Verm and Abbozzato Groaning to himself, Verm traipsed through the markets of Murida. Things felt stranger now, being back here. He couldn’t help but feel like a criminal even after walking the city calmly for the past couple of days with his friends. It probably didn’t help that there was a big protest brewing, and that he and his friends would be taking part in it. Actually, there really wasn’t any pretending he wasn’t a criminal come to think of it. H scratched his chin as he wondered about that, and for the matter why he cared so much about it now of all times. “Oh! That’s right.” Pausing abruptly in the middle of the market, he glanced up at a nearby storage room hanging above the clothing shop. All this thinking about criminals had reminded him of a job he was supposed to be doing. “Uh, hold up guys. I just remembered something I need to take care of.” “Another sidequest, huh?” Siobhan smiled at Verm in a way that made the mouse groan again. He glared at them, but they waved him off without looking too concerned. “That’s okay, Verm. You’ve helped us plenty lately. Go ahead and take care of it.” They smiled a bit brighter. “Just don’t expect help again.” Verm rolled his eye and shook his head. Luckily he didn’t need backup for this one. “I think I’ll manage.” Without another word, he hopped toward the storehouse, leaving his crew behind. He didn’t pay them much attention after that, this would be a quick errand after all. Climbing into the old storage, he was unsurprised to see a well dressed mouse excitedly counting a bag of seeds. He was a bit curious about what the mouse was still doing here after months. He considered asking, but Abbozzato beat him to the chase when he noticed the click of the closing door. “You! My apprentice! Where have you been?!” He dropped the seeds and pointed accusingly at Verm. Verm barely responded, just blinking for a moment before responding. “I was busy. And Sky Garden’s not exactly around the corner.” Abbozzato folded his arms and nodded, closing his eyes for just a moment to consider if Verm’s answer was acceptable. “True enough, pardon my impatience.” He lifted his head, showing off a big, excited smile and a glint in his eye. Verm made note of the look, but didn’t really pay much attention to it. “Time has become my enemy. The guard grow suspicious of my dealings. Did you meet Matilda?” Verm nodded and fished the bit of red fabric out of his cape to present to Abbozzato.”Yeah.” “Wonderful! I can see from here that the fabric’s now a beautiful, vibrant red.” He beamed at the sight, smiling wide enough that it shook Verm for a moment. “How did she rate it?” “Um…” Verm paused for a moment. “A+. She really laid on the praise.” “Excellent! That Connor truly is a master weaver.” Abbozzato clapped his paws together in a bit of applause. Verm would have called the gesture sarcastic, particularly with how ecstatically he spoke. By this point though, he knew that the strange mouse was absolutely genuine, no matter how quickly he seemed to switch moods. To that point, he quickly returned to a calm, business-like tone as he fished a small satchel of seeds out of his hat. “Here is your paycheck as promised.” Verm nodded curtly and took the bag without a word, pausing just for a moment to count the seeds. Five seeds wasn’t bad payment for what had turned out to be barely an errand. After he was satisfied, he got ready to pass the fabric to the seedy merchant. ”Your final task, my apprentice, is to take this fabric to Vinium.” Verm’s ears drooped a bit when he realized there was a final errand in this mix. “A fine seamstress there by the name of ‘Penelope’ owes me a favor. Ask her to fashion the fabric into whatever garment she sees fit.” Abbozzato was smiling confidently when he finished his last request. His tail flicked and he crossed his arms, certain about Verm’s response. Verm wouldn’t have refused the easy seeds, but admittedly even if he had wanted to it would have been hard to say no to such confidence. “A seamstress in Vinium, huh. Okay, I’ll be back soon.” He nodded and tucked the fabric away before turning and getting ready to head out. Then, something gave him pause. When he shut his eye, his ear twitched. Abbozzato hummed something to himself the moment Verm turned around. In an instinct that still felt a bit unfamiliar, Verm’s tail twitched at the noise, and that got a Abbozzato humming a bit more. Curious, he turned and looked back at the shady merchant. Abbozzato was incredibly brazen about the way he looked at Verm. The confident, proud smile he had on his face was the same one he had when he first examined the cloth sheet Verm brought him. There was one big difference though. He was blushing. “Forgive me, my apprentice. I couldn’t help but notice.” He nodded and pointed dramatically at the other mouse. “That is a stunning new tail!” Verm’s tail flicked again. “Oh… yeah. Thanks.” He lifted it a bit to allow the merchant a better look, and his eye wandered to examine it himself. “Siobhan’s a really good at their craft. I could probably get you one if you wanted it.” “Oh no! I can’t imagine such a tail gracing a finer figure. It’s clear this was made for you!” Abbozzato nodded again. “But alas, I digress and time is short. Don’t allow me to delay you too long.” The merchant hummed again, and Verm turned his eye on him. He was very brazenly stroking his chin. “For now, I will have to be satisfied with the view you’ve given me.” In spite of himself, Verm blushed. Normally he wouldn’t have given a weird comment like that even a second’s thought. It was just another rodent checking out his tail, just like his friends did. Right now though, it was sinking in a lot more than usual. Gwen had gotten him thinking, maybe a bit too much. He was finally starting to feel like a normal mouse again, after seasons of wandering, and now here someone was hitting on him. “What kind of mouse do you like?” He thought out loud to himself, his tail flicking again. He hadn’t ever stopped to think about it much. Maybe he should sometime. He had no intention of dying, but it wouldn’t be long before he faced the god of death, and Gwen and Bruce were already constantly going on about him not really living. “Ohho!” Abbozzato laughed, his own ears flicking. “How very coy, my apprentice. Could it really be you’ve fallen for your employer? They do say absence makes the heart grow fonder don’t they?” Verm turned around and raised an eyebrow at the cocky merchant. Abbozzato tapped his foot and shook his head solemnly. “Ah, if only we had more time.” “It doesn’t take that long does it?” Curious, Verm moved closer, his nose twitching. Abbozzato suddenly smelled a bit different. Glancing downward, Verm noticed that the grey mouse was clearly starting to get a bit aroused. That was probably the difference. He could smell that odor over the merchant’s usual violet cologne. “I mean, the errand can wait an hour or two, right?” For the first time in quite awhile, Abbozzato showed Verm an expression of genuine shock, his eyes darting open abruptly. Verm noticed his smell getting more intense too. “Ah! An hour!?” The grey mouse shivered and stumbled back, his arousal showing more obviously by the moment. “You flatter me, my apprentice!” He laughed and steadied himself. “But I suppose if you are so eager, your master can spare a few minutes.” Verm wasn’t sure how he felt about the term master, but at this point, in for a seed, in for a sapling. He kept approaching, dropping to his knees and following Abbozzato’s natural scent right to the most obvious spot, his groin. Once his nose brushed against the other mouse’s balls, he surprised himself, shivering right alongside the merchant. And then, he just sat there, soaking it in at first. Then, it became awkward. His body felt weirdly stiff, way more than he was used to. The sword on his back even felt heavier than usual. His tail twitched nervously, and he was suddenly aware of a pain in his groin he’d never really noticed before. “So… uh… what do I do?” Abbozzato set a paw on Verm’s head and pet him gently. That didn’t help with the stiffness. “Ah, such an eager boy you jumped in without thinking?” He laughed sweetly while Verm shivered again under his touch. “How about we start at the bottom and work our way up? That will do for now.” “Start at the bottom?” Verm was only aware that he’d closed his eye when he had to open it to consider Abbozzato’s meaning. Curiously he pulled away from the mouse’s groin and glanced downward, noting the merchant’s rough leather boots. “If you say so…” Still uncertain, he dropped lower to the ground, running his nose along the mouse’s leg and down to the boots. “Oh!” Abbozzato laughed again, steadying himself against one of the storeroom’s boxes and enjoying the show. “That’s not exactly what I meant, my apprentice.” Verm paused just as he set his blade aside and grabbed for the mouse’s boot. “But please, go right ahead. I haven’t enjoyed a good toe licking in some time.” Slyly he slipped his paw free of the boot while Verm held it, and the smaller mouse watched the paw curiously as it daintily slipped out of the garment. It was strange, admittedly. It was just a paw. But something about it coming out of the boot made it feel special. Verm wasn’t really sure why. It wasn’t even the first time he’d cleaned a paw, having licked his own free of dirt plenty of times. But, this was weird enough that it almost made him hesitate. “Almost,” being the key word. He actually only paused long enough to set Abbozzato’s boot down. Then, he leaned right in and wrapped his snout around the other mouse’s foot, nibbling at the dirt between the toes and licking at the claws. It was just like any other paw really. It tasted sour, but just a bit bitter; pinkish really. Something about it tasted good though, better than something that he was just cleaning. He really didn’t quite understand it, but he allowed himself to enjoy it. As he licked over the foot, his eye shut without him thinking again. He kept licking at it and enjoying that sour, pink flavor for every bit it was worth, and his tail started to flick more wildly. It was almost waving about like he was in battle, but it wasn’t the same kind of intensity. This was unfamiliar, and not as numbing. Instead, his body was becoming more sensitive the more he licked. He could feel every fold and every spec of dirt on his tongue while he cleaned Abbozzato. He could also feel himself starting to smile. And just as he was finishing up the cleaning, the other mouse’s next foot was released. Verm’s nose twitched at the smell of it coming fresh from its boot. “Come, my apprentice. I said I only had a few minutes. Your next task awaits!” Verm opened his eye just long enough to set Abbozzato’s foot down and reach for the other one. Strangely, he actually was feeling eager now, reaching for it without a moment’s pause and longing for the fresh taste. He hadn’t noticed how intense it was the first time, but compared to how it had faded on the mouse’s first foot, the second was almost overwhelming. He savored it even more, suckling on Abbozzato’s claws for just a second before properly moving to clean. Then, the mouse caught his breath a few moments later when Abbozzato pulled away. “Hah… hah…” Verm shivered and opened his eye. Abbozzato turned Verm’s head to make sure he was facing him head on. The grey mouse had been rubbing his penis the whole time Verm had been licking him. He pieced that together now that he’d had the second to think about it. “Did I… do well?” He blinked, uncertain why he cared enough to ask. “You have done extraordinarily, my boy!” Abbozzato pet him again. Funnily, Verm found he wasn’t stiffening up at the touch this time. “And as you can see, your next job is ready and waiting!” Verm felt Abbozzato pull him gently forward, and he didn’t resist. He moved closer, back to the merchant’s groin. He hadn’t ever seen another mouse fully aroused before, but he liked the smell. “Just, in my mouth?” Curiously, he rubbed against the grey mouse’s groin. Without thinking he ran his tongue over the merchant’s balls. They tasted mostly like Verm’s own, but just like with the feet, this felt way different than a simple cleaning. “For now, yes, my apprentice.” With permission granted, Verm didn’t hesitate, running his tongue over the mouse’s balls and up his dick with a quick, needy set of licks. Abbozzato squeaked a bit, and his petting intensified. “Ah! But don’t get too eager, there is one more task ahead!” Verm’s tail twitched like mad as he licked. He didn’t really think about what the last task was, but he knew enough to piece it together. The idea was strangely exciting for the first time, and thinking about it made his licking more eager. It helped that the cock he was licking had a taste like nothing quite like he’d had before. It was the softest shade of pink he could imagine, just the slightest bit sour, and overwhelmingly salty and bitter. Without thinking, he tried to swallow the cock whole, wondering how he had missed a flavor like this for so long. Once it was in his throat, he positively gorged himself on the taste. He was actually angry when Abbozzato stopped him. Embarrassingly, the grey rat pulled him off with remarkable ease and aimed his gaze once again. Verm blushed, suddenly aware how lithe and relaxed his body was as he looked up at the other mouse. He stiffened briefly, suddenly uncomfortable with how vulnerable he was. His head started to ache. Then, Abbozzato lifted his head higher, and he pulled himself the rest of the way to a stand. “That was wonderful, my apprentice, but we’re not done just yet.” Confidently smiling, he pulled Verm close until they were snout to snout. “One more task for now, remember.” “Right…” Verm nodded and set his paws on Abbozzato’s neck. “Work my way up.” Truth be told, he wasn’t wholly sure what was next, but he knew enough about affection to know about kissing. So, he pulled himself in, set his snout against the merchant’s and swallowed his lips. Abbozzato got the signal immediately, and opened his mouth to swallow Verm’s too. Soon enough, Verm was enjoying the curiously sweet taste of Abbozzato’s tongue. Relaxed as he was, Verm didn’t ask any questions when the merchant’s paws ran down to his hips and hefted him onto his lap the rest of the way. His tail went stiff briefly when he started to consider what was happening. Admittedly, he got just a bit scared when he realized there was only the one place Abbozzato’s dick could go. But he knew that there wasn’t a reason to worry. If Bruce of all people could handle it, he could after all. Abbozzato was skillful and confident as his paws wandered over Verm and found his aim. Verm wasn’t sure how to help, so he allowed the other mouse to have control, guiding him. He just followed the push and pull of the paws, rubbing that warm dick under his most sensitive parts until it finally started to press against him. In spite of every desire to keep quiet for once, Verm squeaked when he felt the dick press its way into him. The kiss broke and his body went stiff again as he held tight to Abbozzato. Nervous, his head started to pound and his eyes slammed shut. “Just let me know if it hurts.” Abbozzato pet him. One hand ran over the stump of his tail, barely poking out from under the prosthetic. Verm expected that to hurt, to make him panic even. Somehow, it made the stiffening stop. He opened his eye to see Abbozzato smiling up at him, oddly gentle. He glared back. “I can handle it.” He groaned and shivered, pushing himself back against the rock hard intruder under his tail. “Trust me… I can… handle it.” His breathing got heavy. He tried to be confident, but the intrusion was new. When he pushed back hard enough to feel Abbozzato’s cock properly, to feel the tip of it slide in, he shuddered. “I have no doubt about that, my lovely apprentice.” Abbozzato shot him that confident smile and leaned in for another kiss while Verm slid further back onto him and squeaked. He had to catch the smaller mouse several times. In spite of everything, Verm found himself squirming atop the dick, having trouble keeping balance. Somehow, he didn’t mind it for a second though. Every time he writhed it felt like the other mouse’s dick hit something new and wonderful inside of him. Even better, Abbozzato managed to catch him and swallow his tongue no matter where he darted away too. Every kiss he broke meant another thrust from the grey mouse, and another breath of that sweet taste. It was over too fast, and yet somehow it lasted too long. Verm’s squeaking grew in intensity as he rode out the experience and grew more overwhelmed. Soon, he was smelling Abbozzato’s scent so strongly it seemed to fill the whole room, and he squeaked wildly into the other mouse’s mouth as he felt the dick inside of him pulse strangely against the walls of his ass. He himself was so overwhelmed he wasn’t even sure what his body was doing. It just seemed to shake and writhe against the other mouse with an instinct he’d never allowed himself to think about before. It was stunning, hot, and overpowering. And then, just like that it was over. Abbozzato broke the kiss this time, leaving Verm breathing heavily on top of him and trying to control his loose muscles. Verm only managed to open his eye after he caught himself just short of dropping himself entirely on top of the other mouse. He was surprised to see Abbozzato’s usual confident smile replaced with a goofy, dizzy grin. “Ah! W-Wonderful, just wonderful.” He laughed. “I knew you were a fine mouse the moment I saw you.” Unsure what to say to such a compliment Verm just nodded. At least, he tried to. He only managed half a nod before his head started to swim. After that, he collapsed, and Abbozzato caught him, running his paws up his back and holding him in a tight squeeze. Verm wanted to feel frustrated by that, but he couldn’t. The other mouse was warm. It was comfortable. So, he allowed himself to sink into that comfort for a minute. He could allow himself a minute for this once, even if Abbozzato’s petting was starting to make his fur stand on end the longer he hung around. “”Ha! Yes! I haven’t felt that good I a long time! Lovely job, just lovely.” Abbozzato hummed giddily while he petted. Verm thought long and hard about pulling away when those compliments came pouring out. He particularly wasn’t sure how to handle the idea of being, “Lovely.” It made his skin crawl and his stomach flutter, but, strangely, he couldn’t find a way to hate it. He took a deep breath and sighed. “Me neither.” He pushed his face down into Abbozzato’s chest, reflexively covering his blushing. His body was starting to stiffen up again as he pulled closer and his strength returned. He would wait it out though, at least for a just a little more time. --- Verm found himself strangely upset when he had to leave. Part of him wished he could stay in that dingy old storage room forever, stupid as that was. However, he had to go way sooner than that. He had stayed with the other mouse until he got his strength back, but after that, both of them knew that he had to get going. Abbozzato had stressed time being of the utmost importance, and Verm knew that was true, for the both of them. Noses went straight into the air the moment he entered the café where his friends had been waiting for him. Bruce was the first to talk, like he always was. “Ha! That was one doozy of a sidequest wasn’t it, lad?” His eyes went straight down to Verm’s groin. Verm noticed, but didn’t even pause to think about why, even when Gwen’s followed suit. “Dinnae think ye had it in ye!” “It’s not over yet.” Verm crossed his arms and moved to join his team. He wasn’t totally sure why they seemed so chipper, mostly because he himself was so frustrated at having to run another errand. It wasn’t really a problem though. That would mean they’d be more likely to indulge him. “We need to stop in Vinium for a bit.” --- For the first time in what his whole life, Verm was uncertain when he got back to the storage room. Wearing the cape the dressmaker had forged, he had stepped confidently up to the door, but his hand paused at the knob. It was ridiculous, but he looked nervously back at the cape, unsure about how it looked. His friends had assured him it was the coolest when he put it on, and even now he could catch them giving him a thumbs-up out of the corner of his eye. “This is stupid.” He cursed at himself and shut his eye. It was pointless to fret so much about how he looked. The merchant had fucked him when he was dressed in rags after all. Steeling himself and straightening his tail, he stepped inside the dingy room. And to his infinite disappointment, he found not the mouse he was expecting, but a letter, sitting plainly for anyone to see in the middle of the floor. Suddenly hit with a sinking, heavy feeling, he picked it up. “My Apprentice, Forgive me, but I had to make a hasty escape before I could see you. Consider that outfit a gift, a proper reward for a job spectacularly done!” Verm had been angry when he found the note, and grew only angrier as he read it. Furious, he nearly failed to finish the thing. “Bastard.” He bit his tongue and shivered, momentarily uncertain how to feel. The shady jerk had seen him vulnerable, made him way too comfortable, and before he had even had a chance to really think about it, the bastard was gone. The more he read on, the more he wanted to find him and give him a piece of his mind. Then, he read the final paragraph, and in spite of himself, his body relaxed again. “I’ll look forward to seeing the fit of it someday. Alas, for now I’ll have but thoughts of it to comfort me. For now, live well, my apprentice, and we’ll meet again upon the roads if the waves allow it!” The last phrase was scrawled with a small heart, a stupid gesture that, in spite of everything, made Verm blush. With a sigh, he tucked the letter away and ran his paws over the silky crimson cape that he had made for the shady merchant. “Maybe, when all of this is over, we’ll meet again on the road.” He shivered, then stiffened. His companions would be waiting for him in the café again. They’d told him to take his time this time. Right now though, he found himself in more of a rush than ever to complete his mission. Once the yellow god was dead, then he could think about what came after.