Interdisciplinary Collaboration

[LadyKaren50]

Joining the dance...

The moon reflecting off the Aegean had a beautiful glow and even in the darkness the moonlight illuminated the sea and the beach. Abi was gazing out at the sea in an almost meditative silence when she heard Suzi’s invitation to join the dance. She turned and saw Jo had shed her clothing and looked gorgeous with the moonlight reflecting off of her body. Suzi was naked as well. Abi quickly stepped back from the water and removed her robe as well and so the three women took hands and stepped together into the water.

 

[Mutau]

Improper posting. Removed by author.

 

[EmpressJosephine]

As the ladies cavorted , the cooling water refreshed their bodies and their carefreeness cleansed their spirits. They enjoyed their moment of daredevilry and liberty from societal restraints. Could they sustain these moments of lassitude? Should they? What was standing in their way?

Please see the introductory post to this thread, which informs everyone:

***

This is a CLOSED thread. Please, from now on, only those people listed above should post in it. Thank you.

 

[LadyKaren50]

Time to sightsee...

It had been a long day. Abi and Jo finally returned to their rooms late. They had encountered a young woman on the beach earlier in the evening and had joined her in dancing naked by the water’s edge. Abi had expected that others might see them, and maybe even join them, but as it happened the other guests at the hotel seemed to be more interested in partying than in wandering along the Aegean beach and communing with the sea goddess Posidaja. Their mysterious young partner herself had wandered off, naked. Disappearing as if she was a nymph and had been transformed back into the spray of the waves. She left Abi and Jo naked and twirling on the beach. Soon enough they ended up in each other’s arms. Laying at the edge of the water they kissed passionately and caressed each other as the water lapped at their bodies.

Soon enough it was time to return to their rooms. They slipped on their garments and wandered back to the hotel. Back in their rooms they cleaned the sand off of their bodies in the shower and fell into bed. Soon they were fast asleep, entwined naked in each other’s arms.

The morning came early. Abi had set the alarm for 6:00 AM and even though they were both still a bit jet lagged Abi bounded up at the sound of the alarm. She was excited. Today she would take on the role of tour guide – sort of. She had planned their excursions. They had decided that they would visit a few important sites, a few lesser known sites and otherwise would use the time to simply be together and enjoy their vacation. Had Abi been alone she would have jammed her schedule with lots of museums and archeological sites. But because she was with Jo she wanted to have some time to just enjoy being with Jo and allow them to have some adventures together. So she resisted the temptation to fill the schedule full. Even so, for this first day, Abi knew that if they were to get in to see what was called the Knossos Palace, they had to get there early and get in line. It was the most popular site on the island of Crete and a place everyone who came to the island wanted to see, including cruise ships, which accounted for the crowds.

Abi and Jo quickly dressed – Abi wearing her archeologist outfit: khaki shorts, a t-shirt with an unbuttoned khaki shirt over it (which could be discarded later in the heat of the day), sneakers and her Indiana Jones hat. She wore nothing underneath. The women had a quick breakfast and got into their rental car, puling into the site around 7:15. Already a crowd had gathered and there was a line, though not too long. In fact shortly after getting in line several busses arrived and the line grew substantially. When they finally got into the site Abi took the lead and began by explaining that while they called the site Knossos “Palace” it was probably not a palace at all but a temple. “There is no evidence that there was any kind of a ruler besides the High Priestess during Minoan times. With the Mycenean Greeks came male kings and a greater stratification of the society. Also they brought with them male dominance and patriarchy.” Abi was particularly interested in showing Jo the (so-called) “throne room.” Do you know why this room was not a throne room? Look at that basin. That is a ritual basin. A King’s throne room would have no use for a basin like that. This was a ritual space.”

Abi was almost overcome with excitement as she explored the room, pointing out other features. Just being in the space where a multitude of Minoan rituals had taken place almost sent Abi into ecstacy. “There might even have been human sacrifice practiced.” She noticed the shocked look on Jo’s face. “I know, we find that rather abhorrent. But think about it – Christianity has at its heart a human sacrifice and followers continue ritually to eat the body and drink the blood of the fully human yet fully divine founding figure. And more importantly, the point of human sacrifice in the ancient world was to secure prosperity for the future – good weather, success and plenty. They might sacrifice someone once a year. But in our 21st century world, in order for our society to secure economic prosperity, we sacrifice thousands on a regular basis through hunger and deprivation and injustice. It is not much different in my mind, except that the Minoans are more honest about it. We call it ‘rugged individualism.’” She paused, “There is nothing new under the sun, except we are more efficient at destroying both lives and the environment now.”

Abi next brought Jo to the room with the famous Dolphin mural. “Isn’t this incredible?” She stood and gazed enraptured. Tears formed in her eyes and she began to cry. “It is so beautiful.”

They concluded their visit and eventually wandered back to their car, left the parking lot and headed towards the Heraklion Archeological Museum. They arrived there just about noon and, after parking, first stopped at the Minos Restaurant, which sat right next to the museum. Abi took the opportunity to tell Jo the story of Theseus and Ariadne while they waited for their food:
How the monster Minotaur was locked under the castle at the heart of a labyrinth and how each year in order to placate the gods and feed the Minotaur young Greek men and women were sent into the labyrinth never to emerge, partly because they would get lost and then get caught and eaten by the monster. But King Theseus finally decided to put an end to this. So, he arrived as one of the to-be-sacrificed victims and quickly seduced the daughter of the King (Minos) whose name was Ariadne. When the time came she gave him a ball of thread to take with him into the labyrinth. So as he traversed the labyrinth he unraveled the ball of thread as he went. Eventually he was able to find and kill the Minotaur and follow the string back out of the labyrinth. This angered the King, but aided by Ariadne they escaped. “And then Theseus dumped Ariadne on the island of Naxos. Turns out he was already married. Typical! You know, there is a wonderful Richard Strauss opera based on that part of the story. It is a fun opera. Anyway, that is a Greek myth, BTW. Not a Minoan one. Ariadne was originally a Minoan goddess, the goddess of seasons. She is one of the great goddesses. But the Mycenean Greeks demoted a lot of the goddesses and turned them into helpless, lovelorn women.”

Following lunch they spent several hours wandering through the museum. Abi pointed out some of the ritual items, goddess statues, ceremonial cups and the famous Snake Goddess statue. “This actually might not be Minoan or even what it originally looked like. The head archeologist who first excavated this site, Sir Arthur Evans, was really more interested in finding proof for his hypotheses and tended to alter things to make them fit his theories. The Snake Goddess was found in pieces and it is not clear where it was found or whether the pieces actually even went together originally. But Evans made sure they went together.” They continued on and saw Minoan Jewelry, several gold labrys and finally the wonderful Bull Leaping fresco. “This was not just men, women participated too! Can you imagine?”

By now Abi and Jo were tired and headed back to their hotel. “I’m sorry if I pushed us too much.” Abi said softly. “I hope you enjoyed today. The other sites I want to visit should not be as hectic and certainly won’t be as crowded which is why I wanted to get these out of the way. They arrived back at the hotel and went up to their room to rest.

 

[LadyKaren50]

The first full day

Photos from the first day - beginning with the photos from above

1. Knossos Palace
2. Same
3. Throne Room in Knossos Palace
4. Throne Room in Knossos Palace
5. The Dolphin Mural

6. Bull Leaping Fresco
7. Labrys
8. Minoan Jewelry
9. 3 Women Fresco
10. The Snake Goddess

 

[EmpressJosephine]

Afterimages




Both quite tired from their day’s exploring, Josephine and Abi decided to take separate showers. Josephine went first and, as Abi took her turn, Josephine sat on the bed with wet hair, wrapped in one of the resort’s huge, Egyptian cotton towels, reviewing the pictures on Abi’s phone. For convenience, and with full trust, they knew each other’s telephone pass codes.

In one picture focused on a broken but otherwise legible — if you read ancient Greek — stela, six slightly blurry young women, perhaps a college group, stood in the background. One of them reminded Josephine of Suzi, the uninhibited neopagan she and Abi had met the night before. A tingling warmth developed in Josephine’s loins. She had found the girl quite alluring and had harbored fantasies of bringing her back here to their room last night. Suzi had wandered away, however, before any such possibility developed, even if it ever would have.

Josephine closed her eyes a moment and pictured Suzi, her pert breasts and misleadingly innocent smile nearly glowing in the moonlight. Imagining what Suzi might be like in bed, Josephine’s hand slid under her towel and one finger softly caressed her slit. Josephine loved Abi fully, and had no desire to replace her. So far, also, their relationship had not succumbed to the dreaded LBD, “Lesbian Bed Death,” that plagued some of her friends. None the less, Josephine was by nature sexually adventurous. She wondered how Abi would have reacted had she suggested bringing Suzi home and if, should another such opportunity present itself, she should risk testing that reaction.

 

[LadyKaren50]

Relaxing after an active day...

It had been an exhausting day. Abi had pushed them to do two major sites in one day. And now at the end of the day they were both tired. Once they returned to their rooms they decided to take showers before supper and a walk on the beach. Jo took her shower first and while she waited, Abi undressed and put on one of the plush robes that the hotel provided. She sat on the bed and looked through the photos she and Jo had taken during the day. Abi had loved the day. She was in her element. Doing ancient ruins and museums exhilarated her, but now she was feeling a bit guilty and nervous that perhaps she had pushed too hard and that her partner had found it all a little too overwhelming.

She picked up her phone and started looking at some of the photos they had taken. Most of the photos were of the sites, the land, the artifacts and so forth; but there were a few of the two of them together which they had taken as selfies or got someone else to take. There were a couple of them separately and there were also a couple photos of some of the folks who were visiting the sites along with them today. Abi smiled as she looked at a couple pics of a group of young women who were together with them at Knossos. Jo had taken the photos. The girls were cute. Just then Jo emerged with her hair wet. Abi dropped the phone on the bed, gave Jo a kiss and went into the bathroom to begin her shower.

Abi luxuriated in the shower. The warm water splashing against her body felt good. She thought about Jo, about Suzi their almost friend, about the young women they saw here and there during the day as Abi washed her hair. Then she ran her soapy hands all over her body – over her breasts, taking a moment to pinch and pull on her nipples. And then she slipped her hands down her tummy and between her legs. After rubbing herself she leaned back against the wall of the shower and let the water cascade over her sex. But, finally she stopped and turned off the water wrapping got one of the thick hotel towels.

She walked out to find Jo looking at the photos with a hand slipped under her towel. Abi smiled and ran over to Jo and got behind her on her knees and gave her a hug from behind. Jo was looking at the photo of the girls. “They were all so cute, weren’t they…” Abi kissed her cheek. “Was today too much?” She asked after a little silence. “I’m sorry if I pushed too hard. She can slow it down if you want.” As much as Abi loved Jo, the fact was that after years of marriage to a man who was very distant and withdrawn she suffered from nagging self-doubt, and it didn’t take much to make her feel insecure. She hugged Jo again from behind.

 

[EmpressJosephine]

Content




Josephine continued to lightly stroke herself under the towel, even after Abi reentered the room after her shower. Abi probably recognized that she did. It didn’t matter. Their honest sensuality around each other stood as one cornerstone of their love.

Abi climbed onto the bed behind Josephine, wrapping her arms around her. Finding Josephine examining a photo of a half-dozen co-eds they had met at Knossos, she commented on their attractiveness. Josephine nodded and settled back against Abi’s chest. For a moment, still tired from the day’s treks, she simply relished the feeling of her lover’s embrace.

“Was today too much?” Abi asked, sensing Josephine’s exhaustion. “I’m sorry if I pushed too hard. We can slow it down if you want.”

“Ohh...” Josephine sighed. “I’m of two minds about that. I want to see everything you have to show me here but, at the same time, we have this marvelous resort to enjoy. I bet there are people here from all over the world. I like making new friends when I travel.”

She bent back to kiss Abi’s right cheek, then stroked the left side of her face with fingers that, an instant before, she’d had between her thighs. “But honestly, Darling, I’m up for whatever you want.”

 

[LadyKaren50]

The Remains of the Day

“But honestly, Darling, I’m up for whatever you want.”

Abi was hugging Jo from behind, her robe open so that Jo’s head was between her naked breasts. Abi could smell the scent of Jo’s arousal on her fingers as she stroked her cheek. Abi moved her head so she could take Jo’s fingers into her mouth and she gently sucked on them. Then as the fingers slipped out of her mouth, Abi hugged Jo from behind tightly. “I don’t have anything we have to do tomorrow. We can just hang out here at the hotel or do something you want to do. We could visit some of the beaches. You know being topless is pretty common in Crete. Or we could take the ferry over to Gavros Island where these are actually some nude beaches. We have 10 more days here and I really only have two things I absolutely want to do and that is to visit Malia and climb up to the Juktos Peak Sanctuaries which is right above a cute little village called Archanes. It is a bit of a hike but I suspect we’ll be alone. We could spend the night at Gavros, lots of people camp there. Abi looked down at the phone and smiled, “Maybe we’ll see those girls over there.” She kissed Jo’s neck.

Abi was not a jealous woman by any stretch of the imagination. She had never really ever been territorial or jealous of her husband even back in the days when they were younger and he had assembled his own harem of coeds. Abi herself had never been terribly monogamous herself. She had fewer assignations than her ex-husband, but she had lots of experience and this included men and women of a variety of ages over the years. “They were cute. I enjoyed them too.” She said to Jo as she slipped her hand around and inside of Jo’s robe and began to fondle and caress her breasts, teasing and gently pinching her nipples. Abi began to kiss Jo’s neck. “You know I will do anything you want to do…” She said this softly and with an inflection that indicated clearly that she was no longer talking about visiting tourist sites.

 

[EmpressJosephine]

That Old Time Religion




Josephine gasped then purred when Abi began playing with her nipples.

“You know I will do anything you want to do,” Abi whispered in her ear, her voice as sultry as her breath.

“Hmmm.....” Marie thought for a moment. Abi almost always looked to her to set the mood or theme for their sex, and she did not want to disappoint her with a mundane response. Thinking back on the day, she found her inspiration. “Some of the ritual items and statuary we saw at the museum prompted fantasies for me. For now... Treat me as your goddess, mortal.... Sacrifice yourself to my pleasure.”

 

[LadyKaren50]

Simple sacrifice

Treat me as your goddess, mortal.... Sacrifice yourself to my pleasure.”

Abi was surprised and sat quietly for a moment thinking. “Well,” she said finally slowly and softly, “you know that in the ancient world sex and sexuality were a mystery – a holy mystery. People didn’t understand it and had all kinds of strange theories about menstruation and conception and birth. And female sexuality in particular was at once both holy and terrifying, especially for men. We saw a few devotional items, but up farther north in Akkadia and Sumeria things were even more stark. The vagina was celebrated and feared. Taking men and objects into her body was holy; birthing children was holy – but such a mystery and it terrified men even as they were drawn to the act. The essence of some of those ancient cults was the celebration and worship of the vagina.”

Abi could feel her body begin to react as she was speaking and caressing Jo’s breasts and nipples. Her nipples were erect and she felt herself beginning to feel tingly and wet. “Breasts on the other hand were not such a big deal. Their function was obvious – feeding and nurturing a child. All of the animals did this. Our culture has turned the breast into a fetish. But in the ancient world women, such as here in Crete, dressed with their breasts exposed, it made nursing a lot easier. Pitchers and cups often were shaped as breasts so that the liquid would pour through the nipples. We saw some of those, remember?”

“But what was the point of worship and devotion to the Goddesses in particular? What is the point of any worship and sacrifice to any deity for that matter? The popular view is that worship and sacrifice was done in order to appease an otherwise angry and neglected deity who would otherwise be inclined to allow really bad stuff to happen. So you participated in rites in order to induce him or her to look kindly upon you and your community – and it was all community based. But that is not the only point, in fact I would argue that was only a peripheral issue. There was a more central and mystical dimension to this and that was communion with the god or goddess. One offered sacrifices; one offered oneself in praise and adoration; one worshiped in order to commune, to experience the presence of the deity even in an intimate way. There was no greater honor in the ancient world than to be chosen by a god or goddess for sexual intimacy which brought with it the possibility of bearing a divine child. To enable this drugs like opium and wine were used to enable this and some of the rites were very elaborate.”

“A human priestess was considered to be the incarnation of the god or goddess. So, when she was had taken the role on, in trance, or presiding she was the goddess and she commanded and the people would do what they were ordered to do. In ancient Sumer there was a ritual called the ritual marriage where the King would have sexual intercourse with the Goddess in public as a symbol of her commitment and love to the community, and his commitment and adoration of the goddess. Then there are the Eleusian Mysteries where the people would go through an elaborate ritual until they appeared before the goddess to be judged. The goddess would examine and explore them, pronounce judgment, demand obedience and then restore the person to the community.”

Abi paused, becoming aware that she had slipped into her professor mode she sought to shed this persona and submit, as a worshipper to the goddess. “You are the High Priestess of my life, you are the incarnation of the Goddess Innana, Aphrodite, Ariadne, Asarte. I submit to you completely. I would love to find a place out at one of the sacred places to re-enact the mysteries ritual with you and to worship you, submit to you and give myself over to you. Some rituals included groups, all submitting to the goddess or the god, like Dionysius. At Delphi the secret rites of Dionysius were performed in the mountains high above the holy city and one year a group got so high that they wandered away from the rest of the group and were found laying in the streets of a village naked in the morning. Maybe we can find other worshippers, my priestess, my goddess.”

“For now… I submit to you.” Abi slipped off the bed and went to the corner of the room where her suitcase was. She slipped off her fluffy robe and donned a sheer gown. She pulled out a little drum and slowly she began to beat a rhythm and move and sway to the rhythm. Having studied the ancient world Abi knew that ancient dances tended to start out with the dancers upright and simply moving slowly with their bodies to the beat of the drum. These dances could eventually get wild, but usually did not unless there was opium or a lot of wine. As she danced Abi sang a song celebrating the goddess and offering herself. “You are my Nanna, Great mother, great sister. Allow me to serve you. Come into me and fill me, make me one with you. Allow me to give myself completely to you.”

Abi walked up close to Jo, who was still sitting on the bed, her body visible and exposed through the sheer material she wore. She stopped her drumming and tossed the drum on the bed. Abi slipped to her knees. “Allow me to worship your sacred triangle – your holy vagina my goddess!” She was on her knees, her head bent over as if in prayer and there she waited for the Priestess to respond.

 

[EmpressJosephine]

In the Spirit




Josephine smiled slightly as she listened to Abi lecture. She loved when Abi slipped into her professorial habits. Only then did she display the self-assured confidence a woman of her accomplishments deserved to feel. It always made Josephine fall in love with her all over again.

She appreciated Abi’s subsequent dancing for similar reasons, along with the sheer sexuality of her body writhing under the translucent fabric of her sheer gown. By the time Abi finished and knelt before her in an attitude of worshipful prayer, she had Josephine quite aroused.

“Allow me to worship your sacred triangle,” Abi groaned huskily. “Your holy vagina, my goddess!”

Tossing aside her bath towel, Josephine slid her buttocks to the edge of the mattress, planted one foot on either side of her kneeling lover, spread her thighs, and whispered. “Please me well, mortal, and receive a boon but, if you disappoint me, you shall feel my tormenting wrath.”

 

[LadyKaren50]

Spiritual Abandonment

“Please me well, mortal, and receive a boon but, if you disappoint me, you shall feel my tormenting wrath.”

Abi began to nibble at Jo’s legs, flicking her tongue over the moist inside of her thighs as she rubbed her nose over her pubic mound, gently pulling at the hairs with her lips. Slowly she nuzzled her face in between Jo’s legs using her tongue, her lips and her nose to open Jo’s labia. With her tongue she took little lap, licking all around her vulva. Slowly she sucked Jo’s lips into her mouth and sucked them gently, all the while she let her hands wander all over her body – her breasts, her nipples, her tummy, her legs, her head and neck. She was bathing Jo in sensations of being caressed by Abi’s hands and her mouth. Then without using her hands, Abi pushed her tongue between Jo’s lips and found her clitoris, lightly running her tongue over it until she came to the opening of her vagina. She pushed her tongue into her and then ran her tongue back again over Jo’s clit. She repeated this several times until she slowly she sucked Jo’s clitoris into her mouth and began to nurse it as if she were a suckling child, all while continuing the swirling of her tongue and the caressing explorations of her hands and fingers.

Her own pussy was wet and dripping. Her breasts swayed as she worshiped Jo with her mouth. The act of ritualizing their love-making excited Abi beyond description. She had no doubt on the basis of her research that such activity was a part of the ritual cycles of the temple priestesses, and priests for that matter. Especially here on Crete where Minoan women were central in the cult, and fertility was such an important and indeed life and death issue. She imagined herself as a simple priestess worshipping the Great Mother Goddess in the form of the High Priestess; using her own mouth and body to enable her to become at one, that is unified with the Goddess. Orgasm would the complete manifestation of the Goddess! Orgasm was the most intense and profound spiritual experience that had been gifted to mortals since it was an experience of complete oneness with the divine! Abi therefore did not let up, but as if in a trace continued to use her mouth and fingers to bring Jo closer and closer to that experience of unity.

 

[LadyKaren50]

Finale

I believe our adventure has come to its close. This thread is now closed, unless or until Jo might choose to re-start it. I have rarely experienced such an enjoyable and creative role-play writing adventure. Josephine is a wonderful writing partner and a beautiful person. May she always be healthy and happy.

But what of this trip. Well, one can imagine that the vacation continued. Abi wanted to visit one of the Peak Sanctuaries and had hopes of enacting a ritual there for her and Jo, but as it happened the Peak Sanctuaries are more popular as hiking destinations than Abi had realized. But still Abi enjoyed experiencing a Peak Sanctuary and could only imagine how thousands of years ago the Minoans would have been led there by the priestesses for sacrifices and rituals. Abi and Jo spent a lot of time on the beach and explored some out of the way places. But all good things must come to an end and so they finally boarded the plane and headed back home, just in time to begin the 2020.2021 school year which brought with it the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns and remote classes.

It has been a hard year for everyone. I am hopeful we are beginning to see a tiny little speck of light on the horizon. But in the meantime, please everyone be safe and wear your masks.

And the blessings of the Goddess be upon you!

 

[LadyKaren50]

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