"I--I'm sorry, Robert. I need time."

He'd been about to kiss me just then, that red, luscious mouth about to cover mine, draw me in, drown me in its sweetness. It'd taken all my will, but I'd forced myself to speak the words. Robert's blue-gray eyes went wide for a moment. He stood, looking lost, lonely...then his crimson mouth formed a thin line.

"Fine. Sure, whatever you want, Si." He turned away, sighing, but not before I saw the sadness in his eyes. "It's your choice. "I--I'd hoped..." Robert's voice trembled. He sighed again, unable to finish.

Just then I thought I saw his shoulders shaking. I wanted to pull him to me, but I knew what would happen. I forced myself to keep my hands in my coat pockets, even when the wind threatened to pull the hat from my head.

"I--I'll see you in two weeks, Robert. I can promise you that much."

"Go, Simon." His voice was cool, almost glacial. "I'll see you in two weeks." His eyes still held a hint of pain.

On impulse, I stood before him and touched my lips to his. The mouth that only the night before had been hot and wet, reducing me to whimpering pleas. Now it was so cold, so unresponsive, it may as well have belonged to a sculpture.

"Goodbye Robert." I turned and walked away, not looking back once. My eyes stung, watered a little.

"Just the wind. Yeah that's it."

*****************************************************

For the next several days I didn't do much of anything. I drank, played my bass (deep, moody chords that Carol described as 'perfect for the next funeral album') mope around, and sleep. I missed Robert more than I wanted to admit, even more than when we'd parted before. Being intimate with him had deepend our friendship to a level where...where what? I pushed the thought firmly aside.

Later that night Carol and I got into a row about the lack of attention I'd been giving her. I'd tried, I really had. But when I closed my eyes, all I could see was a wild mass of dark hair and blue-gray eyes. Beautiful eyes, full of dark promise. Furious with Robert, myself, and her, I stormed out of the house.

I wandered down the street to the pub Robert and I frequented. Not the best place considering I was trying to forget him. 'It'll only bug me for a bit,' I thought as I pushed open the door. 'I'll get totally ripped, and then it won't matter anymore.'

The pub was warm and and welcoming. The regulars waved hello; I waved back as I made my way to the back table Robert and I shared. I got some odd looks: I knew they were wondering where he was. I stopped in my tracks at the sight that greeted me there.

He was tall and lanky, dressed like Lord Byron and nearly as wicked looking: black trousers tucked into knee high leather boots, a white shirt worn loosely belted. Something glittered on his hand but I couldn't make it out. An elegant long coat in what almost looked like black velvet was casually tossed across the back of the booth. It flowed over the leather like an onyx waterfall: I had a sudden insane urge to touch it.

He stared into his mug of...something as if it held great wisdom, his thick dark hair falling around his face. I wasn't too thrilled to see someone sitting at my booth--*Robert's* and mine. I turned to go...I didn't want company at the moment. Suddenly he looked up, and I gasped. "Care to join me? I could use the company, yes."

I tried to say no, but my mouth couldn't form the words. 'Fanboy,' my mind sneered. We got mobbed by them often, especially Robert. But the thought quickly faded. He looked just like me. The same dark eyes, the shoulder length hair in a wild mane, the mouth...that incredible mouth...I shivered. What was I thinking? Except for Robert, I didn't find men at all fascinating. I wanted to say no. But I found myself saying "Sure. I could use... a little company myself." I sat down across from him, amazed at his beauty--he *was* beautiful, and not just because he looked like me--and at myself for my reactions.

"What will you take?" he asked me.

'*You*', I almost said, and bit down hard on my lip to hold it in. He seemed amused, as if he'd seen my thought in my eyes. The stranger had a powerful allure, and I wasn't the only one who'd noticed--the servers, both male and female, had a tendency to stare as they rushed about from table to table. One young lady nearly collided with another as they passed us.

Finally I said, "Ummm....lager. Thanks. I'm Simon." "Izdreth." He took my extended hand. His was soft, almost silken. The feel of it sent a deep shudder through me, a feeling usually only Robert could stir. Shaking his hand, I saw that the glittering object on it was a bracelet. I'd never seen the like: it was shaped like a spider, the legs curving around his wrist to form a delicate silver band. The spider's body was a large black gem, deep blue fire flashing within. A chain led from between the spider's fangs to a ring on his middle finger, set with a smaller version of the gem. I stared, entranced with its darksome beauty.

"I-Izdreth?" I rolled the syllables around my mouth and decided I liked them. "That's an unusual name. In a good way." He smiled, making my head swim pleasantly. 'A new way to get drunk,' I decided. 'Let Izdreth smile at me.'

"You like my bracelet, yes?" When I nodded he said, "My...teacher gave it to me. He and I are yet very close."

I was about to ask him something else on the subject, but he said, "You wished for a lager. Are you native to this town, Simon?"

"Not really." What *was* that accent? It was almost a mix of French and Southern American. It was...a sexy, husky voice. I could listen to him all day. "My bandmates and I have a house we rent when we're working on new material, not far from the village." I felt at ease telling him this...don't ask me how. Whoever he was, for all he looked like me, eyeliner and all, Izdreth was not a fanboy.

"Ahh, I see." He waved a server over. He ordered for us both, two lagers. The whole time her eyes kept darting back and forth between us. When she finally departed, Izdreth and I laughed.

"She must have thought she was seeing double!" I said. He nodded.

"Indeed. So, Simon...you are a musician then?"

"Yes." I told him about the band. Not a lot, just enough to answer his questions. He was satisfied (by my answers, anyway) when the lager finally arrived.

"Most interesting. I've...always enjoyed the company of creative types." His sipped his lager, those eyes dark, almost smoky, and I knew he wanted me too. I swallowed my lager, wincing at the lump it made as it went down. Izdreth was terribly intriguing...and maybe he was just what I needed to keep my mind from Robert. 'Besides,' I thought, eyeing him through narrowed eyes. 'It'd be almost like fucking myself but ever so much more fun!'

Now where had *that* come from? I almost never found men attractive, as I've said. I sighed. This was only making things worse. It all led back to Robert.

"You sigh. Would you want to talk of it?" Izdreth's brown eyes held deep concern. No, not brown. Black, like a raven's wing, with little flashes of gold, green, and magenta. Beautiful eyes. His hair held the same tones. I wanted to say no.

"Yeah. But not here....it's--" I paused, licking my lips as Robert often did. 'Robert...please, stop haunting me!' "...it's deeply personal. I don't want the others to hear. Maybe we could...go for a walk?"

His full mouth curved into a smile. "A walk...yes. If that's what you'd like." His tone left me no doubt as to where this was headed. I knew it too, and for some reason, I didn't mind a bit. Izdreth knocked back the last of his lager and stood up. He tossed several pounds atop the table then slipped on his floor length coat--it was indeed black velvet. "Shall we then?" He smiled again, a look that went straight to the groin. 'What am I getting myself into?' I decided I didn't care. I threw on my own coat and followed him out.

******************************************************

We walked down the road leading north out of the village for quite some time, neither of us speaking. It was early evening, so no one was about.

"I'm not sure how to say this..." I began.

"Take your time. I will listen, yes."

I kicked a stone out of my path; it landed in the gutter. "One of...my bandmates and I. We've been best mates for almost ten years. A few months ago...something...something happened."

"You became lovers as well." I looked at him, startled. "How--how did you..."

Izdreth smiled. "I've paid close attention to how you act and speak, and coupled it with your words."

What could I say? He was right, damn him. "There's more..."

Izdreth nodded. "I guessed as much, yes. I hope you don't consider this a bit much, but I would think you'd be more at ease in comfortable surroundings, if you wish to discuss it, that is."

"Yes...yes I do....this has been going for months and I can't share it with anyone." I didn't know how or why I could trust him, but I did. There was something strange, maybe even a little alien about him, but I knew it was safe to tell him.

"All right then. My flat isn't very far from here, and I have something you might enjoy trying." 'Is it *you*?' I nearly blurted. Izdreth favored me with a slow, sensual smile, as if to say 'Yes....and anything else you'd like to try.' I was very glad my coat was long enough to cover the growing bulge in my pants as I followed him down the street.

A few minutes later, Izdreth opened the door to a small but very nice flat. Surprisingly, there was very little in the way of furniture, mostly low tables and lots of cushions. "You can have a *lot* of fun in here," I thought. Before I could stop myself erotic images flooded my mind: Izdreth and I kissing, tongues here, lips there, slowly peeling each other's clothes off, the look of ecstasy on his face as I slowly went down on him...

I shook my head to clear it. I hadn't even once thought of Robert during that wicked little fantasy; I didn't know whether to feel good about that or not.

"Please, sit down wherever you like," my host called from the kitchen. "I'll bring this out in a moment." I did as Izdreth asked, propping myself against a sturdy looking chest. I caught the scent of incense and maybe sage in the room as well; I wondered if he smoked pot at all. Speaking of such, I did need a cigarette.

"Mind if I smoke?" I called out.

"Not at all, no." Izdreth returned to the room bearing a bottle of some blue-black liquor and two glasses. He was barefoot, but otherwise clothed. Good. I wanted to undress him myself. 'You're losing it, Gallup,' I told myself. 'Definately losing it.' I fished a cigarette out of my half full pack and lit it. Izdreth watched me blow the smoke from the lips and smiled.

"You will like this," he told me, smiling as he settled down onto a nearby cushion. His movements were incredibly grasceful, almost catlike. My groin tightened again.

"What is it?" He poured a small amount into a glass and handed it to me.

"It's blackjack,' he said, pouring some for himself. "The finest available." I took a sniff--it smelled of blackberries and cinnamon, sweet and spicy. I took a cautious sip; the taste seemed to explode over my tongue. It was very strong, but very tasty. "You like?" Izdreth asked, lighting a cigarette of his own.

"Oh, very much! Blackjack you say? Where'd you get it?"

Izdreth gave me a mysterious smile. "It's very difficult to get," he explained. But we didn't come here to discuss the contents of my liquor cabinet." He peered at me over the rim of his glass as he sipped.

"R-right. Well, this is how it's been..." And so I explained everything that had beeen happening for the past four and a half months between Robert and I. Everything. I was amazed out how easily I told him all this...I just felt as if I could trust him with my very being. The whole time Izdreth paid close attention, occasionally puffing his cigarette and sipping his drink, nodding. "And so...this is where we are now. I asked for some time away." I struggled to form the words as the memory of Robert's beautiful eyes full of pain returned to me. "As for the past several days, all I've done is brood. And then tonight my wife and I had a major row... which is why I was at the pub."

"You went...hoping you'd find Robert, yes?" His iridescent (was that the right word? I decided it was) eyes fixed me in place; I couldn't turn away.

"Yes...yes I did. I was too...afraid to approach him at the house, at least for starters..."

"And then you saw me."

"Yes...yes I did. And my first thought was that you were some kind of fan boy and--" My words were cut off when Izdreth leaned across the space between us and filled it with a lingering kiss. His lips were smooth and warm, almost like velvet, his mouth sweet and smoky as his tongue slipped past my lips to play with mine. I moaned softly, then louder as his hands stroked my hair then tangled into it, the kiss deepening. I thought of Carol. That couldn't stop me. I thought of Robert...oh Robert, forgive me! my heart cried out, and I gave myself over fully.

I sucked Izdreth's tongue fully into my mouth, biting at it gently as he moaned with pleasure, one arm curving around my back. Izdreth chuckled in his throat then toppled back amongst the cushions, pulling me with him. I landed atop him, my already engorged member hard against his taut stomach.

"This is how you want it then?" I panted at him. I couldn't tear my eyes from his face: it was lightly sheened with passion, full lips parted, eyes dark and hazy. Beautiful...

He smiled up at me, reaching up to push the hair from my face. "For now, yes," he purred, then bent his head to lick at the pulse in my throat.

"Ahh...what...what if I won't surrender?" I said, only half teasing.

His wicked chuckle sent a shiver of delighted fear down my spine. "You'll find I'm more than capable of asserting myself, yes." He drew me down for another kiss. He drowned me in kisses, made me drunk with them. 'Huh, Simon, you're already drunk,' the mind-voice told me. I blew it off and kissed him again, our tongues sliding over each other, hands caressing.

Finally I tore my mouth from Izdreth's, panting. "I can't...oh god...catch my...ohhh!" Izdreth's tongue explored my ear before sliding down along the veins in my neck. I whimpered softly, remembering that first night, how Robert had done this then..."Ohhh!" Izdreth's teeth felt unusually, suddenly sharp against my neck, shocking me out of my delighted haze. My eyes flew open, and for one insane instant, I thought I saw...

'No, Simon. You did not see that. Izdreth has no more legs than you...'

"What is it, love?" he asked, eyes concerned. "I bit too hard?"

"N-no...just startled me a bit is all." How could I explain what I thought I saw? It had to be the blackjack. Izdreth smiled, his hands slowly stroking down my back to grab my hips firmly, just as I liked. I moaned, grinding myself with obscene slowness against his hardness, relishing his own gasp of pleasure.

"Twould seem you are recovering from your fright quickly, yes..." he purred up at me, then drew me down to kiss me again. We kissed in a frenzy of desire and fondling hands, groaning, rolling about on the cushions and the floor. When I tried pinning Izdreth firmly in place with my body, holding his wrists to the floor, I suddenly found myself in the same position, looking up at *him* as he straddled my waist.

"How--what--?"

How could he have moved so fast? I'd barely had time to react, and I was hardly slow. My heart pounded with excited fear as he said, "I told you, Simon. I am very capable of asserting my dominance if I feel like it, yes." He cut off my protest with a langorous kiss that seemed to go on forever. 'Kiss me into submission,' I thought dreamily, returning his kisses with fevered abandon, moaning as he thrust against my now painfully hard cock. I wanted that mouth elsewhere...everywhere. As if sensing my desire, Izdreth pulled me into a sitting position. Straddling my thighs now, he smiled saying, "Let's get some of these things off you, shall we?"

"Yes..." I reached for the buttons on his collar, but he pushed my hands aside.

"Not yet. It's not time for that yet."

"But--"

"Hush. Or I'll stop doing this..." I gave a keening whimper as his fingers firmly stroked me through my leather trousers. It seemed I could feel his fingers caressing every vein, every ridge; the sensations were almost enough to send me over right there. With his other hand Izdreth deftly unbuttoned my shirt then tossed it aside, his hand working its magic the whole time, keeping me hovering on the very edge of agony and ecstasy.

"God...oh god...it's...oh my god...Izdreth...ohhh!"

He'd buried his face in my chest, nuzzling the hair before flicking his tongue in a teasing circle around my nipple. I squirmed against him, moaning, delirious with lust, crying out as his teeth bit down with gentle firmness. His tongue flicked rapidly over my hard nipple, his fingers pinching at the other. They squeezed with sudden firmness, sending a shock of pain and plasure through me. "Ahh! Izdreth..." He replaced his mouth with his other hand, pinching down again. I protested the loss of his hand on my hungry cock, but he hushed me. "Tell me when you feel nothing," he comanded softly, and curious to see the effect it would have I nodded.

Izdreth bit down gently on my lower lip before kissing me once more, his tongue running lightly over my teeth before darting inside. The pain in my nipples faded to a dull numbness.

"Izdreth...now..." I panted. He smiled, then suddenly released them. The resulting bolt of ecstasy nearly sent me over right there. I cried out, writhing against him as he planted sharp, biting kisses along my throat and shoulders. Still kissing me, he pushed me back amongst the cushions once more. One hand twined into my hair as the other slowly caressed its way down over my chest, my belly...

I sobbed against his mouth as I felt my zipper being pulled down, then bucked savagely against his hand as it brushed teasingly over my exposed shaft. God, I wanted him--all of him. Izdreth punished my eagerness with a sharp nip to my shoulder.

"Behave, sweetness," he purred, his throaty tones sending another shudder through me. With preternatural grace he slithered down to kneel between my thighs. 'What *is* he?' my mind cried out. The sudden fear was pushed aside as Izdreth's tongue snaked out to lick away the glistening drops my cock offered to him.

I cried out in shocked delight, my hips aching to push into him, but his hands held me firmly pinned to the floor as his tongue swirled its way slowly down my flesh. "Izdreth...ahhh, god, yes!" His mouth devoured me with long, lush strokes, his tongue never ceasing, his hand fondling my balls. The combined caressing quickly reduced me to a writhing, whimpering wreck, my pleas filling the room.

"Iz--Izdreth...please...you're torturing me..."

He pulled his mouth away and looked up at me from under his hair, his iridescent eyes dark with lust. For a moment I thought he would stop tormenting me, give me what I ached for. Then slowly, he licked his lips, his tongue red and glistening against his--*Fangs?* I gasped, blinking, and they were gone. Any further thoughts I had on the subject disappeared in a white-hot frenzy of lust as he resumed his torment.

"Izdreth! You--you bastard--"

He chuckled. "Impatient, aren't we?" He rose up on his knees then. Without looking away from me, he slowly stripped off his shirt, revealing pale, silken skin. His trousers followed shortly after. He was slender but sleekly muscled, beautiful. I devoured him with my eyes, then my hands. We wound up kissing, caressing amongst the cushions once more, until finally, his mouth pulled me into its heated sweetness again. I cried out, shuddering in surprise, suddenly overcome by an urge of my own...

"Izdreth...I--I want you...I--"

"Yes, I know what you want, Simon...gladly." He shifted, turning so I could return the pleasure he was giving me. We lay on our sides, driving each other to a frenzy of lust with lips and hands and slithering tongues. Siamese twins, we writhed against each other's mouths, our cries and groans muffled by our hungry flesh. With wicked delight I sucked hard upon him, slowly torturing Izdreth, relishing his groan as I began to thrust, his nails digging deeply into my hips. After a moment he returned the favor, his hand slipped behind my balls, two of his fingers burying themselves deep inside me as I squirmed against his mouth.

There was no holding back, no teasing. We went at each other like starving animals, sucking and licking, our groans filling the room. I bit down on Izdreth's cock, relishing his surprised cry of pleasure as I alternated between nibbles and slow, lush sweeps of my tongue. My free hand stroked down his back and I jerked, startled...it felt like some sort of smooth, hard...almost like...no. His hips were soft, warm flesh under hand once again.

I forget about it completely as Izdreth's slender fingers found that place deep inside me, thrusting and rubbing, pushing me to an incredible orgasm. I shuddered against his mouth, my back trying to arch as wave after wave swept over me, my scream of ecstasy smothered by Izdreth's cock. It was all I could do to keep my mind on Izdreth's pleasure, but fortunately I'd had plenty of practice.

I knew he was close, and I kept going, pushing him to his own sweet death, and soon I was rewarded by his cry of rapture, his hips thrusting madly, one hand clasping my hips almost painfully.

"Si--Simon! Yess! Ahh, gods..." He shuddered one last time then lay still, gasping. We lay together for several moments, arms wrapped about each other. Suddenly Izdreth disentangled himself from my arms. He came up to face me, then kissed me deeply, we shared our taste with each other. "Mmm," he purred. "I knew it would be like this with you."

I wanted to say something, but I couldn't. Although my body was deliciously satisfied, my heart ached. I wanted Robert. Izdreth understood. "It's your friend, isn't it?" When I nodded, he said, "I know that more cannot be. You love him."

He was right--I did love him. That's what it had been all along. "I--I'm sorry..." I knew what this had been for Izdreth...I knew it on some deep, instinctive level that he was looking for more than a roll on the cushions. "I--" He cut me off with a gentle kiss.

"I want you to know something, Simon Gallup. There can be no shame where love is concerned. You have never been fully comfortable with the idea of his being your lover, have you?"

"Until now," I admitted.

Izdreth nodded, smiling in spite of the sadness in his eyes. "Go to him. I may not have what I've been looking for, but at least I've brought the two of you closer together."

It all fell strangely into place then. "What--what *are* you?" I asked, more amazed than horrified.

He only smiled, then kissed me. "It doesn't matter, love. Go to your friend, and hold him. Show him how you feel."

"Will I see you again?"

"When the time is right, you will, yes. You both will see me again. Now go, before I spin my web and keep you here forever."

"Both of us?" He hushed me with another kiss. "In due time. Mortals can be so impatient."

We shared a last kiss. 'Mortals?' I pushed the thought aside. Then I got dressed and headed for home...and Robert.

*******************************************************

"Where's Robert?" I asked a stunned Boris when I reached the house.

"He's in the garden--hey! Just where the fuck have you been?" I shrugged off his questions and went to the garden. Robert's jaw dropped when he saw me, joy and confusion lighting his eyes from within.

"We need to talk--" we said as one.