They sat in silence for a long while, Lilith humming softly as she worked her magic through Vaela's scalp.
Steam curled through the air around them. Vaela lay in silence, flicking at bubbles and tracing lines around her breasts. But her mind stews in deep contemplation.
"What's cooking in here, kitten?" Lilith asks softly as she rubs Vaela's head. "Can practically hear the gears turning. Talk to me."
"I-It's… nothing. Really. I'm just a little drunk and too… too emotionally fucked up." she cried.
"Oh, kitten. What's wrong?"
"I had no idea it would be like this…" Vaela murmurs. "This curse… I honestly thought it was a blessing at first. You've given me everything I could ever dream of. But I didn't think I'd become some kind of irresistible siren. I thought I could help, in my own weird way. Maybe make the world a better place. But this…"
Lilith's fingers froze. She breathed. Then started again. Slower… deeper.
"Fate doesn't always give us the tools we want, kitten." she purred gently. "But sometimes… sometimes it gives us the tools we need. It's up to us how we use them."
Vaela sinks deeper into Lilith's chest, hands quivering and her jaw clenched.
"Sometimes… I feel like I'm forgetting about me… the real me. Vaela. And it scares me. Vanessa Moonblood's just a fantasy. It's not me… not who I really am. Not who I want to be. But… but why does it feel like I'm becoming someone else? Like this thing is changing who I am?"
"Because you are changing." Lilith chuckles. "It's called growth, honey. It's actually a really good thing, trust me. And, yes… sometimes it can hurt. Growth stretches you and bends you and sometimes it'll even break you. But you—the core of who you are? The reeeeal you. Like a diamond. Unbreakable. You just have to decide. Are you going to control this curse, or are you gonna let the curse control you?"
Vaela sighed softly, her shoulders dropped and her jaw loosened. And deep within her, something stirred.
"It's a gift." she whispered. "Not a curse. And I want to use it for something good. I need to. There's so much hurt out there. Hearts that have never felt love, warmth… just someone who shows they care, you know. That's what I want to do. Not transactional. Not magical seduction. Just pure… love."
"A bit naive if you ask me… but, you've already done so much, kitten. More than you realise. You've shown me paths to pleasure that… that I think I've been waiting to see for a really, really long time. There's something about you… can't quite put my finger on it yet. But you're definitely special, Vaela."
Vaela blushes as she smiles.
"And—please don't hurt me for saying this—I think you should give that salted-caramel-looking man a chance."
"Kai?" she asks, turning her head slightly.
"Mmmhmm. I have a good feeling about him. Doesn't hurt that he's Aquarian royalty and shaped like divine punishment. Admit it. You're a little curious."
Vaela flusters. "Maybe. A little."
"Of course." Lilith purred, her fingers now sliding between Vaela's ears. "Maybe a little more than curious?"
Vaela groaned and sank lower into the water. "Fine, yes, maybe. I might want to get to know him, see what's his deal. But no seduction. No magic. Just… curiosity."
"Lilith grinned devilishly. "Curiosity… some call it the first step to conquest."
"And some call it 'shut you demon mouth'!" Vaela spat, flicking water at the cackling imp.
Vaela eventually falls asleep beneath Lilith's expert hands.
She carries Vaela out of the water as gently as a cloud, dries her off with a puff of magic and tucks her into the silk sheets where she snores like a milk-drunk kitten.
"You're definitely special." Lilith murmurs to herself as she tenderly strokes Vaela's hair.