Full Moon Strays Ch. 07

Both of them were gasping. They were beaten up, tired, bleeding a little bit and had no idea where their clothes were.

"Was it good for you?" Robbie asked.

"It was a most satisfactory beginning," Besla replied with a grin.

Robbie smiled. Then he stopped. "Beginning?"

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Back in Springfield . . .

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Croc opened his one good remaining eye. He was in a hospital. He'd been in enough of them in his life to know what they looked like. It was mostly dark except for the moonlight streaming in through the window, meaning he'd probably been out for a while, and he was alone. He was a bit surprised by that. He didn't imagine the Strays as being the types to just run off and leave him, but it occurred to him that they might not have had much choice. He sat up, feeling a little sore from his vomiting episode, but otherwise in good condition.

"Hey," came a voice from the air next to him. Croc jumped a bit before he recognized the voice. He was in a delicate state of mind.

"Well hell-ooooooooooooo nurse," he said, forcing a smile. "I thought you'd gone off and left me, now that my good looks are scarred a bit," he joked half-heartedly, touching the patch over his ruined eye.

Anya had been waiting at his bedside since the end of visiting hours, slipping back in while invisible as soon as she could. She felt a tear welling up in her eye, but quickly wiped it away. He was a handsome man helping them out for no real reason that she could see, and it had cost him. "Just stuck around to make sure they didn't overcharge you for the medication," she said.

Croc easily detected the emotion in her voice. "It ain't yer fault ya know. I knew what I was gettin' into, but none of us could'a expected this."

"It's not your fight," Anya said.

"Bullshit. It's the fight of any living thing in this universe that doesn't wanna be destroyed. You folk need to stop tryin' to hog all the fun."

Anya snickered. Mindless bravado and machismo . . . sometimes, it could be quite charming.

"That's muh girl," Croc said, leaning back. "So, what's the plan next?"

"We wait until Robbie and Nat and the gang get back. Not much more we can do until then," she said. "I'm going to try and get some modeling work again . . . we're wanting to actually buy land this time so we don't have to worry so much about being 'discovered.' We're about a hundred grand short of what we need."

"Crap, I could loan that to ya," Croc said absently.

"No, we couldn't ask that. You've already done what you'd said you would do."

"Listen . . . okay, I know everyone thinks I'm just a merc. Probably because I encourage people to think that way. I help get rid of bad people that no one else can get to. Helpin' with the Elder God is just a really big version of that. But even I need a place to hang my hat from time to time."

Anya sat on the bed next to him. "Wouldn't that be slumming a bit? I mean, you're a high class roller . . ."

Croc looked towards her voice. "And you're used to strolling down runways all over the world," he said softly. "But you seem happy here. With these weird people and that boyfriend of yours." He blushed. "Sorry. He's a lucky guy I guess."

Croc couldn't see, but Anya looked confused for a second. "Boyfriend? Oh you mean Chris? He's not my boyfriend."

"But you two seemed so close, and he was real worried 'bout you when he left."

"The Strays . . . we don't really do monogamy well, except for Red. And even she isn't above a little extra fun, though probably not so much now that she's with Jane. Chris is special to me, true. I can be in the middle of fucking five guys, and he can still make me feel like . . . like a lady," she said.

"Five guys?" Croc was impressed.

"Oh yeah. I like sex. A lot. C'mon, you've wanted to bang me since you saw me. Admit it!"

"Of course I admit it! I'm only half-blind," he said, chuckling. He just realized what a chick-magnet an eye-patch could be. "I'd even wondered what it would take to woo you away."

Anya smiled. "The Strays aren't big enough for everyone to pair off. It's not that it isn't allowed, but it just doesn't really happen much. Mindy and Arthur are awfully sweet on each other, but I've seen both of 'em with other people. Heck, I've been with Arthur, and wouldn't mind being with Mindy. She just isn't particularly gay in any way. Tarloh and Talia are mostly an item, but they get around too. No one in the Strays ever gets left out. Chris is turning out to be one of my best friend, but he knows he isn't my only lover."

Croc was pleased by that prospect. "Well as I said, I can help you folk out if yer willin' to let me crash at your new place when I'm in this corner of the world. A safe port in the storm, if you will."

Anya was staring at the handsome man before her. She had misjudged him when she first heard of his occupation. He was a good man. She suddenly wanted to see how good.

"Well, seeing as you're being SO generous," she said, her voice quite husky, "let me know if there is ANYTHING I can do to make you more comfortable." She lifted up his blanket and stuck her hand under his hospital gown, grabbing his soft cock.

"Who," Croc said, startled by the bold but not unwelcome gesture. "Listen, you don't have to . . ."

"I'll explain this once," Anya replied, rubbing his cock like a lamp she wanted a wish from. "I'll do a lot of things for other people, but I promised myself I'd never do this again except when I wanted to." His sizeable cock was swelling in her hand. "Which must mean I want to." His member was quite thick, so much so that she could barely get her hand around it. She pushed the covers back so she could see it, and her mouth watered at the sight. It was nice and thick, and maybe eight inches long. She wrapped both hands around it and stroked it gently.

Croc was more than a little freaked out. Not by the fact that Anya was apparently more than willing to scratch his itches, but by the fact that he could see the indentions made by her hands in the skin of his pecker, but couldn't see her hands. He just saw the skin moving up and down.

"That's just weird," he said, leaning back and enjoying what she did. After a few minutes of stroking, the head of his dick disappeared. Literally. But he still felt it, and it was in a warm place with a lot of pressure being exerted on it. He also felt Anya's tongue licking the soft underside of his shaft as her head (presumably) started bouncing up and down. As much of half of his cock would vanish, going from solid to slightly blurry to gone in less than an inch of space.

"Just lay back," Anya cooed, "and let me do what I do best." She went back to sucking his root, taking three-quarters of it down her throat while she cradled his balls in one small hand. She was going to drain those balls completely. She let loose of his cock and sucked one testicle into her mouth, rolling it around and teasing it with her tongue. Then she did the other, stroking his stick all the while. Then she returned to the crown of his dick, licking under the head of the mushroom, kissing it on the tip and then downing it into her throat.

Croc couldn't wipe the smile of his face if he tried. 'Good grief, this girl is good,' he thought as he member continued to vanish and reappear like a sexual jack-in-the-box. Then his stick reappeared and he felt the bed squeak. He felt the warm wait of a woman's body against his chest and Anya's nipples pressed against him. He felt her warm breath near his mouth. Then there lips met. Her lips were so soft . . . he couldn't remember ever tasting softer. And then his cock vanished from sight completely as she slid her tightly little pussy back onto it.

"Mmmh," came a voice from above him. Anya thought there was just something incredible about a nice full pussy. She sank down and savored the moment, squeezing all the muscles in her abdominal area to draw him further in. "Good boy," she said. She grabbed his hands and placed them on her ass and was quickly rewarded with a good hard squeeze.

"Damn girlie," Croc said with a grin. "You got the best bedside manner I ever seen."

"Fuck me good, or I'll take your temperature with an anal thermometer."

"Yes ma'am." He may not have been in possession of his full strength, but he wasn't going to pass up this opportunity. He had been with some hot women in his life, but females like Anya . . . well, you were lucky to run across one in a lifetime. His hands were gripping her invisible flesh, which was a trip all by itself. Having his dick disappear on the down-strokes . . . that would take some getting used to. He slid his hands upward, clinging to her skin until her found her soft breasts. He heard her moan as he found and tweaked her nipples and thrust his hips upward, his balls slapping against her transparent butt cheeks. "That is just so weird," he muttered as he saw his testicles bouncing against . . . nothing.

Anya started riding her lover harder. "C'mon baby," she groaned. She held his hands against her tits as she bounced up and down on his pounding hips. She felt all the right parts of her body tighten.

For a moment, Croc was wondering if his good eye was playing tricks on him. He thought he saw light from the window reflecting off droplets of nothingness. 'No,' he thought. 'It's her sweat.' And the minute amount of sweat that became visible as Anya climaxed was floating around her face. He felt her squeezing his cock with her delighted pussy, and he quickly blew his load deep inside her. Thankfully, he DIDN'T see his seed floating around like a sexual lava lamp.

Croc felt a kiss on his cheek as his penis reappeared and he felt a weight vanishing from the bed.

"Take care," Anya's voice purred. "See you tomorrow."

"Yes, but will I see you?"

For a moment, Anya appeared in all her nude glory, and she was smiling. Then she vanished. But for that moment, Croc's one good eye had enjoyed the view.

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Several days later . . .

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Talia caught Red in a huge hug when the Strays that had remained in Springfield met up with their returning comrades at the old Den. She noticed that while Jane looked more at peace, she still stood a step behind Red . . . her protector. 'Maybe that's just who she is,' the lycanthrope thought.

"I missed you," she said to the red-haired warrior.

"Don't go getting soft on me," Red replied, obviously not all that offended. "Where the hell is everyone?" she asked. She was looking around for her brother, hoping he hadn't gotten himself in trouble again.

Talia looked nervous. "A lot has happened in the last couple of days Red. The trouble has gotten worse."

"Worse?! We killed the damn Shoggoth! How could things be getting worse?!"

Tarloh hated this. These two pilgrims deserved a rest as much as anyone. But there was no time. "The Shoggoth had a boss. This boss is looking to finish the job its servant started."

Red shook her head. "An Elder God? How the fuck are we supposed to fight that?" She was clenching her fists. She and Jane weren't completely recovered from their fight with the Dark One. But she would fight if she needed to.

"We may not have to fight it," Talia said, trying to convey some sense of hope. "Lothar came up from Los Angeles. He'd . . . found out new information." Talia went on to explain everything from Lothar's visit to the decision to send most of the remaining Strays after the Raptors and to try and locate the magical jewel known as the Heaven's Eye.

"You put Robbie in charge and . . ." Red shook her head. She looked at Tarloh. "What were you . . ."

Tarloh had half expected this from his co-chief. "I was thinking that you were hundreds of miles away looking after Jane and saving the world from ANOTHER ancient menace that I might actual be a leader and let someone else step up."

"But Robbie . . ."

"Has been in the Strays just as long as you have. Red, you can't do it all yourself and you know it. If it were anyone but your brother, you wouldn't even be making a fuss." The big man's eyes softened. "You've done everything you promised them you'd do," he reminded her. "You've got to trust your brother now . . . just a little."

Jane was as confused as she was scared. "Promised who?"

Red lowered her head. He was right. "It's nothing," she told her lover. "I'm just worried about Robbie. You know his head isn't always where it's supposed to be." She looked at Tarloh, anxious to put this argument behind her. "So, what is the . . . housing situation," she said.

"We decided . . . as a group . . . on the slaughterhouse. And we won't have to worry about hiding this time."

"How so?"

"Because we're purchasing the property. Nice and legal!"

Red couldn't take many more surprises. "How? We don't have that kind of money!"

"That's not entirely true," said a voice from the opening to the surface. There stood Anya in all her glory. She was wearing designer clothes, expensive boots and was carrying a purse that cost more than most Americans made in a year. "I . . . had a little put away that I'd kind of forgot about."

"That's a pretty outfit," Jane said absently. Then she blushed. "Sorry. Not relevant."

Anya looked at her friend. "I wasn't going to stand by and let the Strays go homeless. So I'm going back to work . . . at least for a while."

"But you hated that world!"

"But we need the money. We can't keep going the way we were, especially with our numbers down. I can help just by strutting down a runway every now and then. I sold my house and emptied my savings. And Croc helped out too," she said, a bit fondly.

"Happy to help," the man in question said, appearing out of nowhere. He noticed, with some admiration, that the red-haired woman didn't flinch when he appeared out of nowhere. He wore a patch over his ruined eye, but he thought it actually helped his image.

"I guess that from what I've heard, I owe you thanks," Red said coolly. She would take time in assessing the man's character. He had won over the rest of the Strays already, and that counted for something . . . but not everything.

"Does . . . does the . . . slaughterhouse have an address?" Jane asked, uncomfortable with all the tension.

"Yeah I suppose." Tarloh looked a bit perplexed. "Why?"

Red gripped her girlfriend's hand. "Are you sure this is what you want? We could find you . . ."

"I need some of the normal world," Jane said, "but I'm not leaving you."

Talia didn't understand. "Jane . . . what's going on?" Something occurred to her. "Dammit, I'm sorry. We never asked what happened . . ."

"I didn't kill him," Jane said, answering the unasked question. "I didn't have to." It was Jane's turn to recount everything, from breaking into her old house to the fight with the Shoggoth to the visit with her mother. Anya almost cried, and even Talia held back a sniffle.

"So," Jane finished, "I need a job again. I need . . . I need something I can help her out with. A life I can tell her about. I . . . was gonna get an apartment again . . . maybe but . . ."

"You won't have to," Tarloh interrupted. "We'll give you as much 'normal' as we can."

Talia wrapped an arm around Red's shoulder. "I think we found a place that you two could stay too. Assuming that . . . "

Jane leaned her head on Red's other shoulder.

Talia smiled. "I assumed you two might want to bunk up."

Red steeled herself. She still didn't want to leave the place she'd called home for so many years. "Let's go look at this place . . ."

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A little while later . . .

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Talia and Red were still up at the cave that Red and Jane might likely call home. It would take a lot of work to get it comfortable for both summer and winter weather, but it seemed to strike a primal chord with Red. Jane just wanted her girlfriend to be comfortable.

Jane excused herself and went back to the main building. She found Tarloh and Anya and Croc talking financial matters.

"Hey little one," the co-Captain of the Strays said when the shy girl approached. He noticed Croc eyeing the young woman, and then he noticed Anya elbowing Croc in the ribs while shaking her head. Croc quickly got the hint that this wasn't someone to play around with.

"Huh- . . . hey," she said, forcing herself to not stare at the ground. "I didn't mean to interrupt."

"It's okay. What's on your mind."

"I . . . I need to find a job," she muttered. "I know this place is isolated and all but . . . is there anything even kinda nearby?"

Looking at the magic-haired young lady who had problems meeting someone's gaze, he never would have guessed that she had twice fought the Shoggoth and won. He wondered if she'd ever realize how strong she could really be. "There's a couple of gas stations out on the highway. We'll find you something." He ruffled her hair, which promptly smoothed itself out.

"That's weird," Croc muttered.

"You don't know the half of it," Anya whispered.

"Can . . . can I talk to you alone," Jane whispered, glancing up towards the cave.

"Sure." Tarloh escorted her to a side office. "What's up?"

"Red won't tell me so . . . When you said she'd fulfilled her promise, what did you mean?"

Tarloh grimaced. He wasn't sure he should talk about it, but he was pretty sure Red wouldn't. "Red . . . you know her and Robbie's parents were killed right? By other lycanthropes?" He sighed. "I'd been with the Strays just a couple of years. We'd been hunting this rabid band of renegades for a while. They'd been going after outlying houses and campers and the like . . . for food. We caught up with them just . . . just as they were finishing off Red's father. From what Robbie told us later, he'd gone to try to save his mother and had almost been killed by a backhand swipe. When the renegades turned on the father, we heard him screaming at her. He told her to save her brother and get him out of there. When we got to where they'd been camping, we saw a fifteen year old girl swinging a stick at a pack of monsters. She was between them and her brother and she wasn't gonna budge."

Jane saw a look of admiration pass over Tarloh's glum face. "She was always a fighter, wasn't she?"

Tarloh nodded. "She was yelling at Robbie, the enemy, her parents, the stars . . . she swore she'd never let them hurt her little brother. Even when we jumped on the renegades, she stood over him. She took a swing at anything that moved. We took out the others, but even after that it took a while to convince her that we weren't going to hurt her or Robbie. We had a different healer back then, and we finally let her let the guy take a look at Robbie. We turned around . . . damned if she wasn't kneeling over her father's body and closing his eyes. She was crying . . . last time I ever saw her do that. She promised her dad again that she'd never let anything happen to Robbie."

"Is that . . . when you turned her?"

"No," came a feminine voice from the doorway.

"Red . . ." Tarloh started.

"It's okay," the red-haired warrior said. She hated thinking back to that time. It made her feel weak. "Olaf . . . the Strays leader at the time would do it. He said I was too young to understand the decision. So I waited until I was eighteen and sought him out."

"Why? You were safe and Robbie was safe and . . ."

"But we weren't," Red replied, pushing her lover's hair from her face. "There were still monsters out in the world. I knew that, and I could never 'un-know' it. I saw them every time I went to sleep and in every shadow. I couldn't let them do what they had done to my parents . . . what they'd tried to do to my brother." Red shrugged. "I wanted this life."

"Olaf was old, even back then. He turned Red, then Robbie. He died not long after, and I wound up being in charge of the Strays. Red," he said, giving the girl a grin, "really didn't give me much of a choice as to who my second in command was gonna be. Then she became a co-captain and that was that."