The Return of the Cheerleaders

The next day dawned bright and full of possibilities, which was a good thing considering it was a Saturday. The weekend was the only time the training facilities shut down, which meant the girls had a two day break. They’d be back hard at work on Monday, and they’d be drilling until Friday so that they could all pack up and leave the next Saturday. Time was running out, meaning that if they were going to go through with the traditional Spirit Night party normally thrown by the older girls that that night was the time to do it.

The boy had been hard at work since the morning, having had to first clear the area down near the lake where the girls planned on holding the ceremony, and then having to dig a pit deep enough to hold the fire Jim and Mitch had built. The boys had managed to gather more than enough wood for the fire, and Jim planned on using it all, despite the fact it would have lasted a decent sized household for a winter. Piled as high as they could make it, the stack of wood towered over Jim, and it had required a stepstool for Mitch to get the last few logs on top. Perhaps even more impressive was the fact that they didn’t plan to use any accelerants, letting the fire burn off of entirely natural fuel.

Ashley stood there at the edge of the lake and looked at the mountain of dead trees. Behind her the boys were cleaning themselves off in the lake, trying to get most of the dirt off outside rather than back in the cabin, where they just would have been forced to clean up again. She looked over at the boys, who were taking turns jumping off the diving platform that had been anchored about twenty feet out in the lake, and shook her head.

“Jim!” she called out, “Come here!”

Jim looked up from the ladder that led back onto the float, nodded, turned around and jumped back in. His swimming was hardly Olympic caliber, but it was enough to get him back to the dock. He managed to climb out of the water, and sat down, dripping, on the rocks that lined the edge of the lake.

“What’s up?” he asked.

“Are you seriously planning on burning all of that?” Ashley asked, motioning to the pile.

“Yeah, why?” Jim looked slightly worried. “You don’t think we need more wood do you? George and I can go fetch some.”

Ashley stood there and blinked at him before slowly shaking her head. “No, that’s alright, I’m fairly sure that there is more than enough wood here. I’m just wondering whether or not you’re going to end up getting us in trouble with the fire department.”

Jim paused before he replied, and considered the pile of wood. Finally he shook his, though he was grinning. “Nah, won’t be a problem. Mitch and I have been building things like this for years for scouts, and we’ve only really gotten into trouble once.”

Ashley’s eyebrow raised in curiosity. “Do I want to know?”

Jim chuckled as he answered, “Well, it was a couple of years ago, when we were still doing summer camps instead of coming here with you girls. Anyway, we were supposed to be doing a crossing over ceremony for a local Cub Scout pack, and as usual Mitch and I got assigned fire detail. We went out a built one maybe half again as big as this one, but it wasn’t supposed to be a big deal, as we were in the middle of a clearing, with plenty of room to work with. Anyway, somehow or other a green log managed to get mixed in about half way in, though we didn’t know it at the time. To make a slightly long story a little shorter, the log was also still full of sap, and about half way through the ceremony it exploded.”

Jim paused as Ashley gave him a look that didn’t just hint, but outright declared her blatant disapproval.

“Hey, don’t look at me like that!” he protested. “It wasn’t our fault, and no one really got hurt. Though it didn’t just pop, the damn thing burst. Fortunately by the time the top had pretty much burned off, so it wasn’t that bad. Unfortunately, that did mean that there were plenty of small cinder and ash pockets on top if it. It was sort of like watching a small sized volcano explode. Lot’s of dust and hot debris and all that.”

“Jim,” Ashley warned, her voice growing stern, “you and your brother are not to blow up the spirit fire and cover the girls in ash just so that you can all watch us strip off our clothes and jump in the lake!” With that said she stomped off back towards the cabins, leaving a slightly bewildered Jim in her wake. He watched her go, his thoughts mixed with his avid interest in the sway of her hips as she walked.

Mitch surfaced behind him. “You know, that might not be a bad idea.”

Jim turned and frowned at his brother. “What, blowing up the pile so that we get to see them all in the underwear? Kind of over the top don’t you think?”

“Well, maybe for you or me or George. But we could at least put on a show for Kevin.”

Jim’s frown turned to outright glaring. “You want us to blow up a big pile of wood just so your friend can see a bunch of cheerleaders half nude? Why not just cut out the middle man and tell him about the hole in the showers that George didn’t plug?” The showers in the girl’s cabin, to save on piping and room, had actually been built on the outside of the cabin, forming its lower wall. Since the cabins hadn’t been built with the intent to be used in winter the walls also hadn’t been made very thick, and was inevitable in the woods something had come along and chewed on them. The boys knew about the hole but pretended they didn’t, and the girls knew about the hole and pretended that it had been fixed, though only the more exhibitionally minded ones would ever use that stall.

“Nah, none of the current group is using it. I guess none of the younger girls wants to be seen,” Mitch answered. Jim gave him a look, so Mitch shrugged at his older brother. “What? I’m the one who has been cleaning the stalls, and that one hasn’t shown any signs of being used this year. There’s never anything left inside of it and the floor is always dry. All I’m doing is making an educated guess. Amy would kill me if she ever found out I was trying to peek in on the girls.”

“Whose trying to peek in on the girls?” George asked as he dropped his clothes at the edge of the lake.

“Mitch wants us to blow up the fire so that the girls have to strip and jump in the lake, because Kevin doesn’t have a girlfriend,” Jim summarized.

“I didn’t say we should do it, I just said I thought it was a good idea!” Mitch protested.

“Actually, there may be something to that…” George mused.

“Oh not you too!” Jim replied.

“Nah, but its still something to file away for another day.” He motioned for the others to grab their stuff. “Come on though. We need to get the stuff ready for tonight.”

-------------------

The fire didn’t crackle merrily, it burned with the fury of a properly built bon fire. It was hot enough that no one was willing to get with in five feet of it, and the boys were forced to throw new logs on it rather than place them carefully as would have been proper. Never the less, everyone was having a fine time. So far any attempt to roast a marshmallow had resulted in said confection bursting into flame as it approached, which simply served to keep the girls amused as they tried to see who could get closest before their snacks became torches. The chocolate bars that had been brought to make s’mores had been divied up on the spot, and the graham crackers lay forgotten behind the party.

There had been an added benefit for the boys as well. The intense heat of the fire, combined with the summer’s humidity, had convinced most of the girls that going at least semi topless was a good idea. Shorts hadn’t even been considered an option, and the only thing keeping splinters from pricking the rather shapely bottoms gracing the logs around the fire were the sheets and blankets dragged out of cabins solely for the purpose of serving as cushions.

Kevin let out a small grunt as he hefted another log and tossed it into the flames. The fire in turn crackled and crashed in appreciation as the fire began to devour the latest offering. He swiped his arm across his forehead, wiping away the sweat that was pouring down, and cursed his decision not to get a hair cut before coming up here with the girls. He had thought the shaggy look might have scored him some points, but all it was really accomplishing was to blind him as his hair dropped into his eyes. Looking about at various bikini and bra clad girls, he decided to just screw it, and stripped his shirt off. There was an appreciative whistle, and the turned around to find Tina, one his and Mitch’s classmates, standing behind him. She was wearing a blue bikini top which looked to be two sizes too small and shined in the firelight, as well as skimpy g-string that didn’t leave very much to the imagination.

“Hey, Sarah!” Tina called out. “Come over here!” Kevin turned around as another girl came around the fire, a can of crème soda in one hand. She was wearing just as little, though it seemed she had left the back of her top undone, allowing the material to just hang over her breasts. Her skin shone in the firelight as beads of sweat dripped down her cleavage. Kevin had to fight urge to shake his head to dismiss the image, partly because he knew it wouldn’t help and partly because he didn’t want to.

“What’s up Tee?” Sarah asked.

“I want your opinion on something,” Tina answered. “What do you think of him?”

“What about him?” Sarah replied.

Tina rolled her eyes. “We’ve got to do something for the new girls on the squad. It’s our duty as the squad deputies after all. Why don’t we throw him to them?”

“Hey wait a minute!” Kevin protested.

“What?” Both girls said it at the same time, almost causing Kevin to spin in place as he tried to look at them both at the same time.

“What exactly do you mean throw me to them?”

Tina shrugged. “Just what it sounds like. We take you, stick you in the shower or a clearing somewhere, drop the newbies on you, and tease them about it later.”

“Trust us, it will be fun!” Sarah added.

“And what exactly are we supposed to be doing?” Kevin asked. He had his suspicions, and he wasn’t entirely sure how he thought about them. One on hand, he had enjoyed playing with the thought of getting laid up here, as it was something that hadn’t quite managed to happen to him back home. On the other hand, he didn’t quite know how he felt about getting pimped out this way.

“What ever it occurs to you to do,” Tina answered. Kevin gave her a look. “Oh, please, nothing like that…at least not unless you all want to or something. The point is to make it known that they were all off somewhere with one guy. That way we can tease them about it, and they can spend all their time denying it. It’s embarrassing, but funny at the same time.”

“And what am I supposed to get out of this?” Kevin asked.

“Well…” Tina teased.

“Oh, come off it Tee! You think’s cute too!” Sarah scolded.

“Wait, what?” Kevin asked.

“Tina’s been watching you for half the week,” Sarah answered. “And I’ve been watching you the other half.”

“Ok, see, now I’m confused…” Kevin mumbled. He glanced about, and realized that everyone had been hanging out on the other side of the fire. The boys had stocked all the wood on one side, and so the girls had sat on the other. The fire was big enough and bright enough that seeing over or through it wasn’t really an option either. That pretty much left him alone with the two girls.

“It’s really rather simple,” Tina answered. “We’re polygamists.”

Kevin’s eyebrows narrowed in confusion. “What, like the Mormons?”

Sarah giggled, a sweet sound that seemed out of place to Kevin. Suddenly he felt rather warm. He would have stripped off his shirt, if he hadn’t already done so. The only thing left to take off his shorts, and he wasn’t quite sure where that would lead. “No, silly, we’re not Mormons,” Tina explained. “We’re Heinleinists.”

Puzzlement joined Confusion to leave Kevin totally bewildered. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard of Heinleinists before…”

Sarah giggled again, and this time Tina joined in. “That’s because we’re rather rare,” Sarah explained. “You’ve heard of scientology, right?”

“That wacko religion Tom Cruise practices? Yeah, sort of. Isn’t that the one where you worship space ships or something?” Worry and Panic began to replace Confusion. Dear god, they were insane, weren’t they!

“Sort of, I guess.” This time Tina looked puzzled, but she shook it off and kept going. “Scientology was created by a science fiction writer named Elron Hubbard. Heinleinism is also based on the teachings of a science fiction writer, Robert Heinlein.”

“So you guys worship aliens too?” Kevin blurted out. Almost immediately he wished he could rewrite time so that he hadn’t said it. He didn’t think it was wise to annoy crazy people, and the only way to go seemed to be into the fire.

Sarah shook her head. “No, its not a religion the way scientology is. It’s more a life philosophy. Part of it involves loving freely, and so people who follow it as a philosophy see no reason not to love more than one person.”

“So, what, you just sleep with who ever you want?” Worry and Panic were once more being replaced by Puzzlement. This also brought Kevin a slight sense of Relief.

Sarah shook her head again. “No, that’s just being slutty. I mean, yeah, we could sleep with multiple people-”

“And do!” Tina chimed in with a laugh. Hers was almost as sweet as Sarah’s.

“-and do,” Sarah added, shooting Tina a look. “But only if we care about them. Its not like we’d sleep with just anyone.”

“Come on, lets get away from the fire before I get a sunburn,” Tina suggested. She reached over and grabbed one of Kevin’s hands as Sarah did the same. Together they dragged him away from the fire and towards the lake front. Once they were far enough away that they were still being kept warm but weren’t observable, Tina and Sarah plopped to the ground, dragging Kevin with them.

“Ok, could you start over maybe? I’m confused about all of this,” he asked.

Tina shrugged, but she was smiling as she did so. The full moon overhead made her skin seem an almost pale white, and Kevin felt his blood stir as he looked at her. He glanced over at Sarah to see how it made her look, and was pleasantly surprised to find out that her top had disappeared somewhere on the way over. She noticed him looking, and playfully squeezed them together.

“It’s really simple,” Tina began. “Heinlein thought that it was human nature to love as many people as possible, and that limiting a person to a single partner was laughable. Instead he advocated that if you loved someone you should love them openly, regardless. That’s pretty much the foundation of the philosophy. Oh, there’s lots of stuff about working hard and being fair to people and honesty and justice and all that, but it all boils down to taking care of those who love you and who you love, in the end.”

“Did you two come up with this?” Kevin asked.

“Nope!” Sarah replied with a smile. “Our parent’s raised us that way. Actually, several of the ‘families’” she placed quotation marks in the air as she said the last word, “on our block are Heinleinists.”

“Why the quotation marks around families?”

“Because as far as we’re concerned, we’re all one big family,” Tina answered. “Sarah is my sister by another set of parents. All of our parent’s are married to one another.”