Reborn as a Succubus: Time To Live My Best Life!

As Melisa made her way back through the academy grounds toward home, her mind raced with possibilities despite Javir's warnings.

[Sure, using the memory thing for political advantage would be "ethically questionable," but is letting nim be executed any more ethical?]

She kicked a small stone, watching it skitter across the cobblestones.

[But Javir has a point too. Using magic to spy on people without their knowledge? That's pretty shady, even for a good cause.]

The streets grew more crowded as she approached the market district. People everywhere. Too many bodies. Too many opportunities for accidental contact.

She sidestepped a pair of children chasing each other, dodged around a cart piled high with vegetables, and nearly jumped out of her skin when a street vendor tried to press a sample into her hand.

"No touching!" she yelped, earning herself a bewildered look from the vendor.

[This is going to be a long three to five days.]

But as she continued walking, a new thought began to take shape. What if there was a middle ground? A way to use this strange ability that wasn't purely selfish but wasn't completely passive either?

Maybe she couldn't use it to extract political secrets from Aria, but what about using it to better understand the people in her life?

[Like Armia. I could better understand what she's going through with the whole "I want to be seen as human" thing. Or Raven, to figure out why her "secrets" are so... boring.]

By the time Melisa reached Javir's manor, she'd almost convinced herself that maybe, just maybe, there was a silver lining to this weird magical mishap after all.

She opened the door cautiously, listening for signs of who might be home.

"Hello?" she called out, hovering in the entryway.

"In the kitchen!" Margaret's voice replied. "Just finished lunch if you're hungry!"

[Mom's cooking? Hell yes.]

Melisa headed toward the kitchen, mouth already watering. The smell hit her before she even reached the doorway – fresh bread, roasted herbs, something sweet and tangy.

Margaret stood at the counter, her back to Melisa, slicing something. Her tail swung with gusto behind her, the heart-shaped tip flicking a little back and forth.

"Smells incredible," Melisa said, walking over. "What did you make?"

Margaret turned, beaming.

"Roasted duck with cherry glaze, herbed potatoes, and fresh greens from the market," she announced proudly. "I thought we could all use something special after... well, everything that's been happening."

She wiped her hands on her apron and moved toward Melisa, arms outstretched for a hug.

[Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap.]

Melisa sidestepped quickly, suddenly fascinated by the potatoes still steaming in their dish.

"Wow, these look amazing! Did you use that rosemary from the garden? And is that garlic I smell?" She babbled, completely obvious.

"Yes to both," Margaret said slowly, lowering her arms. "Melisa, is everything alright? You're acting strange."

"Me? Strange? No, definitely not. Just, uh, really excited about these potatoes. Super enthusiastic about root vegetables in general, you know me!"

Margaret's brow furrowed with concern.

"Darling, you're a terrible liar. Always have been. What's wrong?" She reached for Melisa's hand.

Melisa jerked back, nearly knocking over a chair.

"Nothing! Nothing's wrong! I just... I have... nim fever!"

"Nim fever?" Margaret repeated, completely deadpan. "You never get fevers."

"New condition! Very rare! Highly contagious. Doc says no touching for a few days."

Margaret's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Melisa..."

Melisa opened her mouth, searching for a better excuse, when the back door swung open and Hazel bounded in, covered in mud from head to toe.

Both Melisa and Margaret cringed simultaneously.

"Mom! Look what I made!" She held up a misshapen lump of wet earth. "It's a sculpture of Melisa! See the horns?"

"Hazel Blackflame! What in the world? You're tracking mud all over my clean floor!"

"Oops," Hazel said, not sounding sorry at all. She spotted Melisa and her face lit up. "Melisa! Do you like your mud portrait?"

Before Melisa could react, Hazel launched herself across the kitchen and tackled her in a hug, smearing mud all over Melisa's academy robes.

The world tilted.

Melisa was suddenly seeing through Hazel's eyes as she crouched in the garden, digging in the mud. Her small purple hands worked the earth, carefully shaping it.

[I'm gonna make the best sculpture ever and then Melisa will let me come to academy with her! Mom says I'm too young but if I show Melisa how good I am at making things maybe she'll convince Mom I'm ready!]

The vision ended as abruptly as it had begun. Melisa found herself back in the kitchen, covered in mud, with Hazel still clinging to her waist.

Another "secret" she'd become aware of.

"You're all dirty," Hazel giggled, pointing out the obvious.

"Yeah, wonder how that happened," Melisa replied, looking down at her now ruined robes. But she couldn't be mad, not after seeing Hazel's sweet motivation.

[She wants to come to academy with me? That's... actually really cute.]

Margaret was already moving toward them with a wet cloth.

"Hazel, go wash up immediately. And you—" she pointed at Melisa, "—are going to tell me what's going on after you change."

"Yes, Mom," both sisters chorused simultaneously.

"And you," she said to Melisa specifically, "clean robes. Then talking. Five minutes."

"Yes, ma'am."

Melisa hurried upstairs to change, her mind now occupied with Hazel's secret aspiration.

[I wonder what Mom would say if I actually suggested bringing Hazel to the academy for a visit? I mean, she's related to me,] Melisa smirked at no one in particular, [so for sure she's talented.]

---

Melisa changed quickly, pulling on a simple tunic and loose pants.

[Don't wanna make her angry. She's been getting good enough at Fire Magic to incinerate me or something,] Melisa thought as she headed back downstairs.

She found Margaret waiting in the sitting room, arms crossed. There was a very visible mud handprint on the wall behind her.

"So," Margaret said, one eyebrow raised. "A fever?"

Melisa sighed and flopped into the chair opposite her mother.

"It's not a fever. It's... weirder."

"I gathered that much." Margaret leaned forward. "Start talking."

"You remember that research project I'm doing with Jaylin?"

"Yes, vaguely."

Melisa rolled her eyes.

"Well, we found something in the library. A secret passage."

"Of course you did," Margaret's head hung and now it was her turn to sigh.

"And," Melisa continued, "at the end of it, there was this... disc. Ancient artifact thing."

Margaret's expression shifted from skeptical to concerned.

"Melisa. Please tell me you didn't touch an unidentified magical artifact."

"Um." Melisa grinned sheepishly. "In my defense, nothing happened. At first."

Margaret pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Ohhhh sweet goddess, give me strength."

"But then later – like, the next day – we figured out what it did." Melisa hesitated. "When I touch someone now, I can see their memories. Their private ones. Their secrets."

There was a long moment of silence.

Then Margaret burst out laughing.

"That's your big excuse? A magic memory disc?" She wiped away a tear. "Darling, if you didn't want a hug, you could have just said so."

"I'm serious! It really happens! And it's not just me. Javir and Jaylin touched it too." Melisa crossed her arms defensively. "Why do you think Jaylin hasn't come out of her room at all?"

At that, Margaret paused.

"Huh... I assumed she was staying with a friend." Margaret smirked.

"No, she's avoiding all of us because she accidentally saw a memory of you and Dad... you know." Melisa made a vague gesture.

Margaret's eyes widened slightly.

"Oh."

"Yeah. Oh."

Margaret blushed.

"And this happens every time you or Jaylin touch someone? You just... see their private memories?"

"And Javir," Melisa made sure to add. "Though, uh, not everyone has shown me sexy stuff," Melisa clarified. "Hazel just showed me she wants to come to the academy. Which was actually really sweet. Raven just showed me her, like, sitting down and stuff."

Margaret's expression softened.

"That does sound like them."

"Just... don't touch me until Javir figures out how to fix this, okay?"

Margaret snorted, then reached out and lightly pushed Melisa's shoulder.

"You can't possibly expect me to believe—"

The world tilted.

Melisa was suddenly in her parents' bedroom, seeing through Margaret's eyes. She was on top of Melistair, riding him with abandon, her massive breasts bouncing with each movement. Melistair's hands gripped her hips, helping her rise and fall on his cock.

"Fuck, Margaret," he groaned, his red eyes half-lidded with pleasure. "You're so wet today."

[Gods, I needed this,] Margaret's voice echoed in Melisa's mind. [Nothing like good dick after a frustrating day. Kimiko must be so jealous that she doesn't get to taste this more often... almost makes me want to invite her to join us. Again.]

"You like that?" Margaret purred, leaning down to bite Melistair's ear. "Wait until you see what I want to try next."

Melisa gasped as the vision ended, finding herself back in the sitting room. Margaret was staring at her with a shocked expression.

Margaret smiled nervously.

"Uhm... Did you just...?"

"TOLD YOU!" Melisa threw her hands up, her face burning violet. "You fantasized about Aunt Kimiko!"

Margaret's cheeks turned a darker shade of purple.

"I... that was private."

"No kidding!" Melisa couldn't help but laugh despite her embarrassment. "Dad has no idea what you're thinking, does he?"

Margaret's cheeks turned a darker shade of purple.

"Well... He could likely guess." Margaret laughed, her embarrassment fading into amusement at Melisa's discomfort. "And if we're comparing awkward revelations here, I'm pretty sure I've walked in on you and Isabella enough times to balance the scales."

"That's different!" Melisa protested, dropping her hands.

"How is that different?"

"She's not my sister!"

"No..." Margaret replied, smirking. "Just your cousin."

Melisa opened her mouth, then closed it again.

"Touché."

They sat in awkward silence for a moment.

"So..." Margaret finally said. "Three to five days of this, huh?"

"According to Javir." Melisa nodded. "Unless she finds another solution."

"Well then." Margaret stood up with determination. "I'd better warn your father to keep his distance. And possibly Kimiko too, just in case."

"I tried gloves. They don't work."

"Of course not. That would be too simple." Margaret shook her head, but she was smiling. "Your life is never boring, is it?"

"Not since I got here," Melisa agreed. "Though I could do with a bit less of... whatever that was."

"Fair enough," Margaret chuckled. She winked. "I'll try to think pure thoughts around you for the next few days."

"I'd appreciate that." Melisa paused. "By the way, about Hazel and the academy..."

Margaret raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?"

"She really wants to visit sometime. Maybe see what it's like."

"She's too young."

"Just a visit," Melisa insisted. "Not to study. I could show her around. It might be good for her to see what she can work toward."

"Hm..." Margaret seemed to consider this for a moment. "We'll see. When she's not actively tracking mud across my entire house, perhaps."

Melisa grinned.

"So that's a maybe?"

"That's a 'we'll talk about it later.'" But there was a softness in Margaret's eyes that Melisa recognized as her giving-in look.

[Victory!] Melisa thought, trying not to let her smile get too smug.