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The forests surrounding the Ashmore castle were wide and expansive, and in one corner of these woods lay an alter dedicated to a lord turned lady in recent years.
It was not often that Lady Ashmore had the opportunity to escape from her duties in the castle, but whenever she did, she packed plenty of snacks - dare I say a feast - and headed straight for the woods. There was no path, there will not be a path for many years yet, for the only one that walks these paths is Lady Ashmore. The sickly aroma of pigs heads and the soft pink mist led her way every single time. This was a second home, a source of comfort from the seemingly ever-growing duties she had.
The clearing was coated in blood, mud, rotting food from previous feasts (formerly known as Lady Ashmore's next feast), and trees that grew with a gentle pink hue protecting the sacred place. Lady Ashmore lay one of her most prized blankets down. It had multiple holes, various patches, and a few blood stains - but that's just what makes it absolutely perfect in both Lady Ashmore's eyes, and under her friend's hands.
"Ashmore, is that you?" a being coated in a bucket of pink waltzed out from behind one of the large trees. The rosewood cloak concealed the figures face, hair and the bulk of her outfit - a gorgeous blush and crepe silk gown with bubblegum lacing on the sleeves and hem of the skirt.
"When is it not?" Lady Ashmore replied, raising herself up and joining the pink figure.
"My troll queen," the figure swished her hood down, "its so delectable to see you once again".
The seemingly unusual long hot pink locks were no surprise to Lady Ashmore, neither was the face of the woman or lack thereof. It was simply one huge mouth filled with pig teeth, with her vibrant pink lips always curved into a smile. A direct contrast to the tight updo of ginger hair with a solo blonde streak of Ashmore, and her deep forest green dress with golden detailing and a deep red corsetry underneath. The similarity in personality was what brought them together, however.
"Nibbly, my beloved devourer," Lady Ashmore smiled with absolute content, no one would notice this smile ever, it was pure and genuine and just for Nibbly.
Nibbly let their face shift, appearing more human-like, much alike Lady Ashmore's normal futures of her skin suit. She let her eyes wonder over the woman, ever impressed by the façade the troll woman maintained. "You look simply delicious, my sweet, absolutely ravishing".
Lady Ashmore let herself spin around, fully showing herself off before guiding the lady in pink down to the blanket a few feet away. Nibbly struggled to see through their eyes, hardly ever having to use them and relying on their other senses predominantly.
Nibbly placed her trust in the woman to be her guide, hand-in-hand, and down onto the blanket. It was the same blanket that Nibbly had previously mentioned she loved the feeling of. Her Lady Ashmore really paid attention to her.
Lady Ashmore reached behind, lightly grazing her back, "May I?"
Nibbly smiled and nodded, letting Lady Ashmore take of her skin suit. She helped with some of the finer parts of the suit before gently placing it aside to prevent any damage to it - Nibbly knew how much she loved this suit compared to some of the previous ones she had seen her lover in. Though, come the end of it all, what she truly loved seeing was her lovers true form - especially the gorgeous canines her lover had that she had seen in her daughters. Nibbly had seen the two girls often hunting in the brooks near her clearing. Nibbly assumed they were looking for frogs to eat, her Lady had mentioned her eldest Putrice had a particular fondness for the taste of frogs.
Nibbly also shifted her face back to being the sole mouth. They still kept their humanoid body, to feel the ridges of her lover's cold greyish green skin, to map it clearly in their mind. She knew the sweet spots that her lover had, especially one on her back ensuring it gets a thorough scratch.
"Thank you, Nib, that spot was bugging me the last few days".
"It's not a problem at all, you know I'd do near enough anything for you".
Lady Ashmore smiled once more, to be this loved when in a form deemed ugly and unfit for society felt like being on top of the world. She began unfurling the feast she packed for her lover, while Nibbly used their powers to their advantage to pick out the best of the rotting items around the glade for their partner.
They sat side by side lovingly watching each other feast, sparing no crumbs at all. There was no need to be formal here, they were able to be as free and as gross as possible, the façade of being the perfect Lady Ashmore was long gone - in her place was the troll that could feast for hours, and beside her was none other than The One Who Feasts In The Dark. The stars lit up their glade; their safe space to be together. There was no chances of them being discovered either, Nibbly only let those with true intentions find them, and for now that was only Lady Ashmore, but soon she would introduce herself to Putrice and Rancilda, after all, a large portion of these woods did belong to them, and they know what the girls like.
"How are the girls, I see them hunting frogs and birds often, but what do they get up to in the walls of the castle?" Nibbly was always curious about the lives of the Ashmore daughters, never able to get close enough to memorise their features but knowing one wore pink and one wore yellow was perfectly enough, she liked hearing about them way more for now though.
Lady Ashmore finished a few bites before answering the question, "Well, Rancilda is following in some of the family footsteps with her love of riddles. I find little parchment scribblings of her riddles on every table in the castle. Meanwhile, Putrice has been hiding out in the library a lot more, I've been in a few times in the last few weeks and there's less and less dust on the romance novels. Its like their form of indulgence, it keeps them happy, so I try not to mind too much".
Nibbly nodded along while feasting on some more of the food, "They really are perfect, just like their mother. I can't wait to meet them for myself one day".
"You should bring them here," Lady Ashmore leaned into Nibbly's shoulder, clearly having had her fill of the rotten food, "They'd love it here, and I suspect they'll love you as much as I do. Do it on your own terms though, I don't want to push you at all".
Nibbly smiled, teeth filled with all sorts of crumbs and chunks of food, "I've been watching them the best I can. I can't wait to see them closer up and become closer with them".
Lady Ashmore began braiding parts of Nibbly's hair to keep her hands busy, "Surprise they never noticed you, the pink does make you stand out, lovely".
"They're always wading in the brooks looking for frogs, or climbing the trees to try and grab birds," Nibbly chuckles, "They both fall out of trees a lot though, so not the most nimble but they are getting better".
Lady Ashmore rolled her eyes, "Always on the hunt for their favourite snacks".
"As if you aren't, my sweetness, there is always a reason why you feast here with me rather than at home".
"The food tastes better when I'm with you. And I get to talk about things I can't usually talk to people about, because you just get me so much".
Nibbly kissed Lady Ashmore's cheek, "And all this food you bring me is even better, and I love listening to your stories - from your conquests to your daughters".
Lady Ashmore finished the final braid she was working on, then kissed Nibbly's cheek too, "Birds of a feather, huh?"
"Birds of a feather, frogs of the swamp".
"God Rancilda would love that"