51. Cirri
Chapter 51
Cirri
H e came to me silently, the only hint of his presence carried to me on the breeze in the trees, the faintest whiff of his smoky forest scent.
I remained on the rough stone I’d found, a perfect seat to look out over the pines of the Rift, the twilight mist obscuring the distant walls of the keep and creeping over the ground.
It had felt audacious, even wrong, to freely walk out of Ravenscry’s gate, leaving the walls behind me without a backwards glance. No one had stopped me; no one had warned me of wargs in the mist. I’d wandered around the keep, examining the walls from the outside for the first time, and climbed the stony hills without fear.
My eyes ached from the endless poring over pages and scrolls of faded vellum, the ink so old it was no more than a whisper; the ghosts of words past. Those ghosts had spoken unclearly, but with patience and determination, I’d teased out meanings, held disparate pieces together and found the matching edges.
I no longer felt guilt over taking a break to walk the mountainous hills of the Rift. I had all the time in the world to chase the ghosts of the past.
Nobody would be pleased with what I’d found, but it was the truth, and it held answers for our future. The charm meant to bind Wargyr must never be lost again. If the people of Veladar wished to survive and remain ourselves, we could never allow the wolves to return.
Nor could we afford another slow slide into the next Red Epoch. The vampires would be upset over the truth of their creation, but there needed to be balance. If that meant anger over the knowledge, so be it—the fiends would understand and hold the truth of what they were, that they were only a step removed from their loathed cousins, and only by clinging to what remained of their humanity would they remain in power.
If they ever went too far, if they chose to break the Accords and push human involvement from their tables, we had the means to fight back, the binding charm hidden in several pairs of trusted hands.
All would be in balance, so long as we remembered that. Too much had been lost to forgetfulness already.
I pushed those thoughts aside as I climbed further, and finally came to a hollow in the hill, where a rough, rounded stone protruded from the earth. That was where I chose to sit and wait for him.
Of course he didn’t disappoint me. He never could.
He came from the west, circling me, and only moments after I smelled him, a warm hand descended on my shoulder. He cupped my face, fingers curling under my chin. I leaned into his warmth, pulling my cloak tighter around me.
“The last time we spoke of walking the Rift… to be honest, I never thought it would happen.” His other hand came down, splaying over my chest as he held me to him. My heart raced under the heat of his palm. “I believed I would have to keep you locked inside forever, and give nothing but small tidbits of freedom. I feared that over time, it would give way to resentment.”
I slid my bare arms through the slits in my cloak, a small shiver running down my spine as the cool air touched my skin. I never would’ve blamed you.
“Maybe not, but resentment doesn’t need a reason. It just grows over time, little by little, until it's burrowed so deep you can never rip it out by the root.” Bane’s thumb stroked my collar bone, tracing the ridge. “I believe that’s one of the reasons I love you. Your practicality, your understanding. I’ve never worried that you would try to leave the keep in a fit of pique, or ignore the dangers to pursue your own whims. My only worry was that this life would stifle you, and one day extinguish that inner fire.”
No , I signed. Not so long as you’re with me. But to walk outside now… it feels almost forbidden.
“But does that not give support to my fears?” he asked quietly. “Imagine several more years locked inside those walls… it would have grown into your mind that the outside is forbidden. It would have destroyed you in time.”
And I can destroy your fears with three words: that didn’t happen . I stood up, brushing my cloak straight, and turned to face him. Let go of those worries. You gave me the High Tongue relics, and now we never need to worry about it again .
Bane smiled slightly. “If you had been anyone else…”
But I’m not , I said as I stepped closer. I’m me, your amazing and rather delicious Scrollkeeper. I don’t know how many turns fate had to take to bring me here, but I do know that I will never, ever be ungrateful for it. It was only with the two of us that we could accomplish this. And now you can rest easy and fearless. We’ve done what was thought to be impossible and bound the wargs, and there will never be a resentment in me for more freedom. I’m exactly where I want to be.
“You did it,” he said, closing the gap between us. His arms were warm around me, and he kissed the top of my head. “ You bound the wargs.”
You gave me the books , I retorted. Don’t try to make this into a contest. You’ll lose.
He gave a mock-sigh of consternation. “Very well, love, we did this.”
I knew you’d see reason.
I smiled up at him, and Bane touched my cheek. “I didn’t actually come to argue, my lady. I came to see where you’d go with your newfound liberty.” He glanced sideways, shoulders rippling with embarrassment. “Unless you came to be alone.”
I shook my head, plucking at my heavy cloak again. I was about to be very, very cold for a brief time, but I trusted Bane to keep me warm.
I hoped you would follow. There’s something we must do, and… I feel I need to be careful within the keep, for now. I have my own worries. If a single drop of my blood spills in the wrong place, or if I were to cry… you’d be driven out of your home.
Bane’s lips twitched, and flattened, the smile falling away. “I’ve considered that. Although, if I’m doing my job properly, you shouldn’t cry at all.”
But that was a fear of my own that I couldn’t quite displace. A tender word, a bite… I couldn’t always hold back my tears, and I willingly gave him blood. All it took was a drop landing in the wrong place, and the entire Bloodgarden might rise up. The keep would become hostile to his very nature.
So for now, until I adjusted to the new reality, I chose a different setting for what I had in mind.
It’s not tears I’m planning to shed now . I took a small gulp of air, and began to unbutton my cloak. Only blood. I want to finish what we started.
I unfastened the brooch at my throat, and let the cloak slide from my shoulders. It slithered into the leaves around my feet, and I shivered once as the wind blew, slipping right through my spidersilk wedding gown.
I didn’t do it right the first time . I touched the bodice, where the three drops of blood still gleamed a fresh, bright scarlet. I ran from you then, but I will never run from you again.
Bane inhaled, a sharp sound in the quiet forest.
So let’s do it right this time. Make it the night it should’ve been . Body and blood, I want all of you , and for you to take all of me .
“Even after… what we tried?” he asked quietly.
I smiled at him enigmatically. Things are different now .
It was my hands that had given me the idea. Shattered beyond belief, and now perfectly whole. To a bloodwitch, my flesh was raw material to be shaped and molded, ever so slightly altered into something less… vulnerable.
Sit there . I pointed to the stone I’d chosen.
Bane obeyed, his pupils dilating despite the curiosity wrinkling his brow. He let out a low grumble as I stood before him, claws plucking at my gown, and I reached out to run my fingers over his beautiful, terrible face.
The only face I wanted to see every day for the rest of eternity, the one face I couldn’t live without.
He leaned his cheek into my palm, eyes closed, and I lowered myself into his lap, a mirror of our first real night together. I breathed in the scent that was home to me now, the smoky woods that made my skin tingle with desire.
I love you , I told him. By the Light, you are more than I ever could have asked for. I’m the luckiest woman in the world.
His breath was a rumble, vibrating through my bones. Already his fangs gleamed with the faintest hint of venom, and his tongue flicked out to stroke my throat, tickling the sensitive skin.
“Don’t make this into a contest,” he whispered huskily. “You’ll lose.”
I laughed silently, closed my eyes and leaned in. Kissing him was no longer strange or terrifying. My lips knew the contours of his mouth, the hardness of his teeth under the smoothness of his lips, where the point of every fang ended.
He was as familiar to me as my own hands. He was home.
As my lips moved over his, the kiss became deeper, his tongue snaking over mine, the tips twisting and stroking.
His hands moved over my hips, fingers rising to trace the line of my bared spine, his skin a warm shield against the cool air.
Now , I said, breathless. Paint me red, Bane .
He exhaled, tipping his head, the prongs of his tongue dancing over my cheek and jaw, down to the column of my throat once more. His arms wrapped around me, holding me close and tight as his fangs distended, grazing my flesh.
His tongue laved against the racing pulse in my throat—and then came the sweet-sharp pain of the bite, flesh parting like butter, the hot torrent of my own blood steaming in the cold air.
It flooded over my chest, tracing the contours of my clavicles and breasts, soaking into the glistening white fabric. Still hot, vital with life, staining through the silk in a billowing tide of crimson.
Bane took a deep draught, tongue lashing, his cock throbbing hard and ready against my wet core.
I exhaled at the pain of it, the sensation of blood being forcefully taken from my body, but the venom began to spread in a cloud through my veins, turning the sharpness to a pleasant tickle.
My heart pumped another gush of blood over my chest, the blood soaking further into the bodice, spattering the lap of my skirt and Bane’s white shirt.
As he lapped again, groaning at the taste, I unbuttoned his shirt, stroking the hard muscles of his abdomen, and my fingers moved down to untie his breeches.
Bane paused, making a movement like he meant to stop me—but I shook my head ever so slightly.
Drink , I commanded, and untied the laces with a smooth motion.
“My lady,” he breathed, fastening his lips over the wounds in my throat.
It took creativity and patience to remove his cock from the constricting trousers whilst seated on his lap, with his mouth at my throat, but I managed with eager hands, the stroking movements of my fingers making him growl.
Shifting my skirt, I settled myself against him, arching my hips as he throbbed against my clit.
Anticipation writhed inside me, the frisson of excitement settling in my core with molten heat. With Bane’s cock nestled firmly between my legs, I leaned forward to press myself against him fully, letting my head loll back as he drank.
The spiny crown of his cock dug into my lower belly, twitching with every slight shift of my hips.
I wanted him now, wanted to try my slightly-altered body and see if the tiny change would make a world of difference, but I didn’t want to stop the dizzying sensation of his sucking pulls, the clasp of his lips on my throat.
Not until he lapped his tongue against the wounds, sealing them, his eyes opening to reveal the glistening, ash-smeared gold of his irises.
He raised his claws to his own throat, waiting for me to say the word.
Yes , I said, taking his hand and moving his claws away. It was my turn to tilt my head, kissing the strong, corded muscles of his neck, tasting skin musk and salt. I moved down to the thick muscle between neck and shoulder, nipping once and then sinking my teeth in.
I didn’t break the skin. Not even close; my blunt human teeth would never pierce Bane’s dense, armored flesh. But he burst out with a brief laugh, his hips jerking upward, the rigid barbs on his cock flaring.
“How vicious,” he murmured with a grin. I dragged my teeth over him, finding the thinnest skin on his throat and kissing his own racing pulse. It thrummed against my lips like a bird’s wing, powerful but contained.
Here , I told him, and ran my tongue over the spot.
Bane nicked himself with his own claw, and unlike mine, his blood didn’t burst forth. It dripped like dark syrup, sweet and spicy, and I let it flow before catching it with my tongue.
The heat filled my throat, burning all the way down to my stomach and into my veins. I felt him filling me, the bond between us growing every time I drank from him.
It was a never-ending circle inscribed between us now. Me and him, him and me, from one into the other and back again. We were in each others’ veins, flowing through each other’s hearts, written together all the way down to the marrow in our bones.
The circle between our blood and souls had met, and I wanted our bodies to match, finishing the loop of completion.
Before Bane could have second thoughts, before he could warn me or stop me, I rose up, the barbs grazing my stomach and mound, until he was poised at my wet entrance.
I sank down, not giving myself any time to worry. There was the pressure, the sensation of being invaded, and then… rich fullness. I gasped, wriggling down further, even as Bane let out a strangled snarl.
“Cirri, for… how?”
I was impatient , I signed quickly, gripping his shoulders as I took more of him. The barbs flared inside me, locking him deep in my pussy.
I knew my idea had succeeded when my stretched core reached the base of his monstrous cock, and a thrust of my hips ground my clit against the hard plane of muscle above it. No pain, only pleasure, that fullness.
Bane grumbled, hands clamped on my hips, and he sucked in a breath as I rose again, feeling the length of his shaft sliding easily inside me.
I couldn’t break the bond between us, not with those flared barbs, but I rose high enough to drag my tongue over the wound in his neck, lapping at another spicy, burning mouthful of blood.
He groaned for me, thighs flexing to drive his cock upwards, deeper.
Yes , I signed again, braced on my knees and clinging to his shoulders, lips wrapping around his throat as he pumped into me. The heat in my veins melted into the spiraling bliss in my core, the barbs of his crown smoothly grazing my pussy with every thrust.
They stroked against that sensitive spot deep inside me, melting my knees to liquid, a squirmy, unfamiliar but not unpleasant feeling rising. I pulled from his throat, licking my teeth for every last hint of that spice, my breath coming quick and hard as the sensation increased.
I looked up into Bane’s eyes, licking my lips for the last drops of his blood, and he slid his hands under my thighs, mindful of his claws, and lifted me, exposing the glistening length of his cock. His barbed crown was flared out completely, hard and grasping, refusing to leave my body.
I wriggled in his grasp, sinking back down. His lips drew back, exposing his reddened fangs in a feral snarl.
When I rose again, he lifted me, moving me around—adjusting me without his cock ever sliding from me, turning me so that my back was to his chest, my legs splayed wide open and held apart by his powerful thighs. I was nestled in his lap, his cock buried to the base and sending those thrilling jolts through my nerves.
Clawed hands slid my skirts up around my hips, running over my thighs, until his hands reached the apex. His first and middle fingers slipped between my lips, parting me, swirling over the sensitive pearl and making every muscle jump.
“Gods, you’re soaked for me, my beauty.” He pulled my hair aside, running his fingers over it… then twisted the mass into a rope around his head, gently pulling my head to the side.
His lips touched my neck, a Bane-kiss over the pinkened skin he’d fed from, sending sizzling heat through me. I was aware of every inch of skin, everywhere he touched, my nipples hardened, clit aching for more.
Bane’s breath was warm, his voice deep and rough in my ear. “Now take the beast you crave.”
I shivered, my back arched, and suddenly the whole world moved.
But it was just us, Bane picking me up and bringing me to the ground. He grabbed my discarded cloak, flinging it over the leaves on the ground, and I put out my arms, catching myself on all fours.
He kept a grip on my hips, holding them firmly as he seated his cock to the base, and then pulled out and thrust back in with shocking force.
Two more thrusts, my body quaking, and the flared barbs and ridges brought that liquid feeling to the forefront. Even braced on the ground, my knees trembled, and my upper body sank to the ground, muscles weak. I pressed my face to the wind-chilled cloak, sucking in air, gasping out my pleasure for him.
Bane leaned over me, tongue sliding over my lips. I opened for him, arching myself into thrusts, breasts swaying heavily with every drive. His warmth covered me, the pulsing urgency of his cock sending me closer to the edge.
I was distantly aware that not that long ago, this could’ve killed me. I felt the thickness of him spearing deep, my lower belly bulging outwards every so slightly as my changes accommodated his size, turning what would’ve been mutilation into pleasure.
On my hands and knees for him, taking the strength of a fiend on my back and in my sex, I felt I’d made the right choice. The only choice.
He braced one hand above my head, the other slipping over my hip to stroke my stomach, down to my needy, exposed clit.
I gasped as he touched me, his hips never stopping in their brutal, relentless assault. We fucked like animals, gasping, growling, the heat in my center growing every time his hips pounded against me.
Bane’s cock throbbed again, sending another flare through the barbs, and they dragged over the spot that made my knees jelly. As his fingers circled my clit again, slow and teasing, I didn’t just slip to the edge—I plunged fully over.
Eyes squeezed tightly shut, giving myself up entirely to the wants of a beast, craving his hard, primal needs, I came apart on him, shuddering and squirming, losing all control of my body. My breaths huffed in tight, desperate gasps, steam curling from my lips in the cold I no longer felt.
Bane grunted as my pussy clamped tightly around him, driving deeper, his weight pressing my bucking hips into the earth. My core was soaked, letting his cock glide with ease, deeper—until the grunt became a snarl, his teeth scraping over my shoulder.
I heard a click as his fangs clamped together, his cock driving deep enough to cause a twinge, and then he let himself go. There was a hot flood, a rush of warmth and wetness as his seed filled me, almost a physical heaviness in my womb.
He panted for breath, the barbs keeping him locked deep, as my muscles slowly relaxed.
“Cirri. Lover,” he murmured, ruffling my hair.
It didn’t hurt at all , I signed lazily, shifting against him. Most of me was warm beneath him, but my toes were cold. A fair price to pay for this pleasure. And yes, I did ask her to make a few changes. She did such a masterpiece with my hands, I supposed… this wouldn’t be too much different. Enough to level the playing field between our kinds.
Bane said nothing for a moment that stretched on a little too long, and I twisted my head to look at him from the corner of my eye. Are you upset?
He nuzzled my temple and cheekbone, and then shifted most of his weight to the side, settling so his cock remained flared and locked inside me, but his weight didn’t crush my torso.
From there he stared into my eyes, reading my worries.
“No. I could’ve been patient, but… no. I’d rather you decide what your body needs, than to risk being damaged in an attempt. The only problem is…”
Yes? I felt my muscles trying to tense. Did he dislike the feel of me, now that I could take him all? Was the potential breaking of a human more appealing?
And then I told myself not to be stupid. I was beyond those concerns now. I fully trusted that he loved me as I was, even with some adjustments.
“You’ll have created a monster.” His fangs flashed in a quick grin. “How am I supposed to focus on anything else, knowing we can rut as much as we please?”
Oh, no, that’s terrible. I would never want such a thing. Having mind-shattering orgasms every day will probably ruin my life.
I pouted my lip out at him, and he did a tiny lunge to nip at me, fangs clicking.
“Smart mouth,” he whispered, and then gently twisted my face to him, kissing me gently, fangs and all. “We did it right.”
I blinked, distracted by the warm softness of his lips juxtaposed against the slick hardness of his fangs, and remembered I was still wearing the nearly-weightless spidersilk gown.
Now it was rucked up and twisted, and red from the bodice to the waist, the spatters of my life’s blood fading into pristine white.
The wedding night I should’ve given you . I touched a red stain; it was completely dry, my blood soaked into the spidersilk.
“No. No regrets. This is another step forward in our journey, the one we take together. I’m glad that this is our wedding done right, when we know each other, when we’re not strangers to one another.” He gazed at me, the kind of warm, loving gaze I’d never imagined turned towards a person such as myself.
Never , I said. You are mine, and I’m yours. You’ve never been a stranger to me.
“Nor you to me, but… this is our happily ever after.” He touched my cheek, claws trailing down my throat and the sidelong curve of my breast, down to my waist and the dimples in my lower back. “All fears dispelled. All enemies conquered. All wishes come true.”
It’s funny how the books say happily ever after is the end . I took his clawed hand and kissed his fingers. Happily ever after is just the beginning of something new.
“For the rest of our lives.” His eyes flickered, that inner fire that burned as bright as the flames he stoked in my own chest.
For eternity . And I smiled, because he was mine.