"Tadaaaaa! What do ya think?" Amethyst resounded as we caught up to her, where she was standing outside a much nicer building than before, in the main marketplace of Castellum. It was built from clean stone bricks, and a wooden sign was displayed in front reading Castellum Tailory and Clothing.
Really? Why was I getting dragged along to a clothing store? I wore the same outfit almost every day. Why change it if it works? As long as I could fit into my armor, that's all that mattered.
"Draven, you only ever wear one outfit, it's gross!" Amethyst gagged.
Can she read my mind, or was it just that obvious?
Yeah, I'm getting out of here. I started to turn with my hand half raised in a goodbye.
"This looks fun, Miss Amethyst! We don't have stores like this back in my village."
Tia's sweet voice chimed in my ears, pulling me back towards the pair. What was wrong with me? It's like I couldn't control myself. It's like this boy I barely knew was pulling my heartstrings like I was a puppet, just by existing.
"Oh, where are you from, Tia?" I asked, I didn't know that much about him now that I was thinking about it.
"I-I'm from a small village called Edenwood northwest of here."
I hadn't heard of it.
"Hmm, why does that sound familiar?" Amethyst pondered to herself, tilting her head like a confused puppy. Tia shrugged his narrow shoulders in response.
"So why are we here now, Amethyst?"
"That's obvious, silly. To buy new clothes!" she cheered, receiving a small applause from Tia.
"So why do I need to be here?"
"Hmm, think of it as party bonding!"
Jeez, I was the party leader! If I said we needed more party bonding than we would bond! But fuck, maybe she's right, and how bad could it be?
"And I thought Tia here might be more comfortable with another boy." An evil, teasing grin swept across her face, and her long elvish ears began to look like the horns of a succubus.
Tia once again grew flush and fiddled with his skirt. He stared up at me with pleading eyes and the most arousing lips I had ever seen.
Oh god, fine, let's see how this goes.
"Does it look good on me, Draven?" Amethyst was spinning around in front of me, wearing a thin cloth tunic that was 3 sizes too small for her. I could see her purple bra underneath, and her breasts squeezed out of the top, bouncing endlessly as she showed off.
"I uhhh, yea, looks good…" I gulped.
"Hmm, what do you think, Tia?"
He was staring down the large chest that Amethyst presented, with puffed-out cheeks; the air around him seemed to swirl in a covetous aura. He couldn't seem to come up with a response.
"Excuse me!" Amethyst called out to the short, elderly man who ran the store. "How much for this?"
"80 gold coins, young lady," he returned, with a warm, honest smile.
She cursed under her breath, "80 for this rag? Tsk, it doesn't even hold my boobs right." She then left, presumably to return, and hopefully not steal the tunic.
"D-draven?" Tia called out to me in a bashful whisper.
"What's up?" I turned to him, meeting his pretty gaze as he opened his lips to speak.
"W-hat do y-ou think of mine?"
He had changed out of his normal priest robes and was now wearing a short-sleeve cotton shirt that clung tightly to his slender frame. The shirt was a bright white, and the material was thin, making it seem almost translucent upon his porcelain skin. I could see more of his body now than I ever had before.
This was the first time I even somewhat believed he was a boy. Despite his undeniable femininity, I could now see that his shoulders were relatively wide, as well as the definition in his abdomen through the dainty shirt he was trying on. These features did nothing to lessen the allure of his body and only seemed to enhance his hourglass shape and the curvaceousness of his lower half.
I couldn't stop staring as Tia waited patiently for a response with red cheeks and teasing eyes.
Fuck, what do I say? I wasn't even thinking about the shirt anymore; his angelic body had completely seduced me, taking over every thought in my mind.
God, how was I even in this situation right now? I blame Amethyst!
"You-" I paused. If I wanted to answer honestly, I would no doubt sound like a complete pervert, but I can't say it looks bad, which of course wasn't true, and might upset him.
"It-It's a nice shirt. You look nice in it." I finally dribbled out, still unable to peel my eyes off of him.
With my response, Tia's face erupted with joy.
"You think I look nice, hehe?" he asked, and I nodded yes in response.
"You know, Draven, if you like looking, I don't mind." He moaned softly; his usual nervousness was nowhere to be found. Instead, his expression exuded pure, erotic charm. He held one thin finger to his lips, and his sinful eyes pierced my soul.
I was definitely going crazy now.
I'm just imagining this, right? Like, my mind is just showing me what I desire, right?
That has to be it! I must not have gotten enough sleep last night.
"Tia! That shirt is soooo cute!" Amethyst bubbled as she returned to us just in time. I had no idea what I was going to say to Tia if we were left alone there any longer.
"Th-thank you, miss Amethyst." Tia stuttered out. So I was just imagining it, he seemed back to his normal, shy self now.
"You should get it! Also, follow me, there's one more thing I want to look at."
What could she possibly need now? We followed her to the other side of the store before she stopped and faced Tia with a playful grin. Before us lay a neatly organized display of…
Panties?!
God, really, why was I even here?
"Hm, Tia?" Amethyst started, brimming with curiosity, "Do you wear panties?"
"Y-yes"
"But, you're a boy, right?"
"Yes, of course."
"So how does… it all… fit down there?" She teased, choosing her words wisely.
Tia jerked up in shock and then froze in nervousness; his entire face grew flush with a deep red. His pretty lips stammered as he tried to come up with an appropriate response.
I don't blame him; it was a personal question. Why was Amethyst even asking this in the first place! Now that she brought it up, though, I was a little curious about the lewd details.
"Well- um… It's kind of like- well…" Tia whimpered out. He looked at me pleadingly.
Don't look at me! What am I supposed to say?
This was definitely Amethyst's fault…
"Fine, fine. It can be a secret for the boys." Amethyst grinned, glancing between Tia and me with teasing intentions.
Tia was now playing with his skirt again, and I was beginning to daydream of what was underneath.
I cleared my throat awkwardly to break the sexual tension and put an end to Amethyst's attempts at playing cupid… or whatever she was trying to do here.
"I- uh, I think we should be heading out soon. It's getting pretty late."
"Sooo boring, Draven. But fine, I got everything I needed."
She definitely stole that tunic.
"Tia!" I called out to him politely, and he looked up at me, his cheeks still cherry red. "Let's meet at the guild tomorrow morning and make everything official. I'm glad to have you in our party."
"U-understood!" He replied, trying to appear professional, but he was just too adorable for it. I couldn't help but smile in response.
I waved the old storekeeper goodbye and made my way back onto the city streets. Tia and Amethyst joined me outside after paying for his new shirt.
"After you're officially a party member, we'll look for an easy quest we can do to get you some more training."
Tia's eyes glittered in excitement, and he gave me a determined nod.
"Don't be late, Amethyst."
"I would never!"
"See you tomorrow, Tia."
We said our goodbyes and each went our separate ways home. I turned back to look at Tia one more time. The golden sunset mingled with his long hair and cast his hourglass silhouette in long shadows.
I think I'm going to like this new healer.