Tales of Helen & Lisa
by Sam James
Chapter 8 - All's well that ends well


It was going to be a difficult day for Helen and I. The time had come to tell
Lisa what we had been planning for some time and we were not sure how she
would take it.

Oh, there was no problem about telling her that Helen and I were planning to
get married, she's been expecting that for some time. But what she didn't know
was that I had received a promotion at work and was being transferred to head
office a hundred miles away - and, of course, Helen was coming with me.

We went across to the gym, where Lisa was usually to be found, and as we
entered an astonishing sight met our gaze. Lisa was on the mat with another
woman, locked up in a wrestling hold, and though we didn't recognise Lisa's
opponent we both perceived that she was a youngish, but very large and very
muscular woman indeed.

But what made us stop dead with astonishment was that Lisa was face down on
the mat, struggling desperately to break free from a kind of sleeper hold that
had her quite helpless, despite her enormous strength. Not that the other
woman was finding it easy - her face was pink and contorted, she was uttering
little whimpers of effort and her superb body was a mass of coiling muscles as
she fought to control Lisa's power. But she had Lisa beaten, and that was a
first.

At last Lisa gave in and the big woman released her grip and stood up. Lisa
sat for a minute, wiping her face and staring with a mixture of wonder and
admiration at her conqueror. Then she saw us and beckoned for us to come
across.

"Hi, guys, I'd like you to meet Ruth .... Ruth Cobb ....the Reverend Ruth
Cobb, as a matter of fact", Lisa said with a weary smile. Ruth Cobb was big -
well over six feet tall and built like a powerlifter, but that still didn't
explain how she'd been able to outmuscle Lisa.

Lisa explained. "Ruth's a Deaconess at Granchester Cathedral. She's also the
chief coach for the National Judo Squad and she's over here to talent spot any
of our girls for training for the next Olympics". Then Lisa, for the first
time ever, suddenly took on a humble expression. "I guess I made fun of judo a
bit, and when she suggested we go on the mat to test her judo skills against
my strength I thought I'd teach her a lesson. Big mistake".

Ruth laughed. "Don't be too down about it, Lisa, I'll tell you something. That
hold I had you in is unbreakable and its the only one I knew that I could beat
you with. You're the strongest woman I've ever met in my life - give me a year
or so and I could train you to take an Olympic Gold!"

Lisa laughed - but she was looking thoughtful and as they walked out to Ruth's
car we saw them give each other a farewell kiss - a kiss that was held just a
few seconds longer than necessary. Helen and I raised mutual eyebrows and
decided that now was not the time to break our news to Lisa.

A week later we broke the news about our impending departure. To our surprise
Lisa appeared unfazed. "That's great, guys, I'll look forward to the wedding."
And then, very casually she went on, "Guess I'll be saying goodbye to the
school, too. I've accepted an invitation from Ruth to go and live, er, stay,
with her in the vicarage at Granchester". And then, noting our expressions,
she said hurriedly, but somewhat unconvincingly, "It's a huge house and I'll
have my own rooms!"

"Are you going to train for the Olympic judo team" asked Helen with a sly
smile, and received a reply she didn't expect. "Yes, I am, and I'm also going
to take holy orders and be ordained" grinned Lisa, and at first we thought she
was joking, but she wasn't.

And so it came about that, nearly two years later, we established the memory
of our strange and exciting threesome when the newly-ordained Reverend Lisa
Brandt, Black belt 3rd Dan judoka and member of the National Squad for the
Olympics, came to a little church near to where Helen and I lived and
performed her very first baptism on our baby, Samantha Lisa Helen.

The End