Chapter Thirty-Six
Gratitude

November 10, 1996
New Moon

All Remus wanted was water and an answer to what state Lucius was going to be in when he returned.

Remus had barely slept after Lucius had left, although he'd remained in bed for hours, dropping in and out of endlessly taunting nightmares. He could feel the exhaustion in his gritty eyes and dry mouth—but that discomfort paled in comparison to the pain in his hips and knees. It had been months since he'd allowed himself to be fully intimate with Tonks, and he could feel how out of practice he was every time he moved. His walks with Lucius and regular callisthenics had kept him active during his captivity, but the specific muscles required for what they'd done in the night were… different.

Remus rubbed his eyes and glanced at the stable doors through the bars of his cell, willing Lucius to show up.

Just then, as if magically summoned, the doors opened, and Lucius strolled inside, blonde hair shining in the autumn sun.

Remus's internal organs seemed to stage a coup as Lucius made eye contact with him across the distance and the wizard bristled, offered a pinched smile, and began the approach.

"Did you sleep?" Lucius asked when he was halfway down the aisle. His face was calm, tone casual. As if nothing had happened.

"A bit," Remus answered, frowning as Lucius charmed the cell door open.

The dark wizard looked clean and composed again—the complete opposite of how Remus felt. His skin was still tacky from the sweat left behind from their encounter, and his clothes smelled even more like hay than they had before.

"I apologise for the delay," Lucius sighed, passing Remus a bag of food. His calm façade faltered when Remus reached out to him; the younger wizard just managed to catch the way that Lucius's hand trembled when Remus came near, and how he blushed when he pulled away.

"It's fine," Remus replied, cautious. "I'm mostly just thirsty."

Lucius startled, eyes widening before he spoke again, as if he was shocked he hadn't thought of the water himself.

"Of course," he nodded, turning to the dog bowl and filling it quickly.

As Remus watched it happen, he considered what sway he might have over the Death Eater after everything that had transpired in the night. The possibility of a water bottle or a cup flashed through his mind, one that would magically refill when emptied, and the idea of such a small luxury made his throat tighten. He glanced at Lucius, considering saying something—but then he saw Lucius's renewed façade, and he thought better of it.

"Thank you," Remus said, offering a stilted smile before setting his food on the ground and picking up his bowl.

It wasn't until the bowl was up to his lips that he noticed a twinge in his stomach: embarrassment. He was, quite suddenly, embarrassed for Lucius to see him in such a demeaning position.

He scoffed at himself, but still turned away from Lucius to take several long, deep sips.

"Are you well enough to walk?" Lucius asked a few seconds later.

Remus finished his last draught and coughed, wiping his mouth as he set the bowl back down and turned around.

"Yes?" Remus answered, not bothering to hide his confusion. "Are... you?"

Lucius bristled at that, as though his pride had been injured, and Remus felt his stomach drop.

"Of course I am," Lucius snapped, rolling his shoulders back. "I'm fine."

"Alright," Remus answered, lifting a cautious and conciliatory hand.

"Go ahead and put your collar on, then," Lucius instructed. "I have your leash."

The suggestion caught Remus even more off-guard, and he paused, looking Lucius up and down for a moment. It was hard to read him past the calm front, although the longer Remus looked at him, the more he realised how much of Lucius's effort was being used to keep it up. He looked almost strained, if Remus looked closely enough; it showed in the wrinkles around the dark wizard's eyes and the tension in his jaw.

"Well?" Lucius interrupted Remus's thoughts, clearly uncomfortable with how closely the younger wizard was examining him.

"Right," Remus muttered, apologising quietly as he turned to look for the collar. He'd thrown it away somewhere when Lucius had decided to walk him without it only days ago. They had fucked, for Merlin's sake—

He found it under the cot, stored near one of the legs, and he brought it up to his neck and secured it without looking back at Lucius.

"Come here," Lucius murmured, before Remus even had the chance to turn and face him. Remus hesitated, swallowing and letting his eyes search the cot for a moment. The other wizard was composed, but on edge. He could be hiding anything. That trembling hand could've meant anything. Murderous intent included.

The idea made Remus feel physically sick, but he mustered the courage to turn around anyway, facing Lucius's false exterior once more. The dark wizard was holding the leash in his hand.

"Let me do it," Lucius instructed, lifting the leash a bit higher. Remus felt his heart skip a beat. Closer. He'd have to go closer.

"I'm not going to bite," Lucius said, as though he could hear Remus's thoughts, and the werewolf winced at the ironic sarcasm of the other wizard's tone. That seemed to bring out a flash of Lucius's mental state. The other wizard did his best to hide a smirk, but the tiniest peek of the expression slipped through, twisting the corners of his mouth.

Remus took a quiet breath and walked forward, straightening out the collar's silver o-ring as he went. He kept a slow pace until he was right in front of Lucius, well within arm's length—but even that did not seem to be close enough for the dark wizard. Lucius took another step closer, tilting his head the tiniest bit as he reached out for the metal circle. He tugged gently on it when it was within his grasp—almost enough for Remus to stumble forward.

Remus watched Lucius's hands work for a moment. Those soft fingers, the same fingers that had been in Remus's mouth mere hours ago. The idea made his breath catch in his throat and forced him to look up.

Lucius was looking at him, too. Staring him directly in the eye. And just like that, Remus felt it, as if he'd fallen head-first into it: a charged heaviness had risen up between the two of them while Remus had been distracted, hanging between their arms and bodies as they stood close to each other.

Lucius's lips were slightly parted, eyebrows drawn together. It was an undoubtedly intimate expression—but it wasn't the same one he'd been making the night before, when he'd been begging Remus to fuck him until he couldn't think anymore. This look was far more closely related to the one he'd worn when he'd pushed Remus down into the mud, the first time that Remus had realised that the Death Eater might truly be sexually attracted to him. There was that same coolness at its centre—and the sharp, hot edges. It was the face of a sadist.

The idea sent nervous gooseflesh down Remus's spine, and it must've shown on his face, because Lucius's gaze sharpened even farther, and a cold smile flickered on his lips for an instant.

"Is it really just a walk we're going on?" Remus asked, keeping his voice as even as he could.

Lucius blinked, letting a cruel half-smile show. "Of course it is. Did you think something had changed?"

Remus felt cold, as if the warming charms Lucius had cast on the stables had completely disappeared.

"Of course not," he replied with an insincere smile, taking a step back and gesturing towards the door as he did so.

Lucius looked a bit bored and then deeply irritated by Remus's answer, and Remus's stomach twisted again in response. He had grown used to Lucius being far more pathetic and less predatory. He had let himself go soft.

"Lead the way, sir," Remus murmured, bowing his head slightly.

The honorific came out of him easily—unsurprisingly, after weeks of practice and years at Hogwarts. He didn't remember that Lucius had banned the word until it was already out of his mouth, and Lucius was flashing an angered snarl.

"Oh, I shall," the dark wizard snapped, eyes narrowing for an instant before he turned and led the way out of the cell, tugging hard on Remus's leash.

Lucius's body was a maelstrom of mixed emotions and sensations as he walked along in front of the werewolf. There was the lasting fatigue from the night before, including the stiffness he could feel in his hips and pelvic floor now that they were walking—but there was also the burning, satisfied delight he felt every time he glanced over his shoulder to see Remus walking behind him.

The werewolf looked just as sore as Lucius felt, and that gave him a bit of petty satisfaction, considering the remark Remus had made about Lucius being the one who surely had to be in more suffering. But there was more to Lucius's satisfaction than the werewolf's halted gait. More than that, it was the stormy look on his face whenever he thought Lucius wasn't looking, a clear indicator of how hard he was thinking about what Lucius was doing and how Remus should react. Lucius had seen the expression before, having witnessed many of the werewolf's bouts of contemplative angst, but this felt different.

Because of course something had changed. Everything had, from the moment Lucius had returned to the stable, desperate and begging, again. The stakes had been upped between them, and Lucius did not plan to be the one submitting again when the bell signalling their next round inevitably sounded. He'd already made that decision by the time he'd left bed that morning.

If the werewolf was a bit fearful of what Lucius might do next, he didn't mind.

"Do I still have to wear this?" Remus's voice cut through Lucius's reverie once they were under cover of the trees. The two of them were farther into the woods than they'd been before, following a hunting trail that continued east past the pond.

Lucius frowned and glanced over his shoulder to find the younger wizard thumbing at his collar, an irritated expression on his face. Remus had been quiet, up to then. Lucius paused, leaves crunching under him as his boots settled on the damp earth, the snow having long since melted.

"No," Lucius answered, turning to face the werewolf completely. "I would've taken it off sooner if you'd asked."

Remus's jaw tightened. "Then why did you make me put it on in the first place?"

Lucius glanced away, trying his hardest to remain aloof.

"You know I'm not going to run away," Remus pressed.

Lucius looked back to his captive immediately, not wanting to miss the frustrated expression that flashed across Remus's face as he finished stating the obvious. Lucius caught it, just in time, and it was followed by a frown that made the fiendish thoughts that Lucius had been trying to hide since he'd arrived at the stable flare up, beginning to prickle and burn him.

"I wouldn't let you if you tried," he answered calmly.

"Then why?" Remus asked again, narrowing his eyes as he let go of the collar and let his hands slip into his pockets.

"Just ask me to take it off, puppy."

Remus's head jutted backward in shock at the words, shoulders rising up to his chin, and Lucius felt his desire roar up into his chest and down his thighs. He couldn't stop himself from smirking. He hadn't meant to call Remus a "puppy;" it had just come out.

"Did you like that?" Lucius growled and yanked on the leash without another moment of hesitation. Remus couldn't help but stumble forward, nearly crashing into Lucius, but managing to dig his heels into the mud and grind to a halt at the last second.

"Well?" Lucius tugged at the wolf again, more gently now, just enough to shake Remus from his shock. The werewolf bristled and looked at the ground.

"I don't have the energy to fight, Lucius. It's a simple question—"

"And I gave you a simple answer," Lucius interrupted, taking a small step forward. Their closeness set his skin alight. "Ask me to take it off."

Remus stared down at his captor for a moment before exhaling in a sharp huff and looking away again, back to the trees. He was in his element among the earth tones of the forest; his eyes were shadowy and his neck was marked red where he'd been struggling against his collar, but he looked like he belonged.

"Do you want it off, mutt?" Lucius pushed, feeling like he was breathing dragon fire as he watched the werewolf grit his teeth and decide on a response.

"Of course I do," Remus finally answered, still looking away, and Lucius noticed how rounded the werewolf's back was. Remus, a study in making himself smaller. Lucius, a study in overcompensating.

"Then ask," Lucius coaxed, clenching the leash more tightly, trying not to show how much he was enjoying himself.

Remus sniffed and shook some hair out of his face before finally making eye contact again.

"Would you please take my collar off?" he asked, straight-faced.

"Do it yourself," Lucius muttered, taking a step back and dropping the leash.

Remus instinctively grabbed at the leather as it struck his midriff and clenched at it, nostrils flaring as he looked back up to Lucius.

"Fine," Remus snapped, removing the collar without another moment's hesitation. There was an air about him, though. It reminded Lucius of the look he'd seen on annoyed wives at the Ministry when they brought lunch or dress shirts to their forgetful husbands. It was genuine irritation, and the effort of trying not to smirk at it made Lucius's eyebrow twitch.

"Was that so hard?" Lucius asked, reaching out to take the leash and collar once Remus had fully removed them.

Remus cast him a dry glare as the leather passed between them.

"It didn't have to be. You're the one being difficult," the werewolf retorted, starting to sound more tense. The change in tone made a little thrill run through Lucius, but he did his best to stand his ground.

"What happened last night doesn't mean that I owe you kindness or sympathy, mutt," Lucius rejoined, pressing his mouth into a thin line and then turning away. He didn't want to turn—he wanted to watch Remus continue to get riled up, to see him get steadily more confused until he burst. But he had a feeling that this would work better.

"I'm not suggesting that you owe me anything, Lucius—"

"No? You sound awfully entitled," Lucius said over his shoulder.

Remus kissed his teeth at that, but began to follow behind Lucius nevertheless. It only took the werewolf a few strides to catch up to Lucius, walking alongside him with a sullen expression on his face.

"You look ridiculous," Lucius muttered, tucking the leash and collar into his pocket as he walked. "Are you putting on a show?"

"Would you rather I pretend not to be irritated by you?" Remus snarked, not missing a beat.

"Hardly," Lucius admitted. "I prefer to see you worked up."

"That's why you're being a prick, then? Just looking to get a rise out of me?"

The frankness of Remus's words surprised Lucius enough that he looked over his shoulder and raised his eyebrows at his captive.

Remus's shoulders had risen up to his neck, as if he was bracing himself for what would happen next.

"Maybe it is," Lucius responded. "As is my right."

"Your right?" Remus scoffed, and Lucius noticed that the other man's face and neck were getting redder. "I thought nobody was owed anything."

"Nobody? Don't be foolish, puppy. I don't owe you. I never said anything about the other way 'round."

The pet name got a rise out of Remus again, and he snapped his head up so that he could glare at Lucius once more. His anger was obvious—his subtle enjoyment, less so. The wolf was blustering, but Lucius had noticed enough from the way he'd behaved the day before that he wasn't entirely turned off by their banter, either.

"What could you possibly be owed, sir?" Remus asked, stopping where he stood and turning to face Lucius. "Is this more punishment for what I've done to you?"

The dark wizard felt the sting of the honorific and mention of Lucius's weakness the night before, but it wasn't an entirely unpleasant sting, given the context. Remus was playing the same game, now.

"Your submission and gratitude," Lucius answered without a moment's hesitation, finally given the opportunity to say the words he'd been practising all morning. "I let you have your way last night. I was generous."

Remus's eyes widened at that, a shocked, mirthless smile spreading across his face.

"Let me have my way?" he snarled, tilting his head and taking his hands out of his pockets. "You begged me to fuck you."

Lucius sniffed, looked away, trying to ignore the way his heart skipped a beat.

"To appease you," Lucius answered, half-shrugging. "I was playing a part."

"You are so full of shit!" Remus exclaimed, half-laughing in his shock.

"Am I?" Lucius asked, remaining casual.

"You really are," Remus confirmed, taking a heavy breath and then running a hand through his hair before turning to walk again. "It's exhausting."

"Is it?"

Lucius didn't give Remus time to answer. Instead, he stepped quickly to Remus's side and pulled him around so that they were facing each other. Still caught off guard, the werewolf barely struggled when Lucius began to push him backward, only complaining when Lucius shoved Remus up against a wide tree trunk. Revenge for Remus's many quick actions the night before.

Remus looked panicked for a moment as he made contact with the tree trunk, stumbling to keep his footing, until the two men's eyes met—and then Remus stilled, clenching his jaw and flaring his nostrils, almost as if he were daring Lucius to do something more.

"Tell me again how exhausting I am," Lucius leaned in, heart beginning to race now that he had Remus pinned. The werewolf's coat was clenched in Lucius's fists, and Remus's footing was far from solid, mixed in among the huge tree's roots.

"What'll that get me?" Remus parried, eyes sparking. "A slap in the face?"

"Would you like one?" Lucius asked, feigning surprise.

"Fuck off," Remus retorted, wiggling his shoulders uselessly under Lucius's grasp.

"I'd rather not," Lucius hummed. "Not until you do what we both want."

"What we both want?" Remus baulked. "And what's that, exactly?"

"What I already said—for you to submit and be grateful. This whole… show you're putting on is more than enough proof that you understand what's fair."

"Fair?" Remus mocked. "Have you paused to listen to yourself, Lucius? You're talking a lot about rights, fairness, obligation… I'm your fucking prisoner."

The words had a dangerous edge to them. Hanging there, they were harmless. But if either of them skirted too close… Lucius licked his lips and watched Remus's face for a moment, evaluating it.

"You're not wrong, mutt," Lucius began, moving close enough that their legs were touching, close enough that he could feel a tremor run through Remus in response.

"You are my prisoner," Lucius breathed, leaning in closer, "and my enemy," he tightened his grip, pulling Remus's upper body away from the tree, "and more than that," their lips nearly touched, "my pet."

Remus swallowed so audibly that it made Lucius smirk.

"Maybe that's why I wanted to see you in that collar again," Lucius continued, lifting a hand to trace it along Remus's neck, causing the werewolf to squirm. "The marks it leaves are such a satisfying reminder of who you belong to."

"I don't belong to anyone, Lucius," Remus practically growled, brows furrowed despite the rising colour in his cheeks.

"No?" Lucius asked, pulling away slightly and trying to look concerned. "Then you choose to let me treat you like this?"

A flurry of emotions cascaded across the werewolf's face—shame, anger, annoyance, surprise, even a bit of amusement—before he settled on something almost comically proud.

"And what if I do?" Remus asked, suddenly cool and dismissive.

"Then you're even more of an idiot than I already thought," Lucius breathed, and then he leant in for a kiss.

Remus kissed him back right away, stretching his neck forward even though he was still held up against the tree by one of Lucius's hands. Lucius let out a throaty, pleased sound and leaned in, wrapping his free hand around Remus's head and clutching tightly to his messy hair, pulling his head backward.

Remus fought against the pull, trying to keep kissing Lucius, making a small sound that blurred the lines between pleasure and frustration. It was enough to make Lucius smirk through their kiss, and to pull away slowly, letting his tongue trace along Remus's lower lip before they were entirely separate.

Remus's chest was heaving, shoulders arcing up and down in a dramatic display of his response, and there was a storm in his eyes. Lucius had seen it before. It was defiant and eager, as if he was getting what he wanted even though he was in trouble. And then it fell into place: it was the same look Lucius had seen the first time he'd pinned Remus to the ground in that dried up creek bed, while the other Death Eaters looked on. When the werewolf had laughed under him.

Lucius's eyes widened.

"What?" Remus huffed, shifting his weight under Lucius.

"You've always been like this, haven't you?" Lucius breathed, watching Remus's face closely. The werewolf faltered for a moment, clearly working hard to understand what Lucius could possibly mean.

"I'm not following," Remus admitted.

"You've always liked to be treated this way. You want it."

Just like the Dark Lord suggested.

Remus blinked, licked his lips slowly, almost contemplatively, and then let out a small laugh.

"You once told me that I was bred to be controlled. Maybe you were right."

Lucius felt his entire body rush into desire at the words, and the challenging look on the werewolf's face, and how Lucius was suddenly so aware of how close they were, again. He felt his eyes go hooded as he stared at his captive.

"Maybe I am," Lucius murmured. "Should we test the theory?"

Remus visibly reacted to that, pressing himself back against the tree.

"See if I'm capable of submitting, you mean?" he asked, voice getting a bit higher.

"You will by the end of this," Lucius murmured, leaning in and letting his lips brush against Remus's again. The werewolf shuddered at the touch and let out a low whimper of agreement.

Lucius smirked as he leaned his forehead against Remus's, continuing to tempt him with the promise of a kiss as he took his wand out and raised it slightly.

"Put your hands out beside you," he instructed.

"Why?" Remus hesitated, as if he didn't want to. The look in his eyes suggested otherwise.

"You don't get to ask questions today. Put your hands out beside you."

Remus licked his lips, looked annoyed for a split second, and then did what he was told.

"Incarcerous."

Remus startled as he felt the ropes wrap themselves around his wrists and tighten, pulling his shoulders back. He wasn't sure how, but the binding spell stopped exactly at his limit, so that his muscles ached from being tugged back, but didn't hurt. In fact, he could feel his dick getting harder by the second as he tugged against his restraints, testing how tight they were.

Remus took a deep, shuddering breath and looked back to his captor. Lucius looked unbearably smug—but not entirely done yet, either. He cocked his head to the side and then took a step back, looking Remus up and down, assessing.

"What?" Remus prodded, extremely aware of how obvious his erection was about to become and eager to avoid the embarrassment of Lucius pointing it out. His genuine fear of Lucius's actions had subsided once it had become clear that he was just… well, incredibly horny—but Remus wasn't eager to be mocked.

For a moment, he thought his distraction had worked. Lucius glanced up at Remus's face, refocusing, and Remus felt a flicker of relief that Lucius hadn't yet noticed just how much the simple act of putting Remus in bondage had done to him—but then Lucius's eyes darkened, and his smile became even more cruel.

"That's what we're missing," Lucius spoke in a low, pleased voice. "Something to stop you running your mouth."

Remus's eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to protest—but he didn't want to protest. Not really. The idea of not having to move, to speak, to control anything, made him want to sob in joy.

"Nothing to say to that?" Lucius asked, pretending to pout as he fumbled in his pockets. "How disappointing."

"Well, I'm certainly not going to give you the satisfaction, now," Remus glared at the older wizard, but Lucius simply laughed, not bothering to say anything else.

Instead, Lucius pulled the leash and collar out of his pocket. Remus's stomach flipped, but he managed to keep quiet as Lucius unhooked the collar and tucked it away again before raising the leash up between them.

"Now you're going to open that bratty mouth and let me shut you up."

Remus felt himself slam into a mental block for a moment. Some distant part of him still invested in his self-preservation warned him not to give in like this, not to let himself be rendered utterly helpless. But then he remembered that he was tied up, in the Malfoys' woods, far from civilization, without a wand, weakened, and getting more turned on by the minute.

He swallowed one last time, looked Lucius straight in the eye, and opened his mouth.

Lucius lit up, almost grinned, as he stepped forward. His closeness was distracting, tantalising, but Lucius managed to refocus Remus when he lifted the leather strip up and looped it around the back of Remus's head. Remus moved in concert, not wanting to resist as Lucius tied a slipknot and pulled it taut.

The leash slipped easily between Remus's teeth, tugging his lips back, forcing his incisors to dig down into the leather. Saliva immediately rushed to his mouth as he looked up at Lucius, certain that he had to look like the most pitiable, fuckable thing in existence.

Lucius just kept smirking as he wrapped the looped end of the leash around his right hand, giving him total control over how tight the gag would be at any moment.

"I don't want to hear anything like a complaint from you unless there's actually something wrong. Are we clear?" Lucius asked, tugging gently at the leash. Remus couldn't help the way his head followed along with the gesture, as if he might be able to save himself from the worst of it, but it didn't change anything. He wiggled his tongue around the leather and nodded.

"Yes, sir," Lucius growled.

"Yeshir," Remus attempted from behind the makeshift gag, and Lucius narrowed his eyes.

"Good puppy."

Remus couldn't bother to hide the pathetic sound that came out of him at that, or the way he struggled against his bonds, as if he was desperate for some kind of relief or release. Lucius seemed to take the struggle as some kind of signal.

Gloating expression still on his face, Lucius took another step closer, letting his left hand drift down to Remus's groin as he went. Remus hissed behind the gag as Lucius made contact with his cock through his jeans, and the dark wizard looked up at him with something almost close to surprise.

"Already? You really are a degenerate, aren't you?" Lucius remarked, pressing harder against Remus's length. The younger wizard squirmed, relieved that his hips could still tilt forward despite his bondage, eager to feel more of him.

"That's why you need to submit to me, you know," Lucius murmured, bringing the leash-holding hand up to Remus and tucking his finger under Remus's chin, forcing him to look straight at him again. "You won't survive without me."

Remus grunted in annoyance, tossing his head away, but it didn't matter. Lucius had already unbuttoned Remus's trousers, and it didn't take the older wizard long to kneel down, trailing his right hand down the front of Remus's body, until his head was directly at the height of Remus's cock.

Remus shivered, a kind of frantic anticipation overtaking him as he realised what Lucius meant to do. He was still spent from the night before, worried that he wouldn't be able to cum—but if Lucius was offering…

Lucius used both hands to tug Remus's trousers and underwear down in one motion. The cold air shocked him, but not any more than the brief coolness of another spell from Lucius—something to clean Remus. Wise, and only jarring for a moment, until Lucius spat into his hand and wrapped it around Remus's cock.

Remus's hips lurched forward right as his head arched back, dense bark clawing into his scalp as he let out a groan of relief.

"So desperate," Lucius commented. The words alone were enough to egg Remus on—but then he realised that he wasn't only hearing the words; he was feeling them, too. Little puffs of air were tickling along his exposed skin as Lucius's hand began to work its away up and down Remus's cock. His mouth was so close, Remus could almost imagine the way his lips or his tongue might feel.

"Huck," Remus swore as best he could around the gag, struggling to look down at his captor.

Lucius glanced up, eyebrows raised in casual consideration.

"What was that?" he asked, and Remus could've sworn that Lucius leant even closer to his cock as he spoke.

Remus shook his head feverishly, doing his best to convey his desire to take it back, to apologise, to assure him that it hadn't been a complaint.

The reaction seemed to work. Lucius's face calmed, and then he glanced back at Remus's cock, and Remus felt his heart attempt to break out of his chest when the Death Eater's lips finally reached the head of his penis and left a gentle kiss there.

Remus shuddered, knees weakening for a moment, and Lucius laughed in derisive pleasure. Remus didn't bother trying to watch what happened next; he just closed his eyes and bit down harder on the leather.

Lucius was slow, cautious, and somewhere in the back of Remus's mind it registered that this was likely the first blowjob that Lucius had ever given. He started with his tongue, tracing it gently along Remus's head and shaft. Remus managed to keep himself from making another sound until the other wizard's tongue flicked against his urethra. At that, he let out something guttural, and that seemed to be the last piece of encouragement that Lucius needed.

Slowly, carefully, Lucius brought Remus's cock into his mouth.

Remus could tell from the sensation that Lucius had puckered his lips, somehow managing to tuck his teeth up and under the soft inner flesh, and Remus wondered for a brief moment where the wizard could've possibly learned that. And then all cognitive function slipped away from him.

Lucius's mouth was warm and impossibly soft, so soft. Fucking him had felt good, but it was an entirely different experience. If last night had been a breathtaking landscape, this was an exquisite portrait, every detail painted out in microscopic detail, and Remus wanted to thank every potential deity in existence for it. It might've been the context, the way he'd been tied up and made to feel small, or it might've been that Lucius Malfoy had been born to suck dick. Either way, it was glorious.

The idea of Lucius's dick sucking destiny brought a smile to Remus's face, and he did his best to contain it, only allowing himself another pleased sound as Lucius began to work his tongue up against Remus, too, and it sent his eyes rolling back in his head.

It was easy to slip into another world for a moment, between the feeling of Lucius sucking him off and the tension of his arms bound behind him and the spit he could feel starting to spill down his chin, around his gag. He could feel himself shifting into that calm, deep, quiet place, away from the distraction of their reality. There was only him and the man who had rendered him exposed and helpless. And Merlin did it feel good. Fuck anything, everything else. He just needed Lucius's mouth.

Lucius made lewd, gratified sounds as he sucked, bringing his hands up and digging his nails into Remus's hips as he let Remus's cock even deeper into his throat. The sensation was enough to drag another desperate groan out of Remus, and it made Lucius push further. Remus could feel him reach his limit before Lucius acknowledged it—the other wizard's throat pulsated, and he was forced to back off, coughing and spitting onto the ground.

"What do you think?" Lucius asked, taking a moment to rock back on his heels and look up at Remus. The younger wizard looked down at him, almost nervous to make eye contact, unprepared for how Lucius might react if he could see how much enjoyment Remus was getting out of the whole situation. "Grateful yet?"

Remus felt his eyebrows turn upward and his breath quicken as he nodded yes, managed an ah-hah of agreement through his gag. Lucius looked pleased and ravenous in response.

He leaned forward, slipping Remus's cock back into his mouth, and Remus moaned again, letting his hips move of their own free will as Lucius's mouth worked its wonders.

They stayed suspended like that for a while longer, Remus caught between discomfort and pleasure, Lucius clearly enjoying both Remus's suffering and ecstasy. He could feel himself inching closer to the edge by the second, but he needed more—more pressure than Lucius's mouth alone could give.

"You want more?" Lucius asked, only a second later.

Remus glanced down in shock, uttering his best attempt at what?

"What do you want?" Lucius prompted again.

It felt like a trick question that Remus wasn't supposed to answer, but he was hardly in the position to be judging the pros and cons of speaking.

"A han," he managed around his gag, realising that he could barely feel his hands and feet now, all of the blood in his extremities having gone somewhere else entirely.

"A hand?" Lucius repeated, a cruel look on his face. "Are you sure you deserve that?"

That answer Remus didn't have to think so hard about. He shook his head 'no' immediately, and he meant it—he wasn't deserving of any of this, of any kind of pleasing respite from the hell he'd gotten himself into, but he wanted it.

"That's right, mutt," Lucius practically growled, wiping his mouth one last time while he was still looking up at Remus. "But I'm going to give it to you anyway. Because I'm generous."

And then he moved again, and Remus could feel the other wizard's hand wrap around his shaft, and Remus let out a guttural sound that would've embarrassed him if he wasn't already too far gone to care.

He was useless past that. Time stopped moving. It was a perfect combination of tightness, moisture, and sensation, Lucius using his tongue expertly as he worked. Remus stopped being aware of what sounds he was making, how loud he was being, what he was doing with his body.

For once, he let himself go.

And then everything else went crashing along with him.

His orgasm came fast and hard, and he thought he might actually gag on the leather in his mouth from how badly he wanted to open his lips and gasp for air.

Lucius showed him no mercy despite the obvious sounds of struggle. He continued his motions as Remus somehow managed to cum again, until there was nothing else coming out of him, until his body had slumped and his hips were twitching uselessly—and then Lucius leaned back and spat into the grass beside them.

"Huck," Remus whined, peeling his eyes open and staring at the sky as he attempted to recover.

"Alright?" Lucius asked, uncharacteristically casual. Remus couldn't bear to look at Lucius's face, yet. Looking down would make it real. Would make it over.

"Yeah," Remus managed to say in a shaky voice, nodding his head weakly.

"You ready for me to untie you?" Lucius asked from where he was squatting.

Remus just nodded, not eager to fight his way through the gag anymore than necessary.

Lucius eased himself up, stretching his own legs first before he leaned forward and wrapped himself around Remus. He could've undone the spell from a distance, but he pressed himself up against the werewolf instead, clothes hot and rough against Remus's bare skin.

"Look at me," Lucius commanded in his husky tone.

Remus knew better than to disobey a direct order, and so he swallowed as best he could behind his gag and tilted his head down so he could face Lucius again.

The dark wizard looked exultant and fatigued. His eyes were still watering, lips and cheeks puffy from what they'd done, and his face was red and blotchy in a way Remus hadn't seen before. Even his hair was a mess, having fallen in knotted cascades around the dark wizard's face. But still, his bright eyes and parted lips were those of a man more than pleased with his performance. Almost jubilant in his smugness.

"Try not to move too quickly after I release you," he instructed, and the guidance registered somewhere in Remus's mind as oddly endearing.

And then he felt the uncomfortable shift in blood flow and position that came with the ropes that had been holding him to the tree severing. He obeyed Lucius's instructions carefully, then, although he hadn't needed them; he'd been tied up enough in his life to know that he'd have to take it easy while his body readjusted to its freedom. He rolled his shoulders gently, wiggling his fingers as made eye contact with Lucius again.

The wizard straightened up, pulling his body away from Remus's and adjusting his coat's collar.

"You can take the gag off whenever you're ready," he stated, and Remus offered him a meek nod, choosing to rest his head back against the tree trunk for a moment's reprieve before moving again.

He did so in tired silence, his presence of mind and awareness of his body returning in a slow trickle, as if he were shifting back into his body from some incorporeal form. It wasn't an entirely unwelcome sensation, as it meant a welcome return to his faculties and a sudden awareness of the way his body was still reacting to his orgasm, but it meant that the blissful elsewhere of submission was drifting out of reach, too.

Remus pulled the leash from around his head as soon as he could, wiping away the ropes of excess saliva that went with it, before clearing his throat and handing the leash back to his captor.

Lucius took it without saying anything else. He remained silent, not speaking even when he lifted his wand to interrupt Remus, cleaning the younger wizard up before he could finish pulling his trousers back up. The silence could've been unsettling to another person, but it was a welcome relief to Remus's overstimulated senses.

When he was finally put back together, Remus wiped his mouth and looked Lucius in the eye. The dark wizard offered a small twitch of a smile—not mirthless and habitual this time, but one of genuine acknowledgement. Whatever he'd wanted out of their encounter, he'd clearly gotten it.

Remus glanced up. The sun was already starting to lower in the sky, turning the clouds a deeper shade of grey, and it reminded Remus that it would be nighttime soon enough.

"Do you want… anything?" Remus asked, voice halting.

"What?"

Remus glanced down to his captor, whose face was warped by confusion.

"I mean you—I finished…"

"Oh!" Lucius's eyes widened, a bit of colour rising in his cheeks. "No, no I'm not—I'm fine."

"Alright," Remus answered with an awkward smile. "In that case do you—do you happen to know what moon phase it is?"

"That quick to return to reality?" Lucius asked, bristling as though he'd been offended by the question.

"Apparently," Remus answered. "You have to admit it would be a bit hard to forget my particular reality."

Lucius frowned, pulling the collar out of his pocket and re-attaching it to the leash.

"It's the New Moon," he muttered, apparently deciding not to address Remus's last statement.

The words sent a jolt up Remus's spine, far less enjoyable than those he'd experienced since they'd left the stable.

"Ah," he breathed, reaching out to receive the collar from Lucius and beginning to slip it back onto his neck. Neither of them had spoken about it; it made sense for him to wear it on return, if he'd worn it upon leaving.

"Are you worried?" Lucius asked.

Remus did his best to say are you being serious with his face instead of his words, and Lucius seemed to gather his meaning.

"I just mean—well, we have time, that's all I'm saying," Lucius muttered.

"Time for what, exactly?"

"For me to… to figure out what's next. Until the next Full Moon, at least," Lucius answered.

"It's not far off now," Remus countered as he fastened the collar into place. "I'm more worried about what comes after."

Lucius was silent for a moment.

"Right. Well. We can revisit that."

Revisit that. Revisit that.

Remus met Lucius's gaze again. The dark wizard looked afraid of what Remus might say or do next. He was afraid—the man who'd just tied Remus to a tree and had his way with him. The man who could kill Remus at any moment and leave him to rot without any questions asked.

"Revisit it?" Remus repeated, bewildered.

"Don't push your luck," Lucius snapped, and then his vulnerability was shuttered up behind a cool exterior, and he took a half-step backward.

"I don't want to revisit it," Remus continued anyway, shaking out his legs to finish getting the feeling back into them. "I don't want false hope."

A small, frustrated sound escaped Lucius.

"Then what's the point of all this?" Lucius asked after a few seconds of tense silence.

"It's not such a bad way to pass the last few weeks of my life, is it?" Remus glanced over his shoulder at the other man, raising his eyebrows encouragingly.

Lucius drew himself up for a moment, as if he were mad—and then the anger turned to a sort of unwilling acceptance, and he frowned and turned to walk back out of the woods.

"I suppose not."

Remus waited as long as he could before the leash started to pull him forward.

Hours later, Lucius stood in the study, convening with the Dark Lord, doing his best to behave normally.

"I have made progress in determining how he's communicating with the rest of Dumbledore's minions, my Lord. I believe I am almost there."

The words felt like acid in Lucius's mouth, leaving his tongue feeling deadened and thick. Whatever had happened in the last twenty-four hours, it wasn't strictly progress. Remus's scent was still caught in Lucius's nostrils from when the werewolf had cum in his mouth. The werewolf had assured him that he was not on the Order's side by initiating a sexual relationship—whatever that was, Lucius had the distinct impression that it wasn't a step in the right direction.

"And if he were to leave?" Voldemort asked.

Lucius's heart fell like a lump of concrete dropped down stairs. He looked up, past the other smattering of Death Eaters that were gathered in the study, to stare at the Dark Lord.

"How do you mean, my Lord?" Lucius managed to push the words out. Bellatrix rolled her eyes dramatically from her place at the Dark Lord's side, evidently forgiven for her attack against Remus.

"Would you be able to control him, if you left the estate?" Voldemort expounded, sounding a bit more irritated.

"Of course I would," Lucius answered, too sharp and defensive, and there was a shimmer of derisive laughter around the table. The Dark Lord did not join his followers; instead, his cheek twitched. "I did it not long ago, as you know."

"The Urquhart girl is deep in hiding, but they're getting sloppy. We need to press the offensive—and you need an opportunity to test his loyalty."

Lucius glanced at his comrades, trying to gauge if anyone else was following the Dark Lord. Blissfully, they all looked as mystified as he felt.

"Take him out with you," Voldemort hissed, as if he could sense the confusion in the room. "Draw out the Order. See who comes."

The world spun. Lucius only barely managed to stop himself from flinching at the physical sensation of panic and fear that overtook him.

"Take the wolf out as bait?" Lucius asked. He knew it was a terrible idea to voice his incredulity, but he had to be certain.

"Do you have an issue with that, Lucius?" Voldemort asked, leaning forward, eyes flashing.

"O-of course not, my Lord," Lucius corrected himself, straightening up. "No, my Lord, I just want to be entirely certain that I understand what you're proposing."

"I want to see who comes, and if he listens to you," the Dark Lord spoke more clearly and slowly, as if he were speaking to someone far less intelligent to him. At another time, Lucius might've been offended. Now, he was too preoccupied with his fear.

"Simply to identify them, my Lord?" Lucius asked, remembering the Dark Lord's previous complaints about gathering more names. "Or do you want them killed?"

"I trust your judgement," the Dark Lord replied, leaning back in his chair and looking bored.

Lucius's stomach churned. Another order that asked the impossible of him; a further test of boundaries; a fresh opportunity to be even more humiliated in front of the other Death Eaters and his own wife. Lucius had already made himself bait—to put himself directly in the line of fire again, with Remus at his side, tempting the werewolf to escape…

"A brilliant idea, my Lord," Lucius nodded, doing his best impression of agreement. "We'll go to London again. The Order will still be on alert, there."

"I look forward to hearing the news, Lucius. I recommend that you leave tomorrow—wouldn't want you to lose your progress."

The meeting continued. Lucius wished Severus was there to intervene.