Tav woke to the rumble of thunder. Lightning flashed through the closed curtains. Early morning sun, hidden behind thick clouds, tried to shine through. She felt the mattress move slightly under her. She lifted her head, groggy.

Had there been an earthquake? She looked to her left for Astarion, but he wasn't there. Two candles burned dimly on his bedside table. She lifted herself up on her elbows and blinked. She looked down.

Astarion's face was buried in her cunt, his ass sticking into the air. The muscles of his arm and shoulder flexed as he stroked himself, and Tav felt the bed shake again.

No earthquake.

His eyes were closed. She watched him, silent. Every breath he made was a quiet, whining moan into her. He switched between fucking her with his tongue and sucking on her clit as if he couldn't decide what he wanted to do.

Astarion had no idea Tav had woken. Thunder had ripped him from sleep some minutes before. He had looked to Tav to see if she had woken, but she was still deep in sleep. She had shoved the blanket off of her, exposing her breasts to the faint light. Her legs were slightly parted, one of her feet draped over his leg. He could smell her.

He moved, guided by his lips and tongue, to the warmth between her legs. He tasted her and couldn't pull himself away. Bending himself awkwardly so he could reach his twitching cock and not wake her, he closed his eyes and tasted. Felt. Listened. He finished into his hand quickly but kept stroking himself, whimpering.

Tav felt him shudder and whine against her. She could also feel herself creeping closer to orgasm. The sight of him pleasuring himself and tasting her without his knowledge.

Tav pressed her thighs against his face as she came, staying silent. She could see his eyebrows lift as he felt her tighten around his tongue and felt him moan into her. He was still lost in her when she spoke.

"Good morning."

His eyes shot open and he pulled himself away, her fluids clinging to his face. He hadn't thought this far ahead. What had he planned to do when she woke up? All he had been able to think about was how she tasted and felt around his tongue. He couldn't help but touch himself when he went down on her.

"G-good morning," he stuttered.

"Can't even be mad at you," Tav laughed. "You're so good at what you do and look beautiful doing it."

"Thank you."

Astarion felt his cheeks flush. He was so happy she liked his mouth.

"You up for some more fun?"

"Always. Whatever you want," Astarion nodded and wiped his mouth on the back of his hand.

"Lay on your back for me. Middle of the bed."

Tav sat between his legs, massaging his calves with her hands. She leaned forward and moved her hands up to his thighs, squeezing and kneading the muscle.

"Just say stop if something isn't right," Tav said. "At any point. Doesn't matter what is happening. It will stop immediately."

Astarion nodded. He appreciated her consistent reminders that he was not under her complete and unyielding control, only as much as he was willing to share. He had yet to find a part he wasn't willing to share.

Tav leaned over him and kissed him slowly. She could taste herself on him, and his own sweet breath. A hint of iron. She kissed his neck and began whispering. He couldn't understand her. A spell? She spread his arms out and he felt something wrapping around his wrists. He looked over her shoulder and saw green, supple vines writing over the bed and around his ankles. They secured themselves around him, snug. He tugged his foot and the vine held him fast.

"If you're going to kill me," Astarion said softly, "I don't think I could have imagined a better way to do it."

"I'm not going to kill you, as fun as it would be to bathe in your blood" Tav chuckled. "Close your eyes."

He leaned his head back and closed them. He felt her hand rest over his eyes. She whispered strange words again.

"Open your eyes."

"Your hand is covering them, love," Astarion purred.

"I know. Are they open?"

"They are."

He felt her hand lift off of his face. All he saw was blackness. Their room was gone, an infinite void in his sight.

"Did you blind me?" he asked. His voice seemed loud.

"I did. You okay?" her voice filled his senses.

He flexed his wrists and the vines held him. He could feel how naked he was, his legs spread.

"Oh gods, yes," he groaned. "Yes."

He tensed his body and tested the strength of the vines. They resisted him.

Tav sat for a moment, almost overwhelmed. A five course meal was laid in front of her, and she had to decide where to start. Every dish was her favorite. Every flavor perfect. She reached for the dagger at her bedside table and dragged the tip of it up his thigh, a narrow cut splitting his pale skin. She placed her lips to the wound and kissed it, his blood staining her lips.

Astarion could feel the dagger moving against his skin. He felt his skin giving way to the metal. He wanted to beg her to slit his throat and let him die happy. He squirmed.

Tav held the blade parallel to Astarion's hard cock and pressed the cold, smooth side of the dagger into his flesh. He felt the tip of the dagger pressed into the root of his member, poised to break the skin. He shivered and felt the metal pierce him. He moaned. The pain and cold were incredible. Tav slowly drew the blade up his length and away from him.

He felt the metal, warmed, pressed over his parted, gasping lips. He ran his tongue up the smooth side of the blade, his mouth flooded with the taste of metal. The dagger angled and pressed into his tongue, the tip sharp. He closed his lips around it and writhed his tongue under it.

If Tav slipped it would be over for him. He imagined the metal cutting clean through the back of his throat. He moaned. The metal hummed against him.

The blade drifted back over his tongue and through his lips.

"If you had a cock," he whispered, "it would be a dagger."

"Oh?"

Tav's voice. He couldn't tell where she was.

"I'd want you to slice me to shreds every day," he continued. "Leave me a bloody, sticky mess every moment of the day."

He felt the blade graze over one of his collar bones. The pain arrived slowly, burning. The blade met the other bone and sliced over it. Hot. Burning. He almost felt human.

"These are going to leave scars," Tav said softly. "Scars from me on your pretty body."

"The only gift better than a ring. I can't take those off," he replied, breathing heavily. "I wouldn't want to."

He felt Tav shift her weight and rest her weight on his thighs. He felt her thumb prod at the crest of his hip. The dagger slid into his flesh and followed the curve of his bone, arching up.

He didn't want to ruin her work. He held himself still and panted, his mouth open. The blood around his collarbones had pooled and begun trailing over his sides. He felt the dagger sink into his other him, slowly gliding through his flesh and leaving his flesh divided. Achingly slow. He clenched his fists. He tried not to move.

"This… feels so good," shuddered into the blackness. "Don't stop… don't…"

Tav finished the cut with a flick of her wrist, snagging flesh and stealing the words out from Astarion's lips. She placed her mouth against the fresh cut on his hips and slid her tongue into his slick, bleeding skin. Tav could feel him struggling underneath her and pulling at the restraints. His heavy breathing turned to dry sobs.

Tav could feel his cock under her chest. She squeezed him between her breasts and moved them over him. He could feel her hot, smooth skin surround him. He could feel her breasts moving around him. He groaned, the sound lingering in his throat.

Suddenly, her breasts lifted from him. He felt cold without her around him and whined. He could feel her moving, her knees on either side of him. He could smell her. He stuck his tongue out of his mouth, showing her how ready he was for her. He would always be ready.

He felt her fingers swipe over the cut on his collarbone. He twitched. He felt fingers pressed to his tongue and wrapped his lips around them, ready to taste his own blood. A reminder that he bled because she had cut into him. But he didn't taste his blood. He tasted her. She had slipped her fingers between her slit, covered them in her nectar, and tricked him. He raced his tongue over her fingers, trying to get every last drop of her into him.

Tav lifted herself off of him again. He felt her reaching for something, somewhere, then settling back down. She placed her cunt against his cock, pressing them into his stomach. He could feel her lips, thick and hot, against his shaft. She slid herself up and down him, holding herself upright with one arm. He could feel her clit rub against the tip of his cock.

He felt a burning sensation between his collarbones. Hot. Incredibly hot. Stinging so good. He took a shuddering breath. He could smell candle wax.

Tav tipped the candle forward again, spilling wax down the center of his chest. He moaned and pressed himself against her harder. She felt him throbbing between her lips.

Astarion sucked in air through his teeth, gripping at the bedding. It burned and he loved it. He wanted to get away from the pain but he couldn't, and that made it better. He was trapped and forced to deal with the sweet, incredible pain he was being subjected to.

Tav dripped the wax over his stomach, tipping her hips forward and taking his cock into her hand to better pleasure herself. She rubbed his head against her clit in gentle strokes. Astarion could hear her breath. The wax dripped and landed on him again.

"Use me. Use me to cum. Please," he begged. "I'm yours. Please cum on me."

Tav spilled the remainder of the wax over his ribs. He cried out. She felt him throb and twitch in her hand as she used him to pleasure herself. She felt herself swell and rubbed him against her faster, until she released. She slid herself down his shaft, still rubbing her aching clit over him. He felt the waves of her release against his skin.

"You didn't cum, good job," she murmured.

"Thank you," he whispered, his voice hoarse as he nodded.

"Thirsty?"

He nodded. He had been gasping for breath and his mouth was dry. He felt her shift over him, reaching over. Something hit the table. The candle? He felt her knees press into the bed beside his head and he moaned as she forced her cunt over his mouth. Muffled and unintelligible, he moaned into her how much he loved her and her cunt.

Tav gripped the headboard and slid herself over Astarion's tongue. He felt himself move over her hood, the bump of her pearl, her pink lips and sweet hole. She did this again and again, forcing his head into the pillow with every thrust.

"Talk to me again," she said softly, pressing herself against him.

He slipped his tongue inside her, pressed his mouth over her and told her she could do this to him forever. He didn't care if he never came again. He didn't need his eyes or his hands. All he needed was his lips and tongue. For her.

His voice made his tongue move wonderfully inside her. It moved with the words he spoke and touched every corner of her. She came onto his tongue, clenching him with it and moaning. Her fingernails dug into the headboard.

Tav lowered herself over him and slid her cunt over his cock. He thrust into her, losing control of himself. She pressed her thumb over the cut in his hip. He gasped. Her thumb dug into him and he thrust into her again. The pain was excruciating. Incredible. Wonderful.

Her other hand found his other wound and provided the same treatment. Pressure. Movement. Her thumbs were slick with his blood.

"Tav, I-"

"I know you're going to cum," she said softly. "One more thing."

Her left hand lifted from him, his sore left gaping. It hovered over his chest and her fingers rested over the slash across his collarbone.

"I didn't say to stop moving yet."

He continued thrusting into her, his legs straining. She leaned her face closer to his and kissed him, parting his lips with her tongue. He met her with eagerness. She moved her lips to his neck and bit into him. He could feel his mind going hazy.

Tav raked her nails over his fresh wound, ripping it further open. Blood spilled. A screaming gasp escaped Astarion's throat, his hips pounding into Tav.

She watched his mindless eyes roll into the back of his head, his mouth open. He was holding back still.

"Cum in me, pretty boy," Tav purred. "What's the delay?"

"You… f-f-first," he shuddered. His body was racing to orgasm, his mind wanted to hold back.

Tav leaned back, angling her hips so Astarion could quickly hit her sweet spot. He continued thrusting into her, frantic. His cock massaged her and she watched his beautiful face contort around the pleasure and pain. Her orgasm came quickly, the sight almost too much, his cock so eager. She placed both of her fingers over each cut on his collar bones and braced herself. He fucked her harder.

She dug her nails into his open wounds as she spilled over. His mouth hung open, short gasping breaths escaping. She squeezed around him as he thrust, holding onto him. Her fingers were inside him. Inside his skin.

His moans reached a shrill tone, music to Tav's ears. She squeezed herself around him harder.

"Please, please, please," he moaned, beginning to no one. She was so tight. He couldn't see her face but he heard her moaning. He could smell her. He could still taste her in his mouth. He buried himself inside her and she sank onto him, pushing him even deeper. Her lips were wet around him. Her fluids rushed out over him.

His climax took him. Tav pressed her fingers deeper into him, exploring him anew. His head spun and he wailed as he felt himself release inside her.

Astarion lay on his back on the bed. The vines were gone and his vision was back.

Tav gently peeled the wax off of his skin, apologizing as it pulled on the fine hairs on his chest and stomach.

"Just icing on the cake, darling," he said, his arms behind his head.

"This isn't the part I want to hurt you," she smiled.

Tav removed the final pieces of wax and tossed them on the bedside table. She grabbed a bottle of antiseptic and a wad of cotton from her bag. As she opened the bottle and doused the cotton in it, a strong smell filled the room. Alcohol and mint.

She dabbed it against his cuts.

"Alright, that hurts. In a bad way," he grimaced. The stinging was cold and unpleasant.

"Good, found something that doesn't make your dick hard," she laughed. "We can finally start a list."

"Very funny, love," he winced. "Thank you, though. For cleaning me up."

"I did it to you," she said, focusing on the task. "It's my job to make sure you're alright. I'm happy to do it. Still sorry it hurts, but I can't do much about that."

After Cazador had carved his poem into Astarion's back, he shoved him into the dirt and left him to suffer. The wounds didn't heal well. They festered and pus leaked from them for months. The scars healed strangely, smooth in some places and knotted in others.

"Is it wrong," Astarion said, "that after all the pain that wretch put me through, I run to you and beg for more? Is something wrong with me?"

"No, this is different," Tav muttered, turning her head and frowning and one of the cuts on his hips. "I'm going to have to stitch this one up."

"How is it different?" Astarion asked. He trusted her to do whatever was best.

Tav pulled a tiny, hook shaped needle from her bag and a piece of shimmering thread.

"I'm not holding you against your will," she said, beginning her work. "What we do…"

She paused, concentrating. She moved gently, threading the floss through his skin. Astarion flinched.

"What we do has a lot more meaning. If I didn't love you the way I did and know you felt the same way, this wouldn't work," she explained.

"Wouldn't work?"

"You give yourself to me. That's a choice. I treasure that choice, the intent behind it, and the willingness with which you give it. It's one of the things I love about you most. You trust me. After all the shit you've been through you're able to place your heart in my hands."

Tav tugged the thread gently, securing a knot, then continued.

"It's the most precious thing I've ever been given and I will guard it with my life. If I didn't feel that way…"

"I would know," Astarion said, finishing her thoughts, "and I wouldn't keep coming back. I wouldn't run headfirst into another Cazador's arms. I don't want that again."

Tav nodded, securing another knot.

"You happen to like being roughed up, and it's unfortunate abuse was tied into that for you," Tav said, her brows furrowed in concentration. "The two are very different."

"Very different," Astarion grimaced, gritting his teeth as the hooked needle pulled through his skin. "This feels like abuse."

"I know, love. I'm sorry. I'm almost done," she apologized before trying to distract him with conversation. "I want you to heal well. Did you have fun?"

"I'd kill ten people to experience a fraction of that again."