"Birch." she repeated to herself, struggling slightly as the vines entwined around her wrists pulled her arms wide. Her head tilted back slightly, her bare shoulders standing out as she tried to resist, but she had no leverage and her upper body strength was woefully outclassed. At least he didn't seem to want to hurt her ... or, at least, while he'd demonstrated how easily he could control her body, he wasn't trying to pull her apart. On the other side, as she heard him approach, she was distinctly aware of just how exposed she was ... how vulnerable.

"I am afraid he was not so courteous as you." her gray eyes watched as yet another lengthy vine uncoiled in front of her. She kept her breathing steady, the growing tingle of fear in the base of her skull reigned in as she fought against the adrenaline surging into her body. Every instinct she had was screaming at her to escape, but, of course, she was thorough ensnared. There was no where for her to go. "He offered no name or affiliation. I know him only by his black skin, wings, and command of fire."

"Mn-!" she pressed her lips together as the narrow tip of the vine pushed against her soft flesh, using the give of her bosom to slide under the tight wrap she used to keep her breasts secure. The wrap pressed her bosom together, creating a natural channel that the vine slid through. Warm, soft flesh engulfed the exploring length of greenery from each side, the fine grain of it's bark dragging against sensitive skin. It writhed and squirmed under the white cloth, pulling it tight against her skin as it wormed through the layers, each time it drew back loosening the folds that hugged her just a little bit more.

The heat of her blood and the hammering of her heart gave lie to the vaguely unconcerned expression she was wearing. She'd never been groped like this before, the light scrape of bark against her delicate skin sending a shiver through her body as it rolled over the globe of her breast and tugged on the wrap one more time. The fear mingled with ... something else as goosebumps danced across her skin. Finally, the vine pushed all the way through the tunnel of hear cleavage and hooked up to grasp the wrap, pulling hard. She bit her lip to keep from making a sound as the wrap half unraveled, half tore free of her, the vine around her waist holding her tight as her back arched just before the cloth gave way.

"Ah ... " she let out a sigh of relief, her breasts bouncing as she fell back into position, the pink nipples standing out slightly as the swayed in the aftermath of that violent action, "It is ... not much of a feat, truly. Any one in my village could have managed this much." she said, her head coming up attentively as he pressed a finger between her shoulder blades. Her voice might be steady, but he could feel her body trembling uncertainly in front of him. There was tension there, of course, but as he firmly rubbed that digit up and down along her upper back, she sighed ever so slightly as the strokes sent other small, pleasant feelings dancing along her spine.

This was all so strange and different to her, she couldn't help but fixate on every new sensation, the fear mingling with something she didn't understand half so well as she remained stretched out under this creature's gaze.

"Should it please you, Lord, this one is called Kurogane Sumire; she is a second year student at the university built on these lands." she managed, "I am afraid I have no tribute to offer a being as majestic as yourself, the other took what I might. I would offer a song, but the other seemed to find my talent unpleasant."

Birch noted that reaction. Some elements had been difficult to discern in the fleshy ones but there were reactions that he knew, that he watched for. Listening he nodded though standing behind her it had been tough for her to see as she looked back as best as she could.

“Don't sell yourself short. It does sound like Slarr ...” He sighed shaking his head. “I have told him about his use of fire in the jungles. He does not appreciate the finer things in life. Yet he was not trying to catch you. Your leaves are the wrong color for his taste.”

He did not linger on that statement too long. “In any case I wouldn't doubt your skills. He is one of the easiest beings to distract. Did you eat his strawberries? Was that why he was throwing a tantrum? Or did he stay focused long enough to drive you to me I wonder.”

His finger halted against her back. Reaching around her he caressed a breast, playing with the nipple briefly. “I can appreciate a song.” Being a plant he may have been more open than Slarr to music. He had not halted though. Other vines seized and tore away her panties.

The finger on her back shifted. Now between her legs it rubbed back and forth along her sex. Vines creeped about her legs. He waited, leaning in to run his tongue against her neck. It was a contrast to the rough bark, cool and fleshy feeling.

When she faltered in her singing he would push that digit inside her, barely penetrating her as he moved his hand down to a hip holding her still there, judging her reaction further to ensure that he was seeing things right.

He might have simply let her go. He wasn't in a berserk needy state and it was Slarr to blame. Nor had she been overly destructive. But if his suspicions were correct there was no way he could resist such sweet nectar. He had been uncertain as o why it tasted better, had it been the rarity? Had it been a means of temptation, in hoping that he would get such a prize, a form of encouragement for the reluctant soul. Now that Thudd wasn't around he was less sadistic, Slarr more so since he was free to act as he saw fit and he ignored most things that did not affect him or his plants.

She was a gift, Slarr may not even know how valuable to him. Even had he known that wasn't going to encourage the devil to act other than perhaps tormenting or torturing her. Slarr loved torment, he had always chalked it up to his small stature. It had been worse in his first incarnation where he was smaller. Since he sprouted and under went other physical changes the fiend was somewhat different but not by much.

“Yes…” she nodded her head slightly when he suggested this “Slarr” hadn’t been trying to catch her, “He was being careful not to strike the trees, and the bolts never came close to actually hitting me. It gave me every advantage, but, even still, he was doggedly persistent. It was only by virtue of a decoy that I managed to get away at all.” She tried to lean forward slightly as that finger traced the curve between her shoulder blades, though stretched out as she was she could barely manage a few inches at best. She meant what she’d said, with the advantages she’d had, any of her seniors would’ve been able to evade such a half-hearted pursuit with their skills alone … but then, she’d left home years ago, and only barely kept in practice. If she hadn’t drilled those skills so relentlessly in her youth, her body likely would not even recall how to move like that any longer.

“Nng…I cannot say what attracted his ire.” She said, a bit more lowly, something like shame in her voice, “I assume I trespassed where I did not belong. I sought only solitude, not to give offense … I had collected some wild flowers, roots, and berries, but I gladly turned those over to him when confronted.” She hung her head slightly, “I thought he may have been trying to drive me out … not to another’s territory.”

Her breath hitched slightly as he reached around her to caress the swell of her breast, calling to mind the image of someone testing fruit on the vine to determine its ripeness, her head turning away as he casually toyed her with her nipple. A song … a song. This spirit seemed to speak English…did she know any songs in English? Still, while she hesitated, he didn’t stop. More vines slithered over her, clutching at the last scrap of modesty she had available, the cloth of her panties digging into her skin. Her hips pulled forward in her restraints until the cloth, pulled to its limit, surrendered to the force pulling at them, the cloth tearing and pulling free.

“…” She pressed her lips together, taking a shuddering breath in at the feel of warm tropical air moving over her most intimate areas. Was this really the only song she could think of in a situation like this? He’d made it clear that he wasn’t going to stop … at least, not until she started, there wasn’t time for her to think of something else. She took a deep breath, her chest filling under the slow stroke of his fingers, closing her eyes to try and focus on her breathing and the words.

“I was once a girl and-
Now I am a young woman
Blossomed and I’ve sprung -
With all my might”

She let the words come out of her clearly, more loudly than she’d spoken since he’d ensnared her, but still there was a kind of sweetness and cheer to her words that seemed somewhat out of place with her predicament.

“Ain’t it kind of intriguing-
Things for you that I’m feeling
Seems as though it-
Happened overnight.”

Her lips trembled slightly, the finger at her back following the curve of her spine as the coils around her ankles started to creep higher and higher along her bare legs, holding her more securely still. He leaned in close, the surprisingly soft, cool texture of his tongue rolling against the exposed length of her neck. The feeling sent an unfamiliar shiver of tingling sensation up to the crown of her head, tiny pin pricks of pleasure dancing along her brain as his hand rested on the bare contour of her hip.

“So, now that I’m not reclusive-
Please don’t find me intrusive
Tell me that your flattery -
Is so ex-clu-sive…”

Then, ever so slightly, she felt the slender prod of a single finger exploratively slipping into the exposed folds of her sex. She sucked in a sharp breath, but the hand at her hip and the vines along her leg kept her steady. She tried to twist slightly at the shoulders, a blush glowing on her cheeks as she instinctively tried to pull away. All the same, for a creature in his position, there was no mistaking the ring of her hymen was still intact around her sex.

“N-notice me (notice me)” she sung tenuously, the second coming lower, as if an echo of the first rather than a repetition
“Notice me (notice me~)” she drew that last note out, before she bit her lip,
“Ah … mn … I apologize, Sir, but … could you please stop that? I can’t—“ she licked her lips slightly, taking a deep breath as she tried to steady herself, “It is making it difficult to focus.”

Birch considered the information that she supplied him with. “Slarr is very unusual. Most of the time I fail to see what gears are turning in his head. He has no territory of his own that I can think of. The closest would be his insane claim to all the strawberry bushes on the island. Even mine, yet he will not state that to me.”

He explained a little. If Slarr was missing on purpose he could only guess it was to lure her here. Shades of their past deeds as they worked together with Thudd came to mind. Wondering what the Smoke Devil wanted in return? He was quite sadistic at times too but Slarr would realize that he wasn't one for sadism, the closest being when he simple lost it from near starvation.

He observed the results of his touch. Hearing her sing was pleasing even if her voice trembled at times. She was composed too. A few of the saplings managed to keep their composure for the most part. He attempted to make the necessary feeding as pleasant as possible.

Her nipple felt stiff beneath his rolling finger. She was so soft to the touch. The taste of her skin against his tongue had been as pleasant as the warmth of the sun itself. Then came the discovery. She asked him to stop too.

She was pleasant enough and he would have otherwise but there was no need to rush. His finger moved away and he grasped her rear. Another vine joined in coiling about a breast like a serpent. It contracted and squeezed against that orb.

“A virgin? Not for long. Not on this island. There are those that are far worse than Slarr. While your song was wonderful sapling I am not about to let you go. I will not harm you.”

From her ass to her clit he reached around her hip circling it in the same manner he was with her nipple. His root extracted from his body, the tip of which aligned with her spurting that cool enzyme inside her. He used in to suck up moisture, that nectar he delighted in so much. That nectar mixed with blood had been akin to sugar water to an insect. There was just something so alluring about it. He wanted to taste it again, that rare concoction.

As an additional benefit the enzyme served to dull pain in humans. In effect he was a walking factory of painkillers. The same effect could be generated through the moisture from his tongue where he generated more of that enzyme as well.

He had not advanced further into her then that ring once he got started. Barely pressing into that tight sheath after another vine joined in wrapping about her waist to keep her steady.