ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: The usual suspects. See Part 1.

RATING: NC-17 over all. This part, probably strong R.

DISCLAIMER: What Joss said about BtVS and fanfic still goes, so I'm only doing what he wants me to do. But he still owns Buffy and Angel. So do UPN, the WB, Fox and Mutant Enemy. No infringement is intended.

DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME: Repeating this warning from Part 18. Though the overwhelming number of reported interactions between humans and dolphins show dolphins as friendly towards humans, and while there are plenty of verified accounts of dolphins coming to the aid of humans, in recent years, there have begun to be accounts of negative interactions, as well. Perhaps years of being trapped and drowned in fishing nets are beginning to piss them off? Sigh. At all odds, Buffy’s actions in swimming out to play with the dolphins might be against federal laws meant to safeguard marine mammals and protect humans from being attacked by "wild animals." I didn’t know that when I wrote the initial interaction, and there are times when "the law is a ass" as Dickens said, so I’m not taking it out. But, I’m not trying to encourage people to do anything unlawful or dangerous, either. If you find the idea of swimming with dolphins irresistible, check around for commercial ventures that allow such interactions under controlled circumstances.

________________________________________________________________________

Journey - Part 20b

The Silken Cage

Robert opened the door almost before she’d finished knocking. Buffy breezed past him with a cheery greeting and headed over to the dining room table where Mr. Sung was loading china and silverware into a large wicker picnic basket.

"A little fragile for the beach, don’t you think?" she asked.

"They would be, if I didn’t use magic to make them resistant to breakage," Mai explained as she walked into the living room, fastening a scarf over her glossy black hair. "But the idea of serving one of Mr. Sung’s delicate luncheons on something so. . .ordinary. . .as paper plates is akin to blasphemy." Mr. Sung bowed deeply, acknowledging the compliment, but remained as silent as ever.

"Ready to go?" Mai asked as she picked up a pair of sunglasses. Her bathing suit was another one-piece; white, this time, effortlessly elegant. For once, Buffy had enough self-confidence not to compare herself unfavorably to the demoness. Her own two-piece was flattering to her figure and her coloring, and she knew that she could hold her own with Mai, if she needed to.

More importantly, she knew that she didn’t need to: whatever had gone on between Angelus and Mai in the past, he hadn’t been interested in picking up where he’d left off. She didn’t delude herself about Angelus. Faithfulness was not in his nature. He’d visited Mai, and had opportunities to sate his needs with the demoness, if that’s what he wanted to do. There wouldn’t have been a thing she could have done about it, but as it was, she was fairly certain he hadn’t done anything with Mai that she would particularly object to. The first time he’d left Mai’s apartments to return to her, he’d immediately made love to her with vigor and hunger. The night before, he’d seemed perfectly willing to do so again, and had been stopped only by her own discomfort, as he had been just a few moments earlier. She was, therefore, certain that he hadn’t strayed from her bed. A week ago, she would have been grateful if his attention had wandered. Now, she was determined to keep it focused solely on herself. Happily, what she wanted and what Angelus wanted seemed to be the same, for now. And if there came a time when they were not . . .Buffy pushed the thought aside. She had enough to deal with for the moment, and didn’t need to borrow trouble.

She realized that Mai was looking at her inquiringly, waiting for her answer.

"Ready," Buffy said. Mai nodded, picked up her beach coat, and led Buffy back outside to the landing where the motorboat waited to take them back to the private beach. Mr. Sung loaded in the picnic basket and an insulated cooler, then departed with yet another bow.

"The perfect servant, isn’t he?" Buffy observed as Mai worked the controls of the boat. "Nothing exists for him but you. I don’t think I’ve heard him say a single word since I got here. Or Robert, for that matter. Awfully quiet people, you employ.

"Not really," Mai told her as she began to guide the boat away from the dock and out onto the river. "Mr. Sung and Robert aren’t exactly people, you see. They are demi-humans who were raised in my home dimension. All such creatures have a strain of Lamia in their ancestry."

"So, they are part demon?" Buffy said, uneasy that her Slayer senses hadn’t picked up on that. As if she’d read Buffy’s mind, Mai smiled reassuringly.

"A very small part. Neither has more than one sixteenth Lamian blood."

"I see," Buffy said. That certainly explained why her "Spidey senses" hadn’t kicked in. That small an amount of demonic heritage really didn’t count for much in the scheme of things. For all practical purposes, Mai’s servants were as human as Buffy herself. "And I guess that explains why they can move around in sunlight, and don’t drink blood. Um, they don’t drink blood, right?"

"Not that I know of," Mai said, amused. "Certainly, they have no physical reason to do so. Vampires were created by mixing our blood directly with that of humans. Demi-humans like Robert and Mr. Sung were created in a more mundane fashion. Interbreeding. Not without it’s difficulties, you understand: Lamia physiology leans more to the reptilian than the mammalian. But, not completely so, especially in our human forms."

"Are you telling me that your people breed with humans to create servants?" Buffy said, somewhat shocked by the idea.

"My people breed with humans for the same reasons they breed with us and that both of us will mate with vampires," Mai laughed. "Mutual attraction. And, not all products of such unions become servants. The position one holds amongst the Lamia may initially be set by one’s house status, but where one ends up depends upon what one makes of oneself."

"But, Robert and Mr. Sung don’t seem to have made very much of themselves," Buffy pointed out.

"Really, my dear, you are quite naïve," Mai said with another tinkling laugh. "You continue to try to place human values on a non-human culture. You think that a servant is a subordinate, someone with lower status than, say, a president of a corporation, or a physician. But amongst the Lamia there is more prestige in being the servant of a powerful member of a powerful house than there is in being the undisputed head of a weak house. Both Robert and Mr. Sung are very ambitious. And very clever. They are part of my kin group, distant family. Poor cousins, if you will. Their service to me enhances their standing within the family, and the higher my standing rises, the higher their own prestige. What you must understand is that both had the choice to take other positions in our world, and if they chose service, there were other members of our kin group they could have gone to, members who had far more standing than I, when they joined my household."

"But that’s changed?"

"Considerably," Mai said with a small smile. "As Robert and Mr. Sung were astute enough to realize it would, when they came to me a century or so ago."

"Oh," Buffy said, re-evaluating her take on the two being as human as herself. Still, if longevity were the only result of their demonic ancestry, it stood to reason that they would slip beneath her radar. As they posed no threat she could discern, she dismissed them and considered what else Mai had said about the Lamia. The few glimpses into her society that Mai had given Buffy made it seem increasing Byzantine in its complexity and feudal in its outlook. She hoped she wouldn’t be drawn into it any more deeply than she already had been.

Mai seemed to consider the subject closed, and Buffy was left with nothing to do but enjoy the ride. That suited her perfectly. She lay back in the boat, trailing a hand in the sun-warmed water as they rode down the river to where it emptied into the ocean. It wasn’t a very long ride, and they were soon tying up at another dock. Buffy looked over at a structure that hadn’t been there the day before.

"I had Robert come out earlier and set up the pavilion," Mai explained indicating the large, square tent with an open front that had been placed midway along the beach. "We can spread the quilt in front of it, so that you can sunbathe, but shade will be available if it gets too hot for you."

"Good idea," Buffy nodded. She wasn’t particularly interested in the shade just then, however. The dolphins were leaping in the distance, and she was impatient to join them. She quickly helped Mai spread the quilt and unload the picnic hamper and cooler, then kicked off her sandals and her make-shift beach coat--another of Angelus’ silk shirts.

"Did you use tanning lotion?" Mai asked her.

"I put some on when I changed," Buffy assured her. "But I could use help with my back. I didn’t want to bother Angelus." She couldn’t help grinning when she said it, recalling her decision not to ask him because she’d been sure that if he touched her, he wouldn’t have been able to keep from taking her back to bed, whatever the consequences.

"All right. Let me have the bottle," Mai said agreeably. Buffy handed it to her, turned her back, and submitted to the efficient, dispassionate touch of the demoness. Mai did a thorough job, spreading lotion over Buffy’s back, even beneath the straps of her suit. Then she handed the bottle back to Buffy.

"I’m going to suggest that you put a little more on your hips and back, below the top line of your suit. Unless, of course, you want to take the suit off altogether? We’re perfectly private here, and I was thinking of dispensing with mine, if you’ve no objections? I rather enjoy full exposure to the sun, when I can get it."

"Wow. Hadn’t thought of that," Buffy said. Oddly the idea didn’t make her at all uncomfortable. Mai’s reactions to her were too distant, too polite, too formal for Buffy to worry about being naked in front of her. On the other hand, the idea of being naked in the ocean, of lounging on the blanket with nothing between herself and the sun was a very appealing one. Angelus couldn’t go out in the sunlight, and while her Slayer nature made her very much a creature of the night, it also, paradoxically, instilled her with a need for sunlight and warmth. It was as if the sun reminded her of everything she was supposed to protect, and she drew a certain strength and comfort from being bathed in its rays. "I think I’ll try it," she affirmed.

"Fine. But, put more lotion on the normally unexposed parts of yourself. We’re at the peak hours for sunburn, here."

"But it’s the middle of fall!" Buffy protested.

"And, it’s Hawaii," Mai said firmly, as she began to remove her beach coat and sandals. "I’ve lived here for years. I know what the sun can do to those who are unprepared."

"Okay," Buffy gave in. She undid her top, and spread the lotion over her pale breasts. When she discarded the rest of her suit, she slathered more lotion over her rear end and her inner thighs. Mai had taken her hair down from it’s coil, removed her suit, and was lying naked on the blanket. She was as elegantly beautiful naked as she was dressed. But, her golden skin seemed that color more by nature than by exposure to the sunlight.

"Shouldn’t you be using lotion?" Buffy asked.

"Lamia don’t get sunburn," Mai said equitably.

"Okay," Buffy shrugged. "I’m going to go off for a swim."

"Enjoy yourself. You’ll need to reapply the lotion in about forty-five minutes, though. It’s waterproof, but . . ."

"No problem," Buffy agreed, then headed for the ocean.

Immersing her naked body in the warm seawater was a delightful experience. She felt sensuous and free, and very much at one with the ocean. The dolphins greeted her joyfully, and she abandoned herself to frolicking with them, and joining their play. She was able to swim past the barrier that had stopped her the day before, but that didn’t matter, now. She simply swam where the dolphins led, until it was time to go back for more lotion.

"Would you like something to eat?" Mai offered. "Mr. Sung packed a lovely meal for us."

"Not yet. I won’t be able to go back into the water after I eat, and I’m having too much fun."

"Very well, turn around so I can get your back." The lotion was warm from having been in the sun, and it felt delicious on Buffy’s skin. "I’m going to ask your permission to do something," Mai said. "Would it bother you if I changed into my true form? Sunning myself in human form is lovely, but not as good as when I can be myself." Buffy turned her head and looked at the demoness curiously.

"What does your true form look like?" Buffy asked.

"Like a giant snake with the upper torso of a woman," Mai said. Buffy sighed, remembering Macchida. Reptile Boy had not been the prettiest demon on the Hellmouth, but, as long as Mai wasn’t planning on eating her, she supposed she could deal.

"Sure. Go ahead," Buffy said, taking the bottle of lotion from her so she could finish up.

"Thank you," Mai said graciously, and stood up. Buffy watched her, curious. There was a rippling along Mai’s skin, and then a shimmer of light. A moment later, a creature out of myth coiled on the blanket before Buffy, who caught her breath in awe.

"Thhhhhannkkkssss," Mai said, the words a sibilant hiss through her opalescent fangs. "Thhhhattts ssssso mmmuchh moooore coommmmffooortable."

"You’re welcome" Buffy started to say, and was only a bit surprised to hear it come out, "You’re beautiful."

Mai nodded her head graciously. "Youuu areee kiiiinddd."

But, Buffy wasn’t being kind at all. Mai bore no more resemblance to Macchida than a peacock bore to a crow. True, she had the long, sinuous body of a serpent from the waist down, but where Macchida had been a leprous grayish green, Mai’s scales sparkled with the pure, bright colors of rare gems: brilliant emerald and clear sapphire against scales like disks of polished gold. From her narrow waist up, her body was voluptuously human, but even there, tiny gold scales scattered over the warm skin like a brush of gold dust, while a few larger scales gleamed like jewels. Her eyes bore more resemblance to a cat’s than a snake’s: not a dull black, but a warm topaz, the pupil a vertical slit of obsidian within. Even her fangs were beautiful. They were in the same place a vampire’s would be, but were much longer, and thinner, curving down from her full mouth in two delicate arcs that extended all the way to her chin. And they had the same slightly luminous quality as mother-of-pearl, as did the long nails that now showed at the ends of her not-quite-human, preternaturally long, fingers. Only Mai’s hair seemed unchanged by her transformation. It still hung down her back in long waves of inky blackness.

The total effect was both beautiful and terrible. Part of Buffy--the human part--didn’t know whether to fall at this creature’s feet, and worship her in abject adoration, or cower away from her in abject fear. She understood, now, what it must have been like for the first human whose blood had been mingled with such a being’s; how helpless he or she must have felt, and yet, in some weird and twisted way, how thrilled to have been signaled out for its attentions. And even more, she understood the power vampires held over the humans they hunted, the seductive power of the Lamia, which enticed even as it inspired dread. Despite this, the Slayer in her was more alert and alive than ever, nerves jangling with the need to fight, to conquer, to destroy. The Slayer part of Buffy knew this beauty for the enemy it was. If she’d had a stake within reach, Buffy would have been hard pressed not to use it.

"I’m gonna go back into the water, now," she said, hoping another swim would calm her down.

"Assssss you wissssshhhhh," Mai said, uncoiling her body and stretching herself out on the blanket with a contented sigh. Not that the blanket could really hold all of her. Her torso was human-sized, but that tail went on forever. Buffy guessed it must be about fifteen feet. She wondered what it was like for Mai to have to transform into human shape, and force all of herself into a much smaller form. Did it hurt? It didn’t seem to bother her, but how would one know? Buffy shook off the thoughts. Maybe she’d ask Angelus about the matter later. Right now, she wanted to get back in the ocean.

Another forty-five minutes of keeping up with the very playful, very energetic dolphins managed to simultaneously soothe her, and wear her out. When Mai made a second offer of the picnic basket, Buffy didn’t refuse. She dried herself off with a big, fluffy beach towel, and took shelter under the awning of the pavilion. She was better prepared to be around Mai, now, and her Slayer instincts weren’t clamoring for blood. Not only that, but she felt perfectly comfortable with her own nudity, and made no move to put her suit back on. It was definitely weird to be sitting naked with a giant snake intent on feeding her fresh fruit, imported cheeses, iced sorbets and caviar, but not unpleasantly so. She did raise her brow at the strawberry that was put in the champagne flute, especially as chilled champagne was poured over it and offered to her.

"Um, it’s a little early to be drinking?" Buffy suggested.

"Itttt issss neverrr toooo earrrrlllly forr chammmmpaaaaggennne," Mai returned.

Buffy shrugged and took a sip. A second sip convinced her that Mai just might be right, and with a happy sigh, she leaned back against the pavilion and enjoyed her view of the ocean.

Mai watched the lovely girl before her closely, wondering how long before the sun, the exercise and the expensive wine did their job. Soon enough, she saw Buff’s lids grow heavy.

"Whyyy nottt taaake aaaa nappp?" she asked, delicately removing the champagne flute from Buffy’s slackening grip, and packing it away.

"Mmmmm. Good idea," Buffy said groggily. She opened her eyes a bit, and forced herself to move. "In the sun," she explained, stretching out on her belly, out from under the shade.

"You’lllll neeeeddddd morrre lotttttioonnn." Mai said reaching for the bottle.

"M’kay," Buffy managed as her lids fluttered shut a final time.

Mai rose up on her coils, expertly drizzling the lotion in a thin stream down the sleeping girl’s back. In her true form, her senses were more acute, and as she spread the lotion over Buffy, she could better appreciate both the delicate, silken texture of the girl’s skin, and the steely strength of the muscle beneath. No wonder Angelus was fascinated by her. Mai of course regretted the loss of his attentions to herself, but in the scheme of things, that was a small matter.

Angelus’ request that she help Wulf, and Wulf’s demands, were not.

Mai found herself in a quandary. Honor demanded that she fulfil Angelus’ expectations. Wulf was in a position to be of use to Angelus, and therefore there was no dishonor in her acting as Angelus’ agent in his dealings with Wulf. But, Wulf himself was not well thought of in the Lamia community, and dealing with him cost her some of the status that being Angelus’ servant lent her. And yet, if she failed to do her duty to Angelus, she would lose even more status.

Mai neither liked nor trusted Wulf. And, he had made some suggestions to her which, if she interpreted them correctly, were the first subtle moves in a game that would ultimately lead to Wulf’s betrayal of Angelus. In the normal scheme of things, and certainly within the complex hierarchy of Lamian politics, there might be more prestige for Mai in assisting in the betrayal of Angelus than in defeating his betrayers. Wulf might be counting on that. However, with Angelus’ successful capture and mating of a Slayer, Mai believed her status could rise higher in Angelus’ service than even she had dared hope.

Unless the very thing that assured Angelus’ preeminence ultimately destroyed him. Angelus’ obsession with the Slayer, no matter how understandable, was fraught with danger. The girl seemed biddable enough, but Mai knew that was a deliberate pose. Yesterday, she could almost taste the girl’s excitement, could almost see the wheels turning in her mind as she plotted to escape. Even without Angelus’ warning, Mai would have known that Buffy would try to get away, and Mai had taken the precautions that would stop her. But Mai wasn’t going to travel with them, and wouldn’t be in a position to protect her overlord. If the girl continued her charade long enough, it wasn’t impossible that she could lull even so astute a creature as Angelus into a state of complacency, and then the Slayer would be able to destroy him, and with him, all the status and power Mai herself had so carefully and painstakingly accrued while in this world. Well, the power she wielded here might not be much affected, but her position in the only place that really mattered, the Imperial Lamian Court, would be dealt a severe, if not fatal, blow.

But did Buffy still want to escape Angelus? She was different today. Mai was sensitive to that difference, if at a loss to understand it. She had realized there was no need to reinforce her spells, that Buffy wouldn’t make another attempt to get away.

The question was, why?

Mai didn’t think she could let that question go unanswered. The girl and her intentions were too important to Mai’s own long-range plans. For that matter, even Wulf had designs on the Slayer, whether or not he knew what she was. Most vampires, even elderly ones, couldn’t detect the difference between a Slayer and an ordinary human immediately. Which was why Slayers were such perfect bait. They gave the appearance of lovely, fragile, delectable humans, a meal of the most prized sort, and it usually wasn’t until combat was engaged that a hapless vampire understood he’d taken on more than he’d bargained for. No, Wulf’s interest in the girl had nothing to do with the fact that she was the Slayer, as far as Mai could tell, but he was most definitely interested. He had been circumspect yesterday when he’d greeted Buffy in the hotel lobby, and he had mentioned her only in passing when he’d met with Mai later, but the lamia could feel his hunger for the girl, could read it in his eyes, hear it in his voice.

Buffy Summers was a critical piece in the game Mai was playing, the game Mai had been born to play. As such, Mai needed to understand what motivated the girl, and to judge what her reactions would be if any of several scenarios Mai could envision came to pass in the near future.

Fortunately, there was a way Mai could find out exactly what she needed to know.

She continued to spread lotion on the supple human flesh beneath her hands, kneading it into the muscles of the girl’s back and buttocks, the tops of her thighs, her shapely calves and dainty, high-arched feet. Buffy sighed contentedly in her sleep. Mai swayed above her, beginning to hiss rhythmically, a sound that generally induced lethargy in her prey, enabling her to do what she wished with them. The Slayer might have been immune to such blandishments if she were at full strength. But, with the lingering effects of the drugs given her aboard ship, lulled to sleep under the warm Hawaiian sun, her inhibitions lowered by the champagne, she really couldn’t resist.

Mai crooned to her unsuspecting victim, and began to weave the required magic around her. ________________________________________________________________________

Our journey is anything but over.

FEMFIC        PART 20a        PART 20c      FEEDBACK

Sign My Guestbook View My Guestbook

Visit our Bulletin Board or join our Update List