Thankfully, Alicia didn’t have to wait long for company to return. Roughly half an hour later, she found Katrina walking down the street with a backpack and duffle bag. Apart from sharing contact information last night, Katrina had also asked for permission to bring an overnight bag with her. Alicia nearly broke her phone typing back her enthusiastic approval.


    “Hey, Kat!” Alicia ran up to Katrina, throwing her hands around her shoulders and passionately kissing her.


    “Hey yourself, Alicia!” Katrina dropped the duffle bag, happily picking up the Dryad and spinning her around before setting her down. “You’re going to spoil me at this rate. What happens when I get used to you greeting me by jumping into my arms?”


    “Oh no, what a terrible fate that would be!” Alicia dramatically placed a hand against her forehead, feigning that she was on the verge of passing out.


    Katrina smiled as she picked up her bag again, then the two set off for Alicia’s house. “You’re in an awfully good mood today, it’s cute.”


    Alicia felt herself blushing. She grabbed Katrina’s free hand as they walked. “Well, for one thing, I’ve got this new girlfriend that I really like. But! In all seriousness, I also spent like, all day talking with Elias!”


    “Dang, really? You two get along, I take it?”


    “Yeah! We have so much in common! He was pretty bummed that he couldn’t help with the Dungeon, but we talked about our Change, and about our jobs, our Classes, all that stuff. Anyways, I was showing him the river I built when he came up with a really cool idea; he thinks he can build a little pond for himself and spend a few weeks out here!”


    “What would he do? Just like, moral support, or…?” Katrina asked.


    “He said he’s got some healing abilities, and that he’d be able to help us recover from Dungeon runs. That means we won’t need to rely entirely on your Regen Buffs!”


    Katrina was clearly surprised, but she also couldn’t stop smiling. “Alicia, that’s amazing! I never would have thought of that!”


    “So, I figure after we have our first meeting with Tabitha, we can put together a game plan, and figure out a good time for him to take a few weeks off work and join us!” The two girls were now inside and had settled on the couch again. “Actually, speaking of Tabitha, when is that supposed to happen?”


    “It’s funny you should ask, honestly. She’s planning on coming over tonight. I told her to get here in an hour or so, mostly because… well, I wanted some time alone with you before the planning started.”


    “Aww, gay.” Alicia smirked, briefly laughing to herself before leaning in for a kiss. “So, what does a Vampire put in an overnight bag?”


    “Nothing special. Mostly things you’d expect; toothbrush, spare clothes, but also my last blood ration. I’ll have to swing by my clinic tomorrow to pick up more, and then I’ll be set for the week. Where should I set my things up?”


    “Well, that’s mostly up to you. Obviously the living room is yours if you want it, you’ve already crashed on the couch once, and I already blocked off the windows.” Alicia paused for a moment, almost nervous to continue. “Or… we could take a bunch of my old blankets, set up a little camp in my room, and try to figure out if I can safely sleep outside my Heart Tree.”


    The girls looked at each other, Alicia desperately hoping the Kat would pick the second option. Thankfully, she didn’t have to wait long for the answer.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    “I love that! We’ll have more time to spread out that way, too. We should figure out a sleep schedule, too, honestly. Like you said, I’m nocturnal, you’re not, and that might make things difficult.”


    “I’m trying to push my schedule as late as possible, and staying up really late yesterday helped.” Alicia helped Kat pick up her things again, and the two headed upstairs. After showing Kat the bathroom, Alicia ran to her old linen closet and grabbed a giant pile of blankets. They seemed to be in pretty good shape, thankfully, and she started spreading them out on the floor.


    By the time Kat had set up all her toiletries in the bathroom, Alicia had finished laying out the blankets. The Vampire entered the room, smiled, and then looked around. “So, this is your room?”


    “Yeah! Let me show you around!” Alicia grabbed Kat’s hand, then started a tour of all the memorabilia in her room.


    Alicia was so excited to spend time with Kat, she rambled for far longer than expected. Dozens of old memories returned to her as she started looking over all her old stuff, and she shared everything with Kat. “—and this was the picture we all took on Prom night! That one there was Aiya, and then I’m over here with my date for night, but I already told you how that all panned out.”


    Katrina leaned closer to look at the picture. “Wow. So that’s what you looked like before the Change?”


    “That’s right, I never showed you any pictures! Let me boot up my computer, I’ll show you some more!”


    Within minutes, Alicia was scrolling through old photos she’d uploaded to her computer many years ago. It was strange seeing her old self, so unaware of how dramatically her life was going to be uprooted. Well, more accurately, rooted. Very, very rooted.


    Before turning into a plant, she’d had incredibly dark brown skin, brown eyes, and thick black hair that had regularly been fashioned into dreadlocks. She’d spent so much time perfecting all the different ways to do her hair, she now regretted that she wasn’t able to use those skills anymore. Her hair now, although it wasn’t as thick, didn’t need anywhere near as much upkeep. It still vaguely resembled dreadlocks, but now it looked more like a collection of moss, vines, and flowers you might find on a forest floor.


    Katrina spoke up again, shaking Alicia from her memories. “Not that it matters now, but old me would have been quite smitten with old you.”


    The two kissed, though Alicia couldn’t stop herself from giggling. “Oh, stop it you.” She briefly remembered the forum she’d signed up for the other day, and thought about checking it with Katrina, but she didn’t want to think about Dungeon stuff yet.


    Instead, she shut her computer down and continued the small tour of the rest of her bedroom. She showed off all her old clothes, even offering them to Katrina since she had no need for them. The Vampire had eagerly started looking through the closet, holding up various pieces in front of her while looking in Alicia’s standing mirror.


    “Actually, this one might look really cute on me. Mind if I try it on?” Katrina said.


    Alicia shook her head, eager to see her clothes finally get some use after all these years. What she wasn’t expecting, however, was to look back at Kat just in time to see her pull her shirt off. She blushed with such intensity that she was shocked flowers didn’t pop out of her head. She didn’t know where to look first, or if she should even be looking at all.


    Why wouldn’t I look? She’s my girlfriend, right? If she’s undressing in front of me, that clearly means she’s comfortable with me seeing her.


    She found herself staring first at Katrina’s stomach. It was just as pale as the rest of her, but flat and toned, with clearly visible abs. Above her stomach, a simple black bra contained her impressively large bust, a significant amount of cleavage now on display with her shirt off. Alicia had a few seconds to look before Kat finished trying on the shirt.


    “Well, what do you think?” Kat asked, finally looking back at Alicia.


    “I, um… what?” Alicia managed to say, her eyes meeting Kat’s again.


    “Oh my god, were you not ready to see me change in front of you? You said I could try the shirt on, and I just thought— ugh, I’m sorry! I should have clarified!” Kat moved closer, pulling in the still shocked Alicia for a hug.


    “No! It’s okay, I would have said yes anyways, I just wasn’t entirely ready. Besides, now that I’m thinking about it, you’ve probably seen way more of me than I have of you.”


    Surprisingly, Alicia caught Kat blushing this time. “Well, kinda, yeah. I’m a little used to it now, but… I certainly won’t complain about the view.”


    Both girls started laughing to themselves, the tension thankfully dispersing just as quickly as it had appeared. After a few minutes, as they started to calm down, Alicia realized she should probably answer the original question. She was just about to open her mouth when the sound of a doorbell interrupted her.