to clean her room but flips over and grabs the bottle on her bedside table. Merilwen watches as her werebear strength easily twists off the lid and pours the liquid into a little cup before knocking it back like a shot. Finally, she drops against her pillows once more and curls up next to her darling, "Now can we cuddle?".

"You're conscious when you trance, right?"

Merilwen looked throughful. "Well... It's sort of more- you know that thing when you've just woken up, but you aren't really thinking at all, and you can still have weird dreams? It's like that."

"Right," Prudence mused with a nod of realisation. "So you can't control whether or not you use your wildshape in your sleep, I suppose."

"Did I do that again?"

Prudence lifted her arm, which had been comfortably nestled under a cat-shaped Merilwen before she'd randomly switched into her bear form, and as such now had a somewhat angry red mark on it. Well, redder than the rest of Prudence's skin. 

Merilwen reasied her hands to her face in horror. "I'm so sorry! I really didn't mean it-" "It's fine, we might just have to rethink who's cuddling who," Prudence reassured her. 

With a somewhat dejected air, Merilwen sighed. "Yeah, I suppose. You're just so warm, like a blanket, it's so comfortable."

"I'm just swapping from being a blanket to being a hot water bottle, really," Prudence shrugged.

Merilwen gazed into her eyes pensively, before she let her eyes wander upwards. "We might have to cork you, though."

Prudence put her perfectly-manicured hand to her chest in mock offense. "What? No! These horns are a staple element of my ensemble, I can't deface them with corks!"

Merilwen quirked an eyebrow. "Your ensemble being pyjamas with adorable bunny rabbits on them?"

"Evil, adorable bunny rabbits. It's an important distinction."

Merilwen let out a long breath, like a deflating balloon. "If anything, you've got us further away from any solution to this situation where I keep both my eyes and don't accidentally break your arm."

"How about-" Prudence began, scrabbling off the bed and over to a pile of small blankets. She picked two up and tied them around her horns, creating a sort of cushioned layer. "Would this work?"

Merilwen admired her for a moment, watching her confident stance in the morning sunlight, the way her robe perfectly draped over her form, the rich red of her skin. Then she remembered that she'd been asked a question. "Oh, I think so, yeah!" She swallowed. "You want to try?"

Prudence walked back over to the bed, practically strutting. "We can hardly go to bed this early, Merilwen." "Doesn't mean cuddling is off the card," Merilwen reminded her, scooching over as she climbed into the bed. Merilwen draped herself over Prudence, managing to keep her head clear of the horns, as she still didn't quite trust the blankets. "Just like a hot water bottle," Merilwen murmered into the back of Prudence's neck.

"I told you. Don't be getting too comfortable, we've got great and terrible things to do today." It had become a sort of running joke that Prudence would say that whenever Merilwen asked what was on the cards for their morning.