Author's Note:
As always, mahalo nui loa to Devin McTaggert (Corrupting Power) for permitting me to write in a corner of his creation. And also to the other QT writers for their continued support, encouragement, and friendship. Please, check out their works β they're a very talented group, and I'm fortunate to be counted among them!
My apologies for the delay. A few issues affected this release; one β in a very odd life imitating art situation β being a dramatic change in my wife's work schedule which has left me feeling a bit like Mal (in one way). That has consequently cut into my available time to edit and format chapters for submission. I'll admit it, I'm worrying about that impact a
skosh
, and hoping no further bloody art-life parallels arise. Or additional issues with the wife's work schedule.
That's one of the reasons for the delay. I'm not going to get into the others here, other than to say that my puΚ»uwai (heart) also hasn't really been in lately it as a result.
Chapter 7
July 11th, 2020 -- afternoon
Malcolm sat along one side of the table, having just completed his Oracle survey, and was now desperately searching how to scrub individual elements of search history from the browser, having not thought to put it into Private mode for the first few times he'd needed to look up one of the many fetishes listed. It wasn't until he'd learned that "vorarephilia" meant becoming aroused from eating body parts that he realized he was still in normal browsing mode. That search came after he'd looked up "xylophilia" β arousal from wood, and "trichophilia" β arousal from hair.
Mal had thought long and hard about selecting the latter β he did really like touching and playing with Gwen's hair, and how it smelled, regardless if she had just washed it or not. But, when considering the broad spectrum the fetish encompassed, he ultimately passed on it. There were some others he marked though. He got a little nervous when he then had to rank them β he wasn't sure if he should go back and add or remove some of them. Getting to the "Turn offs" screen had him feeling a little more comfortable, particularly after he immediately marked down "vorarephilia," "watersports," and "hardsports." Mal felt like he didn't really have a problem with someone getting off on eating someone else's toenails (he steadfastly refused to consider what else the fetish could encompass) β other than the general ICK!!! factor β but by all the gods above and demons below, he was NOT going to be the one fucking them.
*And, I really, REALLY wish I didn't now know that that was even a thing,*
he thought.
Lieutenant Shannon Knox sat across from him at the table, having only just returned to the house from a video call with her temporary duty commander in the car. Staff Sergeant Hitchens β Jim β was somewhere outside, after asking Mal if he could take a walk around the property, and Kat, who had been pried out of her playroom for lunch, had dragged "Auntie Evvy" back there to show off her Lego sets. Gwen β who, despite having a much longer survey than Mal had more quickly completed it, the Latin she'd taken as part of her undergraduate linguistics BA prior to switching to a more practical Doctor of Pharmacy coming in handy β had followed along, both to assess Evelyn in-person and recover her when appropriate.
The lieutenant was waiting for the results of the cross-compatibility checks for Evelyn and Malcolm and Gwen. Her laptop made a hushed ping, and she clicked on the received email results. Her eyes widened slightly, and she gave a surprised "Huh."
Gwen and Evelyn had just returned to the living room, and Evelyn reacted immediately, "Is our compatibility too low?"
"What? Oh, no. You and Mal have about an 84% compatibility, and Oracle says you and Gwen are about 77% likely to get along okay. And, Malcolm and Gwen are in an established relationship, and Oracle recognizes and respects that, so it looks like everything is good, as long as the three of you are in agreement that you will be the start of a Team."
Lieutenant Knox continued on, "Now, there are some things to consider related to the vaccine bonding process. Following the injection, you, Evelyn and Gwen, will begin to become aroused. You will need to receive Malcolm's semen in order to complete the process. There will be two very strong orgasms β the initial priming orgasm, and the second bonding orgasm. They were the most intense I, or any other woman I have spoken to, has ever experienced. Following the second, you will fall asleep for at least twelve hours. There is a slight chance that Malcolm will be rendered unconscious as well." Mal gripped the edge of the table at that news.
Gwen sat next to Mal at the table, with Evelyn taking the seat across from her. "Does that unconsciousness happen every time?"
"No, it's tied to the bonding orgasm. Your later vaccination reinforcement encounters with Malcolm will be largely as normal as any prior intercourse."
"And how often do we need to reinforce Mal- Mr. Pilc- Malcolm's immunity?" Evelyn coughed, trying to cover her verbal stumbling.
"It can vary from woman to woman, but typically it's not suggested to go more than a week between encounters. The vaccine heightens your libido, and some of the intensification of orgasm is retained."
Gwen looked around the table. "Well, I think that everyone here should recognize which order this has to be done in. If there's any chance that Mal will be out for hours, I can't go first β no offense, Evelyn, but until you're biologically tied to Malcolm, I'm not comfortable potentially leaving you to care for my child for hours β I'm very encouraged that Kat likes you, but I just don't know you well enough yet, and... you aren't familiar with her routine."
Evelyn stiffened slightly at Gwen's words, but then slumped. "I was going to say that you should go first, Gwen, since you and Mal are married, but I can see your point. If I may ask, what did you guys do for child care before the pandemic?"
"We used a licensed, accredited, and fully bonded childcare provider. And paid through the nose for it. I'm not crying about the cost though β Katherine exceeded all her educational developmental milestones while she was there. And while I know Mal has tried, neither of us are trained in Early Childhood Education, so I'm not sure where she is now, but hopefully, once she's able to attend kindergarten, she won't be too behind the other
keiki
."
Lieutenant Knox cut in. "We can take both of you now to receive the vaccine, or one first than the other. We need to hold you for observation post-shot, but we should be able to bring you back tomorrow morning. Gwen, if you choose to come now, I'm not sure how long you intend to wait after being vaccinated, but I don't recommend holding off more than a couple of days. My originally selected partner was unavailable, and it was about three days before I got with Jim. I was feeling every second of that last day."
Mal finally spoke. "I think we three need to have a bit of a discussion first. Shannon, could I speak with Gwen and Evelyn privately?" He waited until she had gone outside, then angled himself to face the two women. "Right. Now, what the hell did you two talk about earlier? Gwen, I'm gonna be really blunt here, but do you remember way back when we started dating, we discussed open relationships, poly, threesomes, and you said that you had no interest in any of that? Now that's exactly what we're looking at! And Evelyn, again, why me? I'm zero percent native Hawaiian, and you're looking at tying yourself to me for gods-only-know how long β maybe forever! You realize that if what they say is true about contact with other men's semen, I'll be the only man you can have kids with? They'll be half of whatever percent you are; I know your parents, rest their souls, were really into the native Hawaiian movement.
"Are you really okay with this? You're not going to wake up one day and resent being tied to me? Cause if you think β at all β that's a possibility, then I refuse."
Gwen and Evelyn exchanged glances, with the younger woman deferring.
Gwen turned to face Mal directly. "Malcolm, I want my daughter's father to be safe. Our situation is dire, and the math isn't good. If I can get you protection now, then I'm going to take it. Evelyn and I talked a bit about that, and about what she needs and expects from us. Yes, you're going to have sex with her. And with the other women that end up joining us. I don't have a problem with that. I thought I made that clear after Kat was born, as long as you were discreet about it. I figured it was not my issue if you never took my offer seriously, although I wish you had.
"The three of us," Gwen nodded at Evelyn to include her. "For now, will have to figure out what sort of relationship we have. We also need to figure out practical things β does Evelyn stay here or at her place in town? Since it sounds like the two of you may be working together, the former might be easier, but you know I'm not a huge fan of houseguests. We will have to see how this vaccine affects us all."
Gwen shrugged, though it was with a certain amount of frustration. "I can't believe I'm saying this, and I HATE not being able to have a well-defined course of action, but we will have to figure it out as we go; we have nothing to base any decisions on right now, but you and Evelyn need to do the bonding thing, and Evelyn should stay here with us initially, and then in a couple days, you and I will have our session. That way, if you pass out, Evelyn's had a couple of days seeing Kat's routine, and I'll have a couple of days to get to know her. After we're all bonded and protected, we'll assess and make some decisions." Having said her piece, Gwen nodded to Evelyn.
The young woman flushed. "Um. So. Yeah... Yeah, I know... I mean, I know you're not
kanaka
