Chapter 3: Foolish Developments

It had been a few days since Cam had pounced on top Sasha in Lindsey's empty and for the most part both boys were still acting as if nothing had occurred. At least that's how Sasha was trying to make himself appear on the surface, inside however, he was a continual mess of emotions. Every time Cam would get close to him he would feel heat begin to burn up from his ears. Every time the redhead changed or took a shower his fingers traced the knot that hung solidly around his neck, the knot placed and unfamiliar but comforting weight around his collarbone. As far as he was concern, none besides them knew of the secret exchange or the gift and it needed to stay that way or else both himself and Cam could get in trouble for breaking the counsel rules. None of there kind was suppose to exchange tokens of affection until after the change, for fear that they would discourage the multitude of initial feeding that would build there strength.

Sasha laid sprawled out in bed, his pajama bottoms hanging low on his hips, his mind drifting through lazy thought. The little incubus knew something was different, he could feel it in his skin; it was as if he was a water balloon and Cam had turned on the facet. He felt tight and as if he was going to split is skin, but somehow being near Cam did make it better. From what they were told, Sasha was aware that this feeling had something to do with the change but this was early.

As the red haired incubus rolled over uncomfortable on his familiar bed and tried to fall asleep. Time slowed to a crawl as the sweet relief of dreams wouldn't come to embrace him and then he heard it; a peaking noise at his window, light but obvious. Padding barefoot across his bed room, Sasha drew back the curtain and looked out the window. There staring him straight in the as the bronze skinned boy that had been occupying his mind, the grin plastered on his face reflected the pale white moon.

"Cam what the heck are you doing?" Sasha whispered as he opened the window.

The boy pulled his friend in close, "I couldn't sleep so I figured I'd go flying. Want to join me?"

Cam lips were so close to Sasha's that the redhead couldn't help but shutter softly, he wrapped his arms around his friends tan neck and asked for help. In a few moments, Cam had helped pull Sasha through the window and both boys wrapped there arms around each other more to prevent Sasha from crashing down to earth then any romantic intentions. Sasha however did take this closeness as an opportunity to really look at his friend. His great leathery wings seems less threatening then Sasha's, even his talons lacked the same visual power of the black ones that adorned Sasha's incubus form. One thing that did draw the redhead's eyes more strongly was Cam's markings, where his own spread over his hips like a pair of briefs, the shorter incubus' marking trailed upward like a treasure trail across the flat of his stomach. Without thinking, Sasha ran his fingers down the golden path marked in Cam's flesh and elicited a moan from his friend.

"Sasha" Cam's voice mewed softly.

A flash of red and the glamour fell away, leaving the boys identically dressed; just their markings and necklaces between to warm bodies. The air around each incubus quickly gathered weight as their body heat made the air glisten with steam. Cam smirked, fangs showing from underneath his lip, and flew up into the sky. Sasha couldn't help himself but roar playfully as he chased after his friend, as the bare backside of the bronze incubus vanished into the light of the moon. Pounding harder and rising higher, Sasha hissed at the feel of the colder air on his wings it was a mix of pleasure and pain. Suddenly, the redhead found himself tackled and plummeting down to earth, Cam's body wrapped around his waist a grin planted firmly on his face.

"CAM!" Sasha screamed his own voice sounding alien to him.

Eyes sparkling in the darkness Cam whispered, "Then you gotta stop me, Sash."

Swinging as much of his weight as he could the redhead began to rock them back and forth, aware that the longer it took the more quickly the ground would be rushing toward them both. Finally Sasha was able to get his foot in between himself and Cam, he felt the ball of his press into the smaller incubus's obvious hipbone. Pushing roughly Sasha managed to finally separate just about ten feet from the ground itself. Floating just barely out of Sasha reach, the bronze boy's smile grew wider as he crossed his arms; although Cam was the smallest of the boys there was a subtle strength that most would miss on first glance. He was built more like a gymnast, taunt powerful muscle that accentuated his grace unlike Lindsey's bulky size with screamed of power and nobility. Sasha eyes followed the twist of the smaller boy's waist, hipbones and markings caught highlights from the moon. Then all of a sudden Sasha found himself dragging Cam out of the sky, lips locked with the other, instead of crashing, the pair were almost cradled, into the ground. Sasha claiming his well-earned position of straddling his friend's waist, he could feel it again, the swell and he figured out was it was; it was desire.

Both the boys returned to a more human form as they caught their breath. With matching grins, fingers traced over each others body; tan hands tracing from the collarbone to the hips of the white torso and pale hands making the opposite journey across bronze skin. Again the simple touches that he laid into Cam allowed him to pry loose a series of cry like a kitten looking for its mother. Every time that Sasha's nail grazed one of his friend's hip bones, he felt the smaller boy's hips shift and buck of their own accord. Leaning forward, Sasha placed a deep kiss on Cam's prone mouth before the boy could react though; the red haired incubus has placed his lips along the jaw line. Quickly the lips and tongue moved across Cam's neck and torso leaving the ghosts of marks; a wave of pleasure rolled off of Cam like a white hot flare. The sudden burst made both boys freeze in place, with Sahsa's lips still pressed against the bronze boy's lowest rib.

They had just fed from each other.

They were in trouble.

***

"This, children is the last lesson I will ever teach you."

The voice came out smooth and sweet like pouring a maple syrup from the bottle, it was the kind of voice that captured a person's attention and made them want to listen. It was the voice of a teacher, one of the teachers, those in charge of instructing the children in the ways of their kin. The teachers would be instructors on a rotating basis, so that every seven years they would be a teacher again. Like every group before, the six teenagers were never told there teachers name and would only refer to him as teacher. The man that they called their teacher was a tall, dark-skinned man with strong but kind features like he was carved from a singular trunk of dark mahogany. He was dressed in a long green tunic and black pants at seemed to shimmer from their own light, his bare toes grinding into the carpet; he seemed like he would be more at home in a zuit suit then what he had on now.

"So are you all ready to begin?"

"Yes teacher." The group replied, dressed in the same silky black pants as the teacher.

Sasha's eyes darted around the room, scanning over each of his friends but his gaze couldn't help but linger on the way Cam's brown shirt clung around his lithe torso. In fact for most of the shirts were fairly complementary to their bodies, unfortunately Lindsey's was obviously a hand-me-down because it hung too loosely across his chest and too tightly around his stomach; embarrassing the already flustered blonde. Sasha straightened his eyes and posture when teacher walked near him, it wasn't that Sasha feared reprimand but that was the kind of respect they had all learned to give. Teacher stopped in front of the redhead and tapped on his shoulder, finger burying into blue cloth.

"Kelly." His voice rolled, "Do you remember what I told you all about locking on in a fight."

"Yes teacher."

"Would you repeat it for me?"

"When we find ourselves in a conflict," Sasha paused softly and continued, "or even in regular activity, we must make sure not too over use our strength. We need it so that we may blend as effectually as possible in the human world."

Teacher nodded a smile plastered to his face and ruffled he boy's hair, "That is mostly correct, but today I'm going to teach you the other half of locking on to a person. That portion is feeding, used correctly you will maximize the energy you get and prevent any accidental death. Unlike matching a person's strength, feeding isn't so much about listening to your body and adjusting as it is about hold you power back. When you feed your body will try and trick you into going past a threshold. This threshold is known as the edge of pleasure, your body will try to make you go beyond that point; it will tell you that the orgasm is beyond that place but it is a lie. When you wait patiently at the edge of pleasure you will get the full force of the climax and it will be a reward for controlling your self. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes teacher!"

"Good," the dark-skinned man continued, "When you at sequestered away for your change you will be able to feed freely on each other. Because as kin we naturally will flow energy between each other as we feed. However, I will hope that even as hungry as you all will be, that you take the time to obey and practice keeping yourselves from crossing over the edge."

"What happens if we cross the edge of pleasure?" Lindsey blurted out, ignoring the giggles from the girls.

Teacher leaned in close, his indigo eyes flashing, "Don't."

"But what if we do?!"

"Well, if you somehow find yourself crossing the edge of pleasure you will have maybe a window of one minute to break off from the human you are feeding from. After that window closes you will continue to feed until there isn't much left but a dried out, cold body. So as I said before, don't cross the threshold."

The group nodded vigorously, the idea of hurting someone seemed to send a shiver down every one of their spines. Love and the act of love, they had been taught, was pure and to kill someone in it was considered a huge catastrophe. This was something that they all knew that there were consequences for this kind of offense both in the case of the offending party and the victim. They were quickly distracted from their thoughts as teacher paired them off randomly and told them to fight, to keep their energy in sync with each other. When all of them had locked on to each others, teacher would swing them to new partners or change who had to lock on to who. Quickly the strain began to make it self evident on the faces of everyone of them, sweat making their clothes stick to them.

"Kelly!" Teacher shouted and threw Cam at him.

The bronze boy managed to land and balanced himself on one bare foot, shooting a look that both told Sasha to bring it as well as giving away his exhaustion. Reaching to his far hip, Cam stripped off his shirt and Sasha couldn't help but follow the markings he had memorized down to his friends waist band. In the midst of gawking, Sasha found Cam's fist crushing against his jaw. Stumbling backwards, Sasha focus and saw that Cam had been faking; holding his energy low so that he could distract him. And it had worked, the redhead cursed himself mentally, why had he been so stupid. Okay he had a blooming libido to deal with but still, he couldn't believe he had fallen for that. With a roar the redhead launched himself full force at Cam, tackling him to the ground and nearly dashing he friends skull on the rocks. Apparently though Cam had been expecting that and used both his legs to launch the large incubus into the air.

"Very good, you two have synced perfectly!" Teacher clapped his hands on their shoulders.

In letting themselves go completely, after the first punch was thrown, Sasha and Cam had tapped into each other's core. Neither had noticed the link while they were fighting it out but as the adrenaline left Sasha's body he could feel something, a second pulse made of emotion, strength and a heartbeat. That was Cam, stripped away with no body, the mix of love and humor with his diminished strength; his heart pounding like a metronome. Sasha blinked and Cam was replaced by two hands waving in front of his face, it was the twins, apparently he had been off in his own world.

"Earth to Sasha, come in Sasha can you hear us?" Atty giggled trying to sound like she was over a CB radio.

"Come on Red." Epica bucked Sasha shoulder lightly, "Dad is gonna take us all out and human side after we shower."

Sasha's voice was hazy, "Okay, I'm coming."

The shower was anything to be called special, a singular round tiled room with a little over twenty showerheads. It smelled of sweat, hot water and soap; Sasha had to admit to himself there was something nice about the smell of a body caught between dirty and clean. But today, the redhead turned towards the tile walls and kept his head down. It wasn't what they naturally did, their kind was never shy about intimacy or nakedness but Sasha kept his body and gaze fixed on to wall. He didn't want anyone, especially the twins, to pick up on what he was feeling. It took sasha moment to register the lack of other shower sounds andby the time he did a pair of wet, tan arms slipped around his torso.

"Are you mad at me?" Cam whispered into the space between Sasha's shoulder blades.

"No."

He could feel his friend's lips on his back markings, "But the way you acted when we were sparring and ignoring everyone in the shower."

Sasha reached down and grabbed Cam's arms, spinning his friend around and slamming him into the warm, wet tile. The force that the boy hit caused a small yelp of pain and fear to slip from between Cam's lips. The redhead couldn't help but smirk, he knew his eyes must have shifted and his fangs had to be out; he didn't want to admit it but there was something damn attractive about the way Cam shuttered under his gaze. Letting out a soft purr, the redhaired teen pressed himself against the smaller boy, lips crashing into each other. Hungry, Sasha was careful to not allow his fangs to even leave a scratch on Cam as he tasted his way from the bronze boy's mouth to his collar bone and back again. When Cam finally let free a soft moan Sasha released his hold and went to get dressed, five minutes later he was in tow with the group.

"Sash what took ya so long?" Atty laughed.

"Had to do my hair."

Epica shoved her sister out of the way, "Sure ya did Red, you're more of a girl then I am if you took that long."

"Oh cram it Eppy, your just jealous of just

Stepping into the middle of the group of children, the twin's father gathered them all close. He explained that he had hearthed from the carnival earlier today so that it would be easier for them all to travel, more precise then the gate itself. Before Lindsey could question the improbability of his taking all of them in a singular go, a second presence pushed up against them. In a second the world closed around them like a warm blanket; it was stiff, itchy and it seemed to be pushing Sasha towards blackout. Then just as the edges of his vision began to darken, Sasha felt a popping in his ears like when he went from flying high to coasting low.

And then there was nothing.

***

From the darkness exploded a swirl of multicolored lights, disorientation held Sasha for a moment and he nearly wanted to puke. It wasn't the first time that Sasha had experienced a reverse hearthing, but this was the most he had ever travelled with. Looking around he found that his friends were mostly in the same state of shock and confusion has he was, and then a pair of laughs broke the nausea. Sasha turned his head towards the laughter and saw the Twin's father cackling with aunt Shi, the redhead lunched himself at his aunt, nearly knocking her over into the dirt. The woman stabilized herself and ruffled Sasha's redhair against her purple oversized sweatshirt. Charis pried one of the arms off of Sasha's aunt and began to pull the whole group deeper into the carnival.

"Come on! Lets go ride the tornado!"

Lindsey looked pale, well paler then usual, "It that the one that spins round and round and you're stuck to the walls"

"Yep."

What followed from the rest of the group was a chorus of 'Oh god, this is gonna suck', 'Righteous lets do this', 'I'm gonna throw up on you, and 'if you throw up on me, I will break your face'. Luckily the threats and comments were mostly half-hearted because everyone but Lindsey climbed into to the ride looking happy as clams. The poor blonde looked as if he was ready to bolt from the ride before he was even in place. Sasha wanted to say something but no words came to mind, instead he watched as Charis wrapped her fingers around Lindsey's. That simple act of comfort did wonders for the poor boy, even though his face was still as green as his eyes; he laid down next to Charis. Even as the ride started to spin faster and faster with all their screams rising higher and higher Lindsey's hand didn't budge from the girl he loved.

The ride ended and the group stumbled free from the tornado; even they were incubi and succubi their equilibriums were just as regular as humans. Sasha looked up and found that they had stumbled away from most of the rides and into an alley of tents. Near the entrance of each was a sign that declared watch was inside; there was a freak show, the worlds smallest horse, the second largest ball on yard on the east coast, and a pair fortune tellers. As they passed the tents, Atty squealed and pointed at a square box at the end of the alley, it was a photo booth.

"We should all take a picture!"

Epica cut in, "There is no way we would all fit in the booth."

"Then we will split it up," She grinned, "Guys and girls."

Cam spoke up next and repressed a chuckle, "Well then we better get on line, look at the length of that thing."

"Hey guys," Sasha muttered feeling a prickle on the back of his neck, "I'm gonna try and find a bathroom."

"Kay we will hold a spot for you."

Barely acknowledging the last statement, Sasha when off up the alley again; the pricking sensation leading him towards the second of the tents. It was much more toned down from the first of the tellers, instead of bright vibrant colors the whole outside was black and the inside was dark blue that seemed to calm down the whole atmosphere. In the center of the room was a bare wooden table and a few candles. Sasha stepped into the dark tent and the prickling sensation vanished completely, leaving the boy alone with his thoughts. Of course he wasn't alone for long as soon as the cloth door fell into place a woman stepped in front of Sasha.

"Well hello there," The woman smiled all blue eyes and black hair, "I'm Pamela Barnes and you must be Sasha."

"How did you…"

"You step into a fortune teller's tent and you're surprised she actually has power. Boy I'm surprised at you, especially considering what you are."

Sasha stepped away from the woman, "Maybe I should be going."

"Boy if I really cared what you were it wouldn't have mattered how pretty you are. I would have dropped you to the ground dead, so sit your fine young ass down and let's get to business."

Pamela swatted Sasha's denim covered backside and pushed him towards one of the two chairs around the table.

"So would you like me to read your cards?" The teller smiled shuffling the deck of oversized cards

Sasha shrugged, "Would you still do it if I said no?"

"Honestly I'd do anything you sexy little self asked."

"Since I'm here."

"There we go"

Quickly she laid out two rows of the cards, five in each row, and in the center was one singular card. She then turned them over and after a moment her face hardened him fear and then turned to sorrow and regret. She looked at Sasha her eyes almost begging the young incubus to learn her tent and forget asking what she had read. But the redhead pressed and with a shy, the dark haired psychic spoke softly.

"This card is you, the fool; it's potential and speaks both of your personality and your actions. This top row here represents direct action that will come from an approaching event, an action you will take. This action will cause you to fall, so says the Tower card. You will lose everything in this choice but you will meet a man of power, great power one that will change the course of you life many times; the magician. Judgment, a series of great choices which you will be forced to make alone, but that will always lead to the final card, Death."

Sasha could barely speak, "And the second row?"

"Are things that will come to pass as a result of this first series."

"Read them."

"Are you sure? Sometimes it is better not to know these cards."

"Read them please."

"Okay, but remember these cards aren't as specific they will shift with you actions." Pamela grew silent and looked over the cards, "The Emperor, you will meet a man filled with enthusiasm, energy, aggression. He is direct, guileless and all too often irresistible. Unfortunately, he can also be a tyrant and be impatient, demanding, controlling. He is the leader that everyone wants to follow. The Lovers, you will find the Emperor to be who is so much a part of yourself, so perfectly attuned to you and you to them, that you cannot, dare not resist. The Chariot, it implies war, a struggle, and an eventual, hard-won victory; either over enemies, obstacles, nature, and/or the beasts inside you, or sometimes it just implies a journey in a car. The King of Pentacles, inverted, means that someone has great plans for you or against you. Which leads us to the…"

Sasha's eye grew wide as the devil card looked up at him from the table. "What does that mean?"

"It means, please leave my tent."

"But…"

Pamela rose up and screamed, "EXIT MY TENT AT ONCE!"

Sasha stumbled out of the tent, the fortune tellers' voice still ringing roughly in his ear as he fell into Epica. The blond shot him a look of annoyance and quickly dragged him to the photo booth, apparently the girls had already had there picture taken from the way Charis and Atty were pressed together. Trying not to fall over as he was shoved, Sasha found himself stumbling through the curtain and face first into Cam's lap. As if the burning of his ears wasn't bad enough, Lindsey began to laugh and could barely hold it together as he spoke about making sure that they all got a copy after the change. Just as they managed to agree, the camera's flash went off highlighting the ridiculously over-sized smiles. Not long after the picture developed, Atty was dragging the group towards another torturous carnival ride. Sasha had to admit, despite the ominous fortune tell, he couldn't think of a better way to spend their last day as kids.

A/N: Okay so as a note I had to hunt around to make sure I got the proper cards. Those are actually interpretations of card readings. Please review.

-WordDemon