Amy and Willa Penderton were not identical twins but were similar enough to have spent most of their lives pretending otherwise by rocking the same clothes, sharing the same hairstyle, and even imitating each other’s voice when necessary to fool unsuspecting friends and family members. Despite their best efforts, their mother was the only person they had never tricked although they still hoped that would change one day.

Aged 20, the two girls were quite different personality-wise. Amy was the more introverted of the two and a genuinely good student who often passed on parties and late-night extravaganzas to get a couple of extra hours of study before going to bed, while Willa preferred to put herself out there and enjoy everything life had to offer before one day realizing those good times were never coming back again. During her teenage years, she went through a Gothic phase that had Lucy screaming at her for almost two months straight, and while that was long gone, Willa still used black as a fashion statement whenever she had the chance.

Both Amy and Willa had inherited their mother’s natural good looks with wavy hair, staggering eyes, and generous lips and breasts. They were always in demand on campus and out of it, with Amy’s shyness surprisingly contributing to her popularity more than expected. Many wanted to be their friends, yet the circle of those they actually trusted was quite small and that was unlikely to change. 

The outgoing daughter was the first to walk inside the mansion and also the first to realize something was different. Dorothy was nowhere to be seen and the always energetic Pitsky hadn’t come to greet them at all, instead remaining lethargic on the floor as if he had been struck by a terrible sleeping curse.

“Conan? What’s wrong with you, boy?” she crouched to rub his belly, but the four-legged companion offered no response.

“Let him be, sis. He’s probably tired,” Amy replied.

“Did you spend the whole morning running around the house, you rascal?” Willa insisted.

Under normal circumstances, the pup would have jumped at her chest, wagging his tail as if it were a nine-tailed whip before showering her face with kisses but he remained perfectly still, his heart beating slow and steady.

“Where’s Dorothy?” Amy asked.

“I was wondering the same thing. Hello? Dot, we’re home.”

A wave of silence washed over them, as strange as unexpected. No sounds emanated from any of the divisions of the majestic house, not even their mother’s office.

“Did everyone disappear or what?” Amy peeked into the main living room and then into the kitchen.

“I don’t know. Let me check upstairs.”

Willa left their pet lounging on the floor and headed straight into Lucy’s study whose door had been left partially open. A handful of colorful binders rested atop a circular mahogany desk alongside printed e-mails and other case materials she wasn’t supposed to look at. A name scribbled on the back of a piece of paper made her laugh but everything else left her with an impending feeling of dread. Her mother was far too organized to leave things scattered haphazardly. Something had happened in the house during the time they were gone and it didn’t smell good.

“Did you find anyone?” Amy asked from the bottom of the staircase.

“No. Mom’s not here and she left the doors unlocked. When was the last time you remember her doing anything like that?”

“Never.”

“Exactly. With Dorothy apparently gone missing and Conan looking like he was drugged or something, I’m starting to think the worse.” Willa left the office behind and rejoined her sister.

“Like what? A kidnapping?”

“I don’t, but none of this feels right.”

“Do you want to go check the security cameras to see if we pick up anything strange?”

“Not before we do a full sweep of the house. Have you checked outside yet?”

“No.”

“Then if you don’t mind... I’ll keep looking around here.”

“Okay. Keep your phone on the ready in case I find anything.”

“You too.”

The two girls separated once again, with Willa checking every nook and cranny on the inside while Amy headed to the outer gardens. Wherever they looked, the same unnerving and sepulchral quietness followed them as if the entire property had been shrouded by the inescapable embrace of death. Amy stopped to smell a patch of red roses and that’s when everything changed.

The sounds were coming from the grass maze, ecstatic moans, and screams intertwined with a gentle yet commanding voice demanding more and more. Amy grabbed her phone and called her sister.

“Meet me by the entrance of the maze, please,” she asked.

“Why? What’s going on?”

“Not sure yet but it’s best if we’re together to find out.”

“Okay. I’m on my way.”

Amy hung up and continued listening to the dissonant echoes reaching her ears. On one hand, it appeared as if someone was having too much fun out there but on the other, the sexual energy exuded was completely unbecoming. Willa felt the same, shuddering with the anticipation of what they could find in there.

“Is Mom in there?” she asked.

“It seems so, but who’s with her?”

“Maybe Jack came early from his business trip and they’re catching up,” Willa loosened the tension from her shoulders.

“I don’t see Mom doing it in the garden and there’s no way that’s his voice. I think she’s got some...” Amy cleared her throat not believing what was about to come out of her mouth. “... female company.”

“Oh, come on, she doesn’t swing both ways!”

“Not that we know of. What do you think? Should we head inside to find out right or do you want to wait until they stop?”

“Hmmm, I mean, waiting would be advised, but now you got me curious,” Willa mumbled. “I say we take a peek and the hell with it.”

“Agreed, but let’s keep quiet for now. This is bizarre!”

“Tell me about it...”

Willa took the lead and headed deep into the maze. She was so familiar with its corridors that she didn’t need any markers to know which path to take. As she and Amy approached the center, the pleasurable cries became louder and an alternate reality took precedence over everything they thought to be true.

Lucy lay on the table, down to her underwear, with her hands tied around her back by an invisible rope while a woman they had never seen before showed her how good she was at spanking needy bottoms. As her ass cheeks turned red from both pain and delight, Lucy begged,

“More, Mistress! Please!”

“You’ll need to speak louder, slut,” Marilyn grinned. “What do you want?”

“I’m all dirty on the inside. Please purge every inch of naughtiness from my body.”

“I thought that’s what I was already doing, but okay,” Marilyn violently smacked her ass. “You love this, don’t you, slut? This is exactly what you need.”

“Yes. Thank you, Mistress.”

“Thank me when you’re so sore you can no longer sit.”

“Mom? What the hell is going on?” A horrified Amy stepped inside the clearing, mouth wide open.

“Yeah, and who is she?” Willa asked, with both hands on her waist.

Lucy’s mesmerized eyes focused on the two arrivals barely recognizing them at first. Then a sudden spark of memory jolted her back into action.

“Hmmm? Oh, hi girls! I’m so glad you’re back. Marilyn and I were just having a bit of fun together but you weren’t supposed to see this.”

“That’s okay, Lucy,” the alien purred. “They’re big girls. I’m sure they can handle it.”

“Who?” Amy queried, eyeing the unknown figure from head to toe. She was attraction personified, perfect in every way. Her hands were sweaty from all the spanking going on but that was far from the only thing wrong with that scene. Her mother’s lips were wet, glistening with what appeared to be fresh vaginal fluids.

“Marilyn, your friend,” Lucy mumbled. “She came to see you, we started talking, and then things got a little carried away. You won’t tell Jack, right? Promise me you won’t say a thing.”

“There’s nothing wrong with Jack knowing, dear,” Marilyn continued to push new thoughts into her mind. “The worst that can happen is he thinking this is hot and wanting to be a part of the fun in the next round but we can handle him just fine, can’t we?”

“Hmm... now that you say so, yes...” Lucy nodded, writhing in beautiful agony. “I can’t wait for him to come back home.”

“Me neither.”

“Excuse me?” Willa ran up to the table, eyes piercing like daggers. “What the fuck is happening? Mom, why does it feel like we’ve stepped into a low-budget porn film all of a sudden?”

“Mind your language, young lady,” Lucy contorted her body to look straight at her daughter. “That’s no way to talk to me or your good friend here. We’re all adults here!”

“Friend? What friend? I have no idea who the person you’re with is, and neither does Amy! We demand an explanation and we demand it now.”

“Have you lost your minds, girls?” Lucy snarled like an angry wolf ready to attack. “You’re in no position to demand anything. I’m the leader of this household, not you, so watch your mouth and apologize to our guest here.”

“Now, now,” Marilyn gently patted her right cheek. “There’s no need for anyone to get upset over poor old me. Amy, Willa, please... I can tell you’re perturbed and confused, but there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation for everything you’ve seen so far and I’m more than happy to share it with you if you simply relax and come sit beside us.”

“We’re not doing a thing until you tell us who you are and what you did to our mother for her to be acting so strangely. Is she drugged?” Amy asked.

“Drugged? Oh, my dear, I can assure you it’s nothing like that. If there’s a word to describe what Lucy is going through at the moment, that word is clarity. There were things she couldn’t see at first but now she does, and the only thing I want is for you to gaze at the world through her eyes. Everything she’s learned so far and the fun she’s been having are not meant to be solitary things. Reality is as strong as the number of people who share it.”

“Stop talking in fucking riddles!” Willa tried to put herself between her and her mother. “She called you Marilyn. Is that your name?”

“It is now, Willa. And yes, I know exactly who you are as well as your sister. Unlike others, I’ve always done my homework properly.”

“Why are you here, Marilyn?” Amy moved to stand next to her sister. “What do you want from our family?”

“You mother asked something similar but when I told her the truth, she didn’t believe you. Since the same is bound to happen with you, let me just say this: I’ve come to show you things you never thought possible and have some fun in the process. I’m your personal rabbit hole and boy, do I go deep!”

“That doesn’t make any sense just like everything you’ve been saying so far,” Willa replied.

“Please, let me talk,” Marilyn said, stroking her puppet’s hair gently. Lucy, who had been adamant until then to defend her from slander and mindless accusation, rolled her eyes to the back of her head, engulfed in ripples of sapphic pleasure, and watched the rest of the conversation go down with the silliest of smiles on her lips. “If answers is what you seek, then you need to be prepared 

to listen to them instead of being so defensive. There’s nothing nefarious going on here, and certainly nothing you should be worried about. We’ve all known each other for a while and we’re simply taking our relationship to the next level. Your mother was the first to realize it made sense and needed to be done and now it’s your turn. You’re still blinded by suspicions and disbelief but if you pay attention to everything I say and don’t try to overthink things, then you too can embrace something new. Listen...”

The extraterrestrial’s voice changed subtly, a lower frequency resonating in her words and the spaces between them. She spoke calmly yet imbued with overwhelming conviction as she described a world where past, present, and future were but reflections of her memories and she only remembered the truth. She was there when the twins tried to fool their parents for the first time. She was there when Willa kissed her first boy under the bleachers of the high school’s basketball field; she was there at Terence’s funeral, holding hands with them when they could no longer fight back their tears; she was there when Amy needed a study partner on the eve on an important Math exam. She was there like friends are supposed to be, in the good and the bad, always knowing when to choose comforting words or the bliss of silence. She was always there with them for that’s where she belonged.

“Some things in life change too quickly, but the ones that matter stay strong forever,” Marilyn said. “I’m so happy we’re all together again, aren’t you?”

Amy and Willa looked at one another and then at the mysterious woman whose images were multiplying in their minds like overgrown trees. The forest was already too dense to see anything past it, yet more branches kept spreading in every direction.

“You...” Willa muttered.

“We know you, but how?” Amy’s eyes filled with tears.

“You are asking the wrong question. How or why only matter if all you have to look forward to are the things you left behind, so let’s go beyond memory now and onto the things you haven’t explored yet. Look at your mother, how she has become an effigy of bliss spread on this table. What’s on her mind as we speak is what everyone dreams of, a pleasure so intense that even its opposite is its expression. I’ve allowed her to discover Heaven and now it’s your turn. Tell me everything that makes you tick.”

The twins involuntarily held hands, perhaps hoping on a subconscious level to support one another from being swept away by Marilyn’s mental manipulations. More memories of events they had never been a part of rushed to the surface, mixed with projections of a party inside the main manor where their mother and her husband were dressed in frilly maid outfits and they kneeled by the piano, collared and obedient at their best friend and owner’s perfectly manicured feet. 

“No...” Willa said. “This is not real.”

“Reality is a construct and the better builders always win,” Marilyn touched both their foreheads at the same time, irreparably connecting their mental states to her illusionary web. It could now expand even further, every variation leading to the same subservient outcome. “Welcome to my world, slaves.”

Plunging helplessly into a prison facilitated by their own brain waves, the twins remembered that love and obsessions were one and the same whenever Marilyn was in town. Their fingers were still interlocked when they sank to kiss their old friend’s arched toes.

((to be continued))