Caring for Nicole (part 2)

"Hey, leave that alone," I quickly reach out and stop her hands.

"Hungry..."

"I'm hungry too. Yours will be ready in thirty... uh, no, twenty minutes," to appease her immediate hunger, I hand her a slice of the toasted nut bread instead. "Haven't you slept at all?"

"Mmm... just a few naps here and there." She leans heavily against the counter, lazily nibbling at her bread.

"So... how bad was it?" Is it okay to ask right after she got here? But I'm curious, so I ask anyway between bites of bacon and eggs.

Delicious~

"Over five thousand dead and still counting. Luckily, the meteor fell right on the academy, so the resident staff attracted quite a bit of attention from the horde. We did incredibly well compared to the Carian Kingdom."

Five thousand dead for a city with a population of around ten million or something like that. If we were to speak strictly in terms of numbers, we certainly did do well, although I notice she completely omitted the number of injured.

"Oh, they fell there as well?"

The Kingdom of Carian is our neighboring country here in the Kingdom of Ciren, located a little further towards the center of the continent. They are pretty similar to us, practically ruled by the same extended royal family.

"Yes..." she pauses, her tired eyes suddenly narrowing into an accusing squint. "You do know which one the Kingdom of Carian is, right?"

"Y-Yeah!" I stammer a bit, avoiding her gaze. "I mean, I don't care much for nobles, but at least I remember the names of the most important countries. Don't look at me like that."

"You didn't even know the most important duke in our own city."

Ugh. Hit right in the weak spot.

"I know a bit of his history! The names of people I don't care about just don't stay in my memory for very long..." I pivot the conversation before she can scold me further. "Wait, how do you know they were attacked too? Did meteors fall from the sky there as well? Where exactly?"

Assuming the meteors fell at the exact same time, that was only about a day ago. If I remember my geography correctly, it takes two to three full days just to reach the border from here by train.

"We have magical means to communicate instantly over long distances..." she trails off, her gaze drifting longingly toward the oven. "Is it ready yet?"

I take a quick sniff. My keen sense of smell easily picks out the transformation: the cold, raw scent of poultry from earlier has yielded entirely to the mouthwatering fragrance of bubbling cheese, crisping bacon fat, and warm herbs. It smells incredible, but the center still needs just a moment longer.

"Give it a few more minutes."

We keep talking while she waits for her meal, and I finally finish mine. Apparently, the Xenos fell across several countries. In the Carian Kingdom especially, the meteorites crashed right into the middle of heavily populated cities.

Normal cities. Places without a prestigious academy full of super-strong mages, without several orders of knights, and without large armies at their immediate disposal. Ouch.

The threat here was contained relatively quickly, but it sounds like Carian's military will be stretched incredibly thin trying to travel to the most affected regions.

A few minutes later, I pull the hot casserole out and serve Nicole her meal along with a fresh glass of orange juice.

I start washing my dirty dishes at the sink, glancing back at her every so often just to watch the adorable, happy wagging of her tail. I will never get tired of seeing that! It looks like she really loves the food.

I'm glad; I was improvising a little.

"Thank you for the food~" she sighs with a satisfied smile when she finishes, practically melting onto the tabletop. She looks like she's about to pass out at any moment.

"Please take a bath first. You stink."

"Mh..." is her entirely incoherent response.

I decide to put off washing her dishes for now. Instead, I walk over and gently haul her up by the arms, dragging her down the hall toward the bathroom. "I'll help you wash up, so hold on just a little longer. You'll be able to sleep much more comfortably if you get clean first."

"Mmm... okay."

In the bathroom, I wait for her.

... She isn't moving an inch. Ugh, fine. I'll do all the work.

First, I step in front of her to unbutton her jacket and slip it off. She just stands there, swaying slightly, trying her best not to fall asleep on her feet.

Now, for her shirt. Unfortunately, this one doesn't have any buttons.

"L-Lift your arms." Ah, I stuttered. Even though we have seen each other naked plenty of times, I have never actually undressed her myself before.

I carefully pull her shirt over her head, doing my absolute best to fight the magnetic pull on my eyes. So, now her pink bra... Her pants! Yes, better to do that first. Or are they trousers? Eh, it doesn't matter, I just need a little mental preparation.

I undo the top button on her trousers and pull the zipper down, instantly getting a glimpse of her purple lace panties.

'Isn't it a bit anachronistic for trousers to have zippers in this era?' Hey! Weird silly thoughts, do not interrupt me right now!

Her trousers are high-waisted, so I reach around to check the base of her tail with my hands. Yes, there is another button hidden there. I much prefer pants tailored with built-in room for a tail over these ones with just a buttoned hole in the back. They are never the right size and I always have to alter them. Oh well. I undo the back button and start pulling the heavy fabric down.

"Step out of them," I murmur.

As the trousers slide all the way down her legs to the floor, I pick them up and glance back up... 'W-wow. You can definitely see her, uh, black bush right through the lace of those panties. That's hot.'

I try my hardest not to pay attention as I pull her panties down as well, repeating the same motion as before, while making triple the effort to ignore a certain amazing, distinctly feminine smell that suddenly assaults my sensitive nose—

'Okay, stop! Stop!'

I need to pause for a moment and calm down... I take a deep breath. Then another.

Undressing someone is much more visually stimulating than I anticipated. Luckily, I don't feel the urge to jump on her or anything weird like that. I am absolutely sure I will never feel anything but deep familial love for Nicole... along with a healthy appreciation for her physical body, of course. My sudden excitement stems mainly from the act of revealing more and more parts of someone that are usually strictly hidden, especially with the other party cooperating instead of objecting.

Or something like that? I don't know.

I step behind her to unhook her bra, pulling the straps forward to slide it off.

Now that I have somewhat calmed down, I give myself the luxury of appreciating the very nice sway the motion causes... Nice. Well, I feel better now.

For some reason, I am far more flustered seeing a beautiful woman half-naked in lingerie than completely naked. Do I have an underwear fetish? Mmm... no, I think it is more of a 'women wearing pretty underwear' appreciation. Calling it a fetish might be a bit too much.

Anyway. I strip off my own underwear, and we step into the shower.

I carefully wash and rinse her hair, then repeat the process with her tail, working the soap in much more gently. I lather up a sponge with plenty of liquid soap and begin washing her whole body.

She really looks like she is going to fall asleep standing up at any second, so I guide her over to sit down. This bathroom combines the shower and the tub in one large tiled space, and the tub has a wide, comfortable edge perfectly suited for sitting.

Finally, I wash her feet and lead her back under the warm water to rinse off.

While I leave her to soak in the warmth, I quickly scrub my own body.

Just a fast, efficient shower.

Finally, I dry both of us off by conjuring a light, swirling tornado of wind mixed with just a tiny bit of fire magic for heat. Doing it this way always leaves our fur incredibly fluffy and hilariously tousled, but right now, it is far more important to get her into bed as soon as possible.

... I just realized I didn't bring any towels or a change of clothes into the bathroom with us. Eh, I'll take my chances. There is only one window in the living room facing the street, and the curtains are half-open.

'W-Well, it can't be helped. Yeah. Come on.'

We cross the hall into the living room. Offering a steady stream of encouraging whispers, I guide her quickly toward the stairs, which, of course, happen to be positioned right in front of that street window.

Praying to whatever gods are listening that no one happens to walk by and see our bare butts, I lead Nicole into her room.

The absolute second her body hits the mattress, she starts to snore lightly.

"You did your best today." I stroke her damp hair affectionately for a moment.

First things first. I sneak back to my own room to grab some panties to finally cover my butt, along with a bra. I really liked the style of what I wore earlier, so I go for the exact same set, but this time I pick a matching red top and bottom.

Now, back to her room. What is the most comfortable thing for her to sleep in? I rummage through her dresser until I find her underwear drawer.

Mmm... Some soft cotton panties will do nicely. As for the top... I glance over at her chest. F-cup? Yes. She needs something slightly snug to keep things in place, but not too tight, preferably with a lot of elasticity.

Oh? She actually owns one of those specially padded sleep bras.

Even though they are supposedly designed for comfort, I really dislike them. That weird structural thing right in the middle of the chest always keeps me from sleeping properly. Maybe it's just a matter of getting used to it, but seeing how pristine it looks, she doesn't seem to wear this one much either.

I'll play it safe. A simple sports bra is best.

Time to get her dressed without touching too much. Slowly, step by step... Huh? Why is it actually easier to dress her while she is a dead weight on the bed than when she was standing up and trying to cooperate? Anyway, I just slide this through her arms, over her head... lift her torso up just a bit, and... done. Bra in place. Gravity working in reverse while she lies down actually helps quite a bit, unexpectedly.

Wait, since when can I lift her upper body so effortlessly? Have I gotten physically stronger? That is definitely something to test out later.

Now for the panties. Even easier. I pull them up her legs and just gently lift her hips off the mattress to slide them into place. Finally, I roll her over so she is resting comfortably on her side. Should I apply her skincare routine too? Mmm... Better not. The cold creams might actually wake her up. I drape a light blanket over her shoulders. All done.

"Sweet dreams," I mumble close to her ear.

'Haa... that was exhausting, in so many ways. But I really did like the feeling of taking complete care of someone I love very much.'

You know what? The day is still just starting. I am going to take Nicole's advice and take some time off right now.

I head back to my room, refusing to think about anything complicated. I just grab a simple black tank top with a bit of a plunging neckline, fitted white shorts that nicely show off the shape of my bottom, and my sturdy brown combat boots.

I look at myself in the mirror. 'Ah, right. I urgently need a hairbrush for my head, and a totally separate one to fix my tail... Also, this is definitely not my most well-thought-out outfit, but whatever.'

Once I finish wrestling with my fur, I go down to the kitchen and fill a large glass of water to leave on her nightstand for when she eventually wakes up.

Waking up incredibly thirsty or desperately needing the bathroom instantly ruins the mood of any day, which is a tragedy to avoid if you can help it.

After gathering our dirty clothes, dropping them in the laundry room, and finally finishing the dishes, I step out of the house.

Will there even be any restaurants open today? Maybe everything is closed down because of the meteor incident... or maybe not?

Oh, there's still a faint smell of smoke and debris in the air.

I guess I'll just walk around and let my nose look for a pleasant smell.