My best friend is a succubus.

  Meryl turned on the shower and rubbed her eyes. She was exhausted.

  Sure, it sounds ridiculous, but so is everything else that happened last night.

  As she tied up her hair she again considered calling in sick and crawling back into bed.

  No, too many difficult to miss meetings today. And it’s Friday, I can probably get out a little early and crash. Ugh, why are people even allowed to schedule meetings on Fridays?

  Meryl stared vacantly at her reflection in the mirror, waiting for the water to heat up. She looked exhausted.

  I guess cumming all night really takes it out of you… God, that was incredible.

  She brushed her teeth, trying to remember when they had even fallen asleep.

  Or is it more than that? Aren’t succubi supposed to eat souls or something?

  She’d been convinced of Vi’s new identity well before she lost count of her orgasms. The more of them Vi shared with her the more ready she seemed for the next one, and Meryl was absolutely not going to stop her from making her feel better than she’d ever felt in her life. Again.

  It’s not like Vi had been relentless either, never overwhelming her to the point of discomfort. She’d matched Meryl’s peaks as well as her need for rests, sometimes going back to only kissing, or running soft fingers up and down her body to draw out her afterglow. Vi even noticed a few times when Meryl hadn’t needed a break, pushing her straight into another more intense climax.

  Heaven.

  As she stepped into the shower her thoughts wandered back through those wonderful sensations. Butterflies fluttered inside her, like echoes of the real thing. It certainly hadn’t been the kind of sex she was used to, but the night had been undeniably amazing.

  What had it been like for Vi?

  She recalled how quickly Vi had climaxed, pressed against her mouth, as well as Vi’s desperation leading up to that moment. The profound relief in Vi’s eyes when they’d first agreed to kiss paled in comparison to the needy looks she had given her just before Meryl went down on her.

  In hindsight, though, that had merely been foreplay, an appetizer. What truly seemed to bring Vi bliss was Meryl’s own pleasure. She recalled Vi between her legs, looking up at her hungrily just before she pushed her over the edge. Another incredible orgasm, yet somehow Vi had seemed to enjoy it even more, quivering against her thighs, eyes rolling slightly before squeezing shut. What did that feel like?

  She recognized the envy creeping into her thoughts. The most adorable ears, perfect skin, and fucking mind reading? What would last night have been like if they’d both had that power? Or that tongue… An image of herself stepping into the office in an hour with changes as drastic as Vi’s danced through her mind, and she was unable to decide whether the idea scared or thrilled her.

  Fuck, stop it.

  Rubbing her eyes again then plunging her face into the hot stream of water, she tried to focus on the rest of the day ahead.

  Violet woke in an unfamiliar bed, sunlight streaming onto the folds of white sheets where Meryl had been sleeping.

  Ah, yes, Meryl’s. Shit, what time is it?

  She rolled toward the nightstand to check her phone, only to find it missing.

  Probably left it on the couch.

  Violet slipped out of the bed and made her way to the kitchen. The slight bounce of her chest still felt unfamiliar. As she passed the island a small pile of neatly folded clothes caught her attention. A note rested on top.

  “Good morning, Vi!

  These are some old clothes of mine that might fit you. They’re yours if you want them. They were optimistic purchases even when I bought them years ago! We can go shopping this weekend too if you’d like :)

  You work this afternoon, right? I was thinking in the shower, there are lots of crazy colored contact lenses you can buy these days. Maybe tell work you’re getting into cosplay or something? I bet your customers will love it. The cool ones, anyway.

  ❤️ Meryl

  PS– Last night was incredible”

  Violet smiled. She was a bit nervous about work, but perhaps it would be as simple as Meryl hoped.

  She tried the black, lacy bra first, finding the cups were a tad snug but the band fit well. Definitely better than her nipples trying to poke through her thin sweater all day. Maybe that’s just what push-up bras were supposed to feel like, she’d never owned one.

  Under the bra she found a pair of underwear. For a moment Violet wondered if sharing underwear with her best friend was an odd thing to do, then snorted as she recalled Meryl trying to whimper her name mid-orgasm, while Violet curled her tongue into a spiral inside her just to see what that felt like. No, their bar for odd was considerably higher now.

  Meryl also included a pair of jeans. They were a little long and on the looser side, but she could roll up the legs and they would be more comfortable than the pair she’d squeezed into yesterday. The fact that she could wear something of Meryl’s at all made her wonder whether her hips really had grown.

  That’s so thoughtful, thanks Meryl.

  Violet continued to the sofa to find her phone sitting on the arm rest. Ten twenty. Almost an hour before she needed to leave for work. After a quick thank-you text to Meryl, she collected her sweater from the bedroom floor, attempted to make the bed, and tidied up the rest of the dirty clothes they’d left out.

  Shit, I should shower.

  She removed the clothes she’d just put on and placed them on the bed, then headed for the bathroom. It was still hard to believe the reflection in the mirror was her own. Had she really changed so much in the last day? She was relieved to see the whites of her eyes were back, at least. That would have been hard to explain. Well, not as hard to explain as the three or four inches she’d lost, but she hoped that wasn’t something people would notice, at least not consciously. They’d probably assume she was wearing a different pair of shoes or something. And Meryl had only noticed because she knew Violet really well. Probably. Hopefully.

  She did like her new hair, though. Running her fingers through it, it felt thicker than she was used to and had even grown a few inches, now reaching the middle of her back. She decided to avoid getting it wet, since it didn’t seem dirty and would definitely be a huge pain to dry. After a minute of peeking into drawers, she found a large hair clip, twisted her hair into a bun on the top of her head, and stepped into the shower.

  The hot water felt wonderful. She felt wonderful, even better than she had yesterday evening. Meryl was definitely on to something with her succubus theory, even if it had been a joke. Not literally, of course, that was absurd. But she couldn’t deny the incredible relief she’d felt each time one of Meryl’s wonderful orgasms filled her body, washing away the desperate tension. By the time she’d finally let Meryl rest, that satisfying fullness had been more than relief. It had become its own kind of pleasure, a high unlike any she’d felt before. Ecstasy, without the edge. She’d wanted more, but she’d also known Meryl was at her limit. Her limit to continue enjoying the experience, anyway.

  Do you hear yourself? It’s not like the word ‘succubus’ is more ridiculous than literally doing succubus things.

  Fuck, I know, she answered to herself. Fine, I’ll go with the succubus theory for now.

  Meryl, her beautiful, kind friend. She’d given Violet safety, understanding, compassion, amazing relief, and an ecstasy she could never even have conceived of before last night. She’d given her love, in every sense of the word, and Violet felt those same feelings overflowing in return.

  Oh god, am I falling for my best friend? Fuck. What will she think? She said last night was incredible. Maybe she feels the same. No, this is some stupid high. If we were really right for each other we would have found out before now, right?

  Suddenly, Violet was convinced she’d somehow betrayed her friend, somehow forced her affection and desire, either chemically or telepathically. Why else would their relationship have taken such a drastic turn on the exact day of her transformation?

  Except, there was Ryan.

  Maybe I pushed him into having sex, but he hadn’t been completely brainwashed by it or anything. Maybe it’s really only a nudge, and Meryl’s been open to this all along. “This”? What’s “this”? Sex? More?

  No, don’t assume. I’ll talk to her later. Maybe she’ll let me over again after work. Maybe to stay the night again.

  Violet tried to stamp out that last thought. Meryl had given her so much, and she would let Meryl define her boundaries before asking for more.

  I guess I should text Ryan, too. Eventually.

  Her attention finally returned to the shower, smiling again at her new curves as she scrubbed them down, then rinsed and hopped out. Staring at her naked reflection again in the misty mirror, she was suddenly curious about her most recent change. She reached down with her tongue to see if she could touch one of her nipples, her eyes widening as she easily twisted the tip of her tongue around it.

  I think I’m going to like this.

  A shiver ran through her body as she flicked the tip of her tongue across her nipple. It had taken a little time to get used to last night, but she’d soon had impressive control. That practice had all been in service to Meryl, however, so she wasn’t exactly sure of her limits. She touched the end of her nose, then slid the tip up the bridge of her nose to her forehead, until she touched her hairline. She grinned.

  Yeah, I’m pretty sure you’ve got a new kink there, Violet Serafin, she teased to herself. But you’re also going to be late.

  Shit, what time is it?

  Violet stepped onto the the bus, surveying the interior with a nervous glance. To her relief it was mostly empty, and she chose a seat in the back row to discourage stares as much as possible. This was the second of two she needed to get to Café Rose from Meryl’s apartment. The first had also been uneventful. It seemed unlikely she was going to lose control the way she had yesterday, now that the desperation she’d felt driving all her thoughts to sex was gone, but she still couldn’t help worrying.

  There were still the issues of her ears, odd eye color, and unusual hair, but she didn’t expect those to be much of a problem with strangers. Meryl was right in at least that much, strangers would assume she was just dressing up for some convention or something. No, it was the upcoming interactions with Anne and Kate that truly had her on edge.

  Violet idly opened and closed apps on her phone. There was nothing new to see since she’d checked a few minutes ago, but it was an automatic impulse.

  Succubi – or whatever it is that’s happening to me – there must be others.

  She searched every permutation of the word she could think of, including various “symptoms” she’d experienced. A few results focused on medical issues, but they only appeared when she left out the word succubus and didn’t seem remotely relevant. The results were even worse when she did include it. Nonsense that was either pure fantasy or confused men who were obviously experiencing some kind of sleep paralysis hallucination.

  Useless, she sighed.

  She glanced back to her surroundings and right into the stare of a child three rows up.

  Ah, that’s where this intense curiosity is coming from.

  And absolutely no shame over his blatant and continuing stare. He was too young to know any better. A woman who was probably his mother sat next to him, lost in her own phone. Rose Café passed by the window next to Violet.

  Oops, this is me.

  An overhead speaker chimed as she pressed the stop button. The boy was still staring at her, mouth hanging open as he leaned awkwardly against the edge of his seat. A silly temptation crossed her mind and she quickly checked to see that no one else was looking in her direction.

  As the bus came to a stop, Violet pressed the end of her tongue against one of her nostrils and crossed her eyes in a silly expression, feeling triumphant when the boy’s emotions shifted to surprise and amusement, then she rushed off the bus.

  The sun felt wonderfully warm as she walked, balancing out the slight chill in the air. Violet waved at Kate as she opened the door to the coffee shop. She waved back, most likely automatically because she slowed to a stop as Violet approached. The gears were definitely turning.

  “…Vi?”

  “Hey.”

  “Vi! You dyed your hair?!”

  “Y– Yeah, I dunno, thought I’d give white a try…”

  “OMG, your ears. This is adorable! What’s the occasion? Wait, did you shrink?”

  “Uhh–”

  Violet was blushing furiously now, shuffling toward the back room to add distance between them as she tried to decide what to say next. Nothing she’d rehearsed for mentally had prepped her for this instantaneous assault. Fortunately, a heroic customer came to her aid by approaching the bar.

  “Hi! What can I get you?” Kate’s asked cheerfully as she pulled her attention away from Violet, who took the opportunity to sneak away through the swinging door to the back rooms.

  She exhaled as she stowed her purse on one of the shelves, keeping her phone in her back pocket, then grabbed one of the plain, black aprons they were required to wear.

  “Can I help y–”

  Violet spun as she heard Anne’s voice drift from the small office behind her. She hadn’t even noticed Anne was there, she’d been so preoccupied with avoiding Kate’s questions.

  “Hey!”

  “–Violet?”

  “Yep, trying a new look,” Violet smiled awkwardly.

  “Ah, I hardly recognized you. Feeling better?”

  Shit. I didn’t tell her I left early yesterday. She doesn’t feel upset, though.

  “Oh yes, much. Thank you!” Violet replied as she put on the apron she was holding.

  “That’s good. Here, just finished writing these up.”

  Right, paychecks.

  She took the envelope, trying to avoid too much eye contact, but Anne already seemed distracted.

  “Thanks.”

  As Violet turned to leave she felt Anne’s attention move back to her.

  “Oh, Violet, I hired someone new this morning to replace Emily. I’ll get them started on the mid-day shift on Tuesday but I’ll need you to take over training the last few hours during your afternoon shift.”

  “Got it.”

  Not wanting to allow Anne any more time to inspect her closely, Violet stuffed the envelop into her purse, washed her hands, and returned to the bar where Kate was taking orders.

  “Regular latte and an oat chai,” Kate said as Violet stepped past her to the espresso machine.

  “You told Anne I left early?” Violet whispered.