“Well done my sisters,” zi said to the grou., “Now I feel we are ready for our ritual to begin. Remember, this will be challenging. You must hold true to one another, or you will risk being lost.” The whispers were at Nightshadow's ear again. They spoke quickly, angrily, and having broken contact with the branch, she couldn’t catch it all. Something about greed and lack of appreciation. Whatever it was, it made her nervous, and she had the overwhelming sense that they were making a mistake.
“Wh-what is this ritual again, Silvanth?” she asked cautiously. “I mean what exactly will we be doing and why?”
“I was coming to that…sister,” Silvanth replied all too quickly at first but calmed zirself as zi said the final word. “As I said online, the ritual involves communing with the ancients. We will present ourselves openly and freely within the protections of the circle…”
“So, nothing but the ancestors can get in?” Panathea clarified.
“Exactly,” Silvanth replied, “and we will ask the ancestors for guidance.”
“Guidance on what?” Moonbane asked.
“Well,” Silvanth hesitated a moment to select zir words, “to put it simply, there is a lot about magic we do not understand. Some of it has been lost to time, and some was never even written down. The ancients, however, they knew these secrets. We will call to them and ask them to enlighten us. To help us grow to the next level.”
“Call who exactly?” Nightshadow asked at the behest of the whispers. “Which ancients are we calling to?”
“I have considered that problem sister,” Silvanth replied awkwardly. “Obviously we seek the guidance of those whose names are either lost to time or those so old that they don’t have names in the way we would understand them. That’s the other purpose of the wardings.” Silvanth indicated the scars zi’d left on so many of the sacred trees as Nightshadow moved away from the branch again. “You see the most powerful of spirits will be closest to our world tonight. To them, these wardings will be more of an inconvenience than an impediment. If we call out, even with all of these wards, they and only they should be able to hear and answer.”
“I don’t like this,” Nightshadow commented. “It sounds a lot like a Ouija board. One with a spiritual megaphone attached.” The whispers seemed to disagree. They were saying something else entirely, but she was still thinking of them as remnants of a psychosis and pushing their warnings away.
“That’s the other reason for these wards,” Silvanth insisted. “Nothing malicious can touch us here. Now come. We cannot delay too long or else the window will pass. This must be done while the barriers are thin.”
“You still haven’t said exactly what we’re going to do, Silvanth,” Nightshadow reminded zir. “I want details.”
“Fair enough,” Silvanth replied as zi started to calm. “The ritual is rather simple. We strip down…”
Chapter 4
Nightshadow's mind was suddenly filled with alarm. Not at the prospect of being naked before her friends per se, but at the idea of leaving herself without a barrier. The branch was already proving difficult to avoid behind her, and the connection she felt when she touched it was insanely strong. How much worse would it be if all of her flesh was pressed against the trees or into the Earth? Luckily, her sisters seemed to have the same reservations about the suggestion.
“Woah,” Moonbane said in a mixture of amusement and surprise.
“Yeah, wait a minute,” Panathea added nervously.
“Look,” Silvanth said as zi tried to focus again on that teacher role that had served zir so well, “I don’t like it either, but the ancients care nothing for the material world. They no longer have physical forms, if they ever did, and we must show them that we are not so tied to ours. We have to be willing to eschew the trappings of the material world, and that means everything, including shame.” The three sisters glanced around nervously. They’d all been in locker rooms before, and two of them had even slept together. Would it really matter so much if they saw each other naked?
Silvanth, however, was a different story. Zir androgynous looks had been both a source of pride and shame for Silvanth as long as any of them had know zir. They were all relatively certain that zi was biologically male, but they’d always viewed zir as a sister. For Silvanth to show them this sort of trust was huge. It would be a whole new level of intimacy for the coven and one that made their own concerns seem petty by comparison.
Moonbane was the first to agree, affecting a cocky attitude, she thrust her chin out.
“Oh, what the hell.” with a slow and deliberate motion Moonbane brushed the strap off her shoulder. The dress didn’t fall down immediately, but there wasn’t much resistance as she shimmied it down her curvy body. Moonbane had always been the tough one in the group. With her rounded cheeks and the short brown hair she wore half shaved and striped with dye (purple this week) she always struck Nightshadow as the sort of hard ass that would be running her own research lab one day.
As her dress hit the dirt, she squared her shoulders and faced the gazes of her sisters. Beneath the toga, she wore a strapless bra and a functional yet sporty thong. She was the largest of the group, but that wasn’t saying much. Her tummy was flat, and her C-cups were firm. Her hips and ass were soft but springy, and overall, she defied the chubby girl jokes the others made when she wasn’t around. “That’s all you’re getting until I see some skin, though,” she warned, “I’m not going to walk into some Halloween prank that easily.”
“Well, I suppose if the chubby one is going to do it,” Panathea teased.
“Don’t make me hate you again so soon,” Moonbane warned.
“You know you can’t hate me when I’m naked,” Panathea shot back with a wink. Opening her low-cut dress from the front, she pressed it down her body just as Moonbane had, but where the larger girl had squared her shoulders and challenged her friends to laugh, Panathea put on a show. Tossing her shoulder length blonde hair back she stood up into a model’s pose that invited the gazes of the coven. She’d foregone all lingerie in favor of keeping the lines of her dress smooth. It wasn’t a surprise that the fashionista had put form before functionality, but her confidence was shaken by the silence of the circle.
Moonbane might have been expected to drink in the sight, but Nightshadow and even Silvanth were agape as well. Finally, it was Moonbane, in her oh-so-gruff manner, that came to Panathea’s rescue.
“Your tits are going to sag if you go bra-less all the time,” she huffed.
“Hasn’t happened yet,” Panathea fired back.
“And who cares if it does or not?” Silvanth challenged them both. “Our bodies are, after all, only temporary vessels.”
“Well then, let’s see your temporary vessel, Silvanth,” Moonbane replied. Silvanth did an admirable job of remaining calm in the face of the challenge, but Moonbane had broken the ice. Now Panathea and even Nightshadow felt the energy shift. Perhaps, Nightshadow consoled herself, the push would help zir. Although, the chance to finally see what Silvanth had hidden under those stylish clothes zi wore was a temptation as well.
“Yeah, don’t leave us in suspense,” Panathea chimed in.
“I, uh, of course. I just need a moment to…” Silvanth was so rarely flustered but when zi was it always gave the girls a laugh. Nightshadow, however, didn’t giggle this time. Instead, she found herself both empathetic for zir plight and giddy at the chance to sate her unspoken curiosity. For the moment, empathy won out.
“I’ll go before Silvanth,” Nightshadow volunteered, “that will give you a moment to collect yourself, right?”
“It, uh, will indeed. Thank you, sister.” Moonbane and Panathea giggled again as Silvanth tried to regain zir mystique. Nightshadow, however, was still not laughing. She was shaking. For all her time performing on a stage and all her hopes of being discovered, she still hadn’t gotten used to the idea of people looking at her body. Especially naked. She was no virgin, to be sure, but even with guys it h
ad usually taken a shot of courage and switching the lights off before she’d been ready to disrobe. Here, with the campfire roaring and the stars overhead, she might as well have been in a spotlight.
“You’re sure those wards will keep anyone from seeing us?” she asked nervously as she glanced behind her into the trees.
“If there’s anyone else this far out in the woods at this time of night,” Silvanth assured her.
“Alright then,” she said as she took a deep breath, “but don’t you guys laugh at me.” As they mumbled their promises she closed her hands around her dress. Unlike Moonbane or Panathea’s outfits, her dress was essentially an ankle length t-shirt which meant there was only one way to take it off. She pulled at it from the waist, lifting the hem up over her thin legs like a curtain rising over a stage. When it got to her black lace panties, she saw Moonbane cover her lips and paused, “Something to say?”
“Hey, I’m not judging,” Moonbane replied as she held her hands up, “it’s just a surprise is all. I thought you were the white cotton kind of girl.”
“Really?” Panathea asked. “She wears more Victoria Secret than I do!” Panathea was the only one of the groups to have seen Nightshadow in a state of undress. In fact, she’d often been the one to undress Nightshadow during costume changes, and she was right. Nightshadow did enjoy the feel of lace against her most private areas. It was sensual and gave her a secret confidence on stage.
“A night of revelations indeed,” Silvanth chimed in. “But please, sister, feel no shame. We would never judge you.” Nightshadow nodded her thanks to Silvanth before continuing. It wasn’t what she’d hoped to hear from their enigmatic leader, but it’s what she needed to hear. There was silence as she exposed her stomach, and the many visible ribs along her chest. She knew what other girls whispered when they saw her in a bathing suit or out on the street. It was inevitable when you were as pale and skinny as she was. It couldn’t be her height or her metabolism. She must have an eating disorder. Panathea had never said such a thing, however, and Nightshadow was relieved that Moonbane (the one most likely to make a crack about it) also held her tongue as the dress slid over her bra.
Now, however, came the hardest part. The dress would have to be pulled over her head, and that would take the girls out of her view for a moment. She doubted that either would be cruel enough to whip out a cellphone or anything like that, but they could start giggling, and her heart was already humming. Lust, jealousy, or even apathy she could handle, but being laughed at? That would have been the last straw for her fragile ego. At least, she supposed, the whispers had gone silent. It was something she certainly hadn’t expected, but she welcomed it.
Either the trees didn’t have anything to say, or they too were surprised by her boldness. With that thought, she pulled the dress up over her short wavy hair. She did it too quickly for anyone to do anything but hoot a bit and feeling a rush of confidence she extended her arm to drop the dress with a saucy flourish. In that moment, she felt as sexy and glamorous as one of the film legends of old, and the coven showed their approval.
“Yeah,” Moonbane hooted.
“Go girl,” Panathea cheered. Only Silvanth remained silent. Zi usually would have had some fortune cookie line to spout about confidence, but zi knew that it was zir turn to undress. That had to be the explanation, Nightshadow told herself as she turned in zir direction. Zi certainly didn’t seem as dumbstruck by her figure as she might have liked. The atmosphere in the circle shifted as the sisters realized whose turn it was. It wouldn’t be right to call it fear or wonder. It was more a sympathetic appreciation of the gravity of the situation.
Silvanth’s hands shook as zi unbuttoned zir vest. Below it, the top was loose enough to disguise whether zi had A-cup breasts or underdeveloped pecs. The mystery wasn’t aided as zi undid the buttons of the top either. Zi wore no bra beneath the top, but that wasn’t entirely unusual. Panathea wasn’t keeping her D's in a bra, and Nightshadow only wore hers because she enjoyed the sensation of it against her skin. There was no clear indication, therefore, of what they’d see when Silvanth’s shaking hands reached zir belt. All they knew was that Silvanth had a six-pack barring swimmer’s body, and that zi was crying.
“We’ll understand if…” Nightshadow began.
“No,” Silvanth said with a shake of zir head, “it is necessary. I just…”
“There is no judgement in the circle,” Panathea quoted one of Silvanth's most commonly used lines.
“Only love,” Moonbane, of all people, added. Silvanth nodded zir thanks as zi undid the belt, the button, and the fly. With the same deep, calming breathes the others had taken, zi thrust the slacks down and stepped out of them before raising zir gaze to confront the eyes of zir observers. Zi found only more confusion. Silvanth was wearing a pair of loose fitting, black boxer briefs. Masculine, certainly, but there was no bulge beneath, and the girls were looking.
“Well, don’t stop now,” Panathea urged.
“Why shouldn’t zi? We all did,” Moonbane replied.
“I didn’t,” Panathea snapped back.
“That’s not fair,” Nightshadow pointed out, “you weren’t wearing any underwear.”
“Sisters please,” even Silvanth’s voice was shaking, and zi couldn’t quite affect the tone zi was going for, “I will continue as must we all, but I would warn you before I do. It’s not a pretty sight.”
“We’ve seen cocks before,” Moonbane said bluntly.
“Vagina too, obviously,” Panathea added.
“No judgement remember?” Nightshadow chimed in.
“It’s…a cock…but that isn’t the issue. It’s the state of it,” Silvanth was actually blushing. The person who’d brought them together with zir cheesy wisdom and unabashed confidence was actually blushing. Nightshadow could tell that Moonbane was tempted to jump on the chance to rib their mystical guide, but even the oft-victim of Moonbane’s teasing couldn’t have guessed the words that would come from their brusque friend’s lips next.
“Look, I know you hate the science stuff, but deal with it for a second ok? If you’re worried about it being small, don’t be. We all pretty much figured that you’d be underdeveloped. You don’t get the androgynous features you have without low testosterone and…”
“That’s not it,” Silvanth said with greater confidence, “and I don’t hate the science. I just know how wrong it can be.” With renewed confidence Silvanth shimmied the boxer briefs down zir hips and let them fall down zir leg, revealing the promised penis beneath.
“Holy…” Moonbane began, but Panathea cut her off.
“...goddesses, forgive us for thinking such crude thoughts in so sacred a place.”
“Oh yeah, nice save,” Nightshadow added before addressing Silvanth, “um, why is it…I mean…doesn’t that hurt?”
“Hurt?” Moonbane nearly shouted, “what about blood flow!”
“It’s quite restricted,” Silvanth said sheepishly, “I was hoping it would shrink it.” The cock beneath Silvanth’s boxers was massive, but zi had taken great pains to hide it. It was tucked back between zir legs and tied in place with what looked like a rubber tube. Silvanth was completely hairless below the neck, and this did extend between zir legs, but that did nothing to quell the sense of discomfort the sight provided.
“Untie that,” Panathea insisted, “now. Why would you do that to yourself?”
“Well,” Silvanth began as zi worked at the knot in the band, “as you all know I don’t self-identify as male. In most of my life that’s easy enough to do given my…androgynous features, as Moonbane put it.”
“I meant no offense,” she offered shyly, “can I help you with that?”
“It’s fine,” Silvanth said, calmly, “on both counts. The knot isn’t too tight. I do still have to use the bathroom, after all. Anyway, where was I?” As zi spoke, zi pulled the band away, and the cock bobbed forward to its natural position. Nightshadow couldn’t help but notice,
as it did so, that it seemed to expand, and she hoped it was just from the return of blood flow. When she’d first met Silvanth, she’d worried that zi was trying to lure her into some sort of sex cult. This paranoia had been born of PSAs and documentaries on cults more than from any sense that Silvanth had ever given (or from the whispers), but she still felt unease at the idea. Especially since she’d started to develop her unspoken crush on the mysterious coven leader. She couldn’t quite put her finger on when the notion that Silvanth may try to seduce her had lost that scary edge, but seeing zir now, she knew that it had. That realization made the whole thing rather uncomfortable, but she knew Silvanth must be feeling at least some of that awkwardness as well. Zi was, after all, standing exposed for the first time perhaps in zir entire life.
“You were telling us why that thing was strapped to your leg this whole time,” Moonbane prodded.
“Oh, of course,” Silvanth continued as Nightshadow tried not to stare. “Well, to be blunt, it’s kind of hard to ignore.”
“I’ll say,” Panathea giggled.
“So, I tuck and tie,” Silvanth continued, either not hearing or ignoring Panathea, “to better present myself as I want to be seen. The penis, after all, is invariably seen as masculine, and I don’t want to be putting too much of that energy out.”
“And here I was worried about a bit of bush,” Moonbane commented as she began to remove her own underwear.
“Are you still not with the times?” Panathea chided. Her own pubic region was as smooth as Silvanth’s, though her organs were clearly on the other side of the spectrum.
“More so than the last time you saw it,” Moonbane replied with a playful pout as she stood to reveal the crescent moon shape she had shaved into her short pubic hair.
“Oh, that’s cute,” Nighshadow commented, “and I mean that seriously. Was that a professional job?”
“Oh, this was just me messing around with a trimmer,” Moonbane replied almost casually for her. “The last pro I had down there was…well, her.” She tossed her thumb in Panathea’s direction, and they both shared a knowing look. While they did Nightshadow quickly discarded her own lingerie careful to ensure that it landed on her dress, so it wouldn’t get dirty.
Whispers of the Past Page 3
