Authoress' Notes:
Here I sit at Bruegger's, a BLT bagel sandwich (with Muenster!) in my stomach and a 3 Musketeers Mint in my mouth. On my computer, free WiFi and Blackwood/Coward slash. Does life get any better than this? No. I didn't think so.
I've been exploring utterly!devoted!Coward in the pieces I've done thus far, but what about hesitant!Coward? I mean, he hardly met Blackwood and instantly became a devoted servant. There has to be a period of uncertainty. What better time to be uncertain than the first time your Lord asks you to slash (LOLslash) holes in yourself and bleed all over the place? As hinted in the fic, I imagine this taking place less than a year after their meeting (which I, for no particular reason, placed seven or so years before the movie. It was a random, BSed number, so feel free to dispute it.) Anyways,I came up with a tag line for this fic, so... "'Blood.' Because signing your soul over to a dark and sexy Lord is a process." Pretty good, huh? :D
Disclaimer: If I owned it, the gay would be way more obvious.
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Blood
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"Blood, my Lord?" Lord Coward's eyes were wide, and he was certain he couldn't have heard correctly. Blood?
"Yes, Coward. Blood. Unless you believe you know better than I what this ceremony entails?" Lord Blackwood's eyes narrowed dangerously. Coward barely restrained himself from gulping visibly. Blood? Surely not! He knew his obedience was called for, but he found himself unable to act.
Blackwood sighed, and the look of disappointment in his eyes was terrifying. "I shall go first, then." He held the dagger up, and Coward saw how brightly it glittered, saw the glittering light of the fire reflected in his Lord's eyes. He had accepted the man's authority over him months ago, but blood? Coward had, despite his unfortunate surname, never been one to shy away from danger. As a boy, he'd excelled in every physical sport his instructors had tested him in. He was a sure shot with a revolver, and, though he didn't start them, would never run if engaged in a fight.
Wantonly cutting himself open, though, spilling his precious lifeblood, seemed mad. Surely a man as sophisticated, as enlightened as his Lord didn't need something as barbaric as blood for his works. As though he could read Coward's mind (and, Coward thought, who was to say he couldn't?) Blackwood smiled, a smile to chill the very blood he was about to spill, and moved the blade sharply across the base of his own thumb, unflinching and cool as the hot liquid spattered onto the ground. Feeling slightly sick, Coward watched, transfixed, as Blackwood's hand moved rhythmically, casting the blood across the holy symbols marked out on the ancient paving stones. As the flow of blood lessened, Blackwood lifted his hand. Shifting his eyes to fix Coward's in a terrifyingly alluring gaze, Blackwood licked his cut hand. This time Coward was unable to stop himself from gulping. "Now it's your turn, Coward," Blackwood said softly.
Terrified, Coward reached out a slightly trembling hand. He took the dagger, still shining red along the edge, from his Lord's outstretched hand, and stared at it. It looked terribly sharp. He lifted it slowly, glancing up to find Blackwood's eyes eagerly staring at his hands. Swallowing, Coward moved quickly, before he could lose his nerve, and sliced the blade along his hand. For a moment, he felt nothing, but then the pain hit him, and he hissed involuntarily. It hurt, and the blood was hot, so hot, against his skin, and it stung. Seeing his Lord nod encouragingly, he flicked his hand outwards, mimicking his Lord's motions of a few moments before. Blood spattered down onto the floor, hot and wet, and Coward felt faint for a moment, seeing his own blood fly away from him. A moment later, though, he felt he had every reason to feel faint, because his Lord was chanting, loud and mysterious, and Coward could nearly feel the crackling magic that happened around them. He felt the heat of the torches, smelled the smoke, felt the outside darkness pressing in on him, and realized something. There was one thing he had missed about his Lord all this time. There was more than just the strength, and the vision, and the brilliance. There was the power.
Coward was startled out of his thoughts by a hand gripping his, lifting it. Looking up in alarm, he saw a wet tongue begin to lick the blood away. The sensation was too powerful, and his knees trembled as his thumb was pulled into that mouth, hotter than the blood it sucked away. Flushing, he pulled his hand away as quickly as possible, and, seeing the burning look in those eyes, he turned and fled. Shaking, breathing deeply, Coward leaned against a wall, eyes closed.
Until now, Blackwood had only enticed him through his power, his brilliance, his ability to see beyond the mundane world of what was supposed to be possible. Now, though, he found he couldn't stop thinking about those eyes, that mouth, that tongue. This was a very worrying development, and he wasn't sure what to make of it.
But, he reasoned, nothing could ever come of it. Best to forget about it. They were both men, after all, and everyone knew that men never thought of one another like that.
Still, that tongue...
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8D Oh, Coward. You just keep thinking that, sweetie.
So, we have a lot of milestones in this one. First time Coward has to give his blood, first time he realizes he's a kinky gold-digger for power, first time he realizes he wants to do naughty things to Blackwood (or, rather, have Blackwood do naughty things to him)... I'm enjoying dense!Coward.
I also introduced a slightly new idea in this one: patient!Blackwood. I don't think he'd be an unforgiving bastard all along-- he's too smart for that. He'd string Coward along, slowly seducing him, until Coward would do anything for him. Yet another reason Blackwood epitomizes Magnificent Bastard. xD
Please review!