Heartstone

Goblins

It was some time before Arwin and Kalla had satiated themselves enough to talk. She lay close to him, one bare leg draped over him, her arm on his chest.

He cuddled her close with one arm. "So, tell me. What's the life of a nymph like?"

Her face lit up. "It's wonderful! We care for the nearby forest and all of its creatures. Our healing magic helps us cleanse trees, other plants, and animals of disease. When babies are left without parents, we raise and care for them. We do our best to prevent unwelcome forest fires or help the land through its rebirth after necessary fires. And we protect the living things here from hunters and loggers and polluters."

"Wow! Seems like a lot of hard work." He was honestly impressed.

She shook her head. "It's not so bad. The forest mostly takes care of itself. We spend much of our days in play and having fun. Of course, some types of play are a lot more fun than others," she teased, tracing her finger around his body and giving him a little nibble on his earlobe. "Don't you agree?"

Arwin laughed. "Oh, I do. I really, really do."

"We spend most of the time playing with each other. Which is nice. But I love it when a male comes to visit." Her hand descended lower and delicately caressed his most intimate parts.

He compared her lifestyle to his own back home and how many people lived: working forty-plus hours a day at jobs they hated while most of their labour was siphoned off to create more billionaires the world didn't need. And all the problems that came with that: loneliness, depression, stress, and financial hardship. "Maybe nymphs have the right idea about how to enjoy life. In fact, maybe we should all act a little more like nymphs."

She tried to snuggle even closer. "I'm glad I make you happy."

"You do. And I am." He thought about his life. "I've been lost recently, and I don't know what I'm going to do with myself in the future. It feels like my whole life up until now has just been wiped away, and now I'm starting over from the beginning. Only I'm not a kid anymore. It's frustrating and scary. If I were still back home, I don't know what I'd do. Find some other job, I guess. Or try to keep teaching. But in some bizarre twist, I ended up in a new place. It's only been a short while, and it's already been an incredible adventure. Things have been so new, so different, and so stimulating that I haven't had a lot of chances to be miserable or lost." He looked into her eyes and squeeze her hand with his. "This has been good for me. Thank you. I really needed this."

She gave him a languid smile, and her hand rubbed his bare chest. "You needed me?"

"Yes."

"Glad to be of service." She giggled. "We do have powers of healing. Not all wounds are of the body, are they?"

Arwin nodded. "Maybe not even the worst ones."

Her voice became teasing. "You seemed to really enjoy our special kind of health care."

"My emotional and physical health feels recharged. Though I do feel rather exhausted after being subjected to your methods."

They both laughed.

Hand in hand, Arwin and Kallalypsa emerged from the bushes to rejoin the other nymphs. Arwin had a massive grin plastered across his face. Nymphs are awesome.

A colourful garden of sensual females looked up at the pair with longing but no jealousy in their eyes. They had been conversing together under the shade of a broad-leafed tree, the women at ease and lazily enjoying each other's company. The excitement and teasing they'd displayed for Arwin earlier were largely gone, though the behaviour would likely return as he physically recovered his ability to mate.