Mr. Hartley (Alternate Places Book 1)

by P. S. Power

  When the time came he had to quiet his mind a lot before approaching the office at the back of Beautiful Plus. Thanks to that he didn't shake or sweat more than normal, but he would, if he let himself think about the whole thing.

  So concerned with that kind of thing Zack felt a shock of surprise when he found Libby sitting on the fainting couch in Patty's office the next day. Patty smiled. It was one of her slightly devilish ones that sent a chill down his spine even when she didn't project any lust or pleasure behind it. It normally meant she'd something planned she thought would give him a jolt. As far as he could tell, she really enjoyed shocking him with the things she said and did, especially the ones related to sex.

  “Today we're going to test you on basic contact skills, light touch, following nerve lines and finding sensitive zones. Libby was recommended by Val as a good partner for you in this, since her shape shifting abilities won't interfere with, or artificially enhance, your efforts as an Alede's might. I'll ask you to do something, and then you'll try to comply as best you're able. I'll give you hints if you get stuck, so don't worry about that. Ready?” The way she said it almost made him ask if there was a time limit. She sounded like a teacher about to give a multiple question test, more than anything else.

  He relaxed fully, taking a deep breath, circulating his qi as he tried to do constantly now and nodded. Trying to be a good student. Or sport about the prank his life had become in the last weeks. Whichever. Holding any hint of nervousness at bay – at least the external signs, as hard as possible. His mind raced and wanted to panic on a deep level, forcing him to nearly shut off his emotions in order to keep going on. That was cheating though. The point wasn't for him to limply perform for them, but to actually learn what to do, and how he felt was a big part of the problem.

  Swallowing, he moved toward the Bat-girl, who didn't even grin at him. She just sat, with a blank expression on her face.

  “Good, then, if you please, start with her face. Light pressure only.” An intense focus came into the woman suddenly as he settled next to Libby. Every move, every twitch, would be noted it seemed, Zack quickly understood. Making it a real test, not just a game for the woman's amusement.

  Running his middle and index fingers slowly and lightly over her face, starting at the hairline and moving down, in a slow circle, keeping the contact as smooth and flowing as he could. Slowly, Zack traced the flow lines that had been in the text book by memory. Exactly three times, then moved lower, over the nose and eyes, being extra careful there, so that a tremor or sudden jerk wouldn't catch and cause pain, trying to barely graze the eyelashes instead. Odds were good that he'd be docked points on the test if he left Libby partially blind, so he focused intently, trying to demand each nerve and muscle do exactly the right thing.

  When he got to her lips she suddenly pulled back and put her hand to her mouth. He thought for a second that he'd hurt her somehow, until she smiled nervously, rubbing at herself there with the side of her hand.

  “It's all right. If you're ready again, Libby? Good, please continue, Zack.” The dark haired Alede simply moved forward again. Interested in what was going on.

  Following the guidelines as closely as he could get his clumsy fingers to manage, the whole face had been covered in about four minutes, or close to it, he hoped, since that time had been recommended specifically in the book.

  “Now the hair, please.” Patty continued to watch, searching for any error or sloppiness.

  Moving from back to front he ran his fingers over her scalp. On the third pass he used his fingernails lightly, causing the girl to take a sudden breath. Then, remembering something he read about the level of arousal and breathing, he upped the pressure slightly without being told. Letting her short red hair run between his fingers and pulling ever so gently, which should, unless he botched horribly, stretch the muscles in the scalp. This being an unusual feeling to most people, they tended to think of it as very pleasurable, if they were already in a mood to think of things that way already at least. It had been in the book, in the second chapter.

  “Good! Now let's move to the back, Libby, be a dear and take your shirt off, will you?”

  Zack started to say she didn't have to, when she whipped her shirt off in a single movement, pulling it over her head and throwing it over the arm of the couch. He reflected that a lot of the people he knew now didn't have the same modesty issues regular people did. If it had been him taking his shirt off in a room full of clothed people, he'd have felt awkward. Libby hardly seemed to notice.

  She wore a sports bra underneath, which set Zack at ease at least a bit. She'd obviously been prepped as to what kind of clothing to wear and what to expect.

  “Continue, please.”

  After a few minutes of very light stroking of her shoulders and back, Patty asked her to remove the bra, which again came off quickly. Zack felt his own tension rise, and focused for a moment on relaxing, making himself breath evenly. He'd come to here learn, and do this, it seemed. According to the messages he got from Patty. These early lessons held major importance to his training. Zack really needed to do a good job here, or Patty would stop taking him seriously, writing him off as just another guy trying to get laid, or worse, someone not worth trying to teach even that much.

  “Good, now, the area where pressure from the bra has caused small marks on her skin? Those will be very sensitive for the next few minutes. Incorporate them into the pattern, but don't be obvious about it, some women feel self-conscious about such things.” Patty obviously didn't think Libby would be one of those made self-conscious though, simply having said it out loud like that.

  By the end of a half hour, Libby sat only in her underwear, which turned out to be a thong, with black lace on the front. Patty had him take advantage of this to cover the buttocks as well, using only the lightest of touches to make the Bat-girl squirm as she lay on her stomach panting slightly.

  Patty called a halt then, saying that he'd passed well enough, though a few technical details had to be ironed out.

  “Wait... is it nice to leave me in this state? That was... awesome...” Libby looked at both of them and hugged herself causing her small breasts to rest on her arms briefly. From the book and some things Patty had mentioned, he recognized this as a sexual display posture. “But... you didn't even get to the front and... um, yeah, doesn't seem fair....”

  Patty smiled hugely.

  “Very well then, if you would lay on your back, Zack, continue with the front please. Hands only for now. I'll call out suggestions when you have her naked.”

  Zack swallowed, but since this directly related to what he'd come here for, he complied. Locking down his own feelings of awkwardness and embarrassment. Even if it was cheating.

  Being honest with himself he had to admit that he did like the funny girl, quite a lot really. Plus touching her didn't trigger any bad memories, even with Patty standing there and watching so closely. It seemed like a good sign. He'd been worried that maybe some bad memories had been missed in the work done so far. If they had, this didn't seem to contain any of the triggers for him though. Feeling reassured by this, he set his full attention back toward Libby for a while.

  By the end of the session Libby lay spent and panting, hard, taking in big gulps of air, even though he'd only used his hands. Largely counting on Patty for the timing, though he'd learned the techniques from reading, apparently well enough.

  “It seems you pass Mr. Hartley. Please hand Libby her clothes. I trust you might be willing to help us again sometime soon Libby.”

  Libby blushed a little and whispered, “Oh, sure. Not a problem. Always here to help!”

  Then she kissed him full on the mouth.

  “Now now, save that for next time. We haven't covered use of the mouth yet.” Somehow this sounded both seductive and a bit prim at the same time, like a slutty schoolmarm, he thought.

  Libby dressed quickly and hugged him before leaving. Patty asked him to stay for a moment, her face rather serious
.

  “You did well. Your fine motor control is really shot, though, isn't it? You seem to be using large motor control to compensate pretty well so far... Do you have any pain when you move or hold a posture for too long? Laying down for instance?” This quizzing went on for a few minutes. She took notes and asked that he send over some money, so that her shopper could pick up the presents he wanted to purchase. He asked how much and blinked when she told him.

  “Is that all?”

  Laughing she let him know how much it really came to, pointing out that most of this money would go to pay the shopper and for gift wrapping, delivery and shipping. The presents themselves cost less.

  “It's not about overwhelming people with valuable things, but about getting the right thing for them, and presenting it correctly. Also, consider that you're spending more on everyone than many people make in a year. That you often make this much in a few seconds or less, well that doesn't mean that you have to spend a fortune on every person you know. In the end most of them wouldn't appreciate it, even though they'd love it in the short run.”

  Remembering back, to only about two months before, when everything he had Troy had bought for him, he could understand her point. After a while, every contact with Troy had felt a little embarrassing. Troy had always been great about it, telling him not to worry and meaning it, which helped a lot. Still, he got the idea.

  “All right. Well, I came to you because you understand such things, so we'll go with your plan.”

  He stood then to leave, but when he got to the door she called out to him.

  “Read chapters seven through nine again, use of the mouth in foreplay. Pay special attention to kissing. Everybody always tries to gloss over it, even though it's one of the first things they do in intimate contact. A good kiss can set the mood for the evening, a bad kiss can stop the evening from ever happening. So study carefully.”

  He promised he would. Especially since she'd be able to clearly tell if he hadn't.

  Val waited for him outside the office, her lips parted a little and moistened just enough to make them shine slightly. Beneath her blouse he could see that her nipples were erect. Not really that uncommon of a sight to him, her being, well, her.

  A woman, a bit heavy set, perhaps in her mid-forties, stood watching them. Her eyes trailed Zack, he realized, not the hot, slightly aroused woman he stood next to.

  Leaning forward Val whispered, “Libby got a little loud there. Not too bad, but a few of the patrons heard. It sounded... like you did a good job. I can't wait for my turn.” She kissed him saying, “Later...” in a husky, sultry voice.

  She walked him to the front door, since several women in the store 'casually' seemed to be going the same direction he did for some reason. Zack focused, staying alert in case of possible attack. Even though he knew why they were doing it. It just didn't seem like that would be real, and would make a good reason for an assassin or... Smiling a bit, he kept moving. It was kind of flattering, really.

  Looking at the time, he made the rounds of the mall, talking to Hilda and Merri, then heading back to Candles and More. Where rumor had it, he worked, as a store clerk. He stretched, taking stock of the store for a minute. It needed to be front faced and straightened, that and swept up.

  The store was seeing a lot more wear of late, though sales had also gone up with so many people passing through. It let him feel like he managed to do a decent job for Lisa there. No need to get lazy, he reminded himself, or the store would go to heck again. What was really needed was an inventory, or at least taking stock and order some new merchandise – some of the shelves were starting to look a little bare to him.

  Looking at the front window, he tried to picture a display that would speak of Christmas, and still show off their wares well. Zack decided on a red and white fabric back ground, flat solid sheets of red as a back drop. Maybe he could cover cardboard or something to hold the fabric tightly? Then add in puddles of silky white cloth, just off pure white, covering the ground, mimicking snow in an artistic fashion. He could hang large silver snowflakes from the ceiling, and have a small tree. It would have to be pretty little, given the space, with tiny candles on the branches and surrounded by lamps that would light the whole scene.

  Then, since he had some time before everyone else needed to go home, the mighty clerk actually swept the store and straightened the shelves. Noting those places where he actually needed to get more inventory in right away. He wondered if they should get some kind of theme souvenirs or if that would just be tacky? It would have to be something subtle enough that regular people off the street wouldn't get the idea. Though possibly not? If he had things claiming there was a Node in the back, people would probably either not get it, or assume it was just a joke. Unless they went through the thing, or got a present from someone that had.

  He wrote down the product numbers for now, and gave them to Lisa.

  “Oh! I didn't realize you were here! Just finishing the schedule for tomorrow. I may even get home at a decent hour tonight. Not that there's anything there to go to.” Sighing, she looked at him and grimaced a little, steeling herself it seemed to him.

  “Deidre broke up with me. About a month ago, I don't know if I mentioned it or not? It's been... hard. Lonely. I knew for a while that it wouldn't really work, but you always hold out hope, right?” She waved a little, as if fending off the topic or brushing it away. “You don't need to hear about my petty problems though. What's up?”

  Pointing toward the front of the store with both index fingers, "We need a Christmas display. I can get things for it and set it up. Some decorations for the store. That list is for ordering new products, but... It's a bit corny, but I was thinking we should get some specialty items in? Things that will work for presents, when people are coming through? Maybe some higher end things from Lesser Shia? Those are just ideas, I don't want to step on Ghurian's toes though." Thinking he started to smile, since the answer was obvious, wasn't it? "In fact... I'll just get with him about that. Or Yasmine, if I see her."

  Lisa looked away, "That sounds nice. Festive."

  It was so bleak that he made a face at her. Inside her Shadow had started crying. Softly, but it showed pain.

  “You know, I think I do need to hear about your problems, after all. Everyone else seems to think that proclaiming wives for me makes it real, so I guess I shouldn't try to dodge out when one of them needs to talk, right? Besides, you're one of my best friends, so you have to know I'm here for you, no matter what. That's a rule. I just made it up, but still... On top of that, if you melt down, thousands of people will end up stranded millions of miles from home or something!”

  That got a chuckle from her. It was a start, if not a great one.

  “I guess that does make sense. Especially since everyone keeps talking about how wonderful you are. It makes a girl curious. Yeah, let's get together and talk sometime, I think I'd like that.” Her hand touched his arm in a friendly way.

  They agreed to meet for coffee after work the following night, about nine-fifteen. He turned around and jumped a little, finding that the store had several people in it. Merri stood next to him, Hilda and Val behind her.

  “Oh good!” Merri said cheerily. “Then tomorrow night can be your night with him, Lisa. Hilda and Val get tonight, you have tomorrow, and then Claire and myself. Everyone's excited. We all heard about what happened with Libby earlier, and your testing results!”

  Val explained the Libby reference to Lisa, her Shadow chuckling at Zack's discomfort, but her external self keeping a fairly straight face.

  “Well, we're just planning on coffee...” Lisa said with a shrug.

  Merri told her it still counted as her night with him, what they did being up to them and only marginally a concern for the others. On the small pad she carried he noticed that she wrote this down, including putting the notation of 'coffee' next to Lisa's name. It was in Alfric, but the words told him what they were.

  Zack start walking toward the front o
f the store, hoping to outrun the incredibly embarrassing conversation utilizing momentum. In situations like this he really felt in awe of the Vampires super speed, even though it wouldn't do him any good, since he had to take everyone through the shortcut himself.

  They all went home together, except Lisa, who drove, like always. Honestly, Zack didn't even know where she lived, except that she could drive the distance in about seven minutes if traffic didn't get in her way. She'd mentioned it once, a few weeks before.

  He did his normal routine of the last weeks, reading in the living room while everyone else talked. That let them stay in touch and bond, but still got things done. Merri gave him a snack and then settled in beside him, turning on the television. Hilda and her had taken to watching a show about a Vampire detective and his plucky side-kick-slash-romantic-interest. Nikki liked to watch and point out the inaccuracies. That part Zack paid close attention to. The show didn't do much for him, having too many Shadow overlays to really make sense, but Nikki proved a fount of information on the related Vampire topics. A thousand little things that no one would ever have thought to actually tell him, otherwise. That made it educational.

  Libby didn't show up, even though she did one night out of three. She'd sit by him and Merri, alternately cuddling him and the small woman while calling out insulting things to the screen that made them all laugh.

  As far as Merri seemed concerned the energetic Bat-girl had already been accepted by everyone, including Claire, even though her final disposition in the group hadn't been set yet. The tiny woman had a list of what those positions might be. Zack knew this because she had shown him. Several times. Merri seemed to like the idea of her as junior wife, rather than concubine, since, she hinted broadly, this would place the Bat in the junior position, not her. It was advancement by building the organization, after a fashion.

  Laughing, Zack told Merri that she would still have to do the cooking, or they'd have to hire it done, because he felt pretty certain that Libby's idea of cooking for herself involved microwaving frozen burritos and ordering out a lot. His tiny wife grimaced and agreed, not wanting that to happen.