Confined With a Goddess

Jake swallowed hard as he looked up the tree. "Are you sure about this?"

Celestia turned to face him. "Of course I am. Coconuts grow at the top of the coconut tree. What could be more clear about that?"

"I mean, are you sure it's safe to climb this particular tree?"

The tree in question, at its roots, was bent over sideways, and after a metre or two, started bending upward. At the top of the tree, five coconuts were gathered beneath the fronds.

"Would you rather climb that one?" asked Celestia, pointing to a taller, more vertical tree.

"No, but... This tree already fell over once before. What if it falls over again?"

"Don't worry about it. I collect coconuts from this tree all the time."

"Yeah, but you have wings. You can fly up there."

"Your point?"

Jake turned around and thumbed over his shoulder. "I can't fly."

"Yes, but you just showed me your thumbs. You should be able to climb just fine."

Jake groaned, then looked up at the coconuts. "Okay..."

Dropping down to his hands and feet, Jake moved along the trunk until it started to curve upward, then began to right himself.

"Your arse looks good in those panties, by the way," she called after him. "Very soft and grabby."

He very nearly stumbled. He pressed his body against the bandy bark. For some reason, he was set on edge with the knowledge that she was staring at his butt while he did this, wearing nothing but her old student's panties. It was embarrassing. So why did it also give him a boner?

It was a lot more difficult to climb the tree once it became vertical. It was just a shaft. There were no branches, no footholds. He had to put the trunk between his legs, lift his torso, grip the tree between his hands and his chest, and move his legs up, then do it all over again, all without letting it show that he was stretching out the fabric and potentially ruining the elastic.

"Just don't fall and injure yourself!" shouted Celestia. "It's a long swim to the nearest hospital, and it's going to be even harder with your leg broken!"

At the thought of that, his foot slipped. He wasn't scared of heights, nor particularly terrified of falling, but that only lasted as long as he didn't think about it. If he was able to convince himself that it would be okay, he could go up there, but the minute she told him that he could fall and injure himself, his thin layer of courage buckled.

It took him a few moments to regain his footing and resume climbing, but he reached the top of the tree after a few more minutes. He was close enough to see the coconuts, and they were bigger, and not quite as brown as he remembered. He smacked them, and nothing happened. securing himself to the tree, he pushed one with a bit more force, and it fell off to the ground below. He really didn't want to climb back up here without a ladder, so knocking them all out now would save him some effort.

As he pushed the last one, though, it really didn't seem to want to budge. He pushed and pushed, but with only his left hand, it wasn't moving. Wrapping his legs a little bit tighter around the trunk, he moved both hands onto the nut and, with a good shove, it fell out of the tree.

In doing so, however, he lost his balance, and after a few scrambling seconds of trying to secure himself while slipping down the trunk, he fell, plummeting toward the ground. He'd never fallen out of a tree before; he'd not opted to climb one unless he was certain that he would come back down safely. And now, he was falling out of one. He could see the ground approaching, and he could conclude that he was going to land on his head.

But rather, he landed on his ankle. His right ankle. It was up above his head, meaning he'd landed upside down. He looked what would normally be down to him, but what he saw was up. Celestia had his ankle in her grasp.

"Pretty sure I specifically said not to fall."

"I couldn't help it!" he shouted back. "I can't fly!"

"Yes, I can see that. Well, your generosity in climbing up there to collect my dinner has been counteracted by my stepping in to save your life. You owe me more, now, I should think."

He groaned as she lowered him to the ground. He was supposed to be paying back his debt, not making it worse.

"Still, it's strange."

"What is?"

"That Luna wouldn't step in when she saw how incompetent you were. Why should I have to save you, when she's your employer?"

"My employer's name was Sam. She ran the gas station. I'm not a spy, I'm a deli attendant."

"Still sticking to that cover story, huh?" Celestia smirked. "Pick up those coconuts. They need to come back to the house, young delicatessen worker."

Jake gathered four of the coconuts in his arms as Celestia walked off. He didn't see the fifth one, as he'd not been looking at the ground when he'd been falling.

He brought them back to the hut, where he used a sharp rock to cut away the husks, in order to reach the nut inside. He didn't know it was in there so tightly, but Celestia knew, and she talked him through it. She also helped him split one open, and he immediately made to drink the coconut water. He was parched, having not had a lot to drink in the last few days, and exerting himself for the last few hours had taken a toll on him.

"You're that thirsty?" she teased.

He gasped, suddenly feeling so much better after being parched for so long. He didn't answer.

"You know, I have fresh water. Safe to drink. You didn't have to suck that nut dry."

"You'd have made me pay for it," he panted.

"Well, yeah, but it's not like it's hard to collect..."

"You said the very same about the coconuts..."

She shrugged. "Touché..."