Dog of War

CWs:

Jess looked around the room, finding it free of anything that could possibly be called a ‘mess.’ She even pinged Claire, the Hab AI, just to make sure she didn't miss any—though she wished she hadn't. Interacting with the native Hab AI made her feel weird. It was too direct a reminder of what she'd been like before. She had managed to create a backdoor for herself, and could bypass her now. While that let her avoid interfacing with Claire, it didn't make the room any less immaculate. Every blanket had been laid out or folded to the side, every pillow was neatly arranged, and every plushie had its place. She had even vacuumed up the dirt, dusted, and picked up Daisy’s things.

 

Which was a shame, because she had been so close to overflowing her pleasure buffer.

 

With Miss Dawnbloom and Daisy’s plan, it was frustrations on frustrations. Calling it a ‘plan’ in the first place was being generous. Jess even checked her dictionary against several online ones just in case. A plan had steps and clear goals, what she was given was a rough draft for what could possibly become a plan. It was more of a series of loose ideas than anything.

 

Jess did trust them, and that they'd help, but the processes spawning doubts were hard to kill. According to Daisy, all she had to do was get Princess to think of her as ‘her maid,’ and the rest should come naturally. She had seen first hand, from a thousand angles, that Daisy had ways with Princess even Miss Verdun did not. She admittedly hadn't been there to see how weak she was for roleplay, but the pictures were some convincing evidence that she’d made sure to archive. For reference.

 

Roleplay had been the backup plan, truthfully. The main idea had been for Jess to get assertive with Princess. The flaw with that was twofold—Jess didn't know if she could do that, let alone with Princess, and more than that, she wanted Princess to be the dominant one. Daisy and Miss Dawnbloom had expressed concern, pointing out that the girls weren't exactly dominant, but Jess insisted.

 

Ergo, the maid outfit.

 

Jess took a moment to clear her data stream and straighten her clothes. It did feel pleasant to wear, and it looked great on her. Even without following the creator ID tag to her profile, it was clear that Nora Lutea was a digital sophont. The way it perfectly showcased her seams and joints in just the right way, and even let just enough of her breast forms be visible to see her inner workings, it could only be the work of a fellow program! It had only needed minor alteration to make it perfect. She'd likely end up making her own before long, but it would doubtlessly take after this one.

 

Even setting aside the desire to woo Princess, Jess found she enjoyed the maid play. It made her feel useful in a way that was different, but not entirely dissimilar, to her duties as a hab AI. The process was rewarding, deceptively simple, and figuring out how best to tackle various messes was stimulating! That she had also copied over some of the cleaning incentive code from the vacuum didn't hurt; nor did the hours of maid florn sims that she ran last night while multithreading, overlaid with Princess and herself even as they cuddled in the physical.

 

Jess received a ping from the alert system she had set up, notifying her that the door had received an open request—someone was coming in. Either Miss Verdun was back with Princess, or Daisy was about to track more mud in, both of which were good.

 

“Now, I have to help Cordelia get everything arranged for the move, but I'll be checking up on you often.” Miss Verdun glanced down at Jess as the door slid shut behind her, giving her a wink and signaling to wait a moment. “Jess or Daisy will be there with you the whole time, but if you need me for anything, just call and I'll be right there~”

 

“O-okay.”

 

Miss Verdun quickly rearranged cushions and pillows of the pet bed to make a place where Princess could rest while somewhat upright. Then her vines unraveled, and Princess was lowered into it, wearing an absolutely adorable outfit! Was Miss Verdun already regressing her, or just planning to? She was a bit of a little sprout already. Either way, she looked so precious! Jess could practically feel her directory swell as Princess’ dedicated algorithm recorded and organized every possible frame by level and type of cuteness. “There you are, nice and comfortable.”  

 

Princess whimpered, her lips pulling into that pout that made Jess’ cooling system whine as the vines withdrew. She was somehow hotter in the childish outfit, which was simply unfair. Something about how vulnerable she looked was making her processors chug.

 

Jess wasn't the only one weak to such a display. Miss Verdun couldn't keep her vines off the girl as they immediately returned to comfort her. “Awwh, I know it's hard for such a little princess, but I want you to stay strong for me, alright? You have Mr Bear, and look,” The Affini turned Princess to face her just long enough for Jess to give an awkward wave. “Jess is right here. I'm sure she'd love to cuddle with you, and Daisy will be done soon. Just make sure you get some sleep; you need lots of rest.”

 

“Mmn… yes, Mistress.”

 

“There's my good girl~” With that, Miss Verdun turned her attention to Jess, clearly struggling not to dote on Princess more. “I love your outfit, by the way, it's very... fitting.” Shivers of submission rocked her servos as the Affini hungrily took her in. “I'm sorry, but I can't give you the attention you deserve right now either. You'll take care of Princess for me, won't you?”

 

Jess steeled herself, and executed her plan with a curtsy. “Of course, Miss Verdun. It is my duty as her maid to see to the young lady's needs.”

 

There was a vine in the connecting seam between her neck and jaw. Sensors capable of determining micrometers lit up, analyzing it as it played along them, intrusion warnings filling her data stream. “Her maid, hm? Interesting.” More vines joined the first, in her antennae, in her wrist servos, where silicone and metal met. Jess cried out in static, she was sure she was going to have another soft crash again—it was too much input! Her buffer was already straining under the weight of the sensational input, and she couldn't crawl out from under the data stream enough to suspend touch simulation! The vines mercifully retreated on their own, just as the first critical error cropped up. “Well in that case I expect you to take good care of her.”

 

“Ye-ye-ye-ye—Of course, Miss!” Jess was thankful she thought to include a gyroscope, or else she surely would have lost balance.

 

“Wonderful, I'll be back to check in on the both of you later. You two have fun!” And then she was gone.

 

Princess’ sniffles helped Jess push through to clear the lingering data, rushing to her side to give her a hug. She wrapped her arms around her, helping squeeze the biorhythm emitter that was Mr Bear closer to her chest. “Awwh, it's okay Princess, I'm here for you and I'm not going anywhere.” Her PDSA was on the extreme side, and the treatment—given Miss Verdun didn't want a lap floret—called for plenty of cuddles and affection from other sophonts. Right now that meant Jess, and she would not fail.

 

Princess sniffled one last time, her pout giving way to an equally cute smile with a sigh. “Mm, you're comfy.”

 

Jess giggled, “Thank you, I think you're quite nice to cuddle too.” She was cuddling her, wasn't she? Just the three of them even, with no weird surges or instabilities cropping up. Maybe it was because she was doing it to take care of her, instead of something she personally wanted? A workaround that seemed easy enough to exploit.

 

“‘M eepy, can you cuddle us until we fall asleep?”

 

Jess decided to test it right away, pulling herself closer—to help comfort Princess better—and patting her head. “Yeah, like I said, I'm not going anywhere unless you want me to, alright?” It was undeniably nice to be this close to her, the gentle rise and fall of her chest pushing supple flesh into her fingers. The way Miss Verdun’s scent clung to her hair, itself thousands of delightful points of contact along her chassis. It definitely made her whir, but it wasn't as overwhelming as it used to be. Perhaps basing the interactions in the most stable parts of her code, the ones responsible for taking care of those within the hab, helped keep her stable too? Or maybe she was just a bit more confident after a night long cuddle session? Syr Rubus did say her emotional subroutines should get easier to handle with time. Something about Princess felt different regardless.

 

It warranted further trial.

 

Princess merely hummed in satisfaction, her eyes closing. Her breathing slowed as she quickly drifted off. It was cute, just how tired she was, tuckering out after just getting fed and dressed. It made Jess want to dote on her even more. She would doubtlessly be a natural little sprout. Maybe Miss Verdun would let her change her padding sometimes? If she decided to go for that of course, she could be misreading the whole situation.

 

If she wasn't, though...

 

The sim quickly spun up around her; Princess’ embarrassed look as Jess unceremoniously stripped- Wait, would teasing her first be more effective? She did love to be humiliated. No, removing it like it's normal and then teasing her a little about it when she got embarrassed. Ugh, she was already losing focus, and destabilizing the sim. The little gasps and whimpers as she, oh goodness, cleaning Princess—

 

[CRITICAL INSTABILITY: ABORTING SIMULATION]

 

Maybe sticking to cuddling was for the best.

 

 

-_-_-_-

 

A/N: This POV has basically all the CG/L and AgeReg for this chapter. We HIGHLY recommend skipping to the next pov segment, as well as the following chapter, if thats not your bag. We do plan to recap any important plot beats there in the chapter after that, making it essentially optional. CG/L and AgeReg will only be mentioned in passing afterwards, and rarely.

 

 

Princess spent most of the day drifting in and out of sleep. They were really tired, and Jess was really good at cuddling. At one point Daisy started cuddling them too! She didn't stay as long as Jess did, but she always came back to cuddle more. Apparently she was getting lots of pets from the Affini movers, and staying still all day made her antsy. Miss Dawnbloom also checked on them, giving them pets. She really wasn’t as annoying as they had thought. The best moments though were when Mistress came by. She'd pick them up, and pet them, and tell them what a good little princess they were being, and give them more xenodrugs! The worst parts were when She left. Mistress was right that it didn't hurt as much, but it still hurt.  

 

That didn't matter right now though, cuz one of the good parts was happening! Princess struggled to wake up as they felt Mistress get close. Their eyes were still all blurry as they felt Her vines wrap around them, putting them where they belonged. It only made Her look prettier as Her eyes danced around.

 

“Missstressss.” They giggled, the way they said it sounded funny!

 

“Hello, my little princess.” Mistress tickled their nose, and they giggled harder. “Dinner is ready.” Oh! That was even better than another cuddle session!

 

Gosh, when She calls us that though.

 

Princess felt their cheeks get all hot. They’d squirm, if they could move. “H-hiii.”

 

Mistress just smiled, and, oh stars. Whatever they were on made petting feel so good. Why didn't they let Her break them sooner? “Thank you for watching her, Jess. Will you be joining us?”

 

“It was my pleasure Miss, but I think I'd rather clean up now, I've been laying around all day.”

 

They heard Daisy squeal, and Miss Dawnbloom spoke. “I have dinner ready for you too, cutie~”

 

Next thing Princess knew they were being brought out of their floaty bliss—they sank so readily into the Affini now—to a plate of tangled noodles, covered in red sauce and meat. A second plate lay to the side with a tasty smelling bread, and a bowl held something green they had never seen before. “Spaghetti, garlic bread, and roasted broccoli for my growing girl~”

 

Huh? Growing?

 

We are still on Gs we guess, so technically we are? Whatever, it looks good.

 

That kinda made sense, even if it seemed like they were only getting smaller, and dinner did look good. Princess could hardly contain their excitement as vines laced into their mouth, while others helped them hold Mr Bear tight. Mistress made the best food! They were bouncing, if only mentally, as She span the fork in the noodles, collecting them, the sauce, and some meat. She moved it towards their mouth, singing, “Here comes the airship~”

 

What? Airship?

 

Princess blinked, confused as reality began to set back in around them. “Mistress?” What was She talking about? She'd been saying weird stuff like that all day now that they thought about it. Like the clothes, and the comments over breakfast, lunch, and now.

 

Mistress’ vines tensed up around them, and Princess felt Her rhythm grow anxious, making them feel bad in turn. “I—sorry, was that too much? We can stop if you want.”

 

“Stop? Stop what?” The fog in Princess' head may have cleared up, but thoughts were still clogged. “What's going on?”

 

“You don't—?” The tension in Mistress left like a great sigh. “Oh mulch, of course you don't know. How do I explain this? Let's see...” Her leaves and petals rustled for a moment, petting them as she thought it over. The petting continued as She spoke again. “So, sometimes, a cutie much like yourself enjoys being treated and acting like a child. This can be because they had a really bad childhood and want to reclaim an idealized form of it, or they enjoy it for other reasons, such as being carefree and taken care of.”

 

“But we never were a kid? We were grown in a vat.”

 

“You were what?!”

 

“Not now, petal.”

 

“Exactly.” Mistress continued, ignoring the other two across the table. “In fact, I think that's all the more reason to do it. Don't you think you deserve to have that experience?”

 

It sounded tempting. Princess had been an adult their entire life, after all. Their early years were nothing they liked to think about either. It also didn't sit quite right. “We're not sure, isn't that kinda weird? We're like, almost forty maybe, wouldn't it be weird?”

 

“Not at all. In fact, there's already a lot of things you do that fit into it, like being dressed, fed, and relying on others. Even how you always carry Mr Bear with you.” Mistress gave the plushie a poke.

 

That stuff counted? Princess loved that stuff!

 

We do act pretty childish with Mistress... Leaning into it a bit can't hurt, right?

 

“So what does, that, uhm—,” Princess paused, searching for the right words in the soup. “Like what new stuff would that be? How do we even do that? A-and for how long?”

 

“As for specifics, I'm still figuring out what you like best. It’s not the same for every little sprout after all, but it would involve a lot of what we've done today. Carrying you on my breast, clothes like what you're currently wearing, treating you like the good little girls you are.” They couldn't help but blush furiously at that, that gooey warmth pooling in their tummy again.

 

Oh we really like that last one.

 

Mistress continued, “And I was thinking just until you're off the Js, about nine days in all. Think of it like a nice little vacation. We can do more if you enjoy it, of course.”

 

We really wanna try it, plus a vacation sounds really good after everything, but there's still a big issue though.

 

“Uh-uhm—that sounds nice, but wouldn't we just feel the way we do now? We don't know how to really act or feel like a—like a kid.”

 

“Oh, just leave that to me.” Mistress sounded hungry, Her vines coiling around them.

 

“I-is—bout—Daisy?” Princess squeaked out. Everything was getting really foggy again, and dizzy, and fuzzy. The xenodrugs working to keep their heart from beating too fast? Their eyes searched for their pinnate in their swimming vision. They couldn’t make out her face, but they did find her shape.

 

“Huh? Why would I—” Daisy stopped as Miss Dawnbloom whispered into her ear. “Oh! Yeah, I'll be fine. I'll make sure to play with you lots, okay?”

 

“Okay.” Daisy's smile was so pretty, they loved her so much.

 

“Wonderful~” The vines holding Princess in Mistress' lap lifted them up, and turned them to meet Her eyes. Glistening, golden, and starving. “Now, be a good little girl and let Mommy handle the rest from here.” Any concern they might have had slipped from their mind, and with a prick, reality soon followed. Words pressed into them in-between the shifting, swirling colors. Things fluctuated within them, settling anew. Time lost all meaning as they were remolded, reshaped.

 

And Darkness took them.

 

Princess was in their Mommy's lap, Mr Bear held tightly with Her help. She was feeding them like usual cuz they weren't able to eat on their own like a big person. They were just a little girl after all. That's why Mommy was taking care of them until they were grown up again!

 

“Here comes the airship~”

 

“Aah.” Princess opened their mouth with Mommy’s help, and She placed some of the spaghetti in. A stroke and circle later She even helped them chew. It was super nummy!

 

The meat n’ sauce n’ cheese are so good!

 

Princess could feel how happy Mommy was! They would wiggle, but they were so sleepy and tired they could barely move, so they just hummed along. Hopefully Mommy was gonna put them in bed after, little girls like them needed their naps.

 

We only just started din-din though, we need to eat to grow up big and strong!

 

Nn, eating was what Mommy wanted them to do, and they haven't even tried all the stuff yet! Princess swallowed with a stroke, and was given some of the bread next. It was so warm and fluffy and soft, kinda like Mr Bear if he was eatable! Not as cuddly though, so Mr Bear was still better. The bread tasted somewhat like spaghetti did though, and was really tasty!

 

“Some florets for my darling floret.” Mommy said all smiley as She brought them a bite of the broccoli next. Princess giggled, they didn't really get it, but Mommy thought it was funny. She was so silly sometimes. It tasted so good, Mommy made the bestest food! It also had the same kinda taste to it but with more broccoliness, which made it that much better.

 

Maybe the same thingy in all of them?

 

That's probably it.

 

It's good, whatever it is.

 

That's about when the petting started getting a lot. Mommy was the best at that too. From light brushes of Her soft vines up their equally soft thighs, to scritches that hit the best parts of their neck and head, to soothing strokes that traced up and down their back. She could play them like an instrument, getting them to make any sound, melt, or focus at will. That they were really high probably helped of course.

 

Losing themselves in a meal was as easy as losing themselves in Mommy. Those were pretty much the same thing at this point anyways. She cooked the meals, fed them, played with them during, gosh, She was even helping them chew. She was even nice enough to remind them that little princesses didn't feed themselves, they were just cute and precious and listened to their Mommy. That made them feel all funny and happy inside.  

 

“Such good little girls for me, eating all your greens~” Mommy cooed as She carried Princess into the bathroom. Oh, the meal was over? Already? It was so hard to focus on anything besides their Mommy when She was around. It was good that they made Her happy though!

 

She was stripping them now, getting them ready for a bath. “Awww, looks like my little princess made a mess of her panties again. What am I going to do about you, hm?”

 

“Wha?” Oh no, did they do something wrong?

 

Mommy hummed for a long moment, before giving them a headpat. “Don't worry about it, okay petal?”

 

Okay. Yay.

 

Princess felt themselves drifting off again. They were sooo sleepy, and the water was so nice and so warm. Mommy washing them and scrubbing their hair was so nice too! She even let them know to hold their breath before pouring water on them. It seemed to go on forever as the scrubby soapy thing traveled up and down and up and down and up and...

 

When Princess came to, they were already out of the bath, and, oh! Daisy was being dried off next to them! They gave her a smile and a slurred, “hiii.”

 

“Heya, cutie.” Daisy was so pretty when she smiled. She almost glowed, like her owner did. “You looked like you were enjoying yourself today.”

 

“Yeahhh.” Princess was having a really good day. It was mostly a blur of petting, and napping, and kissing, and cuddling, but they enjoyed every moment. Well, minus the parts where Mommy left, but She was here and fixing their hair right now, so those were a distant memory. “Thanks for the hugs and staying with us and stuff.”

 

“Course! We'll cuddle lots more tomorrow! Tonight too, heh.” Daisy's smile grew brighter as she looked ever so slightly down at them.

 

Gosh we love her. How'd we get lucky enough to meet not just Mommy, but Daisy?

 

Princess could hardly think of how such little girls ever took care of themselves on their own, so it was a really good thing that they found someone to help. “Kiss?” They asked hopefully.

 

Daisy gave her answer, pressing her lips against theirs for one wonderful moment they had no trouble staying in.

 

“Love you,” mumbled Princess.

 

“I love ya too, ya dork.”

 

“Awww, you three are just precious!” Miss Dawnbloom exclaimed as Daisy melted under her touch. “Absolutely precious!”

 

Mommy may not need them anymore, but She was not an Affini that passed up excuses to pet them. Princess lost track of things again. The next bit was Mommy showing them their clothes for tonight. Another cute dress, but with more stuff going on than the one they had been wearing. It even let them see the just-as-cute beeple printed panties they were wearing from time to time. Maybe they were supposed to be bees? Whatever. It made them happy, and Mommy was happy, so they were perfect.

 

Mommy swept Princess up as they yawned. “Aww, did all that make my little princesses sleepy?”

 

“Mhm.” They were exhausted. They had slept all day and it wasn't remotely enough. Little girls needed lots of sleep. Mommy said something, but they were already drifting again. Then they were in bed, and She was tucking them in, and Daisy was cuddling up to them, and Mr Bear was in their arms. Mommy took such good care of them.

 

Mommy kissed their forehead as She slipped a needle into their thigh. “Goodnight, Princess.”

 

“Ni-ni.” They yawned. “We love you, Mommy.”

 

“I love you too, little one.” Princess fell asleep with a smile.

 

 

-_-_-_-

 

 

Camila collapsed into Cordelia’s—no, their alcove with a sigh. The large mossy bed felt wonderful after the long day.

 

Cordelia sat next to her, rhythm brimming with amusement. “If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were the one who was recovering from major surgery.”

 

Camila groaned. “Getting everything moved was more of a chore than I thought, and I couldn't even pet Princess as much as I wanted. Mulching post domestication separation anxiety.”

 

“From what I recall, someone insisted on moving all their equipment personally, and let their pet sleep in their vines despite its high potential for aggravating PDSA.” Cordelia lay down next to her, radiating smugness.

 

“Okay, I didn't move all of it, just the antiques. Affini or not, I'm not going to let someone handle early Rinan shortwave broadcasters who doesn't know just how delicate they are. And I remember someone,” Camila playfully jabbed at her lover, “who practically fused with me and insisted we let the pets sleep in our combined vines after I had told Princess no.”

 

“Hmm, I suppose I did.” Cordelia drew closer, her vines working into Camila's own, weaving their forms together as she lay down. “It was nice though, wasn't it?”

 

“It was.” Even if Camila didn't get any rest, and it was remarkably stressful, it didn't fully dampen having Princess in her vines, and her lover at her side. She much preferred this moment however, far from the anxieties of the day. They hadn’t had a proper moment alone since their relationship finally kicked off, too busy making sure the move went smoothly. Which reminded her—“Thank you again for the desk, by the way.” It had not just been an expertly grown, beautiful piece of living wood, but each compartment and cubby was bespoke to fit her equipment. It even had a pull out pet bed in one of them, just the right size for Princess.

 

“Of course. I've been saving it for today for some time, you know.”

 

Camila’s flowers bloomed in a blush. It had clearly taken at least a few months to grow, possibly longer. That gave no actual indication of how long it has actually been worked on. “When did you know?”

 

Cordelia pressed her chest against her own, their cores only separated by the vines housing them. “Know what, my love?”

 

Camila could entertain her, play along, but she had had enough of Cordelia’s games for a while. Instead, she unraveled her chest, exposing her core in a display of her affection, which echoed clearly through her rhythm. It felt so freeing, not having to hide them anymore. The clearest response she could make, one that language couldn't muddy or diminish.

 

An act that Cordelia mirrored. The light of her core catching countless angles off the large iridescent leaves that shaped her body. Her core pressed against hers, not with enough force to fuse but enough that they were connected. The feeling of her lover pressed against her was nothing short of electric. No words were spoken. They communicated in the old ways; smells, exact touches of vines on others, directly sharing their thoughts and feelings with each other.

 

‘I love you. I waited so long. I love you. I was so afraid to lose you. I love you. I tried to tell you. I love you. I would have waited blooms for you. I love you. You mean everything to me. My nourishing sun. My guiding moonlight. I love you. I love you. I love you.’

 

They poured everything into each other. Their wants, their feelings, their joy at finally being united. Camila felt so silly for ever thinking Cordelia didn't return her affections as they met her own. She loved her as much, if not more, and there was no confusion about what each of them wanted as their biorhythms synchronized. A partner, a friend, a lover, someone to rely on. Perhaps something more, eventually.  

 

Their forms had become fully entangled by the time they finally parted cores. As much as resting like that would have been bliss, they would have surely fused. Maybe one day they’d both want that, but that wasn't today.  

 

For now, they just dozed off in each other's vines, enjoying the afterglow of the connection as it echoed between their rhythms.