Page 37 of Mary had a Little Harem

“You won’t believe this,” he started, not batting an eye. “It’s the Maiden!”

Noel perked up, his face flushed. “The Maiden?”

A little jealous, Mary frowned at the word. “The Maiden? Who is she?”

“Ummm, only the rarest boss in RIVER! We’ve been searching for her for years!” Sam shouted, jumping from one foot to the other. He seemed excited, but Mary didn’t really get why.

“You mean in your video game?” she asked, frowning her eyebrows.

“Yes, in our game. She only appears once every season!”

“Ooookay…” Mary wiped her mouth and kissed Noel on the cheek. “You boys go play then.”

“Are you sure you don’t mind? We were kind of in the middle here,” Noel protested a little, torn between two rare opportunities.

“Yes, I’m sure. This Maiden only comes once a season, but I can come all year round,” she grinned, winking at the two men.

Sam grinned wolfishly, his lips curling up in a smirk. “Oh, we’ll make sure about that.”

“I’m counting on it!” Mary replied, turning back to Noel so he didn’t feel left out. “Thank you for inviting me over. Let’s do this again, yes?”

“I’d love to,” he smiled, brushing his lips over hers again. Sam rudely shook him out of the lovely haze, but that didn’t mean he didn’t appreciate and love what Mary had done. And next time, he’d be repaying her favour. He couldn’t wait to properly dive into that.

Mary moved downstairs to grab her coat. From the stumblings behind her, she could tell that the men were relocating but she’d find them to say bye anyway. The house wasn’t very big after all.

“Are you leaving?” a warm voice asked as she entered the kitchen. Mary looked behind her, surprised that Nico actually bothered to come back upstairs.

“Yes, I’m going. There is a Maiden or something that’s drawing all the boys attention and I know when I’m beat,” she smiled, not as upset as she thought she would be. They loved their game so why would she deny them the opportunity to catch the Maiden? Or battle her or breed her. She wasn’t exactly sure what she was for, but she knew they were excited for her appearance.

“You know you could stay and watch,” Nico said, sounding a little odd to Mary. She wasn’t entirely sure if the pixie just invited her or scolded her. She was so hard to figure out and it was annoying her.

“I’ll pass, I think. All this gaming stuff isn’t really for me,” she argued, not sure what made the game so cool.

“It takes a bit to get into but it’s really fun. You should play with us again,” Nico added and this time, Mary was sure it was an invite.

“Maybe another time.”

“If you’re sure,” the pixie shrugged, grabbing Mary’s coat and tugging open the kitchen door. “I’ll see you out.”

“I was actually going to say goodbye to the guys first,” Mary protested, confused about Nico again. First she invited her and now she was trying to usher her out of the door? This girl was all over the place and she couldn’t get a read on her.

“Suit yourself,” Nico nodded, stepping aside so Mary could descend into the basement. The telltale noises of magic sparks and sword swishing reached her before the flickering computer screens did.

“Guys, I’m leaving,” she announced a bit awkwardly, not sure how to actually say goodbye to them given the circumstances.

“Are you sure?” Louis asked, briefly looking up from his screen to throw her a lopsided smile.

“You are more than welcome to stay,” Sam added, flicking his mouse harshly to the left and lighting up the dimly lit room with bright green.

“I think I’ll pass,” Mary said again, tiptoeing to Louis’ side. Since she was actually dating him, it seemed appropriate to kiss him first. Quickly, as not to disturb his stream, she pecked him on the lips and ran a hand through his hair. “Call me?” she asked, trying not to sound too needy or hopeful, but she couldn’t deny that she wanted to see him again. She glanced at Sam, just catching him leering at her. Them. She wanted to see them again.

“Have fun with the Maiden,” she smiled, quickly kissing Sam before he engaged in another battle again. He grinned against her lips and dipped his head back to steal a second kiss from her lips.

“Oh we’ll have fun. Just not as much as with you,” he winked, temporarily distracted from his game. Blood splattered against the screen as a lone goblin attacked him, but he had another moment to spare on Mary. The Maiden wasn’t here yet, but she was.

“I would hope not,” Mary teased back, slinging her scarf over her shoulder so she could head into the night. She passed Noel on the way up and lovingly pressed a kiss on his cheek. He smiled tenderly, in a way she hadn’t been looked at for a long time, and with a little fire burning bright inside of her, she left the three men behind.

“So you’re really leaving?”

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