AN: See the end of this chapter for notes on my writing plans and such.

AN: New story! Inspired by various discussions on the Shiro's Gaming Omniverse discord. Basically my own twist on a gamer story. There'll be fewer numbers and a bit less exploiting than in the average gamer fic out there, but if that was what you were coming for, you definitely don't need to worry much, our MC has no intention to remain average.

Chapter 1: Metagaming the Metagame

At least it was quick.

One moment, we were driving. The next, the truck hit us and it was all over.

As I looked around, I realized the afterlife wasn't what I expected. The black void wasn't all that surprising, but why was there music slowly building up in the background? I was dead, right?

"Yes, you are," a disembodied, feminine voice said.

The music kind of sounded like the title screen of some epic game.

"I suppose that would be somewhat appropriate," it said.

You're kidding me, right?

"Nope."

Well, I guess there's worse afterlives than becoming a Gamer.

"At least you're quick on the uptake."

Sure, what did you expect? I've read gamer fics. I know how they work. Even if I hadn't expected them to be real. So, what happens next?

"Well, Miss… oh, are you kidding me? Where did your name go? Do you remember it by any chance? It appears something went wrong with our files."

Nope, can't say I do - and not just because I don't have a body and am unable to talk. I don't have a clue what my name was. Also, that music is epic, I love it.

I realized I should probably be freaking out about not remembering my name but, well, as I already mentioned to the Game - or whoever I was conversing with that could read my mind - I've read gamer fics before, my mind probably got adjusted to stop me from freaking out or something.

"Yup," the voice said. "My name is Selene by the way, pleased to meet you. We can shake hands once you've selected your new body, if you want. Oh, and don't count on Gamer's Mind too much, your universe is relatively light with the Gamer aspects."

So more like Shiro's newer fics then? Good, those were always my favorite. Actually, wait a moment… Are we in Shiro's Multiverse? Am I a main character in a Shiro fic?

"Not quite," Selene said, somehow transmitting the information that she was smirking even though I couldn't see her. "For one, you aren't a complete bitch."

That was actually a pretty good argument. So what do we do first?

"Selecting your universe, of course."

In front of me, a list of universes appeared, each in their own box.

[The Elder Scrolls (Skyrim)]
[League of Legends]
[Worm]
[Harry Potter]
[Marvel]
[The Cosmere (Mistborn)]
[Age of Wonders]
[DC]
[Sword Art Online]
[Naruto]
[Lord of the Rings]
[Overlord (the game)]

Okay, that's quite a few choices. Marvel, DC, Sword Art Online and Naruto are out immediately, as I'm just not familiar enough with them - I know a bunch of characters from Marvel and DC, admittedly mostly through porn, and I know basically nothing about SAO and Naruto beyond their names, I never did like anime. I'm also not too familiar with Worm, and it's too much of a crapsack world anyway, I'd probably get eaten for breakfast. Overlord could be amusing, but I never finished the game, so I wouldn't have a clue what to expect later on.

So it's between Skyrim, League, Harry Potter, Mistborn, Age of Wonders and Lord of the Rings. Lord of the Rings is easy to remove next, that world just isn't that interesting for me, at least when looking from a Gamer perspective. I should really have finished the Age of Wonders campaigns, but as it stands I don't really know the characters, just the games themselves, so let's skip that one too.

Mistborn… on one hand, it's really appealing. The world is incredibly interesting and I have in-universe access to other worlds. On the other hand, I'd probably get dropped sometime near the end of the Final Empire, and I don't really feel like going up against the most powerful non-Shardic being the Cosmere has ever seen as my first opponent - let alone the actual Shard that broke free quickly after. Yeah, let's skip that one.

It's going to come down to Harry Potter, isn't it?

"That's your choice."

Yeah, yeah. Anyway, Skyrim and League… I guess it'd be a good incentive to actually continue one Skyrim playthrough all the way to the end rather than starting over every time, but at the same time, just like with Age of Wonders, I'm not familiar enough with the people. League is a pretty good option, I guess. I'll admit I'm a horny person, and getting to fuck most of the League cast wouldn't be a bad prospect.

"That truly is universal among Gamers, isn't it?" Selene mused.

I would have shrugged if I had a body. Why do you think I read those fics in the first place, Selene? Anyway, League is an option. As for Harry Potter, am I starting in first year? In fact, will I be taking Harry's place?

"No and no," Selene said. "If you choose Harry Potter, you'll be starting in fourth year, and this Hogwarts starts at age thirteen, so that you'll only be one year older mentally than your classmates are. And as for your second question, you'll be taking a placeholder spot, not that of Harry."

Well, in that case, my familiarity with Harry Potter might just make the difference. Though, would it be pure canon?

"No, there will be a number of fanon aspects."

Yeah, choice made.

The moment I decided, the box around 'Harry Potter' lit up. The void started to shift around me, and a mirror materialized, showing the appearance I had before dying. Above it, a box stated 'Sally-Anne Perks'.

I let out an involuntary snort. The girl that was famous in fanon for having mysteriously disappeared between the first year sorting and the OWL exams. As far as I could remember, we didn't even know her House.

"Correct," Selene said. "You'll get to choose that in a moment." Her voice no longer sounded disembodied and as I looked to the side I saw her for the first time, a tall woman with braided black hair and light skin, wearing a white dress. She looked young, perhaps a few years older than me, but knowing Gamer worlds, that could be deceiving.

One moment I considered asking for a dress of my own, but then I decided to not bother. My appearance was about to change anyway, and if my meta knowledge was at all accurate, being on good terms - and perhaps even sleeping with - the System Admin could only be beneficial. That was, of course, assuming that's what Selene was.

"I am," she said, ignoring my previous thought about sleeping with her. "It's my responsibility to make sure your Game runs smoothly."

I tilted my head slightly. "And the better I do, the more prestige you get?"

"More or less."

"So just give me godlike powers immediately," I joked.

Though she no doubt recognized it for what it was, she replied anyway. "If I did that, the higher-ups would probably say I was interfering with their entertainment."

"Classic."

I turned back to the mirror, first focusing on the name above it. "Do I get to select my own name?"

"Yes, and everyone will remember you as always having had the name you select. The same with your appearance."

Convenient. The first name - and a middle name, because why not - were easy, Rose and Rachel were both among my favorite names, and now I got to take them. The last name, however, proved more of a challenge.

"Do you have, like, a last name randomizer?" I asked, hopeful.

"We do," Selene said, and a button appeared next to the name. I pressed it, and 'Perks' changed to 'Smith'. That wasn't much better, so I pressed the button again. 'Flanders'. 'Weller'. 'Pickett'. 'Fox'.

Huh, that'd do. Rose Fox.

Also a very good excuse to change my hair color - foxes were associated with reds and oranges, after all. "Actually, how do I change my appearance?"

"Just imagine yourself with the adjustments," Selene said.

I did so, and suddenly my hair changed to red. Next, I gave myself a few inches extra, changed my eyes to blue, gave myself a bit more of an hourglass figure, some freckles… Actually, if I got to decide on my own appearance anyway, why wouldn't I make myself absolutely stunningly gorgeous? Not to go overboard on the curves of course, there was a point where it started to look fake or ridiculous, and I didn't want that. But some small adjustments to my face to make it cuter and more feminine, making sure my body proportions were just right… I turned so I could take a look at my ass in the mirror and made it a little fuller, nice and plump, careful not to give myself a pornstar look when my intention was a supermodel look - and not the underweight kind. A little indecisive, I brought my hands up to my breasts, cradling them as I wondered whether I should change them or not. They were currently C-cups, quite average in size, but bigger wasn't always better with breasts, and this might just look best on my figure.

"What do you think?" I asked Selene. "Bigger? Smaller? Just right?"

"I agree with you," she said. "They're just right. You look gorgeous, Rose."

I smiled. "Thank you. Feel free to hop by at Hogwarts if you're lonely."

Instead of replying, Selene waved her hand, and a box appeared in front of me, asking if I wanted to finalize my appearance and name.

I clicked yes, and a new set of floating boxes appeared.

Choose your Hogwarts House

You only get to choose one House, and will never be able to obtain the benefits of the other Houses. This choice will affect which quests you may unlock in the future.

[Gryffindor]
As a Gryffindor, you lead and inspire through example. You are quicker in combat and injuries are less debilitating. In addition, other people will defer to your leadership more easily.

[Ravenclaw]
As a Ravenclaw, you pursue knowledge and learning. You read more quickly and gain improved recall.

[Hufflepuff]
As a Hufflepuff, you value friendship and loyalty. You have an easier time making friends and the more friends you have, the stronger you become.

[Slytherin]
As a Slytherin, ambition trumps everything, and you do not shy away from underhanded methods to achieve your goals. Blackmail and bribes are more effective, and it is easier to convince people to do something, in particular if it benefits them too.

That's quite a difficult choice, actually. I can see how each of them would help me establish a good presence. Natural leader, knowledge, literal power of friendship, or from the shadows. The average gamer would probably go for Slytherin, or maybe Ravenclaw, but I'm not sure how well they'd fit me.

"Before I decide, what's my blood status?"

"Muggleborn."

Okay, definitely no Slytherin, then. I do not want to deal with Malfoy and his hanger-ons on a daily basis - certainly not before I've built up a decent power base.

"I'm assuming Ravenclaw's improved recall makes leveling easier?"

"A little, but you'll mostly become stronger by completing quests, and they can be of any kind."

"No instant dungeons either, then?"

"None."

I nodded. Never liked reading about those anyway.

So the main benefit of Ravenclaw would probably be that I could learn more about the world, but honestly… I could probably figure out quite a bit just from all the fanfics I'd read, and it wasn't like I had all that much time to just sit on my arse and enjoy the world. Voldemort was going to return in just a year and I'd have to be ready for that. Not to mention I didn't have a clue what kind of Dumbledore I should expect.

That meant it was between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. I could probably lead, if I wanted to, but it wasn't like I considered myself a great leader, and friendship actually making me straight up stronger? That sounded like fun.

I clicked the Hufflepuff box, which confirmed my option before disappearing, and I was immediately greeted with more boxes.

Choose a class

You start off with a single class, but over time you can unlock new classes and level up in classes you already have. You can either do this through dynamically generated quests or by requesting a quest that advances progress in relation to a certain class.

Over time, you may unlock new classes that are not currently available.

[Archmage]
The Archmage class increases your magical power and unlocks more powerful spells.

I interrupted my reading and turned to Selene again. "I'm a fourth year student, right? Don't I already have magical power and spells available then?"

"Yes. You will receive memories of the past after you've finished character creation, and you have knowledge of the curriculum of the first three years. The Archmage class adds power and spells on top of what you already have. Your starting power levels are enough to allow you to receive A's for your NEWTs if you realize their full potential, anything beyond that will come from leveling up classes."

I nodded. "Thanks for the information." With that, I turned back to the class selection screen and continued reading.

[Conjurer]
The Conjurer class improves your conjuration, vanishing and transfiguration skills and gives an increased understanding of them.

[Battle Mage]
The Battle Mage class increases proficiency with combat spells, locally often called hexes, jinxes or curses, as well as defensive spells, and improves agility.

[Sorceress]
The Sorceress class grants the ability to detect magic and to understand the purpose of magic detected this way. With practice, this skill can be used to learn how to cast these spells.

[Seeress]
The Seeress class improves your divination magic, which includes both magics that predict the future and magics that provide information on what is happening elsewhere, such as scrying, and premonitions are more likely.

[Witch]
The Witch class improves your skill at making potions and the effectiveness of those potions. You also become more resistant to poisons, while beneficial potions are more effective on you.

[Mind Mage]
The Mind Mage class improves your skill in and understanding of occlumency, legilimency and mind-affecting spells such as obliviate, and grants a resistance to mind-affecting spells.

"Do I need the Archmage class for all powerful spells?" I asked. "Or do classes like Conjurer also help?"

"They do," Selene said. "In this case, both classes will help you cast difficult transfigurations. By going full on Archmage, you'd become a jack of all trades, while the other classes allow you to specialize - and of course, you can multiclass eventually."

"Wouldn't be a proper Gamer Universe if I couldn't become a master of all trades," I said cheekily.

"Indeed."

Well, glad the System Admin agreed.

I browsed through the classes. This was a hard choice, really. The strengths were different enough that I didn't just want to go straight for Archmage to get a little bit of everything, yet not so different that one or two stuck out immediately.

Archmage would always be useful, so I kept that in mind for if I couldn't decide on any class. Conjurer seemed useful too, but in a general sense, so it might not be the best one to start with. Battle Mage… Well, that would only be urgent if I wanted to enter into the Tournament somehow, otherwise I'd have a full year. Sorceress was probably the most unique in the list, with the magic detection.

Seeress sounded interesting, clearly Divination in this universe wasn't as useless as in the original story or most fanfics. Definitely something to put some effort into. Witch also seemed useful, even if only to get Snape off my back. And Mind Mage… wait, wouldn't legilimency be a huge security risk for the Game?

"All Gamer knowledge is protected by the System," Selene said. "Other than that, it's all up to your own occlumency skills."

After some deliberation, I decided to go for the unique skill and pressed the Sorceress option.

"Well, that was it for now," Selene said. "You'll have a grace period of about thirty seconds when you arrive where people won't notice you, don't waste it. If you need to ask me something, just think of contacting me. If you're alone, I'll visit, if you're not, I can speak in your mind."

I smiled. "I certainly hope you'll visit sometime."

She chuckled. "Trying to put those Hufflepuffs powers to work already?"

"Who knows," I said cheekily as the void started swirling again.

The moment my vision cleared I heard four pings that clearly originated from the Game, however I was rather too busy to deal with that immediately. For one, I was currently inside a car wreck. For another, I just had sixteen years worth of memories stowed inside my head.

At least the second issue helped me understand the first. Today was the start of the school year, and my 'parents' were dropping me off at King's Cross, and we had almost arrived when we got into an honestly rather gruesome incident. Both of them were dead and I suspected that in the original universe I - or rather, Sally-Anne - was too.

It was rather ironic that I'd died in a car accident and then got sent to another world and placed in the body of someone who'd died in a car accident, but I didn't stop to think about it. I had thirty seconds to get out of here unnoticed, and I didn't have that much time to get to King's Cross in the first place. Luckily, I was very close already, so I got out my trunk - miraculously as unharmed as me - and walked the rest of the way.

Once I was away from the accident, I asked the Game to bring up whatever messages it had sent me.

[Hufflepuff Quest]
Objective: Make a Friend in another House.
Reward: Gain the trait Hogwarts Diplomat.

Mentally selecting the trait brought up more information.

Hogwarts Diplomat: You are better at convincing your friends to overlook House rivalries and give each other a chance.

That sounded useful. But I had three more quests to view.

[Hogwarts Quest]
Objective: Earn a cumulative 20 House points.
Reward: Minor relationship boost with all fourth year Hufflepuffs.

[Class Quest: Sorceress]
Objective: Successfully recognize a spell using your magic sensing abilities.
Reward: Sorceress class level up (new level: 2).
Upon completion, a new Class Quest will become available.

[Class Tutorial]
Objective: Level up your classes a combined five times (1/5).
Reward: Free level up to a class you already have, ?.

The second reward of the Class Tutorial was apparently a secret for now. Also, does this mean I will not immediately get a new Hufflepuff or Hogwarts Quest when I finish the previous one?

No reply.

Selene? I thought.

Yes?

I don't immediately get a new quest for Hogwarts or Hufflepuff?

No. Those quests appear dynamically, and often trigger upon certain events.

Thanks.

I arrived at King's Cross just in time for the train and managed to find Hannah Abbott and Susan Bones, who I remembered having befriended throughout our first three years at Hogwarts.

"Hey," I greeted.

"Oh, there you are, Rose," Hannah said. "You're late."

"We were stuck in traffic," I lied. I had no emotional connection to this world's parents, and the few aspects of Gamer's Mind I did have muted any emotions regarding the death of my real parents, who had been in the car with me, to a level where I practically didn't feel it even when thinking of them.

"So how were summer holidays?" Susan asked.

I started telling them about it, in the meanwhile marveling at the thought that I now existed in the world I had spent… well, quite a lot of time reading about. Up until now, I'd been in a hurry, unable to loiter and think about this sudden turn of events.

Both the girls that I shared a compartment with were very much like how I'd imagined them. Susan, the busty redhead who was full of life and enthusiasm when with friends - though she could be shy with people she didn't know well - and Hannah, the calm blonde, Susan's quieter sidekick who was always willing to listen.

The memories I'd received told me they had quickly embraced, almost adopted the clueless muggleborn that I had been.

After I finished telling the girls about my holidays, I asked about theirs, paying just enough attention to say what was expected of me while I started thinking about the objectives I should set for myself.

So, first of all, I was a muggleborn. Letting Voldemort rise to power would be a bad idea for me. And even if I weren't a muggleborn, well, I did have some morals. Not that I was going to act like some complete goody-two-shoes - hell, I was a Gamer, it didn't get more power fantasy than that, and I was getting to live it out! But there was a balance in there somewhere. It was perfectly possible to become the most powerful witch - or wizard - of Great Britain without being a murdering psychopath or joining up with one.

I would also have to figure out what kind of Dumbledore I was dealing with. He could be anything from a benevolent Big Good to a manipulative bastard trying to get Harry killed for fun. Or whatever bullshit some fanfic writers came up with. And there were multiple variations that could be troublesome for a Gamer trying to rise to power.

Even more so when keeping in mind that getting Harry on my side would probably make things a lot easier. Despite canon only showing it in a few instances, he was a very capable wizard, as shown by how he mastered the Patronus in his third year already.

In fact, perhaps that was a good first goal. Get Harry on my side.

A ping sounded in my head.

[Main Quest]
Objective: Make Harry Potter your Friend.
Reward: Free level up to the Battle Mage class, gain the trait: Main Character.

Oh, well, I hadn't expected that. I mentally tapped the 'main character' trait for more information.

Main Character: Events, both good and bad, are more likely to happen around you. Unlocks quests related to Harry Potter.

That was… interesting. I hoped I would be able to reread active quests though, because if it kept going this way I would never be able to remember all of them otherwise.

Of course, the real question was how I would go about this in the first place. I was in a different House, and Harry never really made that many friends outside - or even inside - Gryffindor. Even Luna only really became his friend after the Battle of the Department of Mysteries. A lot of fanfics changed that, but it was probably the safest to assume everything had happened reasonably similar to canon up until now.

Perhaps there'd be an opening when Ron abandoned him after his name came out of the Goblet? Then again, it was probably safe to assume that the people here made a little more sense - insofar as people ever made sense - than in Rowling's original works, and Harry's most loyal friend not believing him on his word had never made a lot of sense, so maybe Ron wouldn't abandon him at all.

Oh, but if this universe participates in Ron bashing I'm going to burn everything to the ground. I detest bashing.

Anyway, the early Tournament weeks might be an opportunity…

And just like that, a terrible, terrible idea came to mind.

There was absolutely no way this was going to work, and it was going to throw off everything.

The Game knew I had made my decision before I did.

[Main Quest]
Objective: Be chosen as the Hogwarts Champion.
Reward: Small relationship boost with all Hogwarts students except those who entered their name. Unlocks the Triwizard Tournament questline.

This was going to go all kinds of wrong. But I was going to do it anyway. I had two months to figure out how to bypass the Goblet and not only enter my name, but ensure I would be chosen. Then, I'd claim I hadn't entered, and they'd tell me I was bound to compete just like Harry. With the both of us claiming we hadn't entered, no one would know who the 'real' Hogwarts Champion was, and Harry and I would be able to bond over our fates.

And if Ron had an issue with it, I'd beat some sense into him myself.

Fuck…

I really just made the decision to face down a dragon only three months from now.

I was screwed.

Utterly and completely.

Well, nothing better than the threat of impending death by oversized lizard to light a fire under my arse and exploit this game as much as possible, I figured.

Though it was hard to exploit a game that gave so few actual numbers to work with.

I know I complained about those stories back when I was still in the void, but right now I wouldn't mind a few numbers. Selene?

I heard her laugh. Sorry, the numbers are mine. If you're good, I'll show you a few every now and then.

Screw you.

I'd have to do it without them, then. The simplest way to level up seemed to be class quests, as classes had actual numbers attached to them. And, presumably, finishing quests in general. I'd have to figure out how to trigger as many as possible.

A ping.

[Bonus Quest]
Objective: Figure out how to trigger quests.
Reward: The quests you get to trigger.

Selene?

Yes?

Screw you.

Love you too, Rose.

Several other Hufflepuffs came by during the train ride, but I didn't know any of them nearly as well as I knew Susan and Hannah. Except for Zacharias - who was just as much of an arse as in canon - I was on good terms with them, but friend groups just formed. Sally Smith - Zacharias's cousin - and Megan Jones did hang around however, and it was with the five of us that we exited the train and made our way to Hogwarts.

It turned out I was able to see the thestrals pulling the carriages - presumably, my parents died before I did - however I elected not to mention them, instead just climbing inside as we were discussing what was going to happen at Hogwarts this year - no one knew anything, except for me of course, and I kept my mouth shut to not raise suspicion.

During the Opening Feast, rumors buzzed around the Great Hall about what was to come, ranging from an international dueling tournament to an exhibit for magical creatures or a full-scale exchange project with other schools and several theories magnitudes more wild.

Upon Dumbledore's reveal, everyone in the Great Hall became incredibly excited, only for most people to be just as disappointed when he announced that the Tournament was limited to sixth and seventh year students.

"That's unfair," Zacharias loudly lamented a little down the table, supported by several other boys in our year.

"For once, I actually have to agree with Zacharias," Megan said.

"He does have a point," I said.

"I'm not sure," Susan said hesitantly. "It does seem kinda unfair, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," I said. "What do you say we try to enter anyway?"

"I don't know," Susan said, hesitant for a different reason now. "We aren't allowed…"

"We could just tell people we don't know how we got selected if we do."

"How does the selection process even work?" Hannah asked.

"I remember reading about that," I lied - though, was it really a lie, or just a creative truth? "They'll use the Goblet of Fire, some ancient artefact. And I'm pretty sure it just looks at the candidates and chooses one, which would mean that we just need to bypass whatever protections they put around it."

"But if one of our names comes out, they'd never let us participate, right?" Megan asked.

"We'd have to look that up," I said, uncertain how the Goblet worked in this universe, "but I wouldn't be surprised if it's impossible to back out once the Goblet chooses you. Besides, we can always claim we didn't enter, right?"

"I'm not sure whether this is a good idea, Rose," Susan said.

"We have two months to think about it," I argued. Two months during which I could convince the rather rule-abiding Susan to go along with this little scheme. Of course, even though any one of us who wanted to would be able to enter our names, I was planning to play some additional tricks on the Goblet to ensure I'd be the one chosen for Hogwarts. Also over all the sixth and seventh year students, even if they were considered more capable by the Goblet.

Because screw that Goblet, I'm a Gamer. Even if they're more capable right now, they probably won't be by the time the tasks roll around.

Though… a dragon… yikes.

But best think about how to become a Champion in the first place. The age line was likely not too hard to resolve, the real issue was how to bespell the Goblet itself. I remembered that canonically, it had been hit by a powerful confundus charm to make Harry a fourth participant, so it was apparently susceptible to mind magic.

That made the Mind Mage class an obvious one to focus on. The Sorceress class could also be useful to better understand the magic involved with the Goblet as well. In addition, I might be able to play off of Crouch's confundus, which might leave the Goblet vulnerable to further tampering. Perhaps a level or two in the Seeress class would help me figure out when he'd confound the Goblet.

But that'd be a third priority in terms of classes. The first priority would, of course, be to finish my first class quest, to detect and recognize magic cast. Hopefully, I'd get opportunities in class tomorrow.

With all announcements complete and the initial excitement winding down, Dumbledore sent us on our way to our dorms - or, in the case of us Hufflepuffs, to the common room where most of us hung around to greet the new first years and introduce them to the House.

That would often turn into a bit of a party - not a very wild one, but enough to delay bedtime for an hour or two. Instead, I begged off, claiming that I had a bit of a headache building up, and once I was alone in my dorm I called Selene.

She appeared pretty much immediately, wearing the same dress she'd worn earlier, back in the void.

"Been enjoying your time so far, Rose?"

"Mhm-hm. Already came up with some plans I'm going to regret. Speaking of, how many class quests can I have active at once?"

"Currently, only one," Selene replied.

"So I can unlock the ability to have more than one active? How?"

She smiled mysteriously. "That's for you to figure out."

I threw my pillow at her. "Tease."

She laughed.

"By the way," I said, drawing her attention again, "how can I look up the quests that are currently active?"

"Just think of them - a full list will appear in front of you much like the character creation stuff, and you can expand any of them."

I tried that for a bit, finding it worked rather intuitively.

"On another matter," Selene said, "I might have given you a little too much freedom."

I frowned. "Are the higher-ups complaining about something?"

"No, not that bad. I was just reviewing some stats today, you know, the ones I get to see but you don't, and I realized I should probably combine some of them into a single trait. All this trait's modifiers were already present, but now they're official. Here."

Trait unlocked: Beautiful
You are so beautiful that you are almost irresistible. You gain a small opinion boost with anyone that is romantically or sexually attracted to women, and sometimes you will even make people doubt their sexuality. Seduction and teasing are more effective.

"I really should have put some limits during character creation," she noted.

I snorted. "What, can't resist me?"

"You have a trait that officially says you make straight women doubt their sexuality. I'm already bi, of course I think you're hot."

I stepped up to her, bringing our faces close together. "Well, let's not beat around the bush then." I'd never been shy, and I wasn't going to start now as I grabbed Selene's head and decisively placed my lips on hers.

She melted into the kiss almost immediately, bringing her hands up around my back as I immediately pushed forward, forcing her lips open for our tongues to meet. Once we parted, half a minute later, she was panting slightly.

"You're not wasting time, are you?"

I grinned. "I figured being on good terms with my System Admin could only ever be a good thing."

One of my hands slipped under the hem of her dress, feeling up her thigh as I once again placed my lips on hers. I slowly made my way up and was delighted to find Selene had apparently not bothered with underwear, and she moaned softly into my mouth as I slipped a thumb over her slit.

I was wearing quite a bit more than just a dress, but that didn't stop Selene from blatantly abusing her power over the world to remove my robes - which ended up folded on the bed behind me - and slipping her hand under my skirt to return the favor.

Not wanting to give up control, I turned us around and pushed her onto my bed, ending up on my knees above her. Without hesitation, I slipped a finger into her pussy, drawing out yet another moan as I resumed our kiss.

Selene's finger brushed over my clit, drawing a needy moan from me and weakening my control over the situation enough that she could push me on my side so that we were laying next to each other as we started our mutual fingering.

"Oh, screw this," Selene muttered, and a moment later we were both naked. I put my free arm around her again, pulling her closer to me so that our breasts pushed into each other. For a short while, I was satisfied to pleasure her and be pleasured in return, but then I dipped my head down, taking one of her nipples into my mouth without pausing my ministrations.

Selene moaned as I did so and adjusted her fingers so she could brush over my clit even as she continued to pump into my cunt. She gripped my hair with her free hand, pushing me onto her tit as I whimpered at the pleasure.

My own free hand roamed down to grip her ass as I sped up my fingering, drawing some cute moans in return. Still, I felt my release approaching first as Selene expertly worked my clit, and I soon shuddered in ecstasy, my pussy contracting around Selene's fingers and coating them in my juices. I did not pause my own movements however, and it was only a few seconds later that Selene climaxed as well, returning the favor.

I captured Selene's lips in a tender kiss as we came down from our respective highs, cuddling into her.

"In all honesty, I can't say I regret too much," she spoke after a minute. "Gamers being horny seems to be a universal constant, and I don't exactly mind that mine is also the hottest girl I've ever seen."

"Aw, thanks."

She snorted. "Like you didn't cheat your way into it."

"Hey!" I said, mock offended. "It's not cheating if the Game allows it. It's not even exploiting, you gave me full freedom with my appearance and I took it."

"Not everyone who changes their appearance changes it to something beautiful enough that I have to go and add a trait for it."

"In all honesty, I didn't even mean to do that. Not that I'm complaining."

"You Gamers are all the same. Exploiting, exploiting, exploiting. Even if you do things by accident you're still exploiting."

I laughed.

AN: So, I'm back after… what is it, nine months without updates, I think. Those of you who are on my Discord server (discord . gg / xKJKNjY), follow me on Twitter or simply happened to check my profile will know that I had some major RL stuff going on. That's finally getting better, but I'm not going to commit to any kind of schedule, in particular because the pressure from having one likely played a part in leaving me unable to write.

AN: Then, about Riddle of the Ages. I started writing it two years ago, and I still greatly enjoy the core concepts I've come up with for the story. However, I feel like I dropped the ball quite a lot in the chapters that are online right now (in particular the first few), likely turning away a lot of readers who would actually really enjoy what I have planned. In addition, I feel like I aimed for a slower pace than I should have.

Because of this, I am currently strongly considering a full rewrite of the story. Note that I will simply remove the currently online chapters and replace it with the new story, so DO NOT unfavorite or unfollow if you want to read the rewrite. Also, I will upload the old chapters separately so that people can read them if they want to - I don't believe in deleting things I've uploaded. I do not currently have a time frame for when this will happen - if it even happens - but this is just to give a bit of an update. I can promise that I will not abandon Riddle of the Ages.