Filgaia was a world steeped in its own past. For every active town that adorned its surface, there were at least four ancient structures nearby…sanctuaries of knowledge and worship, tombs of great rulers and heroes made insignificant by the sands of time consuming their resting chambers, temples holding treasures and beasts both petty and great, all built by various cultures of differing times for an assortment of reasons. In the present day, these buildings, often laced with traps and filled by beasts, either left there by the creators as eternal guardians ever breeding more of their own, or simply infested by fiercely territorial creatures who appreciated the largely undisturbed darkness and quiet found within, were typically held to be little more than curiosities by the various townsfolk and travelers that beheld them. Sometimes, an overzealous historian looking for forgotten knowledge, a greedy drifter looking to find treasure worth some easy gella, or a well-intentioned individual seeking old technology that could benefit society once again would intrude upon the sanctity of the aged buildings (and more often than not, find themselves fatally unprepared for the defenses within). For the most part, however, Filgaia’s citizens had the sense not to disturb them.
There were, however, some people who just could not leave well enough alone.
At least, Virginia reflected as she hastily reloaded her revolvers while taking cover behind a sturdy granite pillar, Maya had chosen one of the rare old temples not crawling with monsters this time. A few traps, sure, but no angry beasts.
Yes. Great. Because fighting some random monsters was so much less safe than exchanging gunfire, explosives, and destructive magic spells in a narrow, short hallway.
Naturally, the reader is entitled some explanation of why Virginia had once again found herself in a life-threatening battle in the midst of some musty old ruins, though any audience familiar with the heroic lass is likely not very shocked to find her in such circumstances.
It has been said that a hero’s work is never done. Virginia was far too modest to ever consider herself a heroine, but if she had, she would have heartily agreed with the old saying. Almost immediately after defeating Beatrice, and by doing so both saving the world and having herself and her friends branded as murderous outlaws by the inhabitants of the Ark of Destiny, Virginia and company were quickly reminded of the promise that Maya had made prior to their final battle with Beatrice that her next target, her next big “gem,” would be Filgaia itself. Virginia supposed she shouldn’t have just gone and forgotten about something so monumental as that, but she honestly hadn’t really thought Maya was serious about it. Even Maya Schroedinger wouldn’t go and try something THAT ridiculous.
That, of course, was proven an erroneous assumption to make as, a month or so later, Maya began to bombard a few towns using a long-range Sandcraft canon unseen previously (likely yet another artifact found in an ancient tomb of some sort) with warning fire, demanding that they one by one recognize her as their global leader. It was an absurd, brash, and arrogant plan. Virginia could have told it was Maya even if the ambitious blonde hadn’t already publicly revealed herself.
Virginia, Jet, Gallows, and Clive had stopped her, of course, destroying the Sandcraft before there could be any casualties (or surrenders) and defeating the Schroedingers by the usual narrow margin. And in the few months since then, Virginia had been leading her friends in a seemingly endless journey of tracking Maya’s group down, preventing them from acquiring or using whatever new means of world conquest they’d come up with (accursed ancient peoples and their incessant habit of housing all their most dangerous devices and knowledge! Why couldn’t their weapons ever die out when they did?), only to have them all escape her and leave to repeat the cycle.
Not that Virginia was quite sure what she would do if she ever were to catch Maya. Even after the Sandcraft scare, there was still a much larger price on each of Virginia’s party’s heads than on all of Maya’s party’s put together (those Ark of Destiny people certainly had plenty of cash to fritter away on misplaced vengeance), so turning her in to any local law authorities might be a complicated matter. Even if she were inclined to do so, that is, which she really wasn’t. Maya didn’t really ever seem to mean any harm, and it was very rare that anyone (besides Virginia and her friends) got hurt from her shenanigans.
It had gotten to the point where Virginia could sum up her present situation as “Same old, same old.” She was crouching behind the cover of a cool stone pillar, one of a couple dozen supporting the low ceiling of a narrow hallway in this old temple several miles from the town of Jolly Roger. Around her in the torch-lit gloom, her allies and Maya’s were battling, as always. As if unconsciously trying to add some exciting variation to the same old life-threatening combat they’d been through several times this season already, the participants this time had broken off into pairs. Jet was artfully evading thrown explosives from Alfred, searching for the right angle as he ran and dodged to send some return fire. Todd had wisely brought his battle with Clive into close range, slashing at the scholarly sniper and forcing him to use his impressive rifle to block the butler’s saber. Further back, near the entrance, Shady blasted his unique breaths of extreme temperature at Gallows, who was countering with oppositely-charged elemental spells.
That left Virginia and Maya to duel as the archrivals they were, each firing their handguns at one another with reckless abandon, yet each trying to aim for the other’s non-vital areas. A slug to the arm, a grazing shot to the side, these were things that a quick spell or applied berry could fix admirably. But even Filgaia’s rare and valuable curative flora and magic could not reverse death, nor save one from a direly fatal hit. They were rivals, not bitter enemies; they had no interest in destroying each other.
Virginia suddenly realized that the time she’d been crouching safely hidden was beginning to get suspiciously long. Usually, Maya would be by now firing her enormous machine gun at where Virginia was trying to hide, demanding that she come out and face her properly (Virginia never quite understood the logic of this; she was supposed to go dashing into the open while Maya was filling the air with a hail of bullets?). But as Virginia concentrated, she found she couldn’t hear her foe-friend at all.
Hoping that the blonde drifter was not just waiting to see the whites of her eyes before resuming fire, Virginia peeked around the pillar, and saw…nothing. Maya wasn’t anywhere. It was as though she’d vanished, or…
Or slipped away to the central treasure room while Virginia was occupied. Drat that sneaky girl!
Virginia leapt to her feet and dashed to the exit (belatedly hoping that Maya was not actually just hiding to draw her out). The next room, core of these ruins, was pretty much what she would have expected from experience. It was a circular chamber, with statues carved into the walls all around, all dramatically facing and holding their hands out to the center of the room, as if the raised pedestal, illuminated by a beam of light, did not already adequately showcase the reason for the building’s construction: a leather-bound, thick book.
Virginia had often wondered if people in the past could not have found anything better to do with their time.
What was occupying the heroine’s thoughts now, however, was that an all-too-familiar blonde in a bright orange coat was nearly to the top of the steps leading to that pedestal, letting loose an equally all-too-familiar chuckle of imagined victory. Virginia began to run up the steps as fast as she could to catch up. Hearing this, Maya turned around for a moment, then wasted another moment letting out an indignantly irate cry before turning back to keep ascending to her prize.
Despite Virginia’s best efforts and the moments Maya had wasted, it was Maya who reached the tome first. She scooped it into her arms and crowed her victory over Virginia, who had just arrived, breathing heavily, to stand a foot away from her. Doubtless she would have begun a patronizing lecture to the “novice” drifter, as usual, had the floor beneath them both not suddenly slid open. With no time to react even with a look of surprise, Virginia, Maya, and the book all fell into the new pit, landing on a very smooth and sheer ramp in the dark and immediately sliding down it. Momentarily terrified, all sorts of nasty possibilities entered Virginia’s mind as to what might be at the bottom as she scrambled for something to hold on to. She and Maya could be headed for a pit of jagged spikes, a den of venomous serpents, a vat of boiling magma…
Or, maybe the slide just led to a well-lit prison cell, depositing each girl onto the cold stone floor with an “Oomph!” Not nearly so dramatic, but Virginia really couldn’t complain.
Actually, upon standing, dusting herself off, and seeing Maya do the same, Virginia changed her mind and decided that she could, indeed, complain quite loudly. “Perfect! Well, this is another lovely mess I’m in that I can thank Maya Schroedinger for. Thanks for just one more delightful experience I can add to my memories, Maya!”
Virginia rarely lost her temper, even at so frequently vexing a woman as Maya. Considering how much trouble Maya had caused her lately, though, and that a moment ago Virginia had been certain they were both going to die, one could certainly understand why she might lose her temper.
Maya, of course, was not in such an understanding mood. “Oh, don’t go and blame ME for your mistakes! If you’d butt out and mind your own business instead of getting in my way whenever you possibly can, you wouldn’t even be here. If you just stopped your stupid meddling, you’d be fine!”
“Yes, I should just sit back and watch you take over the world,” Virginia said in sarcastic frustration, rolling her eyes.
“That would be the idea, yes!”
Virginia threw her hands up in exasperation. “Or maybe YOU could just stop doing this and give everyone on the planet a little peace! You could give this nonsense up just as easily as I could!”
Maya folded her arms and lifted her chin in stubborn defiance. “I’ve told you before, I’m not quitting until I get the purest, greatest, most sparkling gem. I’ll stop when I have my gem, and I’m not going to settle for anything less!”
Virginia found herself missing the days when Maya had meant that in the more literal sense of searching for crystals, rather than now meaning Filgaia itself. At least back then they could, on rare occasions, bump into each other and remain civil.
“Well, Maya, you’re doing a lousy job of taking over the world where I’m standing! Half a dozen plans of conquest failed, all of them ridiculous, and you’re here, standing in a prison cell instead of atop some pretentious throne. You’re further away from your precious gem than ever!” Virginia heatedly told her.
There was a pause, a momentary furious silence.
“Never mind! Just…never mind!” Maya yelled. “You don’t understand a single stupid thing!”
Maya’s tone cut through Virginia’s anger instantly. It was a tone of anger Virginia had never heard come from the girl yet. Blusterous, brazen, bold Maya…was hurt. It was in her face, as well, trying to hide behind arrogant anger, but too clearly there. Something Virginia had said had really, honestly upset her rival.
“Maya? What’s wrong?” she asked now, all irritations forgotten in favor of genuine concern.
“It’s none of your business.”
“I--I’m sorry,” Virginia fumbled.
“I’m telling you, Virginia, just. Back. Off!” Maya snapped.
Virginia said no more. Although confused, she could tell that pressing the issue was only going to upset Maya more. The girls sat down and waited in silence, Maya brooding in the corner of the cell and Virginia watching her in hopes of understanding what had happened.
Eventually, the uneventful silence made Virginia a bit edgy. She stood and examined the room. It wasn’t very interesting, just three walls, a row of metal bars, and a floor, barren save for its occupants. The chute that had dropped them here was set in the wall further up, too high for them to reach, even if one stood on the other’s shoulders. Besides which, it would be far too smooth and sheer to climb back up.
That exit being unreachable, Virginia next went to examine the bars that made this place a prison. They didn’t look particularly special. They were metal, set closely enough to one another that there was no way to squeeze through, and went from the floor to the ceiling. Thinking that perhaps some might have become loose with the passing of so many years, Virginia reached her hands toward one.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Maya remarked from her spot in the corner.
Mildly irate at perhaps being patronized once again by Maya, but more just happy to be spoken to after the prolonged silence, Virginia asked why not.
Maya shrugged and told her, “They could be magically charged to give you a nasty zap if you touch them. A lot of ruins I’ve been in have bars that do that.”
Virginia retracted her arms and sighed in annoyance. She decided she might as well heed Maya’s warning and perhaps spare herself the pain; those bars looked quite sturdy, anyway.
“Don’t be too worried,” Maya reassured her in an almost bored voice. “My brother and Todd will find us before too long.”
“Yeah,” Virginia agreed, sitting back down against the far side wall from Maya’s corner. “My friends will be helping them look for us, too.
“At least we won’t have to wait around with the usual dismal assortment of skeletons and other remains of past intruders,” she added brightly, pleased by the emptiness of the cell in that regard.
“I’m not surprised,” Maya replied off-handedly. “I can’t really think of anyone but me who would risk their lives exploring this place if they knew what its treasure was.”
Eager to pass the time they’d spend waiting for rescue, Virginia looked over at the book Maya had wanted so badly, which had flown straight from the chute and through the bars during their descent before. “What is that, anyway? Is it a book of spells, or a manual for weapons, or something?”
“Your imagination is so bland and crude,” Maya told her, the usual infuriating haughtiness starting to creep back into her voice. “I, on the other hand, try to think more creatively.”
“Right, your first plan of just firing a canon until you got your way wasn’t crude at all.”
“Quiet,” Maya ordered reflexively. “Anyway, the legend behind this place is that the people who made it did so out of homage to an incredible hero, the most powerful warrior ever, who could save or destroy entire cities with a single blow from his axe. How exactly THAT works, I don’t know. Anyways, the people who built this place supposedly hid in its center a record of all his adventures…”
“…and you thought that if you could read the book, you’d be able to do that shape-changing thing and use his powers,” Virginia finished. That certainly would be a handy thing for getting out of their current predicament…if the book weren’t on the other side of the bars, easily beyond reach.
Maya nodded and smiled in a satisfied way. Whether she was pleased with Virginia’s picking up on her plan, its cunning, or both, Virginia couldn’t say. Regardless, that seemed to be all she was interested in saying on the matter, and once more the girls fell silent. Virginia noticed that Maya seemed to be brooding again; it looked like whatever had upset her earlier still hadn’t left her mind.
Virginia was still hesitant to investigate what was wrong. In the time she’d known Maya, Virginia had never before seen her upset. She had seen Maya angry (many, many times), and even fearful, but never hurt. Certainly, she had not known the more experienced drifter for very long, but she nonetheless knew Maya very well, strangely, and she could tell that this was a very unusual state for her.
Virginia sighed in exasperation. Nothing to do but to just sit and wait to be rescued She wasn’t particularly worried--her companions were exceptionally capable, as were Maya’s, so they’d surely find the two women reasonably soon. She was, however, getting a little bored.
As they sat wordlessly passing the minutes, Virginia began to wish that Maya would say something, anything. Even a smug lecture or irate fit would be welcome replacements for this uncomfortable silence. She didn’t like having Maya upset with her; it bothered her much more greatly than she would have anticipated.
Some more time passed, so uneventful that Virginia could not distinguish one minute from ten, until she finally felt she HAD to break the silence.
“I don’t believe you.”
“Huh?” Maya grunted, coming out of her introspection to fix a glare, more reflexive than hostile, on her frequent rival.
“I don’t believe you,” Virginia repeated. “I don’t think you really are out to take the world as your own. Even you have to know it’s impossible, especially with the absurd ideas you’ve come up with so far. You have to know that even if you could beat my friends and me, someone else would stop you before long.”
Maya snorted. “Yeah? Then why bother pestering me all the time? You could leave me alone like I told you, and just let someone else do it.”
“Because I don’t want people to be hurt,” Virginia said with earnest insistence. “When we battle, it’s…it’s more like a test of skill than real combat. I’m out to stop you, not hurt you, or worse. And I trust you enough to know that if you end up winning, you won’t do anything dangerous to me, or my friends. But if it came to someone else setting out to stop you, or maybe being hired to, they might be out to kill you. They might be out to end you by any means necessary, and you’d have to respond by fighting the same way.”
“Hey, I don’t hold back when we fight!” Maya interrupted indignantly. “And don’t pretend that you do, either; you only barely manage to ever beat me!
“Mostly by dumb luck,” she added a second later as a characteristic after-thought.
“Not my point, and you know it,” Virginia debated, pushing aside her mild annoyance at Maya’s jab. “We don’t hold back, but that’s still a lot different from being out to destroy each other. All I’m saying is…it might be different if others took my place, and they, or you, might get hurt, or worse. And I don’t want that to be what happens because I let someone else do my part. I don’t want anyone to be hurt because of me, even indirectly, and I’ll take my knocks and bruises to keep it from happening.”
“There’s that selfless hero routine of yours again,” Maya remarked with an offhand annoyance, almost as though it were more practiced than genuine. It seemed like there was something else in her voice, too, something small, almost unnoticeable through flat ire.
But Virginia had no time to contemplate it. She was too focused on this to think of other things. “Anyway, Maya, you’re trying to get me side-tracked here. I want to get back to the point. You’re too smart a person to really believe you’ll succeed at this rate. And you’ve suddenly, mysteriously gotten really sloppy at covering your trail, I’ve noticed. Before this nonsense, it was almost always an accident or you following us when we met up, but lately, I’ve tracked you down in places like this three or four times. You’re not leaving us clues, but you can’t be trying to cover your trail like you used to, either. I’m starting to think that you WANT us to stop you.”
Maya crossed her arms in defiance. “Look, I just told you what I’m after, and that was the truth.”
“But it doesn’t make any sense! If you were serious about taking over the world--”
“I told you what I want; you are assuming,” Maya interrupted heatedly.
Not for the first time that day (or even that hour), Maya stopped Virginia in her tracks and made her utterly confused. “You said you wanted your gem…”
And then realization hit her. “It’s not Filgaia any more?”
“You’re finally wising up,” Maya said, smirking. There was something wrong with her smirk, though. There was something else in it, behind it, the same as when she had spoken a few moments ago. But this time, what was hiding was different, and perhaps just a little clearer. This time, Virginia could almost swear that she saw…could it be? Maya was…nervous?
Brow furrowing in thought, Virginia considered this. If Maya’s goals had changed, why did she keep coming up with plans for world conquest? The only thing they would do would be to…draw attention.
“You want to be found,” Virginia mused aloud, watching Maya’s expression. “You want us to show up and stop you.”
Maya’s face told her that she was on the right track, but was not quite there. Something was missing…and with a little more thought, Virginia had it.
“It’s not you wanting us to show up…you’ve never really given a second glance to Clive, Jet, and Gallows. I’m not sure you even know their names. You…you want me to come. You want to see me?”
Bingo. Maya continued to smirk as she nodded her head, and now Virginia was almost sure she saw fear in her rival’s eyes.
She herself was quite perplexed, of course. “Maya, why? That…it’s…that doesn’t make any sense. It’s ridiculous! If you wanted to see me or spend time with me or something, you could just ASK to! Instead you’re going to all this trouble to get my attention, just to have me come and fight you? Why not just approach me normally?”
“Because it isn’t the same!” Maya told her with unexpected fervor. Her face suddenly lit up with excited passion as she continued, “I want to see you come charging in to strike down injustice! Fired, determined! I want to see you rushing into the fray, six shooters blazing for heroic ideals, a paragon of virtue, ready to put your life on the line for others’ and for those crazy, beautiful beliefs that nothing can knock out of your naïve, silly, stubborn, courageous head!”
“I…I thought I annoyed you with that,” Virginia stated, not sure what to say now.
“You do!” Maya responded, frowning as her voice went back to a far more familiar tone of loud vexation. “You drive me CRAZY with your superhero routine! None of it makes any sense at all! How you can be a Drifter, see what you see, do what you do, and be so completely, totally out of touch with reality is beyond me. Anyone can take advantage of your naïveté, and some HAVE, and you just keep on going along the same as ever, never letting any experience or common sense drive out those lovely intangibles you’re determined to live by and stand for. It’s stupid!
“And,” Maya continued, voice suddenly losing almost all its irritation, filling instead with a strong, reluctant warmth, “it’s inspiring, where no other Drifter has kept it so long or adamantly. It’s an enduring heroism, and it…it’s inspiring, that’s all.”
And it was then that it really struck Virginia, what Maya was telling her. It wasn’t just an explanation for actions. It wasn’t just a remarkable piece of encouragement from a respected rival that reassured her that she was ultimately respected by her.
It was an admission. Maya was letting down barriers, and Virginia knew that the blonde drifter valued them dearly, so much so that she even used one for her very appearance, utilizing her powers to fool the world into thinking that a scrawny, bespectacled bookworm was a daring, dangerous-looking adventuress. And what Maya had just revealed, without saying as much, what she had made herself vulnerable to say, was that Virginia…Virginia was her hero. Grudgingly, perhaps completely against her will, yes, but the one who inspired her nonetheless.
It was a ponderous thing to know.
“So that’s why I do this,” Maya finished, taking her eyes off Virginia and looking down at the floor, at nothing. “I want to see that, so I bring it out myself. It’s…it’s the same as always. It’s the same. I know deep down that if I do my best, if I give it my all and make my greatest effort, I’ll be rewarded with the most beautiful, the purest, the very most sparkling gem.
“And you’re it.”
Virginia, for her part, was totally blown away, and scrambling desperately to gather her thoughts, for she knew she should say something, anything, to respond to her rival-friend’s brave revelations. It was still going to take a lot of time for her to really come to grips with and adjust herself to being someone’s idol of heroism, particularly given the facts that Virginia was a modest girl by nature, and that it was none other than Maya Schroedinger, the woman drifter unlike any other, who felt that way. And now, to know even further the extent of Maya’s governing emotions…had Maya meant her words to sound the way they had? To imply that her reluctant admiration, relentless pursuit, and even repressed nervousness were born of a romantic notion, in a dual sense of the word?
Maya took a deep breath to steady herself, looked up once more straight into Virginia’s eyes, and told her with a firm resolve wrapped around uncertainty, “I…I want to kiss you.”
Well, one thing consistent about Maya was that she left few things ambiguous. A moment passed, with their eyes still locked to one another’s in a different kind of soul-baring, and then Virginia swallowed and said, “I’m not stopping you.”
Deeper, analytical thought could wait until later. Right now, Maya deserved an answer, recognition of what a feat of trust and hope she had just made. And that, Virginia could give her, for the important thing for right now that she knew was that, regardless of what answers and dilemmas she could discover later from all this, she had no qualms accepting and complying with Maya’s unformed offer and request. She suspected that, in truth, she wanted it just as much.
Permission obtained, Maya leaned forward and crawled over to where Virginia sat, and stopped in front of the brunette, sitting back on her heels. Virginia waited and battled to keep her breathing steady for a few moments as blue eyes met blue eyes in a steady, imploring gaze. Maya then moved her head forward, pursing her lips, eyes still fixed on Virginia’s, and Virginia pursed her own lips in anticipation. Then Maya hesitated, so very close now that Virginia could feel the girl’s warm breath brushing against her face, and after a moment more of hesitation, brought an arm forward to lay her hand on Virginia’s back. Virginia quivered at this slight touch, at the emotion, the promise behind it.
They stayed this way for another moment, each breathing deeply, until Virginia could not take the wait any longer. In a fluid, but calm and slow motion, she reached her own arm forward to mirror Maya’s action and place a hand upon her rival’s back, and then pulled herself forward in the same steady, careful pace to touch her lips to Maya’s.
There were no fireworks. There was no incredible moment frozen in time forever. It was just a kiss. It was not life-altering, as the poets have often sought to describe the first kiss between two people firmly set in caring for one another, but it was all the same pleasurable, and important, for them both. It was a quiet thing of sweet elegance, tinged with significance, as each woman enjoyed the soft comfort of the other’s lips and near embrace. And when it ended, and each drew away, they were not gasping for air, for there had been little excessive passion, but rather breathing more deeply and clearly than before, quiet air rushing through fragments of voice that made a series of unintelligible whispers to speak their hearts far clearer than any words formed.
“You were trembling,” Virginia stated, having nothing else communicable she could share.
“I was doing no such thing.”
“You were,” Virginia insisted earnestly, not about to let Maya’s standard emptily disagreeable answer affect her.
Maya narrowed her eyes as she looked to the side and gave an irate “Harrumph!” Virginia this time detected a note of embarrassment in the girl’s annoyed voice as she mumbled, “Was nervous…first time.”
“You’ve never kissed anyone before?” Virginia asked, honestly surprised. She herself had kissed a few people, of course, and she would have expected someone as daring and attractive as Maya to have done the same.
The Schroedinger lady thankfully did not mistake Virginia’s mild shock for mockery, and shrugged as she looked back to her. “I’ve just never wanted to before. I’ve never met anyone else that…that makes me this way.”
Virginia wasn’t really given a chance to reply (not that she likely would have really known how to respond to such a declaration), for Maya, having overcome her shyness now that she had experienced one, leant forward to give and take another kiss. This time, it wasn’t just a kiss of confirmation, of revelation of feelings half acknowledged and half hidden. This one was more basic, a giving and receiving of need between them both.
As they were joined, Maya began to do more than just hold Virginia. The hand upon her back began to slowly, rhythmically move up and down, while Maya’s other reached out to lay her fingers on Virginia’s side, firmly dragging them around to her belly, then back again. Virginia’s body was, by now, primed to experience every subtle detail of Maya’s touch, and she shuddered at the sensation, felt so acutely even through the fabrics of her clothes and Maya’s gloves. And as this happened, Maya began to lean further into the kiss, pushing Virginia gently back, until Maya’s encircling hands were using her torso for soft support, as Virginia was once more sitting back against the wall.
Finally, Maya broke the kiss and drew back slightly. She locked her eyes to Virginia’s, and Virginia could see in those azure orbs a request for permission, and a powerful desire--Maya’s wish to make what she wanted hers. There was lust to it, but it was a strange lust, containing more than just naked hunger. Her eyes held an eager readiness for the fun unknown, the same look Virginia had often beheld on her rival’s face when she was seeking adventure.
And for her part, Virginia Maxwell nodded and smiled. Being with Maya just…seemed right. Like a final, awaited culmination of a long-suppressed, mutual need.
Maya wasted no time once she felt she had adequate approval. She quickly pulled her tough gloves off, casting them aside as she touched Virginia’s side once more, fully feeling the fabric for the first time. She barely dwelled a moment, though, and then lifted her hands up to explore the purple overcoat that covered her shoulders and arms. She looked momentarily perplexed to find that Virginia’s coat had no clasp or button to keep closed, until her dexterous fingers examined the bright red bow over the jacket’s center, and found the long, thick pin on its underside that punctured the meeting sides of the garment to keep it snugly closed. This small mystery solved, Maya quickly removed the bow, freeing the jacket’s sides to hang loosely, and Virginia raised herself forward to allow Maya to slide it down her arms to sit on the floor. Then Maya gave Virginia another kiss, a quick one, and Virginia wondered if she did it to steady her own nerves.
It was such a small step, really, yet its effect was noticeable on both girls. Virginia seemed significantly less full, somehow, incomplete as she sat with no gay purple coat exaggerating how thick her arms were, how large her shoulders. She looked much more normal, sitting in a sleeveless white button-up shirt and leaning back on bare, slim arms.
And with Maya, the effect of seeing Virginia in such a state caused a giddy shiver to run through her. She seemed to be drawn to Virginia’s arms, perhaps because they gave the first real, visible evidence that this was truly happening. Her left hand lifted to settle on Virginia’s right arm just below the elbow, and then slowly traced two fingers up along it to come to Virginia’s small, dainty shoulders. Maya appeared to delight in the smooth, alabaster spot where her companion’s arm began, and leant down to lay a sweet kiss on it. Her fingers traveled back down the length of the limb, alerting every tiny, sensitive hair they touched, leaving a ticklish whisper of sensation in their wake.
Never would Virginia have imagined it would be like this with Maya (not that she had ever really considered the notion). Was this gentle, patient woman, arousing such poignant feelings from the subtlest motions, truly Maya Schroedinger? Was this tender patience perhaps a way to reinforce her dedication to her dreams?
Now Maya’s fingers were near the end of their downward journey, and brushed against the soft fabric of Virginia’s glove. Maya moved her hand behind Virginia’s, and gently pushed upwards, giving her a signal to shift her weight to her other arm, which she did. Maya lifted the now unburdened hand, and let its palm rest in her own. She then used her other hand to grasp at the fingers of Virginia’s glove, and firmly draw the small garment off.
Virginia’s hand was naturally delicate and soft, strangely firmed little by her life, both as a Drifter, and before, as a person like any other who worked against Filgaia to bring harvest from it. Maya’s bare hand was far stronger than her own, though no one would call it hard.
Maya lifted her hand further, until it rested by her chin, and then gently kissed its top. She then drew it back a little, and, with careful precision, kissed each finger once. While Virginia’s mind and heart still reveled in this, Maya kissed her lightly on her cheek, by her lips, on her lips, below her lips. And as Maya rose slightly to mark her forehead with her last light peck, Virginia might have heard three words barely whispered.
Now Maya looked lower, to the blue corset secured tightly around Virginia’s torso by a large belt. As Maya began to undo the large belt’s buckle, she brought her lips to Virginia’s neck, and began to lay quick kisses along it, as soft and many as a gentle winter’s snow lays flakes to the ground. Virginia had her eyes closed in tender happiness, letting herself focus only on the sweetly ticklish sensations Maya treated her to, not noticing as the belt was removed, nor when the corset it held in place followed.
Once they were gone, however, Maya ceased her ministrations, and quietly but insistently said, “Open your eyes, Virginia.”
Virginia did as instructed, and found herself looking into Maya’s bright blue eyes not five inches away from her own. Her vision drank deep from their pools, noting a pleased gleam to them that perhaps hadn’t been there before…or perhaps Virginia had simply never had the time and proximity to really distinguish it.
Each girl looked on for several moments, until Maya wordlessly and abruptly severed their eyes’ connection to turn her attention to Virginia’s skirt, and Virginia wondered what her intentions had been just then. Had she wanted the Maxwell girl to see something special in her eyes, perhaps the simple joy? Had she been searching for something in Virginia’s own expression? Was it just a whimsical way to steady her increasing pace? Something else entirely? Virginia couldn’t even hazard a guess, but then, Maya would probably always perplex her a little at times.
The Schroedinger woman now removed the secondary, larger belt that encircled Virginia’s hips, then gently placed it and the purse it held to the side, by its owner’s other garments. Her hands then encircled Virginia’s waist, finding where the thick yellow cloth that formed a protective apron on her was tied and fumbling to undo it (it was, after all, necessary that it be tied sturdily with all the activities that Virginia encountered daily).
“Taking this off each day must be quite an ordeal for you,” Maya muttered as she finally undid the knot and drew the piece of clothing off Virginia.
Virginia shrugged with small mirth. “It’s really not so bad with a little practice.”
She noticed Maya smile slightly at her words as the apron was added to its peers.
The next thing to go, Maya decided, would be Virginia’s high, rugged leather boots. The blonde wanderer seemed to be done taking her time now, and unlaced the footwear speedily. Virginia lifted her leg slightly and allowed Maya to pull each boot off her feet
Virginia kept the bottom of her shirt tucked in her skirt, so the large purple article of clothing would have to be next to go. Virginia pushed herself up off the floor, and stood in front of Maya. The blonde girl stood as well, realizing the dress would have to be slipped down and off her rival. To accomplish this, she moved forward and embraced Virginia, sliding her hands around her sides to rest on her lower back and pull her closer to Maya, close enough to draw her into a passionate kiss once more while their torsos and chests met, a warm touch only dulled a little by the fabric between them.
The kiss was far more physical than the ones before, though still driven far more by an emotional desire than simple lust. Virginia seemed to startle Maya a moment into it, when she opened her mouth to push her tongue lightly against her companion’s lips. Perhaps her surprise came from her lack of experience, or simply because it was the first time since they’d started that Virginia had taken a definite initiative. Whatever the case might be, however, it didn’t take Maya more than a second to catch on and part her own lips to give Virginia entrance. Their tongues met eagerly, yet tenderly as well.
Virginia would not consider herself an expert kisser by any means, but she knew a few tricks all the same. As Maya fumbled with her dress’s clasps, Virginia made it harder for her to concentrate by initiating a playful little game into their French kiss. She would give Maya’s tongue a slight little push with her own, interrupting its caresses, and then move her tongue to a new spot or retreat it back into her own mouth slightly, and wait for Maya to seek it out again, then repeat the game. It was silly, perhaps pointless, but fun, and when Maya finally managed to fully undo the back of Virginia’s dress and broke the kiss while drawing her arms around to Virginia’s stomach, she was smiling in a mirthful, pleased way.
The skirt was easy enough to pull down once loosened, and left Virginia standing in shirt, petticoat, and stockings. Maya stepped forward once more, ready to continue and remove Virginia’s shirt, but Virginia surprised her again by quickly bringing her hands, one gloved and one naked, up to Maya’s neck and using them to begin unknotting the small scarf she wore around her throat. It quickly came undone, and was discarded.
Virginia’s hands roamed slightly lower, to where Maya’s trademark orange coat was laced and tied. Maya looked as though she wanted to say something, but her words dissipated prematurely as Virginia raised her lips to lay a small peck on the tip of Maya’s nose. She wanted to be able to take the lead, just for a little bit. It wasn’t fair for Maya to do everything; Virginia wanted to be able to show that she was just as wanted, that Virginia felt the same way as Maya did.
Maya’s coat took a little time to unlace (and to think that she’d criticized Virginia for having a time-consuming ensemble!), but once it was undone, and the small belts around her shoulders loosened, it was easily removed. Its absence was quite noticeable on Maya, more than Virginia’s loss of her purple coat before. Maya’s coat had fit fairly snugly to her form, so there was no similar sudden and strange slimness to her arms and frame that there had not been before. It was the absence of the attention-grabbing orange that made the sight of Maya, her fancy white shirt and yellow skirt with ruffles at the bottom now more clearly visible, look almost strange to Virginia, so accustomed was she to identifying her friendly rival by it.
Virginia began to undo the small buttons on the front of Maya’s shirt, while leaning forward to lay a slow, steady line of kisses on the girl’s bare throat, along the space where she typically wore her red scarf. Virginia’s lips felt Maya’s pleased murmur traveling up a second before it quietly escaped, and she marveled at this small, extraordinary event.
She was almost halfway through a second trip around Maya’s neck when she undid the last button. Stepping back, she helped Maya to shrug the garment off, and found that Maya’s yellow skirt was no skirt at all, but a simple and pretty sleeveless dress.
Maya was done with letting Virginia take the lead, and began to unbutton her plain white shirt quickly, becoming more eager as she got nearer her goal. It was off in little time, and Virginia was left with no more than her plain white bra on above her waist. Maya took in the sight of Virginia’s slim figure, naturally ladylike and dainty, yet with a barely visible tone to it from her short but very active time as a Drifter. She gently trailed her fingers along Virginia’s stomach with one hand, and reached her other behind the brunette to caress and appreciate her smooth back.
As it trailed along Virginia’s back, that hand suddenly found an aberration her skin’s flowing texture as it brushed against the strap holding her bra in place. It stopped there for a moment, until its sister hand joined it. Her fingers worked in nimble tandem, and the underwear’s back was undone, released, and allowed to gently fall to the floor.
A tiny shiver ran through Virginia, caused both by the new touch of cool air to her chest, and by the realization, the full understanding that she was truly, physically and spiritually bared to Maya now. The clothing she had on elsewhere did not matter; this moment of the act was the one of showing trust, commitment.
She was breathing deeply, and so was Maya as she gazed at what she had uncovered, what she was being allowed a sacred permission to. She reached a hand out, and laid it upon the newer Drifter’s left breast, so slowly, and Virginia felt that it was trembling. She lifted her own hand, the gloveless one, and laid it reassuringly upon Maya’s, and a moment later it was steady.
Actually, that was not completely accurate. It no longer trembled, this much was true. But it did still move, just now in a larger, broader motion, along the sides, bottom, and top of the globe over Virginia’s heart, eliciting a pleased smile from the Maxwell girl at the more pleasurable feeling. Maya’s other hand raised to mirror her first’s movements, and Virginia breathed a happy sigh and kissed Maya lightly again. This seemed to spur her on, and she removed her right hand and stopped moving her left as she lowered herself until her head was on the same level as Virginia’s breasts.
She gazed at the unoccupied left one for a moment, appreciating it from this new angle, smiling slightly as she observed that the nipple had hardened, standing at a short and round attention from her ministrations. She kissed it, and Virginia gave a definitely audible sigh of approval, which repeated itself when Maya began to slowly, carefully lick its tip, and directly around its side, while she began to brush her thumb across the other in a steady rhythm.
It was a calm sublime, the foreign pleasure of passion that Virginia now felt. It was not unbearably intense, but certainly like nothing she had yet felt, a pleasing sensation that soothed yet aroused at the same time, distracting her as she let her hands rest encouragingly on Maya’s back from noticing the blonde’s free hand undoing the few buttons for her petticoat by the back of her waist.
She did finally notice what was happening when the skirt undergarment was fully undone, and lazily slid down her legs to meet the floor in a graceless bundle. Maya removed her mouth then to get a better look at the prize she had uncovered, bringing her hand back in to gently flick her fingers across the nipple’s moist tip. Virginia wore a pair of underwear about as average as her bra had been, and kept her dark stockings in place with the help of a like-colored garter belt. Her thighs suited her figure well, full, yet slim all the same, with a phantom-like tone of strength (one of the side-effects of her adopted life of adventure that Virginia had noticed and appreciated--her hips and thighs’ width had worried her often back in Boot Hill).
Maya removed her hands from Virginia’s chest to let them glide down her sides, creating a continuing caress until she came to the top of Virginia’s garter belt. She paused for a moment and frowned, but quickly dissolved that expression into a playful smile. She brought her hands to the sides of Virginia’s final undergarment, and began to pull it down her hips, her upper thighs, until it reached the tops of Virginia’s stockings, where the straps from the garter belt clipped on to keep them in place. She then quickly undid the clips in the front and back, making it possible to continue to pull the underwear down, carefully trying to avoid bringing the stockings with it, until there was little enough interference that gravity could finish the journey. The fabric fell to the floor, and Virginia stepped out of it, then watched Maya reattach her garter belt’s clips to her stockings.
That done with, Maya squatted down and took an eager, inquisitive look at what she had uncovered. Virginia tried to fight off a slight blush at Maya’s visual attention. Then, after a moment of looking, Maya stood, gave Virginia a fast, passionate kiss, and then lowered herself once more, settling herself down on her knees, her face once more level with Virginia’s womanhood. She didn’t make a move, though, and simply looked up at Virginia. Her blue eyes seemed to be imploring Virginia to understand something. What was it?
Wait…Maya was kneeling before her. Perhaps that was what Maya wanted Virginia to understand. That in spite of all her excessive pride, her exaggerated ego, she was willing to get on her knees for Virginia.
Was it a small thing? Perhaps even silly and petty to be concerned with? Yes…but all the same, with Maya, such small gestures could be very significant, and this one was surely no exception.
She’d given Virginia her chance to realize that this was a meaningful action, so now Maya chose to continue. She leaned in, stuck her tongue out a bit, and tentatively licked the outer vaginal lips in front of her. Virginia shivered and moaned in her throat at the sudden, moist touch. She had touched herself before, of course, but the experience of another touching her, and with their tongue, was so much more intense, so completely and wonderfully different!
Encouraged by this response, Maya began to circle Virginia’s center, eliciting something close to a whimper from her companion. She then brought her fingers to each side of Virginia’s slit and gently parted the young woman’s labia, then pressed her tongue into her core.
“Oh, Maya!” Virginia gasped, her hands unconsciously finding their way to rest on the girl’s gold-covered head, lightly pressing her to continue.
And continue she did, eagerly exploring Virginia on the inside, sending delightful sensations of pure pleasure throughout the brunette’s body. Maya thoroughly touched every spot she could, creating a mental map for herself, its landmarks the pitch and volume of each gasp, whimper, and moan that Virginia made.
By the time she was sure that she had covered all the ground, Virginia was steadily gasping for breath and trembling like grass in a breeze, leaning against the wall of the cell because her legs were beyond fully supporting her. Seeing how far she had taken Virginia, Maya decided on a quick and powerful end to the journey, removed her tongue from within Virginia’s womanhood, and then shot it out hard and fast against her clitoris over and over.
It only took two hits of immense, unbearable pleasure racing through her to push Virginia over the edge. She gave a quick, high-pitched squeal as spasms raced through her, everything within her seeming to clench together in a blissful harmony as Maya just added to the momentarily infinite pleasure with her continued barrage; her world had dissolved into a liquid ecstasy that coursed through her, a happy intensity erasing everything from her mind but amazed bliss and Maya.
Finally, long past the point that Virginia had thought she could take no more at, yet still all too soon, her body began to calm, Maya lessened and then ceased her actions, and her mind gradually began to again register the world around her. Virginia allowed herself to slide down until she was sitting against the wall, still recovering as much mentally as she was physically. Then Maya leaned forward and kissed her, and Virginia was aware that the slight sweet tang new to Maya’s lips had come from her. A random, almost idiotic thought popped into her head that maybe it was from all the Heal Berries.
The kiss ended, and Maya drew back and quietly said, “Thank you.”
“Thank you? I should be the one saying that!” said Virginia, giving a small laugh. “That was just…I’ve never felt anything like that…I just…wow, Maya!”
Maya’s eyes shined. “I’m glad you enjoyed it, Virginia…thank you for letting me do that. I’ve wanted to for a while, you know, Miss Hero.”
Virginia leant forward to kiss Maya again, but this time did so slightly forcefully, pushing Maya back a little and letting her know that it was Virginia’s turn to please. This time, Maya had no objections, and obligingly followed Virginia’s lead.
Virginia knew that after all the time that they’d been doing this, Maya must have been close and more eager to have her release without as much preamble (besides, that seemed more Maya’s style anyhow). To this purpose, she disposed of Maya’s cheerfully yellow dress as quickly as the garment would allow, sliding its sleeveless straps past her slim shoulders and down the blonde’s toned, athletic arms, enjoying their strength by brushing her fingers along them as they descended, then unzipping it in the back to allow it to be pulled gently down and, as Maya stood to aid the process, off of her.
Given Maya’s rambunctious personality, Virginia was actually a bit surprised to see that her underwear was as standard as her own had been--nothing but functional, white cotton. The rest of her, however, fit Virginia’s expectations. She was a lean woman, though not slim, nor lanky. Her trim figure was earned from her regular activity and hard work, toned and strong. She was a beautiful woman, Maya Schroedinger, but it was no soft beauty that made her so.
Virginia gently took Maya’s hands in her own, and pulled her down to sit by her again. Her hands reached around the blonde, quickly undid her bra, and then drew it off her. Her breath caught as she got her first look of Maya’s breasts. It was not so much desire that gave her pause (though they certainly were attractive, a nice touch of soft womanhood to contrast against the rest of Maya) as simple uncertainty. She didn’t really know what to do next. Maya had done a wonderful job of making her feel good from touching and licking her breasts before, but there was a world of difference between feeling and doing.
Still, nothing would be accomplished by just sitting and looking, and Virginia was a girl of action. She tilted her head and enveloped one of Maya’s nipples with her mouth. Maya purred.
Even as she was doing this, though, Virginia’s hands were already on the next step, coming down to Maya’s leggings and began to pull them off. For her part, Maya seemed quite eager to lose the white leggings and leaned back, using her hands to hold herself up, to allow Virginia to better pull them down her legs and feet, and put them down by her yellow dress. Maya’s last piece of clothing quickly followed, and the girl sat completely bare before Virginia.
By now, Virginia had decided on a more definite plan of action for how to pleasure her companion. She wanted to be able to make Maya feel good quickly and skillfully, and didn’t feel that she had the time to learn to do it the same way as Maya had. So she would do things her own way that she was at least a little familiar with from self-practice.
She placed her hands on Maya’s shoulders, and slowly pushed the blonde Drifter down to lie on her back. Then, after removing the glove that had been left on this entire time because she wanted to miss not even the subtlest of sensations in this, Virginia lay down beside her. Her hands wandered as she claimed another kiss from Maya’s lips, one settling on the breast that she had so far neglected, while the other began to lazily draw its way south from her belly button, taking its time to trace an arc along her inner thighs around her moistly waiting core.
Maya moaned, almost growled into their kiss and left no doubt that she did not appreciate this pace. Had her mouth not been enjoyably diverted at that moment, Virginia might have allowed herself a mischievously pleased giggle. Though she usually was earnest in her wish that she and Maya could get along better, Virginia had to admit that it was fun to actually deliberately annoy the slightly older girl every now and then.
Fun had and Maya’s readiness more than confirmed, though, Virginia became serious in her affections once more, and ended her teasing. She brought her hand to Maya’s center and, after tracing her nails gently around its outer lips, eased two of her fingers within the girl.
Maya groaned slightly and broke their kiss, beginning to give more frequent and less coherent moans and urges to continue with each passing moment as Virginia began to explore her within much as Maya had done to her not long before. As Virginia had her fingers stroke their confines, she began to use her thumb to rub Maya’s clitoris sporadically, enjoying the shuddering intake of breath Maya took with each precious touch.
Maya did not last long under this barrage, particularly not when Virginia decided to increase the frequency of her thumb’s taps, and as Maya grew very close to her point of no return, Virginia began to thrust her fingers in and partially out of her at a quick pace.
After only moments of this, Maya could no longer hold her orgasm off. She gave a long, throaty moan as her body arched and shivered. Her hands grabbed hold of Virginia’s shoulders with a painfully tight grip, her toes curled, and her muscles clamped down on Virginia’s fingers with blissful pressure.
And when it was over, they lay together, backs resting against the wall and arms resting around each other.
Virginia felt she should say something to Maya…that what had happened was incredible to her. But it was so unnecessary; Maya could easily tell and it would just make her sound even more naïve and inexperienced. That what had happened had felt right, but that seemed such a silly thing to note. She wanted to ask about the whispered words from before, have their existence confirmed, yet to do so would somehow be like destroying them.
She had so very much to say, and yet no words could convey her feelings. There was only one thing left on her mind that she could form into audible substance.
“Maya?”
The blonde gave a lazily content grunt to acknowledge that she had heard. Virginia took a breath, then asked earnestly, “Maya, where is this going to go? What…what does everything we said and did mean for us from now on?”
Though it had so far been absent for the longest it had ever been from Maya’s features in Virginia’s presence, her mildly annoyed scowl made its triumphant return. “You know, Virginia, you really know how to kill a mood.”
Virginia’s expectant gaze did