The Princess and the Blade

[Emora Deen]

Tenara's jaw set and she tried to shove the image of Elias thrusting vainly into the air from her mind. She shook it out. "I... I don't care," she said, believing whatever they were could be managed in some way. She wasn't eating a fistful of them, like Elias. She just needed one...

A heavy silence seemed to settle between them, and Tenara hesitantly reached up towards the blindfold Havitharon had made. Her fingers hovered there, over his face, trapped in indecision. Then, she took a breath, held it deep in her chest, and curled her fingers in the fabric, tugging it down his face to hang around his neck. She let him see her, in all her broken glory.

Her eyes watered, and she immediately regretted the choice. Shame choked her, but at least he could see now why she wanted it. The bruising had been bad when Elias had bathed her, when Ren had seen them, but another day had passed and they had darkened. Her right side, legs, and arms were a watercolor of deep black and purple. Remnants of handprints and fists, the curve of teeth impressions and kissing-bruises, decorated her in torturous adornments. Tenara regretted her choice so much she panicked and grabbed the blindfold and slipped it back up his face, half-hazardly over his eyes.

--------

"That's a good boy," Laurius mused, a finger tracing Ren's jaw and brushing over his lips. He bent and kissed the man tenderly, his kiss tracing the line of his jaw, then down to his neck where those vicious women had marked him. He took his time, sucking in Ren's flush until he left bruises of his own in the wake. He slowly knelt as he kissed the man, releasing his horn and turning his hands on Ren's clothes. He ran fingertips down his chest and belly to his trousers, and opened his belt and trousers with a vicious tug. Laurius was still sucking on Ren's neck, down his collarbone and nuzzling the dip in his shirt. "Touch yourself."

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi sat stock-still opposite her. He'd only caught a glimpse, but his brain hadn't really processed what his eyes were seeing. He'd never seen a female in such a state. It shouldn't have been plausible. What had Elias been like when he'd hurt her? Wrathful? Obsessive? He wanted every detail, so he could ensure he never mirrored a single millimeter of his actions.

But if he let her see the outrage rearing up inside him, it could upset her more. He throttled his emotions meticulously, grateful for the brief privacy of the blindfold she'd pulled back over his eyes. Once he was certain he was calm, he raised his hands and lifted it away slowly. His eyes met hers and stayed there, focused only on her, not what had been done to her body. He took a slow breath and set down the towel he'd been using to wash her. "The drug you were given... the one that changed your perceptions and sensations... Toothsbane's secondary effects on males are nearly the same. It is less intense for females, but it can still be uncomfortable. The strain is also known to cause miscarriage." He spoke without looking away from her.

[Emora Deen]

Tenara stayed focused on Havitharon’s eyes. Would he judge her if she didn’t care? Life was scarce and hard to make on his world, and she wanted to throw it away. She nodded slowly. “I know…” She curled her arms around herself. “Ren told Elias it would make a female… infertile.” Tenara averted her eyes then, afraid to see what he thought of her choice.

[Soran Nightblade]

"That is what is believed," Havi confirmed. "Most here would consider it a mental break to consider such a thing." He reached to his collar and unlaced the top of his shirt, spreading the fabric so she could see the barely-legible smear that was all that was left of his ward tattoo. "When I commissioned a ward to prevent my rut, it was viewed the same way. He pressed his hands very lightly into hers. "This body is yours, Tenara. And I am also yours. I will not judge your choices, now or ever."

[Emora Deen]

Tenara clutched his hand, relief flooding through her. Tears crested her eyes and down her cheeks and she nodded to him, leaning forward to press her forehead against his chest. She rested there a minute, quiet and still.

“We tried to escape,” she said. “He punished us… He gave me to a soldier and I… I didn’t think anyone was going to find us. I thought you were dead…” She curled her fingers in his clothes and drew herself as much into his lap as she could go. The coolness in the room was seeping through the steam. She shivered as it brushed her skin. Tenara didn’t go on, didn’t bother explaining how she’d tried so hard to get him to kill her. She just settled into the quiet and his warmth. “Just one?”

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi cringed a little at the thought of taking more than one. "One will be more than enough," he said into her hair, snuggling her against him even though he was probably making her dirty again. "I am just... a little concerned about how it might affect you emotionally. It could be torturous to endure it without company, but in your case, even my company... might wound you."

[Emora Deen]

Tenara looked up at him, grasping him so tightly her grip turned bruising. “Please, don’t leave,” she said. She grabbed his face in her hands, and forced him to look at her. “You won’t hurt me. Nothing you do could hurt me. I know it in my soul.”

[Soran Nightblade]

The gold in his eyes glinted with a flash of power. "Certainly not," he agreed. He reached for a dry towel and wrapped it snugly around her shoulders before gathering her up in his arms. He carried her the few short steps to his small bed and set her on it gently. It felt like setting a pristine flower down on a stable floor, but this place couldn't be helped. He walked to the armchair in the corner and popped a hidden compartment out of one of the arms with his nail. A few metallic pearls sat in a small pocket. He took one, then grabbed a small cloth from the table next to his bed, and brought them to Tenara.

"Females supposedly do not break their teeth, but it is best to be safe," he told her gently, handing her the rolled fabric. With his other hand, he offered her the medicine.

[Emora Deen]

Tenara looked at him puzzled for a moment, thinking he meant she might break her teeth chewing the pearl, but then she realized he meant her to bite down on the towel. Her heart began to beat a touch faster, and she reached a shaking hand out for the medicine. How bad could it be? No worse than her wrist breaking or being beaten within an inch of her life.

But then she thought of Elias’s tortured form thrashing along the wall and her hand stilled just before placing the silver pill on her tongue.

She would be healed. The remnant feel of their touch on her would be gone. A few minutes of agony for the rest of her life free… Tenara popped the pill into her mouth and swallowed before she could second guess her choice.

A moment went by and she felt no different than before. Then, her body lit aflame with the strangest collection of sensations. It rose up so quickly she didn’t know how to process what was happening. She felt agony and bliss woven together, punching through every nerve. Shock widened her eyes, and she curled in on herself.

The sensation became a brutal knife twisting in her belly—like a mooncycle cramp but so much worst. She heaved air into her lungs to cool the ache, clutching her belly and curling tight. She had the presence of mind, just for a minute, to be horrified by the thought she might bleed all over Havi’s bed.

The bruises disappeared, the blood in her eye faded, the pain ebbed to nothing, and Tenara felt so tired. More tired than she had ever been in her life, and that was saying a lot considering what her magic did to her. She huffed against Havitharon’s bed, her breath slowing, her eyes closing. She made a soft, relieved sigh as the pill’s work was done, and then... Quiet.

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi's pulse beat in his throat as he watched over her. He stroked her back slowly while she struggled, knowing full well she probably couldn't feel anything but the effects of the drug. At first, he felt relieved that she didn't seem to have the conventional Ivis side effects. If she begged him for sex right now and then regretted it after the fact, they would both suffer for it.

However, when her body fell still, his anxiety peaked higher than ever. He pressed his ear to her chest and listened to the sound of her pulse and breath. Too slow, too soft.

When the knock came at the door, he nearly jumped out of his skin. He lurched to his feet and threw the door open a second later, not caring who was behind it. "Help her, please," he demanded of the wide-eyed female facing him.

Anya, house Ruthe's physician, managed to take her eyes off Havitharon long enough to peer around him at Tenara's body on his bed. She muttered a curse and pushed past him, rushing to her side. "What has happened to her?" she demanded.

Havi walked on her heels, head spinning for the right explanation. There was none. "Toothsbane."

The doctor's shock showed on her face. "...What?!" she demanded.

He clenched his jaw. The mustn't find out that she took it by choice. "I forced her."

Her face went slack, and he could tell she believed him. "Why?"

"Her injuries required it."

Normally, it would be impossible for a male to abuse a Yurivis, but Havitharon's wild reputation was well known. Suspicion whirled in her eyes. "What injuries couldn't wait for my treatment? Was there something you needed to hide?"

Havi shook his head. "The story is long. Will she be okay?"

The genuine fear in his voice made the doctor pause. Some of the disgust in her expression changed to confusion. The doctor began inspecting Tenara gently. "Has this female bonded you?" She had not missed the rings on his notorious black horns.

"She is my Yurivis," he hedged. Tenara's claim on him would be an unpopular one in this court. The family would certainly challenge it.

Anya shook her head. "You had best hope your sister hates her enough to overlook this sin." She touched Tenara's forehead with a cold hand. "She is running a fever."

Havi copied her with his own hand. "No, she is always this warm."

"Her skin and hair are strange as well. I've seen nothing like it, even from neighboring wyrmways. You must have traveled very far. I am not sure I can treat her correctly, but I will do my best to keep her stable. Please rest in one of the guest rooms tonight, Marquis."

"I will stay here." He frowned at her protesting look. "I can hardly harm her while you are with us, can I?"

The woman gave a defeated sigh and began setting up her tools. Havi sat on the chair in the corner, giving the uncomfortable woman space to work.

*********

In the next room, Ren arched backward against the chair Laurius had pinned him to. He felt drunk. Every time Laurius touched him, it felt too slow and overwhelmingly fast at the same time. His skin buzzed every place he'd sucked or bitten. He barely knew he was following the man's instructions, but he reached down to the place Laurius had exposed him and curled his fingers around his swelling cock. The Ivis winced, startled by the intensity of his own hand. But when he glanced up, he found Laurius's hungry eyes watching him, and it sent a current of lust through his whole body. "Oh, shit," he huffed, twitching with each stroke. His other hand groped for his master's waist, tugging impatiently at his belt.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius smiled at Ren, watching hungrily as the man followed his commands. “That’s it,” he said. “Keep going like a good boy.” He shifted back slightly on his heels, watching while slowly snaking his hands to his own clothing. He released his clothes enough to free himself, feeling the heavy weight in his hand.

Was this wrong? After what Ren had been through? But the man had said he wanted him to erase their touch—to mark every place they had been.

Laurius saw a bead of Ren’s excitement appear on the tip of his length and leaned forward, dragging his tongue over it, curling it around the tip. “I want to watch you until you almost come and then I want you to get on your hands and knees, understand?” He curled his hand around his own cock. “And we should probably keep as quiet as possible…”

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren made a soft growl in the back of his throat, getting a sudden flashback to the first time the man had claimed him. As if on cue, a door shut somewhere down the hall. A reminder of where he was. That first time, all he could think about was wanting to return here. Now, he couldn't explain what he felt, except that he wished to pretend nothing existed outside that door.

He rubbed his cock against his fingers with restless urgency. It wasn't enough. His green eyes traced up to Laurius. He felt desperate. Empty. He nearly reached for the man, but shivered instead and spread his other hand lower. His master had asked to watch him.

He pressed his fingertips against the place Laurius used. Even he couldn't believe he was touching himself in such a way, but he needed to do something about the need throbbing through him. With inexperienced movements, he slid two fingers inside himself. Embarrassment seared up his ears and neck. He clenched his eyes and pressed deeper. It was nothing like when Laurius did it, and he wondered how absurd he must look. He snarled and pumped his hand faster over his cock, afraid to look up at his master.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius moaned at the sight of Ren’s want, his eyes growing heavy-lidded as he stroked himself. He smiled, wicked and beautiful. “Look at me Ren,” he said. “See how much I enjoy the show? Are you ready to get on your knees for your master?”

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren cracked one green eye open and did in fact see just how much Laurius enjoyed the show. His mortification melted into a want so strong he thought he might scream. Mutely, he slid from the chair onto his knees and turned, showing Laurius his back. Bruises and bite marks had formed a mottled collar around the back of his neck and trapezius muscles. Elias's knifework on his forearm, still covered by Tenara's bandaging, had kept his focus away from his more trifling injuries, but now he wondered how bad it looked. It dawned on him for the first time that Laurius might see these injuries as a betrayal. Kishva certainly would have. Anxiety mixed with need tensed his spine as he waited.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius admired Ren’s back, pausing to draw his belt off. He folded the leather. His hand and slipped up behind the man. He ached to be one with Ren, but took a measured breath and traced the ruin of bruising along his back and neck, promising to ruin him too, but in a much better way.

Laurius draped himself along Ren’s back, forcing him down to his hands. He curled a hand in Ren’s horn and tugged his head back, pressing his lips to the Ivis’s ear. “You might need this,” he breathed, showing Ren the belt. He pressed it to the man’s lips. His hips bowed forward, his cock pressing along Ren’s back. “I don’t think I can be gentle. I need to burn their memory out of you. I think you want that too…”

Laurius passed the belt to Ren and sat back, spitting onto his hand. He smoothed the saliva over his cock and then spit on the place Ren had readied. Laurius didn’t let go of Ren’s horn as he pressed the bulging tip of his length to the man and thrust deep. A ragged breath rushed from Laurius, a moan stifled by force of will. He gripped the Ivis’s hip with one hand, his horn with the other, and gave him only a moment to get used to the invading force before he drew back and thrust deep again.