The Pilgrimage Ch. 04

Vanessa stood grabbing Morrigan's hand. "Come on Sis, let's dance!" She exclaimed.

"I don't know how to dance Vanessa," Morrigan replied.

Erin laughed and said, "Are you sure about that sweetie? You know, the goddess is pretty strict about the things she thinks a queen should know how to do. I bet she thinks dancing is one of those things. Go ahead, give it a try. What have you got to lose?"

"All right Mom, I'll try it," Morrigan sighed. "Besides, if I don't, I'll never hear the end of it," she grumbled. Once Morrigan got on the dance floor, she was shocked to realize she actually DID know how to dance. She was even more surprised to realize that it didn't matter the genre of the music. Her body responded naturally to the beat, and she danced in perfect sync with both the music and Vanessa.

Both girls were having such a great time dancing, talking with each other, laughing, enjoying the music, and reveling in their new found bond that they never noticed when Aileen and Kelli snuck back in the room with all their family members and bringing Mark, Rose, and Adam along as well. When Morrigan and Vanessa finally took a moment to look around them, they were surprised to see so many other couples dancing. They were even more surprised when they noticed Erin dancing with Mark. She was smiling, giggling, and toying with her long red tresses as she danced. It looked like she was having the time of her life.

Morrigan and Vanessa watched Erin as she danced with Mark. After a minute or so Vanessa said, "WOW! Look at Mom go! She can really dance! It looks like she's having a blast!"

"Yeah she is, and it's about time she had some fun! I can't remember ever seeing her look so happy! Mark's not wearing a wedding ring and I think they're about the same age. They're both having a great time and they look really good together. Mom's being very flirtatious, but she's not into one night stands, or casual sex. On the other hand, Mark's pretty cute for an older guy, and Mom's sending some really clear signals that she's interested in him. Who knows...maybe...just maybe..."Morrigan replied.

"They do make a really cute couple and Mom deserves to be happy. Let's just keep our fingers crossed and hope something good comes from it," Vanessa giggled.

Morrigan felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned her head and saw Megan and Kelli standing behind her with two teenage boys. Kelli grinned and said, "Morrigan, Vanessa, these are my little brothers Mike and Jake. Megan and I have been dancing with them but they've got two left feet. We were kinda hoping you two would do us a favor and take them off hands for a little while just to give our toes a break."

"Gee thanks Kelli, I love you too," Morrigan laughed. She turned to Vanessa and asked, "What do ya think Sis, should we help em out?"

Vanessa looked at the two teenage boys and said, "I don't know about that Sis. I kinda like my toes the way they are. She grinned then continued, "Still, they are kinda cute. I guess a few dances wouldn't hurt too much." She grabbed Mike's hand and said, "I'll take this one, but if he steps on my toes, I'll kick his ass."

Morrigan took Jake's hand and said, "I guess that means you're stuck with me. But just so you know, my toes are off limits too."

"Don't believe everything you hear Morrigan. Mike and I were stepping on Kelli and Megan's toes on purpose. We were hoping they'd get tired of it and ask you and Vanessa to dance with us to give their feet a rest. We really don't dance THAT bad," Jake laughed.

Morrigan shook her head and smiled. "You didn't have to bruise their toes. You could've just asked us to dance instead."

Jake grew serious. "No we couldn't Morrigan. You're our queen, Vanessa's your sister, and our crown princess. It wouldn't have been right to ask either of you two to dance without being properly introduced first. Mike's twenty and I'm nineteen but we both have old fashioned, traditional values. Besides that, my grandma's a high priestess of the goddess Danu. She would've kicked our butts if we had tried something as rude as asking either one of you to dance without a proper introduction," he chuckled.

"I can understand that Jake. I come from a traditional family background too. I like and respect your values. You seem like a really nice guy. I wish I had the time to get to know you. Unfortunately I don't, at least not right now. Maybe once we're all settled on Erie, I can find some time to have a personal life. But I can't even promise that at the moment. I can sense you're attracted to me Jake. But I can't go there anytime soon. All I can offer you are a few dances tonight, because tomorrow it's back to the real world for me. Don't think the attraction isn't mutual Jake, it is. But my life isn't my own right now. I hope you understand."

"I know you have a lot on or plate right now Morrigan and I suspect that things are gonna get worse before they get better. But that doesn't mean you can't have friends. You're our queen, and I realize you have a million and one things that you need to get done before we get to Erie. But that shouldn't preclude you from having some sort of a personal life. You're an incredibly beautiful girl, and I don't mean just physically. I mean spiritually as well. Your inner beauty lights up the whole room. Yes, I'm extremely attracted to you. But I also understand the situation you're in, and the constraints it places on your time. We were all given cell phones when we came aboard. There's a ship wide directory that contains all the contact information for everyone aboard the Arc. It's on the ship's main computer. If you decide you wanna stay in touch, look me up. I'd love to hear from you. Even if it's just a quick hello."

Morrigan smiled and said, "If I can find the time, I might just do that Jake. In the meantime, it's getting late and I have a full day tomorrow. So one more dance then I'll have to call it a night." After the dance, Morrigan hugged Jake. She kissed him softly and said, "Thank you for tonight, Jake. I had a great time."

"So did I Morrigan. It was a lot of fun. I hope we can do it again sometime," Jake replied.

As they walked back to their quarters, Vanessa noticed that Morrigan was really quiet. It seemed like her mind was a million miles away. She tapped Morrigan on the shoulder with a smile and said, "Penny for your thoughts Sis."

Morrigan smiled back and asked, "You got one?"

"Nope, guess I'll just have to owe it to you," Vanessa giggled.

"Okay, I'll put it on your tab. I was thinking about something Jake said while we were dancing. He told me that being a queen didn't mean I couldn't have a personal life as well. I know he's right, but the problem is where in the hell am I supposed to find the time? Today was a special day. I found a piece of me that I didn't even know was missing. We're like two sides of the same coin, Sis. We complete each other. I'm glad we had a little time to celebrate finding one another. But I don't see us having that kind of time to relax again anytime soon. We have about three weeks left before we reach Erie and there are just too many things that need to be done before we get there."

"I know what you mean, Sis. I had the same discussion with Mike. All I can say is we'll have to take things one day at a time and see what happens. I have a feeling that Mom's gonna make sure we take some time off whether we want to or not," Vanessa giggled.

"Yeah, you're probably right about that one," Morrigan laughed.

The next morning, Vanessa was woken by a soft kiss on her cheek and a pat on one of her scrumptious melon shaped ass cheeks. She opened her eyes to see Morrigan standing beside their bed dressed in a pair of hip hugging, form fitting, skinny jeans, and a tube top that barely contained her huge tits. The top was cut low displaying a massive amount of cleavage and the thin fabric made Morrigan's thumb sized nipples look like they were gonna poke holes in the cloth. Her long fiery red tresses were topped with her golden jeweled tiara and ran in a single French braid down her back. A pair of four inch 'fuck me' pumps showed off Morrigan's long legs and highlighted her delectable heart shaped ass, completing her outfit.

Vanessa smiled sleepily and said, "My gods, Sis. How in the hell do you do that? I'm not even fully awake yet. But you're already dressed and looking so damn hot that you almost make me wanna fuck you myself."

"Only almost? Guess I'll have to try a little harder tomorrow," Morrigan giggled. "I've been up for over an hour. Aileen Kelli and Ashling are already at the kitchen table along with the goddesses Banba, Brigid, and Danu. Megan's not here yet. But she's on her way. You have time for a shower as long as you make it a quick one. There's a bathrobe on the back of the chair you can use for now. Don't worry about clothes. The Goddess Banba will take care of that for you after breakfast." Morrigan bent down giving Vanessa another kiss on the cheek. "Get your sexy ass out of bed. We've got a lot to do today Sis."

Vanessa giggled and said, "Yes ma'am," as Morrigan spun on her heels and walked away.

Megan and Vanessa walked into the kitchen at the same time. Megan smiled at Vanessa and said, "Good morning Your Highness. I hope you slept well."

Vanessa laughed softly then replied, "Actually it was the first good night's sleep I've had in years. I haven't felt so safe and loved since my mother's murder. But could you please do me a favor Megan? I know that once I walk out that door all I'm gonna hear is yes Princess, no your highness, blah, blah, blah. I realize that being a princess is something that I'm stuck with for the rest of my life. I also understand that such formalities are gonna be a facet of my everyday life from now on. It comes with the territory, so I guess I'm gonna have to learn to accept it. But at least while we're in here, can you PLEASE just call me Vanessa?"

"Sure, I can do that. I can even use your given name when we're in staff meetings if you like. However, whenever we're in public together, formalities are a necessary evil."

Morrigan spoke up. "Speaking of staff meetings, Megan, I need status reports. Could you please call everyone together and have them meet us in the conference room in about an hour?"

"I kinda figured that's how you'd wanna start your day. I've already asked everyone to meet us in the conference room at 0900. I know that's not quite an hour from now, but it still should give us plenty of time to eat breakfast and get ready for the day. I hope you don't mind but I've asked Kelli's two brothers Mike and Jake, along with my favorite cousin Caroline to join us.

Mike's always been concerned about the environment and pollution. He was studying environmental science at the university before things went south back on Earth. He's volunteering to give you advice about the effects projects may have on the environment. He talked to Danu last night and asked her to be his patron goddess so that he could always give you the best advice possible.

I realize that Jake's only nineteen, but like you, he's very mature for his age. As you saw last night, he's also very good with people. You're gonna need a communications specialist, because once we arrive on Erie, you're gonna be busy governing and you won't always have time to talk directly to your people. It's your decision to make, but I think Jake's perfect for the job. The more he learns about how you think now, the more effective he'll be if you decide he's the right person to take on that role. He's asked Brigid to be his patron and guide because he wants to make sure he can do the job right.

More than half the souls on this Arc are children and young teens, you're gonna need to develop some kind of a plan for educating them. Caroline has a PHD in education from Harvard University. She's volunteering to help you in any way she can. Her last name is McGinty and although Caroline's as Irish as you and I, Freya's been Caroline's patron goddess since Caroline was about thirteen years old. I'm not sure exactly how that came about, but diversifying your leadership team by including people who have different patron gods and goddesses definitely couldn't hurt, and Caroline's certainly qualified to help you create an education plan.

I hope I haven't overstepped my boundaries, but I think that part of my job as your PA is finding qualified people who can help you with some of the things you need to get done. The whole idea is to take some of the load off your shoulders and make your life a little easier. I know I should've talked to you about this ahead of time. But it all happened shortly after you and Vanessa left the party last night. This is the first chance I've had to talk to you since then. So if any of it's a problem, just let me know and I'll send them on their merry way."

"Nah, you're not out of line Meg. I really appreciate everything you've done. You're right, we do need some kind of an educational system. Caroline's gonna be a definite asset in that area. But if Jake and Mike think they're gonna use this just as an excuse to get close to Vanessa and myself, that's not gonna work. Vanessa and I have made it perfectly clear to both Jake and Mike that neither one of us has the time to even think about a relationship right now. If they're actually gonna be there to work that's fine. But if they're gonna waste time trying to flirt with Vanessa or me, it's gonna be a major problem."

Kelli spoke up. "Trust me Morrigan, that's not gonna be a problem. My grandmother knows that both Mike and Jake are gonna offer to help you. She's already told them if they get out of line even once, they'll answer to her. Believe me, my gram's one woman they'd never dare to cross. Especially now that she looks and feels forty years younger. They both know she'd kick their butts if they did. They're both old enough and mature enough to know the difference between work and play time. Although, I will say that I believe spending time with you and Vanessa did play a part in their decision making process. I can promise you that neither one of them would ever disrespect you or Vanessa by trying to flirt with either of you while you're working."

Vanessa looked at Morrigan and cocked an eyebrow. When Morrigan gave a slight nod, Vanessa turned to Kelli and said, "It sounds to me like you and Megan have been talking to Mom and the rest of our family. Everyone wants Morrigan and me to have a social life, we get that. But all of you have to realize that we're responsible for the lives of over five million people. Our duty to them absolutely HAS to come first. If we have time, and we're not drained physically, or emotionally, we MAY take some time to socialize. Your brothers need to understand that Morrigan and I set the pace. If we decide to do any socializing, it will be at a time and place of our choosing. My first order as a Princess is to you Kelli. You will be responsible for making sure that both of your brothers understand and adhere to these and any other ground rules we may set in the future. Morrigan and I will NOT tolerate any pressure from either of them to the contrary."

At first both Megan and Kelli were taken by surprise at the forcefulness of Vanessa's statement. Then a slow grin spread across their faces and Kelli replied, "WOW! You're really beginning to come into your own as a princess, Vanessa. I'm really proud of you! I'll make sure Mike and Jake behave themselves, that's a promise. You're right, Megan and I have been talking to your mom, and to some of your other family members. We know that you and Morrigan are under a lot of pressure and that your stress levels are sky high. We're just trying to present you with opportunities to have a little fun, and to blow off some steam once in a while. After all, happy rulers make for happy people."

Vanessa nodded her head and said, "As I said Kelli, we get it, we really do. If and when we're in the mood to have some fun, we will. In the meantime, you and Megan need to tell everyone to back off and let us do our jobs, okay?"

Morrigan kissed Vanessa's cheek. "Well said Sis! You did great! I couldn't have said it any better. Now it's time to get you dressed. I want you to wear your tiara any time you're in public and I think you should also wear your cape for the next week or so just to give people a chance to get used to seeing you. Other than that, just let our goddess know what you wanna wear and she'll take care of it for you."

Vanessa turned grabbing both of Morrigan's cheeks. She pulled Morrigan's face to hers giving Morrigan a full blown kiss on the lips. Morrigan's eyes widened with surprise as Vanessa slipped her tongue into Morrigan's mouth her tongue momentarily wrestling with Morrigan's. Vanessa pulled back giggling as a stunned Morrigan struggled to catch her breath.

Everyone laughed and Megan nearly choked on her coffee with mirth when Vanessa smirked and said, "Yeah, I suppose you're right Sis, duty calls." She turned to the Goddess Banba and said, "My Goddess, Today's my first real day as a princess. I think that in addition to my cape and tiara, I should dress a bit on the formal side. But I do so want to show off this fantastic new body you've given me. So how about a skin tight, backless little black dress that's cut wide and low in the front to about my belly button and hangs about three inches below the cheeks of my hot little ass. A pair of black pumps with four inch heals would complement the dress perfectly."

The Goddess Banba smiled and said, "Ummm, very good choice, My Child. I like how you think!" As the dress and pumps appeared on Vanessa's body, the Goddess Banba continued speaking, "You look fantastic! That dress highlights your every curve. Any man that sees you today is gonna cum in their pants just from looking at you. Let's add your cape and tiara then some smoky gray eye shadow, a little light blush to your cheeks, and some shiny pink lip gloss. WOW, now that's HOT! You look exactly the way a princess should look!"

Vanessa twirled doing a full three sixty then said, "The dress fits great, My Goddess, but I think it needs to be about an inch shorter. It still covers a bit too much. I want it to show everything when I bend over, cross my legs, or twirl around. I'm in a good mood today and I want to show it by teasing everyone."

The Goddess Banba grinned and said, "I think that's a great idea, my child! Modesty is simply a false premise created by insecure men to help them control women. It's time to shatter that supposition and show everyone that a woman's body is truly hers to do with as she pleases."

"I hadn't really thought about it quite that way, but you're right, My Goddess. We're creating a whole new human society. One specifically intended to be led by women. So naturally most, if not all, of the old boundaries will have to be tossed out and new ones instilled in their place," Vanessa replied with a smile.

"We can continue this conversation another time. Right now we've got work to do. So let's to get our butts to the conference room," Morrigan said as she stood.

When Morrigan and Vanessa walked into the conference room, there was a moment of stunned silence. Mike rolled his eyes, shook his head, then looked down at the table with a grimace. Vanessa put her hands on her hips, cocked her head to the side, frowned and said, "What's the matter Mike? Don't you like my dress?"

"No... I mean yeah... I mean... oh forget it, just skip it. Okay? I don't wanna talk about it."

"No, it's not okay," Vanessa replied. "If you've got something to say Mike, then say it."

"Okay, but you're not gonna like it," Mike said. "That dress... it um...well it kinda makes you look slutty."

"Hmm, I see. Thank you Mike, I'll take that as a compliment. That's exactly the effect I was trying for. See, I want to make sure you, and every other man aboard this Arc understands that from now on..." Vanessa pulled the sides of her dress open causing her succulent tits to be on full display. "...every woman's pretty titties..." She spun around, bent over flipping the hem of her dress onto her back, and giving her magnificent ass a smack. "...their sexy little asses..." Vanessa spread her legs wider causing her puffy pussy lips to stick out even more. She used her thumb and forefinger to open her labia then continued as she looked at Mike from between her legs, "their tight, juicy, little pussies belong to them and nobody else."