Title: "All You Need Is a Cape, Ellison 5"

Author/pseudonym: Alexis Rogers

Rating: NC-17 for *bdsm*

Pairings: J/B

Status: Long story in progress

Date: 18 May 1997

Archive: YES

Archive author: Alexis Rogers

Series/Sequel: Yes

Category: Drama

Disclaimers: "The Sentinel", the episode "Survival", Jim Ellison, Blair Sandburg, Simon Banks, Dawson Quinn and the damn pushy panther belong to the great folks at Pet Fly Production, Burbank & Vancouver. Michael Smith Anderson, Jason Anderson, Father Patrick Fitzgerald, Daniel Cook Fitzgerald, Lloyd Lawson, Charles Bamia, Cary Roberts, and Jeremiah and Nehemiah Lexon belong to the author. This story was produced for the sole purpose of entertaining the author and a few friends; it was not meant to infringe on the rights of any of the legal owners.

Summary: Jim and Blair met the other men at the retreat.

Story Warnings: The following story contains graphic descriptions of consensual sex between two or more men, although not each chapter contains each element listed in this warning. The story also contains elements of consensual *bdsm*, as well as nudity and the discussion of sexual topics with fictional characters under the age of eighteen. (Please note that the age of consent is not the same in all parts of the world.) I generally use the term *bdsm* to cover the concepts that, for me, fall under the label of Sexual Magic (SM). *bdsm* includes, but is not limited to, bondage, domination, sadomasochism, elements of Domination/submission [D/s], anal stimulation including enemas and fisting, sex toys, spanking, discipline, corporal punishment, whipping, and slave training. Muliple sex partners happens in latter chapters. Not all of these elements are present in each of the chapters; there isn't ever sex until sex until chapter six, but the *bdsm* theme is present throughout the story.

Chapter warnings: m/m

"All You Need Is a Cape, Ellison 5"
by Alexis Rogers
20 May 1997

Jim pushed open the door to the room he shared with Blair and discovered the panther stretched out next to his lover. "Why didn't he just walk in with me?"

"What?" Blair asked, stroking the big black cat.

"The panther just left me at the door to the building."

"Jim, he's been here with me ever since you left."

Leaning over the cat, Jim gently kissed Blair's mouth. "I'm losing my mind. That explains everything."

"Explains what?"

"Blair, the panther was just outside with me. Even Jason saw him. How could he have been in here with you?" Jim dropped onto the other bed in the room and gazed at his lover who was dressed only in the same style of short gown he had worn in the hospital, which left his legs bare. A blanket was draped at the end of the bed and looked like Blair had kicked it off himself.

"Because he isn't really an animal, he's a spirit and he can do what he needs to do." Blair ran his hand down the length of the sleek body. "He stayed when Michael came in, but vanished when others were here. It's a little weird. He's here one minute and gone the next." Blair turned his attention to the cat. "You're so beautiful, Purusha."

"*Purusha*? Is that some kind of fancy word for pushy, because that's what he is?"

Blair smiled shyly at Jim. "I needed to call him something and *Fred* just didn't do it."

"So what is *Purusha*?"

"A pen name of Christopher Larkin. He was a monk and film maker who wanted to reconcile Eastern and Western ecstatic thought, especially where sexual energy was concerned. We'll have to read some of his books together."

"What made you think of that?" Jim asked, wishing the cat would move so he could be there next to his guide, providing protection.

"This was a Catholic retreat, the energy of many monks are stored in these stone walls." Blair waved his arm to indicate the airy room which contained only necessary furniture and use of space. "The Catholics absorbed the pagan rights of cultures wherever they went, making some sort of religious hodgepodge which finally relegated sex to a tiny corner of our being for the purposes of procreation only. And now these buildings house male couples who come here to learn how to love each other -- the contradictions are overwhelming."

"And you think the panther is trying to combine all those ideas?"

"It's a possibility, Jim. What do you think?"

"I think the damn cat's trying to tell me to trust these people."

"But it's difficult, isn't it?" Blair held Jim's eyes.

"Yeah," Jim admitted, watching Blair with the panther. "So what did Michael say?"

"There's no more bleeding and he's going to let us go to the dining room for dinner. Michael wants us to meet some of the other people here. That is, if you'll stay with me."

"I didn't mean to desert you, I just needed some air."

"Jim, I know better than anyone else what you need." Blair scratched the cat between its ears, then it disappeared.

Jim moved immediately to sit beside his lover. The cat reappeared on the other bed. "What, Pushy? Don't you trust me with him?"

The cat switched his tail.

"Jim, he's your spirit guide. Arguing with him seems pointless." Blair drew Jim's head down and kissed him.

"Ummm," Jim moaned, "Did Michael say when we could..."

A quick knock preceded the door opening.

"Your chariot," Michael announced.

"Do the doors in this place have locks?" Jim snapped.

"Since Blair isn't supposed to be doing anything that would require a locked door, your question is immaterial," Michael replied coolly. "I don't remember giving you permission to sit on his bed."

"Michael, I need --"

"I know what you need." Michael nodded his head and Jim stood, moving so Michael could maneuver the wheelchair next to the bed. "You need to fuck him, to prove to yourself that's he's still alive and that he's still yours, but you're just going to have to wait."

"Can't I do anything?" Jim asked, desperate for his lover's body.

"You may, with Blair's verbal approval, kiss him, use your hands, or your mouth -- very gently. You may worship his body and be thankful that he's alive and well."

Pushing himself up, Blair asked, "And what can I do?"

"You may watch him and talk to him while he masturbates," Michael conceded. "And it can be more intense than it sounds. Listening to the sound of your lover's voice what you work yourself is an interesting sensation -- and it works well with someone out of commission, like you."

"But," Blair tried.

"You will do as I say, or I'll change my mind about letting you out of bed."

Blair lowered his head and his eyelids. "Yes, Master Michael."

Jim blinked, then stared at Blair. *What just happened?*

"Jim, give me a hand getting him up," Michael ordered.

"Can I go to the bathroom?" Blair asked.

"You'll need to lean on both of us and put no weight on that leg," Michael instructed as he put his left arm around Blair's waist.

Jim took his place on the other side of Blair. They hobbled the few steps to the bathroom that the bedroom shared with another bedroom on the other side of the bathroom.

"I can pee by myself," Blair insisted as he stood before the toilet.

"I know you can," Michael responded, not moving, "but your lover needs to know and understand all the functions of your body."

"Michael," Blair whined.

"You will not disobey me again," Michael stated flatly.

"Yes, sir." Blair looked at Jim. "Could you hurry before I embarrass myself?"

Jim lifted Blair's short gown and carefully positioned the flaccid cock in his hand toward the toilet. It felt very strange.

"Maybe I should sit down," Blair suggested.

"No, I want Jim to do this. Love is about every part of your life, not just sex, or the good times." Michael grinned at Jim behind Blair's back. "Do try to hit the toilet."

When the task was finished, Jim and Michael helped Blair back to the bedroom and into the wheelchair.

"Can I please have some underwear?" Blair asked.

"I don't want to draw anything up over that wound -- and neither do you. You may wear a short robe over the gown and I'll put a cover over your lap to preserve your dignity." Michael took a sheet out of the closet and draped it gently around Blair's legs, while Jim got the robe. "You push," he said to Jim, "and try not to dump him out on the floor."

Jim glanced at the bed where the panther reclined, then backed the wheelchair out of the room. When he looked back, Pushy was gone.

In the large dining room there was a table that could easily seat two dozen people, but the table was only set for ten. The sparsely furnished room was airy and light, full of evening California sun and rich with plant life.

"Put Blair at the end of the table, so he can stay in the wheelchair." Michael adjusted the chair so that Blair's injured leg was elevated.

When Blair was settled, Michael said, "Jim, Blair, I'd like to introduce you to my parents, Charlie Bamia and Lloyd Lawson."

Jim shook hands with Charlie, a tall, attractive older man with Mediterranean features; then with Lloyd, who had fussed over Blair, adjusting the cover and tucking it around his legs. Lloyd was almost the same height as Charlie but had more rugged features, like a football player who had been tackled a lot, but whose eyes were full of life and joy.

"And," Michael continued, "you know Father Patrick. This," he indicated the red head with green eyes, "is Danny, Patrick's life partner."

"A gay married priest is a contradiction in all the terms I know," Jim said as he shook hands with Danny.

"Patrick's a remarkable man, who followed all the feelings in his heart while stealing mine. He swept me off my feet so fast I never knew what hit me." Danny smiled at his lover. "Shall we sit down?"

Jim took the chair on Blair's left, while Michael sat across from Jim, on Blair's right.

"Where's Jason?" Lloyd asked.

"I'm here, Master Lloyd," Jason replied, as he came in from the kitchen with a large bowl of salad.

As Jason placed the bowl on the table, Jim nearly swallowed his tongue when he noticed what Jason was wearing, which was practically nothing. His shoulders were covered with a chain harness criss-crossing his bare skin and accenting his hard nipples. The lower half of his body was covered in a light weight unbleached muslin pants that left nothing to the imagination.

"Jason, your attire," Lloyd scolded.

Blair stared at Jason with eyes bright with lust.

Jason kneeled by Michael's chair and looked at the floor. "I'm sorry, Master Lloyd, but my Master deemed it necessary for me to be covered for dinner because of our guests. I understand that slaves are unworthy of clothing."

Lloyd looked at Michael, who shrugged. "It's our weekend off," Michael explained.

"Very well," Lloyd said, "Jason, you may sit next to your master at the table, but I will be here on the other side of you. There will be no further violations of the rules."

"Yes, Master Lloyd." Jason rose and took his place next to Michael, then Lloyd accepted the chair Charlie held for him.

Charlie leaned forward and whispered loudly in Lloyd's ear, "Next weekend is *our* weekend off."

Lloyd smiled and leaned back to accept a kiss. 'I'm already making plans."

Patrick pulled out the chair next to Jim. "You look a little confused, James."

"No, I'm fine," Jim stated. "I'm losing my mind so none of this matters."

Two young, beautiful twin black men entered from the kitchen carrying trays of vegetables, rice and grilled fish. Danny helped set the dishes on the table.

Michael smiled at the two boys, then looked at Jim. "I would like you to meet our foster sons, Nehemiah and Jeremiah Lexon. We need you to know that these two young men are in love with each other and if you see them displaying affection for each other, we would prefer that you be supportive. Their earlier lives have been quite difficult and they survived because of the love they feel for each other."

The boys kissed Michael, then Jason. One of the boys groused, "We have to toil all weekend and you two get to play."

"Jeremiah," Lloyd warned.

"Yes, sir," the boy who had spoken replied and the two of them sat down across from Charlie and next to Danny.

"You have next weekend off," Michael told the boys.

"Yes, sir," they replied in unison.

"This is so cool," Blair observed.

Charlie helped himself to salad, then held the bowl for Lloyd. "Ah, yes, you're an anthropologist."

"Yeah, and the subculture in this room is out of this world."

"I hope you don't plan on studying us too closely," Charlie said.

"I only have about a million questions," Blair replied.

"Starting with Jason's attire, no doubt," Michael teased.

Jim gulped water from the glass set at his plate. "Is this what you were talking about this afternoon?" he asked Jason.

Jason looked at Michael, who nodded. "Slaves are not allowed to speak without permission, Jim. And yes, this is what I meant when I asked you about submitting yourself to Blair. He can strike a whip over me any time he pleases."

Blair chortled as he took salad from the bowl Michael was holding.

"Blair!" Jim shouted.

"Easy, Jim." Blair took the salad bowl and offered it to Jim. "But I've got to tell you, it's a damn hot erotic image -- you, bare, at my feet, at my mercy."

Jim pushed his chair back. "I'm not hungry."

"Jim, you promised me you wouldn't desert me again." Blair placed his hand on top of Jim's.

The panther appeared between Jim and Blair and growled at Jim.

"I think you better stay," Michael suggested. "No one is going to make you do anything that you don't want to do."

"Take some salad," Blair ordered.

"Jim, we," Michael spread his arm to indicate all the people at the table, "all work hard, so we play hard as well. In your line of work, I'll bet it's the same. Your hours at the gym or the basketball court or the racquetball court or whatever are not just to stay in shape, are they?"

Jim shook his head. "I need to work off the tension."

"Well, so do we. Jason puts in long hours, making sure we have sufficient funds to operate, verifying doctors are where they are supposed to be when they are supposed to be, running this large operation and making sure couples have a least one weekend off *together* every month. And that's not easy when one of our couples is a triple, and they are *all* doctors. This is how Jason and I *play* and trust me gentlemen, when I get through with him, he'll barely have the energy to walk."

"Are you staying on the grounds?" Charlie asked.

"Yes," Michael replied. "We promised the kids we'd do something special after Mass on Sunday."

"Who's covering from you?" Lloyd wanted to know.

"Cary," Michael said. "I don't think Blair will need anything you can't do, dressing changed, help getting around -- and I want Jim doing as much of the work as possible."

Blair tackled his salad with gusto. "This is too wild. You're going to play sex games on Saturday and then go to Mass on Sunday with your children. How do you justify the contradictions?"

"They're aren't any," Father Patrick stated. "Michael and Jason are going to totally experience their love for each other, then share that love with their family and be ready to face the difficulties of their chosen professions on Monday. For someone like Michael, who deals with terminal patients, recharging his emotional centers is very important."

"This is about love?" Jim asked, his heart pounded against his chest.

"It is. I've known these boys most of their lives, I've seen them through happy times and sad times. I married them and I've counseled them. This is what works to keep them on an even keel."

"Will I be allowed to see that part of your life?" Blair asked Michael.

"Not yet. You and Jim have a lot of other things to learn first. Later on, if you want to pursue some of the aspects of sexual magic, we'll be glad to help with your training."

"Training?" Jim asked. "Jason mentioned that this afternoon."

"Jim," Charlie said, "the best things in life are achieved through learning. Like a child learning to crawl before he walks or a student learning to add and subtract before learning to multiply and divide. If you miss an important step in the learning process, you can't continue on. Now is your chance to learn the fundamentals with Father Patrick and build a solid foundation for your relationship, like Lloyd and I did, like we made Jason and Michael, and Patrick and Danny do, and what every couple here is required to do."

"We," Jeremiah indicated his brother, "have kitchen duty today. Tomorrow, we have garden duty, couples counseling, and assigned tasks from Father Patrick. It may sound difficult, but it's a much better life than we had before we came here."

"I want you to eat, Jim," Michael said. "The diet here is designed specifically to help you through the emotional and/or physical stress you face while you're here."

"The priests who came here," Patrick continued as he helped himself to the bowl of stir fried fresh vegetables, "often fasted, and we find, in certain situations, that fasting is helpful, but for the most part we have found that controlled consumption of specially prepared dishes gives the best results."

"You'll also be expected to exercise," Michael added. "If you need someone to help with a routine, we'll work with you. And I will expect you to participate in Blair's physical therapy."

"He doesn't need to do that," Blair protested.

"Yes, he does," Michael insisted. "Being committed life partners means knowing and trusting each other on every level. You'll have to do the work, but it'll be easier with his support and encouragement. You need to work on every level of your relationship until you're in total harmony. Then you have to continue working to stay that way."

Jim forced himself to eat, watching the people and listening to the animated family type conversation as it flowed around him. The concept of fusing himself to every level of Blair was more frightening than the concept of Jason in that damn slave costume. Life was certainly much easier in the days before Blair and the Sentinel, but they were also empty of emotion and zest for life.

When dinner was completed, Patrick stood and pulled Blair's chair away from the table. "Jim, I want you to walk with Blair outside for a while. You could both use the air. I'll met you in about half an hour, by the pool. There are several secluded areas around the grounds where we can talk privately."

Jim stood. "I thought you wanted to do our session in our room."

"I did, but that was before I had observed you. I think you'll be much more comfortable in an open environment where you won't feel threatened or claustrophobic."

"I think you're right." Jim backed the wheelchair away from the table and waited while Michael held the door.

"You'll be fine," Michael encouraged.

~~~~~~~~~~ end of chapter 5 ~~~~~~