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5   LOVE

The day to leave Canada to catch the cruise had arrived. Now that Helena was convinced that Leo had far more intelligence than she had suspected, she asked Leo to get the things together he wanted to take with him and he understood perfectly. They packed their bags with all that they thought they would need.

The previous day she had purchased an outfit for Leo that resembled the Star Wars character Chewbacca and it disguised his lumbering gait. She made sure he packed that and he told her that he liked it much better than the clothing he had before, but he just could be without any clothing and pretend it was a costume. That would have made sense if Leo's ability to talk clearly would have been more advanced and Leo conceded that to be true and said he would work harder on it. What surprised Helena the most was the fact how much better she could converse with Leo logically. She understood him better than Gábor did and translated to him what her son said. Gábor thought he understood some words, but only with great effort and concentration. However, he was getting a hunch that Leo would become a big surprise for him. By the end of the day when they retreated to their bedroom he doubted Leo's intelligence much less.

They were in bed, naked as usual, and soft, indirect lighting illuminated the room. Outside it was quite cool, but the house inside was cozy and warm, and they covered themselves only with a light blanket. Leo was in his favourite room in the basement. Gábor's arm was under Helena's head, his hand on her shoulder, and she snuggled close to him. They talked about the plan. Helena wanted to cancel it. Gábor asked her how she imagined Leo going to school, and she could not answer that.

Lying on her side with her knee bent and over his leg, a hand on his chest, she listened to his voice as he asked her what ideas she had in regards to the upcoming trip. She hoped tonight he would show interest in her. Having in mind to make love with him, she snuggled closer. She wasn't ovulating, but she used a preventative device anyway; Gábor didn't have to worry. Still, he didn't have much confidence in the chemical prevention and his worries dictated his sexual practices. At her age, Helena was more confident and her sex drive was at its peak.

Whenever they were with each other, they spoke in their native language, Hungarian. The sound of their language was more familiar and intimate to them than English. In Hungary, they went to school and learned English, German and French, which they spoke sometimes, but not as fluently. They still had a bit of an accent that many found interesting, even charming.

"Could we not have a homeschooling permit?" Helena asked.

"I thought about it, but I was told we are too close to Gibson's or Lund to qualify.

"What about correspondence school?"

"Same thing, Lena."

"What else is there?"

"I wish I knew. I feel we are up against the wall, and I can't see how we could win. I do not want to leave him alone with only Ivan around on some forsaken island without any help at all. Ivan is very capable, and I trust him. I know they could take care of themselves, I see how he is doing it here, but alone in a strange environment? I don't know. What if something happens to either one of them? I love him as you do and want to be around him when he needs me. Here I can't fight the whole society. There, without people other than Ivan, he might have a better chance."

In the dim light, the pain was clear in his eyes, and Helena felt a strong urge to comfort him.  She whispered. "I know. At least I think so. I love and trust you, and I'm with you," she kissed his hand.

"I love and need you, Lena," he answered, pulling her tighter to him.

She slid closer and turned a bit. Her breast touched his ribs and hairy chest. Her face hovered over his, smiling, then lowered to his lips. She kissed him lightly and tentatively, several times.

For a little while, they were content to be just close to each other, to caress, one holding the other. But as before, their desire took over, and, like a kindled fire, it caught on. Her hand under the blanket moved tentatively down over his chest toward his belly and caressed him, and then moving lower until she felt his coarse pubic hair. Her fingers played over it gently and hope for his love flared up in her and she was thinking. ‘Please, make love to me'.

"It has been a long time since we made love, Honey. I miss you."

"You're not ovulating, are you?"

"No. I took my temperature this morning. It's normal," she said, she was close to ovulation, but trusted the device she used.

With his arm around her shoulder, he pulled her closer and returned her kisses, their tongues playing with each other. Helena opened her lips wider and slipped her tongue into his mouth. She lifted her left leg over his, loving the feel of his hairy thighs on her skin, she felt her body getting aroused almost instantly. Gazing into his eyes and his face, she marvelled again at how she had managed to earn his love. His love for her had never faltered before Leo's transformation. He was as reliable as the phases of the moon and she was happy that he wanted her. After a personal growth seminar, their sexual activity improved in frequency although only during the times of her infertility.

Their intimate encounters were never boring or routine and involved games and fantasies. His playfulness excited her. She never really knew if he seduced her or if it was her wanting him constantly. There was something about him that attracted her and she had noticed that other women were interested in him as well and she found that to be charming, but Gábor seemed not to notice it. Even Sandra, his receptionist at the office, had an eye on him. In any case, Gábor was fun to be with. He noticed any little changes she made on herself and he let her know how they pleased him. He was not in the habit of floral expressions and sometimes she missed that, but she felt being seen by him and not only as a sex object, although that was just as welcome.

This morning he remarked on the color of the elastic that held her hair in a ponytail and how it had a decorating effect on her. It was not the most eloquent compliment, she'd heard much better from strangers, but Helena felt his love in his words. In her eyes, Gábor was the most authentic man she had ever met, and she loved him from the deepest part of her being. This love, she knew, would never fade, not from her side or his. There was always the thrill of being together. Only during the time of Leo's transformation has he retreated from sexual intimacy for fear of another being like Leo. She missed it and so did he.

Happy that he wanted her she wrapped her fingers around Gábor's hardening shaft, and his breath accelerated. With her left hand, she pulled his foreskin down, peeked under the cover, and saw the large head exposed and erect, she threw off the blanket. Looking at his, strong cock, her fingers caressed the gland slowly.

"I love looking at your magic wand, Honey."

"He's looking back at you, winking."

"Yah, well. It's more like squinting if you're asking me."

"In that case he needs some assistance looking."

Removing the cover he scanned over her slender frame.

"I love looking at you. You are the sexiest woman I've ever known."

"To how many women did you tell the same lie?"

"If I told you, you'd kill me. But in your case, it's an honest lie."

She wrinkled her forehead. "How honest can a lie be?"

"Like the lie that says that you're a nympho."

"With you I am. Take advantage of it," she said laughingly, inviting him. "I'm all yours. Forever."

Encouraged like that his hands began stroking her back and her sides, sending a tingling wave over her whole body. Helena's nipples hardened. A pulling sensation in her vagina made her squirm, and she felt herself getting wet between her legs, her hopes rising with her excitement. When his hands reached her hips, her buttocks, caressing her satin-soft flesh, she was ready and kissed him again, urgently, deeper and harder, stroking him, wanting him in her and these, in her mind, rare opportunities, were precious to her.

Married seven years now, their lovemaking only got better and exploratory over time. Before Leo's changes had become evident they used to make love at least once a day, usually twice. They loved each other and Leo despite his strange appearance, but their confusion about him and what possibly went wrong had created ambivalence in their expression of that love. Now they wanted to assure each other that their love was still intact. Both wanted each other more than anything and now it was one of those happy moments.

Gábor moved his spread fingers up her spine to her neck and buried his hands in her hair, then moved to her face, and with a feather-light touch, like a blind person's fingers over Braille, he traced her face, nose, and eyes and then her neck and shoulders. Her legs straddled his thigh as she lay half over him, still on her side, rubbing her pelvis on him. His fingers traced her arms with a feather light touch, starting at her triceps, slowly down to her fingers, caressing her palm and the inside of her wrist and moving up her arm to the sensitive crook of her arm caused her to shiver. Sliding his palm over her breast and briefly playing with her nipples made Helena vibrate and hum like a guitar string. Lowering his hand toward her pubic, he caressed her belly and hip in passing. Helena moved a little to align her body more on top of him and felt his pubic hair and shaft on her sex impatiently wanting him in her.

Moving restlessly, feeling his fingers on her pubes she began breathing hard through her nose. A little moisture lubricated his fingers, he teased her by gently probing around her pubes, gliding his fingers over her swelling labia, then searching a little deeper until he touched her clitoris. She jumped, her mouth separated from his, and she inhaled sharply.

"Gábor, you're getting me all wet and horny. I want you."

"You're always horny and almost had me this morning," he smiled.

"Yes, but you ran," she said and gave his penis a squeeze.

"Ouch! Only five K's. And you were dressed when I got back."

"You could have peeled it off me. I would have been game."

"I thought you had enough of me." He nuzzled her breast.

"I don't think I will ever have enough of you," she moaned and then followed his lead in this dance, feeling his shaft on her pubes.

"I hope not," he whispered.

Helena's sexual scent filled Gábor's nose. He wished she would move up on him, allowing him to taste her. He knew she loved oral sex, but this time he wanted her to do what she wanted. He withdrew his fingers and slowly circled them up to her belly just above the hairline of her pubic, then down to her thighs, moving outward up to her round buttocks. Sliding into the crevice, his hand trailed from there up to her sides, then along the sensitive area from her hips up again over her ribs and armpits to her breasts, while his other hand caressed the nape of her neck. It was almost too much for her. Her breath caught in her throat and quickened. Her hips began to undulate and roll. Pressing her pelvis against his erection and coating it with her nectar made his shaft slippery. Little whimpers and cries escaped her, and her laboured breath pulsed gaspingly over her lips. She could hardly control her desire to insert him into herself. Loving his thick and rigid shaft as it slid over her labia, she savoured and extended these moments of sheer pleasure.

"Lena, you're driving me to the edge. I can't take much more of this. I want to be in you now."

She wanted him inside her too and pressed her pelvis hard onto his shaft, the prolonged tease almost uncontrollable.

"Just hang on a moment. Let me reposition myself," she panted and moved his gland all over her sex, teasing herself a little more.

Gábor's hands kept moving over her breasts and finally began kneading them, playing around her areolae, and his palms burned on her hard, large, nipples. Helena rose, bringing her vagina in line with his shaft, spread her legs wider and straddled him, his shaft touching the length of her folds, her juices coating him. Rocking back and forth she lowered her breasts within reach of his mouth. He accepted her offer. This was what she wanted to have every day. His fingers rolled her nipple, his mouth closed on her other breast, and gently biting he licked her nipple, sending waves of pleasure to her pelvis. Her mouth opened and sounds of pleasure escaped from her throat as she moved and enjoyed the hardness of his shaft, her wetness making him more slick and slippery with each pass of his shaft on her pubes. Gábor's breath was deep and ragged. He moaned with her ministrations. Suddenly she bent down to him and kissed him, hard and urgently, while her hand grabbed his shaft and guided him to the opening of her vagina.

"Now I'm ready."

His enlarged glans spread her lips apart, penetrating her. She gasped and moaned with pleasure as he entered her, slowly, then pushed deeper; he pulled out and drove back in again.

"You still love me, don't you?" Gábor asked with a heavy breath.

"Gábor, I'll love you forever. I'm crazy about you and just can't get enough of you. I need your love. Please come back to me. Love me like you did before. I miss your love terribly."

 Hugging her tight to him, tears flooded his eyes.

‘I'm here. I've never left. I love you and would die for you,' he wanted to shout, but the words stuck in his throat. Gábor was not much of a man of words and often said the wrong things when under emotional stress. Looking at her he whispered: "I've never stopped loving you."

She saw the hurt in his eyes and desperately wanted to heal him, hoping fervently her love would do it.

"I prefer to feel it," she replied, driving herself deeper onto him.

Helena was hot, wet, and the silky texture of her sex engulfed him. He felt her vaginal walls milking him like fingers. She rode him, rising and falling slowly at first, but gradually increasing her tempo, alternating between shallow and deep penetrations. Her breathing and passion took on urgency, and her thrusts came harder, plunging deeper onto him until he touched her cervix. Rotating her hips as if she was dancing, she closed her eyes and threw her head back exposing her throat.

A wailing sound accompanied her movements like a symphony as she worked herself into frenzy. Turning, and facing his feet without slipping out, she rode him as if she would a horse while he rose into a semi-sitting position and let her use him. Moving his hands up and down her sides, he slid them to her breasts, kneading them, circling the elongated, hard nipples, watching her slender form, waist, and buttocks, admiring her trim shape as she moved vigorously off and on his shaft. She was beautiful and making love with her were the highlights in his life. Her skin felt and looked hot and flushed, and perspiration coated her body. Helena's breasts were firm and had stayed supple after Leo's birth, and they were very sensitive. Gábor could bring her to orgasm just by stimulating her breasts.

When his hands moved to her hips and pulled her harder to him, she knew he neared his climax just as she hurtled towards her own. Using her vaginal muscles with small movements for a while, she drove Gábor to the edge of his orgasm. He pushed harder and faster into her, groaning with effort, gritting his teeth, still holding back his own release. Suddenly she disengaged, turned again, and without any play took him into her mouth. She sucked him deep into her, while her tongue stroked his pulsing member until he almost came but unexpectedly, she let go of him. He groaned and just about had lost his control and ejaculated into her mouth. He knew she loved it and most often swallowed his seed.

"Honey, I want you, but I want to feel you come in my pussy now," she managed to say as she moved astride him with her knees at his sides and inserted his hard rod back into her slick, hot sex and then grabbed his hand and put two of his fingers in her mouth and sucked on them, the sensation being that of sucking on a penis while she plunged down hard and fast several times onto his shaft, feeling his other hand around her hip urging her on and after a few thrusts the familiar churning in her abdomen signalled her imminent orgasm. She threw her head back and a long wailing moan tore from her lips.

"Oh yes, god, Gábor, I'm coming. I want you to come with me," she barely articulated and with a keening sound, she came hard, and a feeling as if a thousand birds fluttering their wings inside her engulfed her. She sucked harder on his fingers; her tongue swirled around them as if it were his cock. Then abruptly, his head arched back, his face tensed as in pain.

"Ah, Lena. I'm coming," he shouted, his body tense.

The sensation of her mouth on his fingers amplified his arousal and he bucked upward, feeling the heavenly pleasure of his release surge through his shaft as it gushed into Helena's sheath, squirt after squirt.

Helena held her breath when she felt his first blast in her. It felt as if his penis swelled with each jetting of his ejaculate into her and amplified her arousal in turn. It was the pinnacle of her experience when he came.

"Yes, ah yes. I love you shooting into me," she groaned around his fingers, pressing her pelvis hard against his groin, his gland at her cervix. "God, I love when you're filling me," her own abdomen roiling with her release. His hard rod ploughed deep into her, and his entire body shook with his climax. Helena let go of his hand and kissed him, sucking on his tongue while he ejaculated into her depth.

The intensity of their coupling steamed up the windows, and her shrieks of pleasure, muffled by his tongue deep inside her mouth, were of extreme passion. When his spasms ended, she briefly ended the kiss, but it wasn't over. Looking at him with lust in her eyes she repeated what she had stated many times before.

"I never know what I like more; you coming in my mouth or in my pussy. It's a hard choice for me."

"So you keep telling me and I don't know either what I like most, eating you or fucking your pussy. You are very talented with both and I would love to do both at the same time. The ‘sixty-nine’ position is the closest to that. You want that now?"

"Later. Just let us keep doing what we're doing right now."

"That's an invitation I love to get from you. I love you," he assured her and she replied. "I love you Gábor and always will."

Gábor was a very skilled lover and demonstrated that through his care, but he was not talkative. He was a practical man. Words were cheap he used to say, but sometimes she longed to hear them. It was his way to show his love for her and she accepted it. He didn't use words often during intercourse though she would have loved to hear him say words of love, but now he loosened his tongue and whispered words she wanted to hear and it increased her ardor. It took a while for Gábor getting used to talking during sex and Helena had to encourage him although she needed to work on that too. It wasn't often, only when the mood struck them and this was one of those moments.

Riding the waves of passion at a much less urgent pace and looking at each other's eyes and seeing the expression of their enjoyment and the frequent kisses and caresses during their lovemaking created a magic that swept them along to higher levels of ecstasy.

Inflamed with her intense enthusiasm and fire, he caressed her buttocks and her rectum and then using trigger points between her anus and vagina he affected a deeper arousal and sustained level of excitement. Helena felt a sensation flooding her as if her body contained a boiling liquid that seeped into every cell. Wave after wave raked her body like a storm at sea tossing her from side to side, her juices flowing freely around her husband's shaft, she planted another kiss on his mouth, sucking on his tongue fervently, she came again, more intensely than before, while her moans of pleasure mingled with his grunts, their pleasure excruciating.

Her orgasm ripped through her like a firestorm. Helena almost passed out from the intense release. Blind and deaf, her whole body vibrated, and then her panting breath settled into a steady rhythm as she reached a higher plateau after her climax.  A feeling of love and peace permeated her being.

She was capable of multiple orgasms and often had them with him but not because of any special technique that either of them used. The emotional connection and care for each other were always with them regardless what transpired between them and when they made love it was all or nothing like it was now. The adoration they felt for each other culminated in a meltdown and the two had merged as one for several minutes that stretched over a long period of time.

Slowly Helena regained her senses, but she still wanted to experience his climax once more. Over the years she had learned that he had incredible stamina. Somehow he could keep an erection even after multiple ejaculations and she was the one that had to ask him for a break on several occasions, something she had never had to ask a man before. She usually had worn them out and they went to sleep minutes after their orgasms, but not him. Apparently, he was inexhaustible or perhaps it was she.

She opened her eyes, smiling at him while moving slowly up and down on his erection, watching him seeing the love in his eyes that she felt for him. Laying down on his chest and loving his arms folding around her, she nestled her face into the hollow of his neck and shoulder for a few minutes, trying to relax, but she still felt the need for him.

Easing her body off him she wiped pearls of sweat off his face. He smiled and kissed her hand. With Gábor there was always, what he called LAST, Love After Sex Time. He made sure she was cared for, hugged and looked after her needs like having towels or tissues available, a bottle of water or juice and sometimes sweets that they both enjoyed. At this instance, she wanted a little rest but only to enjoy another session. He had remained in her, hugging her close, a practice she loved, and moved very slow, letting his hands gently caress her arms and legs in a non-arousing way. "Are you happy?" he asked.

"Extremely. And the sex is fantastic too," she laughed cuddling closer to him.

"Do you want something?"

"Yes. You again. It's not often that I have a chance to have you like this. But let me first recover a minute or two. Just hold me."

He did and enjoyed her body covering him. Her warm soft body, her radiant face framed by her wavy hair, now loose and a complete mess made him smile and for the thousands time, he wondered how this woman ended up with him. He could make love with her forever. Like on clue, Helena lifted her head from his chest.

"Are you ready for another round? I just wouldn't want to miss out on the opportunity to do it here at home before we go on this trip, you know."

"Are you worried I may not perform well on the ocean?"

"No. My worry is that you could have a relapse and not perform at all while we're on that trip."

"Ah. You mean my magic could fail?"

Pursing her lips she regarded him for a moment and then rolled off him. His penis slipped out of her and for a second he thought she changed her mind about another session, but then she replied with a statement and a request.

"Gábor, your magic never fails. Do it to me from behind now. I want it again until you touch bottom again. I love it when you're deep in me."

"Then let the games continue. Let's work your kitty while it's still hot," he laughed.

"With you, it's always hot," she assured and on her knees with her head touching the sheets, she wiggled her butt, offering her sex as he moved behind her.

"And it has never lost its fascination," he affirmed.

With his knees he spread her legs and entered her from behind, his hands reaching for her breasts and fondling them, sliding his palms over the nipples, and watching her excitement grow. He moved just the head of his penis into her, and then slowly moved in and out, with deliberate, teasing motions. Once every so often, he went deeper for a few thrusts, then back to shallow.

"Do you like this?"

Helena started to move her hips again with small circles, her back arched. She looked back at Gábor, whispering hoarsely.

"Ah, yes, that feels good." She rocked harder and wanted more, but he just kept up the slow, shallow teasing, driving her to a point where she just couldn't take it anymore.

"Deeper. Please. Fuck me harder. Fuck my pussy. I want you deep in me," but he wanted her to want him and kept teasing her. She wanted more. Her frustration took over, and she began to buck harder against his shaft. He took a handful of hair into his hand and pulled on it, not too hard, but it forced her head back and arched her spine. She let out a ragged moan as he began to thrust harder and deeper.

"That's it, Honey. Right there. Fuck me hard, dominate me."

Her butt and hips moved in a circular motion on him as he plunged deep into her. The sweat on his forehead dropped onto her back and mingled with pearls of sweat from her own body. With his hands on her slender body and flaring hips, he pulled her tight to him with each thrust. Her panting came hard, and she cried out when she felt her imminent release in her abdomen.

"Gábor, oh god, yes oh-h-h yes, Gábor, I'm going to come again."

Her head dropped to the bed, turned to the side and her mouth opened wide as if she needed all the air in the world. She went frantic and bucked harder; her vagina contracted and pulsed as if it had a life of its own. Supporting her body with her head on the bed, her left hand fingered her clitoris and his penis, and her right grabbed and fondled Gábor's testicles. He let out a moan and intensified his thrusts into her, feeling close to climax again.

"I'm about to come, Lena," he announced with a groan, his breath hard. Helena spurred him on.

"Yes, yes, come in me. I want to feel you come inside me again."

She paused for a few seconds, held her breath and then with an explosive exhalation and a shriek, she turned liquid.

"Ah, yes. God, you're amazing. I love you," she cried.

Copious amount of her fluids bathed his shaft and mixed with his semen. His breath came in puffs from bellows, his moans turned to grunts, and just as Helena climaxed again, he came too. His penis jerked and twitched, and he felt the strong spasms and vibrations rising up his spine to the top of his head. He exploded into her again as if he had not done it just a half hour earlier, jetting deep into her womb. Her shrieks of pleasure drove him to thrust deeper and he felt the constriction of her cervix. Her spasms shook her out of control; he stiffened and pressed deep into her, his release coming in hard spurts, shooting into her spasms. His grunts turned into a shout.

"Ah, Lena-ah. Oh, god, I love you."

When his spasm subsided a subjective eternity later, he collapsed onto her and covered her body with his. As he calmed, he felt Helena's spasms subsiding, also. He remained quiet, but his heart hammered in his chest. At this moment he was ready to die. His love for this woman was filling every one of his thoughts and he inhaled her scent.

Slowly his breath normalized. Inhaling deeply through his nose, out through his mouth, he waited for her to move. His hands gently stroked her hips and round buttocks. They rose to their knees when they recovered sufficiently and he held her from behind with his head on her shoulder and his chest against her back.

Helena felt as one with him as she felt his rapid heartbeat on her back. She matched her breathing to his. His arms crossing over her breasts made her feel protected and secure, and she let her head fall back against his shoulder. A happy smile was on her lips as she stayed with him, rocking from side to side, and she hummed, her arms pressing his arms against her skin.

"Oh, my god, Gábor, I don't want you to go to work tomorrow. I'll cancel my appointments, and we'll stay in bed all day, okay? Let the people postpone or work out their own problems for a day. We deserve a little time for ourselves occasionally. I love you Gábor," she whispered, satisfied and happy to her core. Gábor hummed, nodded silently and Helena felt his arms tightening around her.

"And I love you, Lena, and one day you will kill me with your kitty," he sighed into her ear, but he didn't sound like someone complaining. She laughed happily, catching her breath.

"Not until I have had enough of you, and that day will never come as long as you live. You're not getting out of this relationship that easily."

They did not disengage until his erection softened and he slipped out of her. Laid down side by side with his hand, cupping her breast, they relaxed in silence and her hand stroked his chest contentedly. Their breathing calmed, and their heartbeats slowed. She turned and moved a little away from him so she could see his eyes. Daringly she broached a painful subject.

"Don't you think we could have a normal baby, a sister or brother for Leo? Do you want to try? Perhaps this time it will be a human child. I would love to see us in our next child. I would love to see a resemblance of us in our children."

Gábor swallowed, but this time he remained centered, this time he talked.

"Honey, I would love to have many children with you, you know that. It would not make much difference to me, but it would be great if it at least one would look like you. Leo may have been a strange accident. I am more concerned about what will happen to him or any other child like him if people see their deformity if even that's what it is. Perhaps it's a leap of evolution, and we are the first to see it, and we just have to accept it. It is the society I'm worried about. I know you want to have babies and so do I, but I'm not comfortable in burdening you with the care of a child with an unknown syndrome. I thought we agreed on not taking that risk." His somber eyes told her he meant it.

"I'm sure we will find a solution, we always did in the past, and perhaps people will get used to Leo too. I can't and won't accept defeat until the end. I am sure that he is as intelligent as anyone of us Gábor. I know, you are sceptical, but he has made huge progress in the last two weeks, and today he began to practice reading and writing. I see him every day and see the progress and surely you do too. Leo is shy around you because he feels you doubt him. You could help him to connect with you and love you by accepting him. Let's see how things develop on this trip, and we'll take it from there. What do you think?"

Her eyes looked expectantly into his. His hazel eyes now had a brown tint to them, and he looked relaxed. A smile played on his lips as he drew her closer. She moved into his arms, resting her head on his upper body, inhaled his scent and splayed her hand on his chest, playing with the hair growing there.

"You will never give up, will you? Are you thinking of changing the plans, Lena? Leo can't remain here until he is mature enough to handle people. He is very strong, and if anyone attacks him, he could kill him or her. I can barely handle him when it comes to strength alone. Give him two more years, and he'll be stronger than I am. When he has learned to control his emotions, we will have a chance to introduce him to other people besides Ivan, don't you think? Let's give it some time. Once he has a working vocabulary we could hire a special teacher and perhaps he could make it into school as well. After this gig, we could assess the situation and take it from there, okay?"

What he said made a lot of sense, and she knew deep down the truth of it. She also saw the reason behind the logic, but she was a mother, and the thought of not seeing her child for more than a few months in a year made her shiver. Leo would be alone without anybody around, except Ivan. What would that do to him? Could they not let him live somewhere closer, perhaps build another house nearby, and look after him there? Then she thought of what Gábor had said. People must believe they had lost their son in the ocean on this trip. He had to disappear from the official records at least for a while.

Helena had no doubt Ivan would be at the rendezvous point to take Leo to Mehetia, their chosen refuge, and look after him. Mehetia was only about ninety nautical miles from Tahiti's main island, and a good inflatable boat with a strong engine could make it on a calm day in three-four hours. They'd chosen this Island because it was near to Tahiti, and no one lived on it. They were sure to find water and fruits, but there was not much meat there. Leo would have to get his proteins from the sea. Ivan assured them he could build a small shack there and get things they needed from Tahiti as long as the boat was running and they could stay in touch with a radio. The larger issue would be to stay out of sight of the authorities.

But what if he missed or intercepted the wrong ship? After all, Ivan had never seen the cruiser. He'd arrive only two days before them in Tahiti where they would meet. More importantly, would he be able to intercept the cruiser when it left from Tahiti towards the Leeward Islands? The staged "accident" was to be between Tahiti and Moorea not that far from land, but there was a lot of traffic in the area. Anybody could see the "rescue" if they were close enough. They would have to make sure Ivan saw the cruiser and was close enough to pick Leo up. She realized how nervous she was about the situation, but knew; Ivan wasn't stupid. Nevertheless, Ivan actually looked forward to the adventure and thought the time with Leo would work well for both of them. When they left Canada and said their good bye's, with a wink, he said he would see if the Polynesian women were as pretty as they say. Helena had replied to him in a jokingly manner.

"I heard they are civilized now and avoid men to gain heavenly favours after death."

"I'll talk them into the seventh heaven while they are still living."

"Why do I get the feeling it's not talking you're talking about?"

"Because it's not," he said with a wink. They laughed with him. Ivan was a unique, quirky character, honest and straightforward that both could relate to and loved. Helena looked at Gábor. "You really think Leo will be okay?"

"Ivan will be with him, and I trust him. If anybody can help Leo, it's he."

"Hmm, yes. I trust him too," she replied and reached for a towel beside the bed on the small cabinet then she asked Gábor to get clean bed sheets while she put the wet ones in the laundry, then they could shower together. He pulled off the bed covers and handed them to her after she put on her robe.

When she got to the bedroom door, she turned to Gábor and said with a frivolous smile: "Use the satin sheets. We might need them."

"Woman, you intend to kill me before we leave for Tahiti? Have mercy."

"You'll survive. And if not, you'll die very happy in my arms," she promised with a smile that made her look like a woman of twenty. Helena stepped out of the door and walked down the stairs.

"Now that's something to look forward to," he smiled to himself, his heart full of love for this woman.

With the changed situation of Leo's identity, he felt much more at ease. Sure, he looked different, but he had enough intelligence to communicate and with a good education, Leo would be able to overcome the deformity and Gábor as his father would do whatever it took to make sure no harm would come to him.

4   IVAN

Helena watched Ivan while Gábor spoke. This was a long speech for her husband and Ivan was a good listener.  He was tall, perhaps sixty-five years old, but it was hard to tell since the way he moved was fluid, more like a young man, like a dancer, and he was quick and flexible. With vivid, bright, blue eyes, and his weathered face, he could have been a man of the sea or the mountains. High cheekbones, gray, almost white, long hair receding on top and combed back out of his face fell on the collar of his shirt and made him look more an aristocrat than a hermit. His salt and pepper beard and moustache suited him. His face expressed strength and was that of an observant man, with a big nose that may have been broken, a furrowed high forehead, and full lips that were seemingly set in an amused smile.

People would feel that smile even when he was about to get aggressive.

His upper body was sinuous with well-defined muscles, but not bulky, and his chest was strong. During the summer months he worked bare-chested, and she noted his strong stomach muscles. The ‘six-pack' was visible when he exerted himself. The knuckles on his fists were big, his handshake was firm and warm, and the veins were thick. Aesthetically, his body was equal to Gábor's in spite of his age.

Even after many years in Canada, he had an indefinable accent and his deep voice had a singing quality to it. He exuded a presence of confidence some may have thought arrogant if they didn't know him better. He swallowed Gábor's disclosure about Leo as if he had already heard this before and it was old news.

"So that would explain Leo's elusive presence, or non-presence, as it is. As parents, you must have gone through some hard times, I imagine. Why don't you tell me what the issue is, and what you have in mind to solve it? Is the problem his looks or your confusion about him? How can I help?"

Helena and Gábor were surprised at how easily Ivan digested their news. His eyebrow raised in interest, not a shock. They also could not help but see the sharp analytical mind and observation of their friend. It really was more about their conflicting emotions regarding Leo's condition than about Leo. Leo was whatever Leo was. Helena suddenly realized the problem was not their son's condition, but their inability to accept it. It had nothing to do with Leo. The problem was in their expectations of what Leo should be. Changing Leo would not solve a thing. They themselves had to change. This insight broke through her already receptive mind like a sprout in springtime through the frozen ground.

"You know he will have to go to school in the fall," Gábor continued, not as ready to perceive the subtle implication, although he was no dullard.

"This cannot happen. Hell, we don't even know if he is a human at all and I don't think they would allow it. After all, you would not take your lion to school unless it's ‘show and tell time' and definitely not to teach it history, math, reading, and writing skills. I doubt Leo could understand any of that or has the capacity. I doubt he'd survive it. Helena and I thought of a plan to take him away from here and make him disappear from scrutiny and from the records," he continued, "but we need help. We can't do it alone. You are the only person we feel we can trust, and that is the hardest thing I can ask of you. To understand what you are faced with, you must see Leo first, and if you think you can't help us, we understand. But we also must ask you not to talk about this to anyone."

Exhausted he stopped and wiped the corners of his eyes with both hands. "We don't know what the right thing is to do, only that we must do something."

Ivan had never seen a man as helpless and in anguish as this, even during his service with the Russian Special Forces and he made a decision right then. He would do whatever it took to help these people. It couldn't be as bad as his friend made it out to be.

"Okay. Let's meet Leo," he said.

Helena got up and went to the patio. Before she could open the door, there was Leo. His amber eyes shone like that of a cat in the descending darkness, his ever-present cape casting a shadow on his face and some ill-fitting clothing covered the rest of his body.

Standing up he was as tall as his mother, but when Helena opened the door, Leo dropped to his paw-like hands and came inside a few steps, appearing very natural like a cat would, using all four limbs. Then his front leg or arm lifted and he removed the head cover slowly. Ivan stood up and held his breath. He faced a lion.

A shock of rusty-color hair framed Leo's extremely feline features. Fine hair covered his face and the muzzle-like snout made him look like a mix between a mountain lion, an African Savannah lion, and a human. The broad flat nose and cleft lip enforced his cat-like appearance to an extent that nobody would doubt he was a lion or a cougar at first sight. It took Ivan a second to recover from his initial shock and in an instant, he understood the Fabien's. Their lives must have been very difficult. The child Leo underwent a dramatic transformation, more than Ivan could have imagined. Gábor didn't exaggerate. But instantly, Ivan recognized the opportunity Leo's transmutation could initiate. His parents had the chance to grow on another level as well, on a cosmic level that would embrace any life forms regardless of what they looked like, but it would not be easy. He had to be careful how to formulate and approach the subject of the idea that sprung up in his mind, and it wouldn't be easy to sway his friends. He would have to take his time to think about it as well. His respect for life included animals and plants and he thought them to be aware of life too.

His eyes scanned over Leo. The pants he wore were baggy like those of some young Hip-Hop dancers. They did not suit him. A shirt of some kind with the image of a wolf silk-screened on it was visible under the parka. Ivan had a hard time not bursting out laughing at the ridiculousness of a lion dressed in human attire, but he managed to keep a straight face.

Leo looked at Ivan and Ivan returned his look, swallowed his amusement, and focused instead on Leo's stature. He had not expected Leo, a six-year-old, to be that big.

"I can see what you mean," he said quietly to Gábor. "Someone would want to have him mounted on a wall amongst other trophies."

"Over my dead body," said Helena from the door and with a look in her eyes that would have scared an army of soul-less robots and she moved closer to Leo, laying a hand protectively on his shoulder.

"And mine," said Gábor, just as protective, which surprised his wife.

"Come in, Leo," Ivan gestured invitingly to an armchair not seriously thinking to get a response from Leo. "Let me look at you."

They all had congregated in the living room with the comfortable large sofa, two pieces of a couch, and a table with some flowers, magazines, nuts, and fruits in a bowl to snack on, which created a homey atmosphere. Ivan stood in front of the couch with Gábor, his glass in hand, from which he now took another gulp.

Even for him, Leo was a bit more than he had expected. Leo padded toward the seat on all four limbs and like water, for lack of a better word to describe his movement, flowed into the couch. He moved without a doubt like a large feline on the balls of his feet. Ivan stepped closer to Leo, and then reached his hand out to him as for a handshake, ready to pull it back if the lion decided to bite. Leo's canine teeth weren't very reassuring in spite of his peaceful appearance.

"You know me, I think. I don't really know you, but I want to know you better. I'm pleased to see you after all this time, Leo. You certainly have grown a lot. I'm happy to see you close up now. How are you?"

Leo looked at Ivan's outstretched hand for a long time and then, like a cat, extended his forearm towards him. Ivan took his paw carefully into his hands. And then like a bomb someone dropped unexpectedly, they all heard a throaty sound that sounded like okay with an ‘R'.

"Rogay," Leo purred. It came out as if he growled.

Ivan was not sure if the sound he heard was ‘Okay' or just some purring of a cat sounding like ‘Okay' and he squinted, his mind racing. Leo certainly appeared to be intelligent. His eyes looked alert and attentive. Ivan took a closer look at Leo's eyes and then realized; this was not a wild beast he faced.

To Gábor, it sounded like the purring or the growl of a large cat. Leo's voice had lost its kitten quality long ago and sounded like a grown lion and perhaps what might have sounded like ‘okay' was only an accidental response. If it was a response, it was difficult to understand, but one could get used to it. The extended paw/hand could have been accidental too. Ivan made a note to himself to focus on the sounds Leo made. Leo's paws or hands as they were, were that of a cat, but with dexterous fingers, longer and furry, with retractable claws, and soft pads.

Ivan looked at Leo's feet; very similar to that of a cat, long foot with short toes and the same retractable claws as on his paw-hands and heavy thighs above the knees, probably all covered with fur. The hands and feet would match the tracks he had seen near the house in the past and that solved the puzzle of what kind of animal could make them. Then he noticed Leo's tail sticking out through one of the pant legs. It looked thick, strong, and furry, like that of a cougar or a lion.

"Wow, I wish I had one like that," he said and pointed at it.

A nervous short laugh from Gábor and a rolling of Helena's eyes was the answer. Leo just looked at Ivan; his tail did a small, lazy sweep inside the wide pant leg.

"I think I saw him once in the woods but was not sure if I saw it right," Ivan said over his shoulder to Gábor. "I think he may have been hunting. He was like a shadow and fast."

Looking back at Leo he continued. "Now I see you, and I'm interested in getting to know you. Do you understand me? You should visit me sometimes. I could take you to my place if your parents allow, and we could go hunting together, hang out and get to know each other." Nobody expected a reply, the least Ivan.

"Know whirr you live," Leo replied. "You’re good hinderer."

That definitely sounded like a response and jolted them all. Leo's lips seemed to be frozen and didn't move much and his canine teeth seem to hinder his words, but with some effort Ivan understood them.

"Oh. You do talk. That’s great. I would feel honoured if you'd be my hunting companion and friend. Would you like that?" voiced Ivan just as surprised as Helena and Gábor, but appeared to understand Leo’s articulation.

"Deal," grumbled Leo.

"I knew it,” cried Helena. “You can talk. Since when? How do you know where Mr. Cherenkov lives?" her face aflame with excitement.

"See gong horn. Afters fishing. Feeding."

Helena's outburst made Ivan wonder whether this the first time she's heard Leo speaking. Didn’t she suspect Leo could be a sentient being?

"It's Ivan to you all if you please," he cut in.

It was the first time Leo ever ‘talked' to someone. Leo's parents were more than surprised that Ivan understood him, or they thought he did.

Baffled, Gábor heard only strangely familiar guttural sounds instead of ‘words,' while Helena wondered how Leo would know where Ivan lived, and if that really was what Leo had said. It was more than ten miles towards Gibson's Landing, and there was only one road leading there. She knew Leo wouldn’t use that. And when was he out alone long enough to go that far? Without thinking, she addressed Leo as she would a normal child, shocked at his reply at Ivan.

"How do you know where Ivan lives?" Helena corrected herself, not really expecting an intelligent answer from either one of them. Is Ivan inviting Leo to hang out together? Hunting? Leo couldn't possibly answer. He never did to anyone. Ridiculous. But he answered. She heard it with her own ears.

Gábor and Helena listened, shocked and with rapt interest to Ivan and Leo ‘talking.' Gábor still didn't get it. Helena paled and felt dizzy.

Helena stood corrected, her eyes wide open, in vivid contrast to Gábor's squinting. For a moment she was speechless. Gábor shook his head. What was going on? Leo's voice was a mix of rumbling, purring, and growling, and Ivan had to listen with great effort to understand and make sense of the sounds. It seemed easier for Helena, but he was lost.

"You can talk. Since when? Where and when did you learn to talk?  How?" Helena found her voice.

Leo answered his mother, "TV."

That blew Gábor's generalization about ‘TVidiots’ clear out of the water. Obviously, some things were useful if one applied common sense.

Excited Helena whirled to her husband, red blotches on her face.

"Gábor, he speaks. He answers. He is intelligent! I knew it," she wept. The new revelation left her breathless and she turned back to Leo.

"You saw Ivan? That is not possible. You were never away from the house more than three hours. It would have taken at least six or more getting there and back. And watching him cooking and taking the forest route? No way. And do you understand me? Why did you not speak to me before? Why now?"

She knew she was blabbering, but could not help it. It was too much. Helena covered her mouth and looked with trepidation at Leo. A flood of emotions choked her. Leo could communicate. Although she had always suspected that Leo was intelligent, she was astonished, and now she felt she had proof. This would change a lot between her husband, her child, and her. She was not aware of her tears. Leo's answer resembled a deep meowing growl.

"No need. You, Gávorrr, dink ni aninal. Dettrrr di-ing vet."

"What? Better a pet? Why? Why would you want us to believe you're not human?"

"No hunen," growled Leo. "Gat. Differrent."

Ivan observed the pronunciations of certain letters like ‘m', ‘b' and ‘p' Leo didn't or couldn't use, so he substituted with ‘d', ‘g', ‘v, or dropped a consonant altogether. Perhaps his mandibles and lips were unaccustomed to move in a way people could move their lips.

Helena stood in front of Leo, towering over him, shaking feverishly. She really believed Leo was conversing and told Gábor what she heard. Gábor shook his head again and said what he thought.

"I still can't make out a word of what he says, if those really are words, but I see you want to believe it."

In his view, his wife and his friend were losing their rational minds. Gábor wasn't convinced the rumbling sounds were words, but Helena wanted to believe that they were and that she understood them. She spent every day with Leo while he was at work and had time to be with him. Was it possible the purring, growls and rumblings actually were words? Dogs bark and make some variety of sounds; parakeets mimic human speech with great talent, but only if one really loves their pet or is off their rocker would they call it independent intelligence.

Gábor feared for his wife's sanity. He approached Helena, put his arm around her shoulder, and gently led her to the couch. He sat down beside her with his arm still holding her, and she leaned against him and cried, herself not knowing if they were tears of joy, relief, or despair.

Ivan still held Leo's paw, and Leo seemed to be looking at him as if wanting to be comforted. Leo said nothing and his father regarded his pet/son thoughtfully. He turned to his wife.

"Lena, if it is true he said he was at Ivan's place, I'd believe it. I've been with him in the woods and he outpaced me by far. He has more stamina than I do and that was last year. In the woods, he is unbeatable. He could easily make that distance to Ivan's house and back in two hours."

Helena just looked at Leo with a quizzical expression. Gábor was forty-nine now and in excellent shape. He practiced martial arts and had the sixth Dan in Jujutsu, a black belt in several other disciplines, taught archery and rode horses like a rodeo champion. He also held classes in Kenjutsu, a Japanese sword fighting discipline, and was superb in that. He awoke at five a.m. every day to jog eight kilometers, before going to work in Vancouver and Helena now wondered how Leo could outpace her husband.

"He is just five," Helena stated.

"Six in August," Gábor replied.

"He looks much older to me," mused Ivan. "You feed him well, Helena. What is it? Can't be growth hormones alone."

"Look you guys," interrupted Gábor, "I'm as surprised as you about Leo, but we have to talk about the plan. Let me ask you first, Ivan, how are you with your time schedule for the end of May? Do you have the time for a cruise in the South Pacific and perhaps live there for a while? Moreover, would you want to help? We will pay for your time and living expenses."

"What are you talking about? I want this assignment for me. Forget the payment. I have more than I can spend in this life."

"You don't live like that," remarked Gábor. "How do you make your money if you don't mind me asking?"

"I used to compete with the government in forbidden trade."

"Just the right person. Okay. Forget I asked. Are you in?"

Ivan's eyebrows shot up on his forehead.

"Is this a trick question or multiple choices? I'm bored out of my wits and getting older by the day, faster on Sundays. Never been in the South Pacific either. Sounds better than Vladivostok in Siberia. What's the plan?" Forgetting Leo for the moment, the two men engaged in serious talking. Gábor told him, and together they worked out all the details.

Leo seemed to follow the conversation for a little, while Helena shared the couch with him, stroking his fur and trying to engage him in a conversation, but Leo had apparently run out of things to say, curled up with his head in his mother's lap, purring while her eyes strayed over him. Her hopes that there was more intelligence in him than in an animal, soared to an all-time high.

Deep in her being she felt tremendous changes in the offing and surprises beyond imagination. Paying attention to her husband’s and Ivan's planning with one ear, she foresaw with dread, complications and upheavals in all of their lives but knew as well that the dark clouds had broken and a bright beam of light shone on a path ahead of them. Her son was more than just a caprice of nature of that she was certain now. He existed for a purpose.

The following day, they booked a cruise liner departing May 14 from San Francisco to the South Pacific. In the days leading up to the cruise, Leo and Ivan saw each other almost every day, and often Leo stayed at Ivan's place. He discarded all his clothes during those times and felt unencumbered and free. Most of the time he moved on all four limbs and only occasionally walked upright. In those instances, his moves were trying to imitate the walk of humans, but he still looked awkward.

Fishing together with Ivan was fun and Leo once fell into the water and almost drowned. Ivan jumped into the frigid water and dragged him back to the boat and decided to teach Leo to swim and found an apt student. He wasn't water-shy like cats tended to be; he loved it.

The second time Ivan had the chance, he threw Leo into the water and watched him struggle to stay afloat, but Leo caught on. It became a game, and Ivan's skills in swimming improved as well because Leo liked this game of tossing each other into the water and Ivan learned to appreciate Leo's strength. Their time together was perfect for Helena as well. Spring was always a busy time for her. People got active after the long winter months and injuries were common, plus her husband lost his morose attitude, the dark clouds were thinning and the sun came out.

Three days after Ivan's visit, Helena and Gábor had the house for themselves, and as soon as he was home from work, Helena wrapped herself around him. They romped around as if they were again on their honeymoon. She was excited and happy about Ivan's discovery of Leo's intelligence, at least they could communicate. Gábor's mood had lifted enormously and his outgoing nature resurfaced and that increased their sexual activity. They chased each other around the house, had play fights, laughed and cried and made love as if they just had met and would die tomorrow while Ivan spent time with Leo. They had agreed not to have another baby out of fear it might turn out like Leo, with limited intelligence, but now it was as if they wanted a child, regardless.

Part of their happiness was the relief that Leo wouldn't need to attend school with other children, but most of the joy they felt was over the fact that he wasn't an animal, as they had feared. Leo was with Ivan until the cruise date came up and he learned fast.

A week later, Leo was swimming like a fish. He and Ivan were inseparable, and Ajax, the dog, took second place. He was getting old and slept a lot, and it was getting harder for him to play with Leo, so this was a restful time for him.

Ivan also took the time to practice voice articulation with Leo, and if he first thought Leo only parroted words and perhaps had the intelligence of a three-year-old, he revised his thinking. More and more he realized that that was not the truth. Leo could think and reason at least like a human of fifteen years.

Concepts of maps and the use of a compass, an abstraction only humans could understand, Leo understood on the third day and applied them correctly when he oriented the map according to the lay of the land. When Leo showed interest in the charts, Ivan explained the symbols and the purpose of the grids on the globe he had in his house. To his surprise, Leo didn't need to be told anything twice and Ivan had to up-scale his assessment about Leo's mental ability.

Two days later, Leo corrected Ivan who stated New Zealand was a day behind the date in Canada instead of ahead, and his speaking skills had improved dramatically as well. Ivan had no problem understanding him, and Leo understood even when Ivan was not clear with his words as if Leo could read his mind. He talked with Gábor and Helena about his discovery but he wondered; how could his parents not have seen Leo's superior intelligence? Did Leo want to keep his intelligence a secret or was it just his nature not to reveal himself?

Leo was open with him and asked constantly about human relationships with their world and inquired about things and topics that were much more adult than any child would be interested asking. How was it possible his parents didn't clue in on that? It must have been that they were too close to the truth to see it.

He had frequently observed that of people in general, even about himself. It was a tendency of people that thought they knew everything already and couldn't accept facts and truth when it was slapping them in the face, the typical full cup that couldn't be filled.

Not that his friends were stupid, he knew they were above average, but he had also observed that highly intelligent people often overlooked the obvious in front of them. Their eyes fixed on the horizon they stumbled over their own feet. He reported to Helena and Gábor what he discovered.

That hit the Fabien's like another bomb and made their decision so much harder to follow through with their plan. Now they had to convince society that humans were not the only sentient beings in the Universe. If they ever thought that other beings were of a higher intelligence, humans would destroy them to maintain their sense of superiority. As the trio had found out, intelligence was not limited to human form, but the rest of humanity, in general, was a bit behind in that field.

This news had also started a huge change in their personal relationship. The blame they had hurled at each other stopped entirely and they forgave themselves and each other for the senseless accusations. Gábor especially realized his insensitive abandonment of his mate when she needed him the most. Too wrapped up in his own emotions and fears he had treated her like an abomination and it was Helena that tried lifting him out of his despair and self-hatred. Expressing her understanding of his fears and her own, they experienced liberation from their misery and anguish. Both apologized to each other and asked for forgiveness for their behaviour and words, then cried.

Helena and Gábor experienced a renaissance in their intimate relation and even if they would not have more children, Gábor vowed to pay attention to his wife's emotional and physical needs and in the process, it also took care of his. Acceptance of Leo's appearance poured in like water through a breached dam and it fanned their fervour for each other again like starving animals. Being on a pregnancy prevention system, they felt they had a lot of catching up to do and Gábor even skipped a few days from the clinic to be with his wife and both blossomed in their love. Even Ivan commented on that. He thought both of them looked vibrant and much younger and asked them what their secret was.

"Helena keeps me young," laughed Gábor. "She is chasing me around the house until I'm exhausted and give up."

"And that keeps you young?"

"What follows that does.”

Now Helena got ready for the trip and was nervous about the plot they had planned. It wasn't without risk, but Gábor assured her that Ivan had the knowledge to pull it off. The day of departure drew near and they settled in a kind of calm before the actual event. Holding each other after an exhausting intimate encounter Helena reviewed in her mind the necessary things they would take with them and shared her thoughts with her husband. Gábor supplemented with several suggestions how to disguise Leo and thought about Leo's alimentation while on the cruiser. It was Helena who normally did all the organizing of planned events and now she was pleased to see Gábor taking a real interest in the logistics of providing Leo with what he would need. After they made some notes on paper, she looked at him with a frisky glance.

"When you are done with your to-do list, do you think you could do me?"

"Now why do I have the feeling that you purposely want to sidetrack me from a very important task?"

"Maybe I think that a very important aspect of any operation is to keep the troops in good spirits. The troops must love their CO to perform a task well and I’m not ovulating."

"I can't argue with that," he replied, scooping up the screeching with laughter woman, carrying her into the bedroom and raised the ‘spirit' of his ‘troops' along with his own to a point of undying devotion.

An hour later they fell asleep exhausted and tightly embraced, happy with each other and the plan they had concocted. They slept peacefully until the dawn.