index


Message-ID: <54299asstr$1154560201@assm.asstr-mirror.org>
From: Shalon Wood <dstar@pele.cx>
Subject: {ASSM} Prudence, TX Population 1276 47 (Mff ff Mm rom)
Lines: 353
Date: Wed, 02 Aug 2006 19:10:01 -0400
Path: assm.asstr-mirror.org!not-for-mail
Approved: <assm@asstr-mirror.org>
Newsgroups: alt.sex.stories.moderated,alt.sex.stories
Followup-To: alt.sex.stories.d

************************************************************************
************************************************************************

SPECIAL NOTE FOR READERS OF _Jason and Kylie, Naked In School_: 

You may or may not be aware, but Shalon broke his arm in two places three
weeks ago; Jason and Kylie is temporarily on hold (he had a nice cushion
built up on Pandora's Box, which is why he switched to that).  Please see
http://playground.pele.cx for details, including news on when Jason and
Kylie will return.
   

If you have any questions, please email us, or visit our forums at
http://playground.pele.cx/forums and ask.  
************************************************************************
************************************************************************

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://prudence.pele.cx, and we've got a web-forum at
http://playground.pele.cx/forums as well, for discussion of both Prudence
and our other stories.  Send an email to velvet@pele.cx and I'll add you to
the mailing list to be notified when Prudence updates.

   Comments *greatly* appreciated.

   Enjoy,

   Velvet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

   Mark caught Kristen and cradled her to his chest, worriedly examining
the damaged link.  As far as he could tell, it hadn't taken on any more
damage, and didn't seem to be draining her any faster.  He needed to get
her away, but he still had some time before she was in any danger. 
"Wonderful," he said, with a sigh, then looked over at Angie.  "I'm not
sure what to do at this point.  I don't know if I can trust you."

   She looked up from her sobbing, her face red and blotchy, and her eyes
widened with surprise upon seeing Kristen unconscious in his lap.  "Oh God!
What happened?!"

   He stared at her, considering, judging.  "Can I trust you, Angie?  To
keep something a complete and utter secret?  Something that could kill her
if it got out?"

   "I never wanted to hurt her," she whispered.  "I would never endanger
her."

   "Damn it...  I just don't know if this is a good idea." He sighed.  "I
really don't.  But...  Kayla trusts you.  And I don't think you meant to do
this to Kristen.  She's in pain, actual, physical pain, whenever she sees
you, because you sent her away.  And being this close to you is... 
draining her.  Not fast, but it it's doing it."

   "I don't understand," she said, shaking her head.

   He sighed again.  "No, you probably don't.  I'm not sure how to explain
it, either.  If it wasn't for the raw, gaping wound this is causing, I'd
think it might just be kinder to leave you ignorant." He stared into space
for a moment, then asked, "Are you religious?"

   She flinched, looking deeply ashamed.  "I always considered myself so."

   "Hmm.  Do you believe in the idea of, well...  soul-mates?"

   "No, not really," she said with a bitter half smile.  "Love is something
you really have to work to maintain.  The whole 'love at first sight,
happily ever after' thing is a dangerous myth."

   "Mostly, yes," he agreed.  "But not always.  Sometimes love at first
sight _does_ happen.  It did for Kristen and me.  We still have to work at
it, of course.  It doesn't stop us from hurting each other...  just like it
didn't stop you from hurting her."

   She shook her head.  "Mark, I _can't_ be in love with her.  I just
can't."

   He smiled.  "That's kind of what I said.  It didn't help me either."

   "You don't understand.  I'm _married_."

   "I know," he said.  "That's why I said I thought it would be kinder to
leave you ignorant.  I'm not sure what to do."

   "I don't understand any of this," she said.  "What's happened to her,
why isn't she waking up?"

   He closed his eyes again, checking to make sure Kristen was still okay.
The small, steady drain continued, but was still not near the dangerous
point.  He bent and slid a hand behind her knees, then sat down with her on
his lap.

   He sighed.  "This is where I have to decide to trust you," he said,
swallowing nervously and hoping like hell he was doing the right thing. 
"Kristen is...  not entirely human, though she's not a demon or anything
like that."

   "Wh-what do you mean?"

   "She's...  different.  With different needs.  Do you remember when she
got sick a month or so ago?"

   She nodded, still confused.

   "That happened when she stopped sleeping around," he said.

   Angie blinked at him.  "Huh?"

   "Sex provides...  energy, I guess you would call it, for her," he said.
"She need that as much as she needs food or water.  Without it..." He
shrugged, stroking Kristen's hair.

   "She _eats_ sex?!" Angie stared at him, wide-eyed.  "You're crazy, too!"

   He shook his head.  "I'm not.  If she wasn't so drained, I could prove
it...  and if she gets much _more_ drained, it will be visible." He checked
her again.  She was still within 'safe' ranges, but she looked exhausted,
pale, and sickly.

   "You...  she..." Angie stammered, trembling as she looked at them with
horror.  "She _is_ a demon, a vampire!  Oh God, help us."

   "No!" he snapped, then forced himself to respond more calmly.  "No. 
Nothing like that.  She's no more a demon than you or I, and she's _not_ a
vampire.  She doesn't _take_ anything from me."

   "You were willing to risk your career, risk going to jail to have her,"
Angie said.  "I...  I was willing to do the same, even though I knew it
would destroy my husband if he found out, and even though I knew I was
damning my soul to hell."

   "Love is so evil, then, that it damns you?" he asked softly.

   "Adultery is."

   He shook his head.  "No, I don't think so.  I think it's wrong, yes.  It
hurts your partner -- not so much that you had sex with someone else, but
that _you broke their trust_.  You promised them something, and then didn't
keep your promise.  That's what makes it so wrong.  But it's not...  it's
not murder.  It's not on that level at all."

   "It's a betrayal of a sacred trust," she said.  "And to do it with
another woman...  a young girl who was entrusted to me, who came to me for
_help_....  Yes, it damns me."

   "I'm not saying it was right, Angie.  Not at all.  You made a vow to
your husband, and you didn't keep it.  That was wrong.  As to the
homosexuality...  I can't see why love is wrong, no matter what the sexes
involved are.  And as for her coming to you for help..." He sighed. 
"Angie, do you realize that you wouldn't have harmed her in the slightest
if you had just been _nice_ to her after you had sex with her?  It was
sending her away that's hurting her."

   She didn't really seem to be listening to him.  "She's not human," she
said, and he could hear the belief in her voice.  "That's why I couldn't
resist her, isn't it?"

   "That's part of it.  The other part is that you fell in love with her
the first time you saw her.  She doesn't _make_ you want her, Angie.  All
she does is..." He hesitated, groping for words.  "She lets you feel how
she feels about it.  And now that she _knows_, she can control it, at least
somewhat.  What you felt was your desire _and_ her desire, both, if that
makes sense."

   She leaned her head on her hands and groaned.  "I don't know what to do.
I don't know what to think.  What _is_ she then, if she's not a succubus?"

   "I'm not sure yet.  I've run across a couple of things that sound
similar, but nothing that fits exactly yet.  I think she's what spawned the
legends of succubi.  Imagine living your entire life, needing sex, not
knowing why, causing men to lust after you like that...  in the Dark Ages.
It must have been hell."

   "Mark...  I'm not a man," she said.  "And I'm _not_ gay, really I'm not.
It's not just denial, it's truth.  I never even _thought_ about it."

   He nodded.  "That's the thing with life-bonds, from what I've been able
to find out," he said.  "When they're there...  they just _are_.  It
doesn't matter if you're straight or gay, whether you want to love them or
not.  You don't have a choice."

   "What do I do?" she asked plaintively.  "God...  is she okay?  Should
she still be unconscious?"

   "Angie...  I don't know what you should do.  I honestly don't.  As for
Kristen..." He closed his eyes.  She wasn't any worse.  In fact, she might
have been slightly better.  Maybe sitting in his lap had helped.  He opened
his eyes.  "She'll be okay.  I'll probably have to find a way to slip off
with her before class..." He grimaced.  "Though how I'm going to do that, I
don't know."

   She stared at Kristen with naked hunger, then shuddered and closed her
eyes.  "Just take her home, Mark.  Tell them you're sick."

   "You still want her," he said softly.  "I know."

   "Yes," she whispered hoarsely.  "I still want her.  I'll always want
her. I...  I'm going to get a divorce.  This past year...  it hasn't
worked. It's just been hurting him." Tears ran freely down her cheeks.

   He looked at her with sympathy.  "Angie...  has it not been working
because of her?  Or were there problems before that?"

   "Everyone has problems," she said.  "It wasn't perfect, but it worked.
_We_ worked.  I loved him...  I still love him.  But since--" She broke
off, biting her lip hard as she swiped at her eyes.  "I haven't wanted him,
you know, physically.  I've only wanted her.  I tried, and he tried so hard
to make me want him, but nothing worked, and trying just hurt him.  We
haven't made love in over six months.  I've got to let him go."

   "Shit.  I'm sorry, Angie."

   "Ten _years_, Mark.  We've been together for ten years, and I can't even
tell him why."

   "Gods, I wish..." He shook his head.  "I'm sorry, I wish there was
something I could do."

   "Just take her home," she said.  "Take her home and take care of her.  I
won't tell anyone about her.  I couldn't...  I know what they would do to
her, and whatever she is, she doesn't deserve that."

   He looked at her, and something that had been flitting through his mind
became a decision.  "Angie...  you can ask her.  I don't know what her
answer will be.  You hurt her...  terribly.  But you can _ask_.  I won't
object."

   "_No_, I can't," she said.  "You not objecting doesn't make it okay with
God, Mark.  Even though I've failed, I still have to try."

   He nodded, slowly.  That was pretty much what he'd expected her to say.
"Angie, I can't tell you what to believe.  I wouldn't if I could.  But...
would the God you know make you fall in love with someone, only to tell you
that you can't be with them?  Would he condemn you to torture for the rest
of your life, for something you had nothing to do with?"

   "God tests his children, Mark."

   "Testing is one thing," he said.  "Torture is another, and I can't see
Him doing that."

   "I _failed_ my test, Mark," she said, flatly.  "If I'd resisted,
maybe... but I didn't."

   "You're judging yourself assuming that it was wrong to love her, Angie.
What if it wasn't?"

   "How could it not be?" she asked.

   "Why would it be?" he countered.

   She sighed.  "Loving her may not be wrong...  it may even make what I
did _less_ wrong.  But giving in to it, _that's_ what was wrong."

   "Why would that be wrong?"

   "Because it violated my oaths," she said.  "It hurt other people.  It
was a sin.  There's just no way around that."

   "And when you've divorced your husband?" he asked.  "Will it still be a
sin?"

   She smiled ironically.  "It would still be having sex out of wedlock,
Mark.  Adultery, too, since _she's_ married."

   He looked at her thoughtfully.  "I'll tell you a secret, Angie.  She
never vowed to be faithful.  I wouldn't let her, and I didn't _want_ her
to. She wouldn't be cheating on me."

   She closed her eyes tightly.  "Go!  Just go.  There's only so much
temptation that I can take."

   "Angie, I'm sorry.  I'm not trying to tempt you.  But..." He sighed
tiredly.  "As long as you are rejecting her like this...  it's like taking
a wire brush to an open wound for her."

   Angie shivered.  "So anytime someone doesn't want her, it causes her
pain?  Real, physical pain?"

   "No," he said.  "Just someone she's got a life-bond with."

   "This 'life-bond' thing," she said hesitantly.  "Assuming for a moment
that it's real...  _that_ doesn't bother you?"

   "No, why should it?" he asked.

   She just shook her head, looking at him as if he were crazy.  "She's
your _wife_."

   "Yes.  She is." He smiled, savoring the feeling of being able to say
that.  "But if she loves someone else, and still loves me, that doesn't
take anything away from _me_.  If it makes her happy...  why should I
object?"

   She rubbed at her forehead.  "I've got...  I've got to think about all
this.  I'm taking the day off.  Are you sure she's okay?"

   "She will be.  And..." He hesitated for a moment, then sighed.  "I have
to say this: Please don't discuss this with anyone else without asking,
Angie.  You know what would happen.  And the Reverend was highly offended
that I still have my job.  He would love something to use as a way to fire
me...  and I think this conversation would qualify."

   "I _know_, Mark," she said, slightly offended.  "I said I wouldn't
betray her, and I won't."

   "Angie, I know you wouldn't...  but I had to say it.  I hope you
understand.  I'm sorry.  If you need someone to talk to..."

   She shook her head.  "No.  This in my problem.  I'll work it out."

   "You aren't going to do anything...  rash, are you?" he asked.

   She shook her head again.  "I'm just going to think things over."

   "Okay," he said, still a touch worried.  "If you...  want to talk more
about it, or anything, maybe later tonight, give me a call, okay?"

   "Sure," she said, giving him a tight smile.

   He glanced down at Kristen thoughtfully.  "You can kiss her goodbye, if
you'd like."

   She trembled violently, and shook her head, eyes wide.  "No.  No... 
that would be too much.  God, God, God..."

   "I'm sorry," he said.  "I thought it might help, being able to touch her
a least that much."

   She laughed shakily, a touch of hysteria in it.  "You don't help an
alcoholic by giving him a wine cooler, Mark!"

   "Mmm.  Right.  Sorry," he said.

   She stood up.  "I _am_ going home.  I haven't taken a sick day in the
past two years.  They can deal with it this once." Before he could say
anything else, she practically ran out of the office, leaving him alone
with Kristen.
   
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you like this, you might want to take a look at Strange Love, an
e-zine of sf/fantasy/paranormal erotica. The first issue is on sale
now for $2 at:

http://strangelove.pele.cx

Take a look!

-- 
Pursuant to the Berne Convention, this work is copyright with all rights
reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| alt.sex.stories.moderated ------ send stories to: <ckought69@hotmail.com>|
| FAQ: <http://assm.asstr-mirror.org/faq.html> Moderators: <story-ckought69@hotmail.com> |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|ASSM Archive at <http://assm.asstr-mirror.org>   Hosted by <http://www.asstr-mirror.org> |
|Discuss this story and others in alt.sex.stories.d; look for subject {ASSD}|
+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+