The Spider Queen

"Why don't I get some snacks from the kitchen… go make yourself comfortable and I'll be back in like two minutes," Sophie explained gently.

Astrid nodded in understanding and went over to the couch to sit down. 

She kept glancing back at Sophie as if to reassure herself that this was real.

Her best friend had returned.

A warm fuzzy feeling surfaced in Sophie's heart when she saw the emotions of relief in Astrid's eyes.

It felt good to be cared for and know that someone had your back no matter what.

The hybrid girl walked over to the kitchen area and opened up the drawers under the countertop. 

There were several large platters stored inside the drawers, so Sophie chose the largest ones available. 

She placed the sweet cream cakes on the platters and made sure to stack them up nicely. 

A sugary scent filled the air and Sophie had to resist the urge to grab one of the cakes for herself.

Those spongy gooey cakes with their cream filled centers were a devilish temptation. 

Sophie held two platters one in both hands and walked towards the living room.

Astrid's tail was still wagging furiously as she poked her head over the couch. Her furry ears prickled up as Sophie's footsteps came closer and closer.

"I didn't have much time, so I only made dessert. I hope you like it!" Sophie shyly whispered. 

She set the platters down on the table in front of the couch.

"Thank you! Sophie… you know how much I love sweets!" Astrid exclaimed in excitement. The wolfish girl grabbed the nearest cake and swallowed it whole without even chewing.

Then she grabbed another…

And another… and another…

"Delicious…" Astrid groaned as she wiped some cream from the side of her lips. 

Sophie saw that her friend was not holding back so not to be outdone she quickly snatched some of the cakes for herself.

The sounds of chewing and satisfied sighs filled the air as both girls happily enjoyed the sugary taste of the sweet cakes.

Finally, the last cake disappeared in Sophie's stomach and an identical expression of sadness appeared on both their faces.

Astrid and Sophie sat on the couch and just looked at each other silently. 

The atmosphere turned a bit quiet and there was a faint sense of tension. There was just so much to say but somehow neither girl knew where to begin.

"So…" Astrid and Sophie blurted out at the same time.

"No… you go first…"

"Come on… you just came back to university… you should talk first…"

"I insist… you came over to my apartment…"

"No… I insist… don't be polite with me…"

The girls angrily stared at each other and then burst out laughing. The sense of awkwardness faded away and Sophie felt the same closeness as before.

"Did you get the archmage's permission to skip classes?" Sophie asked with a knowing smile.

Astrid bared her fangs and boasted proudly, "My mentor? I fooled him completely! It was a simple matter to just cast an illusion spell inside the library."

"I'm sure that he believes that I am currently hard at work studying the theory of magical equivalent exchange and blood rituals by Mage Carter."

"Sophie… you won't believe how boring those dusty old books are!"

"I swear those ancient mages would write an entire novel to explain a simple one-line concept."

Sophie listened to Astrid's story, but something didn't seem right. 

She couldn't help but question Astrid about the obvious flaw in her master plan to skip classes without her mentor finding out.

"Are you sure that you managed to trick one of the most powerful archmages in the Federation with a simple illusion spell?" Sophie asked softly.

The smug grin on Astrid's face disappeared as she suddenly realised that in her excitement to meet up with Sophie…

She may have fucked up.

"By the gods… he's going to assign me so much homework when I show up tomorrow," Astrid complained as she placed her face in her furry paws.

An aura of sadness and despair surrounded the massive Mendolesa girl as she lay feebly on the couch.

"Cheer up! Maybe he'll turn a blind eye since it's so close to finals season," Sophie reassured her friend as she placed a warm hand on Astrid's shoulder.

"That demon? Sophie, you don't understand… he keeps me locked up in that tower for hours at a time!" Astrid sighed helplessly.

The Mendolesa girl felt the weight of the world on her shoulders as Sophie brought up the topic of the upcoming exams.

For some reason Archmage Hollystorm had gotten a copy of the first-year exam from Mer University and he wanted his young pupil to take it.

Mer University was one of the four great universities located on the aquamarine planet of Neptune in the Rx-J123 Star Cluster.

It gained its position among the four because of the specialised nature of the college. 

Mer University was known as the central hub for magical research and many notable mages from all races had trained there.

What that basically meant for poor Astrid was that she needed to write two separate magic exams and pass both.

Astrid pushed those negative thoughts to the back of her mind and focused on the present moment.

She quickly cheered herself up and turned to face Sophie. She needed to do something to break the somber atmosphere.

"I must say…" Astrid's voice dropped to a low whisper as she leaned in closer.

"Cleo's scent is all over your body… I see someone had a good time last night…"

The Mendolesa girl sniffed the air twice and giggled when she saw the flustered look on Sophie's face.

"But I showered this morning! How can you…" Sophie trailed off when she saw Astrid gesture towards her wolfish nose.

Those of the Mendolesa race had an excellent sense of smell which was an ability inherited from their warrior ancestors.

"I'm just teasing you… it's good that you guys are still together," Astrid casually spoke as she held up her hands in mock surrender.

The hybrid girl's eyes narrowed, and she faintly had the urge to give Astrid some payback.

"Ohh… but if I recall… aren't you dating Qiana now?" Sophie teased softly.

"Tell me Casanova… how has your love life been going?"

"Casanova? Who or what is a Casanova?" Astrid asked in confusion as she had never heard that word used before.

"He was the star of a movie from… oh never mind… just give me the details about your dating life?" Sophie quickly replied.

"Well… it's going quite well!" Astrid spoke with a bright smile plastered across her face.

"Isla, Jackson and Emma like her a lot… I… I was a bit worried about how they would react once I started dating but Qiana is amazingly sweet and gentle when she spends time with them."

"Obviously she's really busy with her bounty hunting missions and I spend most of my day in the mage tower so we're taking it slow for now."

"One step at a time… I mean there's no need to rush anything…"