by Kot, Eleyne
Yasmin’s Story:
Well, all the discomfort caused by the disappearance of Melisa is slowly going away. But my mind is still busy, trying to find an explanation to all this – the stone circle might have served as a shrine for some kind of Dark Fertility Goddess in Prehistoric times, even before Hekate appeared. People related some intriguing facts and visions around the place, and figured that there lived a Dark Goddess, Keeper of the Secrets of the Underworld and Magic.
Anyway now life seems to take a more normal course, if possible here, a light of domestic peace gleams on the faces of the men, who look totally delighted with the game. They are making comments, cursing aloud, and begin to ask for some more coffee and tea. Colin and the rest have promised to behave like gentlemen and to keep their eyes and mind far from the future and its temptations…for now.
The cook is not there, so I go to the kitchen and take some beverages and see that Eleyne has been really serious about cooking that stew.
“Well, tomorrow, give me a chance to make some pizza and hot sandwiches.”
She smiles vaguely at me while cutting some vegetables, and then she returns to her almost passionate cooking. Babette is there, too, looking through the window and says.
“Maybe she will return in a while, or in a hour…”
“Don’t know,” I reply, “the ring is here…For some reason, it is here.”
The ring is in my left hand and feels cold and gloomy.
Eleyne looks at me with a worried expression in her green eyes.
“Could we have made Melisa vanish from here? I feel almost like a bitch. We did tease her about sharing Jim, she didn’t like it and now she’s gone. Now we could have Jim almost whenever we wanted to.”
“Only if your guys agree to it,” Babette comments.
“I think they will, I overheard them talking,” I reply, which gets Eleyne really curious. Babette seems interested, too, if only to hear about it.
“Details, please,” she demands.
So I tell both of them what I heard and also what I saw. Obviously for Babette it’s big news, so Eleyne adds her side of the morning (or noon) events then she sighs.
“If only you were right...” Then sighs again shaking her long honey brown hair, “shit, I do feel like a bitch...”
“Our feelings couldn’t have made her disappear. She must have somehow triggered the power in that ring. It’s a powerful object.”
“I hope you’re right,” she still looks worried.
“Come on, Babette, help me with the tea and coffee for the beasts.”
She laughs and helps me, taking one of the trays and then we carry everything to the living room.
The men are enthusiastic about the possibilities of our gadgets.
“These things will change music, I am sure,” says Tony. “All these… have to be reflected on the music industry technology, what do you say, gals? Is it true?”
“True,” I nod and drink my coffee in silence.
“Don´t know anything of technology,” says Babette, “but for sure all things have changed.”
I murmur in Babette’s ear. “Don´t talk too much, otherwise they might feel tempted to listen and see what they should not, OK?”
She nods.
“What are you talking about?” Ted asks. “Come here, Babette, help me to kill those bastards, ok, honey?” He smiles and she sits at his side.
I stand behind Colin. He seems to be miles away, but it’s all right, I think… I decide to get another coffee for me. Then despite the caffeine I begin to feel sleepy, sitting by his side and looking at him playing for some 20 minutes. I try to take off the ring, but it seems that my finger has swollen. I decide to take a bath and to leave the beasts playing joyfully on their own.
“Yasmin…” I hear Colin’s voice and think he’s back with us, but not, he adds, “would you bring some beer?”
Well, I have to bring beer and get something more to eat, the only way of preventing alcoholic intoxication, not very desirable at these hours and definitely incompatible with our plans.
A bath unblocks my tired mind and fortunately helps me to relieve my swollen finger, allowing the ring to slide off easily. I place it in my bag, and start to civilize my looks the best I can. After a couple of minutes, I have a decent aspect, and change my clothes, put on my t-shirt and shorts. Fortunately for me they are dry. I washed them and also my underwear before going to bed.
I apply some eye shadows and little blush, wondering if he would notice and guess the outcome of my guessing. Search for perfume but I only have a roll on, well, for a time traveling gal is not a bad luggage.
Eleyne’s Story:
After filling my tummy with sandwiches and coffee, I try to keep myself busy and go to the kitchen to investigate this stew meat. I check what other things are available to make the goulash – my mind is filled with images of soft, tasty pieces of beef and veggies floating in wine-infused gravy. I find everything I need in the kitchen – onions, frozen baby carrots and diced potatoes, sweet pepper sauce. And some spices. I also spot an open bottle of red wine in the fridge. After tasting it I almost shudder, what a blasphemy to keep dry red wine in the fridge! Babette joins me and I share the observation about the wine with her. She laughs.
“It may have been the cook who put the bottle in the fridge. She seemed a simple, superstitious country woman. Will you need some help with this stew?”
“Not now, but a little later somebody has to check on it. I’m not going to sit here for two hours. And this is more or less how long the meat needs to be stewed. I wanna take a shower and put on make-up. I don’t feel too fresh after everything that happened yesterday. Hell’s Fire, I still feel this olive oil on my skin.” I keep on chopping the onion while talking.
“Yeah, I also didn’t wash properly last night. I was too tired. Eleyne, I still can’t believe I’m here with them and you. And that we did have them with us.”
“Yeah, I agree. It feels almost like a dream. But I don’t want to wake up. I’m so happy with them even though I feel a bit confused now.”
Suddenly Yasmin enters. Seeing her I can’t resist and voice my doubts. I’ve been trying to get them out of my mind, but in vain. I simply feel a bit guilty, could our eagerness to share Jim against Melisa’s will have something to do with her disappearance? However, Yasmin soothes my conscience saying it’s impossible, then announces.
“The guys want more tea and coffee. I guess we have to make it ourselves. Babette can you help me?”
They busy themselves with the beverages. Yasmin asks me.
“So this is going to be a stew? Isn’t it?”
“Yes, Hungarian-style goulash, with a lot of wine and other veggies inside. We’re going to need some good bread to go with it. I don’t see any here – there’s only this toast style soft as cotton loaf. We’ll have to ask the guys to go to a bakery – some French baguettes would be definitely nice. Or to a supermarket, we may need some more wine, too. And perhaps some cheeses, I don’t see any more in the fridge.”
“I’ll tell them, and later on I’ll go with them to make sure they buy the good stuff,” says Babette; she and Yasmin take the pots with tea and coffee and head for the living room.
I stay alone in the kitchen and continue with the stew. I season the meat and get it into a big pot together with the diced onions and I let if fry for a while. After a few minutes I add the red peppers sauce and whole bottle of wine, stir everything, cover the pot and lower the fire underneath. I decide that I have at least half an hour before checking on the dish and leave the kitchen. I go to the living room to collect my suitcase, when I enter the guys are so busy killing zombies that they don’t even notice me. I laugh in my heart at that – the game is so funny they are completely entranced in it. But this happened to me, too. For a moment I wonder what we will need to do to drag their attention off the laptops and the game...
I take my luggage – now quite lightweight after removing all the wine bottles I had there and go
up to the bedroom. I muse how prudent of me – if that’s the right word here – was not to leave the suitcase in the hostel room, but to take everything with me to the Passage and then to get it out of the car. Now at least I have my clothes, toiletries and cosmetics with me – well, not many as a lot of space was taken by bottles.
The shower is fantastic! I finally feel fresh and clean. I decide to pamper myself a bit more and apply some fragrant body lotion and do some make up, too. Later on I get dressed – a top with low v-neck and a skirt are just fine, but I make sure that the v-neck is low enough to catch male attention. I think I will need some special resources today. Having prepared myself for anything that may turn up, I go down to the kitchen to see how the goulash is doing. While I stir the meat in the pot Yasmin joins me.
“I’ve had a shower,” she tells me, “it’s just a pity I don’t have anything else to wear.” She points at her t-shirt and shorts. True, she got transported here with virtually nothing, just what she was wearing at the time and her bag. I offer.
“I don’t think you’ll fit in my trousers or skirts, but perhaps some of my tops will be good for you. And if you want you can use my cosmetics.”
“Oh, thank you, Eleyne. It’s really nice of you.”
“After all we’ll probably share our men, so I suppose we can also share some cosmetics. I think I also have some perfume samples in my cosmetics bag, try them out if you want.”
“That’s really gracious of you, Eleyne. I’ll sure do. I only have a roll on in my bag.”
“Everything’s in Tony’s bedroom. I left the suitcase open. The cosmetics are in the bathroom.”
“OK, thanks a lot again.”
She leaves me in the kitchen and goes upstairs again to beautify herself a bit more. Now Babette joins me, also fresh and made up.
“The guys are there in the living room still playing like kids. Even Jim looks happier but he’s still not his usual cheerful self. But you were correct yesterday about gadgets and men. We’ll have to be really persuasive tonight to get what we want.” She winks.
I laugh. “I see you made some preparations, too. Yasmin has just gone to Tony’s bedroom to choose one of my tops, I also let her use my cosmetics and perfume samples, you can have a go at them, too.”
Babette laughs back happily and goes to join Yasmin and finish making herself look gorgeous.
The meat still requires some stewing, but I decide it’s time for the frozen carrots and potatoes to go in. Then I make myself one more cup of coffee and join the guys in the living room. Babette was right, they are so hypnotized by the game that they don’t even see me entering. When I stand behind Tony, I see how far he has progressed in it. It seems he’s almost done with the fog level, I look at him curiously to see how he manages the last game of the level. Then I surprise him snapping my fingers, now I have his attention back, the others also notice me.
“You look really stunning,” he looks at me appreciatively, and his eyes get set on my cleavage. “Did you take a shower?”
“Thank you. Yes, I did. All of us did. I’m cooking goulash for dinner… or perhaps it will be our very late lunch… we’re really screwed with meal times.”
“You’re cooking for us?” asks Jim, he still has this strange expression on his face. But he can’t take his eyes off my cleavage either.
“Yes, I am. And you’ll have to eat it without fussing,” I answer with a wicked grin, “and then clean up. I don’t mind cooking as long as the food gets eaten without complaining and somebody cleans all the dirty stuff afterwards. Oh, and by the way, we’re going to need some fresh bread – the best would be French baguettes and also some cheese and wine. You’ll have to go to a bakery and a supermarket. Has Babette already told you?”
“Yes, she mentioned something,” Ted answers.
“The meat is still not ready, and I see that all the sandwiches are gone, so you can’t be hungry yet.”
Yasmin and Babette enter the living room and the guys all whistle.
Yasmin’s Story:
The afternoon has been calm, the men have been really having fun with that zombies game and have eaten and drank almost everything that was in store. Melissa’s disappearance, which hit us like storm and left us wordless as first, has begun to be understood as one of the possible outcomes of our adventure. Now we are all slowly giving way to a less melancholic, subtle feeling. Eleyne has helped me to enhance my looks with her cosmetics, perfumes, and a top of hers nicely hugs my body now. It’s wide and has a low scoop neck, which reveals a lot of my skin. My brightened outlook catches the guy’s eyes when Babette and I enter the main lounge.
“Hey, guys,” Babette encourages, “which of you would be kind enough to go shopping for tonight’s dinner?”
There’s a little commotion around the table and their eyes definitively abandon the screens.
“Hey, Yasmin, you look really cool,” Colin compliments me and I smile, flattered by his words. My ego needs that kind of food, too.
“Eleyne said it, too, we need to buy things for tonight, not much, but I have made a list.”
“No, no lists,” Tony protests, “we are going to the city, you can come with us and choose what to buy.”
“I´d prefer to stay here, cooking. I have a Hungarian recipe for you that is pure sinfulness,” says Eleyne and her smile implies something more than savory dishes.
“OK,” Tony agrees, returning his eyes to the screen. “And now, how do we go out of this? Have to end this before going shopping, Eleyne.”
“Let me see,” she answers, “you must do this…” And she bends over him, while he looks very fascinated by her skill in gaming and her sexy cleavage. Her top is as revealing as the one I’m wearing. She assists the players to quit the game and get everything ready to return later to play.
The men go upstairs to refresh themselves, only Jim stays with us, looking at the black screens, which have kept his attention for a couple of hours, but now he is thinking of Melisa again.
“Don´t be sad,” I whisper near his ear. “She is fine, I am sure of it.”
“Do you really think it is true?” He looks at me as if to have some peace of mind.
“Yes, I know,” I must confess I’m not so sure, but there are many reasons to believe in Melisa’s good return to the future.
“She is fine, she is fine,” Eleyne warmly pets his hand. “Don’t you see we were telling the truth? The gadgets are from the future, we belong to it. Melisa just got back too early.”
“So you will go away one day, I suppose…” he says, “in the same outrageous style?”
“I would like to say bye and give every one of you a big hug before returning to the future,” Babette says, with a tender look.
“Hope we can stay forever here,” I smile at him and then listen to the voices of the men, who like usually men do, have tidied up in just a few minutes. They are coming down the stairs, heading for the garage and are ready to drive to the city. Babette joins them as our representative. All of them are eagerly stepping out to the cross the garden, going to the car, when Colin and Tony look at Eleyne and me, suggesting that we follow them outside the lounge for some reason.
We get out and come near them curious to know what they want.
“Just a few words, gals,” Tony starts in a confidential tone. “Our friend is not in the best of moods, so we won´t leave him alone long time. He may feel tempted to go out and search for Melisa and God knows what may come out of it.”
“Yasmin, Eleyne,” Colin suggests, “you know what? He needs company, you are good at it, be nice to him. All the nice he would want you to be.”
It seems that we are hearing an issue of permission… And Colin adds.
“Don´t think too much, OK? Just do what you feel is alright.”
“You remember our morning conversation, baby? So, my decision is yes. But you must be OK with this idea, I can see it. You wanted it,” Tony smiles and looks at stunned but joyful Eleyne.
“Yes, especial
ly if we can help him to feel fine again,” she says.
So they put on their sunglasses, kiss us bye and drive away to the city.
“What do you think, Eleyne?” I ask her.
“It’s just... fantastic. Also shows that they care about their mate. I was really anxious in the morning. Tony was so mysterious...” She frowns and sighs, “I really didn’t know if he would agree to share me with Jim or not.”
She adds with a bright smile.
“But as you have seen, now we have the green light to do all the dirty things we might want with Jim,” she says, winking. “Let’s go back to the kitchen and take care of him,” she looks at me impishly.
“From what I saw in the morning he was eager to share,” I comment.
“Oh, yeah. He woke us up to tell us about it. And I could see this interest in his eyes when I told them both that I wanted a threesome with him and Tony,” she winks. “They both got me wet with their looks only.”
“A threesome with twin axes is definitely a good idea. Do you think they would get the same results as when they play the guitars?”
“Ohhh! Woman,” she gasps, “you are getting my imagination going wild... I wonder, have they ever done a girl together?”
“No clue, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they did. However, now we have another type of threesome ahead. Do you think he will manage the both of us?”
“Even if he doesn’t manage to satisfy us both, we still have each other,” Eleyne winks at me. “You didn’t forget last night, did you?
I giggle.
“I must admit, I was a bit surprised you agreed to do it. I’m surprised at my own reaction to it as well, but Colin was really convincing.”
“Well,” she rolls her eyes, “Tony was driving me crazy and I was ready to agree to anything he might propose. He’s my sex god.”
“Is he? Is it what you told him after you fainted?”