Forever Is Just the Beginning
by Vigdis




Prologue

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5



Title: Madness Is a Point of View

Author: Vigdis

Fandom: Highlander/Andromeda/Hercules/Xena

Pairings: Methos/Duncan (there may be others later)

Rating: NC-17

Category: Crossover/BDSM (mild so far)

Spoilers: Highlander: Endgame, various episodes of Andromeda, Hercules and Xena.

Status: WIP

Series: Not so far.

Date: July 28, 2002

Email:
vigdisvale@squidge.org

Feedback: Craved! Need feedback! Please be constructive... Details are good! Also, tell me what you want to see more of, what you want to find out the answers to, etc... I love details!

Archive: WWOMB:
https://www.squidge.org/~peja/; Vig’s Vale; Others please let me know you want it. I like to know where my babies are.

Author's Website: Vig's Vale:
https://www.squidge.org/vigsvale/ (still under construction, but mine none-the-less)

Valdron’s Handy Dandy Disclaimer: (modified for this work)
Can anyone please send me a list of the owners of Highlander, Andromeda, Hercules, and Xena? I do not have the information and they are all represented in this work.

No ownership or claim on said property, copyright or trademark is made or implied by the use in this work. This work constitutes a personal comment on the aforesaid properties pursuant to doctrines of fair use and fair comment. This work is non-commercial, not for sale or profit, and may not be sold or reproduced for commercial purposes. All other characters and situations which are not specifically owned by the above mentioned are sole copyright of the author.

Thanks:

Notes: I plan to rewrite the Prologue so that it is in prose form. I just haven’t gotten around to it yet. Sorry. Please let me know what you think. Should I continue?

Warnings: Explicit M/M and M/M/F sex.

Summary: This begins in the present, illustrating the dynamics of the basic Methos/Duncan relationship. It picks up again in the distant future, after thousands of years together, in the Andromeda Universe. It may end up skipping around in time. I’m not sure, yet.




Prologue

(In the form of Commentary)

I see Methos, FAR in the future, on a lovely spaceship (with WAY too much firepower) with his LONG-time "companion", Duncan MacLeod, by his side (of course). They have survived the horrors of intergalactic war and the collapse of civilization (again) and they are still in the same durable and beautiful ship they left Earth in hundreds of years ago. They were the major stockholders of the best ship manufacturer in the Galaxy. They even built the government's fleet. Their ship is not the largest they built but it is quite large and they do endeavor to keep it hidden from their enemies. They even developed a cloaking device (something none of the other ships they built has) for it. They are accompanied by two Watchers (who politely keep pretty much to themselves) and an AI Android that Methos laughingly named Mort. Mort easily passes for human. I'm casting Nicholas Lea - Krycek from X-Files - in the role. Methos is using the name Adam again, but this time it's Adam Thantos - like "Adam", it's his little joke. (He’s a Closet Piers Anthony Fan… Especially The Incarnations of Immortality Series…)

Methos, Mac and Mort do their business from a smaller ship that "lives" in the shuttle bay of the larger ship. The small ship is called the Pegasus (Mac's doing - Methos got to name the Big Ship) and it is fully equipped, heavily armed and fairly large all on it's own. Thus they are able to keep the Big Ship a secret (No I'm not telling you it's name yet. I'll tell you later when it becomes necessary to the story.)

Things have gotten so bad in the universe that even Methos has decided that something MUST be done.

In the Pegasus, they have carved a nice little niche for themselves in the cruel economy and even earned the respect of the vicious and powerful warrior race that controls Earth and enslaves humanity. A few years back they "bought" a slave from them - a young blonde boy/man who, for some reason, reminded them both of Richie Ryan. So young and so hurt... They nursed him back to health, gifted him with a (VERY expensive) dataport implant and wished him well as he used his newfound freedom to make his own way in the universe. In spite of their kindness and possibly BECAUSE they didn't ask anything in return, he felt nervous around them. Maybe it was all the Black leather... Anyhow, having spent time as a slave in the far reaches of history, Methos understands and gives him enough money, food, etc to last him for a while and they take him to a relatively safe space station so he can hire on somewhere. The funny thing is, he never actually saw the Big Ship. Only the Pegasus, which is, of course, impressive in it's own right.

They wait and make sure the young man finds a good position with a trustworthy captain and then they send him off with luggage, hugs, best wishes and we'll meet agains... As the boy, who has proven to be a talented engineer, departs, Mort gently grabs his arm and smiles sadly. He hugs him and says, “I wish you could have seen me” which doesn't make any sense to the boy, but I'm sure you're all catching on by now...




Now heading back to the present… (that is, roughly…)

Mac has never been into BDSM, but Methos is a true Dom. He is more into D/s than any other aspects of BDSM, but he DOES know how and he does, sometimes, delve in to the B&D aspects. Many millennia ago when they first got serious, Methos explained his needs to Duncan along with an explanation of how he viewed Duncan, himself. Duncan is NOT a sub. He is simply more vanilla than that. Not that he could NOT BE a Dom. He doesn’t need to or want to, however. Methos is delighted with Duncan as a lover and he doesn’t want him to change. They both do, however, like women. A LOT! So Methos, back in the early days, suggested that a female sub who was interested in a dual relationship might not be amiss.

This worried Duncan. He was a little concerned about Methos’ need for control. It stirred up fears of the Horsemen. So, Methos gave him a couple of books to read… “The Loving Dominant” and “Screw the Roses, Send Me the Thorns” (Yes, they are REAL books and they have been HIGHLY recommended for anyone who wants to understand or begin delving into BDSM). After reading the books, Duncan is less confused but still a little worried. He will need to SEE that this doesn’t turn “Mild-mannered Adam” into “Death on a Horse”. This takes place over a few years of intermittent relationship – sort of like Duncan and Amanda, only they both know THIS relationship is permanent, not a perpetual on-again, off-again fling. They even manage to keep it a secret from everyone – including Joe!

Then comes the events of the movie “Highlander: Endgame” and the return of Duncan’s WIFE, Kate. She wants to take things slow and Duncan and Methos have never been jealous of the women in their lives. Of course they have just begun to discuss the committed threesome idea and then there’s Kate. Duncan has discussed Kate with Methos, but she doesn’t know about Methos – not even about Adam. One sunny spring afternoon, he’s lying on a picnic blanket in a grassy green park on Holy Ground. He is looking up at the sky, with Kate stretched out perpendicular to him. She is on her belly, propped up on her elbows looking at him. She’s toying with a long, hay-like piece of grass, nibbling at it as they talk.




Part 1

“Kate…”

“Yes, Duncan?” she encouraged, gently, for the fifth time. He didn’t continue. “Duncan! What ever it is that you’re having so much trouble telling me… Just spit it out already! I’m sure it can’t be that bad. I mean, you’ve already killed me. What could top that?”

“I’ve been cheating on you?” he said in a worried tone.

She roller her eyes. “Duncan, we’ve been apart for over 200 years! Of course you’ve been cheating on me. I cheated on you, too,” she smiled wickedly.

Duncan shook his head and closed his eyes and began again. “What I mean is, I am currently cheating on you. Well, not right this minute, and technically, I was involved before we began our reconciliation, so I guess, in a way, you are the one I’m cheating with, but-”

“Woah! Duncan! Hold up! You were involved with someone when we-?”

“Yes,” Duncan confirmed miserably. “But it’s sort of an open relationship. Since we’re both immortal, neither of us are too worried about the occasional mortal involvement, but this is different.”

“So… Does she know about me? Your WIFE?”

Duncan rolled onto his side, facing her. His handsome face was twisted into a grimace. “Well, that’s just it, you see. She’s not a she. His name is Adam, and, well, we both like women, so it’s never been a problem, and yes, he does know about you. I talk with him about everything.”

During all of this, Kate’s face went through a series of expressions ranging from sheer shock to actual, physical pain.

“You love him,” she whispered, certain. “You wouldn’t go to bed with a man if you didn’t love him,” she continued, starting to shake. Things were only just starting to feel like they had during the early days when they had been so in love… At least they were for her.

“Yes,” he assured her, “I do love him. I love you both. When I told him about you, he understood immediately. He knows how important you are to me. How important it is to me for us to work things out.” She looked skeptical. Duncan sat up, smiling, “He’s very wise. I think you’ll like him. If you’re willing to meet him,” he suggested with a hopeful little boy look.

She though about this for a long moment. Then she looked into Duncan’s eyes and asked, “What if I do?”

“What do you mean?” Duncan asked, frowning, afraid to hope.

“Well… You both like women and you haven’t been jealous of each other’s women in the past… And, obviously, you love - Adam, is it?” she paused to ask. At his nod, she continued, “You obviously love Adam very deeply, so he must be something special. What if I fall in love with him, too?”

Duncan grinned. “Would you be willing to try a, well, a-”

“A threesome? Menage-a-trois?” she finished for him, exasperated.

“This doesn’t freak you out at all, does it?” Duncan was trying really hard to absorb all of this.

Kate smiled. “Nope. I was a designer, after all. Besides, I’ve done a little experimenting over the years.” Duncan’s eyes widened. “Don’t even think about it!” she ordered him sternly. “I found out rather quickly that other women just don’t do it for me.” Duncan tried a pout. She rolled her eyes at him. “On the other hand, I found out something else about myself, quite by accident. On day, I walked into the dressing room and found one of my male models in, shall we say, a compromising position, with his boyfriend. I thought I was gonna faint. It was quite possibly the hottest thing I have ever seen. I rented some guy/guy porn after that. I loved it. I also loved the threesomes with 2 guys and one woman… What can I say?” she asked at his shocked and disbelieving expression. “I really like men!” She shrugged and started nibbling sensuously at her lower lip.

He couldn’t resist. He kissed her. That was fun, so they did that for a while. When they finally moved apart, he took a deep breath and said, “There’s something else you should know about Adam.” She shot him a questioning look. “A while back he and I talked about the possibility of finding a woman who we could both commit to in a triune relationship. The problem was finding one who would fit between us. I’m fairly vanilla, even if I am good-”

“And so modest, too!” she mocked, fighting back a grin.

“That too,” he nodded with a grin of his own. “Anyway, Adam isn’t vanilla. He’s a Dom.”

“You’re subbing?” Kate demanded, disbelief pouring off of her.

“NO!” Duncan quickly replied. “That’s what he goes to women for. He says he loves me just the way I am and he doesn’t want me to change like that. The idea was for him to find a female sub who needed both dominance and vanilla sex. Someone we could both pleasure in our different ways. Someone who likes the idea of being his sub, or even slave,” it was obvious Duncan felt uneasy about that concept, “and my lover. So you might want to think twice…”

“You don’t know much about BDSM, do you, husband?”

“Nope,” he grimaced. “Mostly what I’ve read. M-my lover gave me a couple of books to read.”

“Really? Which ones?”

“Uh, one was called ‘The Loving Dominant’.”

She nodded, “That’s an amazing book. I’m surprised you’re still so uneasy about it after reading that one.”

He shrugged again. “The other one was called ‘Screw the Roses, Send Me the Thorns’.”

“That one has a lot to say about the sub’s point of view. And both of them go into a lot of depth about Power Exchange and Safe, Sane and Consensual. Why are you so worried, Duncan?”

He slowly shook his head as he thought it out. Finally, with a hopeless expression, he told her what he could. “I can’t explain it very well with out telling you Adam’s secrets, and that is something only he can decide about.” She nodded her understanding. “There are things in his past that make me worry, Kate. I’m afraid that his need for domination may lead him back into old habits. Dangerous habits. That’s really all I can say…”

“That’s okay, love. You should know something, though. The relationship you described? It sounds like heaven to me. To have a Master and a lover? To be able to watch the two of you together? To be in the middle? Sounds wonderful! I really need to meet your Adam. It’s entirely possible that I could be the slave he’s looking for. And I know you and I are compatible,” she giggled.

“Let’s go pack!”

“Pack?”

“He lives in England, just now. Don’t worry. We’ll fly first class. I’ll charge it to his card,” Duncan added with a wicked grin of his own.




(The Checklist mentioned in this Part is REAL. It takes a while for the page to load, but you can find it at: http://ms.ha.md.us/~tammad/over21/bondage/sub-checklist.html)

Part 2

“You are even lovelier than I expected,” Adam said softly as he shook Kate’s hand. He didn’t let go immediately.

Kate shivered at his touch. The man was positively overwhelming. He was smaller than Duncan, but he had charisma to spare, and he was directing it all at her. She wasn’t sure what to think. The man was supposed to be in love with Duncan.

He wasn’t flirting with her. This was much more serious than simple flirting. He was touching her soul with those smoldering eyes. She felt like she should drop to her knees and offer her submission on the spot. And she didn’t even know the man. She was experienced enough to know that you never gave yourself to someone you didn’t know. You have to trust your Dom/Master completely, and you can’t trust someone you don’t know. But Duncan knew and trusted him and she knew and trusted Duncan. She dropped her eyes, pulled her hand away and stepped back to lean against Duncan’s broad chest. Her breathing was a little ragged. She glanced up at Duncan, who smiled down at her, and then turned, shaking, into his embrace.

Methos smiled, meeting Duncan’s eyes, as Kate burrowed anxiously into his lover’s arms. He had read the interplay of emotions in her eyes as they shook hands. She was worried, but definitely ready for him. He stepped over to the couple and wrapped his arms around them both.

Kate’s head came up in surprise just in time to watch the two men lean their heads in around her to meet in a loving kiss. Adam was smiling as they parted. He turned mischievous eyes to Kate and admitted the truth. “Duncan called and filled me in while you were packing. I told him not to tell you. I wanted to see how you would react to me if you didn’t know I knew.”

“And?” she whispered.

His face turned stern. “You wanted to offer me your submission right then, didn’t you?”

Her eyes flickered downward, ashamed, as her breathing grew more unsteady. She knew she couldn’t lie. “I was certainly tempted. I had to fight against it.”

“Why did you fight it? You knew Duncan would approve.”

She looked up at him, indignant. She pushed away from the two men. “Why?” she demanded.

“Why?” he returned, cocking his head and raising an eyebrow, his expression smug and challenging.

Kate drew herself up in anger. Straightening her spine and narrowing her eyes, she let him have it, head on.

“Duncan may be in love with you, but I don’t know you from Adam!” She paused at Duncan’s giggle. “No pun intended,” she continued. “I would never be stupid enough to give the gift of my submission to a complete stranger, even if someone I trust does trust him. But there’s something about your Dominance that scares Duncan. I will not go into this blindly! I have to know what I’m getting into first!” She paused and looked at him intently through narrowed eyes. “Why is Duncan so worried about you being a Dom?”

Methos’ smile spread slowly across his face, lighting it up. “Duncan is worried because he knows what I used to be. He’s having trouble understanding the difference between Power Exchange and… well, playing god…”

“Playing god?”

Methos grimaced and looked over at Duncan with haunted eyes. “What do you think?”

“It’s up to you,” Duncan said softly. “If you feel comfortable with-”

“I don’t feel comfortable with you knowing, Mac,” Methos told him wryly. He shook his head and began anyway. “Kate, I’m a lot older than Duncan.” He rolled his eyes at Duncan’s snort. “Oh, alright! I’m a lot older than just about anybody. My real name is Methos.”

Kate gasped. “I thought Methos was a myth!”

“I try to encourage that as much as I can,” Methos said, smirking. “It makes it easier to keep my head where I like it.” Kate grinned at that. “Anyway, long ago in the far mists of ancient time, I was one of the Four Horsemen. I was Death. We were monsters, Kate. I cannot begin to express to you just how monstrous. But, unlike my ‘brothers’, I changed. I learned to love and that changed everything. I’m far too intelligent to believe that only the lives I value have value, so in learning to love, I learned to value all life. I learned to hate what I once was.” He moved to the sofa and sank into the softness, eyes focused on the floor. “When Duncan learned the truth about my history, I was sure he would hate me. I even told him that what I had done, he couldn’t forgive. I was right of course. He can’t. But he can see that the man I was doesn’t exist any more. Hasn’t existed for several thousand years. The trouble is my desire – even need - to dominate. He’s afraid that this facet of my personality, of which he was previously unaware, might somehow resurrect the monster.”

“I see.” Kate pondered this news carefully. “What do you think?”

Methos smiled. “I think there’s a big difference between D/s and even BDSM and what I once was. For one thing there’s no random slaughter involved. And,” he smiled at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes, “I haven’t killed a sub yet. Not even an immortal one.”

“Well, that’s good to know,” she laughed.

Duncan sat down on the floor. “That was funny?” he asked.

“It was a joke, Mac! Honestly! Don’t you have a sense of humor? At least Kate does. Otherwise, I’d have to call Joe and tell him you were both hopelessly serious,” Methos drawled. “Grab us some beers, would you?”

“Sure,” Duncan said, rising gracefully to his feet and headed toward the wet bar.

“Sorry,” Methos interrupted him. “It’s empty. You’ll have to go to the kitchen.”

Duncan just sighed his exasperation. He knew a diversionary tactic when he heard it. “What’ll you have, Kate?”

“Beer’s fine, Duncan. I actually like the stuff.”

“Ah!” Methos exclaimed. “A woman after my own heart!”

Duncan snorted as he left the room.

“I heard that!” Methos called after him. Duncan’s laughter echoed back. Kate giggled at their interaction. It was obvious that, beyond being lovers, they were true friends. “It’s your turn, Kate. What do you think?”

“Honestly? I think Duncan wouldn’t be so in love with you if there was anything to worry about.”

“So… How do you feel about a test phase?”

“Sounds good, so far. What did you have in mind?”

Methos picked up a small stack of papers from the coffee table. He offered them to her without getting up. She walked over and took them and he resumed his patented sofa sprawl. “Fill those out for me.”

Kate glanced through the papers. “I’ve seen this on the internet. It’s a BDSM Play Partner Checklist. Fairly in depth, as far as I can see.”

“That’s the idea. It probably covers far more territory than we’ll ever need. But I need to know your interests and your limits.”

“It says here that the Dom should fill one out, too.”

“Oh, I have. You can look it over after you finish filling yours out. Wouldn’t want my desires to influence you.”

She smiled and met his eyes. “Duncan was right about you.”

“How so?” Methos had that charming, innocent look on his face.

“You’re very wise.”

He laughed. “Well, I am very old… I suppose wisdom comes with that. The combination of knowledge and experience. At least, that’s what I keep telling Joe and Mac.”

“Do you always call him Mac?”

“Usually. But never in bed,” he grinned as Duncan returned with the beers. “Ah,” he said, taking a long swig, “the elixir of life!”

Kate laughed and Duncan grinned, shaking his head. “I keep telling him wine is a good thing, but I can’t seem to convince him.”

“I know more about wine than any other man alive. I still like beer better!”

“I say it depends on the occasion. Some occasions call for champagne,” Kate said with a knowing smile. Her mouth drew both men’s attention as she raised the beer bottle and drank. She smiled at them and moved to sit at the bar. Taking a pen from her purse, she started to fill out the checklist.




Part 3

Methos sighed as his thoughts returned to the present. He still missed her; he supposed he always would. Duncan did too, evidenced by the fact that he was always silent and withdrawn 3 days a year – Kate’s birthday, their wedding anniversary, and the anniversary of her death – the final one. Methos had avenged her; her quickening and that of her killer buzzed dully within him. He had cold-cocked Duncan, and chained him up, before going after the man. He couldn’t let Duncan do it; Duncan was so distraught and enraged that he would have lost, and then where would Methos be? No, only he had the experience to handle the fight with the cold distance he had come to personify. Duncan tended to forget that Methos had not forgotten how to fight. ‘Sometimes,’ Methos thought, ‘I swear he thinks I’m his student, a green young immortal with no experience or brains.’

Duncan’s soft voice intruded on his thoughts. “What’s wrong, love?”

“How long has it been, Mac?”

“Since?”

“Since Kate…”

Duncan’s face clouded over. “Two thousand, five hundred, and … seventy-one years,” he replied.

Methos sighed again. “So how come it only feels like a decade?”

Duncan breathed a small laugh. “I don’t know. Maybe-”

He was interrupted as an inexplicable shudder ran though the warship. The lights, ship-wide, dimmed, then brightened, then returned to normal.

“Mortis!” Methos barked. “What’s happening?”

The hologram snapped into view. “I cannot explain it, Captain. My sensors show nothing unusual, and all ship’s systems are operating at peak efficiency.” A low rumble rolled through the ship from bow to stern, and when it ended, everything instantly returned to normal.

After a second, Mortis informed them, “Whatever it was, it seems to be gone now.”

“Good”, replied a relieved Methos. “Raise your cloak, Mortis. We need to move into planetary range.”

“Which planet?” Mortis politely inquired.

“We’ll let you know when we figure it out,” Duncan informed the ship flatly, looking into his lover’s eyes.

This didn’t make sense to Mortis, but he set about making the appropriate arrangements anyway. He would be ready.

A moment later, Marianne came rushing into the room. Duncan and Methos looked at the Watcher in surprise. “You can’t just let this go!” she demanded in frustration. “You have to at least try to rescue her!”

“And where, exactly, should we attempt this ‘rescue’?” Methos was harsh and cold. “Please, if you know where she is, DO tell us. Where is she?”

Duncan grabbed his arm to hold him off. “We’re trying, Marianne,” he told her reassuringly. “We’ll find her and bring her home.”

“Good,” she said softly. “If we can help…”

“What about non-interference?” Methos spat.

“Of course we can’t interfere, if it involves another immortal. But this involves her. She’s not immortal, is she?”

“No,” Duncan replied. “She’s not. She’s just someone we both love. We’ll get her back, don’t doubt it.”

Marianne gave him a glowing smile, and glided quietly from the room. Duncan pulled Methos into his arms, and soothed him with gentle caresses.

“I was supposed to keep her safe, Duncan.”

“There was nothing you could do, Methos. There were too many of them, and they did shoot you. Hard to fight back when you’re dead, even if it is temporary. We will find her. We will bring her home.”

Methos melted into Duncan’s chest, sobbing softly in relief at the sheer determination in his beloved’s voice. Duncan continued to caress his back in soothing circles, until he calmed down. A few moments later, Methos raised his head, and looked into Duncan’s eyes.

“I know where to start.”

Duncan smiled.




Part 4

Over the millennia, Methos had grown outwardly harder, colder, but inwardly, he had developed a capacity for love that dwarfed that of most men, mortal and immortal alike. Only Duncan, who had shared his life, passions and love, compared. Duncan didn’t hide it or control it as well, however. Methos was generally so controlled he appeared unfeeling. Duncan, on the other hand, had remained, outwardly, essentially the same as he had always been. He grew in power and knowledge and wisdom, of course, but he retained that boyish charm and boy scout demeanor. Methos liked to remind him that, barring extraordinary life-changing epiphanies, immortals only became more what they were to begin with. In effect a distillation of personality and purpose. So Duncan was the True Warrior who used charisma and friendly banter to gain loyalty and trust. Methos was far less concerned with making friends than he was with survival. That hadn’t changed noticeably. But the changes to the Universe around them had made him withdraw into a shell of protective armor that only his ship and shipmates ever saw beneath. To the outsider, he seemed hard and cold – implacable. But to his little family, he was warm and wise, loving and gentle.

Most of the time…




Mortis was scanning his databanks, trying to figure out what was going on. Apparently, someone – a female – was in need of rescue. Someone Methos had promised to protect. Someone who “belonged” on board the ship. Someone who was a member of their little family. But Mortis could find no evidence of such a person or event. He had asked Mort, his avatar, to check into it. Meanwhile, he kept looking.





TBC





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