As she lay curled up, she sensed someone coming near. At first she paid no attention--servants came and went at all hours, and the butler and the gardener always seemed to come by to wish her goodnight. As she listened, though, she noted the steps were slow, as if whoever it was searched for something. She reared up to see whom it was.
***
Arthur scanned the darkness as he walked carefully along the path. He knew Odif came out here, but it seemed she could vanish when she chose to. Glancing up at the house, he noted the bedroom was dark--Sally was still sleeping. He wasn’t even sure he should be out here. What if what he thought he had heard wasn’t right? What if Odif wouldn’t listen to him? What if Sally caught him out here and started to think the worst?
He stopped a few yards from the ash tree. A pair of odd shapes hung from the limbs. In the dark, all he could make out were shadows, but they looked like clothes. It figured--Odif would be naked. She had no modesty and, seemingly, few morals. He decided he shouldn’t be out here. He turned to go back inside, giving a quick scan around the base of the tree to see if he could make out her shape lying on the ground.
“Can I help you?”
Odif spoke just as he turned to find her standing behind him. With a startled yelp, he took a step back and tripped, falling on his behind. Years ago, such a fall was nothing. Tonight, he swore he’d broken his tailbone. He winced; his heart was racing, which was sending spears of pain through his chest. He took a few breaths to calm himself and let the aching recede.
“You scared the shit out of me!” he gasped.
“Sorry,” she replied calmly. Squatting in front of him, she asked, “Are you hurt?”
In the moonlight, her outline was clear, as was the rise of her breasts and her thighs where light seemed to concentrate. Her hair looked different, as if it were a silver-coated hood that kept the features of her face in deep shadow. Her nudity somehow looked right, as if she belonged here surrounded by wild things. He knew she was human; but as he gazed at her, he was also sure she had to be a completely different species. He felt like he was intruding in her world.
Swallowing he said, “I...ahhh...I was just taking a walk.”
“You want something,” she stated. Resting her arms on her knees, she asked, “What is it?”
Her words surprised him. “Can you read minds?” he asked, hoping the answer was no.
The way she leaned towards him, the moonlight now cast a glow on the orb of one breast and her V-shaped torso. He had never thought that a slim, well-muscled woman could look so...desirable. He forced himself to look at the shadow where her face was and try to make out details.
Drawing a hand though her hair, she hooked it behind her ear, bringing out the shape of her face. “I sensed you have a question. Don’t be afraid to ask, whatever it is. I’ll answer if I can.”
It was now or never, he knew that much. Drawing up his courage, he trusted she would not tell anyone about this, whether or not she could help him. “This is a tough one. I’m not used to asking favors.”
“I’m listening.”
“I really feel stupid.” He grinned.
“I’ll tell no one.”
“Right.” He nodded. Pulling himself into a sitting position, he forced it out. “First off, I want you to know I really love Sally. That’s why I came out here, for her. I know I don’t have many years left; but the ones I do, I want to make her happy.” He stopped to see if she was going to comment, but she just sat on her haunches, listening. “Lately...I don’t know if it’s my heart or just age catching up with me, but I...ummm, can’t seem to...” He was beginning to feel foolish telling troubles like this to a strange woman.
“You can’t make love to her.”
“I try,” he said quickly. “And I really want to. Sally says she understands, but I know she’s disappointed.” Seeing her shift to put a hand to her mouth, he asked, “You aren’t going to laugh, are you?”
She shook her head. “No, I’d never do that.” Gazing at him for a moment, she said, “There is one way I can help you. It’s called the ritual of renewal. It's safe--I go though it myself every so often. What it does is use shared energy to renew your strength and vitality. You won't grow younger, as such, but your body will be returned to a more youthful state.”
“I'll look younger than I am?”
“You won't look much different. Your hair might start to become dark again, wrinkles will fade, and strength you've lost will be returned. That last part is what you seek, yes?”
“Yes.” It certainly sounded to him like she was talking about making him younger. “What’s the catch? Will I shrivel up and die in a few years?”
Odif laughed, a cute laugh that shook her frame. “No. In fact, you will probably live longer. Do you have a private place here? One where we won't be disturbed by anything for a few hours?”
The only place he knew of like that was the mineral water grotto. Pointing to the corner of the garden by the wall, he said, “The small building there has steps that lead to a small natural cavern.”
“Perfect.” Getting up, she offered him a hand.
He took it and groaned his way to his feet. They went to the building and started inside. It was black as pitch.
“Careful, the steps are steep. I should go get a light.”
She clasped his hand. “Just stay with me. Flammar!”
A torch burst into fire, casting the room in an orange glow. He looked to see it wasn’t a torch, but her open palm she held up. The fire was burning in her hand. He looked closer and saw the flame was being fed by nothing. Her skin was untouched despite the heat of the flame.
“Now, that’s magic,” he told her.
Her face was clearly visible now as she turned to give him a scowl. “I hate that term. Magic is what wizards call it when they force the elements of nature and have no idea what they are doing. They only know words and symbols; they are clueless why the fire burns or why lightning obeys them.”
“Sorry,” he said automatically.
He led the way with Odif to one side and just behind him. To keep from being tempted to glance back and watch her walk, he concentrated on the stairs in front of him. They were most of the way down when he had to ask, “When you healed Salinthia, it wasn’t like when a priest lays his hands on someone.”
“I do not ‘lay hands’ and pray to my Goddess that it works,” she stated. “What I did was to look into her body, see what was wrong then do my best to fix it. We use power with knowledge. Unlike others, when a druid uses the power our Goddess grants we do not rely on anything but our own skills.”
“So, you’re not going to have me lie naked and dance around me chanting.” he grinned.
“Hardly.” she snorted. He looked back to see she had a crooked grin on her face.
He got to the last step and stood in a carved-out room that held benches and hooks for clothing. “The water chamber is in there,” he said, pointing to the open arch. “This room was made so you don’t get your clothes wet.”
“Good, take your clothes off then follow me.”
He laughed. “OK, so you can dance around me?”
Odif looked at him seriously. “No, so I can concentrate on you. I can’t do this with you wearing that...stuff.” She brought her hand up to light one of the torches then stepped through the arch.
He did as she asked, acutely aware he was down here alone and naked with another woman. Despite his intentions, he was sure Sally would be real upset if she ever found out.
“This better be worth it,” he breathed.
Odif had lit two other torches in the water chamber before extinguishing her palm flame. The amber light reflected off the wavelets, making sparkles on the worn rock overhead. He tried not to watch her as she had him lie down on a flat outcrop close to the water’s edge. In the soft glow of the torchlight, she looked like a goddess herself. As he lay down, she straddled him and looked him in the eye.
“Listen carefully. This is a druidic ritual. You mi
ght not feel comfortable, but you must react naturally. I am going to start at your head and slowly work my way down. Once I have covered your body, you will feel different. When I am done, you must do the same to me, concentrate on every part of me from my head to my toes. No lingering too long, and no skipping.”
Dear Odin, what had he gotten himself into?
“Skip nothing?” he asked, glancing down her body.
“Nothing. I’ll begin now; you must relax.”
His heart was thumping, but he wasn’t sure if it was fear or not. “I can’t.”
Placing both her hands gently on his head, she asked, “You are doing this for Sally, so you can make her happy, right?” He got out a nod, so she added, “Then relax, and trust me.”
He thought there was no way he could relax with her on top of him. As she started to move her hands from the top of his head to the sides, he found that by just letting it happen, he was relaxing. He closed his eyes as she passed her hands over his temples and slid her fingers over his forehead. As she worked her way down his cheeks and jaws, he told himself this was for Sally; he could relax. He had convinced himself of this as she worked her way over his chest and started down his belly. The light massage she was giving him was actually starting to feel very good. His body tingled wherever she touched him. His heart was pumping strongly, but he no longer felt the chest pains that came with exertion.
As she slid her hands down his lower sides, he felt a stirring in his groin. He tried to ignore it, but it grew quickly as she brought her hands together at his belly button and slid them down.
She wouldn’t! She was going to spread her hands out again onto his legs, he was sure of it. He felt his manhood pulsing, if she even touched him there, he was sure to lose control. He tensed as she slid one hand under his sack and gave it a gentle rub, circling the fingers of her other hand around his shaft. He raised his head, mouth open to tell her to stop as he felt something soft and wet around the head of his shaft. All that came out was a groan as his muscles tensed in climax. She drew the seed out of him with her mouth as she stroked him. By the power of his orgasm, he was sure he’d see the back of her head blow out.
She drained him dry then continued to concentrate on his left leg as if nothing had ever happened. Partway down his thigh, she looked up at him with a soft smile.
“Don’t be embarrassed, it was a natural reaction. Just relax.”
He felt dizzy; he had trouble believing what she’d just done! He didn’t know if this qualified as cheating on his wife, but it sure felt like it. Consoling himself by thinking that maybe Odif was only relieving him so he wouldn’t be tense, he tried to forget it. She said she put herself through this ritual--maybe it was some kind of test to make sure that it worked. It would be pointless to do this if he couldn’t perform for Sally.
He was losing track of time when Odif finished by sliding her fingers off his toes. He did feel different--he felt tighter. He swore his stomach had shrunk a bit, and he could feel the bands of muscles firming up as he rose to sit.
Odif lay down beside him. “Now, do the same to me.”
He looked down at her and felt another erection swelling. He wasn’t sure if he could rub her and not give in to his lust. “I have to?”
“The first part is done. You must finish or the effect will not last,” she explained. “Remember, concentrate and do what comes naturally.”
His first petting of her hair was cautious. He tried to think of her not as a woman but as just another person. As he rubbed her forehead and cheeks, he began to concentrate on what he was doing, feeling the flesh under his fingers, watching it move as he rubbed in tiny circles. He moved down her neck and gave in to the impulse to kiss her gently at the base. By the time he had finished her arms and was rubbing the upper part of her chest, he had forgotten about everything except the woman he was with. He studied every inch of her, kissing her lightly as he moved down her body. Each hard nipple he sucked on briefly before moving on. His passion for her grew as he caressed his way down her belly. By now he was aching to have her, burning with lust. He held back until he had covered every inch of her body. He wasn’t thinking about Sally at all as he moved back up and met her lips, kissing her deeply.
*********
Her soft moans accompanied his as she wrapped her arms and legs around him. In the first part of the ritual, she had planted the seeds for change. The body, like the mind, had a memory. Skin and organs remembered being powerful and strong. In her carrssing, she had awakened these memories in him. Concentrating on her as he touched her, he had involuntarily sparked hers as well. The whole-body excitement of sex was now needed to build and fuse the new energy into their bodies.
She felt nothing but pure animal lust as he entered her. He coupled with her at a frenzied pace, each thrust bouncing her in his grip. No more concentration was needed, only the natural energy of intimacy. He was grunting with the effort as he tried to reach ever deeper inside her. With each hard thrust, she felt her own body working towards climax. Her head was tucked in beside his neck as he slammed into her, her hands grabbing at his back as he pawed at hers. It wasn’t long before she was becoming lightheaded as he neared the brink. The buildup of pleasure heightened, and the healing energy radiated like a hot flame from both their bodies. She shot her legs out and thrust up hard, attempting to get him a little bit deeper inside her as she felt the first wave of orgasm wash through her. Her loud moan was accompanied by his blasting out a cry as he filled her womb with hot seed. Her mind blurred as their combined energy peaked.
Fusion.
Even after their climax, their bodies kept up the motion for a few moments as if this hadn’t been enough. Dropping down, he rolled off her, staring up at the rock overhead as he panted. Odif lay panting beside him, reveling in the glow of body and spirit.
Rolling onto her side, she laid a hand on his chest. “I think Sally will be very pleased with you,” she purred.
As he looked at her, his contented smile turned into a look of shock. Turning away from her, he sat up. “We shouldn’t have done it,” he whispered harshly.
Sliding over to sit up beside him, she said, “Nonsense. What we did was part of the ritual.”
He let out a snorting laugh. Shaking his head, he said, “It was wrong! It may not have been wrong for you, but it was wrong to do this to Sally!”
“And just what did we do to Sally?” she asked.
His mouth hung open. “Unless you missed something, I just had sex with you.”
She looked at him quizzically. “So?”
“So!” He shot to his feet and faced her. “I don’t love you, I love Sally!”
Confused by his behavior, she asked, “I thought that’s why you wanted to do this? You want to be able to please Sally, right?”
“Do you think this will please Sally!” he roared.
Pressing a finger to her ear, she winced. “If you’re any louder, maybe she will hear you and decide for herself.”
Waving his hands at her in a “go away” gesture, he turned and walked back towards the arch. It took her a moment to realize that he was feeling guilty. It was silly--there was nothing to feel guilty about. All they had done was use the natural energy of sex to strengthen his body. She got up and followed him; maybe she could explain it to him.
She stepped into the archway, watching him as he roughly straightened his clothes. “The ritual is designed to bring out basic instincts. It doesn't mean--”
He whirled to glare at her. “Just shut up!”
In the dim light, she saw the tears in his eyes. She thought briefly about holding him here to explain. He was bringing the guilt on himself--it was a shame these people were so ignorant of how life worked. However, she knew he was beyond listening to anything she said, so she just grabbed the torch and followed him up the stairs so he wouldn’t kill himself in the dark.
They quickly ascended the stairs in silence. She had to start taking the steps two at a time to keep up with him as he went fas
ter, as if desperate to get away from her. At the top, she doused the torch and ran to catch up with him. She was sure if he understood he wouldn’t be so upset.
“Will you please wait?” she cried.
Not breaking pace, he held up a hand to ward her back. “Leave me alone!”
She stopped, giving an irritated huff. City people were crazy.
“We’ll talk in the morning,” she called after him.
He showed no signs of hearing her as he strode back towards the house. She let him go and went back to bed. Maybe tomorrow he’d be a little more reasonable.
Chapter 12
Odif went in for breakfast hoping Arthur had spent the night thinking about the ritual. The first ones she saw at the table were Art and Jeni, with Erica in a high chair beside her. Salinthia sat with her back to her. Arthur was at the head of the table, looking sullen. Penny and the butler, Lenath, served them hot cakes and eggs.
“Morning.” She smiled at them. Everyone gave her a cheery response except Arthur. As she approached, she noticed there was only one extra plate. Since it was not next to Arthur, but one seat down, she thought maybe Sally had rushed off somewhere.
“Sally’s sitting there,” Arthur said tonelessly as she pulled out the chair.
“Oh.” There were no other vacant places set. Not thinking too much of this, she settled in between Jeni and Art. She plucked an apple from the basket in the middle of the table and waved at Erica.
“Is she still sleeping all night?” she asked Jeni.
Jeni gave her a sideways glance. “Yes. Do you want me to say you were right?”
“No, I knew that.” she grinned.
“You look radiant this morning,” Salinthia offered.
Odif beamed her a smile. “And you are looking well, also. Any more breathing trouble?”
“None at all.” She smiled pleasantly. “I was just telling Arthur that he looks very good--don’t you think so?”
Odif saw the lines in his face weren’t nearly so deep, and the loose flesh under his jaw was all but gone. “I’d say he looks twenty years younger--and would feel like it, if he let himself.”
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