Quoted By:
<span class="mu-r">“I’ve seen enough of The Lion King to know where this is going.”</span>
Joyce, not understanding the reference, blinked at you in confusion.
<span class="mu-s">“Which king is that? Is this another history lesson?”</span> she asked.
<span class="mu-r">“And now I know what movie we’re watching next time. It’s good to see you too, Joy.”</span>
Noticing your discomfort, she crawled off of you and offered you a hand up. You took it, knowing full well that her superhuman strength made her more than capable of lifting your weight with one hand.
<span class="mu-s">“You okay?”</span>
<span class="mu-r">“Are you kidding? Compared to the hits I took last night, that barely registered.”</span> you said with a groan.
<span class="mu-s">“Did you come to hang? We can hang together.”</span> Joy said, pointing up at the web she just jumped out of. <span class="mu-s">“The wind feels nice up here, and it smells better.”</span>
Currently, the wind was catching in her webbed trees, filling them like sails as they blew through the spider infested web sacs.
<span class="mu-r">“Is this supposed to be your territory? I like what you've done with the place. Very minimalist.”</span>
Joyce gave you a proud smile.
<span class="mu-b">“Really? Because everyone other than Nature Girl thinks it's <span class="mu-s">suuuper</span> gross!”</span> Iara put in.
Joyce's smile slipped, and to your surprise, she flipped Iara off. You were unsure of whether you should be concerned or not, considering how Joy was a grown woman in the physical sense. Iara, on the other hand, seemed delighted by her friend's reaction.
<span class="mu-b">“Uh-oh! <span class="mu-i">Someone's</span> been spending too much time with Callisto.”</span> Iara said, cackling to herself.
It was during times like this that she really resembled her old self.
<span class="mu-r">“So, uh…who are your eight legged friends? Are there any Dos and Don’ts that I should know about while I’m around them?”</span> you asked, gesturing at a particularly hairy one that was crawling near your foot.
<span class="mu-s">”Don’t step on them. Don’t squash them. Don’t squeeze them too hard.”</span> Joyce said, listing the rules off on her fingers.
<span class="mu-r">“‘Don’t squeeze them’? Like, when I hold them in my hands, you mean?”</span>
Joyce shook her head.
<span class="mu-s">“No. When you hug and pet them.”</span> she explained, wrapping her arms around herself.
You stared at her, but she was absolutely serious. Behind her, Iara made a gagging gesture. And despite having her back to her, Joyce seemed to notice what she was doing. A moment later, a large hairy spider fell right on top of Iara’s head.
The shark girl yelped and reached up to grab the pest.
<span class="mu-b">“C'mon, Joy! Not in my hair!”</span>
Interestingly, she was very careful not to crush the spider when she swatted it away.
<span class="mu-r">“I'll try to watch where I step.”</span> you promised. <span class="mu-r">“But if you can, try to keep them away from my feet.”</span>
Joy nodded. Almost immediately, the spider near your feet suddenly lost interest and crawled towards a nearby tree.
(Cont.)
