© Copyright 2004 by silli_artie@hotmail.com
This work may not be reposted or redistributed without the prior
express written permission of the author.
A work of fiction, meant for adults. Read something else if you are
not an adult, or are offended by stories with sexual content. Then
again, if all you’re looking for is in-out, in-out, in-out, you
should probably read something else. I welcome constructive comments.
Enjoy.
I glanced to Dina, sitting in the passenger seat. She smiled. I shook my head, returning my attention to driving.
In the seat behind me, I could feel Emma Carmichael. She was seething.
Dina pulled me into this deal the night before, on very short notice. She needed my sensitivity, my breadth, my experience... I’d heard rumors of a big flap, the result of Lady Debra’s latest prophecy. When Dina briefed me, I was in agreement -- until she mentioned Emma. Why Emma, I asked? And why not, Dina responded. Well, she may be a skilled adept, but, one, she hates men and dislikes everyone else. Two, she doesn’t like leaving campus. Three, she doesn’t like riding in cars. Four, she does not work well with others. Would you like five through seventeen?
But Dina only nodded, and told me Lady Debra specifically told her to take Emma, and to take me. The other three on the team were a med tech and two senior girls. I knew them all, solid people.
Luckily, they were following us in their own car, not having to experience Emma’s hostility. I could sense her. Dina had to be able to sense her. Our other team members could undoubtedly sense her. And Dina actually expected her to sit down and calmly interview a rogue adept, a fifty year old man?
I know Dina is number two at our school. We’re also good friends. I have talents only she knows of. Well, perhaps Lady Debra and the Dean know as well, but not many others... We’ve shared close moments, both dangerous and intimate. “Dina,” I’d asked her last night, “which of us is out of their mind?”
She smiled and nodded when I’d asked that. “Debra says it will work out for the best.”
I reminded her gently that Debra had incorrectly seen our foundling’s age, where he would be found, or the difficulties involved. Come to think of it, all her Oracular pronouncements seemed to omit certain intense details affecting the participants.
She shrugged. “But we have him.”
Okay, I know when to stop pushing. It would be Dina, Emma, me, and our support staff. Tentative plan was to drive to Pittsburgh; we’d get there in about half an hour, do interviews and initial tests, have the Clinic do a thorough medical screening, evaluate, and send him home. I fully expected to go to Seattle with him. My other talents -- binding and training.
I reviewed what I knew of this deal. We’d had a scheduled research trip, retrieving some botanicals and learning of their uses, when Lady Debra and her Book added to the fun. The crew was good, Andrea, Gloria, Kaye; well suited for an ethnobotany mission to the wilds of the Amazon, and a seeming good fit for taking in someone we expected to be a young male. Andrea, at 28 was the most senior of the group, superb at the Soft Path; in a few years she might be my match. And Kaye, for her small size, was a ferocious Protector; few would take her on. But why Gloria? She was a talented linguist, a generalist, better than most at many things, but not as good as a number of specialists. Still, Debra insisted.
The arguments about, I’m sorry, “analysis of” Lady Debra’s pronouncement had already started; you told us, no, that was your interpretation ... In any event, things hadn’t gone quite as smoothly as one would have hoped. We knew they’d done the soft binding with him, and then the Spirit Warrior. And then they’d discovered for us all just how powerful a place Chichen Itza was! But they’d escaped intact, slipping past the Daughters of the Bird, not once, but twice! We knew the Daughters were active in the Southwest, but didn’t know they extended that far into México.
Clearly, this was a Big Deal -- lots of synchronicities. Alums from Pittsburgh called out of the blue; they’d had a “feeling,” and cleaned up their flat in town, available if we should need it. And they’d called just the right person to let them know, and called 15 minutes before things heated up...
Damn. Why Emma? Oh, she’s a meticulous researcher, and has added rigor and clarity to our work, but... Emma, you’re a pain in the ass.
I sighed; at least traffic was light. The plan? Test, evaluate, observe. Bind and train. We’d either take him back to School, or I’d go to Seattle with him, with one of the younger ladies accompanying us. We’ll know in a while. I was betting on Seattle.
We were getting close. Could I feel something? Hard, very hard, given who was sitting behind me, radiating sheer nastiness.
“Emma,” I asked politely, “I need a favor, please. You too, Lady Dina. We’re getting close. It would really help me if you could relax, empty your minds, so I can get a better idea what we’re walking into.”
I felt the snarl from the back seat, even though she was silent. But then Emma said, “Yes, of course; I need to adopt the proper professional attitude. Thank you, Moira.” And suddenly she was cool, calm, and quiet. What a relief! I glanced at Dina. She smiled and nodded.
In the parking lot of the apartment complex, I got out and walked closer to the building. Closing my eyes, I reached...
Oh my! He was definitely there , a nexus of roiling energy, of things I couldn’t describe, hadn’t experienced before. He’d been shaken, scared -- but I could sense a solid core. And Gloria -- she was there as well, filled with that roiling energy as well, and ... I felt the bond between them. I smiled. I’d felt that kind of bond before. I didn’t understand any better why she’d been picked, but it was clear she was the right choice..
I drew the others around me. “Shall we?”
Chaos -- raw potential, raw energy, uncontrolled energy filled the place, surrounded them both. Fifty? He looked more like forty. But then our Dean looked around forty, and I knew he was at least seventy. I’d seen Gloria before she’d left, and now she looked a few years younger -- her bond with him, the energy he’d raised but not controlled.
I could tell Emma had been nasty to Gloria, interviewing her. I also knew Gloria had taken Emma’s class, and done well in it, so she knew what to expect. And Dina distracted me so I didn’t get a chance to warn (remind) Emma to be polite before he went in to talk to her...
Total chaos! He did it! He nailed her ! Dina and I felt something wrong with Emma, and when we went to check... She couldn’t talk, only squeak! And I mean she couldn’t talk -- it was more than mere vocal chord paralysis! I checked her; Dina checked her -- we knew something had been done, but what? And we knew Emma was now growing very rodentlike whiskers. How? How had he done it?
Dina put her in the care of the med team; we gathered Gloria to quiz our foundling. More than a foundling, I’d say, to hang one on Emma Carmichael!
I got the tape Emma had been making of the “interview.” It was more painful to listen to than I’d have imagined. Yet he took it well, making us laugh.
What I’d seen earlier, that solid core, showed once more. He became angry -- that he’d unintentionally hurt Emma!
Dina moved to defuse that anger, telling him Emma had committed a number of sins, not only treating him as she had, but allowing herself to be attacked; she was supposed to be able to defend herself.
And calmly he told us he could walk in and put the nose, ears, and tail on her and there wasn’t anything she could do to stop it.
Oh my God I knew he was right. Dina shot a glance at me and saw it in my face. This man was operating on a completely different level than the rest of us.
But I felt his self-directed anger, his self-directed fears. I held out my hands for his. I felt the goodness in him.
I looked at him, into him, reframing. “You’re right -- if you tried, I don’t think any of us alone could stop you. But I also know you wouldn’t do it. And I know, now that you are aware of this ability, you will not use it to harm or change others accidentally.”
I felt the resolution within him, the acceptance and understanding that this was true. I reinforced that now he was aware of his abilities, he’d only use them consciously. He agreed.
Then he hugged Gloria, asking her to teach him, to keep him safe and sane. The way he held her, clutched her...
Dina gave me a lovesick-puppy look, rolling her eyes.
I was going to tell her...
But now he wanted to apologize to Emma!
Dina let it happen. Emma was still rattled, or was that ratted -- the whiskers were showing, and you could almost see the ears...
Dina and I stood behind him, touching him, protecting.
We felt the anger rise in Emma; she raised a hand as if to slap him.
And we felt him -- we felt him so solid, so at peace. He’d done something, defending, but what?
I was trying to figure it out when he stepped out of our grasp! And put Emma’s hand on his chest!
She raised a hand, and her eyes met mine. If she tried anything , she would die, here and now. There wouldn’t be enough for Hell to claim.
Emma bolted from the room. I pointed, sending the rest of the team after her.
And turned in time to see Gloria slap him in anger -- but while her hand struck something, it wasn’t him!
We sat together on the couch, explaining, all of us trying to understand. He understood he’d placed himself in danger, great danger. But he’d done something to protect himself.
I could feel it as he spoke, telling us he felt at one “with the worlds .” Oh my, those talents?
He told us if Emma had attacked, he would not have been touched. I knew that was true. I also knew that was very scary.
I was almost at the cluck-like-a-chicken stage when Dina took control of the situation.
Well, she tried, and succeeded to a certain extent.
She took Gloria, and sent me to do some standard tests on Bob.
I gathered Patty for my scribe and set up in the master bedroom. We sat around a small glass-topped table.
I took a breath. “Bob, I don’t think we’ve been introduced,” I told him. “I’m Moira, and this is Patty. We’d like to do some simple tests.” I dug in my bag, and pulled out the dice first. “Let’s start with these.” I gave him the dice, told him to roll them, and influence them if he could.
He rolled them a few times, talking about the morning’s experiences. Then he got a strange look on his face. He smiled and rolled the dice -- except they passed through the glass tabletop, hit the metal supporting legs, and dropped to the floor.
“Ah, how do I record that?” Patty asked.
“Three and a one,” he said in a conversational tone of voice.
He rolled again -- they went through the tabletop to the floor. “Six and four.”
Rolling again, they went into my lap.
I looked down. “Snake eyes.” I picked them up. “May I try?”
“Sure,” he told me with a smile.
I shook them, and let them go -- through the glass top, skittering across the floor almost to the bathroom door. I sighed and looked at him.
Someone knocking on the apartment door.
Before I could say anything, he was up -- “Kaye and Andrea are back!” he said, bolting.
We followed.
That was Kaye? I couldn’t believe the changes! She was gorgeous!
Dina tried to take control again, starting Kaye, now naked and gorgeous, with medical, and getting me to continue testing Bob. He’d done that to Kaye? He’d done that without training?
We pulled the glass table out to the living room. The dice still worked, that is, they still went through the glass top. I rolled them on the wood coffee table, and they behaved like normal dice. This is going to cause a lot of fun back home! I put the dice back in their bag.
Gathering my wits, at least for the moment, I brought us together on the couch and took out the cards. Standard testing deck, circle, square, triangle, star, squiggle. Patty beside me, we made a pass through the deck. I focused on each card, deliberately not counting the ones he got right, but I don’t think it was more than you’d expect from sheer randomness.
“Bob, I’m almost afraid to say this, but you’re supposed to try something,” I told him.
He laughed, and we laughed with him.
He got a strange look on his face, and before I could turn the first card, he said, “Three of Snakes.”
What? I turned the first card. Oh my -- it was indeed the Three of Snakes, and a very pretty and intricate design!
“They’re all like that,” he said flatly.
I dropped the card face up to the coffee table, then fanned the remainder of the deck, face up. All the same. A chill up my spine -- he’d tangled with the Daughters. How did he know Shining Strike, their opposite, their enemy?
“I have no clue. I had a tingly feeling, and knew Three of Snakes. That’s it,” he told us.
I sighed and shook my head. “That’s it for me.”
“Explanation?” he asked.
I shook my head. “I don’t have one. I’ll talk to Dina. She will tell you later today, I promise.”
Donna, our med tech, called from the door to the master bedroom. “Bob, Kaye would like to see you.”
He got up and hurried in. The door closed behind him.
I scooped up the cards and put them in their box. I looked at Patty. She shook her head.
Dina came in, sat in the chair across from us, and with a smile on her face as if this was a perfectly normal day, asked, “Well, what have you learned?”
I sat back and sighed. Where to start? “Have you felt the connection he has with Gloria?”
She nodded. “And Kaye, and Andrea?”
“If he asked,” I told her, “they would walk straight into Hell.”
She nodded.
“Do we know any one person who could do what he has done? To Kaye, to Emma?” I asked. I knew the answer, and Dina shook her head, confirming it -- and she didn’t know about the cards, the dice!
“We’ve never had anyone ridden in that manner. Gloria tells me the video and stills she captured are spectacular,” she replied.
“We’ve never had anyone survive such an event,” I muttered. I started to think how lucky he’d been, but reconsidered. With such events, “luck” usually means you don’t have all the pieces to the puzzle.
We got out the video and still camera, and the computer. We previewed some of the stills. It wasn’t my specialty, but even I could see how fresh, how crisp the inscriptions in the rock were!
The ladies joined us from the bedroom; lunch was declared. Bob joined us shortly.
We got the four of them together and took a picture, arranging them as closely as we could to the Tuesday morning image -- and it was obvious that all of them had changed, not just Kaye.
Dina lead the discussion as we ate, mentioning possible avenues, including New Zealand, and learning more of his history. I had the feeling that years of yoga was key to his surviving.
As I was contemplating, he put down his sandwich.
“What’s she doing with our hair brushes?” He stood up.
“Who?” Gloria asked.
“Carmichael -- master bath,” he answered.
Kaye was a blur! The rest of us were close behind.
It was weird, looking into the bathroom. Emma Carmichael was standing, frozen, leaning over the counter, hairbrushes in her right hand. The air in the bathroom shimmered and swam. Kaye held back at the doorway, her eyes wide.
“What is that?” Kaye asked in astonishment.
“She acted against us; the wards have her,” Bob said in a cool, distant voice. “But why the brushes?” he asked, his voice shifting, sounding normal again.
“She wants our hair,” Gloria answered, fearful.
Damn... So much he didn’t know. Of course she wanted their hair. With that... I shuddered.
Dina stepped around me, easing her right hand into the bathroom, pushing gently. She turned to Bob. “You can release ... this?”
“Yes, but what do we do with her afterwards?”
Dina shook her head, sighing. “How long will this hold?” she asked, motioning to the bathroom.
“Hours, days... It’s not something I need to maintain. It will hold indefinitely.”
I raised an eyebrow, looking at Dina.
Dina nodded. “I need to make some phone calls. Damn.” She looked me, the others. “Can we study this without interfering with it?” she asked him.
He sighed. “My Lady, I’m sorry -- I don’t know. My hunch is you can study it without causing problems.”
She smiled and stepped closer to him. “Okay, stay here and watch. Moira? Find out what you can. I’ll be back.”
They sat on the bed. I moved to the doorway and closed my eyes, studying.
I’d never experienced anything like it. She was in there, I could tell. But it was like ... there was a cardboard cut-out of her, two-dimensional, in there, not a live person, a shadow, a fly in amber....
“That’s not hurting her?” I asked softly.
Bob answered in his far-away voice, “She can’t hear us. She’s not aware of anything -- time has stopped for her.”
A cardboard cut-out suspended in time... Very interesting, very weird.
He explained, describing what he’d sensed with Kaye casting protection, then doing it himself, saying that what he’d done was very old, and very different from what Kaye had done.
No shit, honey!
Dina returned, talking on her phone.
“Doctor Serrano,” she began.. “Can you explain how this works?” She gestured to the bathroom, and handed him the phone.
He explained it was a protective presence. When it sensed Emma meant them harm, it solidified around her, suspending her in time and space. He handed the phone back to Dina.
She spoke for a moment, then closed her phone. “That was Dean Hoskins. This is an unfortunate situation.” She looked at Bob and sighed again. “I don’t suppose there’s any way to release that without you being present?”
“Nope. I have to release her,” he told us.
She nodded. “Unfortunate. Well, you’re going to be exposed to things we’d rather you didn’t see... I’d rather not see them... Here’s the plan. Bob, Moira, and I will go in to the bathroom. Bob will release the ... wards. Bob, you will withdraw immediately, while Moira and I will deal with Emma. Kaye, Andrea, and Gloria -- you will be waiting at the doorway, and you will take him to the living room and protect him. You will do what ever is required, is that clear?”
Bob added, “I can loosen her temporarily. If she makes another aggressive move, she will be suspended again.”
Dina asked, “What happens to us if we are touching her at the time?”
He nodded. “Nothing -- once I take you in, you can move freely, unless you take some action against us.”
“How far does this protection reach?” I asked.
He closed his eyes momentarily. “Currently, the borders of the apartment, plus a few feet. We should withdraw only to the bedroom. I will be safer, and you will be, if I stay in sight.”
Dina frowned and looked to me. “Really?”
I nodded and told her, “Yes.” We were better off with him near, I could feel that.
“Okay, withdraw to the bedroom. When you’re ready, Doctor.”
He stripped to his shorts, hugged Kaye, Andrea, and Gloria.
And I sensed... Looking to Dina, she’d retrieved her wand, that’s how serious this was. A nod, an exhale, a gesture -- mine appeared in my right hand, at the ready.
We gathered at the door.
“Hold my shoulders,” he told us. His voice once again had a feeling of distance, and an aura of power.
As I extended my hand, I reached out with my senses. This was far different than possession. This was taking on an Aspect, raising an Attribute -- the stuff of ancient gods.
We entered with him, staying in his aura. As Dina and I moved to Emma, he took the hair brushes from her hand.
Infuriating, frustrating, challenging -- all at the same time! I was focused so intently, yet all I could tell was that he did something. What he did, I don’t know. Yet the swimming feeling around us dissolved, and we felt it dissolving in Emma, as she returned from two-dimensional to three-dimensional form.
Dina stripped her of her powers, catching her during that transition. The spell was brutal, catching Emma with her defenses down; Emma gasped in pain. She’d recover her powers in a month or so, but until then we’d be safe -- from some attacks, at least.
But it also left her defenseless... I raised my wand and cast protection over her. None would harm her. She looked at me in surprise, tears forming.
We talked to her, quietly, intensely. Yes, we would protect her, and work with her, we pledged that. Dina also explained what would happen if she tried anything. It would not be pretty. We asked for, and received her assurance she would behave.
We turned to leave the bathroom.
Standing in the bedroom, Kaye stood in front of Gloria, Bob, and Andrea. Kaye looked so beautiful, and so fierce! The look in her eyes alone would convince any sane person to leave them be! But as I looked, I automatically reached out with my other senses -- and they weren’t there! It was as if I reached to the spot where they should be, and reached, and reached... I had a feeling of shifting distances, and they were “back” again!
Dina led us out of the bathroom, explaining what had been agreed. I’d take Emma to the Clinic, along with our support people. Emma would go back with the people from School who were setting things up at the Clinic.
A brief whirlwind; I’d be coming back to help out. Still, I managed to give Dina the dice and the cards, but didn’t have time to explain either -- all the better surprise for her.
Driving to the Clinic, Emma sitting beside me, the others following in their car. Emma hung her head, sniffling periodically, wiping tears.
Oh Emma, I hope you learn from this one -- I hope we all learn!
Our relationship with the Clinic is somewhat unusual, but then again, so is the Clinic. They are a very private organization, and deal with a number of clients who also prize privacy. We have certain members of the staff we work with. One of the programs we started a few years ago was to have each incoming student undergo a complete evaluation at the Clinic before starting at the School. Over the last few years, we picked up all the faculty and staff as well. The data was quite interesting. I smiled; they’re going to flip out when they see Kaye!
I pulled into the parking lot; the rest of the crew parked next to me.
“Emma,” I said, looking at her, “Please wait here for me. I’ll only be a minute.” She nodded. Her normal air of superiority, defiance, disgust, was gone.
Inside, I met with our people. A new doctor, an internist, Dr. Barnes, a man in his late twenties, was now part of our team. Doctor Gregory, who I’d worked with in the past, introduced him and told me he had complete confidence in him. Gregory left, leaving Barnes looked scared and holding the bag.
I didn’t have time to be gentle. I told the group that I was going to bring Emma in, and anyone who laughed, or gave her trouble was going to be very, very sorry. I’m sure they understood just how sorry from my tone of voice.
I turned to Dr. Barnes. “She’s lost the ability to speak. I’d like imaging studies of her head and neck.”
Dr. Barnes nodded. “Trauma? Fall? What do you suspect?”
I glanced to Samantha, who had been standing near him. She’s as talented as she is good looking. She smiled and said, “David, it was done our way.”
David raised an eyebrow, then nodded. “Okay -- MRI, then CT.”
I brought in Emma and the rest of the gang. The samples they’d taken from Bob and Gloria earlier in the day went off for analysis. Emma went off for imaging. Damn, those whiskers were growing fast!
I stuck around, reviewing and scheduling with the rest of the team, our people and the Clinic’s. It made sense to do Kaye today, and follow-ups on Andrea, so we’d have more time tomorrow for Bob and follow-ups on Gloria.
A nurse told me I was wanted in the imaging lab; she led me to the basement. I went into their control room, joining Dr. Barnes and the imaging people. I guess Emma was in the machine visible through the glass.
Dr. Barnes explained that some of the magnetic resonance images were, well, noisy, and they didn’t know why -- maybe I had an idea.
I burst out laughing. I told them I had suspicions -- and to image the noisy areas! What are their boundaries? Are those areas noisy in CT, x-ray imaging, as well as magnetic resonance? Do any of the noisy areas coincide with speech centers in the brain?
I didn’t know if the man was terrified, excited, or both, but the imaging people thought it was a tremendous puzzle!
A call from the house -- could someone come get Gloria and Kaye, take them to the Clinic? I sent one of the crew. When they returned, I headed back to the house. They would take Emma back to School once the imaging studies were completed.
When I returned, Dina and Andrea were sitting in the living room.
“Where’s our foundling?” I asked as I kicked off my shoes and sat on the couch.
“Still sleeping,” Dina told me. The way Andrea smiled, I had an idea what had transpired... I gave her an inquiring glance. She smiled more.
I shared my news -- the “noisy” areas of Emma’s magnetic resonance images, the possibility of having discernable correlates. Dina told me she’d spoken with Samantha, who suggested follow-ups with the new doctor, Barnes -- just a hunch on her part, but worth keeping in mind.
We spoke of what was to come -- training him, binding him. Certainly the bond between him and Gloria would make that easier. Oh the sigh from Andrea when I said that! And how will I feel in the months to come?
Chaos again! Bob came bounding out of the bedroom naked, shouting for Gloria! She was gone!
Andrea was closest; she hopped up, reaching for him, to take him and calm him...
He blocked her! What he did, I don’t know, but he sent her staggering back! He took half a step back, crouching, right hand extended, palm facing us, defending, blocking. More he had retained from his rider?
I stood, slowly, moving to the other side, not to corner him, but to distract him from Andrea, who looked a little stunned. “Bob, she’s all right. She’s at the Clinic for tests. Please sit with us, and we’ll explain.” I tried to radiate calm, peace, keeping my defenses down -- for the moment.
“Bob, she’s in no danger, and neither are you,” Lady Dina told him.
“She’s scared, frightened -- I can feel it,” he told us. “I need to talk to her.”
Andrea sat back on the couch and motioned to him. “Please, sit down. She’s fine -- let us explain.”
“I... I can feel her, and she’s frightened,” he reiterated.
I nodded. “Bob, think about it -- do you suppose she could be reacting to you, to how you’re feeling right now?”
He took a breath, standing straight, relaxing a bit... “Yes, that could be it.”
“Please,” Andrea said, “sit with me so we can help.”
“Bob,” I told him, “you need to calm down -- for the moment, assume you and Gloria are connected. You don’t want to frighten her, do you?”
Dina’s phone rang. She flipped it open. “Oh! Yes, dear! No, he’s fine, he’s just extremely worried about you! He woke up, you weren’t here, and, well... Yes, I think that would be best. Here he is...” She handed me the phone and I passed it to him.
“Yes?” he said. “I’m doing better now. I could tell you were frightened.”
Nodding, listening to the phone, he sat between Andrea and I on the couch.
He spoke for a bit, including, “I promise I’ll let go to Andrea...” and before handing the phone back to Dina, said, “I love you, too. See you tomorrow.”
“I’ll take good care of you, I promise,” Andrea whispered to him with a seductive smile.
I suggested he get dressed.
With another sigh and a nod, he stood and went into the bedroom. Andrea followed him.
“They might be a while,” Dina whispered.
“Again?” I queried in disbelief.
She shook her head, looking at me, smiling.
“I take it that was Gloria?” I asked.
She nodded. “Yes -- she called School to get my number; they were calling when Bob returned my phone, checking. Emma is on her way back to School.” She sighed. “Still... What do you think of the cards?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know. For that to pop up -- I don’t think he knows of either group.”
She nodded once more. “We viewed the stills and video with him in light trance. He has access to so much! So old, so powerful!”
“Like what he did to block Andrea?”
“Oh yes -- did you catch what he did?”
I made a rude noise. “I’m pretty sure he showed restraint, because of the bonding.”
Dina sighed. “I agree... So much he has to learn, and so much we can learn from him...”
She took a breath, standing. “Pack up -- we’re moving to a Clinic safehouse.”
“The Daughters?” I queried. “Shining Strike? Not Emma...”
She gave me a firm smile. “All the above, and not wanting to put our alums at further risk, and just not wanting to be here.”
I took care of the computer, video camera, and still camera.
“Where were we?” Bob asked, sitting down on the couch with Andrea. For the large expanse of the couch, they sat in close contact...
“Better?” Dina asked.
“Yes, thank you,” he said.
I gave Andrea a surprised look, but she didn’t rise to the bait. “We have a lot we want to do before we get on a plane Saturday,” I started out. “Kaye and Gloria are at the clinic for testing now. We’ll join them tomorrow. But first, we should get packed so we can go.”
“Go?”
“We’re still uncertain about some things, and feel it’s best to move,” Dina said.
“Emma?” he asked. “Or the raptors?”
Dina and I exchanged looks.
“This is a two-way street,” he reminded us, sitting back.
Dina nodded. “We’re more concerned about Emma. There have been incidents in the past, nothing certain, but still...”
He nodded. “Okay, I’ll pack.” He left the room, Andrea following
“One thing for sure,” I whispered to Dina, “we’re not dealing with an easily swayed teenager!”
Dina raised an eyebrow, then smiled. “Quite correct, but I still expect him to be subject to certain persuasive skills -- he is a man...”
Andrea and Bob returned, bags in hand. “What about the table,” he asked, nodding to our glass-topped friend.
Dina gave it a cross look. “Oh, it’s going to be taken back to school.”
He nodded, then asked, “Are we all cleaned up?”
I frowned momentarily, thinking of our hosts. “Your, ah, protection?”
He glanced up, evidently in thought. “I can clear all traces of us from here once we leave, but I’m not sure what that will do to the table. Shouldn’t hurt it. Nope, won’t hurt it.”
I studied the table. “We can take the base off, and fit it in the back of the car.”
Dina nodded. “Take it and let’s go.”
I helped move the table outside.
“Bob,” Dina suggested.
He put down his bag and faced the door. I closed my eyes, touching him lightly, opening up, opening up and becoming aware...
“Shit,” I muttered, opening my eyes.
Bob picked up his bag and gave me an inquisitive look.
I shook my head, smirking. “I’m supposed to be really good at this -- I watched, and I don’t know what the hell you did, but I do know it was really, really effective.”
He smiled. “If it’s any help, I don’t know what I did either...”
“Big help,” I muttered.
“I’ll help you load the table,” he offered. We had to repack the back of the station wagon, but we got everything settled. He rode in the back seat with Andrea, Dina in the front passenger seat. I drove.
He wanted information, explanations. Dina filled him in on some things, the basics, also getting more into his history. He’d started hatha yoga in his teen years -- that fit the pattern, holding him together, helping him cope.
He had a hard time accepting how little we knew of some things, such as how powerful Chichen Itza was. Dina glossed quickly, deftly, and I hope successfully, not getting into the problems of groups such as the Daughters or Shining Strike in depth.
We focused on his experience -- that he’d been a conduit for someone, something, very old and very powerful. He’d retained a lot from that experience -- we’d seen that with Kaye, with the dice, with the cards, with Emma, the way he protected himself. Oh, so much to learn!
He offered an exciting alternative with respect to the dice -- combining his modern knowledge with his newly found abilities. So much of what we did was still centered in antiquity! What would result from merging the old with the new?
Dina told him she didn’t know what his talents would be -- we’d know in a month or so after tests and training. She reviewed the immediate course -- tests, then back home with Gloria and me. Andrea to follow soon, and others for specialized work.
In downtown Seattle? I reminded them of New Zealand.
For all the disruption we’d taken him through, and were offering, he maintained interest and balance.
We stopped for dinner, continuing the conversation. I started seeing parts of the pattern. Mentally he was a fifty-one year old man. Physically, he looked more like late thirties, early forties. Emotionally? Psychologically? I wanted to talk to some of our experts, but already I had the feeling he was touch-starved, the way he acted with Andrea, Gloria. The way he talked about teaching, he loved it, but the short-term nature of the junior college was dissatisfying to him -- he longed for long-term commitment. I smiled, feeling the warmth of it, the correctness of it -- we were offering youth, partnership, long term commitment, as well as challenges. I knew more of what I’d felt in Gloria, in Kaye, in Andrea to him -- he had so much to give. I promised myself that I would give as well, openly, freely.
I drove us to the Clinic safehouse.
As we got bags out of the back, Dina said, “I want that damn table inside.”
We unloaded and set up the table. “What do you want to try?” Bob asked her.
She frowned, shaking her head. “Not sure. Could you do that to another surface? That table?” She pointed to a wood side-table.
He contemplated it for a moment. “Harder, much harder. Easy with glass, metal. Very hard with wood. Why I don’t know -- it’s just a feeling.”
I smiled. He had so much to learn! “Wood was once living. Glass and metal have been formed by fire.”
He nodded. “Living things I don’t think I could do. It makes sense”
I told him, “And that’s an example of the background knowledge you need to pick up -- differences in materials, in metals. Did you choose silver for the things you wear?”
“Silver is a metal of power...” he said, emotion, energy in his voice.
I touched his arm, comforting. “You know much of this, at one level or another. You need to integrate it. It will be an incredible voyage of exploration,” I whispered.
He looked into me, tears in his eyes. “There are many paths, but they are one path.”
“Enough for today!” Dina cried, breaking the spell.
“Off! Off to bed!” Dina waved him and Andrea out of the room.
*
Dina and I collapsed on the living room couch. She threw the dice at the glass-topped table. The dice passed through the glass and hit the floor. I pickled them up. Hand underneath the table, I tossed them up, through the glass, and Dina caught them.
“Still works,” I told her with a smirk.
“They’re going to have fun with this,” Dina sighed. She paused for a moment, closing her eyes, sensing Bob and Andrea in the bathroom. “Still washing up,” she reported.
I agreed, nodding, checking them myself. “The Daughters of the Bird have got to be upset, letting him get away.”
Dina nodded. “Very much so. They made a mistake, and paid for it.”
I sat back a bit. “And we made many -- how did we manage?”
Dina sighed and shook her head. “I don’t know. Debra still insists that the critical events take place in the U.S.”
I frowned. “What does that mean? Here? Today certainly has been eventful. She didn’t foresee the difficulties they had getting here? At Chichen Itza?”
Dina shrugged. “Why ask me? Oh, I’m sorry, you know what I mean. Who can tell? She did provide enough guidance so they got out of the country successfully.”
“But she thought we’d find a teen,” I insisted. “That’s why we sent who we did.”
Dina smiled a little. “Now you know better than that -- we interpreted Lady Debra’s words to conclude we were looking for a teen -- a conclusion also reached by the Daughters of the Bird, I’m happy to say.”
“Lucky for us,” I muttered.
“Did you hear what Gloria did at the airport?”
“No, what?”
“Those three went with their strengths, and their instincts. Kaye, the fierce protector? She stripped them of all protective spells and charms, and made everyone take poison leaves, deadening their powers.”
I nodded. “I’d heard that part -- impressive.”
Dina smiled. “At the airport, when a Daughter approached Gloria and Bob, Gloria told the Daughter that he was too old for such excitement.”
I smiled. “Reinforcing their flawed thought process...”
“So we did well, in spite of our misunderstanding.”
I made a rude noise. “Was there any wine in the fridge? I need something... Who would you have sent instead, knowing his age?”
Dina smirked. “Age? Does he look fifty one years old to you? Oh, he did in the picture Tuesday morning, but he sure doesn’t look it now! If I’d thought we were after an older man, I’d have sent you, Jeanne, and probably Linda. And I don’t know if we’d have succeeded! The bond he has with Gloria -- the ferocity Kaye shows protecting him! Even Andrea!”
“You think Andrea will stay aloof?” I queried, getting up and walking to the kitchen. I opened the fridge. “Charles Shaw Sauvignon Blanc -- want a glass?”
“Yes dear, please! I expect her to do what she’s been told to do with him. That’s what we expect from all of you. Her attachment is another issue. I’m not sure that would be a bad thing. She would be another, anchoring him to us.”
“And Kaye? Is she emotionally stable enough yet?” I asked, returning with two glasses of wine and the open bottle. And me? I understood the jealousy I’d sensed in Andrea.
Dina took a sip, and shook her head. “At least it’s cold... You saw her this afternoon, standing in front of him, her devotion. How many adepts do you know who could have gotten past her?”
I nodded, holding a wineglass. “This isn’t so bad.” I sighed and shuddered, remembering Kaye, her ferocity... “Alone? Four or five? Hoskins of course, You, me, Linda, maybe Alisha -- but at a terrible price! And that’s my concern -- who is anchoring whom? I agree, Spirit Warrior was the right thing to do -- without that, we would have lost him, and ended up with who knows what -- an active volcano? A storm devastating the entire peninsula? An awake and very upset Elder? I’m convinced decades of yoga was a huge factor in his survival. But those girls, I’m sorry, young ladies, pulled him back to themselves, not to us. If push comes to shove, will they stay with us, anchor him to us, or stay with him, wherever he goes?”
Dina nodded. “That’s why Andrea has him now, Jeanne has Gloria, Linda has Kaye, and that is why you will go West with him. You need to make sure he is trained the way we need him trained.”
I sighed. “And you expect me to remain aloof, above the pull of the tides?”
Dina smiled and reached a hand to me. “I expect you to do your best, whatever you determine that to be.”
I held Dina’s hand. “He has such heart -- when he apologized to Emma, if she’d tried anything, I would have sacrificed myself to protect him.”
“I know,” Dina whispered. “The two Daughters that helped heal him in Mexico, they were responding to his heart. And how many times will he show such heart, and such foolishness, and be allowed to survive?”
“They’re moving,” I whispered, feeling them in the bedroom...
Hands still clasped, we put down our wine glasses and closed our eyes, sensing, to a certain extent participating in what went on in the other room, sharing with our Sister..
Oh, he was gentle, considerate -- a shudder ran through me/us -- and talented!
My eyes popped open and I gasped, pulling my hands to my chest. I saw Dina doing more or less the same; she moaned and almost fell out of her chair.
I felt my feet -- and jerked them free, standing quickly, gesturing, cutting the connection and helping Dina up off the floor.
We looked at each other in wonder.
“He bound her!” I hissed in amazement.
“But how?” Dina asked.
We held hands. I closed my eyes and probed, gently. He’d bound her hands and her feet, but I didn’t know how! He didn’t do it by any of the methods I was aware of!
“Wow!” I hissed.
“How did he do that? He bound her hands and feet, but I don’t know how!” Dina reiterated.
We moved to sitting on a nearby couch; I got the wine bottle and glasses.
“Do you think he has any idea what he’s doing to her?” I asked.
“What it means to her? I don’t think so -- I’d be amazed,” Dina replied.
I picked up my glass. “He’s amazed us a number of times in the last few days.”
There are so few male adepts... How do I explain it? Intimacy with a “flat,” a non-adept, a “muggle,” is so ... disappointing. Oh, there’s the initial eagerness and exploration, which provides a superb introduction to the moral and ethical issues we face, and how an adept responds to those challenges is an indication of the kind of person they are. As an adept, it’s so easy, so tempting -- to get anyone to do what you want them to do, seemingly of their own free will, at least for a short period of time. But after a while, it gets to be so hollow. Jeanne, so intellectual, so charming, compared sex with a flat to masturbating a lower animal.
And so to make love with an adept, let alone someone with the skills he was showing -- not only an adept, but one who was caring, gentle, strong -- ooh, he pushed Andrea over the edge again!
I gripped the couch momentarily, hissing, “Wow.”
“That was a good one!” agreed Dina. She made a cutting motion in the air. “So much for close monitoring!” she said with a rueful shake of her head.
In response to a questioning glance from me a few minutes later, Dina responded, “I think she’s still with us -- I spoke with her earlier today. She recognized the deep bond between him and Gloria, and has worked to deepen that bond.”
“And after this?” I asked.
Dina swirled her wine, shrugged. “Jealousy? Perhaps, but the three of them are good friends. I can see Andrea settling into a role shaping him as well as Gloria, enjoying the best of both.”
I nodded, then asked wistfully, “Where does that leave me?”
Dina laughed, reaching over to hold my arm. “Age, cunning, skill triumphs over youth and vigor...”
I shook her head, smiling. “I don’t know -- Kaye has some extremely vigorous talents now...”
Dina’s laugh trailed into a chuckle. “Would you like someone sent out from school for you to train with tomorrow? Or would you rather train with Jeanne? You’ll need to start with Gloria, most likely tomorrow afternoon.”
“As you wish, my Lady,” I said, kissing Dina’s hand.
“What about Emma?” I asked.
Dina sighed, picking up the wine bottle and refilling our glasses. “In the Dean’s hands. Usually I’d be happy to have such a matter taken away from me... I don’t know.” She looked at me intently. “What would you do?”
I frowned. She was asking me?
She smiled, a wry smile. “These will be your problems in a few years...”
“Was that a threat?” I snapped back in shock and surprise.
She laughed, putting a hand on my shoulder.
“No, dear, just a recognition of your potential, and your future at school. Sooner or later our Dean is going to retire...”
“When the right young lady comes along,” I muttered.
Dina nodded. “I’m not going to disagree... He has told me that I’m his replacement. You, my dear, are next in line. That’s why I want you working with our foundling -- he’s too important to trust to anyone else.”
“Thank you, my Lady,” I whispered. Talk about more information than you wanted!. “I’m honored ... I think...”
She chuckled. “About what I said when he told me I was his second -- in a somewhat similar situation, I might add...”
“You don’t think our foundling could be the next Dean?” I proposed.
Dina shook her head quickly. “Lacks that political, Machiavellian, dimension, at least from what I’ve seen. Ability? Quite possibly. Ability to lead, to inspire others? Needs more than a talented tongue for that...”
I chuckled along with her.
“So, my dear, what would you do with Emma? Assume you’re on the spot for this one. Now.”
I took a breath, accepting the challenge. “She has given us a great deal over the years. Yet, she’s also cost us. So many rumors -- the Warren girl, for instance...”
Dina nodded. “She was responsible, but it wasn’t done with malice.”
Another surprise... “Malice?” I pointed to the bedroom. I could feel them -- he’d released her bonds, and they were snuggling together. “What did we hear him say earlier in the day? I agree with him -- unintentional makes it worse!”
“I didn’t say unintentional,” Dina added cryptically.
I shook my head. “Emma has caused much anguish, and helped us all a great deal. She continually displays behaviour which we do not tolerate in others; we should not tolerate it from her. This incident is timely, bringing the issue to the fore. It shows not only her behaviour, but it also shows her that she’s more than met her match. We have a lot to learn from that one.”
Dina nodded. “If he lives long enough...”
I frowned. “She gave her word -- to us all earlier, and to me before I handed her over at the clinic. If he so much as stubs a toe, has a zit appear on his face, it’s the Wall of Fire for her, and she knows it. I told her so.” I felt cold. “And I told her that if anything serious happens to him, remember how Kaye looked... Kaye, Gloria, Andrea, and how many others would be out for her -- she wouldn’t be safe in Hell. I’d be leading the hunt.”
Dina nodded and smiled. “How did she respond?”
I sighed. “She actually shed tears. Oh, and she squeaked. I think she has come down a few notches. Time will tell. The next few weeks will be interesting.”
“Her whiskers?” Dina asked.
I smiled a bit; I couldn’t help it. “Quite charming... Growing quickly.”
“Any ideas?” she asked.
I shook my head. “Maybe the ‘experts’ will have some. The MRI results could give us a clue. I couldn’t sense anything.”
Dina smiled and stood, stretching. “My dear, neither could I. And if the two of us couldn’t, I don’t put much hope in others at school. I think it’s bed time.”
As I stood, I reached out to Andrea -- and felt her awaken and fill with fire... “Oh my,” I whispered, feeling her take him.
“Ah good, back on track,” Dina said as she picked up our wine glasses.
I got the bottle, recorking what little was left and returning it to the refrigerator.
We cleaned up and got into bed. Checking on Andrea, she was binding him on the Soft Path...
As I relaxed in bed, I felt Dina beside me, and heard her take control of her breathing. It didn’t take extreme skill or sensitivity; I could tell she was tense and tired. If we’d been through the grinder today, where had she been, responsible for us all?
I felt the answer. I pulled up my nightie, then touched her shoulder. As she turned to me in bed, I eased her to me, offering.
The way she sighed answered my question. I pulled her to my nipple, taking her gently. Inside each of us is someone needing to be held, nurtured, comforted. I have been so lucky that others have been there for me. That debt must be repaid. I cradled her, enjoying the sensation as I led her into sweet dreams. Thank you, my Lady, for all you have done, for me, for us.
Read the next part, Between Shelters
Phantasy in Progress
Rev 2/12/2005
Predicting the Storm
By silli_artie@hotmail.com
http://www.asstr-mirror.org/files/Authors/artie/www