Maidenless No Longer (Elden Ring)

Bonus Chapter #12: Zorayas, Tanith, & Tanith's Knight

Zorayas grins, and while part of it is a front, an over-exaggeration so to speak, there is in fact a very real kernel of truth under it all. Once upon a time, her whole world had revolved around Lady Tanith's approval. Now? Her mother meant the world to her, truly she did... but Zorayas was her own woman now.

Both Tanith and her Knight are staring at Zorayas, nonplussed. After a moment, the Snakeborn figures out why.

"Oh! This is the first time you've seen my favored form. What do you think?"

She does a quick twirl, still holding her unnamed baby sister securely of course, even as she shows off what she's taken to calling her 'favored' form. Tis a mix between her previous two appearances, albeit a more matured one. She's done a lot of growing up since Tanith saw her last, after all. Gone is the hunch, because she's learned how to better fold her true stature down into a humanoid body.

To help with this, Zorayas' serpentine tail unfurls out from under her green dress, long and thick and almost able to act as a third leg for purposes of balance and the like. She does so love to wrap it around her husband's waist, whenever he's taking her from behind. On top of that, Zorayas' previously mentioned tongue is also snake-like, while her eyes are... quite green.

But beyond that, she wears her old human guise, perhaps with a bit more of a chest to it, and with her back nice and straight, allowing her to stand to her full human height. Yes, while it was all well and good to love herself for who she was, Zorayas had the ability to change her appearance, to shapeshift, all thanks to her mother's teachings. So why shouldn't she use it, to find her most favorable form?

After a moment, Tanith and her Knight seem to accept this. Tanith in particular, lets out a soft sigh and offers Zorayas a hesitant, fragile smile.

"It is good to see you, daughter. I do not mind what you've done with the place. I'm glad you've gotten to meet the child... and... I'm sorry, for everything."

Zorayas opens her mouth to accept her mother's heartfelt apology, when a sudden draconic roar echoes overhead, interrupting her. Immediately, the Crucible Knight by her mother's side goes to unsheathe his sword, only stopping when Zorayas snickers and waves him off.

"Don't worry, don't worry! That's just Lansseax. She's the Tarnished Lord's favored mount. In more ways than one."

Zorayas' eyes twinkle, as the sound of a dragon landing outside the manor reaches them. This is followed by the softer sound of boots hitting ground as the Tarnished that had impregnated Tanith all those months ago, dismounts.

When he steps inside, Zorayas does not hesitate. Moving over to her mother's ever-loyal shadow, she offers the Crucible Knight her sister, which the armored fellow takes without question.

"Down the hall and to the right, you'll find the Nursery. Little Irya is currently down for a nap, so try to be quiet, but there's plenty of room in the crib for my sister to go down right beside her. Thank you for your service~"

Not waiting for a response from the tall Knight, Zorayas quickly reaches out and grabs her mother by one hand... and the newly arrived Tarnished Lord by the other.

"Come on you two! Upstairs!"

Keep them on their toes. Keep them guessing. Don't let them have time to think. All lessons that Zorayas had learned at the feet of Lady Irina. The blind noblewoman had taken Zorayas under her wing and taught her everything she knew!

And... to her credit, it worked! While Zorayas had no misconceptions about her beloved Lord simply going along with the ride judging by the amused smile on his face, Tanith was definitely only allowing herself to be dragged along because of how bewildered she was by Zorayas' take charge attitude!