“Do you really think I have to shave?" he asked, fingering the blond stubble on his cheeks.

"Yes," Rachel said firmly, making him sigh. With a put-upon groan he began to lather his face and scrape off his bristles.

“How are the kids doing?" Rachel asked.

“ALL right," he answered. "Alex has Althea ready to go. He and Maria are taking care of Sarah. No, not that way," he said as Rachel raised her eyebrows curiously.

“Try to keep your mind out of the gutter,

Venus. Sarah was pretty shaken up by the whole thing. I don't think she truly believed until she saw that thing in the hospital coming after us. You might want to have a talk with her Later."

“I wilt."

“Good.” He wiped the remnants of shaving lotion from his face, eying it with a suspicious frown. He sighed.

“How did I get so old?" He touched his temples. In the bright light of the bathroom, Yasna could see delicate threads of silver running through his hair.

Rachel took his hand in hers, leaning up to kiss his cheek. The gesture was so simple in its expression of love Yasna had to look away, her eyes stinging with unshed tears.

“You are just as beautiful to me now as you were the night I met you," she whispered softly.

“Are you ready to do this?"

“I-L-L," he murmured, so low Yasna could barely hear.

“I-N-I," Rachel answered.

They gathered in the spare room on the ground floor. Some standing, some sitting, some leaning uncomfortably against the walls. In the middle of the room, Althea's nude body Lay on a low wooden platform, no more than waist high, cushioned by a down comforter. Her head was propped up by a pair of pillows, reminding Yasna uncomfortably of funerals she had attended. In defiance of her morbid thoughts, Althea's golden skin seemed to glow in the dim light.

To Yasna's eyes, she no longer looked like she was sleeping. Instead, it seemed that she was waiting.

Rachel cleared her throat, bringing their attention to her. "It's time.

What we do here tonight may make you uncomfortable. Althea and I do not ask that you take part if you are unwilling." She took a deep breath.

“Thanks to our efforts, Althea has regained much of her power. It should be sufficient to allow her to move back to her body. But she has been away from it for some time. Longer than she ever has before.

“We must remind her body of the joy to be had in sex. Make it again the willing vessel of her spirit. Also, the transfer is going to take an incredible amount of power. To help cushion the drain, Althea has asked me to...to..."

She closed her eyes, speaking as if she couldn't believe what she was saying. "We're going to have ourselves a nice little orgy in here, and if anyone Laughs at me, so help me God I will punch you right in the face!"

“Orgy?" Sarah asked weakly. Beside her, Jeremy swallowed, his larynx bobbing jerkily.

“Well, no. Not really an orgy. No one is actually going to have sex.

But I need you, all of you, to give me pleasure. Me, and Althea.

“Alex and Sarah. My children. I would like for you to be at my breasts, just as you were when you were babies.