Earth, Sun, and Moon Saga Ch. 03

As expected, Lenore did not hesitate.

Her hand shot between them and knocked the stake out of his hand, sending it clattering across the room. She was on top of him immediately, having rolled him to his back so fast his head spun.

Her fangs were out and her eyes went black as she roughly grabbed his throat.

"Go ahead," he said softly. "You already belong to me. And now you always will."

Lenore hesitated.

Then she leaned down and kissed him.

***

James awoke alone.

Daylight poured through the small window and though he was sad to feel the space next to him empty, he wasn't surprised.

His watch told him it was just after seven and he rifled through his backpack for a fresh t-shirt to wear. He didn't have much in the way of clothes as last night would have been his last of the backpacking trip.

The revolver was still where he'd left it; in the holster on the outside pocket. He checked the chamber instinctively and replaced it, idly wishing he had silver bullets although he had no idea whether they'd be useful for whatever was coming around the bend.

He gathered up the wooden tent stakes from last night, counting them as he went. There was the one he'd stored under his pillow that Lenore found and the one that he'd fallen asleep holding, that one wound up on the floor somewhere. He made sure to retrieve the two others he'd hidden; one between the mattress and frame, and the fourth standing between the back leg of the sofa bed and the wall. He didn't think he'd need them again.

Gwen was already in the kitchen and James smelled breakfast as soon as he left his room.

There was fresh coffee, fruit, eggs, bacon, and French toast. A tray of what looked like cranberry muffins cooled on a rack and James decided to give those a wide berth. God only knew what they might do to him.

"I hope all this isn't on my account," he said as walked in.

"No, but I do hope you're hungry."

"Starving."

Gwen was dressed from a time not his own. She wore a long flowing dress that covered her upper arms but left her shoulders bare. It was adorned with a corset--she must own several--that gave her an hourglass figure, and a belt of small pouches. It looked like something one might wear to a Renaissance fair.

He helped himself to a mug of coffee and sat down. He paused and stared at it, unsure whether he should take a sip.

"Something wrong with the coffee?" Gwen asked.

"Just wondering if it'll turn me into a newt or something."

Gwen chuckled. "Oh, don't be silly. I promise you I didn't enchant any of the food here. And I don't turn people into newts."

James sipped the coffee, tentative.

"Although once I turned a man into a pig."

"Did he deserve it?"

Gwen considered this. "Probably not. Although at the time I thought he did."

"Isn't regret weird that way?" James asked. "Like, when I go through my regrets, I always remember having some airtight reason for doing whatever dumb shit I did."

"And it counts for absolute shite at the end of it."

"Exactly." Then after a moment, he asked, "Did you turn him back?"

"Oh, no. His fellow villagers slaughtered and ate him."

Gwen made up plates for them and a third for Ash, although hers only had French toast and berries on it. James was staring at the bacon on his plate, deep in contemplation, when Ash skipped into the kitchen a few minutes later, her hair still damp.

"How was the morning swim?" Gwen asked.

"Delightful," Ash said, beaming. "I met a wonderfully chatty pod of minke whales that were passing through."

"Okay," James said. "I have to ask. What did you talk about with the whales?"

Ash held out her hand and counted out the topics. "Well there's more boat traffic than usual so they got lost for a while after they came into the sound. One of the cows gave birth to a healthy boy, so they were arguing about names. The matriarch wanted a strong name like Krill Destroyer but his mother wanted something more modern. Proud Singer and Fin were top candidates. I told them he looks like a Fin and mama agreed. Then they warned me about a pack of orcas that were in the area and I told them about the school of anchovies that was just north of the San Juan islands. Oh, and here's the best part! I told them about you, James, and they said that you sounded really nice for a human which is pretty cool but don't let it go to your head because minke whales actually kind of like people in general which is weird for most whales."

"... I'm flattered. I'd love to meet them sometime."

"They're on their way out but they'll be back next year."

Ash proceeded to pour about half a bottle of maple syrup on everything on her plate before diving in.

James was honestly fascinated. "You're the most unique person I think I've ever met," he said, meaning it. "And yesterday I met a vampire."

"Last night too," Gwen said, giving him a knowing look, causing him to blush. "Sir," she added, just to drive the point home.

"Thank you," Ash replied with her mouth full of French toast.

"So, what's the plan for today?" James asked. "Anything a mere mortal can do to help? Is there a playbook for dealing with hostile ancient gods?"

"Not exactly, although I could use your help."

"You got it. Any chance I could grab a quick shower first? I'm a little rank."

Gwen smiled and turned to Ash. "Would you like to do the honors?"

"Hm-mmm!" she mumbled, still chewing, and giving a thumbs up.

"James, meet me in the garden when you're done. And Ash, just don't take too long."

"Okay." She nodded, solemnly. "It'll be just long enough."

After they cleaned up the kitchen, James was led by an eager Ash back toward her pool room. Off to one side was a full bathroom that looked as if, though kept very clean, it was rarely used. She directed him over to the large clawfoot tub and turned on the shower.

"Do selkies need to shower?" he asked.

Ash smiled at him coyly. "Why yes, James, I'd love to take a shower with you." She pulled her dress over her head revealing she was naked underneath. "I thought you'd never ask."

She climbed into the tub and sat down under the steaming water.

Her transformation appeared to be triggered by contact with the water. Her legs melted together, her feet widening into a broad fin. Skin became a stary shimmer of blue-green scales. She tucked her tail under her, giving the impression that she was kneeling. Ash looked up at him, a playful glint in her eyes.

"You can't take a shower with clothes on, silly."

James had been staring, caught up in the wonder of her transformation. Catching himself, he stripped and climbed in.

The tub was plenty large enough to accommodate both of them and James pulled the blue shower curtain closed giving the impression they were underwater.

Ash wasted no time.

She produced a bar of soap and began lathering him up, starting with his calves and working her way up. Her hands were soft but when she massaged him, it was clear they were powerful too.

He became semi-erect immediately, enjoying being cleaned by Ash.

"You have strong legs," she said, working her hands over his quads. "Do you like running?"

"Actually, yes."

"I love to run. I feel almost as free as when I swim."

"I always thought mermaids--I mean selkies--only lived in the ocean."

"Most do. But Gwendolyn did a ritual on me a long time ago so I could visit land."

Her soapy hands found his cock and began lathering it up. "This is strong too." She ran a fist up and down his shaft, jerking him while massaging his testicles with her other hand.

James moaned.

He felt wholly weird being catered to like this without reciprocation. Looking around, he located a bottle of shampoo, poured a dollop in his hand, and began working it into Ash's hair. He used his fingers to massage her scalp while she gave him the best dick cleaning of his life.

"Mmmm. I didn't know you had magic fingers, too."

She moved him into the water, washing the suds off his crotch. When his cock was soap-free she popped it into her mouth.

She moaned as he ran his fingers across her scalp, which sent gentle vibrations through her mouth. This began a feedback loop of intensity whereby her moans drove him to massage her scalp harder, causing her to moan louder, increasing the vibrations.

"That feels so damn amazing," he said.

So caught up in this loop, he barely felt when she slipped a hand between his legs. With one soapy finger, she followed the line of his perineum and found his anus. She teased him there for a moment, no doubt trying to gauge his reaction. When he didn't stop her, she slipped that finger into his ass.

A spasm of pleasure shot down his legs, causing his knees to buckle. James wasn't sure where his prostate was or precisely what it did but he knew that she'd just hit it on the first pass. He wasn't a novice to this kind of thing though he never had a girlfriend who gave it more than a passing try.

Ash was as expert as she was enthusiastic.

Soon he was trapped between her mouth and her finger, with each thrust forward relieving some of the pressure on his prostate only to reverse when he pulled back.

He palmed the sides of her soapy head, holding her still while face-fucking her. She opened her mouth wide to accommodate him and took his entire length easily down her throat.

The combined assault from her mouth and her finger was too much and his orgasm built quickly.

He warned her he was about to cum and she increased her tempo, burying him in her throat. This time, however, she pulled back at the last moment, pointing his cock at her open mouth.

Thick ropes of cum hit her tongue as he squeezed his glutes so hard he thought he might break her hand.

Ash lapped up his cum greedily.

"Oh, my," she said, beaming. "Thank you! You taste so delicious!"

James gasped for air. "I should... be thanking... you."

"I want to drink your seed every day! Is that too forward?" She thought for a moment. "I know it's a big commitment and pretty selfish of me but I'm totally addicted to your dick." She gave a sly smile. "You could even say I'm a-dick-ted!" She giggled at her own pun.

"I think it would be impossible for any red-blooded guy to say no to an offer like that." James rinsed Ash's hair as he spoke. "But I don't want to take advantage of you."

"No, silly. I want to take advantage of you," she said, slowly as if he didn't quite get it.

"Geez, twist my arm, why don't you?"

"Ooo, do you like that? Does that make you cum more?"

"No, it's just an expression. I was being sarcastic. Sorry. But yes, as long as I can keep up, you can have as much as I can produce."

"Yay!"

"Do you think your sisters would be jealous?"

"Oh, no! I'm good at sharing and so is Gwen."

"What about Lenore? She visited me last night. Things got... intense."

"Did she suck your blood through your penis? She loves doing that."

"What? No. I thought she was going to kill me but then we, you know, did the deed."

"What deed?"

"We had sex."

"You needed a deed to have sex?" Ash looked thoroughly confused.

"No. Nevermind. But we did have sex."

Ash nodded. "That's odd." She narrowed her eyes, thinking. "She must like you. Which is weird because she doesn't really like anyone. She barely likes us."

"Why does she live here, then?"

"Well, Gwen says it's for mutual protection. Together we can help each other. Help stay hidden. Help fight off others."

"Others?"

"Yeah. Not just humans. But others."

"Like Anubis?"

"Oh, no. Not him. We're not strong enough to fight a god. Even one as decrepit and old as Annie."

"That's reassuring. Glad I can be a part of it."

"Wait, is that sarcasm? Because you're not reassured? And are not glad to be a part of it?"

"Yeah. Sorry."

Ash clapped her hands, looking proud. "I'm getting so good at mortal humor."

"I like you and your sisters, though. That's not sarcasm. You three are amazing. Terrifying, actually. But amazing."

Now clean, he got out and dried off. He passed Ash a towel and she dried off her tail, draping it over the side of the tub so the transformation was easier.

"How come you seem so unworried."

Ash shrugged. "Meh, something like this happens every few decades. We'll figure something out."

That made sense considering his hostesses were centuries old.

He finished dressing and left Ash, promising to return later. Gwen had asked for his help in the garden but he didn't want to disappoint her even if he didn't quite know where the garden was. He found his boots in the mudroom where he'd originally left them and walked outside.

It was warm and sunny, with the typical Pacific Northwest overcast sky notably absent. He didn't remember seeing a garden when he'd first entered, just a small stone path and some shrubs around that side of the house. He followed the path as it wrapped around the back of the house, passing next to the giant windows of Ash's indoor pool, and to the far side.

Once he turned the corner he almost tripped trying to stop.

He'd found the garden, all right.

He counted over a dozen rows of vegetables and fruits, from blackberries to peppers to pumpkins, all laid out neatly. A few fruit trees held apples, pears, and other fruit that he couldn't immediately identify. There was a small shed with tools and a potting bench.

What caused him to stop, however, wasn't the bountiful garden but seeing Gwen in the middle of it.

She was naked and wrapped in thick green vines. They wrapped around her legs, and arms, and a thick one curled between her breasts, wrapped around her shoulder and down her back. Fat, broad leaves every few inches and wide pink flowers gave the impression that Gwen was wearing a costume.

But the vines were moving. They writhed over her skin, gently wrapping around her, sprouting leaves and flowers, making her giggle with their movement.

She smiled wide when she saw him.

"Morning, lover. Ready to do some magic?"