That hug opened up a whole new world for Burnice and Pulchra in their relationship. Whenever they were at home together, they would rest on the couch together. Pulchra would lay first on it, letting Burnice sit on top of her, resting her back on Pulchra’s chest as the therian surrounded her with her arms. Then, Burnice would grab her partner’s tail and hug it as well. No matter how innocent that seemed from the outside: that moment was a pure bliss for them. Pulchra felt satisfied by being that close with the woman she cared the most and she grew so fond of, while Burnice enjoyed the feeling of Pulchra’s body surrounding her, feeling protected and cared about. That was just the beginning for them, as more affectionate gestures accompanied them everyday: they would hug sometimes at home, walking through the streets by grabbing each other’s arms, sitting together to eat something at Cheesotropia… They even went as far as cuddling together on the bed, Pulchra being the big spoon and Burnice holding onto her partner’s arms. At that point, every time they shared together was full of happiness, but deep inside, Burnice was looking forward to what else they could do together.

Their lives kept going for a while, and one afternoon that they were cuddling together on the couch, Burnice looked up to meet Pulchra’s eyes. Noticing that, the therian smiled.

-Hey, what are you looking at?- asked Pulchra.

-Heh heh, at the cutest kittie in the world- said Burnice. -Really, I can’t thank you enough.

-Nah, I did nothing. You put a lot of effort into this- said Pulchra.

-No, that’s not true. You’ve been there all this time, supporting me and being patient. You have helped me a lot. And now, I’m just looking forward to the next training!- exclaimed Burnice.

Pulchra was confused at that statement.

-What do you mean “next training”?- asked Pulchra.

-Well, now you can hug me, and that’s great! So I’m ready for the next level!- exclaimed Burnice cheerfully.

-But, dear… there’s no “next level”- said Pulchra.

Hearing that, Burnice sat straight and looked confused at her partner.

-I mean… you said it was gone, right? You don’t have any problem with physical contact anymore… You don’t need to train anymore- explained Pulchra.

Burnice repeated those words mentally in her head. They made sense, and still, there was something off.

-Oh… oh… I guess you… you’re right- muttered Burnice.

-Hey… is it something wrong?- asked Pulchra worried.

-What? No! No, no! I just… I don’t know, I actually didn’t think about it, but… you’re right! My problem is just gone, so we can just enjoy being together! I’m silly, you know that!- exclaimed Burnice jokingly.

Burnice laid back again on Pulchra, who surrounded her with her arms. The bartender grabbed her tail again and brushed it mindlessly, her eyes frowning a bit without her partner seeing her.

-But… I want more...- pouted Burnice in low voice.

Some days passed by and the couple kept enjoying their cuddling time together, and still, that sensation was still lurking in Burnice’s head: the idea that there could be “more” than they were just doing so far. The problem was… she couldn’t pinpoint what she actually wanted. It was getting harder to think than usual, and not even her job at the pub could distract her from those thoughts. One night that Pulchra was out of the settlement on a commission, Burnice shared some drinks with her friends Lucy and Piper from the gang… although “some drinks” would be an understatement. The bartender kept chugging one glass after the other. In other circumstances, Nitro-fuel would make her feel way better in an instant, but that night, she felt there were not enough drinks to calm her down. Lucy looked at her friend in awe.

-Wow, you should slow down, Burnice!- exclaimed Lucy. -Not even you can keep up with this pace!

-Ah, these whippersnappers always go ahead without thinking too much- said Piper with her usual lazy tone. -You should take care of your body so it will keep it up until the old age, just like me.

-Aaaaah!- sighed Burnice as she finished another glass and laid her head on the bar with sad expression. -It’s just… I don’t get it… I don’t get it at all! My… my Pulchra…

-Wait, is something wrong between Pulchra and you?- asked Lucy worried. -But… when we see you outside, you look so happy.

-Sure, we are super happy! Everything’s great! I never believed I could actually get this comfy with someone, ya know?- exclaimed Burnice a bit tipsy.

-I must say, you worked really hard to overcome your contact problem. Youngsters are so used to the easy way, not trying enough, but you just showed them how things are done. You really took this seriously- praised Piper.

-I know… I know… just…- pouted Burnice as she slipped her finger over the edge of the glass. -Just… I want more!

Hearing her complain, Lucy and Piper looked at each other confused. They then looked back at her sad friend.

-What do you mean with “more”?- asked Lucy.

-I… I don’t know, just… We practiced a lot, OK? And then, I asked what was next and she was like “your problem is over” and I’m like “oh, she’s right” but… I still want more things!- complained Burnice.

-That’s… OK? I mean, she’s right, your problem is gone, but I don’t think she meant there can’t be more things, just that you don’t actually need to train...- tried to explain Lucy.

-But she was the one coming up with ideas! What’s next after this? I just don’t know!- exclaimed Burnice.

-Wow, slow that engine down, little girl- said Piper to comfort Burnice. -You say you want “more”, right? So, when you think about “more”, what comes to your mind?

Burnice hummed for a minute or two, letting her mind drift away in her thoughts. She imagined Pulchra so close to her, feeling her breath, her paws moving down her back…

-I… Just… I mean, she… she has her two paws and… I have this body here! There are so many things she hasn’t touched yet, like… my belly or… my tits or… my butt! My butt is right there, I want that paw grabbing me there. It’s not that crazy, right?- explained Burnice.

Burnice went back to her pouting face, resting on the bar. Lucy was shocked, her eyes as wide as they could and her jaw opened. On her hand, Piper took a sip from her Nitro-fuel drink and smiled.

-Ah, young love… Just like our bonfires, something burns deep inside us when we find the right one. It makes us want to start that engine and ride as far as we can until the endless prairies of pleasure- said Piper.

Burnice looked at her friend with a puzzled expression.

-Really, Piper, sometimes I just don’t get you...- complained Burnice.

Lucy put her hand on her face in frustration.

-You two are so hard to talk to sometimes… She means… you want to “get laid”!- exclaimed Lucy.

This time, Burnice dedicated her confused face to Lucy.

-Eeehm… What is that?- asked Burnice.

At that moment, Lucy and Piper looked at each other and nodded in agreement.

-Fuck! You want Pulchra to fuck you!- exclaimed Lucy and Piper in unison.

It took Burnice a moment to process that information. In her head, Pulchra’s hands kept going lower and lower through her body, reaching her special zone… Slowly, her face turned as red as Lucy’s pigs and she jumped on her place.

-Whawhawhawhawhawha- what?!- exclaimed Burnice. -Wait, I… she… we… we can touch… like that?!

-Sure you can- answered Piper. -Not everybody wants to, but for most couples, there comes a time when they want to go “deeper” in their relationship.

-What Piper means is that, usually, the next step after all that cuddling and love is usually getting more intimate and doing… things… I mean, I haven’t done anything, but come on, even I know that! You really didn’t think about it?- asked Lucy.

-I… I, uhm…. I don’t know, just… I guess… I never thought anybody would touch me, so… I never thought about it- muttered Burnice nervously. -Is that really what comes next?

-It’s not a matter of “what comes next”. It’s a matter of what you want- said Piper firmly. -From what you told us, that seems to be what you actually want… unless we misunderstood and you actually meant something else.

Burnice tried to think. She tried to think of other possibilities, but deep inside, the images that she saw before in her head… she knew it: she wanted Pulchra to touch her that way. She wanted to feel the sensations that came from such things. She desired to be as close to her partner as possible.

-I… I think I… I do...- murmured Burnice bashfully.

-Hey, it’s OK. It’s not something you have to decide right now- said Lucy to comfort Burnice. -Give it some thought and, if you are ready, you can talk about it with her.

Burnice simply nodded at her friends. It was already late and their heads felt heavy because of the Nitro-fuel, so they all left home. That night, Burnice saw Pulchra in her dreams, on top of her as she laid on the bed, feeling her paws approaching her breasts, every inch in her skin being caressed gently. She was unable to move, enjoying that beautiful sensation…

Burnice opened her eyes. It was already morning and her head hurt a bit, but she still remembered that dream vividly. She turned around, looking up at the ceiling of her room, with a mixture of happiness and worrying inside her heart.

-I know… I know I want that…- thought Burnice to herself. -I want Pulchra and I to be that close… Just… We worked so hard to get this far. We feel so good together like we do. I love her hugging me, I love when we hold hands and kiss… Everything is so great… what if she doesn’t want to go further? If I go to her and say “hey, let’s fuck!”, she may not want that… and maybe we… we could lose what we already have… I don’t want to lose all these beautiful things… I just… I just don’t know what to do… Just know that… I love her…