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Message-ID: <53619asstr$1145542201@assm.asstr-mirror.org>
From: Shalon Wood <dstar@pele.cx>
Subject: {ASSM} Pandora's Box 16 (Mf Mff MMf rom ws exhib bdsm)
Lines: 527
Date: Thu, 20 Apr 2006 10:10:01 -0400
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Approved: <assm@asstr-mirror.org>
Newsgroups: alt.sex.stories.moderated,alt.sex.stories
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Standard disclaimers apply; this story may or may not contain, in any
given part, graphic depictions of lesbianism, homosexuality, group sex,
bdsm, underage (teen) sex, magic, occultism, violence, and biting 
sarcasm.  If you're underage, or if for any other reason it's illegal 
for you to read this, or you're disturbed by the content, please don't 
read it.

Archived at http://pandora.pele.cx, and we've got a web-forum at
http://playground.pele.cx/forums as well, for discussion of both
Pandora and our other stories. 

Comments *greatly* appreciated.

Enjoy,

Velvet
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She was gone for quite a while, leaving him alone in the bedroom. Her
bedroom? It was a safe bet. A glass case in one corner held a number of
wind instruments, some easily recognized, some quite bizarre. A violin, its
wood showing the deep, rich luster of very old wood very lovingly tended
over decades, maybe centuries, was hung carefully on a hook by the bed. One
corner of the large room was given to a small, hardwood dance floor,
complete with mirrored wall and dance bar.  Another corner held a harp
taller than a man, its rosewood frame ornately, but tastefully, carved and
accented with touches of gold and ivory.  The walk-in closet was _huge_,
its open door revealing a space larger than most bedrooms. But there wasn't
a single image of her in the entire room. Not one. Baby pictures and
printed out snapshots of her sister were taped all around the mirror on the
large vanity, but she wasn't in any of them. Other than the pictures and
the instruments, though, there was nothing individual about the room,
nothing personal. It didn't feel really 'lived in'. The bed, when he lay
back on it, was extremely soft, except for something hard jabbing him in
the ribs. He reached under the blanket and pulled out a set of pan-pipes,
left under the covers as if she'd been sleeping with them like another girl
might cuddle a favorite stuffed toy.

When he examined it with his new vision, he found that the room was
surrounded by a glowing blue and purple cage that throbbed faintly, as if
bound to a beating heart.

When he looked, he couldn't see past the 'cage', either, so he couldn't
tell if there was anything leading to it, or what the rest of the house was
like magic-wise. Gabriel nodded to himself, making the connection between
the colors and Tandi's aura, and wondered what it was, exactly.

He was alone for about 20 minutes before the door was pushed open. When he
looked up, though, there was no one there. He sat up further and looked
down, seeing a cat with long white fur and a gold aura. "Well. Hello
there."

It looked at him disdainfully, then hopped up on the bed like it owned the
place.	Stretching out so as to stay as far from him as possible, it
daintily sniffed a lock of his hair. The hair, appearing nervous, jerked
away and curled into a huge knot at the back of his head. The cat looked at
him with a definite smirk, and began washing itself.

Gabriel raised an eyebrow. "Interesting. Are you Pandora's kitty?"

It gave him a look of utter disgust. He was being ridiculous, he suddenly
realized. That was just stupid. Of course he wasn't Pandora's kitty.
Pandora was _his_ human, and Gabriel, himself, was an idiot.

Gabriel said, in his most reasonable tone, "But Pandora's _my_ human. How
can she be your human too?"

The cat's eyes narrowed dangerously, and his claws slid out, easily sinking
into the soft bedspread. He fluffed his fur, and a low growl throbbed in
the air.

"Well...look at my aura. See?"

The cat snarled, and then reached out with a paw and sliced through a
drifting tendril of auric light. It _hurt_. Bad. Gabriel felt rather like
he'd been cut by a knife, then looked down to find the cat 'holding' a
little pool of red-gold light between his furry paws and looking at him
with smug superiority.

Gabriel's eyes widened. "_No_. That's not acceptable. Besides, do you
_really_ want her to have to stay here with her parents? Or do you want to
come with her and live at my place?"

The cat rubbed its cheek gently along the little sphere of red-gold light,
purring and watching him suspiciously.

Gabriel smiled. "There are mice."

One white ear perked up attentively.

Gabriel nodded. "Mice. It looked like a whole family of them. And that was
just in one room. I haven't looked anywhere else."

It looked at him assessingly. Then it stood up, taking the bit of aura in
its mouth like a kitten, and slowly circled him, sniffing and looking him
over. It paused at his right hand, the one whose claws had marked Pandora,
and its ears flattened and it growled at him angrily.

Gabriel said, quietly, "It wasn't intentional. I've only had them for a
day. But I can't promise it won't be intentional in the future, if she
wants me to do it. I'll give her anything she wants."

Gabriel was suddenly made aware of the fact that only stupid people let
kittens play under the lawn-mower, no matter how fun they think it is under
there.

"I won't do her permanent harm," he said. "But there's a difference between
pain and harm."

The cat sniffed indignantly and sat down again, tucking his aura 'baby'
back beneath his front legs. The thought arrived in Gabriel's head that
he'd been terribly rude. Couldn't he tell when a female was already
claimed? Didn't he understand the common courtesy of _asking_ to court
one's charge?

He chuckled. "She showed up on my doorstep with her mind already made up. I
didn't do anything except surrender gracefully."

The cat gave him a long suffering look. Females...what could you do with
them?

Gabriel quirked one side of his mouth. "If you figure it out, will you tell
me?"

Well...there's always making kittens. Pandora-kittens would be especially
pretty. Dear little things, all fluffy and bright.

Gabriel nodded, smiling. "They would. When she's older, well...it's
definitely something to consider."

The cat looked him up and down again. Then it lay down, seeming to absorb
the bit of aura it held. The color didn't return to the spot on
Gabriel's...though bits were starting to bleed in from the sides...but the
'wound' at least stopped hurting. Trying to get that bit back, he now
'knew', would result in much silver blood spread upon Pandora's bed, and
she wouldn't like that. Best to leave it where it belonged.

Gabriel smiled, accepting the truce for what it was, and waited for Tandi.

Tandi came in about 15 minutes later, her whole demeanor 'cautious'. She
looked at the cat curled on the bed and smiled. "Ah. You've been checked
out, I see."

Gabriel nodded, then looked at the cat. "Would you excuse us? This should
be private."

Cats don't care about 'private'. Cats stay where they wish.

"I understand that," he said. "But I think Tandi would be more comfortable
alone. And I'd think you'd want to go see Pandora."

The cat stood, stretching and yawning.	Pandora would give him cream. As
was his due. He hopped off the bed, curling around Tandi's ankles, then
strutted leisurely out the door.

Gabriel watched him leave. "You might want to close the door." He looked up
at her. "Can you talk to him? Well, understand his replies, I mean."

"I don't have anything to hide," she said, with a slight smile. "And she's
uncomfortable enough with me here alone, as is. And yes, sometimes. When he
wants to be heard."

Gabriel nodded. "Okay." He shifted slightly on the bed. "She's afraid
you're going to kill me, you know."

She smiled predatorily. "I know."

"Are you?" he asked.

"Maybe. Depends."

"On what?" He sighed. "Look. She doesn't know what I'm about to say,
although I did promise to tell her afterwards. Tandi...I don't want to take
her away from you. I really don't. You've supported her all this
time...that wouldn't be right, and I'm not going to do it. That's why I
told her what I did. It's not because I'll get anything out of it."

She smiled knowingly. "I know."

Gabriel looked at her. "You said you thought I might be fun to try. If you
want to, that's okay, but I want to make sure you understand that it's
_not_ required. If you'd rather, I won't touch you. I'm not..." He stopped.
"I'm not sure how to say this, actually. If I say I'm not interested in you
sexually, that sounds...wrong. It's not that I'd object to the idea, I
think. But I'm not going to pursue you. I didn't suggest this to get two
girls into bed with me."

She sighed. "If I really, _really_ thought you had...I would have killed
you first, and worried about keeping her alive until the pain from the
broken bond eased afterwards."

"I've been completely honest with you."

"I think so. I can't be sure yet, but I think you have been, to the best of
your abilities."

He sighs. "I have been. I can't prove it, I guess, but I have. So...will
you grant me the same respect?"

"I haven't lied to you," she protested.

"I know. But I'm about to ask you a question that I'm not sure you'll want
to answer," he said.

"Then I can't say I will. I won't lie about it, though."

Gabriel nodded. "Okay. I want to know..." He sighed. "I'm not just asking
to be nosy, okay? But...are you in love with her?"

"I love her. I want her...but so does everyone else. 'In love'? Honestly,
I'm not even really sure what that _means_."

His lips twisted wryly. "Well...I'm not sure I can help you there. It's one
of those things that really doesn't translate to words very well. I
guess...what do you hope for out of this? Not what do you want, not what do
you expect...what I'm trying to figure out is what you hope for."

"Hope? I _hope_ not to lose my sister. But you're taking her away, anyway.
She won't stay here, not anymore. Maybe for a very, very little while, but
it'll hurt her too bad and she won't be able to do it for long. And I'll
still be stuck here, and without her, my psycho-bitch mother might start
looking at _me_, and then life is going to royally _suck_, especially
without her here to offset the badness."

Gabriel hesitated. "I...um. Wait. What...exactly...did you talk about?"

She closed her mouth tightly, stubbornly.

He nodded, slowly. "Then...you're welcome in our home anytime, Tandi. If it
gets too bad..." He shrugged. "I'll do what I can. I don't know what that
will be, but..."

"See, there's _not_ anything you can do. Or her. No matter what she offers.
There's just no legal way to leave home at thirteen without your parents'
permission."

He sighed. "I know. Not unless she gets bad enough that we could try to get
custody."

"And if you did, and then _we_ did, then that could be a whole _pile_ of
trouble down the road."

Gabriel raised an eyebrow. "Worse than if we _didn't_ have custody?"

"Yep. Trust me...it'd be much worse if you were standing in loco parentis
for me. Especially if they decided you'd sued for custody solely for the
purpose of debauchery. That comes under the heading of 'defrauding the
court' and such."

Gabriel shrugged. "Tandi...you're forgetting something. It's very likely
that _any_ jail sentence would be a death sentence for me. I'm not human."

"No. You're not. And you wouldn't be locked up unless you _let_ yourself
be. Witches might can stop you. I might can kill you. But you don't have to
worry about human law unless you _choose_ to. Maybe you haven't realized
that yet, but it's the truth. You can always pop Underhill and turn up in
another fucking country."

Gabriel looked at her thoughtfully. "Well, in that case...there's no danger
at all, is there?"

"Not to _you_, no. But humans don't belong Underhill, and from what I've
heard, they're not welcome except as toys. She'd lose you. It might be
fifty years from now when you pop back out. They'd put her in 'protective
custody'. It'd kill her."

Gabriel shook his head. "I'd just take you with me, and come back out as
soon as possible. Wouldn't that work?"

"And how would you protect us from the others? Don't you think they're
going to _want_ her?"

Gabriel opened his mouth, and then stopped. "Damn." He sighed. "The thing
is, I don't think that adding you to the mix would make things any worse. I
really don't. And I want her to have everything she needs."

"Yes, it would. It would make it more likely that a) you would get
caught, and b) the judge and jury would look unfavorably upon you and
actually send you to jail, necessitating your escape," she said.

Gabriel sighed. "I'm not sure it would be that much more likely that I'd
get caught. And what makes you think they won't decide I was doing you
_anyway_?"

"Innocent until proven guilty. It's a whole lot harder to _prove_ someone
guilty when they've never actually _done_ anything."

"That doesn't apply in a case like this. If they decide you have, they
won't believe you when you say you haven't. They'll get psychiatrists to
say that the fact that you say I didn't is proof I did." His tone was sour.
"On the up side, I can't see any way for them to find out."

"Alright, drop the legal shit," she said with a sigh. "I really don't care
about that...there are mundane ways to run away from the law. I'll be
blunt. The real danger is in hurting _her_. I'm not going to do that. She's
had enough hurt."

He nodded. "How do you think you'd hurt her?"

"Lots of ways. For one, I think she'd _want_ me to try you. And that would
hurt her. Then there's the fact that if it didn't work out, she'd feel
guilty. She already thinks the last time was her fault...as if you can
_control_ who or what you're attracted to!" She rolled her eyes. "If that
were the case, I would have taken up with that prince that decided he liked
me last month and been _out_ of here."

Gabriel bit his lip. "I think you're right. She would want you to try me,
just because her first time was so good. I'm not completely sure that it
would hurt her, though...but if I wasn't sure that it _wouldn't_, it
wouldn't happen. As for her getting hurt because it didn't work out..." He
looked at her for a moment. "I think that's her choice, not ours."

She shook her head. "No, whether or not I want to risk hurting her is
bloody damned well _my_ choice. Whether or not _she_ wants to risk getting
hurt is hers. They're different things."

He gave her a sharp look. "So you'd take away her right to choose?" He
shook his head. "That's not your right, and it's not my right. Turn her
down because you don't want her, or because you don't think there's any
chance you could enjoy it, but not because you're afraid she could get
hurt. We don't have that choice. All we can do is do everything we can not
to hurt her."

"Nope. Don't agree with you. 'Cause, see, hurting her _would_ hurt me. Bad.
So you can't tell me I can't choose to say no because I don't want to hurt
her, because that would be telling me I can't say no because I don't want
to get hurt."

"And what about removing the chance for it going _right_? That would hurt
her too," he said.

Tandi shook her head stubbornly. "Not as _much_. But...I haven't said 'no'.
I'm still thinking about it. Weighing things."

"What do you want, if everything worked out? What would you hope for?" he
asked.

"I don't know, really. I just don't want to lose her. She's the only really
good part of my life." Tandi sat down at the desk, looking suddenly lost
and vulnerable. "Sex is good, yeah...but not if it messes the rest up."

He thought for a moment, then sighed. "I don't think it would, honestly.
Not as long as we're all honest. If it doesn't work, then we know we tried.
If it does..." He shrugged.

"Well..." She looked slightly embarrassed. "There's also the...um...the
'respect' factor. If I just want sex, nothing permanent, no strings...what
is she going to think of me?"

Gabriel looked at her. "Is that really what you want?"

"See? You think it's cold and trashy too!"

"No, I don't. In fact, that's exactly what she was willing to settle for
when she showed up yesterday. I just don't think it's what you want." He
smiled. "Maybe you'll get as lucky as I did."

She shrugged. "Okay, let's say that _for now_ it's what I want. Eventually,
I want to settle down in a normal relationship like anyone else, but I
don't want anything serious right now. And I don't think I can get what I
_ultimately_ want from someone who is...whatever this thing between you
is...with someone else. That doesn't bother me, but I'm afraid it _would_
bother her, a lot." Tandi sighed, looking at him. "See...I wasn't sure
about helping her. Because however smart she is, whatever she thinks
_logically_, she's always associated sex with love. But she wanted you.
And...I hated to see her sad."

Gabriel nodded. "What if she falls in love with you?"

"It's...not the same. You don't get it. We already love each other. We
already need each other." She broke off, glaring at him again with her
original irritation. "Though she needs _you_ more now. So it's not like
it'd be a huge big change. But if I'm having sex with her, then she might
_think_ it is, whether it is or not."

"I get it," he said quietly. "What if it _is_ a big change? What if she
ends up feeling the same way about you that she does about me?"

"She can't. Maybe you don't realize what you've done to her, but...she
can't. Not anymore. There's not room."

"What if you're wrong?" He raised an eyebrow. "You thought all elves were
evil."

She shrugged. "I can _see_ this. With my own eyes. Not relying on someone
else's information."

"What are you seeing?" he asked.

She thought about if for a moment, then answered him, "A blending. A
total...merging. It's...what stupid romance writers think everybody wants.
A bond so tight, she'll feel your pain, and if you die, it'll be all I can
do just to keep her alive long enough to heal."

Gabriel nodded. "That's there. But it doesn't mean there's no room for
anyone else, Tandi. It just means the...the bond would have to change to
accommodate it." He paused, searching for words. "If you braid two colors
of string together, there's not room for a third. But if you braid three
colors together, all three fit."

"Yes. But I'm not willing to join that bond." She sighed. "You don't know
me. The closest you come is knowing her. But I'm not _like_ her. Not
anything like her. She wanted something like that, she always did. Someone
to know everything about her, to share _everything_ with." She looked up at
him, her turquoise eyes glittering like deep ice. "I don't. What I want in
a partner is...a friend, a playmate. Someone I can trust, yeah, but also
someone who's...just a little bit weaker than me, so that I don't have to
worry about her trying to be in charge. I can just take care of her, and
keep the bits of me that I want to private. That's cold, I know, but it's
the way I am."

Gabriel raised an eyebrow. "You think she'd want to be in control?"

"No. But she'd want more...openness...than I'm comfortable with.  And she
already has someone to take care of her."

"That's true," he said slowly. "You don't think two people would be better
than one?"

She shook her head. "No, not really. Because then you've gotta trust _two_
people, and it's hard enough to trust even one."

Gabriel pursed his lips. "But you already trust her. I know that. And you
have to trust me anyway."

"No I don't. Not with everything."

"Not with everything," he agreed. "But with a lot." He sighed. "I just...I
want her to have whatever she wants."

"I want her to be happy, too," Tandi protested. "Don't act like I don't.
But she's not the one who'd want it. She'd give it to me, and she'd enjoy
it, especially if it made you happy, but this is _my_ want, not something
she craves."

Gabriel sighed. "She couldn't be satisfied with you because she needed
something else. Now she has it." He looked her in the eye. "Are you so sure
that she won't discover she _does_ want it now?"

"She might want it. But she won't ever _need_ it. If she did start needing
it...well, I doubt I could tell her no."

"Could you live with that, though?" he asked. "What if she needs more than
that?"

"I could live with that," she said quietly. "She's always been the
important one in the family, anyway."

"You said you weren't willing to join the bond."

"I'm not. But I'm willing to stay with her if she needs me."

"What would you do if she needed you to join the bond?" he asked. "If she
needed that...that connection with you."

"She won't. Because she _has_ what she _needs_. The nature of
it...completes her."

He nodded. "That...feels right. But what if she did? What if it doesn't,
quite, complete her, and she needed you to finish it?"

She sighed. "Then I would, whether I wanted to or not. You really don't get
this 'family' thing, do you?"

Gabriel looked at her seriously. "How could I? I never had one."

She flushed and turned her face away. "Stop that. Don't you dare go looking
all pitiful at _me_ buster, I don't _have_ any softer instincts."

He asked, slowly, "So...what does it mean to _you_ that you're family?"

"We take care of each other. Watch out for each other. Do what it takes."
She met his eyes squarely, hers ice cold. "_Whatever_ it takes, because
we're...we were all there was."

"You were everything for each other, weren't you?"

She snapped, "Well you try trusting anyone _else_ in this family and see
what it gets you!"

"Did I say there was anything _wrong_ with that?" he asked mildly.

She shrugged, looking away.

"Honestly, it almost seems to me that you were as close as you'd be if you
were married."

She snorted. "Yeah, marriage, _that_ really means closeness. I think our
parents have been alone together exactly three times in their life."

"It can. It did for me and Lissa, even when...when things were coming
apart." He sighed, and looked at her for a long moment. "It's your
decision, Tandi. Yours and hers. But as far as I'm concerned...you're
welcome in our life for as long as you want to be there."

She smiled at that...not bitterly, or nastily, or enigmatically, but a real
smile, the first he'd seen. "I'm glad you feel that way."

"I meant it. I never had a family...I could never take Pandora away from
the only family _she's_ ever had." He smiled back.

She flushed, then straightened up abruptly. "Don't be cute at me, either,
Legolas."

"I'm not," he said simply.

"Wanna bet," she muttered before standing up. "Okay. I think we're done. I
don't wanna worry her, and I _don't_ want the two of you to still be here
when Bitch Queen of The Universe gets back from her mall-hopping."

Gabriel nodded. "That sounds wise."

"Great. I'll get Dora. You...make yourself useful. The cases for her toys
are in the closet, go ahead and get them out."

He stood up. "Okay."

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If you like this, you might want to take a look at Strange Love, an
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Take a look!

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reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated.
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