As soon as we had entered the comfort of Castellum, Kyros disappeared without a word into the darkness of the setting sun, surely on his way to dissect his new trophies and read from his dusty grimoires in search of information on the succubus.
I planned to turn in our quest and inform the guild of the demonic activities we had just witnessed, before celebrating our first victory together as a party, but with the assassin gone, that left only three of us.
I was just about to tell Amethyst of my plans to celebrate, and invite her to the tavern when she interrupted my thoughts with a massive yawn.
"Ahhhh, I need some sleep after all of that." She said with squinting eyes.
"Oh come on, I was thinking we could all have a few pints at Elfswood Tavern; a toast to Tia for joining our adventures!"
Tia looked nervously at me before sending puppy eyes straight towards Amethyst.
The mage responded by falling asleep while standing up… and in mid-conversation….
I pinched her awake, and she let out a high-pitched yelp.
"Get some sleep, elf. See you tomorrow."
She responded with a drowsy nod and was about to leave when Tia called out to her with a bubbling smile.
"Thank you for everything, Amethyst! You're very nice and super strong! I'm glad to be in your party."
The mage's face lit up in excitement, and she ran over to Tia, her boobs almost bouncing out of her unbuttoned shirt as she did. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed so tight her bust almost suffocated the poor boy.
"I'm glad too!" She let go and let Tia breathe again. "We'll continue our training tomorrow. You two have fun tonight…" Amethyst ended teasingly before waving goodbye and heading straight to her bed.
Tia was left flustered by the elves' busty display, and he stood silent, not sure how to react.
"Surely you'll join me, Tia? It's supposed to be a toast to you after all." I finally asked, admittedly a little nervous, now that it would be just me and him alone.
But honestly, that sounded even better to me.
"Of course!" He bubbled in response without hesitation. His eyes sparkled in the setting sun, and the soft wind sent strands of his golden hair dancing across his face.
An ugly smile covered my face, but I couldn't help how happy I felt hearing his response.
"Let's go then! The first round's on me."
We set off together through the crowded streets of Castellum; Tia's shoulder almost remained stuck to mine the whole way.
"Welcome in, brave adventurers! What can we get y'all to drink?" A short, stout man with a thick red beard exclaimed as we entered the Elfswood Tavern.
Before arriving there, we had made a short stop at the Adventurer's Guild to collect the payment for clearing the dungeon, receiving the 600 gold coins in full. While we were there, I informed the receptionist of what evil mysteries transpired; she gasped in surprise, thanking the gods that we were all safe.
She told me that in the morning she would dispatch a party of magic detectives to finally uncover the secrets, and that I would be informed of what answers they found. I thanked her for her urgency on the situation and wished her a good night.
Now that that was over, my full attention was focused on Tia, and what type of ale I should order.
Before I could answer, Tia joyfully chirped his response to the bartender.
"Two mugs of the strongest ale you have, please!"
"Coming right up!"
I instantly thought of John Lightsworth and the amount of ale that man could drink. There must be something about priests and ale I just don't understand. Even if that priest is seductively petite and dresses like a girl.
I couldn't help but let out a hearty laugh, and Tia looked at me like a confused puppy.
"Hmm, what's so funny, Draven? You don't think I can handle my liquor?"
"Haha, looks like we're about to find out"
The bartender arrived with our mugs, and without delay Tia took a huge sip; the joy on his face was unmatched. I grabbed mine as well, and with a hand on the priest's shoulder, I guided us to a table away from the rest of the rowdy bargoers.
I took a seat. Despite the entirety of the table being empty, Tia sat down right next to me, as close as we could get without touching.
"A toast to our new healer!" I boasted, "To Tianor Iris, a powerful priest, a budding druid, and already a great friend!"
We raised our mugs and slammed them together, sending booze through the air.
"Ah, I wish the other two could join us." I continued.
"It's ok Draven. Getting to drink with you is all I could ask for!"
His cheeks were already flushed from the alcohol, and he gazed up at me lustfully as he inched even closer.
I took a sip of my ale nervously. It was definitely strong; even after drinking just a bit, I could feel its jolly effects and burst into a cheerful conversation with the boy at my side.
We sat and talked for hours. We discussed everything we wanted to know about each other. Tia told me of his hometown, Edenwood, a small village where he was raised in the monastery, training to become a priest.
He told me the story of its founding, how a legendary elven druid found refuge there and built a shrine in honor of Mother Nature. Apparently, the influence of the Mother is strong there, and it's how he learned of his abilities as a Druid, which he was still learning to master.
With honest and innocent determination, he told me of his dream to save the world, and that's why he came to Castellum, joining the adventurers' guild.
We continued, unable to separate ourselves from each other. The ale kept coming, and just as I had finished a third mug, Tia had somehow downed 6.
He really could handle his liquor even with his little frame. Despite this, I could see his face growing coloured in a deep red blush, and the lustful gaze of his blue eyes left my own completely stuck to him.
Each moment he couldn't seem to help but move closer to me, neither I to him, and soon his voluptuous thighs were squishing against my own and his head lay gently upon my shoulder.
The warmth of his skin was intoxicating.
The milky white of his thighs revealed to me as his skirt rose higher with each little movement he made, and his hips rubbed against me.
I could feel his little chest rise and fall as he breathed softly.
"Draven?"
"What is it?"
"I- I'm very glad I met you… You've been so kind to me, so protective; you're the nicest boy I've ever met."
"Me too, Tia… you're the prettiest boy I've ever met." I gushed out in reply, half teasing. The words left my mouth before I could even think about what I said.
But no sooner than I did, his eyes tore up at me, beaming with euphoria.
"Do you really mean it??"
"Without a doubt," I promised.
He jumped at me, nearly knocking me off my seat and buried himself in my chest. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and took in the scent of his hair; a garden of wildflowers on a sunny spring morning.
He only let go to grab another drink of his ale. We giggled together as he did.
He returned to his spot close by my side, and I noticed by now his little skirt had risen up well past his hips, exposing the entirety of his lustful, curvy thighs, and the delicate white panties he wore underneath.
I couldn't help but stare at the flawless beauty before me. My eyes explored every inch, from his knees to his hips. I watched the subtle jiggling of his thick thighs, and as my gaze reached his now exposed panties, despite his femininity, I was now completely sure Tia was a boy.
The thin fabric of his panties did little to hide what was underneath, and the outline of his dick was completely visible. The size was surprising, especially in comparison with the petiteness of the rest of his body, and I was somewhat amazed it even fit in the little bit of cloth that covered it.
I wanted to stare, but feeling like I was betraying Tia's trust, and well… being a creep, I closed my eyes and swiftly turned my head away from him. I could feel my cheeks burning.
"Mmm, what's wrong, Draven?" He asked playfully. His voice was so comforting; so sensuous.
"I- um… Your skirt." I replied, tilting my head towards his uncovered lap.
He looked down at his lower half, seemingly without concern for the lack of coverage. He turned back towards me with teasing eyes.
"Oh… I'm sorry, I'm so careless when I'm tipsy…"
"It's.. It's ok. You might want to…" I said, hinting at him to fix the wardrobe malfunction.
"Hehe. Oh right."
He grabbed his green skirt, and very slowly inched it lower, until it just barely covered his bulge. He watched my face intently as he did, with a shameless grin.
I began to feel my pants tightening, and I desperately tried to change the subject to something less suggestive.
I did that somewhat successfully, though with our dangerously close proximity and the amount of ale we had drunk, neither of us was completely innocent of our lewd thoughts.
The night continued merrily as such, and after one last mug for me, and three for Tia, the exhaustion of the day finally caught up to us. We decided to bring our celebration to an end and head home for some rest.
His lodging was close by the tavern, and I offered to walk him to it; he accepted without hesitation. In spite of the ridiculous amount of liquor he drank, he skipped home gaily, and I struggled to keep up.
Eventually we made it to his lodging. We stood awkwardly at the door, not wishing just yet to say our goodbyes.
"Get some sleep, priest." I reluctantly yawned. "We will train again tomorrow."
"I-" Tia started, but cut himself off. He seemed as if he wanted to tell me something, but decided to keep it to himself.
"What is it?"
"It's n-nothing," he blushed, looking down at his feet and grabbing the cloth of his skirt. "I'll see you tomorrow, Draven!" he finished, raising his head to me with innocent joy.
"Goodnight, Tia."
I thought of going in for a hug, but I chose to leave with only a wave goodbye.