Laying in bed with Oraxia, I try to ignore the sounds through the wall… but I can’t help but imagine what’s going on in there between Sis and Salka.

  ‘Fuck… and Oraxia is hearing all this too, I think. Do spiders have good hearing?’ Looking down at her, she looks up at me with a head cock.

  With a sigh, I pick her up in my arms and head out of my room, quickly walking past the two and to the kitchen to go get some food.

  “It’s hot out today, what do you think, Oraxia?” She just looks up at me blankly, before I sigh and shake my head and put her down on the counter. “Right, spiders can live in the outskirts, of course you can handle the heat.”

  Grabbing some iced tea, I chug half the glass in one shot. “Did you know others like you live in the outskirts? Well, not as big as you, but spiders. Ones as big as my hand, they’re mean and like to bite anything nearby though.”

  After a moment, she nods.

  Tugging on my shirt to cool off, I smell a very sweet smell in the air… making my body feel hot. “Damnit, her heat smell is left here. Usually she’s good at getting rid of it.”

  Sighing, I look at Oraxia for a few moments… before picking her up and going to the bathroom. “I need a nice cold bath, wanna join me? I mean, I know Lumi found you in the bath already.”

  Quickly and with no hesitation, she nods, making me smile a little as I begin filling the tub. “I need a nice cold bath to get rid of this aching on my body… It's called heat by the way, Oraxia. All cats go through it every so often, making their bodies hot until we cool ourselves down or… use other methods. You don’t need to worry about those though.”

  As I undress, I wonder both if spiders even go through heat, and if I should worry about being nude around Oraxia.

  Then I remember she’s been stalking us for weeks and has probably seen it already. Let alone, she’s a spider, and she’s technically always naked. I doubt it has any meaning for her anyways.

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  Stripping and sitting down in the tub slowly, a shiver runs up my spine. “C-cold! C-c’mon Yuna, it’s f-for your own good.”

  Forcing myself to sit in it, I slowly get used to the temperature, my body cooling and the aching fading away.

  Letting out a breath of relief, I look at Oraxia, who’s poking her head over the edge of the tub with what looks like a curious expression in her eyes. Smiling a little, I reach over and gently grab her, holding her to my chest out of the water. Quickly she nuzzles into me for warmth.

  “I guess you’ll be their daughter, huh? Not mine. I mean, I can’t intrude on them, right?”

  She cocks her head, before I sigh and nuzzle her cheek. “I guess you wouldn’t get it. Well, it’s alright. Just being here is enough.”

  With little happy chitters, she nuzzles my cheek back, making me giggle. “Maybe I’ll just take you anyways. Even if Sal wanted to keep you to begin with, I’ll just make you my little spider sister.”

  Looking up at the ceiling, I close my eyes and let my mind wander.

  … ‘I can’t lie, I’m jealous. Even if this keeps my heat in check, it’s not perfect. And hearing them do that will rile me up every time. I… I wish I were with them. But I know it’s wrong, they’re both together already, let alone, Lumi knew me since I was small. She’d be against it, I’m sure.’

  An aching pain fills my chest, a pain of longing. I… I really do wish I could be with them. But I know it won’t happen.

  Sighing, I get out the bath, placing Oraxia down and doing a big stretch, my muscles popping and cracking from the cold that seeped into them.

  “Even if it helps heat, the cold still sucks.” Drying myself off, I sit on the toilet as I grab the blow dryer and use it on my tail. It’s way too fluffy to dry it otherwise.

  Feeling something fuzzy touch my leg, I look down, seeing Oraxia looking up at me and poking me with a foot. Then, once she sees I’m looking, she points at the blow dryer, then herself.

  Chuckling, I pick her up and place her on my lap, drying off her fur as well, hearing a content little hum from her. “Aww~”

  After a little while, I take her to my room and lay down in bed, holding her to my chest under the blanket and cuddling her to sleep.

  Just me and my little sis… or daughter… I don’t really know…

  Finally, it’s quiet, no sounds through the wall. Just me, Oraxia, and quiet breathing.

  Yawning, I nuzzle her head. “Night Oraxia…”

  And as I drift to sleep, I hear a quiet voice whisper in my mind, just like my parents used to tell me about, “Good night, Yuna.”