Lucius was up first the next morning and gave Sidney and Timmy instructions for the morning meal and waking both House and Marius. Timmy brought their cell phones to Lucius who turned them off and placed them in his room. The house landline was disconnected at the wall jack as was the television to prevent any outside interruption or distraction. All car keys were also placed in Lucius' possession as well.
"Wake Marius first and have him come out to the garden," Lucius told them. "Once he is out with me, you may wake House. Get him cleaned up and be certain he is not knotted in pain, then send him out as well."
Marius joined Lucius in the garden about twenty minutes later. "Master Lucius," he said quietly and stood before him calmly.
"Marius," Lucius acknowledged. "Are you well this morning?"
"Not entirely, but much more so than last night," Marius answered honestly. "When did House arrive?"
Lucius gestured to the empty chair and Marius sat down. "He called after midnight. He wanted us to know that he had planned on returning to the house. His patient is diagnosed and responding to treatment but something else happened. I refused all explanations last night and picked him up from the hospital as he said his motorcycle had been impounded. He was quite exhausted; he didn't protest my aid at all. I expect that a night's rest may restore his rebellious nature," he added with a smirk of amusement. Marius chuckled as well at that as he accepted a dark roast coffee that Lucius poured and handed him.
"First, we will hear his explanation for leaving last night and what transpired to prevent him from returning," Lucius continued. "Then we will do as was planned last night; I shall get better acquainted with him and I will also observe the two of you together. That is even more an imperative now that you know your interest in him goes beyond the master/sub relationship."
"He may well bolt when he hears that," Marius muttered quietly.
"If you have something to say aloud do not mutter under your breath, Marius," Lucius chided. "It is beneath someone of your status."
"I was thinking that he may well bolt when he learns about the change in how I feel about him," Marius repeated, louder and clearer this time.
"Give him the chance to decide before you mourn his loss," Lucius replied. "And if you face him with such a thought in mind and conveyed in your body language, I wouldn't be surprised if he did. You must get your mind in order, Marius, before you share that with him. Until then, you will follow my lead, is that clear?"
"Yes, it is," Marius responded, relieved to have Lucius guide the way for the next few days. Marius was an experienced master but had always held himself slightly apart from his subs. This was his first time having intimate feelings for one; not so for Lucius, who had two subs whom he loved. Lucius loved Marius too but more as a younger brother and protégé than a lover.
House appeared twenty minutes later, clad in jeans and a button down shirt. He stopped in front of the table, unsure about what to do next since the table only had two seats which the masters now occupied.
"You are looking much better than you did last night," Lucius observed. "Before we begin our meal, I think that you should tell us why you left your master to face me alone and what prevented you from returning as you had decided."
House fidgeted and looked down, twisting his cane back and forth in a sort of soothing motion. "I, um… I never thought about him having a master. He's… well he is so confident and sure about things. Why would he need to have a master?" he asked looking up at Lucius and demanding, pleading to know the answer.
"Having a master is a part of the natural order of life," Lucius said, leaning back comfortably in his chair. "There is a hierarchy to all things. For instance, your fellows have achieved a level of mastery in their own right, else you would not have chosen them for your department. You are their master, overseeing and guiding their learning and correcting them when needed, even harshly at times. You have a master over you, the hospital boards represented in the person of the administrator. And so it is in this world, as you have seen represented in Marius' own household. Timmy holds the lowest rank, Sidney is next, with Marius over them. When you entered the household, you took the lowest rank and Timmy moved up a level. Marius once started at the rank you are at, believe it or not," Lucius said conspiratorially. "He was much younger than you are when he started but I assure you he was equally as stubborn."
Marius smiled and shook his head with embarrassment and House quirked a half smile at the idea of Marius being a stubborn young sub.
"Do you have a master?" House asked Lucius.
"Not anymore, I'm afraid. My master passed away and I have found no other at his level to take his place. And I must choose not only for myself but for my entire clan, including you now," Lucius answered.
"Me? How do I have anything to do with you finding a master if you want one?
"Any master I would choose to solicit would have to pass my scrutiny to care properly for all those whom I am master over and that includes you. I will not do so lightly, I assure you. There also comes a time when a master reaches the highest level and has no master above him. I do not claim to be at that level but time will tell," Lucius answered.
"Now back to the original question; why did that information unnerve you enough to leave?"
House looked away nervously. "I thought it meant he couldn't stay my master…wouldn't want to. Or maybe you wouldn't want him to have me and order him to." House swallowed hard, hating to admit so much of his fears.
"And so you left rather than assert your desire to remain?"
"My desire has never mattered one iota in the past," House spat bitterly. "Why would I think that would change now? Better to be the one leaving than the one left behind," he growled, stomping his cane on the floor in emphasis.
Lucius nodded sagely and remained quiet until House had regained a measure of composure.
"You said you had decided to return. Before you explain what prevented you from doing so, tell me what changed your mind?" Lucius asked calmly.
"I kept thinking about that night…the night he came for me…I was lost. Alone and…staring at two bottles of Vicodin. I would have thrown away sobriety, my license, and probably my life that night. No one at the hospital cared enough to step in. I didn't have anyone but a stranger to call. And he answered. He came," House whispered, unshed tears welling up in the corners of his eyes as his voice came out strangled by the emotion at the memory. "He didn't yell or accuse or judge. He just cared. I couldn't walk away from him after what he did for me. I won't walk away from him," House added, lifting his eyes to meet Lucius' eyes defiantly.
Lucius smiled and nodded. "I'm very pleased to hear that. Now what prevented you from returning?"
"I stopped to think in a park and there was a playground there. Some of the parents thought I was a pedophile trolling for a kid. A father shoved me around and then the police came and arrested me for loitering with intent because I had a citation last year for driving under the influence of prescription drugs. They impounded my bike and took me to jail. By the time I got booked, a blood test to prove I was clean and saw the judge, it was past 8:30. My phone was full of messages from the team and one from Wilson about the patient crashing, so I took a cab back to the hospital, got my ass chewed by the dean of medicine and spent the next four hours with the team trying to keep the patient stable enough to get a diagnosis. Then I called here."
Both Marius and Lucius shook their heads in disbelief of the whole situation. "That is so ridiculous," Marius said, irritation showing in his voice. "Not to mention Dr. Cuddy's total lack of decorum."
"You have the court papers?" Lucius asked. House nodded. "Bring them to me after breakfast and I will send them to my lawyer. The charges will be dropped immediately and your motorcycle bailed out of impound as well. Get yourself a chair and join us," he added, calling out for Timmy to begin to serve breakfast.
After a leisurely breakfast, House retrieved the court papers and brought them to Lucius who thanked him and said he'd take care of it. "Call off work for today and tomorrow. Cite the incident last night as the reason as well as the restrictions placed by the court. When you've finished that, join Marius and myself in the guest suite."
House nodded and used his cell phone to call the hospital. He was surprised that Cuddy didn't balk on his reasoning, instead confirming that until this was cleared it was probably better he didn't come in and she again offered him a lawyer. He replied that he had arranged for one this morning and would let her know when this got dropped then quickly got off the line.
He had to think back on his initial investigation of Marius' house to make his way to the guest suite. Lucius and Marius were seated at a small table and chairs set into a bay window embrasure. There were very full, light colored curtains over the windows, letting in plenty of sunlight but blocking any ability to see out, but it gave the room an open and airy feeling. Lucius nodded at Marius who stood up and came to stand beside House.
"Marius is going to show me the progress you and he have made thus far. I want you to react honestly. Do not push farther on my account," he warned. "That isn't what this session is about. Proceed."
Marius nodded and turned to catch House's gaze, holding it until he saw his sub settle a little. "As we have done before then. This is nothing new to you; there is only another watcher. Remove your clothing."
House stood still for a moment, looking Marius directly in the eyes, barely breathing now that the moment was here. Slowly, he reached up and began to unbutton his shirt, fumbling the top button at first but the next became smoother. He was still self-conscious with Marius; Lucius' presence was unnerving although the man himself sat impassively watching from his seat at the table. As he slid his shirt off his shoulders, Marius ran a hand over one shoulder and down his arm. Despite the anxiety, House felt the familiar sensation of arousal that his master's touch had so recently brought up in him. The touch continued as he exposed more and more skin and all too soon (in House's opinion) he stood nude before the two masters.
Marius ran his hands over House's body, murmuring words of praise. He slid his hand up his chest and the side of his neck, catching his jaw and tipping his head up and back. House's muscles tensed at demand and he pushed back against Marius' hand but Marius did not allow it, holding him in firmly in the position while calmly stroking his side. House struggled for a moment, fighting against the unfamiliar position and his own fears rising up to strangle him. But Marius had his head held up with an open hand, not grabbing him or squeezing his throat so after a minute he forced himself to relax and tilt his head back just a bit. He was rewarded with another murmur of praise and the hand on his neck moved upward, stroking his face and then over his lips with a thumb, once then a couple of times more insistently, even as his master's other hand was stroking and cupping his ass cheeks. Nothing more than Marius had done before, other than tipping his head back, but House was still aware enough to realize that although it demanded more submission, the position also made it so that House did not have to see Lucius watching him. Trying to acknowledge that he understood, House opened his lips. Marius' thumb gentled and slowed, caressing the curve of his lower lip; message received. House closed his eyes and savored the feeling, relieved to have discovered that this type of touch and submission could actually be more than an exercise in trust, that it could be real communication.
Marius met Lucius' eyes over House's shoulder. Lucius nodded approval and gestured for Marius to continue. Marius released him and told him to slide a nearby bench over. House moved the bench over and looked up at Marius questioningly.
Marius straddled the end of the bench. "Sit as I am, back to me," he ordered calmly. House quirked an eyebrow at the order, quickly calculating that he would be spread open facing Lucius. Marius looked at him resolutely and he could feel Lucius' gaze on his back. Carefully he turned, sat on the bench and put his good leg over so he was straddling it with his back to Marius.
"Now I want you to lean back against me and hold onto the bench. Don't let go."
House moved into position, finding that in trying to get hold of the bench, he was now snugged right up against Marius' chest and he could feel his erection up against his ass. Now nervous again in front of Lucius' scrutiny, he was relieved when Marius told him to lean his head back onto his shoulder. Marius let his hands wander, toying with his nipples, circling his belly and then downward. House tensed at the first touch on his cock, flexing his toes and gripping the sides of the bench with his knees.
"Just focus on me, focus on the feelings. You can tense up but do not lift your feet from the floor or let go of the bench. Do you understand?"
"Yes…yes, sir," he said, licking his lips to try to clear the cotton mouth he had.
Marius slid his hand down to fondle his balls, tugging lightly on them and pinching the skin a bit before moving to lightly swirl his thumb over the sensitive head a couple of times before gripping his shaft and giving him a few slow hard strokes then began building in intensity and speed.
House was tense and it took all he could do to keep his feet down and hold onto the bench. As he became more and more aroused, he became more and more anxious. Would Marius make him come in front of Lucius, spread open like this?
Marius glanced up at Lucius again, minutely shaking his head, feeling how tensed up House was getting. He might even send his legs into spasms at this rate. Lucius nodded.
"I'm well pleased, Marius. House, you have developed a great deal of trust for your master. A most promising beginning and definitely one we can strengthen. You may take him back to your room and give him an appropriate reward," Lucius said with pleasure. He was impressed at how much trust House displayed in Marius, even in the face of an unknown quantity like himself watching. House was definitely well worth adding to their circle.
Marius helped House up and led him back to the master suite, sitting him down on the end of the bed.
"You did so well! I'm very proud of you," Marius said with a smile.
House pulled in a shuddering breath. "I'm glad you didn't make me come. I… I don't think I can… I don't think I'm ready for that."
"I understand and so does Master Lucius. I knew it was taking a risk but I wanted to let him know how far we've come in earning each other's trust." Marius slicked back House's hair and chuckled. "You're drenched. Come on, let's shower and I'll have Sidney work the stress out of your muscles before you seize up."
Marius led him into the shower and adjusted the temperature quite warm then stepped into the shower with House. He pressed up against his back and reached around with a soapy cloth to wash his chest. House leaned back against him and relaxed in his arms. After the tense morning and the disastrous events of the day before, it felt safe to just let his master take care of him and stop thinking. Marius took his time washing him, savoring the moment contentedly. After washing House's hair, Marius stepped in close, holding him tightly against his chest with one arm and snaking the other around to gently fondle him. House let out a quiet moan of contentment and shifted slightly, just enough to let Marius' hand slide a bit lower and onto his shaft.
Marius smiled and felt himself harden at such a clear signal. He took him firmly in hand and began steady strokes, letting the pad of his thumb swirl lightly over the tip on the upstroke. House tried to brace himself with his hands against the shower walls but Marius told him to let go.
"Step forward just a bit, and hold onto the safety bar with both hands," Marius said huskily, getting them moved just close enough for him to do so, all the while keeping up the stimulation and the pace. House was forced to lean forward to get both hands on the safety bar, pushing his ass back into his master's full erection and his master's arm was still around his waist holding him safely upright and tightly close.
The strokes on his shaft became quicker and more demanding, rocking his body into Marius with every down stroke. At first, House felt unnerved but Marius did not press for anything more than contact and he let himself be carried away by the sensations Marius was stirring up in him. Within moments, he came hard, hips jerking convulsively as he released and held on tightly to the safety bar. He had no idea how long it had been but he came back to awareness to feel Marius stroking his back. He finally pried his fingers free from the safety bar and straightened up, leaning against Marius' chest.
"Let's get you to Sidney now and you can rest until evening," Marius said as he reached around to shut off the water and helped House step out of the shower stall. Sidney was waiting with a large soft bath sheet to wrap House in and Timmy was there for Marius. A quick dry and a soothing massage later, House was in left in a thick robe with a pitcher of cold drink on a lounge chair in Marius room to relax.