The Bane of Existence

Published: 19 Jul 2021

As the darkness deepened, Zane, Zander and their friends settled around one of several large fires scattered around the field where they had eaten. Light conversations continued buzzing among all those present with a few wandering from fire to fire visiting with different friends and sometimes making new ones.

Zander sat on the ground with his back leaned against a light gray boulder with Zane sitting between his legs with his back on Zander’s chest. They relaxed there, occasionally conversing with someone or several people who had wandered over to meet them and speak for a moment or two. This continued for several minutes.

Finally there was a break in the stream of people stopping by to speak with the two Z’s. During this lull Zane looked around checking on all his people. Brigit, along with Drew and Karl, was of course with Sean being introduced to the others in his inner circle. Grayson sat alone but his eyes followed Brigit everywhere she moved. Marko and Zach stood somewhat together nearby chatting with a small group of young druids and druidesses. Derek was seated on a log very close to a pretty young druidess and their conversation seemed to be getting quite intimate. Radesh and Rogan were of course close by and barely answering the questions posed to them by various people as they wandered around the gathering. Their attention was centered on checking each and every being in the area for potential threats to Zane and Zander.

Not long afterwards Rinaldo’s Child and Sanhain’s Son heard the click of cases being opened followed by strings being plucked as they were tuned. Here and there around the gathering a guitar would strum a small sequence of chords or a violin hummed a short little diddy. Once in a while there would be a duet or trio that ran through a quick melody as the musicians got warmed up. A few times the stringed instruments were joined by a horned instrument: flute, penny whistle or hornpipe.

After a little while of this a guitar struck up a wistful melody that caught Zane’s attention then it ended just as quickly as it had begun. The instruments were silent for a moment as several of the musicians had a muted discussion. When it ended they seemed to come to an agreement and there was another pause in any sound being made.

Next to be heard were the strums of a couple of guitar chords followed by a haunting melody being picked on the strings. Zane listened for a couple of seconds then rose, turned and offered his hand to Zander. He allowed himself to be pulled to his feet by his boyfriend and lover. Zane wrapped his arms around the taller boy’s waist while Zander enfolded the blond’s shoulders with his arm. Together they began a slow swaying and rotating to the rhythm of the soulful music.

Listen to Red Wine by Mannheim Steamroller on YouTube.

Those close by watched spellbound at the peaceful contentment on the faces of the two dancers for a small bit before a few other couples started to join them. First, Grayson extended an invitation to Brigit who accepted with a smile. Drew grinned at the sight and turned to find a matching grin on his husband’s face and they rose and hand in hand began their own version of the dance.

With a slight blush Derek managed to solicit a dance from a very pretty young druidess who had been standing at the next over fire. At first he was a bit awkward but soon was so involved in the music that he forgot there was anyone present except for the girl in his arms.

Marko also got involved by asking one of the younger witches for a dance and it was granted. Being older and a vampire he had a much smoother entry into the dancing than the younger Derek.

Rogan and Radesh chose to watch since they took their duty to guard Rinaldo’s Child very seriously and didn’t fully trust all the different magic-users surrounding them. But anyone who knew them well could tell they would have loved to be a part of the group swaying and turning to the melody.

Seeing most of their friends also twirling around the fires caused the Z’s contentment to increase exponentially and to feel quite light on their feet. Unbeknownst to them or any of the people around them the two lovers were no longer touching the ground but danced hovering a few inches above the ground. Zane sighed and tried to burrow even closer to Zander than he already was.

As the music continued the two lovers’ spirits became more entwined and they rose higher into the air. Soon they were about three feet up and a few of the other dancers began to notice. It wasn’t long before Grayson and Brigit along with Drew and Karl were also dancing mid-air.

Another one of the group that was absent from the dancing was Zach who listened attentively to the melody before pulling a metal hornpipe from his pack. When the melody reached an end and was about to start over Zach joined the sound of his horn with all the strings involved. By the chorus a few other horned instruments had also joined the song.

With the music soaring higher so did the dancers with Zane and Zander being the highest ones of all. At the height of the song they rose higher than the bonfires around them and were so in tune with one another that they hardly knew anyone else was even present.

Zane could hardly believe how great it was to hold his lover close while swirling to the music rising from below them. He could not remember ever feeling so content, peaceful and loved as he did right then. Moving slightly he glanced up to find Zander looking at him with the same look of contentment, peace and being loved that Zane felt coursing through his body. The two smiled gently at one another before Zane lowered his head back to Zander’s chest and their dance resumed.

The entire song lasted just under five minutes but it felt like an eternity to the two Z’s who had been running almost non-stop since the war had started. As it wound down the dancers began to descend slowly to the ground. The last few strains of the melody were played only by a horned instrument and the members of the group were surprised and pleased to find that it was Zach who ended the evocative song they had all enjoyed.

A stillness and quiet surrounded the area after the song’s last note slipped away into the night. No one spoke or even moved as the dancers still held tight to their partners. They all felt at peace and didn’t want the atmosphere to change.

A few sighs were released but they weren’t enough to dispel the peacefulness that had settled around them. Moving at the same time Zane lifted his head as Zander lowered his and the two kissed deeply pulling each other as close as possible. The other two couples of their group were similarly involved.

Marko and Derek hugged their partners tightly then gave a very chaste kiss on their cheeks which were returned by the girls. Zach quietly slipped his hornpipe back into his pack and relaxed watching his brothers and friends.

Zane and Zander made out for a couple of minutes before finally pulling apart to take a breath. Just as they separated a scream rent the night and the ambience created by the song.

“Attack! We’re being attacked!”

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