THE SPIDER'S BRIDAL BED By C

(Contains: amorous fairies, a big spider, non-consensual & semi-consensual fairy-catching, plus lots of tears, screams, panties, and erections.)

Tom would never forget that summer he first stayed at Grandpa's farm. Of all the memories he cherished from that visit, there was one thing he dwelt on more than any other: the Spider's Bridal Bed.

It was the summer after Tom's eighteenth birthday, and his first year of college had not gone well. He didn't relish confronting his parents and feeling the sharp edge of their anger, so it seemed nothing less than a miracle when Grandpa called.

"I'm getting on, and I could use some help around the farm," the old man said. "If you don't mind a little backbreaking labor, why don't I put you up till your mom and dad have calmed down a bit?" Tom jumped at the offer.

It was hard work, but it was all work with your hands and your back, the kind Tom was good at. Within weeks, he and Grandpa had caught up on everything that needed to be done. There remained plenty of daily chores, of course, but they now had more time to talk, and more time to roam the several acres of Grandpa's property just for the sights and the fresh air.

It was a fine Sunday morning in mid-July, not too hot, when Tom first saw the Bridal Bed. Grandpa was a freethinker, so after a big breakfast, he joked with Tom about all the folks who went to church. Then they went for a stroll through the meadow at the northern end of Grandpa's farmstead. In the meadow stood a small pine tree. When he first saw the tree, Tom was surprised to note that it shimmered. "What's that?"

Grandpa smiled and said: "Go take a closer look."

So Tom strode up to the tree and discovered what was really shimmering: a sheet of silver-gray webbing, about five feet across, stretching down at a 45-degree angle from the top branches of the tree to the ground. "Is that a spider web?" he asked.

"Kind of," said Grandpa. "It's called the Spider's Bridal Bed."

"What size spider makes a web like that?"

"Not that big," said Grandpa. "About the size of a large dinner plate, I'd say."

"Wunh," said Tom, looking anxiously down at his feet.

"Don't worry son; they don't hurt humans."

"What does a spider that big eat? Birds? Gophers?"

"Let me show you," said Grandpa. He picked up a stone and tossed it at an oddly shaped tuft of grass about twenty feet away. The stone hit dead on, and five of the largest butterflies Tom had ever seen came fluttering up. They followed an erratic path, as butterflies are wont to do, and then circled several times around Tom and the old man. To his astonishment, Tom saw now that these were not butterflies. The first three looked like human girls in their early twenties, about a foot long, with butterfly wings! The last two were twenty-something, butterfly-winged boys! The wings of each had a different color: red, green, yellow, blue, and turquoise. All were clothed, and the colors of their outfits matched their wings. The girls had sleeveless shifts, and panties, and high heels; the boys wore long-sleeved shirts and knee-length boots, but had nothing on their bottoms. Tom could see their little cocks, which were very erect. After a fifth or sixth pass, the creatures flew off.

Feeling somewhat dizzy, he sank to his knees in the grass and said: "They're . . . they're . . . . "

"Fairies," said Grandpa, "Winged Fairies, the most common kind of Fay."

"I think I need a drink," said Tom.

"Sorry, you're not legal yet. Let me try to explain. The world you usually live in, Tom--the world your parents always live in--has a pretty firm boundary between it and the Land of Mythica. In some places, though, the boundary gets shifty. This part of the country is one of those places. I've oftentimes gone out into the meadow and found myself in Mythica. In fact, I've been up and down Mythica many a time, and I've seen a hell of a lot. Well, it works both ways. What lives in Mythica can and does come here. Just a few years ago, those fairies started coming here; in fact they infested the place, which was a problem."

"Why?" said Tom, still feeling dazed. "They're beautiful."

"Unfortunately, they're as bad as they are beautiful. They blight crops. They make livestock sicken and die. They can drive humans who are weak in body or mind crazy, even make them kill themselves. I've seen it happen. I felt a special responsibility, because I thought my wanderings into Mythica might have attracted them here. So I took one last trip. You see, for every pest, there should be a pesticide. I figured folks in Mythica would know what made these bad little critters turn their toes up. And they did know! They were very helpful in fact, and it wasn't long before I came back with a knapsack full of samples."

"Samples?"

"Eggs, mostly, but some adults, too."

"You mean . . . spiders."

"That's right. I got the most aggressive species, but only ones that weren't poisonous to humans. My favorite is the lady who makes the Bridal Beds: the Golden Wolf Spider."

"But Grandpa, if those fairies are what they look like, they're . . . they're human beings! This sounds like murder!"

"They're evil, Tommo, and they're not human! Don't be misled by appearances. In this case, it could kill you."

"So," said Tom. "These fairies blunder into this . . . this Bridal Bed, and a giant Wolf Spider gobbles them up?"

"Not quite," said Grandpa. "Fairies are a lot smarter than any bug. They're not going to 'blunder into' anything as big and obvious as this sheet of webbing here. No, the Wolf Spider gets her prey on the hoof. This is where she displays what she's already caught. And this is where fairies come when they . . . decide to die."

"Decide to die?"

"That's right. Let me explain."

It was mid-July and mating season was drawing to its irrevocable end. Just two more weeks, and Irana and Serena must either be bedded or . . . it didn't bear thinking about. The two friends got spruced up for yet another fairy mixer. They did each other's hair and made sure their white shifts and panties were spotless. Then they crossed their fingers, laughed a little ruefully, and set out.

Irana and Serena were plain Janes by fairy standards: both had overly serious-looking faces, straight, nondescript brown hair, spindly legs, and white wings devoid of ornament. Irana was a little too thin; Serena a little too plump. Ordinarily, such imperfections wouldn't keep a girl from finding a good (if not quite breathtaking) boy.

Unfortunately, these were not ordinary times. The "Princess" had heard about these green pastures just beyond the border of Mythica, where the humans were abundant and stupid, and the predators were still scarce. She wasn't really a princess; just a cousin some number of times removed from the Royal Family. But Titania had the looks of fairy royalty, including their bright red hair and wings. She complimented these with a red shift and red high heels. Her one departure from sartorial tradition: her panties weren't red, but rather a dazzling white that almost blinded the viewer. In addition to beauty, she seemed to have a malevolent magic. Whenever Titania came to a fairy soiree, all the males there immediately swarmed around her. She now had forty or more permanent suitors, who followed her everywhere and doted on her every idiotic word. She wasn't completely stupid: she never tried to steal a boy who was already hitched, as that might prove fatal. But she now monopolized the attention of everyone else. It was cruel, and not just to unattached females like Irana and Serena. Instead of announcing her choice, she continued to lead on every one of these poor boys. When the inevitable rejection came for all but one of them, the unlucky ones might not have time to find a mate. They'd cry then, and not just from unrequited love.

The two friends flew out into the meadow and, as always, shuddered a little when they passed the Spider's Bridal Bed. At least it was empty tonight. It might seem strange to others, but fairies always celebrated near one of these Bridal Beds if they could. It reminded them to importune life for its pleasures while they still were able. They saw the strangely tufted grass that indicated a fairy encampment and flew in.

There were several fairies, boys and girls, drinking wine from buttercups and laughing at some joke or other. The sisters took a closer look: to their great disgust, but unsurprisingly, every one of these boys was one of Titania's thralls. If the girls flirting with them thought they were going to get anywhere, they had another thing coming. Just then, the "Princess" appeared. Sure enough, the other ladies were abandoned in mid-sentence. All the males in the place surrounded Titania and would not take their eyes off her. Their erections even seemed bigger than the usual for mating season. ("This sort of thing reminds you of why they can't wear underpants," said Irana with a snort.)

"We've got to talk to her," said Serena. "Maybe she'll be reasonable."

"You have to have a brain first before you can be reasonable," said Irana, "but we might as well try." So they went over to where Titania and her admirers sat.

"Uh, Titania dear, you remember us, don't you?" said Serena.

"No. Should I?"

"I'm Serena and this is Irana. We were part of the welcoming committee when you first showed up. Could we, uh, speak in private?" Titania turned to her boys and said: "Go away." They did. "Is that private enough for you?"

"That's fine," said Irana. "Titania dear, it's like this. We don't mean to be pushy; but it's crucial for the well-being of our community here that you announce your choice of a mate as soon as possible. The deadline is just two weeks away. It would be dreadfully unfair to most of these boys--not to mention some girls--if you waited till the last minute."

Titania just stared at them for what seemed a very long time. At last she spoke, and the disdain in

her voice was palpable. "I feel I have to explain something about myself," she said. "I matured just before the last mating cycle. When it came time to mate, I discovered that I was simply, well, irresistible. And that's not all: when I reject a boy, he doesn't rush off to some inferior female for consolation. He just cries, carries on, and pines until the time comes to give himself to a spider. That's the way it is. I can't change it." If the smug look on her face was any indication, she didn't want to change it.

"But this is dreadful!" said Irana. "For the sake of the fairy community, you must seek help to alter this destructive body chemistry of yours. You must!"

"The only thing I must do," said Titania, "is what it suits me to do. Now here's what's going to happen: two weeks from now, at five minutes before midnight, I'm going to announce my choice to my darling, doting boys. The losers will then burst into tears and beg me to reconsider. (Let me tell you: the only thing prettier in my mind than an aroused fairy boy is an aroused fairy boy crying his eyes out!) I'll say no. Then the Gong of Gordion will strike twelve times. The losers in my little lottery will fly out into the night, sobbing and cursing their infatuation, now that it's too late. You'll be sobbing in your beds at about the same time, I expect. I will then lie down with my chosen one. The next day, we'll take a leisurely tour of all the Spider's Bridal Beds in the neighborhood. We'll see my poor, unsuccessful suitors. And we'll see you. You'll all be a kind of monument to my beauty and my allure. Perhaps we'll make love right in front of you."

In a low voice, Serena said: "You treat your own kind as if they're . . . human beings or something. Despicable!" With that, the two friends stalked out.

Later, Serena and Irana discussed their strategy, or rather the lack of it.

"I never thought I'd say this," said Irana, "but it's possible to be too evil."

"Can we kill her and claim self-defense?" asked Serena.

"No. I checked that with a fairy lawyer: we have to be dead-bang certain we're going to die if we don't act immediately."

"We are certain!"

"Not certain enough. We could always move to a new community."

"With a different dialect and different customs? We'd never fit in in time!"

"The lawyer was adamant: if we kill her, we'll be executed, which sort of removes the point of killing her."

"Any insight into what this strange magic of hers is?"

"No. None at all. There's nothing like it in the clinical literature."

"We're sunk then."

"Yes," said Irana. "We're sunk."

Weeping, they held each other tight. Serena then whispered in Irana's ear: "Take your panties off, my dear." "All right, darling," said Irana.

Having resigned themselves, the friends took great pleasure in their last two weeks. About half-way through the second week, Serena said: "Have you seen the Bridal Bed in the meadow lately?"

"Not since that night at the mixer," said Irana.

"I saw it today. It's been decked out with wildflowers."

"How nice," said Irana bitterly. "The spider's welcoming us."

"It's the biggest Bridal Bed in the region, isn't it?" said Serena.

"Yes."

"It looks comfy."

"Yes, it does."

They stared into each other's eyes. "It's settled then," they said together.

The last night came. Serena and Irana lay in bed together, holding each other. Even though they were expecting it, both screamed when the Gong of Gordion began to strike: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve. The two fairies got slowly out of bed. Together they recited the customary prayer: "Oh Dark Lord, we are heartily sorry for having offended you by our failure to mate. We pledge to you that tomorrow, at our earliest convenience, we will put ourselves in the path of a predator, so as to pay the penalty laid down by your Law." They lay back down and listened to the night. Soon they could hear, from several points of origin, the sounds of weeping.

The next day, after a surprisingly restful sleep, they flew out to the meadow. The Bridal Bed was bordered with flowers, as Serena had said. They were unsurprised to see that it was already occupied. Coming in for a closer look, they saw five heartbreakingly handsome fairy boys, lying on their backs in a row, their faces wet with tears and their cocks very stiff.

"Hello," said Serena. "Some of Titania's victims, I presume?"

"Y-yes," said a beautiful blond. "Paying the just price for our foolishness."

"You were driven out of your senses by her magic. How could you know?"

"We . . . we've said that . . . a dozen times to one another this morning. It's not . . . much of a consolation. I'm M-Miko, by the way."

The other boys introduced themselves: "S-Sato," "Al . . . (ow!) Alcuin," "B-Brito," "S-S-Sanjil (oh, it hurts!)"

"Hurts?" said Irana. "Have you already been stung?"

"Only by T-Titania," said Miko. "While we were in her thrall, she made it . . . a strict rule . . .that we could have no relief . . . till she . . . made her choice. Now . . . we can't get relief on our own. I fear we'll . . . explode before the spider comes!"

The girls looked down and, sure enough, the boys' pouches were red and swollen beyond their normal size. "You poor dears!" said Serena. "You poor dears!"

"Serena darling," said Irana, "it's time to lie down now."

"Not yet! They're suffering because of that cruel bitch; we can't just stand by!"

"What do you propose?"

"Watch me."

Serena quickly stripped off her panties and tossed them away. (And why not? She no longer needed to mask her scent.) She then lowered herself towards the web, being very careful not to entangle any part of her wings or body in the sticky threads. Miko seemed to be hurting the most, so she placed herself just inches above his groin. She grasped his cock in both hands and tugged back his foreskin. Miko screamed.

"Do you want me to stop?"

"No!" he gasped. "No."

With no further ado, she impaled herself. Miko cried out again, this time with a more even mix of pleasure and pain. "Come on, Irana," she said. "I don't think any of them will object." Being very careful not to entangle herself, Irana shed her panties and descended on Sanjil.

And so it went, till the two friends had served, and been served by, all five. When it was time to come, each boy cried out repeatedly and unashamedly as he sent one gout of boy-honey after another into his angel of mercy. The girls cried out along with them. In too short a time, boys and girls had complete relief.

Serena was sighing with perfect contentment when Irana said: "Darling, I hate to be a bother, but . . . ."

"I know."

They lay down on the web on either side of the five boys: Serena next to Miko, Irana next to Sanjil. The magic of the web was such that their shifts were immediately fastened to the surface with sticky strands, and their arms were pinned at their sides. Their legs and bottoms, however, could still move freely. This was for the spider's convenience. It was comfy. All anyone could do now was wait.

The sun was hot and it made Serena drowsy. She nodded off for a while, only to be wakened by a strange rhythm. The web was pulsing! She and the others looked out between their feet at the bottom edge. The builder of the Bridal Bed, a female Golden Wolf Spider, was striding up toward them! She was covered with thick, dirty-yellow fur. She had eight powerful legs and eight yellow eyes; but her fangs were the most terrible thing about her: two recurved needles that glinted as if made of steel. Clutched in these fangs was a fairy, bound tightly 'round the middle with strands of silk. Fastened to the spider's back was another fay, similarly trussed.

When they saw her, the seven captives couldn't help but scream with terror. It's my time! they all thought. But not quite. The spider dropped her new victims onto the web, next to Irana, and then . . . went away! These new arrivals turned out to be Titania and her chosen boy-toy, Rilchiam!

"It's not fair! It's not fair!" Titania shouted. "That stupid spider snuck up on us!" Rilchiam, who'd taken a larger dose of venom than his paramour, just looked dazed.

"They've been known to do that." said Irana.

"Devil preserve us!" said Titania. "I remember you! I remember your mopy friend, too! Can't a person have good company at least?"

"I'd say you're responsible for the company you're keeping," said Serena from the other end of the little group. "In fact, I've an inkling it's no accident you're here. Two weeks ago, I sent a message to the Temple of the Dark Lord, outlining your interference with the free mating of fairies. I reckon this is his response."

"You . . . bitch! You worthless bitch!" screamed Titania, struggling vainly against the threads that held her like a fly on flypaper.

"Save the screams for when you'll really need them," said Irana in a quiet voice. "She's back."

......................................................................................................................................................

Two weeks after their first visit, Tom and Grandpa returned to the meadow. "This isn't the only Bridal Bed in the area," said Grandpa. "But it's the biggest and most beautiful. Since the deadline for mating has just come and gone, we should see something interesting this time."

"It's got flowers on it," said Tom.

"Considerate of the spider, don't you think?" laughed Grandpa.

They came closer. Sure enough, lined up on the Bridal Bed in a neat row were nine fairies. Tom looked even closer and saw, from his left to his right: one female, pretty but a little plump; five males, as handsome as any fashion model; one female, pretty but a little thin; another female, a redheaded knockout; another matinee-idol male. Of the females, oddly enough, only the knockout was wearing panties. Their eyes were awash with tears, their mouths were all wide open, and Tom

could hear shrill little screams. This wasn't surprising, because the largest spider Tom had ever seen was strolling towards them from the bottom of the web! It looked as if it could move very fast if it wanted to, but it wasn't rushing now. It came to Tom all of a sudden (though how he knew it he could never say afterwards): the spider enjoyed the impression it was making on its catch! Tom knew he should be horrified, and in a way he was. But he was also aroused--more aroused than he had ever been before in his life.

"Makes me want to cream my jeans, too," said Grandpa. "And you know what? It's not like sex in the so-called real world. It's just as exciting the thousandth time as the first. Keep looking."

At last, the spider reached the line of kicking, crying, screaming fairies. It surveyed them for a short time, moving its head back and forth; then it went to the plump, pretty girl on the left. Tom had to see, so he brought his face right up to the edge of the web. Neither the spider nor the fairy seemed to mind. The girl was kicking frantically, as if her little high-heeled feet could make the monster go away. Suddenly the spider leapt forward with dazzling speed and grabbed her legs. Then it forced her thighs back, till they were right up against her chest. Now it quickly drew out a line of web from its rear and used this to bind the girl's thighs there, so that her feet kicked upward and harmlessly. The girl's snatch was exposed now, and Tom had to say it was the prettiest he had ever seen: a delicate pink mouth with no border of pubic hair to coarsen the effect. The spider reared back, pausing for a moment, then plunged its fearsome needles into the plump flesh on either side of the girl's labia. Her scream now was long, piercing, and heartbreaking. Tom felt the strangest mix of lust, fear, and grief.

Apparently, venom from the fangs was starting to have an effect: the girl kicked more and more furiously, moaning audibly with the effort. Finally, she threw back her head and emitted a loud half-groan, half-wail of painful passion. At the same time, a clear liquid spouted from her cunt. She would do the same thing five more times over the next half-hour. At last she was still.

The spider then moved on to the boy next to her. Its procedure was essentially the same, except that here it plunged its fangs into his perineum, just below his pouch. He screamed and groaned and wailed every bit as much as his lady-companion. Instead of a clear liquid, he spouted a thick, white cream, tinged with pink. When he was done, the spider just went on relentlessly to the next boy, and the next, and the next, and the next. Then it took the thin girl. Somehow, Tom knew that she and the plump girl were the best of friends.

Then came the redheaded bombshell's turn. Tom had a new intuition, as mysterious, but as certain, as the others: this girl hadn't resigned herself to dying as her companions had, as much as they cried and carried on. It was going to be harder for her. Tom could hear her pitiable appeal, repeated over and over: "No! Dear Devil, no!"

This time the spider had panties to deal with. Obviously no problem: after forcing her thighs back, it tugged her pants to her knees in no time at all. Another stunning snatch; another assault by cruel fangs; another long, despairing scream.

The last boy put on as good a show as his fellows. Finally it was over, and the sun was setting.

"Here's where she gets down to feeding," said Grandpa. "She'll drain the magical essence out of each of them. Then their bodies'll crumble into a fine white powder, and the powder'll blow away. So . . . you've seen the spider bed her little brides and bridegrooms. What do you think?"

"It-it's overwhelming," said Tom.

"It sure is. Nothing wrong, though, is there, with fighting evil and having fun while you do it?"

"I suppose not," said Tom. "It's strange: I was feeling this . . . intense pleasure, seeing them die; but I was sad . . . hurting almost, at the same time."

Grandpa scratched his head. "Well, they're bad and they're getting their comeuppance. That's part of the pleasure. But of course there's more to it than that. I've a notion, Tom, that for them, everything is sex (I think that may be why they're so cruel). Anyway, even dying is a kind of sex for them. But it's still dying: it hurts . . . and it scares them. Now when you're near them, they make you feel some part of what they're feeling. So when they're caught, you feel some of the pleasure, and some of the sting, of their dying."

For a while, neither of them spoke. Then Grandpa said: "You know, Tom . . . I could sure use someone to help with the farm full-time, and maybe inherit it when I'm gone. It isn't just a farm, as you can see."

"It's the gateway to Mythica," said Tom.

"Just one of them," said Grandpa with a laugh. "Just one of them."

THE END