Chapter 9
Sylvan
W e stop in front of a white building topped with a tower which has a cross on top. We’re in the middle of a forest, with pleasant shade from the dense trees around us, and the church is no doubt abandoned, going by its state and that of everything around it.
It’s similar to the place Mrs. Moor took me to when I first arrived in the human realm. The experience made me politely decline the next invitation. We don’t worship any gods in the Nightmare Realm, even if there is a sentiment of making offerings to destiny, the belief that our ancestors watch over us, or respect for the moon and its unknowable influence.
I, for one, am a man of science and believe that with enough work and research, one day we will understand all the intricacies of the world surrounding us. There are rules to everything, even if we don’t understand them.
“Are you… religious?” I ask, as based on my conversations with Mrs. Moor, the subject of belief can be a tricky one.
Hawk snorts as he stops the car in the dense shadow of a massive tree that will soon start poking its branches through the top windows of the abandoned church. “We did have a tree for Christmas, and Grandma made us wear cross necklaces, but honestly, if there’s no belief attached to it, that’s more like carrying an amulet for luck, isn’t it?” he asks and gets out of the vehicle.
I nod and follow him out. I clear my throat and give him my jar, in an attempt to follow through on my words and ask for help. “Would you be so kind as to open it for me?” It’s very different from handing something to a servant, often even without a word, as helping is what they are there for. This is like asking an equal, which means admitting I am in fact incapable of doing something myself. Showing such vulnerability isn’t something I’m used to, nor have been taught to do, but Hawk seems happy when he unscrews the lid and offers me the pretzels.
“We can wait out the worst of the sun here. This place has been abandoned for years, so I doubt anyone will come around, other than maybe kids trying to drink or fuck in peace,” he says and grabs a blanket from the trunk along with a bag of shopping. He approaches the door of the church as I put one crunchy snack in my mouth.
I’m so unused to someone wanting to do nice things for me.
“I need to change out of this,” I take off the flowery top that didn’t help against the sun at all. “I am done being something I’m not.”
Hawk smirks and whistles at my half-naked body. For once, I’m not self-conscious. He’s seen me and told me how much he likes every bit of me. I might not be convinced, but he is and that’s what matters. Just like he might not appreciate how incredible his shadow is. Even now, it seems to yearn for me, reaching out with helpless tendrils.
Not long, my love, not long.
As I pull out a silky, midnight blue shirt out of my trunk, I feel his eyes on me, and I do not resent it. In fact, I may have arched my ass up a bit higher for his viewing pleasure. He sighs, and I can hear him shifting, as if he can’t make up his mind whether he should be a good boy or go with his gut.
“In an ideal world, I’d push you against this car, pull down those pants and rim you until you’re nice and relaxed. And then—”
A flush hits my cheeks, but I’m starting to feel more confident in these matters. I smirk as I crawl back out and put on the shirt. “And then what?” I tease, meeting his gaze head-on even though I am covering my body, not offering it.
In this heat, I won’t wear a tight vest or jacket over the shirt, the way I usually like to, but I still tie the fabric at the collar into a delicate bow around my neck.
He swallows, following my movements with his gaze. I might be inexperienced in the ways of romance, but seeing him this taken with me is awakening new doors, to rooms I didn’t know existed.
“And then, I would slowly, gently drill you open with my cock and make you beg me to never stop,” he tells me in a dark voice that has my balls tingling.
I extend my wrists to him in a silent request for him to close the skull-shaped clasps on there. “And yet, you have to wait.” It’s much easier to be so cool and collected before we’re actually touching, because last night, the sexual frenzy overpowered me completely. When he crawled on top of me, spread my legs, lifted my shirt… I was his in an instant.
His fingers are thick, so he struggles with the small fastening, but I give him time, and when he succeeds, he offers me a triumphant smile.
“Good things come to those who wait, they say. But I hope we won’t need to wait too long, because I might just go crazy,” he tells me, massaging my hands.
“I intend for you to be my Dark Companion by the next full moon,” I whisper and pull him down for a little kiss. It’s for the better that he’s a killer. He will fit into my world with more ease. I turn to the church. “We can enter? It’s not someone’s property?” I ask, but I get my answer when Hawk grins at me then slams his boot against the rotting door several times.
Finally, the door swings open, inviting us into the embrace of shadows.
“If you don’t tell anyone, I won’t,” he says and holds the door for me, as if he sees worth in serving me. I’m greeted by a cool damp scent, which relieves the burn on my skin as I step inside and face a wooden floor covered by all manner of scattered items, from books to furniture and artificial flowers. At the very end, behind two rows of identical benches, the floor is elevated, and on the stage is a pulpit, and behind it—a kind of piano.
“I used to come here with my ex,” Hawk tells me, taking a deep breath as he rolls out the checkered blanket and places it in the middle of the floor, away from the rays of light streaming through the windows above.
Based on the television shows I’ve seen I decide he means a former lover. “Are we close to where you lived then?”
He shrugs, resting his hands on his hips and offering me a somewhat tight smile. “Yes. It’s not far.”
When I sit down, movement catches my eye in the hollowed back of the pulpit. I lean in when I spot the culprit—a large brown spider with long legs. I reach out to it with a smile and look back at Hawk when it crawls on my hand.
“Look! He’s so cute and fuzzy.”
He blinks, stiffening as he sits on the blanket, but then his face brightens. “I think this is only the second time I’m meeting someone who actually likes them.”
“They’re lovely. With their many eyes, the delicate webs they create, and you can often use their parts or venom in alchemy. Which, I admit might seem grim, but such is life. Death is often just around the corner.” When the spider starts walking faster, I let it back into its shadowed hiding place in the pulpit. “Like over there,” I point to a rabbit carcass in the corner which is now just a pile of bones with mushrooms growing inside it. “Nothing goes to waste. The beast is no more, but it fed a different kind of life.”
Hawk bites his lip and lies down on his side, facing me. The nearest ray of sunshine falls behind his head, its glow a sharp contrast to his dark hair. “You’re really different,” he says after a moment of silence, and reaches out to stroke my shoe.
I sit down, feeling such relief without the sun on my skin. “To understand me, to understand my family, you need to know where I’m from. And where I will take you.” I smile at the thought of bringing him with me, already my Dark Companion, so no one can take him and his shadow away from me. Of course, his presence will put a target on my back as well, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take to finally be somebody .
He shifts closer and, after a moment’s hesitation, places his head in my lap. “I want to know everything,” he declares, and his forest green eyes peek at me, shining with flecks of gold.
I stroke his long dark hair and watch his lids shut. “What will be most striking to you from the very beginning, is that we don’t have the sun. The day is illuminated by moonlight, and the night is like the darkness under your eyelids. We, the elves of the Nightmare Realm, appreciate the shadows, but it will take you a while to get used to the change. My world is dangerous, filled with unimaginable beasts, ancient plants, and we, at the Nocturne Court, live on the shores of a violent ocean, also known as the Sea of Sorrows. But the realm is also beautiful. Like that spider.” I point to the pulpit, then grab a pretzel to feed Hawk. “Once you learn to live in its web, you can appreciate how intricate it is, and how to survive within it, instead of struggling against it. And you will have as much time to adjust as you wish, because you will not age.”
“Really? There will be no twink death for you?” Hawk laughs, chewing on the pretzel as he winks at me and pulls one of my hands to his chest.
I stroke him, amazed that I’m invited to touch this gorgeous man and that he seems to want me as if I were as tall and strong as my older brother was. “What is that?”
Hawk clears his throat. “Well… it’s when a guy who’s kind of boyish when it comes to looks grows out of it. Just a joke, babe. I’m sure you’ll always be hot.”
I shake my head. “At twenty-five, I’m in my prime, and unlikely to change, unless by injury, or curse. Unless I’m forced to stay here for the remaining length of my banishment. Fifty years.” I shudder at the mere thought of it. “But if I am lucky and determined enough, I will get this collar off soon, then make you my Dark Companion, and we will find our way back to the Nocturne Court. I am not sure how I will convince my Lord to allow it, but I hope that when he sees your shadow, bound to mine, he will realize I’m worthy of a place at his side. You see, I’m only a minor prince, from a side branch of the family, but as royals, we have obligations to the Realm.
“There is a monstrous creature called Heartbreak, and every few years, or sometimes in longer intervals, it will approach the shores and threaten our people. It’s like no monster you can imagine. Unlike a lion or shark,” I try to mention animals he might know, “it is like a mountain in the sea. Giant, ancient, I believe, without consciousness. It cannot be killed. It is like a storm. But it can be chased away, and that is what the royals and any knight with a Dark Companion is supposed to help with. And yet…” I take a deep breath, unsure if I should tell him about this, but when we get to the Nocturne Court, an unfriendly soul will surely tell him all about my cowardice. “The last time it approached, I saw its towering form on the horizon, its bulging flesh, its sheer size, and I just couldn’t face it. The Lord and his Companion managed to push it back, but my brother died in the attack.”
Hawk’s eyes open, and he gives my hand a tender squeeze. “I’m sorry. It must have been terrible to lose a sibling. I can’t imagine.”
I entwine my fingers with his. “I lost all three of them in close succession two months ago. A brother and two sisters. But while I feel more alone than ever before, you have to understand my family has never been like the ones in your television shows, unless the show is The Sopranos . One of my sisters was executed for attempted murder, the other died trying to get a Dark Companion of her own and failing, while my brother died fighting Heartbreak. He also betrayed Lord Kyran. As the younger brother, born with neither strength nor talent for shadowcraft, I was always groomed to support my siblings, especially my brother, who was supposed to take over the Nocturne Court when the opportunity arose. I am boring you with all these Court politics, surely. What I’m trying to say is that my family isn’t close. We’ve been like a den of vipers, together only for convenience. Now, only my mother remains, since my father is in exile as well. I might replace what my brother had been to her, but I have to come back with power . Your shadow is that power.”
Hawk whistles. “Wow, and I thought my family was messed up.” He exhales and rolls over, so he’s facing my stomach with his head still in my lap. “Don’t repeat that to them, obviously, but I didn’t really miss them when I was in the can. I do love them, in a way, but I’m not worried about losing touch with them. I know they’re not the worst family one can have, but I think I was my worst self whenever I was around them. Which, I guess, is me saying that I can go wherever you want to. I’m on the run from the law and have nothing to go back to. I need to be somewhere outside police jurisdiction.”
His hair isn’t the silkiest, but it’s long, dark, and smells nice. I enjoy stroking it as if he were my pet beast, a little rough around the edges. “I promise you I will not be a coward again. I will not run away when we face danger. As soon as I have your shadow, I will protect you.” I lean down and kiss him. He might be twice my size, but he doesn’t truly understand what might await us when we enter the Nightmare Realm illegally. I don’t want to scare him with the whole truth, but everyone needs someone they trust, and I want us to be that for each other. He’s already promised himself to me, and I shall not fail him.
Hawk grins, nipping my lips when I try to pull away. “Right back at you, princeling. Me, and my mean, muscular shadow, are ready to protect you too. Nothing’s gonna happen to you if I can stop it. I just hope your mom isn’t going to kick me out the moment she sees me.”
I snort, imagining my mother’s face at the sight of him. “Oh, I have no doubt she will criticize my choice, but she will respect it when she sees your shadow. And it is my choice to share my bed with you as well, whether she likes it or not.” It only now strikes me just how stuck I was under my whole family’s boot, always knocked down a peg whenever I dared stick my neck out.
“Hmmm, they can try to stop me from sharing your bed. Not gonna happen.” Hawk chuckles, and as he rolls his face against my crotch, the vibrations from his hum awaken all my senses. “Big, dirty human leaving his hot cum inside a beautiful prince like you. Such a disgrace,” he mumbles, kissing my cock through the fabric.
I gasp, and my fingers still in his hair. I should chastise him for saying such things, but the excitement they awaken in me is so visceral I’m embarrassed. I’ve been taught that only the powerful deserve respect, yet here I am, aroused by him talking to me so crudely.
“I probably shouldn’t allow it…” I say and bite my lip.
“Not allow what?” Hawk whispers, rising to his knees. He grabs my legs and pulls on them, and then I’m on my back, staring at the paint cracking on the ceiling above. A wave of intense heat stabs between my legs when Hawk spreads my thighs with a raspy laugh.
“This,” I whisper, placing my hands on his shoulders. “I shouldn’t allow this . You on top of me. A human prisoner on the run. And here I am, a prince, spreading my legs for you.”
My breath becomes shallow, and I can’t get enough of him. He is so handsome with those green eyes and cocky smile. When he takes over control, I’m nervous, guilty, but oh so relieved. We’re entering dangerous territory with this game of words, but it’s too tempting. Like a delicious scent I follow without knowing what awaits me when I find its origin. A beautiful rose bush, or a venomous snake hiding within it?
Hawk lowers his hips to mine. I gasp when our manhoods touch, and slide my arms around his neck, overcome by need unlike anything I ever felt. The way he pursues me and takes the reins is the most powerful of aphrodisiacs, and as heat courses through my body, we start grinding against one another.
His teeth glint when he smiles. “But it feels so good. I bet you’re just embarrassed that someone might know, but behind closed doors, you would get on your knees and service me every time I asked.”
I shiver, but he’s not done explaining what he means and slides two fingers in my mouth, stroking my tongue and pressing down on it with a soft sigh.
“Just like you swallowed it all last night. I can’t wait to pop your cherry and use your ass too.”
Fuck. I want it. At this point, I won’t be stopping him but myself. I moan and suck his fingers, shamelessly rocking my hips. My cock presses against his through our clothes, and all I can think of is what it would be like for that thick tool to thrust into me.
When he nips my neck, I moan louder and grab his wide shoulders, because it makes me feel as though he is feral, and I have to tame him.
“You know it’s true. You want to be taken like I’m the prince, and you’re my concubine,” Hawk whispers, rolling his tongue against my flesh. As his skin warms, the scent clinging to it, fresh yet earthy, intensifies, and I realize that this must be what a predator smells like when it’s about to mate.
He slides his fingers out of my mouth to untangle my bow and reveal the shallow collar around my neck. I’m panting, rocking against him, becoming a mindless animal with his body on top of mine. I’ve never been this aroused before. Sure, I’ve experienced attraction, but Hawk makes me forget who I am so that I can become flesh led by instincts.
“I did trade my body after all. It will be yours to do with as you please.”
A shiver goes down my spine when I think of it. Of him deciding he wants me during a ball, taking me behind a thick curtain to quickly satisfy his needs, then leaving me dripping with his cum.
It’s so lewd.
So undignified and unworthy of the last drop of Goldweed blood.
But as I imagine him taking me in rough thrusts, a virile animal in need of breeding his partner, my hole spasms, and I wrap my legs around him. Pulled by an unstoppable impulse, I kiss his lips, and he cradles me with those big arms.
“Ohh fuck… you know exactly what to tell me,” he whispers and squeezes my sensitive nipple. “I will make it my job to never leave you unsatisfied.”
“Ah… you’re so… heavy. I love it,” I mumble, rubbing myself against his thigh in a motion that might be enough to make me come soon. I slide my hand between us with a gasp and cup his crotch, frantic with the excitement of having access to a man like him.
And it’s not just about how attractive he is. Hawk makes me feel safe to express my needs, even when they’re embarrassing.
I whine in protest when Hawk pulls away, and even try to drag him right back, but when he unzips my jeans, I understand what he wants and help him drag the pants off. They keep hanging on to one of my feet, but the fabric is no longer in the way as Hawk shoves his own bottoms halfway down, revealing his amazing dick. He spits on his hand, rubs the saliva over his cock, and then pulls both my legs to his shoulder. In this position, they’re squeezed together, but I only understand his purpose when his hot shaft prods the backs of my thighs.
“I want to come inside you so bad,” Hawk rasps, a deep flush covering his face as he shoves himself into the tight heat of my thighs, and his cockhead emerges from the tight cleft between my legs, pointing at me. I can sense the hot, pulsing shaft against my skin.
It’s mesmerizing.
“Not yet,” I mumble, even though I want him to push inside me with every inch of my body. But I promised myself to deny him this one thing, afraid that if he gets it before we make our bond, he might not stick around. I don’t believe he would, but this tiny thread of control is keeping me sane. “But I want you here…” I say and lift my shirt to show off my stomach as a target for his cum.
Hawk’s eyes roll back as he thrusts into the warm pocket between my thighs, and the next time his dick peeks out, it pokes my sac, sending an electric current through my body. Contorting with my back rising off the blanket, I let out a shameless howl and encourage him loudly, even though my skin is already burning from the friction of this fuck.
“I want you to smell of me.”
Such an animalistic idea. I would have scoffed at it if I wasn’t just as feral. I reach for my cock, desperate to come, but he pushes my hand away and wraps his own around me instead. He starts pleasuring me at the same pace in which he’s fucking my thighs. I won’t last long. I watch him, so powerful over me, his hand so massive on my prick. I like feeling fragile next to him. He holds my legs up with ease, and our eyes meet when I moan.
“Yes… Hawk! Yes!” I whine, rubbing my ass against his hairy thighs.
“When you finally let me inside you, I’m not going to let you out of bed for the whole night,” Hawk rasps, his gaze intense as he works his hips, rubbing the inner sides of my thighs raw. I imagine him rolling me over for another round every time I try to leave our future bedroom, and thinking about being taken by this beautiful beast pushes me over the edge. I cry out, tensing as he keeps plowing my legs.
My eyes roll back, I arch my spine, desperately reaching for his shoulder. It’s as if he understands me without words and grabs my hand, leaning forward and fucking my thighs faster. I squeeze his hand as he milks the last spurts of cum out of me, leaving me a boneless mess. I don’t even care about staining my shirt. I have another one.
As soon as he senses I’m done, he lets go of my cock and pushes his slick fingers between my buttocks. I’m too tired to protest, but I don’t have to worry. All he does is press the tips of his digits to my throbbing hole.
“So hot and needy, I bet. It’s gonna be so snug on my dick,” he mumbles right before his cum shoots onto my chest and stomach, a few drops even reaching my face.
He is perfection when he comes. Lips parted, cheeks flushed, eyes on me. There’s a desperation on his face, as if he couldn’t decide where to look and which part of me to kiss, but then he dives forward and gathers his own cum from my belly. Overwhelmed, I moan at his touch, and respond to his kiss. The world is a flurry of color, and when his slick fingers return to my buttocks, rubbing the cum into my flesh, I can’t bring myself to stop him either.
I shiver when one of them penetrates my insides, carefully rubbing the hot seed into my walls.
He’s not pushing it in deep, but the digit is thick and I’m still panting from my orgasm. I shouldn’t allow this, but the thought of having his cum inside me is too tempting to resist.
Maybe I’m not as smart as I thought. Maybe I’m a dumb animal desperate to be bred.
The little moans I’m making don’t sound like the cold and collected Prince Sylvan Goldweed I always saw myself as.
“Do you like it?” I whisper, overcome by a wave of shyness now that the urgency of sex has dissipated.
He lifts himself enough to meet my eyes and removes his finger out of my hole. I’m convinced we’re done for now, but Hawk gathers the remaining cum from my belly, only to bring it to my opening and continue massaging his seed into my insides.
“This is the loveliest hole I’ve ever seen. So tight and responsive to my touch. I need to mark it.”
I lick a drop of cum off my lip and lift one of my legs to his other shoulder so he can freely watch the sticky mess he’s creating. I know this is all a sexual frenzy, I know this can happen, but I have the same instinct as the one he speaks of. I ache because he’s not bound to me yet.
“Can we just stay here a while longer?” I whisper and reach for a pretzel.
“Of course,” he answers in an instant, his gaze on the finger playing with my hole.
I could probably ask him now whether I can brand my family crest on his forehead and he’d say yes. I guess this is also a kind of power. One that I never before knew how to wield.