Eric heard the front door, then footsteps in the hallway, heard Christian's laughter, but didn't turn around until he'd finished pouring boiling water into the teapot.
Chris gave him a merry wink with one brown-lined eye, at what must have been a startled expression. “Hi. We were shopping. What d'you think?” The witch spun in a slow circle, showing off quite a fetching long skirt of mingled grey, dull green, and dusty rose, and a snug top of greyish-green that appeared to be entirely lace with something opaque under it. The usual cross-and-pentagram necklace gleamed against it.
“It suits you, but, um...” He tried to think of a way of phrasing the question in his mind without being offensive.
Christian laughed. “What your grandmother taught me was enough, I figured out how to shapeshift day before yesterday.”
Mark cleared his throat and leaned against the counter, arms crossed.
“Mark helped,” Chris added. “We went shopping, 'cause most of what I have other than jeans is Hallowe’en-type stuff that’s no good for everyday, and jeans aren’t as much fun.”
“True. You look great.”
“Thank you. I've been trying to think of a name, and I think I have one, but if it'll get confusing I'll think of something else.”
“Oh? What?” Mark asked.
“One of the European short forms of Christian is Kit, which is also a girl's name. Unless it's too much like kitsune.”
Eric shook his head. Right now, Chris reminded him quite a lot of an excited kitsune, especially with that dark reddish hair. “Kit sounds perfect.”
“Kit works,” Mark agreed.
“Cool, so now I'm Kit when I'm being a girl. Gotta go put my new clothes away.” She gathered up all the bags, and all but bounced off towards the stairs.
Mark watched her go with that indulgent smile Eric had seen so often.
“Must've been quite the shopping trip,” Eric said. “That's a lot of bags.”
Mark shrugged, and glanced at him. “I can think of worse uses for money than spoiling one crazy witch. And it isn’t hard for me to get more.”
“True,” Eric agreed. Usually good at recognizing his own feelings, he found his reactions to the lamia, in either form, too complex and contradictory to untangle at all. That he enjoyed Mark’s presence and company and sought them out, but at the same time felt uncomfortable and nervous in his presence, confused him; he had a hunch both aspects would have multiplied if he were confronted with Alexandra, but Mark seemed to be going to great lengths to avoid the possibility. At least once, he was quite certain there’d been a very fast shift between forms as he came into the room.
Confusion or not, they were living in the same house and he refused to be rude. “Want some tea?”
Mark considered that; Eric could see him, right on the edge of declining the offer and leaving the room.
“Sure,” Mark said, after a moment, and reached into the cupboard nearest him for the sugar.
* * *
Christian could shapeshift into a girl now, hm?
That thought kept dancing around in Eric's mind, and made his homework distinctly difficult to concentrate on.
That scare from Alexandra had short-circuited his sex drive badly; flirting with any woman in range was second nature, but there had been no intent behind it for the last couple of weeks. There had, however, been a few nights he almost regretted turning Christian down. He had no particular aversion to males, simply lacked much physical attraction to them, and someone to hold even without sex involved could have made a few long lonely nights more bearable. Christian felt utterly safe, there were no nasty surprises lurking there.
Chris had offered, and Eric didn't think it was entirely out of sympathy or compassion, and clearly the pair didn’t have the monogamous relationship he’d originally assumed.
If Chris could be a girl...
Hmm. What would be the best way to go about this? Rushing wouldn't be right; Chris deserved the best Eric could invent with all the finesse of a kitsune's prize student, and the comfortable living allowance from his grandmother each month.
* * *
Christian locked the front door behind him and left his jacket there, then kicked off his shoes before proceeding to the living room.
Mark glanced up from his book, and greeted him with a lazy wave. “Easy one?”
“Yes.” Christian joined him on the couch. “Just old negative energy from whoever used to live there. Someone hurt bad. I cleaned it all up without much trouble.”
“Glad to hear it.” Mark offered an envelope. “Eric's in class. He asked me to give you this.”
Curious, Christian accepted it, broke the seal, and drew out a single neatly-folded sheet of paper. It had a red rose printed along the left edge, and the lettering had been done on a computer, the layout obviously designed with care. Christian read it quickly, and laughed.
“You were right about letting Eric make the first move.”
“Oh?”
“I, or rather Kit, has just been invited out to dinner.”
Mark smiled, and shook his head. “It would never occur to him to just say that he wants to have you in his bed female and protected.”
“Are you implying that I'm not worth taking out?”
“Of course you are, but there's an ulterior motive.”
“Well, since I offered, I think it's extremely sweet.”
“That was actually a compliment, that he has too much class to just toss you into bed.”
“So. It's four-thirty now, he says he'll meet me at the front door at seven. Will you help me get ready?”
“'Course I will. Go do your shapeshifting stuff, and make sure you're safe. Then jump in the shower.”
“Right.”
An hour later, Kit, naked and still damp, considered her limited selection of feminine attire.
“The white one?” Kit suggested.
“Too summery for October, I think,” Alexandra said. “The skirt and top are too casual. Try the green one.”
The soft sage-green knit hugged her upper body closely, the sleeves falling in loose folds to just below her elbows, and the skirt draped itself in heavier folds down to mid-calf. Her only shoes were black, with low heels, but they'd be fine. Alexandra pulled her hair into a smooth ponytail. Simple makeup, her pentagram-cross and hoop earrings, a black purse just large enough for her ID, makeup, money, keys, and cell phone, and she was ready.
“This is crazy,” Kit said plaintively. “I'm as jumpy as a teenager about to go on her first date.”
“In a sense, you are,” Alexandra said, and hugged her. Gently, the lamia kissed her forehead. “Have fun at dinner, but don't forget to throw him in bed. You won't be sorry.”
“Oh?”
“He has a truly wonderful attitude towards women. Enough so that I was very much enjoying myself. And him.” Kit saw shadows cross golden eyes; she was prepared to bet that regret was one of those emotions lamias weren't supposed to be able to feel. Alexandra handed her half a dozen condoms. “Put 'em in your purse. And use them. He did manage to seduce at least one of the strippers, against all reasonable odds, and you don't know who other than the kitsune before that. He’s smart enough to be safe, I'm sure, and possibly that gift weirdness would protect him anyway, but don't take chances.”
“All right.” Kit obediently tucked them in her purse, and glanced at the clock. “I'd better get downstairs. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.”
“You do that. Off with you.”
Eric waited in the front sitting room, perfectly relaxed in one of the chairs. Instead of the jeans that were almost a house uniform, he wore black dress pants and a rather attractive sweater patterned burgundy and dark green and golden-brown over a turtleneck of lighter burgundy. He rose as soon as she entered, caught her hand to kiss her fingers, and gave her a smile that somehow suggested that the universe must be a wonderful place indeed since it allowed him her company.
“You look incredible.”
Kit blushed a little, and looked down. “Um. Thanks. So do you.”
“Could I dishonour you by any less? Shall we?”
“Sure.”
A taxi waited out front; Eric held the front door for her, locked it swiftly, and hastened to open the nearer back seat door for her. Once she was settled, he circled the car to join her and directed the driver to a place Kit recognized as fairly fancy, with a reputation for excellent food.
“You do research fast,” Kit laughed.
“I've asked a lot of people in the last week, and more suggested this one than anywhere else. Reasonable choice?”
“More than, but expensive.”
“Not a problem.” He favoured her with another of those smiles that made her want to melt. “Price is not an issue for tonight.”
* * *
Mark wandered into the shop, and waited by the counter while Christian helped a teenaged girl choose a deck of Tarot cards.
“Well?” he asked, once they were alone. “I heard you two come in fairly early last night. What happened?”
“Nothing,” Christian sighed.
“Come again?”
“Supper was fantastic, and we had a bottle of wine, it was all very cool. And we went for a walk along the lake for a bit, and came home. But all he wanted to do was go to sleep cuddling. He said he didn't want anything other than dinner, and that as beautiful as I was in every way, he doesn't like to rush things.”
“Hmm.” Mark leaned against the counter, forehead furrowed in thought. “Maybe you should relax and enjoy being courted. It'll be a new experience.”
“Do I have much choice? Unless I want to start researching aphrodisiacs, anyway.”
“It's not like anyone is making you stay celibate, or like it would kill you. Eric is. Although I'm guessing he's going to be all wrapped up in the thrill of the hunt.”
“What hunt? The prey is standing in the middle of a field waving a fluorescent flag!”
“Be patient,” Mark advised, amused by Christian's obvious disgust. “Look at it this way: he thinks you're worth the effort. Considering that he was taught by a kitsune, that means a lot of skilled effort. Accept it as the gift it is, and allow him the pleasure of giving it.” And possibly the chance to feel safe. I think I may have scared the poor boy right off sex, at least temporarily. Damn that vixen for not warning me. And Chris for making me care, and Eric for being a decent enough person to deserve it that I care.
“I s'pose. But expect to get pounced on a lot.”
“How often do I say no to you?”
Eric heard the front door, then footsteps in the hallway, heard Christian's laughter, but didn't turn around until he'd finished pouring boiling water into the teapot.
Chris gave him a merry wink with one brown-lined eye, at what must have been a startled expression. “Hi. We were shopping. What d'you think?” The witch spun in a slow circle, showing off quite a fetching long skirt of mingled grey, dull green, and dusty rose, and a snug top of greyish-green that appeared to be entirely lace with something opaque under it. The usual cross-and-pentagram necklace gleamed against it.
“It suits you, but, um...” He tried to think of a way of phrasing the question in his mind without being offensive.
Christian laughed. “What your grandmother taught me was enough, I figured out how to shapeshift day before yesterday.”
Mark cleared his throat and leaned against the counter, arms crossed.
“Mark helped,” Chris added. “We went shopping, 'cause most of what I have other than jeans is Hallowe’en-type stuff that’s no good for everyday, and jeans aren’t as much fun.”
“True. You look great.”
“Thank you. I've been trying to think of a name, and I think I have one, but if it'll get confusing I'll think of something else.”
“Oh? What?” Mark asked.
“One of the European short forms of Christian is Kit, which is also a girl's name. Unless it's too much like kitsune.”
Eric shook his head. Right now, Chris reminded him quite a lot of an excited kitsune, especially with that dark reddish hair. “Kit sounds perfect.”
“Kit works,” Mark agreed.
“Cool, so now I'm Kit when I'm being a girl. Gotta go put my new clothes away.” She gathered up all the bags, and all but bounced off towards the stairs.
Mark watched her go with that indulgent smile Eric had seen so often.
“Must've been quite the shopping trip,” Eric said. “That's a lot of bags.”
Mark shrugged, and glanced at him. “I can think of worse uses for money than spoiling one crazy witch. And it isn’t hard for me to get more.”
“True,” Eric agreed. Usually good at recognizing his own feelings, he found his reactions to the lamia, in either form, too complex and contradictory to untangle at all. That he enjoyed Mark’s presence and company and sought them out, but at the same time felt uncomfortable and nervous in his presence, confused him; he had a hunch both aspects would have multiplied if he were confronted with Alexandra, but Mark seemed to be going to great lengths to avoid the possibility. At least once, he was quite certain there’d been a very fast shift between forms as he came into the room.
Confusion or not, they were living in the same house and he refused to be rude. “Want some tea?”
Mark considered that; Eric could see him, right on the edge of declining the offer and leaving the room.
“Sure,” Mark said, after a moment, and reached into the cupboard nearest him for the sugar.
* * *
Christian could shapeshift into a girl now, hm?
That thought kept dancing around in Eric's mind, and made his homework distinctly difficult to concentrate on.
That scare from Alexandra had short-circuited his sex drive badly; flirting with any woman in range was second nature, but there had been no intent behind it for the last couple of weeks. There had, however, been a few nights he almost regretted turning Christian down. He had no particular aversion to males, simply lacked much physical attraction to them, and someone to hold even without sex involved could have made a few long lonely nights more bearable. Christian felt utterly safe, there were no nasty surprises lurking there.
Chris had offered, and Eric didn't think it was entirely out of sympathy or compassion, and clearly the pair didn’t have the monogamous relationship he’d originally assumed.
If Chris could be a girl...
Hmm. What would be the best way to go about this? Rushing wouldn't be right; Chris deserved the best Eric could invent with all the finesse of a kitsune's prize student, and the comfortable living allowance from his grandmother each month.
* * *
Christian locked the front door behind him and left his jacket there, then kicked off his shoes before proceeding to the living room.
Mark glanced up from his book, and greeted him with a lazy wave. “Easy one?”
“Yes.” Christian joined him on the couch. “Just old negative energy from whoever used to live there. Someone hurt bad. I cleaned it all up without much trouble.”
“Glad to hear it.” Mark offered an envelope. “Eric's in class. He asked me to give you this.”
Curious, Christian accepted it, broke the seal, and drew out a single neatly-folded sheet of paper. It had a red rose printed along the left edge, and the lettering had been done on a computer, the layout obviously designed with care. Christian read it quickly, and laughed.
“You were right about letting Eric make the first move.”
“Oh?”
“I, or rather Kit, has just been invited out to dinner.”
Mark smiled, and shook his head. “It would never occur to him to just say that he wants to have you in his bed female and protected.”
“Are you implying that I'm not worth taking out?”
“Of course you are, but there's an ulterior motive.”
“Well, since I offered, I think it's extremely sweet.”
“That was actually a compliment, that he has too much class to just toss you into bed.”
“So. It's four-thirty now, he says he'll meet me at the front door at seven. Will you help me get ready?”
“'Course I will. Go do your shapeshifting stuff, and make sure you're safe. Then jump in the shower.”
“Right.”
An hour later, Kit, naked and still damp, considered her limited selection of feminine attire.
“The white one?” Kit suggested.
“Too summery for October, I think,” Alexandra said. “The skirt and top are too casual. Try the green one.”
The soft sage-green knit hugged her upper body closely, the sleeves falling in loose folds to just below her elbows, and the skirt draped itself in heavier folds down to mid-calf. Her only shoes were black, with low heels, but they'd be fine. Alexandra pulled her hair into a smooth ponytail. Simple makeup, her pentagram-cross and hoop earrings, a black purse just large enough for her ID, makeup, money, keys, and cell phone, and she was ready.
“This is crazy,” Kit said plaintively. “I'm as jumpy as a teenager about to go on her first date.”
“In a sense, you are,” Alexandra said, and hugged her. Gently, the lamia kissed her forehead. “Have fun at dinner, but don't forget to throw him in bed. You won't be sorry.”
“Oh?”
“He has a truly wonderful attitude towards women. Enough so that I was very much enjoying myself. And him.” Kit saw shadows cross golden eyes; she was prepared to bet that regret was one of those emotions lamias weren't supposed to be able to feel. Alexandra handed her half a dozen condoms. “Put 'em in your purse. And use them. He did manage to seduce at least one of the strippers, against all reasonable odds, and you don't know who other than the kitsune before that. He’s smart enough to be safe, I'm sure, and possibly that gift weirdness would protect him anyway, but don't take chances.”
“All right.” Kit obediently tucked them in her purse, and glanced at the clock. “I'd better get downstairs. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.”
“You do that. Off with you.”
Eric waited in the front sitting room, perfectly relaxed in one of the chairs. Instead of the jeans that were almost a house uniform, he wore black dress pants and a rather attractive sweater patterned burgundy and dark green and golden-brown over a turtleneck of lighter burgundy. He rose as soon as she entered, caught her hand to kiss her fingers, and gave her a smile that somehow suggested that the universe must be a wonderful place indeed since it allowed him her company.
“You look incredible.”
Kit blushed a little, and looked down. “Um. Thanks. So do you.”
“Could I dishonour you by any less? Shall we?”
“Sure.”
A taxi waited out front; Eric held the front door for her, locked it swiftly, and hastened to open the nearer back seat door for her. Once she was settled, he circled the car to join her and directed the driver to a place Kit recognized as fairly fancy, with a reputation for excellent food.
“You do research fast,” Kit laughed.
“I've asked a lot of people in the last week, and more suggested this one than anywhere else. Reasonable choice?”
“More than, but expensive.”
“Not a problem.” He favoured her with another of those smiles that made her want to melt. “Price is not an issue for tonight.”
* * *
Mark wandered into the shop, and waited by the counter while Christian helped a teenaged girl choose a deck of Tarot cards.
“Well?” he asked, once they were alone. “I heard you two come in fairly early last night. What happened?”
“Nothing,” Christian sighed.
“Come again?”
“Supper was fantastic, and we had a bottle of wine, it was all very cool. And we went for a walk along the lake for a bit, and came home. But all he wanted to do was go to sleep cuddling. He said he didn't want anything other than dinner, and that as beautiful as I was in every way, he doesn't like to rush things.”
“Hmm.” Mark leaned against the counter, forehead furrowed in thought. “Maybe you should relax and enjoy being courted. It'll be a new experience.”
“Do I have much choice? Unless I want to start researching aphrodisiacs, anyway.”
“It's not like anyone is making you stay celibate, or like it would kill you. Eric is. Although I'm guessing he's going to be all wrapped up in the thrill of the hunt.”
“What hunt? The prey is standing in the middle of a field waving a fluorescent flag!”
“Be patient,” Mark advised, amused by Christian's obvious disgust. “Look at it this way: he thinks you're worth the effort. Considering that he was taught by a kitsune, that means a lot of skilled effort. Accept it as the gift it is, and allow him the pleasure of giving it.” And possibly the chance to feel safe. I think I may have scared the poor boy right off sex, at least temporarily. Damn that vixen for not warning me. And Chris for making me care, and Eric for being a decent enough person to deserve it that I care.
“I s'pose. But expect to get pounced on a lot.”
“How often do I say no to you?”
