With no provocation, al-Samara chose Arensha and entered her.  Alfreldi walked over to his side, kissing him and rubbing his chest as he took the other catgirl by the arms and fucked her while she was bent over.  It wasn't long before they were on the bed, his manhood sliding between the two catgirls, Alfreldi grinding on top of Arensha as their lips locked...<br/><br/><br/>By the time the three came to dinner, the look of bliss on the sultan's face.  It was one of the best sessions of lovemaking he's had in quite some time.  He gripped Arensha by the waist tightly before he departed and sat at the head of the table, planning to use her more often and for a longer period otherwise than when he gets a new woman added to the harem.<br/><br/>This attention was not lost upon some onlookers, most notably Faliensk (http://i.imgur.com/MKmOktp.jpg?1) the wood elf.  For decades she was the Sultan's favorite, and recognized that this new catgirl was warming up to her beloved al-Samara in such a short amount of time.  She cut harder into her meal than usual, inadvertently emitting a squeak of knife against plate as it tore past the bottom of the steak.<br/><br/><em>I'll have to keep an eye on that Arensha,</em>she thought.<em>Arrange for something to happen which would put her out of favor...</em><br/><br/>A more positive response of the catgirl's arrival was noted by Hanifa, sitting at the far end of the table.  She smiled as she noticed the glow in her friend's eyes, that she was not locked up in some dungeon.  They were consciously being separated, that was clear, and for the moment she did not make any overt movements.  The ranger blushed heavily as she noticed the body language shared between him, Menya, and Alfreldi.<em>At least she looks satisfied,</em>she thought,<em>and not just him.</em><br/><br/>Hanifa gave a short wave over to Menya, but otherwise did not do anything else.<br/><br/>"That white-haired girl over there's a mute," a blue-skinned tiefling woman sitting by Arensha whispered.  "I think it's a religious vow of silence or something.  We've taken to calling her Silent Girl, she doesn't seem to mind."<br/><br/><div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;">Fourth Day in the Gilded Cage</span></div><br/>Finding Garetz (http://i.imgur.com/doNsjWf.jpg) was not hard at all; as a peerless healer of body and mind he was one of the few non-eunuch men permitted to visit the harem.  He motioned in Arensha into his office, which was full of labeled multi-colored globe-shaped potions and lightly glowing runic stones of magical languages.<br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Read Magic or DC 15 Spellcraft</div><div class="spoiler_body">Runic stones are technically scrolls.  Both them and the potions are various kinds of clerical magic personalized for specific maladies.  Basically Cure Poison and Cure Disease, but much cheaper to craft for focusing on single and related maladies.</div></div><br/>"Hello there Arensha," he greeted warmly.  Even from the concealment of his goggles, his gaze felt platonic and devoid of the usual lust many men had towards her.  "Food allergies, overstretched muscles, and even grievous wounds I can handle!  Do not worry, for Sultan al-Samara chooses his doctors well.  I have brought men and women from the brink of death in the battlefields of the Abyss, stripped the legendary Plague Priestess of Urgathoa of her powers, and even once ended the curse of natural lycanthropy in a man!  I've seen it all, and much worse, so you have no need to fear when you're in my safe hands."<br/><br/>He mused with a hand to his chin as Arensha related her story to him.  He was well aware of the memory-sapping process Roshul put new catgirl slaves through.  Truth be told, he was always reserved about this layer of unnecessary deception, for they did not need it for the other slaves and would only cause greater acts of resistance if their old memories ever resurfaced.  Far better to go the route they did with Zelda, showing them the privileges and ease of life afforded to them, to make the transition feel more of a choice.<br/><br/>"Ah yes, that bump on your head was bad one," he said in a serious-sounding tone.  "Thankfully Roshul found you passed out and immediately chose to call for me.  Physically you are fine, but as to your memories...well, they should return in time, with exposure to the proper stimuli."<br/><br/>Garetz let a slight chuckle escape his lips.  He added the part about Roshul intentionally, knowing that it add some grief to the already overworked naga and show her that a house of lies is as fragile as one of cards.  "The naga was quite invested in your recovery, I might say.  It's nice how she takes care of you girls."<br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Sense Motive DC 14</div><div class="spoiler_body">Garetz' last words on Roshul are dripping with sarcasm.  Apparently he doesn't think very highly of her.<br/><br/>If Arensha confronts him on this, he'll give a noncommittal wave of the hand.  "Let's just say that Roshul is more concerned about maintaining the semblance of order than the welfare of those under her.  She relies upon me to look after you all, but only to the extent that you look pretty and can still function normally.  She does not see the world through the eyes of a doctor, who can tell that even if a patient appears fine, there might be things still broken beneath."</div></div><br/>At this point Garetz spots the tiefling woman from yesterday's dinner waiting outside.  "Hold on, I have another patient Arensha.  We can talk later.  Come back if you ever feel under the weather, my office is an open door!"<br/><br/><div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;">Fifth Day in the Gilded Cage</span></div><br/>Al-Samara chose Hanifa again, this time during the day.  He writhing naked body was astride him in the cowgirl position, her hands on his chest as he massaged her breasts.  His eyes were where his hands were, so he did not notice at first her gaze of contemplation on other matters.<br/><br/>Like the last encounter, it was...awkward for her, to say the least.  Hanifa was once a slave to an evil dragon out in the Osiran desert, toiling amid the many miners of her tribe living in cave-prisons below the earth.  While al-Samara's touch brought her pleasure instead of pain, her status as his concubine (along with Menya) was a lasting reminder of servitude which soured the moment for her.<br/><br/>Hanifa briefly paused in contemplation of how best to approach Menya, the rhythmic hips riding his cock slowed in pace.<em>I'll try meeting her in the baths in a few days tops,</em>she thought.<em>They're communal, and the only separation is our schedules and the gaze of that Naga.  I'll need to find an excuse to be in that same location.</em><br/><br/>At this point al-Samara looked to her eyes and could tell something was up.  "What's wrong?" he asked with genuine concern in his voice.  His thrusting motions stopped, and let the woman slide off his form and to his side.  Her back was to him.<br/><br/>"I understand that you've taken a vow of silence, but if there's something troubling you I'm willing to help you."<br/><br/>Hanifa sighed, wondering what to do.<br/><br/>"Do you miss home?"<br/><br/>Hanifa nodded a little.  It was true; the Elemental Plane of Water felt completely alien, and living in the palace did not make her forget the endless blue which could be seen out the window beyond the City of Glass.<br/><br/>Hanifa got out of bed and walked towards the window, placing a single hand on the pane before looking back at al-Samara.<br/><br/>"I know that your departure was under less than optimal circumstances, but you should know that the gnolls who captured you...they would have subjected you to a far worse fate, one I do not wish to elaborate on.  Here I treat my slaves well; you cannot deny that even from your brief stay here that you live far better than the majority of peasants and even nobles back on the Material Plane?  You have access to the finest foods, the best physicians in the land, and good company, plus far more."<br/><br/>Hanifa silently mouthed the words "good company," then put her open hands on opposite sides of her head to simulate cat ears.  At this gesture al-Samara understood her immediately.<br/><br/>"Ah, your friend you wish to meet with again?  Well, I suppose that can be arranged.  How about this weekend?  Roshul holds dancing lessons, and I can see about putting you in the same schedule?"<br/><br/>Hanifa's eyes lit up.<em>My plan is working!</em><br/><br/>Al-Samara was happy to see the smile come to her face.  "It's nice to see you in good spirits.  Maybe you're in good enough spirits to continue from where we left off?"<br/><br/>Hanifa pushed him back to a sitting position on the bed.  Kneeling between his legs, she rewarded his generosity with a blowjob.  The marid moaned in pleasure as her lips tongued the head of his penis; she was good, clearly no shy chaste girl in her pre-slave life.  But even then there was no comparison to Arensha, whose lips seemed made for fellatio and every movement was made with purpose at coaxing out as much pleasure as possible.  He held Hanifa by her hair, making her swallow his thick load.<br/><br/><div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;">Sixth Day in the Gilded Cage</span></div><br/>Faliensk gathered three other harem girls, all of which owed her personal favors over the months; even in the otherwise idealistic fantasy of a noble's harem, there was still a layer of political infighting, from the threats of infiltrators and assassins who come in disguised as concubines to the petty vendettas of slaves seeking to elevate themselves in the social order they carved for themselves in the palace.  One of them was saved from one such assassin who had to get through her to get to al-Samara; another was taught some cantrips and wizardly spells by Faliensk; and a third had no desire to bear a marid's seed, and relied upon the elf to supply her with herbal methods of birth control.<br/><br/>They saw Arensha climbing a flight of stairs, a central spiral cutting through multiple levels of the palace.  Faliensk smiled wickedly at the thought of the catgirl taking a plunge down several floors.<br/><br/>"If she were to lose her footing, she'd be too broken and bruised to attend to Sultan al-Samara's physical needs."  Nodding to the wizard, her cohort silently applied a<em>grease</em>spell to one of the steps.<br/><br/>"And while Garetz is attending to her, I'll be there for him, feeling the weight of the most noble of jinn upon me."<br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Perception DC 22</div><div class="spoiler_body">Arensha spots a slight sheen of light on the stair before she steps on it.  Upon close inspection she notices that it an the next several flights are covered in grease!</div></div><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Reflex Save DC 20</div><div class="spoiler_body">If Arensha fails by more than 5, she'll end up slipping off the railing altogether and take 4d6 points of damage.  A failure by 5 or less means she tumbles down the stairs instead, taking 2d6 points of damage.  Success means that she retains her footing and can walk through normally.</div></div><br/>