Maia heard a snap ringing out, and their thoughts all suddenly rushed back. They couldn't tell if it'd been a week, or a month,  or... "Urgh... What?!" They quickly ripped off the humiliating dress and tutu, noticing Pyotr nearby ripping off a similarly mocking outfit. Drossie lay next to the bed, still getting up, and on the bed... That Demoness held Clara in her clutches! Maia and Pyotr immediately raised their weapons, but the Demoness was unconcerned. "RELEASE OUR FRIEND, D-" The Demoness calmly shushed them. "Shhhhh~... The poor little mouse needs her sleep~... Do not worry, I did not harm her~..." Maia looked at the sleeping hellborn before her. She did look quite happy like this, but charmed subjects usually did. And she certainly didn't look unharmed! Her left horn was gone! Pyotr stepped forward, brandishing a wooden sword. "Unhand our friend, or we will-" The Demoness glared at him and sent forth a small gout of flame from her tail, pushing Pyotr back. "Your friend almost died trying to save you, do her the respect of not making me want to enslave you again, Poyotair~" She gently stroked where Clara's broken left horn used to be with her soft hair. "Poor thing saved far more than you, besides~... My brother is quite destructive~... She truly deserves a rest~..." Maia and Pyotr looked at each other. As much as they hated it... They should stand down. Clara looked happy, and she did save them... So they backed away, letting the demoness stroke and coddle their friend, their blissfully sleeping friend.

The party stood around the room for a while, Maia keeping an eye on Clara's sleeping form, until Pyotr loudly spoke up. "So," the Demoness glanced at him, and he immediately lowered his voice, "uh, so, are we just supposed to stand around here then?" The Demoness laughed softly. "Of course not, Poyotair~ Feel free to explore my mansion if you like~! You can go anywhere you wish, Except the Kitchen," She glared at Drossie, who averted her gaze, "as long as you promise not to break anything~! My maid will be happy to keep an eye on you~" The party looked at her in suspicious surprise. Maia spoke up. "Really? You aren't worried about us doing anything? Or planning to trap us?" The Demoness grinned. "Of course not~! I so rarely have guests to appreciate my decorations of their own free will~ And as for you doing anything, well," she rubbed Clara's head, "I do have your little mouse as a hostage~" Her tone was half-joking, and Pyotr swallowed. "Uh... Right! Well... I, uh... I guess I'll go look for... Uh... stuff..." He backed away nervously, and the Demoness smiled. "Your gear is in my storage room at the end of the hallway, Poyotair~ I ensured it was kept separate from the rest of my spoils~ My maid will unlock it for you~" He cleared his throat, taken aback. "Ahem, uh, well, I wasn't, uh... Thanks..." He slinked away, Drossie following behind. "I'm gonna talk to the maid, she seems fun!" The Demoness chuckled, and then looked over at Maia. "Are you not going with them, little celestial~?" Maia softly shook their head. "No. I... Wish to watch over Clara... Make sure you don't hurt her..." The Demoness smiled mockingly. "What a good friend you are~..." Maia looked away, not responding. The Demoness knew full well they weren't...

Many hours passed, and the Demoness continued coddling Clara. Maia found their own body relaxing as they watched, almost feeling the gentle caresses themselves. Clara wasn't the only one who had needed to rest... They couldn't remember much from their time under the Demoness's spell, but it was certainly... Relaxing, that much they could tell. They felt a lot less angry now... Less snippy than usual... The irony of being a cleric of the Goddess of Sweetness yet always being so bad at being nice never escaped them... They just hoped that Clara- 

Their introspection was interrupted by loud footsteps approaching the door, and the giant demonic maid entered, Pyotr running after her. The maid was holding Drossie like a naughty cat. Drossie grinned sheepishly, a broken vase in her hands. "...I broke something..." Maia was terrified, but the Demoness laughed. "You certainly did, little elf~ Thank you maid, you may leave her here~ You did wonderfully~" The maid blushed and plopped Drossie on the floor before leaving to sweep up the mess. The Demoness looked down at the party, then at Clara's sleeping form. "I suppose my little mouse's rest shall conclude now~" She began gently whispering in Clara's ears, and Clara slowly started stirring. "...feeling yourself float out of sleep, float back to yourself, your mind beginning to return, your body beginning to move, waking up in 3... 2... 1...

—

Wake up, Little Mouse~

—

Clara groggily blinked, raising her head from the soft orange blanket around her. She blearily looked around, seeing her friends watching her, then heard a wonderful voice from above. "Did you enjoy your special reward, little mouse~?" Clara's head was still so fuzzy and orange, and she nodded sleepily. "...Yeah... Felt nice..." A vague worry tugged at her. "...Do I still have my soul...?" The Demoness laughed and rubbed her head carefully. "Of course, little mouse~! Toys and pets are so boring without souls~" Clara sluggishly nodded. "...Okay... yay..." The Demoness gently laid Clara on the bed before standing up, stretching her massive wings. She picked up a necklace from her dresser, now adorned with the Gem, and looked at the party. "I trust you can watch over your little mouse, I have something to attend to~" Equipping the necklace, she lightly snapped her claws and suddenly vanished in a soft puff of flame. Torches around the walls helpfully flickered on in the absence of her hair,  and now the party was all alone in her room.

Clara stretched happily, enjoying the comfy bed under her and the nice, sleepy haze she was in. She was pulled a bit out of it, however, when she saw Maia nervously walking up to the bed. The cleric looked awkwardly down at her, not saying anything. Clara sat up on the side of the bed, yawning slightly, and asked, "...What is it, Maia?" Taking a deep breath, they quickly blurted it out. "I apologize!" Composing themself slightly, they continued. "I shouldn't have said what I did. I was tired, and stressed, and angry, but I shouldn't have accused you of not helping. It was wrong. And I apologize for being a bad friend. And not just to you... I should have helped Drossie with the flowers instead of just reading... I... I apologize, Clara." Clara embraced her friend. "...Thanks... And I'm sorry for not doing enough to help you guys... And I never should have left Pyotr behind... It's all my f-" Pyotr put his hand on her shoulder. "Don't blame yourself, I'm the one who stayed behind! And none of us could have seen that coming, anyway! Not your fault at all, Clara." Drossie flopped behind her on the bed. "And besides, it looks like you definitely did more than enough to free us! The demon mentioned a brother, didn't she?" Clara nodded, still embracing Maia. "Yeah... I... I killed a giant demon... I guess it was her brother..." Drossie laughed happily. "You killed a demon all by yourself?! That's awesome! I mean, uh, not the killing part, per se, but... See, you did more than enough for us!" She enthusiastically rubbed Clara's head, Clara wincing at the sharp pain that filled her as her broken horn was bumped. "Oh, uh, sorry... Guess I'll have to remember that now." 

Clara sat up from the embrace, smiling at her friends. "...Thanks... I'm just glad everything turned out well... I'm glad we're all safe, despite everything..." Pyotr grinned. "Yep! We fought a demon lord, and came out unsc- Mostly unscathed!" Maia gave him an exasperated glare. "She probably wasn't a full-fledged lord. And more to the point, we didn't 'fight' her, Clara just earned our freedom!" Pyotr smiled, waving a hand dismissively. "Ah, details details! She was certainly way more powerful than a regular demon, that's for sure! And plus, if we ever fight her again, me and Drossie found some quite interesting things in the mansion we could exploit for weaknesses..." "Oh, what did you find, Poyotair~? I would love to know~" 

Pyotr yelped and stumbled back from the suddenly appearing Demoness, who merely laughed gaily at the display. "And your little celestial is correct, I am not a lord yet. I do very much appreciate the compliment though, Poyotair~!" She casually walked towards the bed, Maia standing and eyeing her suspiciously. "What are you doing back here?" The Demoness smiled innocently. "Well, I live here~! I merely wished to return to my infernal home for a bit to retrieve a physical reward for my little mouse~" She was holding a large, smooth topaz in her hand, a strange misty light swirling around in the center. She gently kissed the surface, and the light was sucked into her mouth, a soft sound like a blissful moan echoing throughout the room. Smiling, she handed it to Clara, who took it nervously. "...What is this?" The Demoness chuckled. "A soul gem, a recently emptied one to be precise. I have many back in my infernal vaults, but without my portal Gem I had no way to enter~ I thought the shell would be a wonderful gift for a talented rogue like you, little mouse~ Look closely, is it not beautiful~?" Clara inspected the gem. It certainly felt very nice to hold in her hands, perfectly smooth and a nice weight. And it was so wonderfully cut as well. It had many more facets inside than the gems she was used to. So many lines, all leading towards the center... And it glittered so beautifully as well... Every small shift caught the light in new ways, sending soft shimmers all across the room... Filling her mind with soft shimmers... Her head grew fuzzy and soft as she watched the light shimmer and swirl, drawing her deeper... Deeper... Deeper into the center of the gem... Just as she dimly realized she was being hypnotized, a sharp warmth flooded her head. It felt like being plunged into a hot spring, and as it went on, she seemed to feel... More. Like something was being affixed to her body... Grafted to her soul... It felt strange, but not altogether uncomfortable, and regardless she was too mesmerized by the pretty gem to do anything about it... So she just stared, and let the feeling flow through her...

Eventually, the feeling faded, and Clara faintly heard the Demoness say, "All done, little mouse~!" A soft finger click snapped her out of the trance, and she blinked rapidly. "Whah...?" She looked around, seeing her friends looking at her, worried. Maia looked at the demoness, failing to keep their voice down. "What did you do to her?!" The Demoness gently fluttered her fingers and smiled. "Do not worry, little celestial~ I merely felt that my little mouse deserved something to make up for losing her horn~ So, I granted her a replacement~!" Clara ran over to the dresser mirror, afraid of what she would find. On the left side of her head, instead of her previous dull brown horn, there was now an impressive black horn, inscribed with glowing orange runes. As she looked at it, she could feel soft hot pulses of power emanating from it. She gently touched it, and it felt oddly nice to the touch. "What... What is this from...?" The Demoness smiled slyly, leaning over her. "Why do you think my brother was missing his horn, little mouse~?" Clara looked up at her in shock. "What?! This is... from that demon that... That I..." The Demoness smiled kindly. "Indeed, little mouse~ A fitting reward, do you not think~? And worry not, I purged all of his distasteful destructive powers from it~ A taste of my own enchantments seems far more suited for you, little mouse~" Clara was stunned, absentmindedly caressing her new horn for a while, enjoying the feeling. Eventually, she looked up at the Demoness and just asked, "...But why?" The Demoness, to her surprise, knelt down, still quite towering but now closer to Clara's eyeline. "You helped me too, little mouse~ Had you not tracked down my brother's cult, well..." She paused. "I have come to love this plane, far more than my 'home'. And had his plan succeeded, he certainly would have destroyed any civilization around here, most importantly Shevadale. And I do quite love Shevadale, and the Shadefall festival, and all the adorable toys living within. And if not for you, that would all be gone. So in the end, I am quite thankful to you, little mouse. In fact, I certainly owe you a favor~" She leaned next to Clara's ear and whispered something, a dark and swirling sound flowing out of her mouth like mist. And though she could not decipher the sound, Clara found she knew exactly what it was, and how to use it. The Demoness stood up and smiled down at her. "If you ever need my help, or simply wish for me to give you another Special Reward, simply call upon my name, little mouse~" The Demoness looked around at the rest of the party, staring in shock at what had just occurred, and grinned. "Now, while I do love your company, I am sure you need to rest as well~ Unfortunately I have no guest rooms ready, so I must send you away~ But I am sure you are aware how wonderful the inn here is~ Fare thee well, my little pets~!" She rubbed Clara's head, the feeling now pleasurable enough to almost send her to her knees, and clicked her fingers. In a flash of fire, the party found themselves suddenly standing in the Shevadale inn. 

Most of the patrons seemed to hardly even notice their sudden appearance, and the few that did looked too tired to care. The party looked amongst themselves, unsure of what to say after all that happened. Eventually, Clara shrugged. "I... Guess I'll get us a room?" She walked up to the innkeeper. "Hey, uh, can we get..." She noticed the innkeeper looking at her new horn, and an idea occurred to her. "...Can We get the locked room upstairs for the night?" Clara fluttered her fingers a bit, just in case, and the innkeeper's eyes flashed a pale orange. "Of course, miss. Right this way." Clara quickly waved the others over and they followed the innkeeper into the Demoness's private room, untouched since the last time Clara had been in there. As the innkeeper left, Maia raised an eyebrow at Clara. "Taking to those demonic powers well, huh?" Clara giggled. "Don't worry, I'll try not to let them corrupt me!" Maia rolled their eyes and sat down in a corner, pulling out their book. Clara looked around the room. "Only one bed, hmm... I guess Pyotr and Drossie can take the bed, Maia can take the chair, and I'll take the fl-" Drossie enthusiastically shook her head, leading Clara to the bed. "No, you deserve the bed this time! I'll take the floor, it's fine." Maia piped up from the corner, sarcastically quipping, "Yeah, Drossie's great at lying on the floor unconscious." Drossie stuck out her tongue at Maia, but they all laughed. It felt nice to laugh.

Soon enough, it was night, and the party was all falling asleep. Pyotr was hugging a nice large body pillow, Drossie was wrapped in several spare blankets, Maia was engrossed in their reading, and Clara... Clara, for the first time in what felt like months, maybe even years, drifted off to sleep without a single worry or concern anywhere in her mind. And it felt so wonderful...