Chapter 63: A Mansion Marvel
Entering the kitchen, I saw that Feli was already inside. She was... eating. What...? Is she eating breakfast here? More importantly, did Ms. Ando let her in...? "Oh-! Dave, you're awake!" Feli smiled. Ringo and Serilly were already there too, eating as well. "I guess I'm the late one up this time…" I looked at the time and sighed. "Don't worry about it, Dave. I got to enjoy this delicious breakfast from Ringo's mom!" Feli seemed to really enjoy eating her food. "I guess I might as well join in…" I shrugged and ate. After breakfast, we prepared to leave. "Alright, let's go now, Dave. Lemres is waiting for us just outside." Feli grabbed my hand as we went over to our shoes. "Um, isn't he cold out there, Feli…? He could've just stayed here until I was ready." I made a point. "Dave, remember that bubble thing Lemres made when it was hot outside? It also covers him from cold weather, such as this. But… he does need sugar to supplement that, just like in the past." Feli explained. "Riiight, I remember that bubble…" I nodded. So, with that bit explained... "Okay, Serilly. I'll be heading out, remember what I said to you yesterday." I turned to the mermaid for a second. "Yes, I know. Have fun." She waved. "Good… and thank you." I acknowledged and walked outside with Feli. Lemres saw us come out, then made a portal to send us to a place near Feli's mansion. "Have fun, you two!" He wished for us. "Of course." I said to him before being pulled into the portal by Feli.
Ringo's POV
I wondered what Dave was talking about, so I asked Serilly for clarification. "Ringo, I want you to take me to your bear friend's place… for that device-thingy." She said. "Oh yeah… I forgot that Ris was making something for you. … Sure, I'll take you there later today." I told her. "Thank you." She smiled. I smiled back as we decided to sit on the couch for a while. We talked as we sat there, enjoying our time. I explained to her the things that she might have not seen from the tournament. Serilly just listened to me as I brought those things up, never saying a single word until I was done.
Dave's POV
We appeared just outside of the mansion from the portal. It may not be Ms. Accord's private estate, but it's still great to look at. "Here we are, Dave. This is the mansion, my very home." Feli grabbed my hand and led me to the entrance. When I went inside, I was still stunned. Everything looked neat, tidy, and pristine. Suddenly two adults appeared before us, a man and a woman. "My, who could you be?" The woman asked. "Oh, this is Dave, Mom. You know, the one I've been telling you about for a while?" Feli answered. "... Feli, are they your parents?" I assumed. "Yes, we are. I can see that Feli has chosen a fine boy to love." Her mother smiled. "Well, have fun, Feli. We have some things to attend to." Her father told her. "Okay, bye." She waved. "... They must be kind…" I smiled. "C'mon, my room is up here." Feli began walking up the stairs. I did so as well and we came up to the door to her room. "Now, remember what I said when we were in that bad hotel in Japan?" She stopped me. "Um… I dunno, what did you say?" I asked for the sake of memory. "I said that I keep my shoes away from my room's floor." She reminded me. "Right... I recall you saying that. So, why is that?" I pressed for an explanation. "The floor in there is carpet, and it's not easy to clean up when it gets dirty. So, take off your shoes and I'll tell you where in the room to put them." She said, taking her shoes off and holding them. "Okay." I nodded as I did the same.
I leaned my head into the room to see it and it was decently big. I also saw Baldanders lying down and he noticed me. "*bark*" He nudged his head to me. "Hey, Baldanders... I haven't seen you in quite some time. How are you doing these days?" I petted him. Baldanders went in to gently lick my cheek. "H-hey, that tickles." I laughed a bit. "That's his way of saying that things have been fine. It looks like he's happy to see you, Dave." Feli interpreted for me. "You've been a good boy, right?" I looked back at Baldanders. "*bark*" He happily went. "Anyway... Feli, where do you...?" I turned my head around to see. "Oh, right here. I have a small rug for shoes, just enough room for mine and a couple of other pairs." She placed her pair down on the rug. "Ah, there? That's a good spot, it doesn't get in the way of anything else." I commented on the placement, before placing my pair down next to hers.. "Yeah. ... So, do you wanna see my stuff? I have a lot of interesting things from the past I've kept for years. Mostly occult divination related-things, but I do have some other… Ah-ha! Like this, which I forgot that I even had." Feli showed me a ring.
The gem integrated in the ring itself was beautiful, shining brightly with a mix of blue and purple. It wasn't that big, but it was wonderful to see. "Feli... is that made to just look good, or does it actually do something?" "Well... it has uses, but not very practical ones. I got it, just because of how pretty it looked, and... … Funny enough, I haven't really touched this ring since then… and I don't know why that is." "Does it have a name?" "Yeah, it's called "The Ring of Body Modification". I haven't tested it out, but it apparently changes the wearer's body to whatever proportions they want, whenever they want. I was told that it doesn't work for guys, which was strange to say the least. I got it a few years back when I adored Lemres. My logic for using this thing was to hopefully get his attention and make him like me. For whatever reason though, I just forgot that I ever had this thing. I only remember using the same, usual tactics to get Lemres to notice me. And now that I've stopped obsessing over him… I don't really need this anymore." "... That's not true, you can still find a use for that ring, Feli. Even if you don't find one right away, try it on... it might look good on you." "R-really?" "Go ahead, wear it and see if it does." "S-sure…"
I watched Feli slip the ring on her left ring finger. "Feli… that looks so natural on you." "Th-that can't be... you're just saying that." "No... I truly think it's great on you." I went in to kiss her and she blushed. "... Dave…" "I truly mean it, Feli. You should wear that all the time, it fits you so well." "Yeah… …" I saw Feli close her eyes, and the gem from the ring shined brighter as an aura covered her body. Before my very eyes, I saw Feli become taller. Her clothes also changed to accommodate for body size conversion. I then noticed that she now didn't have a flat chest anymore. "*gasp*" I went as I witnessed this transformation. When Feli opened her eyes, she noticed the changes. "Woah…" She looked, then compared her current height with mine. Feli stood up to get a better feel for the body and she couldn't believe it. "My God... the ring works and I love it! I can switch between this and my normal body anytime I want; this is awesome! I'm just as tall as you now, Dave! ... So, what do you think of me now?" She got excited, then made a devilish smirk. "... This is unbelievable... ... Do you feel any different?" I remained in shock and asked. "Yeah, obviously. My legs feel different like this, my chest isn't flat anymore, and I… have longer hair...?" Feli noticed another change. "Wow, it's like you grew up in just a few seconds… but your voice is the same." I observed. "Very intriguing…" She felt parts of her modified body. "I wonder… if you take off the ring, then does your body revert back to how it was before?" I brought up the possibility. "Hm… maybe. Let's see, Dave." She spoke before pulling out the ring from her finger.
Like I had thought, her body returned to the state that it was in before putting the ring on. "I guess that's how it works…" Feli paused for a second before putting the ring on. I noticed that she wasn't modifying herself again, instead, sticking to her normal body. "Did you feel anything else new with that?" I asked her. "I did feel more powerful, magic-wise; in fact... much stronger than my usual self. The more that I explore this ring, the higher my fascination for it rises. I. Fucking. Love. This. Thing!" She fawned over the ring. "I'm happy for you, Feli." I smiled. "Thank you so much for coming here! Otherwise, I would've NEVER rediscovered this priceless object." She kissed my cheek. "*chuckle* No problem, Feli…" I smiled. We made out for a little bit before disturbing Baldanders. "*whine*" The dog went. "Huh… I guess he doesn't like watching us do this…" I felt bummed out. "..." He whined again. "… Bal, do you want to be outside this room for the time being?" Feli presented the possibility to her pet. "*bark*" He happily wagged his tail. "Fine, you can stay out there until we're done." She went to open the door for him to exit. Baldanders left the room and Feli closed the door behind him. "He's a good boy, I know that he won't break anything." She told me. "He does seem to be very loyal…" I nodded slowly before meeting with Feli's lips again. "Let's go on my bed, shall we?" She playfully suggested. I silently nodded and we climbed up to her bed to continue making out. For the next fifteen minutes or so, that's what it all really amounted to. After that, we embraced each other. Well, more like she embraced me. Feli rested on top of me, loving the feels that my body provided for her.
Quite some time passed with us like that, feeling happy and carefree. Suddenly though, Feli asked a question out loud to herself. "I wonder how Ringo and Draco will be when they see this ring do some wor- No, nevermind. I don't want them to know about it." She seemed to regret wanting to have Ringo and Draco see what that ring does. "Feli, I don't want you girls to hide secrets from each other anymore…" I frowned, remembering the whole fiasco involving Amitie. "But... what if they want to take the ring for themselves?" She made a good point. "Hm... Oh-! I got it! We'll just tell them that you got the ring from me as a gift. You shouldn't need to change your body anyway. They'll just think it's just some accessory. And don't worry, if they try to snatch it from you, I'll deny them of it. I'll say that you don't want anyone else to take it from you. How about that? To them, it'll look like just a normal ring as long as we don't carry any unexpected emotions on our faces." I suggested. "Wouldn't that still be hiding the truth?" Feli tilted her head. "... This is going to at least make it look like we weren't withholding the truth. Is there any other reason why you don't want them to know about the ring's quirk, Feli?" I quickly asked.
There HAS to be another reason... "What if I need to invoke a new identity in the form of my modified body...? I don't want somebody like Draco accidentally slipping up by knowing that it's me." She answered. "What kind of people would you need to hide yourself from?" I raised an eyebrow. "Actually, several people still hate me for how weird I have been in the past... Some would give me death threats, saying that I was an abomination spawned from Hell. Besides, what if I need my modified body to get into certain places? Those very places would call me out for being too young, due to my normally short stature and kick me out. Y-you never know, it can come in handy!" She insisted. "... Feli, people gave you death threats...?" My jaw dropped in shock. "Y-yeah... and it was justified for them to do so. I was a very unstable girl years ago... Back then, I didn't care; I did not give a single shit about the death threats that were sent my way. Now though... I'm terrified of them, BECAUSE I have changed... I'm not nearly as crazy as I once was and now I have a good sense of reality. I don't wanna die, just because I was crazy... I-I couldn't control that at the time... Do you see, Dave? This ring's function must not be revealed to anyone else, unless I find it to be necessary... okay? Please...?" She went, before pleading to me. "... …" I didn't know what to say at first.
No matter what I decide to do out of these two decisions, "reveal the function, or don't", they both have negative consequences... Which one do I pick...? I suppose that it could be fine to choose the latter for now. We can just wait for the right time to reveal it to our friends, and only our friends. "Feli, I'll keep my mouth shut until the time is right." I promised. ""Until the time is right"? What do you mean by that?" She questioned me. "Look, trust me and I'll find the proper moment to reveal the functionality of this ring to just our friends. No more, no less. They don't need to know now, but they'll need to know at some point if you intend to fight with us. You said that you felt more powerful after your body was modified by the ring, correct? And we need all the firepower we can get to fight the Yogs." I elaborated. "Y-yeah… I did say that... ... I... guess so, Dave. Let's go and have things be like that... I now think that is for the best, since you just mentioned the Yogs." She eventually agreed. "Good. Now that we have that bit established… let's not be bogged down by sadness and whatnot; we should be having fun, yeah?" I smiled. "Yeah... So… uh, what do you want to do? It's still early afternoon…" Feli looked at me, waiting for a possible answer. "I want you to decide what we should do, Feli. After all, you had me come here. Why not lead us on ahead?" I urged her with a smile. "U-um… well… maybe go to Primp Town to make a more proper date? ... It's not exactly a date if we just remain in my room all day long, now is it?" She thought, then suggested. "Not a bad idea to me, let's go then." I gently hopped out of Feli's bed. She did the same, after nodding to me.
We grabbed our shoes from the rug, opened the door to exit out of the room, then put them on. At this moment, we both had our warmer clothes on as well. "Bal, me and Dave heading out for a while, be a good boy." Feli called out to Baldanders. "*bark*" He sounded like he wished the both of us luck. "Bye, Baldanders." I waved, before leaving out the front door. We both made our way into town, where Feli thought about the places where she could visit with me. "How familiar are you with Primp, Dave?" "... I'm not too familiar with the town, but I'm starting to know places now." "Oh-! You know what this place is?" Feli pointed to a decently-sized building. "No... ... What IS that place?" I grew curious. "That place is called "The Writer's Playground", I've been there a couple of times before." She told me. "You mean… this is a place where writers write stuff down as a recreational activity? I thought the citizens of Primp weren't too knowledgeable…" I was slightly confused. "There are still certainly smart people here, just not that many." She explained. "Okay… I guess that would be the case…" I rolled with. "Um… let's see, what else?" Feli looked about. "..." I stayed quiet as she did so. "... I suppose this town isn't really fit for people looking to have a date…" She sighed. "..." I still refrained from saying anything. "... … Oh yeah, how could I forget!" She seemed to have an "ah-ha!" in her thoughts. "Um… forget what?" I raised an eyebrow. "C'mon, take my hand! I'll take you to the place I just remembered." Feli waited for me to grab hold of her hand. I did so, and she took me to the place in question.
Ringo's POV
A few hours passed, then I decided it was time to take Serilly over to Ris' place. There was just one problem with that though… Serilly couldn't really go through the snow, even if she did use her wheelchair. This is because the snow itself had built up and was beginning to become inches deep. I thought about how I could take her there with all that snow in the way. If we just go and use the wheelchair, it would only get stuck in the snow. "Damn it… This snow is gonna be an issue, Serilly. You see how thick it's getting already, right?" I showed her. "Yes… this is not good, Ringo. How can we get there if it's like that? You can't just carry me there, I'm… too heavy for you…" Serilly nodded, then admitted. "And Dave's occupied at the moment through his date with Feli… … How about I just bring him here? That'll be much easier than trying to take you to him." I eventually decided. "Yeah, that could work…" She agreed. "Alright… I'll come back here with Ris, Serilly." I got ready to leave. "Bye." She waved. "Ringo, that snow is pretty deep. Are you sure that you're going to be fine, my girl?" My mom was a little concerned. "Don't worry, Mom… a little snow's nothing to me." I said as I grabbed my pair of boots to put on. "*chuckle* Okay." She smiled. Once I was ready, I opened the door and witnessed the depth of the snow first hand. Oh, this is not what I initially saw… No matter, it's still not THAT deep. I'll just push on forward and get to Ris! I closed the door behind me and stepped through the snow. With each step I made, my feet and legs sunk into the snow and to where the ground should be.
Great, now my legs are cold and wet... It won't be good if I stay outside for a while like this. I'm now on a time limit of sorts. If I can't get to Ris' place to warm and dry up, this'll have a negative effect on me. But, it's not like I can run through this either… Why did I think lots of snow like this was fun when I was little? It's just a pain in the ass to walk through. ... C'mon! This is a city, why aren't these paths plowed?! It took a while, but I made it to Ris' place. I knocked on the door and the bear came out. "Ah, Ringo! What brings you here?" He looked happy to see me. "The mermaid, remember?" I went straight to the point. "... Oh, yes. I was wondering where you and Dave were… I finished making the mermaid's device a few days ago." He said. "We… were busy dealing with stuff, Ris." I told him. "I see… … Maybe I should let you inside, I see that your legs are wet from the snow. You don't want to get hypothermia now, do you?" He noticed. "Yeah… that would be nice, Ris." I accepted his offer and came inside. While I waited to warm and dry up, I told Ris about everything that happened since the last time I came to his place. The struggle against the Yogs, the fighting tournament, and searching for that special ore.
He remained silent until I was finished. "So, that's why it took you this long to come back to me… And I assume that you couldn't bring Serilly here because of the snow, correct?" "Yeah, Ris…" "So where is Dave, Ringo? I thought he would come with you." "He's… with Feli at the moment." "With Feli? … *chuckle* I see now… Love is such a beautiful thing to see it blossom and mature. Ringo, is your love for him like that as well?" "U-um… well…" "It's okay. I understand, Ringo… It's fine if you feel embarrassed about telling me. You don't have to tell me how it's going between you and him." "Ris… this is why you have always been my best friend, through and through. Thank you for understanding." "Anywho… I do believe we should go see Serilly together, Ringo. Where is she?" "She's in my place right now, follow me." We left Ris' place after getting the device for Serilly. We walked through the snow together for a while. "Hey Ris, aren't your paws getting cold?" "Heh. I am a squirrel bear, Ringo. There is no way that I will get cold as fast as you." "Fair point." We got to my home's door as I knocked clinging snow off from my boots. I opened the door and let ourselves in. "I don't believe that I have been in here before, Ringo." Ris mentioned. "She's over there, Ris. But first… wipe your paws dry." I told him. He did so and approached Serilly with the device. While he did that, I placed my boots in the proper spot. I walked over to Ris, where he was outfitting her with the device.
The device in question seemed to be a bracelet, colored aqua blue. "This bracelet scans your skin and listens to your mind. Basically, it knows that you are a mermaid. All you need to do is to wish for legs in your mind, the bracelet will grant you said wish. Don't worry, this thing is waterproof, and as durable as iron. It won't be getting ruined any time soon. Go ahead... wish for legs, Serilly. If it helps you, close your eyes." He explained to her. "Okay… …" She closed her eyes. "...! It's-!" I saw the bracelet working. "You might want to have something to cover that area quickly, Ringo..." Ris suggested. "I-it's fine, we have a bedsheet here." I quickly covered Serilly's lower area up. Once Serilly felt something totally different, she opened her eyes. "So? How do you feel?" Ris looked back at the mermaid. "... Um… weird, but I think I can get used to it, Risukuma." She told him. "Oh my, this is something I did not expect. It's fine, I'll just go get Serilly some clothes, since she has legs now. *chuckle*" My mom looked surprised, but then laughed it off. "Once we do… she can walk with us." I smiled. "Um… I feel too embarrassed to have legs right now, so I will just kindly revert back to my tail…" Seilly blushed before getting her tail back. "Well, I think my work here is done… I will go now, Ringo." Ris walked over to the door, then looked back at me. "Alright, bye." I returned the wave with my own. And just like that, he left.
Author's Notes: Feli brought Dave to her mansion, as part of their date. They came into her room and the gothic lolita went to show our main character some of her things. The occult divination stuff was quickly glanced over in favor of this other object. This very object was called "The Ring of Body Modification". Feli once got this item so that she could change her body shape and size to catch Lemres' attention. However, Feli said that she had forgotten that she even had this ring for some reason. Then, she said that there wasn't really a use for it anymore; but that was when Dave said that there must still be uses it has for her. This leads to Feli eventually trying the ring on, then its power changed her body shape and size. After quite a bit of debating on how to approach the future with the ring, Dave suggested keeping its power secret until the time is right. Feli agreed to that and decided that she and Dave would go to Primp Town. He accepted the suggestion from her and the two went on their merry way. Meanwhile, Ringo was able to get Serilly fitted with the device Risukuma made; although, she had to get Risukuma to come over to the mermaid, since the snow in Suzuran was piling up. With these things through, what other things are Dave and Feli doing on their date? Next Chapter, Chapter 64: A Date With Destiny.