Chapter 62

My first instinct was to be irritated at Jack -- but he was right, so I put the team on it. We talked to the males and we talked to the females and in nine out of ten cases, the couples went back together. It was a long afternoon, though, for all of us. Young Maureen -- Hopkins the Younger -- had her boy toy Tony with her -- which was a help, as it was evidence that there WERE good deals out there. Hopkins the Elder -- Slut Vera, the whorehouse madam -- collected the black man she owned and trotted him around with her. She's colorblind, and I'm colorblind, but I wondered how many of her audience were. Still he's a nice enough fellow -- very personable. I think he started out pretty old...

The woman Bernice -- the one with the addictions -- got pretty whiney as the Bachelor Male Concubine Quarters emptied; I couldn't blame her, really -- the leftovers were there for a reason, if you know what I mean. There were damned few of them, but they were the dregs -- then again, she was no great shakes, either. I met the sister -- one Jolene Wells; they weren't a lot alike. Jolene oozed character, while Bernice was a vacuum where personality was concerned.

By dinner time, I was doing my usual audit of a third of the colonist messes, Graciela in tow, reflecting how different my afternoon and my morning had been. The morning had been pleasant -- taking my women down to Medical and regressing them to their twenties in two cases and late thirties in the third -- although Nana didn't get a restart of her reproductive system, the medics managed to push her age down into a range where it WAS operational on the first pass. Apparently, there is a window of several years while the shutdown occurs more or less gradually, and they were able to take her as far as the low end -- something in the order of thirty-eight and a half in Nana's case. It was plenty far enough to make her toothsome. Her face was young again, but the expressions that flickered across it were pure Nana; she knew when she got out of the tube that she wasn't going to have any trouble finding my bed, damn her, and it showed on her face...

The afternoon had been a series of uncomfortable interviews. "Is this true or not? Can you do this to me?" "Well, yes, in extreme cases..." "So I'm just supposed to roll the dice? This is any time after a sponsor takes me on, right?" "Would YOU do that to another man? You would? You're kidding, right?" I found it amazing how many men stopped to think -- hard -- about that last question. They would stand there and tell you how godawful the rules were -- and then when you asked them if THEY would apply them if THEY were in charge, they'd get all quiet and thoughtful -- and, in many cases, embarrassed. It seemed that it was more about who was on top than the rules for those on the bottom; the rules were okay, as long as they applied to someone else... No wonder the Darjee wanted to limit their exposure to 'human nature' -- sometimes I did, too...

I had new quarters -- identical to my old quarters, at base, but with several additions to accommodate Javier and our women. I include Marisol in that group, because she kept making it clear that she did -- or she would as soon as anyone allowed it. The crowd bothered me, seriously; I just wasn't used to having multiple people occupying my private space. Nana detected the problem and announced, "Marcus needs his privacy. We will make him a study -- and EVERYONE will stay out of it unless invited! Now shoo!" She ran everyone out of the living room and said, "Have the AI call one of us if you need anything."

Of course, twenty minutes later, I was lonely. "AI, have someone bring me in a glass of wine."

Two minutes later, the door opened behind me and bare feet padded in. I pretended to be absorbed in a report, but grasped the wrist of the hand that placed the glass on my desk. At that point, I looked up into the owner's eyes -- Nana's eyes.

She was quick. "The glass was an excuse, wasn't it? I'll send in someone more comely."

I sighed. "Or not. Come here. Try not to jump my bones." I pulled her into my lap, imagining doing similar with her in her original form. "Don't beat me with your cane, Nana."

"Sometimes I wonder where it is..." she muttered.

This is better, I think," I murmured, hefting a globular breast. Nana was built more like Graciela than her daughter -- and at her apparent age, she was ample, everywhere. Thinking about it, I remembered that it was Vera who had changed my perception of what was desirable in a woman.

"If you don't want me to act like a harlot, don't maul those too much," Nana murmured.

"That's fair." I let go.

"Perhaps, but not REALLY what I desired," Nana replied softly.

"Don't confuse me -- I'm only a man," I growled.

Nana tittered -- something I'd have never guessed she could do. We sat in silence for a few minutes; I caressed areas rated 'G', mostly. Finally, she broke the silence. "What's wrong?"

"I'm just... confused. So many changes..." I muttered.

"Yes..." She rubbed my arm. Sex was an option -- but not one I wanted to pursue. Nana seemed to know that. "You need to relax. No one in the family is here to bite you."

"I already have your teeth marks!" I replied, grinning.

"Yes, well, I've gotten my fill of your blood, for now," she teased. "A bath, perhaps? Some nice, warm water?"

I remembered a recent evening. "AI, is there a whirlpool or a sauna available locally?"

"At the end of the corridor. Approximately forty-five meters," the voice in the air answered.

"Gather the clan, Nana," I said, boosting her off my lap. "We'll all go."

"Drink some wine," Nana sparked. "I don't want the girls thinking dark thoughts!"

I laughed as she swept out.

Fifteen minutes later, Estrella was helping me pull the cover off the hot tub. It was bubbling in no time; I settled into it and let myself go. Javier and Marisol wandered around, finding the showers, the steam room, and the sauna while Estrella sat on my left and Graciela on my right and Nana watched, her eyes hooded, from across the pool. Clearly, she had warned her daughter and granddaughter that this was about relaxation and not sex; I cuddled them both to me, but neither of them reached for my cock. I wondered if my problem was buyer's remorse -- but really, given what I had, how could I be unhappy? I think I was waving bachelorhood goodbye...

After fifteen minutes, I broke my own injunction and took one of Graciela's round orbs, and one of Estrella's pointed cones in my hands to play with. Graciela purred and Estrella turned her head and began to suck on my neck. Nana seemed to grow fangs; she came across the tub and grasped my cock under the water and began to masturbate me using a twisting stroke where her hands counter-rotated on my shaft. "This will relax you," she declared. I groaned. The hot water had me ultra-sensitive, and Nana knew EXACTLY what she was doing; I lasted less than a minute before the water showed a white contaminant. "How was that?" she asked, obviously pleased with herself.

"Wonderful, but someone is going to come up short, later," I replied, sighing.

"Tomorrow is another day," Nana replied, lightly.

"I guess it is. Time to get hot and dry," I announced. I got up and got out, grabbing a towel. All three women followed me, but Graciela didn't like the sauna. "It's hot! Why do this?"

"You sweat out the poisons of the day," Nana replied. "Go on -- watch the children. Marcus will want for nothing." The three of us entered and I stretched out my towel on the upper bench. Nana settled beside me and Estrella took the lower bench. "She is fully American, that girl," Nana muttered, "born to air conditioning."

"And too lazy for gymnasiums," Estrella agreed as she tucked herself between my legs. I tried to ignore her, enjoying the dry heat, but her hair tickled and my cock elongated beside her face. Then she was licking it, then fondling my balls, then sucking... My lassitude evaporated, leaving me with an urgency; Estrella stretched out on the lower bench and pulled me between her legs by my cock and suddenly I was burning my knees on the hot wooden seat, while I sheathed myself inside her. Nana laughed, "Graciela will be jealous!" I just got my knees on the towel and let Estrella suck me into her depths and her embrace.

Only crazy people who want a heart attack fuck fast in a dry sauna; we took our time, something Estrella does exceedingly well. Nana stretched out on the upper bench beside us and caressed my back and ass while I humped myself into her daughter at a measured pace that fulfilled both our needs. I was fresh off Nana's masturbation session and thus in no hurry; the timer on the sauna dinged to let us know that fifteen minutes had elapsed before I let Estrella's third orgasm pull mine from me. I looked up to see Graciela looking in the little window in the door, frowning; Nana merely waved a finger at her in admonition. "More bubbles!" I croaked, crawling off Estrella; we adjourned to the tub under Graciela's wary gaze.

"I thought we weren't doing that?" she groused.

"It was a spur of the moment thing," I replied, unaffected. "No one seduced anybody -- it just happened."

Javier and Marisol were in the tub, making it a good bit more crowded than it was. "What happened?" Javier asked.

"Sex," I replied, and left it at that.

"And I missed it?" Marisol crossed her arms and frowned.

"It will happen again often enough," I told her. "Cherish your innocence -- anybody can be an old slut..." Two of the three adult females took exception; the eldest abstained, grinning. Javier laughed at the expressions on their faces and they settled down.

We didn't stay in long; after only a few minutes, it was off to the showers after replacing the tub cover. There were plenty of bodies available for soapy games, so we played them, then headed home, all of us buck naked in the corridors.

I took Nana to bed, surprising the others -- to sleep. Cuddled against me, she whispered, "You will make me beg, won't you, Marcus?"

"I owe you," I replied.

"I will hold out as long as I can," she insisted, "I'm a proud woman!"

"You'll still lose," I chuckled. "Go to sleep, old woman."

In the morning, everyone wanted to know if we'd done anything; Nana smiled ruefully and shook her head, which caused some feminine outrage. Javier, on the other hand, understood immediately. When he asked me what was going on, I replied, "Nana won the war -- you would begrudge me a battle? How am I to maintain any control of things?"

Javier nodded. "Right."

Two minutes later, Marisol asked him, "What is wrong with Nana?"

Javier replied, "This isn't about whether Nana is desirable -- it's about who is the man and who is not. Nana knows what she must do."

Three female heads rotated to Nana. "He is right. I am the matriarch -- but I am NOT the patriarch. Marcus and I are engaged in a battle of wills."

That got ME everyone's attention. "You don't REALLY think I find Nana undesirable, do you? When she comes to me, this will all be settled."

"Or when he comes to me..." Nana retorted, her eyebrow arched. She was Estrella's mother, all right. Heads swung back to me.

I just shrugged. "Breakfast, anyone?" As everyone started for the door, I turned to Nana and upped the ante, "In public."

Nana stood there, trying to hide a smile, "Oh, of course!"

I waved at the door. "Shall we?"

Saturday, I kept my head down and my mouth shut. At breakfast, I arrived quietly, without my usual fanfare announcement of my presence. Several people made to leave, but most settled back into place when I greeted them with a mere nod. Others discovered me later; I noticed several double-takes over the next few minutes. It was embarrassing, actually; clearly, I'd been leading with my mouth and unable to see around it. Harriet was right, too -- my powers of observation were decidedly lacking while my mouth was open. I discovered a number of things that morning by the simple expedient of OBSERVING, rather than spending all of my time generating my next pithy comment.

At lunch, I did the same thing -- and there were few evacuations. I kept my mouth shut until Cynthia, our old receptionist, started going on and on about young Antonio. "Did you SEE what Doctor Chambers has DONE to him? Why couldn't he just take another girl? It's godawful -- that's what it is!" There were several murmurs of agreement.

Having been in several meetings of the senior staff, I'd seen the metamorphosis -- and the results. "I don't think this is a case of Dr. Chambers having done something TO Antonio, but rather FOR him," I said -- quietly, for me.

Cynthia turned wide eyes on me. "How can you say that? The doctor is turning that nice young man into one of those TV things!"

"Have you discussed it with Toni?" I asked.

"Why, no!" Cynthia gave a little shudder. "I really can't..."

"Then I submit that you are unaware of the facts, Cynthia," I said mildly. "I have had repeated contact with Toni during the metamorphosis, and I can tell you plainly that he -- she -- is ecstatic! Were you aware that Antonio was functionally gay?"

"Gay?" Cynthia looked as if I'd stabbed her. An imaginary lover just went 'POP!' in her head, no doubt. "Well, I'd wondered," she admitted.

"I'm not a psychologist, but from what I've been seeing and hearing, it went deeper than that. Antonio was struggling with a disparity between his physical structure and his personality. Mentally, Antonio was -- or wanted to be -- female," I related.

"How would Doctor Chambers know that?" Cynthia asked, wide-eyed.

I struggled with myself -- and lost. Rolling my eyes, I said, "Cynthia, are you REALLY that naive?"

Cynthia blinked. "What?"

I sighed. "Someone help me, here. I've reached the limits of the new me. I'm afraid I'm about to fall into old bad habits."

June Mortensen, who had appeared at the table looking vivacious with a young couple and a little boy in tow, said gently, "Cynthia, Dr. Chambers is bisexual. He and Antonio have been very quietly pursuing an affair for some time."

Cynthia, wide-eyed, said, "EWWWW! Does Peg know?" I covered my face with my hands.

June actually tittered! "You know, Farris, there ARE limits..."

"There certainly are!" Harriet erupted from where she had settled two seats over. "Cynthia, how dense and prejudiced ARE you? Of COURSE Peg knows! I swear to God! Some people live in a little box and refuse to open the lid and look out for fear they will learn something!"

"Gently, Harriet," I murmured. Turning to Cynthia, I said, "If you discuss the situation with Toni, I think you will end up happy for her. She is VERY pleased with the outcome and VERY willing to discuss the details and her feelings about it!"

"She's obviously brainwashed," Cynthia posited. "Besides, 'she' is not a 'she!' She's a ... chick with a dick!"

"Actually," I corrected Cynthia, "she is more hermaphroditic. As I understand it, she's growing a vagina."

"She's WHAT?" Cynthia gasped.

"I've said too much," I said quietly. "This is Toni's business -- and Peg's and Dr. Chambers' -- and not mine -- OR yours!"

"I can NOT..." Cynthia muttered, flustered. I turned away, refusing to be further baited.

June turned to me, "So tell us about the new Farris!" she cajoled.

"I've recently been delivered a wake-up call," I replied. "Due to my thick-headedness, it was necessary to couch it pretty baldly -- more so than the efforts in the past of several of you who tried, but whom I ignored -- but a volunteer stepped up and managed to poke a hole in the wall of my arrogance and push a communications device through it."

"So who was this saint?" someone asked.

"I'm sure the individual concerned would prefer to remain anonymous," I replied, "but I DO appreciate the effort. I've discovered that however keen my powers of observation are in my chosen field, I was failing miserably to deploy them in the area of interpersonal relations -- even if I DID manage to detect young Toni's condition."

Doctor Hopkins and his entourage were present -- minus the women who were sponsors; apparently they had some urgent demands on their time, because they'd departed rather hastily after Lieutenant Harper harangued the sponsors about how male concubines SHOULD be treated. Young Britney looked up and said, "I just think that you were working very hard to obtain some deserved recognition -- but such things come on their own much more quickly when they're not being forced."

"Perhaps," I murmured, looking away.

"When you're decidedly average in most visible ways and getting nothing in the way of attention, there is a temptation to point up one's quantifiable signs of distinction," Doctor Patterson pointed out. "It's only natural."

Embarrassed beyond my ability to deal with it equably, I covered my face. "That was harsh!" Harriet's voice erupted.

"It wasn't meant to be," Rhonda Patterson replied. "I apologize, Farris."

"It's descriptive," I croaked.

"Well, I certainly approve of the new Farris," Rhonda declared.

I took a breath and got control of my features. "It's not always easy -- especially when presented with sources of provocation like Cynthia..."

"Well!" Cynthia shook her bleached-blonde locks and got up in a huff. "I don't have to put up with THIS!"

"True enough," someone snickered.

"I am working on not falling back on bad habits," I continued. "To that end, I've appointed Harriet the guardian of my tongue."

Someone snorted, "Harriet! That's rich! The odd couple..."

Something about that comment struck me, forcibly. "That seems rude..." I growled. "I apologize, Harriet, for exposing you to that."

"I've had worse, Farris -- and earned it," Harriet replied ruefully. "He's probably right -- I'm a little heavy-handed." There were more snorts. I glared around the table, silencing them. "Okay, a LOT heavy-handed!" Harriet chuckled. "Not that some of you don't need it!" There were chuckles.

That more or less ended that particular conversation thread and I settled back into silence -- and stayed that way until lunch was over.

After lunch, I followed Farris to his quarters again -- only this time, he wasn't aware of it. I caught up at his door and called, "Farris!"

"Yes?" He turned around, surprised.

"Thanks for sticking up for me in there."

"I apologize for exposing you to ridicule; it was unintentional," he replied.

"It wasn't your fault," I replied, absolving him, and turned to leave.

"Harriet..."

I turned back and frowned. He was going to get stupid... "Farris..."

"Hear me out," he insisted. "I just wanted to say that I had a good time. If you should... feel the urge again, I would undoubtedly be amenable."

I rolled my eyes. "Thanks, Farris." I headed off, amazed at his foolishness. While it was nice to know that one man in the known universe considered me to be a decent sex partner, what was he thinking? Any day, I was going to collect a sponsor -- and that sponsor would UNDOUBTEDLY take a dim view of me trotting up to Farris' place to bounce on his kielbasa... Farris still had a lot to learn, despite being somewhat sweet, once you got past his insufferable posturing. Clearly, he knew NOTHING about women...

So we're all sitting around at lunch on Saturday, and that Lieutenant guy turns up on the monitors and harangues everybody about trying to keep families together. Now, from how I understand it, this was the main group from the big school pickup, not us -- we're all here ('we' being me, my sister Felicity and her sponsor/husband/mate Bernie, their kids Susan, Jerry, and Patty, and Susan's girlfriend turned concubine Harrah) from the Brinkman Foundation pickup, since Bernie was their IT guy and has a LOT more brains than he has common sense. Lately, we've been hanging out with a couple with two kids from the other group, though -- a sponsor named Eugene Bradley and his mate/concubine Kathy and their two kids, Gina and Ellen. Gina and Patty are coincidentally about the same age, and I think Patty is benefitting, because Sis has backed off on some of her overprotective crap; you'd have thought Patty was four... Anyway, Bernie goes, "Jeez, I hope he's kidding! I can't POSSIBLY take on another woman!" Poor Bernie -- he's been flat out for a week, since he's got Sis and I and Harrah -- and Susan is thirteen and VERY curious... Every night, I've been teaching Harrah and Susan little tricks I learned to keep the wild animals happy -- and Sis has been nodding and looking wise for the girls -- and learning, herself, too, because it's all stuff she never had to resort to... Bernie went down to Medical and got his libido jacked up, but it's STILL four to one -- well, three and a half, anyway, since Susan isn't allowed vaginal sex yet.

Gene looked up, unhappy, and said, "He probably means us." Kathy looked even MORE unhappy; she's been doing the one man woman thing and sooner or later it's gonna bite her. Gene isn't stupid by any stretch, and he's been looking -- and Kathy HATES that!

"How many are you supposed to have?" Bernie asked.

"Four. IF I don't get a couple," Gene replied.

The look on Kathy's face said the whole subject was bad news -- but she was fucked, so I decided to help a little. Nudging Sis, I whispered, "We need to talk to Kathy." Sis just nodded, so I took it up with Bernie and Gene, "Hey, guys -- can we go off over there for a little girl-talk?"

They shared a look, but they had things to talk about, too... "Yeah, sure," Gene nodded. Bernie gave me permission with his eyes.

"Come on, Kath..." I dragged the pair of them off, signaling Harrah and Susan to hang tough with the kids. Harrah was a co-conspirator at this point -- I'd done her some big favors and she knew it -- so she gave me the nod right away. Susan didn't bitch because Harrah didn't.

We plopped down about two tables over. "So, Kath, how long do you figure you've got?"

"What?" Kathy's eyes bugged.

"Lookit," I explained, "If Gene can do four, you are NOT gonna win this! Two, maybe -- but four? They won't LET him go three short! Gene's a nerd anyway -- he can't AFFORD to look pussy-whipped! One day real soon he's gonna wander out the door and come back with two or three women -- and when he does, if you make a big enough fuss YOU'LL be gone!"

Kathy burst into tears. "But we're MARRIED!" she wailed. "Till death..."

"Okay, so the direction you're headed that's how it's gonna happen," I retorted brutally, "You're gonna make a big, fat fuss and do something stupid and end up DEAD!" Kathy recoiled as if she'd been slapped. "Lookit -- have you been listening AT ALL during orientation? YOU ARE NO LONGER MARRIED! Your grip on Gene is Gina and Ellen -- and the fact that you got there first -- but he can replace you as caregiver for the girls, and if you embarrass him enough he'll HAVE to!"

"What do I do?" Kathy blubbered.

"First, you get it through your head that having another woman under the roof isn't such a bad idea," I counseled her. "Sis, has this whole thing damaged you any, do you figure?"

"No..." Sis mused. "Actually, it's been a learning experience. There are a lot of extra hands to help with the kids and, well, I've learned a few things that have made the nights more fun..." She pinked up a little. "For one thing, it's nice knowing that nobody is gonna throw the door open and yell 'Mommy!' when I'm about to..." Sis really isn't ready yet to talk about it that bluntly; she shut up, bright red in the face.

"Sis makes a couple of real good points, here," I pointed out. "In the first place, you KNOW you're gonna have a shitload more kids, right?"

"Yeah, I guess," Kathy said warily.

"And let me guess," I continued, "you stopped at two because it's a lot of work..."

"Well..."

"Okay, then. So if you bring in a gifted momma type won't that make life easier? You know -- a built-in nanny -- or two?" Kathy looked thoughtful. "As to the other thing -- variety is the spice of life. Marriage is some bullshit we thought up to keep guys from walking after we got pregnant -- it's mumbo-jumbo, not magic. I know, believe me -- I've done it, like, three times. Lots of nights, you probably don't really want to get into it -- but the old headache game won't fly, here, because the rules say you put out, period -- so if there is some other hammer warmed up in the bullpen, who lives with you and HAS to get along, rather than concentrating her efforts on stealing him away..."

"What's to keep that from happening?" Kathy wondered aloud.

"Because what you're talking about is marriage -- and there ain't no such thing!" I explained. "We're back to the OLD way -- harems! Nobody is a one-woman show! Gene is gonna have four women -- so competition to be Numero Uno has limited value, because it's not an exclusive. You share -- you cooperate -- you help each other out -- and you keep the old man happy by showing him something a little different every day of the week."

"You make it sound so simple..." Kathy sniffed.

"Well, it isn't -- but it isn't that HARD, either! You need to look at the benefits. Look, Hon -- you can't STOP this -- but you CAN CONTROL it!" I insisted.

"I can? How?"

"First, I'd ask Gene -- real pretty, probably around a mouthful of his cock -- if he would let you go down to Medical and get put back the way you looked before Gina was born -- that's assuming he liked you better that way, of course..." Kathy was thick and hippy and I didn't think much of her legs and her titties drooped.

Her eyes glazed. "Yeah, that's an idea... Maybe I could get him to let me improve on things..."

"Don't go overboard, Hon," I advised. "You want to be recognizably you. You want his input to any serious changes, because if he doesn't like them, it doesn't matter whether YOU do or not! That brings me to my second point; you run him some, don't you?"

"I almost HAVE to!" Kathy retorted.

"Okay, but I bet you aren't diplomatic about it any more like you were when you were going together," I pointed out. "You need to remember that that ring you're STILL wearing is worthless to you and that HE is in charge -- and you need to remember how to wheedle instead of boss. And you need to remember what it is you have to do to make him dumb but happy so you get what you want!"

Kathy looked guilty. "You mean..."

"You keep the blood supply to his little head flowing so his big head isn't working too hard," I confirmed. "You don't like that?"

"Well, yeah," she admitted, "but it's frustrating. Gene isn't... endowed."

"THAT's easily fixed!" I chuckled. "Bernie's was a serious dick before -- but he's a GOD now! Don't intimate that it's for you -- suggest that it might help him in negotiations with his other women..."

Kathy grimaced. "Other women..."

"Yes, Hon," I sighed. "Other women. That's part three. You stop fighting it and you CONTROL his selection by 'helping' him select his other women!" I put quote marks around 'helping' with my fingers. "What you WANT to do is push him toward chicks who aren't a threat to you and will be a big help with the kids. You're SOOO fucking lucky, because YOU can use logic to point him in the direction you want him to go..."

"Yeah..." Kathy's eyes were more than a little glazed over while she went through the implications.

"Don't get stupid about it, or you'll lose out and he won't listen to you, but if you handle things properly, you can be 'Head Bitch,' even if you're no longer 'Wife,' you know?"

Kathy nodded, pulling it in. "Anything else?"

"Well, if Gene isn't Superstud, maybe you should think about you, a little. Get a couple; the woman will be less of a threat, because she already has an old man -- and YOU can get a little variety in YOUR life..."

"Oh! I couldn't!" Kathy blushed to the nipples.

"You can if you engineer it properly..." I leered. Having given Kathy a lot to think about, I closed things off and we got ready to move back to the men.

Sis grabbed my arm. "Who is Head Bitch at our house?" she asked.

I didn't bother to lie. "I am, Sis -- but don't worry, I won't ruin it for either of us -- I promise!"