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Ereshkigal watched as her Master put a DVD into a slot underneath the TV. She had agreed to the movie on the basis that, since she was just recently summoned, she would be able to get to know her Master better. Master grabbed the remote and came back to settle down next to Ereshkigal in the pile of pillows and blankets at the foot of the bed.
The opening credits of the movie started to play. Master was sitting close enough to Ereshkigal that when she moved her arm, her hand brushed against her Master’s. She quickly moved it back, but her Master reached out to her.
“Your hands are cold.”
Master’s fingers brushed over the back of Ereshkigal’s hand. She turned her hand over so her palm was facing up, and Master’s fingers quickly laced with hers. She could feel the heat seeping from her Master’s hand into hers, the heat radiating from her Master’s arm that was so close to hers, and the heat spreading over her cheeks as she felt her Master’s gaze on her.
“Ereshkigal?”
“Master, I…” She turned her face away, hiding her blush. “I was alone in the Underworld for a long time. Something like this… h--holding hands… it’s been thousands of years.”
“I’m sorry,” Master said. “But now you have me, at least. I’m not much, but--”
“No,” Ereshkigal said, squeezing her Master’s hand. “You’re more than enough.”
Master reached up and ran a hand through Ereshkigal’s hair comfortingly. She closed her eyes and exhaled.
“Do you like that?”
“Yes. It feels… yes.”
Master let go of Ereshkigal’s hand and stood up, then climbed onto the bed behind her.
“Master?”
Ereshkigal felt a soft tug on her hair. Her Master was undoing the ties around her twintails. She felt fingers run through her loose hair, and she let her eyes close again, relaxing into the sensation. She felt her Master’s fingers switch from stroking her hair to massaging her head, and she let out a soft, pleased noise.
Master laughed gently.
It had been so long since Ereshkigal had been touched by a living being in almost any capacity. She couldn’t remember the last time someone touched her hair, much less… this. Her Master’s fingers ran from her hairline to the nape of her neck, pressing and stroking. She was panting slightly, and Master must have noticed, because the fingers in her hair stilled.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes,” Ereshkigal breathed. “Don’t stop.”
Master went back to massaging her head, fingernails scratching her lightly. She felt the pressure of her Master’s fingers move from by her temples down to under her ears. It had been so long since she had been touched so… intimately, lovingly.
“Ohh…”
“Really, Ereshkigal, are you alright?”
“I am, just… keep going, Master.”
The fingers in her hair resumed their work, caressing her in just the right way that contented, audible sighs fell from her lips. Ereshkigal was focused on nothing but her Master’s fingers and how good they were making her feel. The movie played completely forgotten in front of her, her head tilted back and her eyes closed.
“Oh, Master… I--”
She let out a whimper as her Master gave her a particularly firm scratch.
“Did that hurt?”
“No,” she said, tilting her head down as she felt herself blush again. “It just feels so good, having a living being, a human… having you touch me.”
“Oh, I see,” her Master said. The fingers in her hair moved down to her shoulders and started to massage her there. “Does this feel good?”
“Y--yes,” Ereshkigal said. It did feel good. It felt like energy was flowing from her Master’s fingertips into her body, even though this was nowhere near a mana transfer. Oh, Ereshkigal could barely imagine a mana transfer. Her face was burning just thinking about it.
She closed her eyes and let the feeling of being cared for wash over her as her Master’s fingers kneaded her shoulders. She let out little moans at anything that felt particularly good, and she let herself relax into her Master’s hands.
After some time, her Master’s hands slid off her shoulders. Master climbed off the bed to lay down next to her, and she scooted forward so she was laying down, too. They were face to face, Ereshkigal giggled nervously.
“Hi,” she said.
“Hi,” her Master said. She felt a hand on her waist. “Come here.”
Ereshkigal moved forward so that her head was resting on her Master’s chest, one of Master’s arms wrapped around her and the other holding her hand again. It was cozy. She felt… loved. It had been so long since she felt that way. It had been millenia since her husband died. But now she had a Master who cared for her, and she felt loved.
She closed her eyes and gave in to the warm feeling in her chest as her Master stroked her side, drifting off as always into a dreamless sleep.