Nigkala Tales 31: Raising more kids
You can still have a sex life, if you work at it
Thanks to my editor kenjisato. Also, to LanguageTool. Combined, they put me right. Any problems left all belong to me.
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I waited in the garden for a parent to bring Darius and Mona. Cleopatra and Layla were already with me. Jewel showed up shortly with their four-year-olds. "Hello, Jewel, I got the kids today. I'll be back for lunch."
"Becky Sue, I don't see how you have so much energy, handling all the kids. But I do thank you for this. They sure are a handful."
"They may be a handful, but they do pay attention. I do enjoy seeing them learn so fast."
"That they do. See you later."
"Okay, kids, time to go to the desert. Come on Darius, Mona, Cleopatra, and Layla. Let's head to the maze." The maze referred to the tall bushes that hid the garden gate. I had added it when we decided we would be heading there twice a week for play. I had them hold hands, and I held two at the center. When we got to the gate, I had them go in first, and then I followed. We emerged in Death Valley, a hundred yards from the Pocket Industry-based pavilion. Exiting the gate, I said, "Playtime!" Letting go of their hands, they all ran to the other side of the unit, where I had a large play area. I went inside and refilled the water reservoir.
Outside, the kids got in their miniature dune buggies. They didn't go that fast, and would not go without them putting the harness on right. While they loved driving them, I had to constantly yell at them to not run into each other. On the other hand, I used magic to set up locations for them to drive through. After fifteen minutes, I also set up sandstone pillars for them to use their magic to hit. As I watched them, and telepathically advised them, I felt Isis present in my mind. It was her idea to teach them to control others, but my idea was to have them control machines. Back in Egypt, they might be learning to control animals pulling wagons, but today, we used machines, so I taught them the machines, while at the same time teaching Isis about vehicles.
I actually let Isis take the lead on teaching them, but I would translate her ideas into modern equivalents. Sometimes An or Inanna would have me give certain lessons, and they also wanted regular reports of their development. The various watchers knew of the garden gate, but not how to make it work. Occasionally, one or another watcher would come with us, and they would use the time to teach the kids something not easily done in the confines of suburbia.
When they showed signs of losing interest, I called them back, and told them to park and plug in the little cars. I then caused all traces of their play in the sand to disappear, including the pillars and the tracks. Next, was a lesson in writing. They gathered in a semi-circle about me, with a wide area of sand between us. Each child had a seat, with a drink holder with a cold water bottle. They also had a long pointer to write with. I would smooth the sand, then cause a word to appear near me, but oriented to them. They would each try to write the word using the pointer in the sand in front of them. Once they had made a passable written word, I would repeat the process with another word.
When that lesson was over in about twenty minutes, it was time for a break. I told the kids to take turns in the bathroom, and I passed out a small snack. When everyone had finished, we gathered again, but this time we played catch with a stone ball, and passed it back and forth with magic. The ball rarely left the ground, and only went to the next person's feet. This was designed to teach them fine control with their magic. I was ready with my own magic should someone send the ball too fast at someone. But I haven't had to do that for several months.
The last lesson is about keeping secrets. Teaching them to hide their magic, and other aspects of their life that are different from other children. They knew Darius's and Mona's siblings were not divine, and that it was okay for them to know about their special abilities and experiences. But I also emphasized that they needed to play with them, as well. I was more concerned with others, now that they were in kindergarten. Finally, it was time to go home. So I said, "Run and follow me." I ran this way and that with all four chasing me, for nearly five minutes. When I felt they were tiring, I headed for the gate, and stopped just short. "Okay, form up, time to go home."
They gathered just ahead of me, and when they were still, I entered, and the gate activated. I then led them into the house and we had our lunch.
Angel was there already, and excitedly asked them about what all they learned, and what they did. They were excited to tell her everything, especially all the new words I taught them. After they finished, including a bathroom break, Angel dropped them off at the neighborhood kindergarten. After all that time in the desert, I wanted to take a dip in the pool.
I headed out there, and saw Mishti, the Hindu watcher from Bengal. When she saw me get naked poolside, she looked up. She said, "Good day in the desert?"
"Yes. They are getting better with their coordination, both physically and magically. I think they like your ball game. The stone ball is heavy enough that they need to push hard, yet awkward enough that if their control isn't perfect, it will go awry. They are also doing well learning languages. With English, Spanish, and French in the mix, they are learning to keep them apart and to speak full sentences in a single language. When they grow up, they'll pick up other languages easily. I think I'll start teaching them Chinese soon."
At this point, I was naked, so I dived in and went the full length of the pool and back underwater. Mishti picked up a ball, and said, "Hey, you want to play?" She tossed the ball from hand to hand.
"Sure." I then raised a hand to indicate I was ready to catch the ball. She tossed it to me, and dove in herself. She was tanning in the nude, so she was in the water immediately. We were in the deep end, and a few minutes later, both Cindy and Lola decided it was break time, so they came out to the pool and removed their maid outfits and joined us. We relocated to the shallow end, and got a little more physical. It started with innocent tickling, but the teasing and distraction soon got sexual. After half an hour, the ball was forgotten, and Mishti was giving another impromptu lesson in sex from the Kama Sutra. I magically provided suitable sex toys, and she led us in some complex fun.
After an hour of fun, we broke up. I dismissed the toys, and Mishti and I went back to tanning. She asked me to apply some lotion to her, so I did. She then returned the favor. The others put their outfits back on and went back to work. While tanning, we held a conversation in Sanskrit about current events, the weather, and how the kids were progressing. We often had such conversations in Sanskrit when she was here. We both enjoyed using multiple languages, and it also let her inquire about the kids for her job.
Finally, I got dressed and went in. Soon, I would go pick up the kids. I had just enough time to coordinate with Cindy and Tammy about the needs of the household. I had a custom SUV that I could drive comfortably, yet it could hold four kid seats in back, with room left over. I parked with the other moms, and had the doors open by the time the kids came running out. I was easy to spot as the tallest there, but also I had one of the fancier cars. The kids got in and got themselves buckled in, but I checked everyone before getting in myself. They gushed all about what they did this afternoon, even as I scanned the teachers to see if anything odd happened that I would need to deal with. My lessons on secrets were doing fairly well, as it had been at least three weeks, since the last time I had some cleanup to do.
Jamie had driven Filipe to the set and back today. They arrived home not long after we did. Filipe was enjoying his new cane. He went and commissioned it after he decided he needed one full time. It had a secret way to spray mace if he needed. It also had a GPS locator in case he got kidnapped. He wasn't worried, but we got better insurance rates with it. Jamie headed home afterwards, taking a packed dinner from Tammy. Lola and Cindy ate in the kitchen with Tammy, but helped serve and clean up.
After dinner, Filipe and I played with Cleopatra and Layla. After putting them to bed, we went upstairs also. Filipe to watch some television, and me to my voice studio. It was soundproof, and there was a light switch instead of a buzzer. It let me do some voice acting for an animated sex series I was doing these days. I often was videoconferencing with the director and other voice actors. While the writing wasn't the best, I did what I could to help by altering my lines sometimes. More often, I could only use the quality of my voice to convey the sexual aspect of my character. Sometimes, I did more than one character, and once or twice, I imitated another voice actor so well, I could cover when they were sick.
After going to bed, I had difficulty getting to sleep. Something seemed to be off about the desert. It was a little too responsive, and seemed to be anticipating us. Someday soon, I'll take a break and visit it, and meditate. Perhaps that will help me figure out what is teasing my attention.
The kids were excited by the upcoming trip to Disneyland. They also were still talking about last summer's trip to Legoland. At least the Lego bricks usually stayed in the playroom. This weekend was just a trip to the beach. The difference of the seashore and the desert was great, and they have learned some of the many differences. They liked to look for seashells, and playing in the surf. The proximity of the concession stands had led to teaching them about money, as well as giving them something else to look forward to. My biggest concern was keeping them appearing mundane, as I didn't like making people not believe they saw any magic that happened.
When the weekend came, I pulled our custom bus out. The staff loaded up the bus, including everything for a picnic. Everyone from next door came over with their stuff. I called for everyone to make their bathroom breaks, and then people got in. I did the driving, usually, with Filipe sitting behind me. Lola, in a swimsuit rather than a maid outfit, sat across from him. The kids sat in the middle, and the other adults sat in back. At the far back was a small bathroom, and a small kitchen, including a fridge, freezer, and stove. We even had an ice machine. It also had storage for a hibachi, a number of folding chairs, and even a folding table. At the top, on both sides, were pull-out canopies for shade. The usual problem was finding a parking spot that could abut grass or other suitable space for seating.
The GPS guided us to our destination, and upon hearing, "You have arrived at your destination," the kids all got excited. The older ones had either paid attention and saw we were nearing the coast, or were plugged into their devices.
As we arrived, Mark said, "Okay, everyone. We're here. Turn off the screens, unbuckle, and grab your stuff." He did as he said, and helped the kids that needed it.
I let Lola off first, and she stayed by the door to help the kids out. She had them gather right outside, waiting for the rest. The kids piled out in a bunch. Angel, Jewel, and Mark followed them, and finally, Filipe and I came. I stayed behind to collect the duffel with blankets and some toys. Mark brought a cooler with the kids' drinks, and Lola carried a bag with assorted lotions and bug spray. Angel and Jewel brought some beach umbrellas. Filipe carried the binoculars, and cameras, in a bag hung around his neck. The bus had a closed-WiFi net that our devices could access even on the beach.
Lola was in charge of finding us a good spot where we could all stay together. This usually meant we weren't too close to the beach. By the time I came down, she was yelling, "Becky Sue! Filipe! Over here."
By the time I arrived, the ladies had the umbrellas up. I pulled out the blankets and handed them out. "Lets spread these out." With my size and ability to control air, my blanket was the first laid out successfully. I stuck around long enough to help the others. Mark and I went back to collect more furniture, and another large cooler. Filipe and Mark stayed under one umbrella on chairs, and had a small tablet on a table to watch a game or two while there.
"Kids, unless you are going into the water now, lets get some sunscreen on you." Several came close, but not all. We applied it to them, then I asked, "Who wants first watch?"
Jewel said, "I'll take beach watch."
Lola said, "I'll take water watch."
That left the rest of us free to swim or stay, until we switched off. I chose to stay for now, and Angel joined Lola. Those two took some of the kids and went to the shore, soon to get wet. Jewel and I put sunscreen on each other, sensually, and getting awfully close to illegal on a public beach. But we kept it legal, since our kids were close. We talked a little bit, before settling down to tan. Mark and Filipe were in charge of the coolers, as part of the deal to be let out of the kid watch.
We all returned to the beach to eat lunch. Lola and I went to the concession stand with all the kids to get them ice cream cones. We ate there, as cones tend to leave messy kids, and we could wash up in the bathrooms nearby.
