Lily was in chains. Not literally, her arms and legs were not bound, nor was her mind. She could think, feel and taste. No, her chains were not of metal, they were of a dreadful sense. A grounding as the world seemed to halt around her, her mind racing as she felt the hairline scar on her neck. The product of a procedure that she’d hoped was months in advance, maybe even years if she played her cards right. Now? Those plans were no longer to be set in motion, her schedule seeming to have rushed past her before she even realized it.

“This can’t be real… who of you did this to me?” Her voice broke, there was a strange pushing of her thoughts as if a broom slowly brushed away the anxious thoughts in her head. She tried to push past it, to collect them, yet it felt evasive to her mind, even as she clutched on some. She still had a few more days, a little less than a week, she could have had control. She needed to have control, to decide.

Her mind was splitting. Thoughts flowing and eluding her as she tried to wrap herself around it, not being able to even worry of what the consequences of such an experience would be as those worries escape her grasp.

“It was a medical decision, I'm dear. After the first day we had an emergency meeting on your mental state and possible options. To install a generic implant into you to assist as a regulatory system for your mind. It has no core, I promise. The implant was only created in order for your fractured mental state to return to normalcy.”

A weight slowly lifted itself from her, the chains were still there, the reminder that her time was ticking. Yet another piece binding her to her inevitable fate. A part of her felt relieved at that, as if the realization that each step closer to her domestication was one less step to worry about in the future.

There was another part of her, deeper, primal. It felt disappointment, it felt the yearning for her pain to disappear, the little box that she kept hidden, that she avoided looking at too much, starting to tremble with excitement. Through the fear of such a part of her mind, she felt a gentle tug, a soft reminder that she needn’t look at that part just yet, that it shouldn’t be something she need worry about now. Her mind soon returned to the surface, reality as she looked at the concerned expression of Tara.

“Hm? What is it?”

“You weren’t responding when I tried to talk to you, is everything alright babe?”

Blushing profusely, her cheek turning red as her mouth opened like a fish out of water, flustered and wordless. She started into Tara’s eyes, dumbfounded. Her heart thrummed, that word filled her with a strange joy as she looked down at the affini lap in embarrassment. It had been long since she properly heard it, and it didn’t fill her with guilt, or pain, or loneliness. A few tears were streaming down her face.

“That word… can you say it again?”

“What? Babe?”

There was a movement, a flow, like a river. Fast and raging, filling Lily’s mind. Euphoria mixed with an almost feral catharsis as the sound of the word verberated through her mind. It felt good, like the whole world was somehow right in those few seconds that the words were spoken, the air holding them close, bouncing off the walls.

In the moments that the word was spoken, Tara looked deep into the eyes of her subject. She stared, the same intense, dominating, enthralling stare of the subjugator that wrapped itself around them. She smiled, gods, that soft smile. Ever knowing, ever clever. A smile that Lily fell in love with 5 years ago, was falling in love with.

“I love you Lily, I’ve missed every moment that you are not in my arms, that I can call you babe~.”

Lily’s body trembled, in the cathartic, euphoric moment. In the split second it took for her mind to hear the sweet words, the rhythm, the melody. She felt terrible sadness. Sadness that caused her body to shake, her eyes to water, her mind to reel. She remembered the pain that she caused herself by ridding the woman in front of her from her life. Ripped from her life, she thought of what pain she caused to Tara, to her lover.

She was crying, tears flowed freely down her cheeks. It felt right, to cry at this moment, to let herself fall. Emotions continued to well as she wrapped her arms around Tara, pulling the girl close to her chest as she continued to weep. Her grip tightening as she smelled the floral scents of her hair. Felt the warmth of her skin, the softness of it. As breath played down her neck. She took it all in and wept. Letting herself cry, smile and relish in the moment.

“Hey Lily, wanna try class-J at some point?”

The show turned out to be pretty fun to watch, the story arc and character developments felt much more natural than anything she’d expect from a B-rate show like what she was expecting. Apparently, the floret cuts were rewritten and revoiced in order to create a more clear and precise story. Hell, some fight scenes that were important to the plot were even reanimated in order to ensure that the flow was consistent while avoiding possibly distressing moments in the story.

“I don’t really know. Maybe, at some point, Candy and Evie both told me how fun it was, but I also just don’t know if it’ll be something I’d like.”

Tara was laying atop Lily’s chest, head pressed neatly between her breasts. Tara could hear the “heart”, it didn’t beat like a human’s. The planttech heart gave off a rhythm akin to that of an affini core more than that of a heart. It was pleasing to listen to, it sounded akin to Elowin at times, especially when she was close by.

“It’s always nice to try, and now that you’re gonna be staying here for the next week, maybe we could try out some of the perks of being a floret.”

The two affini weren’t in the room with them, Elowin was making dinner in the kitchen, while Echona was busy with paperwork over her last few wellness checks. Even so, vines were placed next to the girls to clutch onto if there were any issues or requests. The black and red roses twisting around the more colorful array of flowers that were of the respective affini.

“I… would like to not think over my inevitable fate Tara. As much as I know it’s coming, I don’t want to suddenly be dragged into something that I still don’t wish for.”

Tara didn’t understand, in the months she’d spent with Echona, she was taken care of and given all of her needs, wishes and wants. Even now, she finally got back her biggest desire as she nuzzled into Lily. The warm, soft skin made her mewl softly as the implant fills her with class-As to enhance the experience. Every point of contact exploded with a euphoric heat that made her nuzzle further. Lily could feel it too, the desire to touch and feel. It grew on her skin like an itch that was scratched off when Tara pressed herself closer. The desire to feel her lips growing as she moved in, not caring all of a sudden about anything but feeling soft warm lips against hers.

The kiss was exhilarating, the warmth of their lips radiating into each other as arms wrapped waist. They stayed there for a moment, a second, two seconds. Lips breaking contact as they both caught the air that was escaping them in heavy panting heaves. Tara was upon Lily in that split second. Body pushing down body as lips connected, their hands exploring each other as the lips parted to let their tongue explore. Each second that passed made their mind’s fuzzier, losing themselves in the hedonistic embrace.

Lips parted once more, the panting growing heavier as a line of saliva pulled itself between them before it broke, hair was plastered on each other's faces. How long had they been going at it? It felt like a split second and an eternity. Even as thoughts slowly pressed its way through her heavy mind, another kiss came. This one as insistent as the last as moans escaped pressed lips. Lily closed her eyes, at this moment, time was irrelevant. All she cared for was the embrace of her.

The kissing eventually ended, hair was frayed, matted, and stuck to Lily’s skin. Tara was still on her, keeping her captured as the flower eyed girl softly pet her hair. There was a content moan as the girl weakly leaned into the petting. Her breath heavy, excitement still plain as she starts to softly kiss the skin available to her. The neck was indeed quite a place to softly press lips against as Lily shuddered with each soft nip.

Lily’s smile faded for a moment, what had she done to deserve this? Her thoughts muddled as she tried to grasp at that thought. She didn’t know why, but a part of her screamed to grasp at it. It made her body shiver as Tara kissed more. It felt both right and wrong, her mind starting to muddle more as she slowly tried and gently urged Tara off. She- her hands were green, as if vines slithered around them, no that they were vines. She blinked, the hands were normal.

Before any more thoughts could spring from such an experience, Echona entered the living room, gently petting Tara and urging her off Lily. Cradling her in her arms. Soft mewling and whines of protest being heard from Tara before being cut off by a vine softly rubbing her cheek, her eyes closing as she nuzzles into it. Lily lay there for a moment longer, looking down at her hands before Elowin returned from the kitchen.

“Dinner is ready, so I suggest we get you petals on the dining table before it grows cold”

Elowin filled up two bowls with the broth she was simmering, an egg in each, some vegetables of both terran and non-terran descent, and finally something called “noodles”. The long strings of wheat and water have been boiled for less than a minute before being placed in a bowl. The broth was an assortment of vegetables that were broiled before mixed and boiled with water and some plants known to humans as “herbs”.

The dish, known in terran as “Ramon”, was one of Tara’s favorites as the girl’s eyes lit up when the two bowls were placed in front of the two sophonts. Another two bowls, a lot bigger than the terrans’, were placed in front of Elowin and Echona, a vine snaking from each body into the bowl as they sucked up the tasty broth water.

“Ramen! Oh my god, thank you miss Elowin!”

Tara jumped up and down as a vine slowly rubbed down her jaw, her mouth opening in response as a spoonful of broth, ramen and some vegetables were placed into it. Her mouth closed with another movement of her vine as she started to chew, an excited moan escaping her as she closed her to enjoy the flavors filling her mouth. Several chews later, the vine returned, slowly running down the girl's neck so she could swallow. The process repeated a few moments later as Lily watched on in morbid curiosity before looking down at her bowl and more carefully started to slurp up the noodles.

“Something on your mind dear?”

Elowin could see on Lily, feel her, as she shuffled. Something was worrying her, her implant seeming to quell what would be a nervous breakdown as she took another bite. Her hand clenched, Elowin moved a vine to the girl’s shoulder and squeezed it. It seemed to break a wall that Lily had put around her as her mouth opened.

“I don’t really get it… you, Echona, Tara. I haven’t really been the nicest to you, and yet here you are, providing food, love and comfort. I… just don’t get it.”

Her hand clenched a little tighter before suddenly loosening, a soft gasp escaping her, so minute that the terran wouldn’t even realize as Elowin knew the implant was slowly adding a microdose of Class-E and Class-F in order to help Lily relax as Elowin moved closer, slowly petting Lily’s head, her look of surprise quickly turning into enjoyment as she leans into the vine. Her body relaxing as Elowin’s voice reverberates into the terran’s body. The suddenness made Lily’s eyes go wide, looking at Elowin with a stunned silence.

“Because you deserve it dear, you’ve harmed yourself in the process of avoiding us. Tara’s told us just how wonderful you are and we know she doesn’t lie about such stuff, am I right?”

A nod from the terran, a smile from Elowin as her vines loosened, her form becoming more loose and easy.

“Good. Now finish your meal and then you can cuddle Tara in bed, if you want, and the little one agrees, it can be between the two of you.”

A vine slowly moved down Lily’s jaw as her mouth opened, a blush escaping her as she looked into the impossibly beautiful eyes. While her mind spent minutes taking in the beauty, Elowin had the opportunity to help feed the little one as she slowly trained in the motions. Once Lily finally freed herself, the affini moved away, smiling and shivering as she looked at her eating, eating quicker than before.

A part of Lily that day felt nothing but fear, another felt joy, one felt safety, and one, deep in her mind, silent but growing, felt a want.

Once the meal finished, Elowin slowly took the leftovers and added them into the stasis chamber as Echona went to dress the two girls for bed. Elowin stood there for a moment, thinking. She thought of that look, how beautiful Lily was when she smiled, relaxed. She thought of the flower shop, when she looked into the flowered eyes, the soft smile. She’d felt the slow, methodical, delicate hands. She wanted her, but she was still unsure, still worried as the memory of Lily in her arms, blood pouring from a gut wound made her twist up. She wanted Lily, but could she protect her? Keep her safe?

She didn’t realize that Echona was finished until the affini slowly moved vines to connect to hers, her rhythm soft and calming, like a whisper of a wind, calming the stubborn oak as Elowin slowly loosened, and relaxed into her vines.