Dragon's Bait © Viviane Vande Velde

Hello, hi, and welcome. There isn't enough fan fiction for this freaking book. Why is that? Anyway, here is my addition the small collection!

Also, this is rated M for a reason... please be wary when reading! Thank you and enjoy!

The Definition of Ownership

Alys

Alys has gotten used to the stares she got sometimes, the intense gazes that started from head to toe, then back up. Their eyes lingering just below her collarbones. It terrified her in the beginning; she'd cling to Selendrile, taking dainty steps after another just so she doesn't have to come closer than an arm's length from drunk men.

But he wasn't always there to keep her safe, so she figured, "learn to protect yourself. Keep your head up and stare them in the eye."

After a while she was used to it. Alys recognized the subtle swallow and the flick of the tongue that told men they had to make a decision whether or not to take her there and then and fuck her. Alys learned to return a gaze that told men they'd wake up castrated if they ever tried anything.

Though, she didn't always push away men who wanted her... Alys remembered a man from the northern countries, the charismatic Reginald, an officer of the King and a fine man who was more than suitable as a husband. She was seventeen then, due for marriage but pass the appropriate birthing age. It didn't matter though. After a few days of courting, she found herself entangled with him.

Reginald, Alys jokes to Selendrile, is probably the one. She played with the idea as well... her, barefoot in their home, cooking. He would come home after a day in court and immediately take her by the waist, kissing her fervently as they made their way to the bedroom. There was something wrong though, Alys imagined a life with Reginald, the home, the cooking... but the love making... it would always be Selendrile. So in the end she left, not even a word to Reginald. If she would come to regret it, it hasn't happened yet.

The other was a whimsical young man, Aaron, closer to her age and still bumbling. He's funny, she reasoned, when Selendrile asked if she wanted to stay. Adorable was the word really. He doted on her, in a much different way that Selendrile did. Alys liked his touch and his breath on her. She could do this, she though. She could stay here and live with Aaron. He was warm, but still not as warm as Selendrile.

She just liked having Selendrile there, it was true that at times he would disappear, but it wasn't too much of a problem. Alys has, however, found herself relying on him too much lately, and that was part of the reason why she always hesitated taking his hand. He didn't even seem to mind the attention Alys got, and if he did, he didn't give her any indication. He has never seen her that way, she thought. This was a strange friendship, but it was good enough for her.

Until now.

Alys had felt him regarding her when she undressed for bed. She'd catch him sometimes, once or twice, just staring. Then she'd see it in his face, the swallow and the flick of the tongue. So he noticed then, she thought, that I've grown.

It became a habit of hers to tease him dangerously, she'd purposely undress in from of him, turning slightly from time to time let him see her breasts. At her worst she'd make sure he heard her whenever she pleasured herself.

Sometimes she'd give her risky actions some thought. Alys wasn't this kind of person before, but her time with Selendrile made her calculating, dark even. She did feel guilty sometimes, because she does love him, perhaps not as a wife loves a husband, but she did love him very much as a man. But that was just it, Selendrile was not a man. She knew her love would not be returned in the same way as she expected. She hated to admit it but she was starting to resent him and his ways. It was partly her fault, following and not letting go. Perhaps it was time, she thought, to stay behind.