Message-ID: <53499asstr$1144743002@assm.asstr.org>
From: Shalon Wood <dstar@pele.cx>
Subject: {ASSM} Pandora's Box 7 (Mf Mff MMf rom ws exhib bdsm)
Lines: 307
Date: Tue, 11 Apr 2006 04:10:02 -0400
Path: assm.asstr.org!not-for-mail
Approved: <assm@asstr.org>
Newsgroups: alt.sex.stories.moderated,alt.sex.stories
Followup-To: alt.sex.stories.d

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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"What's wrong?" Gabriel frowned suddenly, noticing the mist pouring
into the room from the vents along the floor and ceiling. "Why did the
fog come on? I didn't turn it on." He looked down at her. "That was
another of Lissa's little ideas. She liked the atmosphere it gave."

"Fog machine? Oh... " She relaxed slightly, smiling up at him. "Like
the torches and the fireplace... it's wonderful, Gabriel, all of it, I
love it. I just... don't feel... like... I've... earned... it--" Her voice
trailed slowly off.

"What's wrong?" He looked down at her, worried.

She closed her eyes, trembling, and stepped away from him guiltily,
whispering, "I'm sorry." But she wasn't looking at him, and didn't
seem to be addressing him, either, her gaze locked on the corner
behind him.

Gabriel turned to see what she was looking at, and froze. "Lissa?" he
whispered.

The figure was tall, almost six feet, and thin. Her breasts were
small, a decided contrast to Pandora's, something that was clearly
visible, as she was completely nude. She glided forward, waist-length
hair swirling around her like the fog she seemed to be made up of, and
smiled. "He's right. I want you to have it." Her voice was faint, and
distant in some unexplainable way, while still being perfectly audible
over the sound of the fireplace.

Pandora stared at the ghost for a moment, taking in every detail, her
face growing more and more troubled before she tore her gaze away to
look at Gabriel, desperately needing to know how he was reacting to
this apparition.

Gabriel was frozen, staring at the woman in shock, unable to
speak. Lissa walked up to them, smiling sadly, and looked at
Pandora. "I'm glad he found someone to love." She looked back at
him. "And I'm glad _you_ finally decided to start living again. I was
starting to get pissed at you, you know. I didn't kill myself so you
could mope around the house all day. If you'd ever come back in here
I'd have _told_ you that, but no, you wouldn't come past the door."
She sighed in exasperation, looking at Pandora again. "If he tries to
do that again, would you _please_ kick his ass?"

Gabriel whispered again, in disbelief, "_Lissa_?"

Pandora's eyes never left his face as the ghost came nearer, and
finally, a tear rolled down her cheek. "I can't," she whispered. "He's
not mine. I'm so sorry. Oh god... I shouldn't be here."

Lissa reached out a hand, gently cupping Pandora's face. "Yes, he is,
and you should." She looked at her sadly. "Don't make the mistake I
made. Don't be a fool. I was a fool, and it cost me everything."

"Lissa! Don't say that!" Gabriel said.

Lissa looked at him, shaking her head. "I _was_."

Pandora shook her head. "No.  _No_. I... I'll go. I haven't got any
right.	You were here first." Each word was uttered as if it were a
knife to the heart, and with each word her aura grew a bit fainter.

"And I betrayed him. I was a _fool_, and lost the best thing in my
life." She smiled, her sense of loss coming through easily,
heartbreakingly sadly. "I can't be a wife to him anymore,
Pandora. It's all I can do to hold this form, and I won't be able to
do that for long. I can't leave this room. I can't hold him, can't
wake up next to him... I lost all that when I turned my back on him,
like an _idiot_." Her voice was full of self-loathing. "I've had a
year and a half to realize what an idiot I was, and to get more and
more worried that he'd never love again. I'd almost given up
hope... and then you showed up and brought him back to life." She
looked at him wryly. "I'm not sure what _happened_ to him, but you did
bring him back to life."

Pandora whimpered again, and shook her head, backing away.  "You loved
him. You loved him first. You _died_ for him... and you're so
beautiful, and you were always so smart and so strong and he loves you
so much... he should have come to you a long time ago... I'm s..sorry!"

With a strangled sob, Pandora turned and dashed for the door, but
skidded to a stop, shaking, when Lissa drifted in front of her,
blocking the door.  "Oh god, let me go, please! I can't take this!"
she begged.

Lissa shook her head. "I'm _not_ smart. Or at least I didn't use it,
or none of this would have happened. I'm not going to let you make the
same mistake I did. He's good for you, I can see that, and you're good
for him. Don't be a fool." She gave Pandora a wry smile. "Trust me, I
can tell you all _about_ what you get for being a fool, but it's
mostly long and boring."

Pandora shook her head violently. "Stop, stop it! It's not _my_ choice
to make! Can't you see that you're hurting him? Stop wasting your time
with me and g... go to him!"

"I _can't_!" Lisa looked at her, ghostly tears running down her
face. "I can't be with him anymore, not like you can. I can't leave
this room, I can't touch him, not really _touch_ him, and that's just
what I deserve for being an idiot! Please, don't punish him for my
stupidity. Please... " She sobbed, brokenly. "It wasn't his fault. He
doesn't deserve to suffer... "

Pandora closed her eyes tightly. "There's more to love that
touching. He didn't..doesn't... love you just for you body. But... I'll
be his mistress for you. For him. For me, too. Because he needs to be
held and b..because I need to touch him so bad... but he's not
mine. Not if you're here. He n..never can be, no matter how much I
want him, because he loved you first, and so much, and he needs you
and you... you _hurt_ him, and now you _owe_ him so let me _go_ so that
he c... can be alone with you damn it!"

Lissa shook her head. "I'm _not_ here, not really, and that's the
problem." She sighed. "It's taking everything I've got to hold this
together so that I can talk to you, and when I lose it I won't be able
to do _anything_ for a couple of weeks. Maybe longer. He's not mine
anymore. He's yours. He's right; I like you. You're good for him." She
smirked at Pandora. "Besides, you can't be his mistress. You already
said you'd marry him. And if he lets you out of that promise, I swear
to god I'll haunt him for the rest of his life." She looked down at
herself. "Haunt him in a bad way, I mean. I can't really get out of
the haunting part."

Pandora moaned. "Oh god... this is too cruel, too
awful... It's. Not. My. Choice.  It's his. You think I would hold him
to... to that proposal _now_? You're here. The important part of you
is. Maybe not for long at a time but...  I'd take five minutes with him
every year over a complete lifetime with any _new_ lover, if that's
all I could get, even if all I could do is see his face, hear him tell
me he loved me for just those few moments. And maybe... maybe what he
is now can do more than that... maybe that's _why_ he changed, because
he was meant for you, not for me.  Oh god please stop! It hurts so
bad!" She sobbed, her body shuddering helplessly. "I'm t--trying
t--to do the right thing! I j--just want him to b--be happy!
Even...  even if...  oooooooh!"  She collapsed forward onto her knees,
hunched over, arms wrapped tightly around her middle. "It hurts, oh
please, it hurts!" She sobbed brokenly. "Gabriel... "

Gabriel stepped forward, wrapping his arms around Pandora. "Lissa, I
--"

Pandora moaned, weakly trying to pull away from him.

She shook her head, cutting him off. "No. You need more than I can
give you, honey." She blinked rapidly. "I still love you. I always
did. I was just a fool. I never realized there was a better answer. I
won't make the same mistake twice."

He stared at Lissa in confusion. "What?"

Lissa sighed. "The problem wasn't that you were male. It was never
that you were male. I was just too dense to see it. The problem was
that you weren't female."

Gabriel shook his head. "I don't understand."

"I should have not been so... so constrained by what everyone else did
that I didn't see it. Gabriel, I didn't not need to have you, I needed
to have a woman. I should have found someone for us _both_, a bisexual
woman we were both compatible with." She droops slightly, obviously
tiring.

Pandora stopped fighting and half lay in his arms, still and quiet,
listening.

"I... yeah... " Gabriel said, wonderingly. "I guess that would have
worked, wouldn't it? But it's not all your fault. I should have
thought of it too."

Pandora said quietly, "He still has a right to decide what he needs,
what's enough."

Lissa chuckled. "Hindsight is twenty-twenty. Pandora, honey... even if
I was still alive I couldn't give him everything, and I still wouldn't
object to sharing him with you... or you with him." She winked. "What
I'm saying is, he doesn't have to choose. Well, not as far as I'm
concerned, anyway." She sighed. "It sucks to have died a virgin, you
know that?

Gabriel gave her an odd look.

"It's not that big of a deal, with a girl. Sort of like masturbation,
but with more hands. You didn't miss all that much," Pandora said.

Gabriel stared at Pandora, eyes wide.

"Yeah, well, I'd like to have had the chance to find out."

Pandora looked down at the floor, tired and sad. "I'm sorry."

Lissa shrugged. "It wasn't _your_ fault." She dropped to her knees,
putting one hand out to steady herself. "I -- I can't hold on
anymore." She looked up at Gabriel. "I love you. I'll come back when I
can." She looked at Pandora. "I'm still aware of what's going on in
here even when I'm too weak to do anything. You won't object to me
watching, would you?"

"It's your house, your place, and your husband."

"Not anymore. 'Til death do us part'." She chuckled. "He's yours
now. You'll take good care of him, won't you?"

Tears trickled down her cheeks and Pandora nodded, hiding her face
against his chest. "a..always," she choked out.

Lissa reached out, taking Pandora's chin in her hand and gently
tugging.

Pandora didn't fight the touch. She turned to look up at her.

Lissa cupped her face in both hands. "You realize that women are going
to throw themselves at him, don't you?" Her form wavered for a moment.

"I know."

"Are you going to be jealous? Are you going to burn inside every time
one of them rubs up against him, offering him her number? Or are you
going to do something else? Will you take my advice?"

"I can handle it. They... can't help it. And he certainly can't."

"Will you take advice from someone who's had a long time to think
about what she did wrong?" Her form wavered again, the bottom half
spreading and blurring.

"I'll hear it."

Lissa smiles. "Don't just tolerate it. He's passionately loyal; I
think you already know that. So be his partner in crime. Help him fend
them off when he wants to." She winked. "And when he doesn't want to,
well, help him make smart choices. Men aren't always smart when it
comes to women, you know? Don't let him get taken in by a pretty
face. Under the circumstances, I don't think he could be 'faithful' no
matter how hard he tried. He's only --" she stops. "Well, he's only
whatever he is, not perfect. So get involved. Pick the ones you can
handle him having, if you can. I think that would be easier than
just... just knowing that eventually one of them will get him in a
position he can't say no to." More of her torso is blurred, and her
feet and calves are just a mass of fog.

Gabriel stares down at her. "I wouldn't --"

"Hush." She reached up with one finger. "I can feel it, even now. You
aren't perfect, so don't pretend you are. Eventually one of them
_will_ have her way with you. I know you, Gabriel. The calculating,
cool ones won't have a chance. It's the shy one, who overcomes her
fears, who begs you to please, please touch her... " She smiled at him
fondly. "And you know it. One of them would get to you. I think it's
better to realize that up front and put rules on it, so that the two
of you control _how_ it happens. Whatever rules you want -- that you
both have to be there, or that you don't even tell her about it, or
something else entirely. Whatever works for you. Just don't try to do
the impossible." Her form wavered, and she frowned for a moment in
concentration, firming up her head and arms at the expense of the rest
of her body. "You'll take care of him, won't you, Pandora?"

"I won't let him be hurt anymore."

Lissa looked at her, worried. "You won't hurt him? Won't leave him
because you think it's the 'noble' thing to do?"

"I won't leave him for any reason. I can't. Whatever happened... it
made that impossible."

Lissa smiled. "Good. Will you do one more thing for me?"

"what?"

Lissa leaned forward, gently kissing Pandora, her tongue slipping into
the younger girls mouth, a deep, passionate kiss, chuckling slightly
at Gabriel's reaction. "Give him a kiss for me." Her hands faded away,
only the tips of her fingers still touching the girl's cheek.

"Do it yourself," Pandora said, irritably. "He's not _dirty_!"

Lissa giggled suddenly, raising up on invisible legs. "You." Her
fingers touched Gabriel's cheeks. "Give _her_ a kiss for me." She
leaned forward, kissing him just as thoroughly as she had Pandora,
before the last of her ghostly body evaporated.

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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:

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Take a look!

-- 
Pursuant to the Berne Convention, this work is copyright with all rights
reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated.
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