Chapter 13

Game Day. It felt a lot different than the previous week. In the run-up to the first game session, I’d had a little bit of the New Campaign Jitters; just a bit of excitement to start something new, and with a new group.

In session 2 of a campaign I was usually still getting a feel for the characters, and looking for a way to really kick things into gear while giving the players the chance to flex their muscles a little bit to establish the new personalities and how they interacted with the world. I’d have a stack of notes to give each player a personal hook or two in the next few sessions, and by session 5 we’d be deeper into the plot and things would unravel naturally as I managed the world and the minds of the antagonists more than a specific plot.

I had two scribbled notes and a vague plan. I felt woefully underprepared compared to normal and would be improvising a lot for the session. It wasn’t even that I wasn’t used to trying to plan potentially sexy moments - sometimes they happened impromptu in the regular group, and sometimes I had something set up ahead of time just like a set piece boss battle.

No, sex didn’t scare me at all.

The college coeds did.

The doorbell rang, about fifteen minutes before game time, and I went and let Rhia in.

“Hey, Shane,” she said, stepping in and giving me a big hug just like usual. Nothing weird about it, except I was a little more... aware of her chest pressing against me.

“Hey, Snorey,” I said. “Come on, we need to talk quickly.”

“That’s why I’m here early,” she said, following me into the game room. She’d brought her backpack again, probably holding her costume and gaming accessories, and was wearing a simple crop top T-shirt that hugged her bust enough that I could see the outline of her bra and showed off her thin stomach. Simple black yoga leggings covered her from the waist down.

I gestured for her to sit in the seat she’d picked for the game, and I pulled out the chair that Elyse would occupy next to her rather than going to my DMing chair at the head of the table. I didn’t want this to feel like it was necessarily an Authority vs Player conversation.

“So what’s up?” she asked. “Is this about what Mom agreed to?”

I gave her a deadpan look. “Rhia, what else would this be about?”

“Well, you did say you would go along with it if my parents said yes, and they did,” Rhia said.

“I know,” I said. “But we still need to talk about it.”

“Shane,” she said, looking a little hurt. “You promised! Don’t fucking back out now.”

“I’m not- God, Rhia. I’m not backing out, stop looking like you’re going to pout,” I said, and she looked a little abashed and sat up a little taller, wiping the worry from her face. “We need to talk about how what you want could actually happen. I know your Mom told you it’s a process, and doesn’t just start, but did she tell you anything else?”

Rhia screwed up her face a little. “Vaguely? I mean, she didn’t want to get into any details really, which I guess is fair. But I just assumed that you’d be able to guide it.”

“I can’t,” I said. “I mean, I can provide opportunities for things to escalate, and nudge things to be more comfortable, but...” I stopped to take a breath. “What do you think the reaction would be if you guys went to meet with a shopkeeper and he said, ‘I’ll sell you this sword for ten gold, or I’ll give you a 20% discount for a blowjob?’”

“He’d sound like a creep,” Rhia said.

“And, if it came out of nowhere?” I asked.

Rhia’s eyes opened wider and she sighed. “You would sound like a creep, too,” she said.

“Right. And I definitely don’t want to be known as the creepy old guy to your friends,” I said. “For a whole host of reasons, that would be very bad. So I can’t ask, or demand, anything from you guys. With your parent’s group, we know each other’s lines and turn-ons and turn-offs so sometimes I can be forward to the right people and it leads to stuff, where in any other setting it would be seen as creepy as hell.”

“So I guess me just offering a blowjob to the theoretical shopkeeper would be a bit of a harsh starting point too, even if it is just a game,” Rhia frowned.

“Probably,” I said. “You know Tori and Elyse better than me, but they seem like they can take a joke. Comfortability, and making things feel normal at the table, is a process.”

“So what you’re saying is that I need to be the one to start things,” Rhia said. “And it needs to be slow.”

“Correct,” I said. “You need to ... you need to seduce the party.”

Rhia snorted softly and smirked. “I don’t think I’ve ever seduced anyone. I’ve always been the one getting seduced, or chased.”

“Well, think of it as practice for when you find the guy or girl you really do think is worth it,” I said.

“OK,” Rhia nodded. “I can do that. Um, do you have any suggestions on how to start?”

“Flirty stuff between you and the others,” I said. “I realised after we talked that you must have picked Revelry as Olivia’s deity of choice so that it wasn’t an obvious ‘Lust’ thing but gave you some freedom to be sexy. I think that will help. You can flirt with NPCs too to normalise that.”

“Just flirting?” she asked. “That feels ... pretty slow.”

“Well, what would be the next step to seducing someone after flirting?” I asked.

“Kissing,” she said. “Or physical touch over the clothes. Or - well, I guess dirty pictures wouldn’t work in fantasy land, but ... flashing?”

“If you think the situation is right,” I said. “A lot of it will be about vibes in the room.”

“OK,” Rhia nodded, then took a breath. “Thanks, Shane. For taking this seriously. For taking me seriously. I know this is a big, weird thing I dropped on you and my parents. It means a lot that you’re willing to do this.”

I sighed and shook my head slightly. “I’m still a little in shock, honestly. But the hypocrisy element is real. I can’t tell you not to want it.”

“Well, you’re not a hypocrite, and you’re a fantastic, mature, real person in my life,” Rhia said. “And I appreciate you so much.”

Now I nodded and smirked a little. “Thanks, Rhia. That’s- Well, I guess that’s what I always wanted, but I never thought it would be like this. Come on, help me grab some sodas from the beer fridge in the garage.”