Zak awoke in a teen girl sandwich.
He didn't remember them coming into the tent last night. Nor had he woken at any point. That... surprised him. The fourteen year old was a light sleeper. Anyone walking down the hallway outside his small bedroom would have him half open his eyes, waiting for the sound to pass. For these two to not just crawl in the tent, but then move around, limbs half on him, made no sense. Everything else so far he could accept, but not that.
He lay there, contemplating the universe. He was comfortable. Krissy was on her stomach, right arm around him as if he was a stuffed animal. It was a familiar feeling. His sister had not played with dolls much, instead holding and playing with him as they grew up together in their small apartment. Alice slept on her back, bare right leg hooking over his even as the rest of her body had drifted off away from him. The front flap of the tent was open, showing him it was somewhere in the darker part of sunrise. A light breeze came through the zipped screen door, refreshing. More refreshing than staying inside. Carefully moving limbs, he sat up and scooted down the sleeping bag he was on and peeked out the door.
The man, Tom, was fishing.
Zak looked down at himself. He was in yesterday's t-shirt and boxer underwear, probably good enough. He didn't want to wake the girls by digging around in the duffle bags. Besides, Krissy was using one of them for a pillow. Quietly, although they seemed to be dead to the world, he unzipped the screen and went outside.
The grass was wet on his bare feet. It felt weird. Nice, but weird. Standing up, he scrunched his toes. Definitely a nice weird. Having settled that, as well as deciding he was going to stay barefoot for as long as his sister allowed, he walked over towards the stream.
Tom was sitting on a large, flat rock, fishing pole in hand. He wore a pair of jeans, possibly the same ones from yesterday, although who could say, and a white t-shirt. His hair was messy, that of a male who has better things to do. Coming up beside him, Zak regarded his face. It was... good. He felt none of the instant distrust far too many adults seemed to cause. He also saw contentment there. That, too, was rare. His eyes followed the black pole outwards, tracing the path of the almost invisible line down into the water. A red and white object floated on the surface.
"Watch where you step."
At Tom's voice, Zak almost jumped. Almost. His eyes went down to his feet. There, a few inches away in the grass, lay a fish, a bit bigger than his foot. It moved occasionally, as if trying to will itself back into the water. He took a half step back.
"Wow. I've never seen someone catch a fish."
"No?" The man turned to look at him. Zak shrugged.
"Nah. Just on TV. That doesn't count."
"That it doesn't." Tom gave him a longer look. "Want to give..."
He stopped, looking into the water. Zak looked too, seeing the floating thing vanish under the surface as the end of the pole bent. Tom gave a laugh.
"Got one!"
Zak watched him set himself, pulling the pole back as he wound in the line. The end seemed to zig and zag in the water, the pole bending farther. Zak found himself standing right at the man's side. He held his breath.
With a grunt, although not much exertion seemed to have been needed, Tom pulled back on the pole one more time. The red and white bobber came into view, right by the shore, rising into the air. Under it, stretched taut, another small piece of line... then a fish.
"You got one!" Zak couldn't believe it. It was so cool!
"We have breakfast, I think." Tom reeled up the fish, swinging the flopping creature over towards Zak. Zak took a step back, laughing. Smiling, Tom brought the fish back towards him. As Zak watched, he grabbed the struggling creature, slackened the line, and carefully removed the hook from his mouth. Zak came a bit closer.
"Does the hook hurt him?"
"My dad always said no, but it probably does. I always thought catching and releasing fish was just cruel. We're going to eat these, though, so a little pain with the hook isn't the worst thing they're going to feel." He tossed the fish down on the grass next to the other one. "We're probably going to have to get a bucket or something next time. Have to keep them in water so they don't die before they're cleaned."
Zak knelt down next to the two fish. The first was not moving much, mouth gasping. The new one was flopping around, although seeming to tire quickly. Reaching out, he touched its skin. He could feel the scales, wet, smooth when he went down its body, rough when he moved back towards its head. Incredible.
"What do we do now?"
"Now, the not so fun part." Tom stood. He groaned a bit, Zak watching as he stretched. He handed the pole to the teen. "Lean this up against that tree over there, then I'll show you how to turn fish into food."
****
Alice dreamed.
She stood on the bank of the stream, the cool grass tickling her bare legs under the summer sun. She held her baby. Her son. Her beautiful son. His wide eyes were blue, hair a wispy light brown. Heart full of emotions never felt before, Alice cooed to him. Sang. Rocked him. Rocked her baby. Her and Tom's baby...
****
She opened her eyes.
Alice had not thought of having a baby of her own since she was a little girl. Walking through the park with her parents, when such time together had led to happy moments, pushing her doll in a stroller. Wanting to be just like Mommy.
As she had gotten older, saw, and understood, more, such desires vanished. Babies were to be avoided, a sign of failure by their teen mother. Her own Mother was to be pitied, her example one to be learned from, not emulated.
So, whence the dream?
"Ugh...."
Krissy's groan forced Alice up into a sitting position. She looked over at her friend, blinking into wakefulness. Krissy had her head on a duffle bag, arms clutching it like it was a stuffed animal or something, curly hair completely covering her face. Her shirt had ridden up in the night, bunching under her breasts, much of her back exposed. Alice glanced out the open screen door, saw the light. Smiling, she looked back at the groaning girl.
"Good morning! Time to get up!"
"No."
Krissy snuggled into the duffle bag. Alice's eyes flicked again to that bare back. Leaning over, she tickled at the base of the spine. Krissy rolled away as soon as she was touched, body almost coming against the side of the tent. Her expression was pissed.
"Hey!"
"I said to get up!" Alice reached her hand over again, avoiding the two arms defending that bare tummy to touch Krissy just above the belly button. Krissy brought her left hand back to grab her shirt and pull it down. Her other hand, deciding offense was a better tactic, reached towards the blonde. Alice pushed herself back out of reach.
"No time for that! I smell breakfast!" Moving quickly, she slid to the flap and wiggled out of the tent.
****
Standing in her shirt and panties, Alice shivered slightly in the morning air. She had thought, when she first woke in a tent outside the city, she had never breathed air so clean, so exhilarating. What she felt entering her lungs now made the backyard of Mr. Falk seem like the middle of Manhattan. THIS was clean air. One breath woke her completely.
"Move your ugly legs!"
Her legs were not ugly. They were shapely and beautiful. Still, she stepped away from the tent, allowing Krissy to crawl out. Her friend got to her feet, taking her own deep breath. Alice saw the shock there, the surprise. Krissy took another one.
"It's incredible, isn't it?" Alice said, softly. Krissy nodded.
"Almost makes me glad I'm awake."
Alice noticed movement. Tom sat before the fire, spatula in hand as something cooked in a black skillet. Zak knelt in the dirt next to him, watching. They almost looked like father and son. Glancing at her friend, she saw Krissy looking as well as the teen adjusted her shirt to cover all that should be covered.
"I dreamed," Krissy said. Alice blinked. "I dreamed of children. Babies."
"I did, too," Alice said. It was fading, though. She could no longer remember much beyond the feelings. Krissy shook her head.
"It's her, isn't it? She's giving us dreams. To get us to do what she wants."
Alice nodded. Yes. That was probably right. She had forgotten about the encounter last night. It, too, was a fading memory, more feelings than images in her mind.
"Is that bad?"
"I don't know. And that scares me."
Alice didn't feel scared. She wondered if that should scare her. Smiling, she took Krissy's hand.
"We just need some food. Come on."
****
Pancakes and fish where an unusual breakfast combination, but Krissy could not get enough. She was a hearty eater, when that was possible, and the fresh air was doing nothing to suppress that. Tom had cooked the pancakes in the same pan as the fish, the flavor carrying over into the fluffy semi-circles. There was syrup, some cheap store brand, but somehow it tasted divine.
That aspect worried her. Everything here was... better. But, was it really? Krissy had seen a movie where people thought they were eating this incredible food, but in reality it was rotting, maggot filled slop. Was that the case here? Was this an illusion?
Krissy didn't like illusions. Or delusions. They hid evil. She had deluded herself that her family was happy. Stable. If she had seen the truth before, accepted it early enough, maybe...
Well, she'd keep her wits about her here. Not trust everything instantly. Goddess their host might be, but that did not make her "good". It just made her... someone you didn't want to anger. Much like Dad, then. She had protected Zak from him, she'd protect him from the Lady as well, if needed.
"So," she asked, putting down the glass of some sort of orange drink, "what's the plan for the day?" Zak looked at her, grinning.
"Tom says we're going to explore!"
The way he said his name... disturbed her. She didn't know why. Her gaze turned to the man.
"Explore?"
He nodded to her, expression serious. She liked that. Even as that thought crossed her mind, its counterpoint did as well. Why did she like him? Why did she trust him? Was it Her? Was the Lady making her feel that way? God, was she going to second guess EVERYTHING? Tom spoke, bringing her back to whatever this reality was.
"I haven't looked around much. Yesterday was spent bringing you here, and the day before I was mostly getting my bearings and building the altar at the Tree. We need to see what's here, what we have, and what we'll need."
"You actually think we can all live here, survive without jobs?"
The man chuckled.
"Jobs haven't actually helped me survive so far. I'm more than willing to try it this way for awhile."
****
Their first adventure was crossing the stream.
There was a very small falls near the western end of the clearing, where its flow narrowed to about five feet. The water slipped between a series of mostly flat rocks, dropping two feet before continuing on. Alice looked at the bridge suspiciously.
"That... doesn't look natural."
"It looks convenient, at least," Krissy said dryly. "I suspect we're going to get a lot of that." She looked at Tom. "Men first."
He laughed. Moving up to the bank, he stepped onto the first stone, keeping one foot on shore.
"Seems solid." Tom stepped onto the next rock. "Not slippery at all." A moment later he was across.
"I'm next!" Zak took the stones at a run, almost jumping across. Alice saw Krissy unable to even begin to tell him to be careful before it became a moot point. She motioned to her.
"You next, so you can yell at your brother."
"You know me so well." Krissy went across quickly, although not THAT quickly. Alice followed. Krissy was looking down at her brother's feet.
"Where are your shoes?"
"In the tent. Why?"
"Oh, no reason. I'm not carrying you home if you cut your foot, that's all."
"I don't expect you to."
Alice did. Krissy would have the boy on her back in an instant. She kept quiet, though. He'd probably be OK, if he watched where he stepped. She looked around.
"So, where too, next?"
Tom was moving as she spoke, heading towards a patch of trees still inside the meadow. She followed, coming to a stop next to him as he reached out, touching the bark of one. Alice looked at his face.
"What is it?"
"It's... I swear it's a pear tree."
"Pear?" Alice looked up. There was no fruit there now, obviously. It was spring. There were many white blossoms, though. She heard the others come up beside them.
"My Grandmother had a pear tree in her yard," Tom said. His voice was soft. "In Auburn. We'd go there in the fall and harvest it, bringing home bushel baskets full for Mom to can."
"You put them in cans?" Zak asked. Tom looked over at him, smiling.
"Glass jars. You put the pears in with some sugar and water, close and seal it, boil it, and you have vacuum packed pears that can last a few years. We can do the same." He looked around. "Some of these might be apple trees. Maybe even peach trees."
"I'd avoid touching apple trees," Krissy said. Tom laughed.
"What kind of god puts things here we're not allowed to touch? No, I'm picking any apples I see."
****
Krissy had decided everything around them was designed even before they found the garden. The bridge, yes, could have been natural, if a bit suspect. The orchard, with at least three different types of trees that they could make out, was planted somewhat randomly, so that could have just been a lucky coincidence. The wild chickens, though... that she couldn't accept.
They were up in the trees, clucking down at the four humans. Mostly brown and black, with a little white. Krissy looked up at them in disbelief.
"Chickens."
"Chickens," Alice agreed.
"What next, wild cows?"
It wasn't cows they found, after another ten minutes of walking through the forest, but a planted field. There were no straight rows, as if someone was attempting to make it seem like this was just some random collection of native plants, but even to her city eyes Krissy knew sprouting corn and tomato plants when she saw them. There were others, too, popping out of the brown dirt. Tom began to laugh. Krissy looked at him angrily.
"What's so funny?"
"Here I was worried we'd have to hurry to get a garden in, probably fucking it up, and now we have one done for us. We'll probably have to plant one next year, but now we can focus on other things."
"This doesn't help feed us now," Krissy said. He nodded.
"Yup. That's one thing. I have a suspicion the stream there is always going to be well stocked with fish, but we'll need more than that. Maybe I can hunt, buy a bow and arrow."
"We have the chickens," Zak said. Tom nodded to him.
"So we may have eggs, if we can figure out how exactly that works. I'm not a farm boy, and movies and cartoons may have lied."
"We can always just ask her." Krissy shook her head. "I mean, she wants us to do this, she'll have to help a bit."
"I think we should do what we can ourselves," Tom said. "Not... bother her too much."
Then what was the point, Krissy wanted to say. It was one thing to worship Jesus, knowing he probably wasn't going to help you in the here and now, but would send you to heaven. But, now...
Jesus.
Krissy had almost forgotten. She was Christian. She believed. "Thou shall worship no other gods before me." So, how...
"Krissy, look!"
The thought vanished as a brown deer walked out of the trees. It stood there, unconcerned about the humans mere yards away. Krissy looked at it in awe. So beautiful...
"All I create is beautiful."
Yes. Wisdom created this for them. Would care for them. She need not doubt.
****
"Wait."
Tom stopped, turning to Alice. She, along with Krissy, were still in the panties and t-shirts they had slept in. He liked the look, and had no intention of mentioning the fact to either teen. Alice currently stood beside a large bolder coming out of the ground. He had been surprised to see it, but then they were technically in the Adirondack mountains. This was just a... very, very small mountain in the middle of the forest.
"What is it?" he asked, moving closer. His eyes couldn't help but drop down to her bare legs. That she was here with him was proof enough Lady Wisdom was a good and generous God. He looked back up before she could notice. Alice placed a hand on the rock face before them.
"This."
Krissy came up next to them, placing her own hand there.
"What about this?"
What indeed. The one side of the rock was flat, he could see that. Beside her hand, there was an indentation, maybe a foot or two wide and just as deep, running up all ten or so feet up to the top. At the base of the bolder the opening was easily a yard wide.
"You don't see it?" Alice looked at them, obviously disappointed in them. Tom didn't like disappointing her.
"I see the crack."
Alice stepped back, smiling.
"Oh, it's more than that!" Her hands gestured from bottom to top. "It's a fireplace!"
"No its not," Krissy said. Alice laughed.
"Well, not yet, but it can be! Look at it. Step back and really look at it." She did so herself, hands gesturing to encompass the entire rock. "We have a long rock wall, reasonably flat. Picture that as one wall of a building. The hole at the bottom is more than big enough for a cooking fire, and the crack will take the smoke right up! And look at the ground!" She stamped her sneaker. "It's rock too, almost level. Perfect. We put up three walls and a roof, and we have our home!"
Tom considered. It... could work. They weren't that far from the garden, so that would be handy. As for water, he moved around to the side of the bolder. There, thirty feet away, the stream ran. It even widened here, becoming a pool, before narrowing again to move away. Alice came up beside him, grinning.
"And we even have outdoor plumbing!"
She kicked her shoes off, hands going to the bottom of her shirt. Without any hesitation, she pulled it up and off, tossing it behind her. Her panties dropped to the ground.
Alice was nude.
Not naked. No. Nude. Her body was slim, hips swelling just enough to announce themselves. Her bare breasts were firm half globes, the brown circles at their center small, about the size of a nickel. The triangle of blonde hair between her legs was lush. Tom just stared.
"What are you DOING?" Krissy's voice was sharp, worried. Tom looked back at her, hoping his expression showed this wasn't his fault. The black haired teen was standing behind her younger brother, hands on his shoulders. Zak, for his part, was looking at Alice with unashamed interest.
"I'm going for a swim. Come join me!" Her voice included everyone in that invite, but her eyes swung up to meet Tom's. His breath caught at the meaning they imparted. With another laugh, she ran down the grassy hill. At the bottom, she paused, looked into the pond, and jumped. The splash and her scream competed in the still noon air.
Without thinking, Tom pulled his shirt off, even as he, too, kicked off his sneakers. He paused to remove his socks, lifting up first one leg then the other, before dropping his pants and boxers onto the ground. He was hard. Not fully, but enough to announce itself as he slowly walked forward. Alice had dove under, coming up like a dolphin. She stood, leaning against a rock island in the middle of the pond, water up to her belly button, eyes fixed on him. Those eyes. Even from here, they pierced into his soul. She looked like a mermaid, or a water nymph. Her blonde hair, now wet, stuck to her white skin.
Beautiful.
Reaching the shore, he realized there was no way to enter gracefully. So he jumped. His splash was bigger than hers, but he kept his feet on the uneven bottom. It was up to his knees here, but as he moved forward it quickly deepened. Water now caressing his erection as if an extension of Alice, he approached her. There was a sound behind him, Krissy yelling something, but he ignored it.
Alice did not speak, but told him many things. As he came to a stop before her, her eyes said he was to be her first. Her only. Tom had fucked. Not often, and only with those more depressed and lonely than he. Never had he been with such an intelligent, beautiful, willing...
Obviously feeling he was taking too long, Alice pushed herself off the rock into his arms. Her body was soft, silky. Her hands insistent, drawing his lips down to hers. All thought vanished. Tom did not control his arms as they went around her. Did not plan their move to her bottom, lifting her up and placing the teen on the unseen yet conveniently located rock shelf behind her. Only when he felt hot wetness against him did some sense of self assert itself.
Looking down into her eyes, he was once again lost as he thrust.
****
Krissy could not believe what she was seeing.
Alice was a virgin. She knew that. She was, too. Both had resisted the advances of boys, and men. Both had talked long and hard about what they would, and would not, do, and why each choice would be made. Yet, here was her friend, legs spread for a stranger. As she watched, horrified, Alice wrapped her bare, glistening legs around Tom's waist, locking behind a bare ass that had begun to thrust into her.
Krissy WAS horrified.
Wasn't she?
She had to be. Alice couldn't be doing this willingly. Couldn't be enjoying it. This was their host, their Goddess, imposing her will on them. Causing Alice to let this man thrust into her, causing her to moan, moan in pleasure...
Krissy did not wish it was her down there. No. She did not want to be the one on that rock, legs spread. Did not want to be filled with pleasure. Did not want to feel... wanted...
"Ow." Zak's soft cry broke the spell. Krissy realized she was squeezing her little brother's shoulders. She let go, arms dropping to hug him against her from behind. She'd keep him here, away from the others. He did not need a closer look as Tom thrust faster, as both of the lovers moans increased. She'd keep him up by their future home.
When it was her turn with Tom, he could stay with Alice.