Question Quest by Piers Anthony

have to give them all my information for five years.”
    Heads nodded. “That is the kind of bargain they drive.”
    “Why didn't you warn me that their Answer would be no good?”
    “But it is good! It is only your understanding that is bad. Once you understand it, it will help you a lot.”
    “Well, right now we need a place for the night,” I said sourly.
    “I have a spare bed for you and your wife,” a matron said. “And feed for your horses, if you will have them give my children a ride.”
    I looked at MareAnn. She nodded. “Done.”
    The children squealed with delight as the horses took them up over the trees and around. But I saw tears in MareAnn's eyes.
    When we were alone in the bed I asked her about that, for she was normally cheerful. “I would like to have children like that,” she said. “I never realized how appealing they are when they're having fun.”
    “But you can have children,” I said. “All you have to do is—”
    “Summon the stork,” she finished bleakly. “And lose my unicorns.”
    We weren't using the unicorns now, but I appreciated her point. She faced a most expensive trade-off. I knew how painful that could be, now.
    I put my free arm around her. “I'm sorry, MareAnn.”
    She wept into my shoulder, and I felt very protective. The price of innocence was becoming apparent.

Xanth 14 - Question Quest
    Chapter 5: Dana.
    A shape loomed. “Excuse me, please.”
    “I think you have the wrong room,” I said, annoyed by the interruption. “This bed is occupied.” I had never really liked cold nights before, but now I delighted in them, for they brought MareAnn innocently close for warmth. A third person in the bed would have been too much warmth, however.
    “You are the one who went to the oracle today?” It was a girl; I could tell by the dulcet voice. My irritation, surprisingly, began to fade. Perhaps more warmth would be satisfactory.
    Still, I kept my voice reasonably sharp. “Yes. But right now we prefer not to converse with others.”
    “And they told you something about demons?”
    Mare Ann tuned in to the proceedings. “Who are you?”
    “I am Dana. I may be able to help you interpret that Answer.”
    Suddenly both of us were interested. We sat up in the bed, making room for another. “How so?” I asked.
    She sat beside me. It was mostly dark, but I could tell by the way she shifted her weight and the touch of her thigh against mine and her musky perfume that she was an attractive woman. If only I had a better notion what a grown man might do with such a creature! “I know something about demons.”
    “You know what 'demon conquest' means?” MareAnn asked eagerly.
    “No, but I can inquire if you wish.”
    “How can you do that?”
    “I know the demons. They will tell me if they plan to conquer anything soon.”
    “You know demons?” I asked. “Aren't they mean folk?”
    “They can be,” Dana agreed. “But they can't hurt me.”
    “Why not?” I asked, becoming quite curious about this strange woman.
    “Because I am a demoness myself.”
    MareAnn and I jumped. “You?” I asked, now trying to edge away from her. A demon or demoness could assume any form, including that of a person, but that did not mean that there was any other resemblance to a person. Demons were completely callous to the welfare of living folk. “We don't seek any quarrel with you!”
    “Nor I with you,” Dana said. “You see, I have a problem, and I thought we might be able to help each other.”
    “How can a demoness have a problem?” I asked, marveling at how much like a living person she seemed. Her body was warm, not cold, and solid rather than vaporous. This was my first direct contact with this species, and it was surprising me in unexpected ways. “You can assume any shape you desire, and you don't have to eat or sleep unless you want to.”
    “My problem is that I have a conscience.”
    “But demons don't have souls, so they can't have consciences,” I protested.