I first heard the rumor from a friend. The cave outside of town was supposed to harbor a medusa.
"Ridiculous! Medusae were made up by the Greeks a few millennia ago. They don't actually exist."
"Then go in there and prove me wrong."
"All right, I will."
I drove over there, parked nearby, and walked the thousand feet to the cave entrance. Just on the off chance my friend wasn't hallucinating, I took a blindfold along.
The interior of the cave wasn't completely dark - there were some bioluminescent fungi on the walls and roof - but it was dim enough that I had to wait for my eyes to adjust, and then move forward slowly.
"Don't come around this bend."
The voice was female.
"And why not?"
"Looking at my face will turn you to stone."
Okay, so maybe my friend wasn't crazy after all. I slipped on the blindfold and made my way forward by feel.
A pair of strong arms scooped me up, and I was sitting on someone's lap. The voice was the same as before.
"Ah. A sensible precaution. You're not scared of me removing it and petrifying you?"
"If you wanted to do that, you wouldn't have warned me off."
"Point taken. My name is Lysandra."
"Delighted to meet you. I'm Herbert, but people call me Herb."
"And why did you decide to come here, Herb?"
"I heard rumors a medusa lived here and figured I'd check into them."
"Now you know. You may now leave."
"Hold it," I protested. "Don't you ever want company? I don't mean sexually, just... socially, I suppose."
Lysandra took a moment to answer.
"I'm not used to it. I'm used to being by myself."
That wasn't a no, and she hadn't put me down yet.
"I'll listen if you want to talk."
She shifted me in her arms so that my head was resting against what felt like her chest. After another pause, she did set me down.
"I haven't had an offer like that in centuries. Can you come back tomorrow? Put your blindfold on before you enter the cave: I'll be near the front."
"Okay, Lysandra."
"See you then, Herb. I'm behind you, so you can remove your blindfold now as long as you don't turn around."
I waved to her, without turning, and headed back out of the cave.
The next day, I returned, carrying a Tupperware container with some homemade soup, and a spoon inside to eat it with. I put the blindfold on just before entering the cave. I had gone maybe 50 feet into it when a pair of arms scooped me up.
"Good afternoon, Herb."
"Hello again, Lysandra. This is for you. I hope you like it."
"Medusae don't require sustenance. But I appreciate it anyway. Are you trying to seduce me with kindness?"
"The word you're looking for is `court', actually. Seduce implies seeking sex."
I could hear her remove the lid of the container and consume the soup.
"While we don't require sustenance, we are capable of eating. That was delicious. Thank you. What do you want to know?"
Everything. But I started with something simple.
"What can I do to make you happy when we spend time together?"
"Just be your sweet self." Lysandra shifted my position and I felt her lips brush mine.
"How long have medusae been around?"
"Longer than any other species. We were first formed when the rocks that created the planet solidified. There aren't many of us, but we've only ever lost one of our number, when that Greek asshole cut off her head a few millennia ago. We don't reproduce and aside from the one beheading, we don't die. We usually don't interact with humans - just staying out of the way suits us well."
"Doesn't sound very exciting."
"Since there were no other life forms to interact with for the first eon or so after we came into being, we kind of got used to it."
I shook my head. "I'm 31 and can't go a day without some sort of social interaction. While you..."
"You humans are wired differently. You're tribal. We're not."
We let the conversation lapse, but the silence was not unpleasant. Lysandra snuggled my body against hers for a bit, then set me down and handed me the empty container and the spoon I had put in it.
"Can I see you tomorrow?"
"No, because you would be petrified. But you may spend time with me tomorrow."
I made a habit of going every day and spending time with Lysandra. We sometimes talked, and sometimes just quietly snuggled. I would bring her small gifts once a week or so - trinkets or food. Nothing expensive, but enough to let her know I appreciated her.
After about six months, my efforts were rewarded. Lysandra, as usual, was holding me against her with me sitting on her lap.
"I know how humans are, Herb. Males never are this consistently nice to females unless they want sex. But since you were patient and haven't tried to force the issue, eventually you earned my trust."
She shifted my body, and I felt her bare breasts against my face.
"You may kiss and suckle them."
I put my hands up and felt them. They were definitely good-sized, and fairly firm. Then I nuzzled my way around until I found her cleavage, and began kissing through it. Lysandra made noises which I interpreted as pleasurable.
I slowly traced my tongue through her cleavage, then cupped her orbs and found my way to a nipple. I slipped it between my lips and began to suckle gently.
"You're good at that."
I slid my tongue over her nipple and flickered across it. She held me more firmly against her. I opened my mouth wider and began suckling in earnest.
"Mmmmmm."
I felt around for her other nipple, located it, and gently rolled it between my fingertips. Lysandra seemed to shiver. I switched the position of my mouth and my hand, and her arms secured my head in place.
"I'd forgotten how good this feels."
If you think that's good, I thought, wait until my tongue is between your legs. I kept suckling softly, switching back and forth between her breasts every so often. Finally, she lifted my head away from her chest.
