Navigating through the market with Rey had been difficult, but not as disastrous as Kylo had been braced for.
Some of the villagers recognized her from before. That wild-eyed, naked, feral girl who would eat everything in sight. That animal.
Oh they wouldn't dare say that last part out loud. Not when the beast in question was bounding about, seemingly utterly carefree while the dour Master of the Knights loomed behind her. But he could hear it in their thoughts, broadcast just as clearly as the mothers would by tucking their children behind them when the two of them passed.
"Add this to our bill. Master Aemon will take care of the details before our departure."
The butcher nods silently, passing over the freshly baked meatloaf without a blink of eye contact. Disapproval washes off from him as Rey hangs on tight to Kylo's arm. She's been very clingy all day, and Kylo isn't quite sure what to make of it.
"Here, eat this," he says softly, handing her a piece of the baked treat.
Rey sniffs it curiously, nibbling at first before chomping down. It appears that there was a direct correlation between her good behavior and the amount of food in her hands and mouth, Kylo notes. So to get through today keeping her well-fed will be essential.
Let's get some proper clothes for you next.
Kylo presses the words into her allusive mind and her head snaps up, eyes wide. He guides he away from the watchful eyes and leads her down through the network of alleyways to the town's tailor. She was wearing one of his shirts now. Another one, though Kylo's own wardrobe was beginning to look rather sparse due to her relentless proclivity to tear off her clothes and cavort about as naked as the day he met her.
"I'll need to get us both proper gear for our journey," he says to himself though Rey tips her head to listen. "Some appropriate modifications to my armor and for you- well, you'll want something you can move in, won't you? Something warm against the biting sea cold but not too restrictive. The tricky part will be getting you to keep it on. I can usually have you put on things without too much fuss, but it'll be two weeks at sea and if you keep throwing your clothing away-"
A crusty corner of the meatloaf is pressed to his lips. Rey looks up at him expectantly until he takes a bite.
"Was I talking too much, M'Lady? Is this your way of silencing me?"
Similar, he notes, to his own plan for her. Keep her fed and keep her happy.
Another pieces appears and he takes it from her, opting to eat it himself rather than risk any villagers see him being finger-fed by a crazy woman.
When they arrive at the tailor, Kylo's informed that Ria has already been there. She's seen fit to attend to the rest of the Knights sartorial needs, and the two other customers immediately make themselves scarce rather than be in his looming presence.
First Kylo gives specifications to his own armor. A rush job, and the tailor's eye light up at the increased price he'll receive for such a short notice. Kylo's armor will need to be repaired from the damages he'd taken during the hunt. For the sea journey he will need special wool underlayers and an extra layer of weatherproofing over the metal parts to protect them from rust. Just for good measure, Kylo order a few extra pairs of shirts and pants in case any of his should just so happen to end up shredded and hurled to the bottom of the ocean.
Then comes the tricky business. The girl.
"Measure her. I would like it a custom fit and something quite snug but with give."
And something that will be hard to take off. And warm for the cold. And soft enough not to annoy her skin but still tough to offer at least some protection.
It was a tall order, and the tailor would no doubt have to work well through the night to fulfill all their requests by the time they set sail tomorrow. However, it wasn't the deadline that seemed to concern him the most. Rather, when he cautiously approached Rey, tape measure in hand, she began to growl and hunch over.
"Rey. Now. Behave."
Please.
She doesn't look like she's going to behave. She looks like a cornered animal about to strike, and the poor tailor wavers mid step as she hisses at him, swatting through the air at the extended measuring tape.
A memory pops into Kylo's mind of when she had been tied up before, by the body smugglers when they'd kept her in their hold.
"Allow me."
He snatches the measuring tape without hesitation, pushing the small, elderly man aside before kneeling in front of his mermaid.
"My lord?"
"Rey, extend you leg out. Please."
He sends a mental image into her mind and cautiously one of her tanned legs emerges from the center parting of his shirt. She starts to giggle when he takes her foot, pressing one end of the tape to the inside bottom of her heel.
"Take down the measurements, if you please. We'll try to get them as accurate as we can, and until then a simple ready-made shift dress and lace-up curaisse will do for today."
Agitated fumbling from behind him, then he hears the numbers of her foot measurement being written down. The tailor hadn't dared say it before, but Kylo could hear his unspoken disapproval that this young girl was only wearing a man's shirt and nothing else, not even sandals.. One of Kylo's own shirts, no doubt for the tailor had made to measure them himself.
Kylo tries to make the business of measuring her as quick as he can, though it's hard with how much she squirms. Taking her inside leg requires special care to prevent her from simply lifting up the hem of his shirt to give him clear access. Behind him the tailor all but broadcasts his silent plea for the two of them to hurry up and get out of here.
"There," Kylo says when he finishes. "Take those measurements and go to the fabric merchant. Get enough to make her three of everything."
"But Sir, my shop-"
"I will go through what you have in stock here and pick out the pieces that she likes. You'll be well reimbursed for all and for your troubles and discretion as well."
The old man is understandably reluctant to leave, but he finally shuffles off with a less than approving mutter as he goes. Truth be told Kylo was both getting tired of his unspoken judgment as well as eager to have Rey try several different things on herself in the hopes that her own selections may linger on her body for longer.
Rey doesn't quite seem to get the picture of what they're trying to do. He'll hold up a garment for her to inspect and she'll look at it or back at him before dropping it and going back to the now half-finished meatloaf.
"Well that didn't work, did it?" Kylo pulls out three different lengths of dresses to consider. "Do you at least have a favorite color? White, blue, or- or black? Would you like the black?"
He presents them to Rey and she shakes her head. If Kylo didn't know better, he would almost think she's getting exasperated with him. Her hand finally extends out though, when Kylo refuses to back down from her having to make some sort of choice. She touches the white dress first, leaving a faint stain from the meatloaf she'd been shoving into her face moments before.
"White. Ah. That's… that's fine. We'll stick with lighter shades. Have to buy this one now anyhow, don't we?"
It's perhaps a shade disappointing. Not color one he would have chosen for her, but it certainly make coordinating her other pieces easier.
But who knew women's underwear was so complicated? The tailor's shop boasts a wide range of options; everything from massive woolen directoire knickers to things so tiny and transparent that Kylo keeps looking over his shoulder to make sure no one is watching him inspect them. He chooses something in between. Normal looking panties. White. Soft material. Not too big and not too small. Just normal. Then he guides his guest into the rear changing room along with an armful of items to try on.
Rey giggles again when he pulls his back shirt off of her. For the life of him Kylo would love to know what she's thinking. What is it that she thinks he's doing to her as he lifts her arms up, bringing them both above her head so he can slide the first dress on?
She doesn't fight him, though. That was a big part of why he'd sent the tailor away. His mermaid seems to get very antsy around strangers, though by increments she's been better behaved when his Knights are around now.
The dress was the simple white shift she had chosen for herself. Chosen being relative, but it was a good pick that fits her well. Ultimately the goal will be to get her used to wearing more layers at a time- the late fall boat ride is sure to be cold indeed at night- but for now Kylo's greatly relieved that she doesn't seem to mind the clothes as much as she had the first time he'd tried to dress her.
"Lift your foot up," he requests, bending to raise her left leg off the floor himself.
There's a very odd moment as Kylo slides her panties up her legs. Rey squirms a lot then, laughing as he fumbles somewhat. Then she slaps the back of his shoulders, almost pushing his head closer to- to a certain place, but surely that must have been a clueless mistake on her part.
Kylo stands quickly then, smoothing her dress down over her now panty-clad hips.
"You'll need to, um," he gestures through the air at her lower half, "for toileting you'll need to- oh, you'll figure it out. I'm sure."
Last is the curaisse lace-up. This is hardly a proper corset, Kylo would never dream of inflicting such a restrictive garment on the girl, but it is made of a thin leather that would offer protection to both the elements and minor wounds. His mermaid's first armor, essentially. It also just so happened to have the side benefit of taking just a little more time to take off, should Rey happen to have any spur of the moment nude aspirations.
"There, let's have a look at you."
Kylo takes a step back, clearing his throat as he notes how the last piece of his handiwork seems to emphasize her bosom in fascinating ways. It's an effect that Rey seems less than impressed with, and she grabs the bottom edge of the lace-up and wriggles about, tugging and yanking on different parts of her garments with an admittedly charming pout on her lips.
"Rey, it's for your own good. Really."
He catches her chin and she jerks it away, snapping her teeth at his fingers testily.
"It's almost winter and you can't go around naked. And it's not so bad, is it?"
He adjust the straps of her curaisse, ensuring that the fabric of her dress lays smoothly under it. Rey wrinkles her nose, a low growl emanating from between her bared teeth.
"Oh now I know that's just for show. You look beautiful, Rey. Does it help if I tell you that? You look beautiful."
Her fake-growl stops. Instead, she pouts again, and still refuses to look at him.
"Rey?" he leans closer. "Don't be mad for too long, alright? You. Look. Beautiful."
Carefully, mindful of being bitten, he turns her head to face him. There's a hint of a smile now when he caresses her cheek.
Then he clears his throat, stepping back, and Rey grabs his wrist.
"Rey? What-"
The look she shoots him now shuts him up in an instant. She'd looked angry, or rather annoyed, before but now she looks… hungry. It's an expression he saw this morning, in fact.
"Oh. M'Lady, we-"
Rey yanks him forward, crashing their lips together.
It's a messy kiss. Plenty of tongue and teeth from her side and Kylo only half-heartedly tries to draw himself away. Blood immediately starts to pound in his veins, his pulse quickening as their kiss transforms to something even more passionate.
Rey pulls away first, her eyes wide and dark. She glances back behind herself to the low shelf where Kylo had laid the garments she's yet to try on. They're shoved to the side as Rey hikes herself up onto the impromptu bench and spreads her legs wide. Kylo gapes, frozen to the spot as she starts to rub herself.
"My-My Lady we really can't. Not here."
And maybe not ever, given what Maz had said to him only an hour before.
Rey rolls her eyes at him, shaking her head as her hands picks up pace between her legs. She struggles with her new panties, trying at first to draw them to the side then, when that fails, to wriggle out of them.
"Please, M'Lady."
He reaches to stop her and she grabs her wrist again, holding him close to her as she apparently gives up. She snatches the thin material with her other hand and yanks, ripping the minimalist garment clear off of her and fully baring herself to him.
Then she starts to rub with renewed vigor, her spread ankles snaking their way behind Kylo's bottom to draw him closer to her lurid display.
"The Tailor," he tries feebly, finding it rather hard to think of a better defense with all the blood leaving his head to settle elsewhere.
That poor old man. If he were to walk in on them now, it might be more than just Kylo's reputation that would perish.
Rey drags him forward to another kiss, her hand letting go of his wrist to twine her fingers with his own. She pulls away to nuzzle her face into his palm before very deliberately pinching his middle three fingers straight and popping them into her mouth. Then she guides them down between their two bodies, a quick smack to the back of his head with her free hand being all the further instructions she offers.
Well if Kylo had thought their kiss had been fumbling, this was something else. He tries to find the right spot, stroking her slick folds awkwardly from both the angle and how wriggly Rey is as he touches her. He knows he reaches it when she coos, her hips grinding against his hand to make his thumb press down on her just so.
Carefully he eases his middle finger inside her and she grins, resting her forehead against his shoulder as a tremble shoots up her body.
The angles involved don't give him much leverage- or comfort- but his mermaid certainly doesn't seem to mind. She rides his hand with joint-aching enthusiasm, her teeth finding his bite through the fabric of his shirt when the one finger becomes two and then biting down hard, malign him grunt, when two becomes three.
Rey climaxes hard, quickly, and messily, her inner muscles squeezing against his digits almost as hard as her legs hold tight around his hips.
Then she slumps, all the fight seeming to leave her body as he carefully retracts his hand. His wrist pops when he rolls it in a circle, trying to restore circulation after her vigorous demands to it. Rey snuggles close, leaning her weight against him. Kylo half-hugs her, debating the best approach to dealing with his soaked fingers but Rey takes the guesswork for him and brings his hand back to her mouth to lick them clean.
He's painfully hard, his insistent pressing against her stomach and the room nearly seeming to spin as Kylo fights to collect himself. That had been… abrupt. And loud. Thank the gods he had sent the tailor away because staying quiet was certainly not among his girl's strong points.
Her hand palms him and Kylo's eyes widen. She's not raising her head but she's watching him, a profoundly wicked smile now gracing her flushed face.
"Gods."
He should stop this. Not after what Maz warned. Or not so much warned as crudely illustrated. But as Rey starts to stroke him, in no way especially gently, Kylo finds his hands wandering of their own accord to his belt to undo it.
Rey gasps happily when he frees his straining length from his trousers. She scoots her butt forward and leans back as much as the shelf so clearly not designed for such activities will allow her. Then she spread her bent legs wide and makes the most enchanting little whine when Kylo aligns himself and pushes inside.
This is going so much more smoothly than their first coupling. Probably because Kylo can actually see what they're doing, but he dares not look to long at where they're joined or the room starts to spin again.
Rey squeaks when he pushes a little deeper, her eyes popping wide open and her hands fluttering through the air as if fanning it. Kylo pauses, waiting a moment, before gripping her hips to adjust their angle and pushing forward another inch.
She trembles again, giving him a rather fascinating physical feedback, and twines her arms around his shoulders. She holds on tight, low, tense-sounding noises emanating from her as he slowly and carefully sinks to the root in her then hold still.
For a moment they stay like that, with Rey fully impaled and clinging so tightly to him that Kylo can feel her nails sinking into the meat of his shoulders while she adjusts. His cue to start moving is when her death grip finally relaxes, the tension in her legs slackening enough for him to begin shallow thrusts.
Then the pace picks up and the growling begins. She gnashes her teeth, yowling against his ear as he pins her, their movements quickly escalating to a pace closer to a gallop than a leisurely lovemaking. When Rey climaxes again, her teeth sink right back into his now aching bite wound. She latches on tight, biting hard enough that Kylo's control briefly slips and he slams his hips forward as she drags him across the finish line with her, earning him a deeper few grunts from his mermaid before he collects himself.
The next few moments are spent in a panting, slumped haze of sweaty limbs. Almost obscenely Rey kisses his no doubt oozing bite through the fabric of his shirt. When she pulls away she looks up at him almost triumphantly, cementing the suspicion is Kylo's mind that yes, she is in fact trying to keep the wound from ever healing properly.
He straightens her clothing as much as he's able, though the torn panties are a completely lost cause. When they exit from the changing room- gods forget it, he'll just buy the whole armful of clothes- there's a hastily scrawled note in the Tailor's handwriting waiting for them on the front desk.
Lord Ren, I met your Knights in the market. They request you join them in the long house shortly so they can properly meet your guest.
The 'guest' had been underlined by the old man. He must have returned to his shop when Kylo was engaged in activities, though luckily there isn't a strickened corpse sprawled across the floor as well.
Kylo opens up the Tailor's billpad and writes down an amount that should be almost twice the value of all the purchases made and requested. He signs it at the bottom 'thank you for your discretion'.
Hopefully that will be enough to buy his silence, though Kylo doubts it.
Then Kylo places the chosen garments into a cloth sack, throws it over his shoulder, and joins his now happily skipping about mermaid outside.
Time to formally introduce her to the rest of the Knights. Hopefully this meeting will go better than their first encounter together.
Author's note:
Second half of yesterday's update! Next one will be soon I think and it will be a shorter chapter with Rey and the Knights sorting through their differences before the big expedition.
Comment replies:
Coesa Rudo – I'm glad you liked this chapter! The plot is coming along nicely. Now we've finally got a clue about what's been going on with Rey, though still not about the whole mystery with the angry mermaids and the heart trafficking. More to come, though! All will be revealed in time!
Thanks for commenting, too!
White Demon Feathers – Sorry, I've had to drop the periods out of your name because FFN was being obnoxious about not displaying them correctly (I so wish this site would update it's technology just a little, it's terribly outdated). ANYHOW, Rey learning the language? Right now I'm not completely decided. She's got that Little Mermaid thing where she can't speak and I think it adds something different to the story. Maybe later near the end though? Maybe maybe! Not sure! Kylo is… well, he's Kylo. He's clueless with the ladies. His girl just wanted a cuddle, but then of course his Knights and Maz were right there so… Well he certainly made up for it with this next chapter, lol
thanks so much for commenting!