Bonds of Silver, Bonds of Gold 11: Sample (Part 2)

Mister Valentin’s paw never left my shoulder from the back of the kitchen to my master’s quarters. His legs were longer than mine, and his stride forced me to jog to stay ahead of him. He made no attempt to address me; his only sounds were his breathing, the rattling of his chain shirt, and the shuffling of his hinds against the stone floor. His grip was firm but careful; his pads pressed into the fur, but his claws stayed away from the skin beneath.

At the baron’s parlor, he hesitated briefly, then pushed the door open with his free paw, guiding me ahead of him. “I can’t believe I’m doing this,” he muttered as he hooked the door closed behind him with one hind. “Go on, have a seat.”

I stumbled forward slightly as he pushed, then paused and looked back over my shoulder; the lynx stood rigidly in front of the door, his ears flat against his head. I opened my muzzle to say something, then shook my head quickly. “Where, sir?”

Mister Valentin’s head cocked to the side. “Anywhere, I guess. Just… have a seat.” His eyes narrowed. “You can do that, can’t you?”

I lowered my gaze. “My master says I should remain off of the furniture unless told otherwise, sir; hence, my question.”

“Oh.” The single word conveyed much of the emotion he tried to keep from his muzzle. “Sit… here, then.” He strode over to one of the couches and dropped onto it, waving towards the floor in front of him. “In front of me.” As I knelt where I was told, resting my paws on my knees, the lynx let out a low chuckle. “You really do enjoy this, don’t you?”

I looked up at that, reflexively. “Sir?”

“Oh, all of… this.” He waved a paw in my direction, leaning back against the couch. “Serving the baron. Being a slave.”

I bit my lip, hesitating between honesty and truth. “I do enjoy serving my present master, yes, sir. Others before him… less so.” Unbidden, Dion’s knowing smirk came to me, and I grimaced.

That made the lynx chuff, a smile splitting his muzzle. “I can guess. Dion’s got a reputation around the barracks, and not a good one.” He held up a paw. “What I don’t understand is why you put up with it.”

I blinked at that, lifting my head. “Sir?”

Mister Valentin grinned, showing pointed teeth. “Listen. I’ll make you a deal. If you get up right now, walk to that door, and leave the room by yourself, I’ll escort you to the edge of Baris and send you back to Jazinsk with all the coin in my pocket. The Baron will be in court most of the day; he won’t know you were gone until it’s far too late.”

My heart froze in my chest. A chill spread down from my ears, and my paws felt damp. “I… I couldn’t, sir.”

“Why not?” The lynx cocked his head to the side, then rose and stepped away from the couch. “You’ve a clear line of escape.” He drew a knife from his belt and balanced it across one paw. “It’s no spear, but it’ll do. Take the first step to freedom, and I’ll give you the rest.”

“Sir, I…” I swallowed heavily, and my gaze snapped back from the door to the lynx and back. “I can’t.”

Mister Valentin flipped the dagger into his other paw and returned it to his belt with a grin. “Right, fingers.” He walked over to the door, then turned the latch and stepped aside, waving through it. “What’s stopping you, really, Taneh?” His eyes met mine, his own narrowed to mere slits. “I’ve sworn on my blade that I’ll help you get out of here, if you’ll take the first step.”

I swallowed again, trying to ignore the pounding in my ears. “Sir, I… I’m very bothered by this.” I said as bravely as I could. The tension clamped down against my heart as the door swung open. I rose unsteadily onto my hinds, staring through the door. Freedom lay just on the other side.

The lynx stepped away from the door and retreated to the corner of the room. “All you have to do is rise and walk from where you are to just past me. You did that much getting here. Come on, Taneh. I’ll help you get out of here.”

I felt myself walking, one step, then another, then a third before my senses came back to me. I leaned heavily on the edge, then fell back to the floor, collapsing onto my knees. “I… I’m sorry, sir, I… I just can’t.” My voice broke as I tried to speak, the protest ending up in sobs. I put my muzzle in my paws, trying to stem the tears, only dimly aware of the closing of the door and the lynx’s hindfalls as he approached. When his paw touched the back of my head, though, I leaned forward reflexively, falling against his leg.

The lynx stood for several seconds, one paw awkwardly petting me, before he reached back and grabbed a chair, taking a seat. “Listen, I had no idea this ran that deep for you.” Mister Valentin’s voice was soft and soothing, a far cry from earlier. “I still don’t understand, though. Why didn’t you leave?”

I sniffled and sighed, then coughed to clear my throat. “Others have made the same bargain, sir. I… can’t. This is the life I chose.” I wiped at my eyes with the back of one paw. “I said it the other night; I’m not a person any more. I don’t know if I ever was. I don’t think I want to be.”

The lynx’s paw stroked my ears and the back of my head gently. “I can’t imagine feeling that way, but it’s not mine to judge. I’m curious, though. What makes you feel that way?”

I choked back a laugh. “I wish I knew, sir. I might have stopped myself from going to the Slavers’ Guild.” I sighed lowered my head. “Sir, it’s… something of a long tale, if you wish it, but—”

“Please,” Mister Valentin interrupted. “The more I know, the better I can deal with it.”

I nodded and relayed the story as I remembered it, from my father’s death to my arrival in Baris. The scene in Aura’s study came to me vividly, of talking with her about my reasons. I hung my head once finished. “I felt like I was pretending, up until then. Like I was… trying to be something I had to be, but wasn’t. Someone I wasn’t meant to be. Becoming a slave… the baron’s pet… let me stop pretending, sir.” I sighed. “He’s been the only one so far who really understood that, without having to be told.”

The lynx was quiet for some time after that, his paw moving in slow and steady strokes against the back of my head. “What stars were you born under, Taneh?” Mister Valentin finally asked, gently rubbing between my ears.

“I was born on the twenty-ninth of Chervi,” I said without raising my head. “Miss Aura said it was important to remember. Why do you ask, sir?”

The lynx only answered with a soft grunt and then a tap between my ears. I looked up to see the lynx smiling gently down at me. “Listen, I think you’d please your master a great deal if you were to show me that good time now, don’t you think?”

An answering smile came unbidden to my muzzle. I drew in a deep breath and released it, letting go of the tensions that had lingered. “Yes, sir.” The lynx squirmed his way out of his leather leggings, then pulled down the breeches beneath them. The fur of his groin was white, shading to grey as it spread down his legs, with lighter patches at his calves. His sheath was full, his sac heavy between his legs. His musk was earthier than the baron’s, not as sweet or spicy but still pleasant. I shifted up onto my knees and puts my paws on his thighs, leaning forward to press my muzzle against his sheath and lick gently against the fur.

The lynx reacted quickly, his shaft rising, but I left it alone for the moment, focusing on the tender orbs that hung below. A low purr started in the back of his throat, his paw slowly stroking down my neck and shoulders as I lapped gently. “I can see what he sees in you,” Mister Valentin rumbled, relaxing back in his chair. “Feels nice. You… you’re enjoying this?”

“Yes, sir,” I murmured in return, around gentle swipes of my tongue. In truth, I was already getting quite eager. The baron’s activities that morning had done nothing to still the need in me, and despite the lingering shame at being used like that, the embarrassment itself only seemed to make the desire stronger. From the moment his breeches were down, I had started to grow wet, and I focused that into my efforts, listening to the way his purr rose and fell, focusing on the places that drew the most sound from him, until he began to pant openly. Once his breath came in ragged gasps, I drew my tongue in a slow, slick line up the length of his shaft, carefully circled its tip, and then slid my muzzle down around its length.

That drew a fresh moan from Mister Valentin, who sat up in the chair, hunching forward and pulling me to his groin. “Matska, you’re good,” he gasped, claws just pricking my back as he held me tightly to him. “Wh… where did you learn to do all this?”

I didn’t answer; my attentions were too focused on drawing more from him. The lynx’s shaft had begun to leak, and his groans were growing louder by the moment. I suckled more eagerly, then slid one paw between his legs, lifting and rolling my stubby clawless digits against his sac. Mister Valentin growled in response and tensed, his hips bucking upwards against my muzzle, and I eagerly took the rest of his offered length into my throat. His purr became a rumble, then a full-throated yowl as he drove himself forward, filling my muzzle with his release. I moaned in response, paw tensing against his leg as I clamped my muzzle down around his shaft, suckling gently to capture every drop of his seed.

Once the lynx sagged limply back against the chair and his release seemed to pass, I carefully swallowed the drops of his offering, then pulled away, licking carefully to clean his skin and fur in my wake. The ache between my legs hadn’t dimmed, but I felt as though I could control the need for the time being. “Thank you, sir,” I said as I sank back to my knees.

“You gave me one of the best climaxes I’ve had in years, and you’re thanking me?” Mister Valentin cupped a finger under my muzzle and lifted my gaze. “Listen, Taneh, what I did before… I’m sorry. I still don’t really understand, but—”

“Understand what?” came the baron’s voice from the doorway.