2.29 – Surprise


    Okay.


    That encounter in the bathroom had been … a lot.


    Especially how desperately Natalie had needed to eat Jordan out. Being jerked off had been amazing, but nothingpared to getting to taste Jordan. And how aggressively she’d done so—and how she’d spoken to Jordan. Taken control. In the moment, something else had taken her over. Just, the way Jordan had let her desire slip through. How couldn’t have Natalie been captured? Been forced to act like that?


    Because it was normal to nk out when hearing a friend’s arousal. Yeah. Totally. That made sense.


    Natalie deliberately didn’t think about it.


    Because it wasn’t that it had been <em>Jordan</em>. Just, a hot girl, needing to be taken care of. That was what had Natalie losing control. That it was her friend was coincidental.


    Her head was a mess, right now. For all sorts of reasons, but especially because of her and Jordan’s future. The new arrangement they had. How … Jordan would frequently be ‘training’ with Natalie.


    It <em>did </em>make sense. Natalie needed a reputation at T. If her first times with T’s eager students were a letdown, with Natalie finishing too quick, then finding other partners would be difficult. But if she set <em>good </em>first impressions—especially with the promiscuous girls, who would spread the word—then Natalie’s ss had a smooth pathway for all sorts of energy gathering.


    And how would she set good first impressions? By practicing. Getting ustomed to the thing between her legs.


    It was good Jordan was looking out for her. She hadn’t considered the points she’d brought up, obvious as they were. She was lucky Jordan wasn’t bothered by the idea. Apparently, less than bothered. She’d been more than willing to have Natalie’s head between her legs., then to jerk her off.


    And hadn’t that been a mind-blowing encounter? Or sequence of encounters, both giving and receiving. Natalie was still shaky, remembering it.


    It was hard to keep in mind that that Jordan wasn’t interested in her, not in <em>that </em>way. Not romantically. Just, their encounters worked her up, as it would anyone, and so Jordan had needed that pressure vented. Undoubtedly, Jordan would prefer someone else to be taking care of her, but Natalie was the one she’d gotten involved with, thanks to her ss. Sure, they’d taken on a title of ‘friends with benefits’, but it was under extenuating circumstances. Her ss’s fault. It never would have happened otherwise. She had to remember that.


    Though, with the noises Jordan had been making … it was hard.


    Fortunately, Natalie had plenty to distract herself with. With her and Jordan’s daily session done, they had other tasks to handle. A packed schedule. First up was spars with Sofia, and after that, checking out the Exchange. A student of T had little time for rest. A big relief. Having time to think would be horrible for Natalie’s mental state.


    Spars against Sofia. That was a rxingly familiar thing to fall back on.


    They set up at the training facility. Strangely, Sofia was quickly bing <em>not </em>the worst person in the world to be around. Natalie was looking forward to this event. A spar. Getting to bash Sofia around. That anticipation, Natalie assumed, was returned on Sofia’s part. Their spars had been limited in the past few months, since Sofia had earned her ss much earlier than Natalie. An unssed individual fighting a ssed one—well, clearly, those could only ever be lopsided. Not just the passive boosts to a person’s physiology, but the HP system, too.


    So. Back to familiarity. A mostly even ying field. That was something Natalie could use, right now.


    Plus, it wasbat practice. Heavens knew she needed that. She’d been holding her own in morning training, but certainly not dominating the opposition, like she’d prefer. She supposed she ought to be happy with mediocrity—even a bit above it—considering that she was at <em>T</em>, but Natalie couldn’t find it in her to be so. Like most aspirant delvers, she had apetitive streak a few miles wide.


    The spar started off normal enough. Natalie was more than ustomed to Sofia’s fighting style, and the same in reverse. Truthfully, it made these fights <em>less </em>valuable, not more. Down in the dungeon—or in other spars, or duels—adaptability was key. Adjusting to your opponent’s uniquebat abilities and figuring out, quickly, how to effectively use yours against theirs. But fights against Sofia? The two knew each other’s styles too well.


    Except, not <empletely </em>true, anymore. Their sses had changed things, regardless that they knew each other’s tendencies and fighting habits. Not only that, but the improved speed, strength, and ability to take hits had changed how Sofia moved and reacted—what her risk tolerances were. Natalie, having only gotten her ss less than a week ago, hadn’t yet digested those changes. Sofia had.


    Which meant, unfortunately, Sofia was making even shorter work of her than usual. Natalie growled as another swipe of her rapier scraped against her, dipping that valuable resource lower. She was so <em>fast</em>. And slippery. A buzzing mosquito. Sure, her jabs and scrapes wouldn’t be nearly as devastating as Natalie’s hammernding a direct hit, but they added up, chipping away at her HP—which would eventually mean she’d have to yield.


    Natalie was going to have to employ her own unexpected tactics if she wanted to win. Sofia knew she had an illusion ability, but she didn’t know how it worked, or even what it was capable of. Because Natalie had barely been using it in spars.


    So she could use the surprise. Maybe pull a round off Sofia by catching her off guard. How incredible would <em>that </em>be? Especially with Natalie’s disadvantage, herck of familiarity with her ss, where Sofia had been training for months.


    And, seeing that infuriating furrowed brow of Sofia’s, her slightly pursed lips as she danced away from Natalie’s attacks, her annoyance spiked.


    She made a n.


    Why not use her illusion to its fullest? The less-than-typical application she’d discovered?


    Because Sofia? The prude? An inappropriate illusion would <em>definitely </em>catch her off guard. And, this was a horrible idea, but the fact Sofia was winning—again, for the millionth time—erased her better senses.


    So, she made good use of her ss.


    She activated [Illusion].