by Misty Kayn
Clementine nearly fell from his shoulder and gawked when Knight closed the door and paused for a group of people that walked about the open space. The walls, even the ceiling, in an entrance as big as her cottage, were covered in healthy soft glowing pink rose buds. Naked people of all shapes and sizes walked from what might be a kitchen to a dock with small boats. Twelve nude folk divided into four groups of threes huddled in each corner of the entry. One tall willowy male was in the middle and two females wrapped around his body. Their bodies, tied together in an exuberant display of skilled, thick rope knotting didn’t move, and their extended hand held a bouquet of soft glowing lilies.
Knight pushed his way past all the nude bodies, almost at the stairs. Before he prowled his way upstairs, Clementine turned on his shoulder, balanced with her wings. She surveyed the well-lit entryway and as he climbed, if she craned her neck anymore, it would twist off. At the top of the stairs, Clementine hopped down, and crossed mid-air. Knight stopped in front of her as if to shield her naked body.
"Those people in the corners are imitating vases,” she said, in awe of this decoration. “Living, breathing vases." She flung her hand in the air, threw her hip to the side, and mimicked their pose. "You see? They are still like objects."
He wasn't interested. He’d seen this wonder before. Of course he did.
When she tried to squeeze past him, Knight picked her up and continued walking while she bent her head trying to catch another glimpse before he walked away.
On the top floor, he entered a room at the end of the hallway and closed the door. Her feet landed on a soft white rug. She turned, her back to his front and surveyed the room. A single bed, slightly larger than hers, with pale blue sheets that matched the wall paint, blocked the path to a double window with peach wooden trim. Her backpack was on the bed. Three steps away from the foot of the bed, a bright green door interrupted the pretty pattern of the room. In the corner next to the door was the largest pond bath she'd ever seen.
She walked to the pond and lifted her leg over the stone enclosure that held the water and dipped her toe, lest she froze again if she jumped inside. Once her toe hit warm water, a clear blue waterfall tinkled from the ceiling down the wall and into the pond.
Yellow rectangular magic menu blurred through the waterfall. A face of a man who was shaved bald appeared before her. He smiled, his eyes closed. "Oils?"
"Yes, please."
"Of?"
"Orchid."
"Rope?"
"Um, sure," she said and stepped inside.
"No," Knight barked behind her.
The man's face wavered. "Switch?"
"Goodbye," Knight waved his hand in the air and erased the menu.
Over her shoulder she said, "I was ordering."
"What else do you need?"
She sat on the smooth stone bench inside the bath with a groan. "What's on the menu?"
"Food and rest."
"You're fretting again. Why did you tell me to run? You had him."
"Why did you disobey me?" he said, hands crossed on his chest.
Arthur had released her for a reason when he could've suffocated her. Somewhere inside his mad mind, he still warred with his wolf, didn’t give in. "He let me up from the mud, he did that."
"Are you sure?"
"Certain."
"Let's hope you're right."
"How long are we staying?" she said and wondered where her oil order was.
"The rest of the clan arrives tomorrow night. I do not fret."
Knight planned to go to Arthur's with the clan once Cole told him where Arthur lived. He'd said they were coming for Arthur, and he wanted to save his life.
"He's strongest on the Night of the Wolf," she said. Orchid oil appeared in the corner. "It's beautiful here and I will bathe until breakfast." She dipped her fingers in a claw bowl and spread the oiled soap over her shoulder. Orchid blossom filled the room.
Knight sat on the edge of the pond, one knee bent, one elbow rested on his knee. His towel, split on the side, exposed his thigh and some of his long, thick, tanned middle. The middle that tented the towel with its length. She leaned back, her legs slightly apart while the water tickled her nipples.
Knight examined the green door. "He's also most vulnerable. Our magic aligns on that night and we are left exposed to the spirit."
Knight wanted her to work on Arthur on the Night of the Wolf and not in the woods earlier this night. Accustomed to clan following his orders, he didn’t think she wouldn’t run. She dunked under and wet her hair then came back up. Dirt muddied the clear water. She worked the oil in her hair while the dirt vanished. "What's a spirit?"
"The balance that keeps us in check."
"I've never heard of it. I thought on The Night of the Wolf wolves howled their dominance over the star. Where does the spirit come from?"
Since Knight's eyes seemed glued to the door, she rose up and soaped her upper body, running her hands over her small breasts and stomach. She dipped down again.
Knight lowered his forehead to his forearm. "The heart," he said then turned his face to the side, green eyes soft. "The spirit comes from the heart. It is magic pure of the spoils of the lands, and tomorrow night, he will receive his as a gift his wolf will recognize even if his mind is lost.”
“I’ve heard stories of wars and that Primes ran the lands to the ground, almost destroyed everything. Did they receive this balance and restored the lands?” When she caught his glance, she smiled but he averted his eyes. Was he? He was uncomfortable with her nudity. Ha! She spread her legs just a tad bit more and dipped two fingers into the oil. They came away wet.
His eyes lowered. The water was clear.
“There wasn’t any then. A wise man slaughtered the existing Primes, their magic passed on to their descendants. Night of the Wolf is a celebration of a rebirth. Close your legs, Clementine."
"What do you want me do to?" She slapped her knees together, water splashed his leg.
"He will cross to wolf to fight me, it’s how we solve our differences. When he does and when I have him, I want you to halt his crossing back, keep him in wolf and he will receive the spirit in wolf who will then heal. It will only take a moment, the spirit is extraordinary,” he paused, “fast.”
Soft and remorseful, his eyes were difficult to hold, so she played the tinkling water over her fingertips thinking of the best way to tell him she didn’t think spirits existed. After the wars the folk found comfort in the star and the clan in the spirit. It was a belief, faith, hope. He hoped for a cure for his friend and believed the unbelievable. She'd never even heard of this spirit, not even in the tales, and his customs were getting the best of him.
Star observing folk believed the star would solve their problems and heal the sick. Healers and imagers helped the sick, belief in the star kept families together. Hope and faith, though powerful, didn’t cure madness. Magic and sources of magic were real. She approached the subject of spirit gently and with care not to offend his beliefs, and said, "The wolf will fight against intrusive magic. I will make him sleep, opposite of what I do with flowers. Put an expiration date to my hold too, so he can receive this,” she cleared her throat, “spirit in rest. When his wolf rests, the land will heal, but you know Arthur will need healing too so that’s why you wanted him to return. In the clan he won’t be alone anymore, and with other wolves he will heal. He's out there in his own mad world."
Knight propped his elbows on his thighs, leaned, and cupped his face, then spoke, his voice muffled by his hands, "That's good. You do that." He scrubbed his face. "There's no other way, there isn't, I can't kill him."
"Kill him? Why of course not, I told you I'd do it, I understand his primal magic now. I’ve touched his wolf, a familiar. Before, I thought I was weird but now I know I am not. I’m just another wielder albeit with source gifts. It's as clear as night.”
“You are different.”
Oh, thank you charmer. “The families, did you see them?"
"They need to return to their homes, rebuild, or the valley will overpopulate. And food? Where will the food come from? All those mouths to feed and no land to grow anything." Clementine felt good about her plan except the amount of magic she’d need to use on Arthur was vast. She shifted in place, finger combed her hair, fidgeted before saying, “Is it possible for our animals to leave us?” She blushed, embarrassed of her question. Once, in small school, when she asked the teacher, the class burst into laughter. Nobody, other than Arthur who was insane and Father who’d died, had issues with their animals.
“No. All will be well, let's rest and heal. Do you need a healer?"
Nicks and scratches on her skin didn't call for a healer, so she shook her head.
He stood with a grunt and pointed at the green door. "My rooms, come if you need something or call the menu."
"You're on the menu?"
He managed a small smile. "Cole is expecting I make an appearance for dinner. The order-in food menu for you is on the nightstand and you can order anytime."
He didn't want her to join him for dinner and that was fine with her. It really was, she nodded to herself. She threaded her hand through the clear water and picked up more oil. "I can't wait to tell my sister about this place, she'd love it here." She shampooed her hair and dunked, blowing bubbles through her mouth. When she came up, Knight was still in the room, his eyes flashing grey wolf.
"If you're fretting over my survival in the bath, I should tell you I can manage. And Knight?"
He grunted.
"Don't feel bad, Arthur's decisions are his own. You can't control everything."
He pushed open the door. "We’ll have breakfast tomorrow, early."
"Wait, the healer's meds for my leg."
"I'll bring them."
ELEVEN
The servants cleared the dishes from the long table set in a bed of wildflowers by the lake. A single fresh-lit niler with pretty black petals that shone florescent, dark purple rose from the thin-necked vase placed along the stretch of the table every two plates away. The lighting was perfect for a romantic dinner and unlike the other places she'd been to, at Cole's, love mingled with air. This night reminded her of the fall season, the cloudy, moist, and calm dark skies just before the storm.
After dinner, the guests moved to the lake. Some bathed, some sat on the fresh grass, but all listened to a one-person flute performance. The musician’s long blonde hair trailed over the small boat's edge and spread out like a fish tail in the water as the boat without a sailor glided along the lake's edge. Music pithed low, the flute’s gentle melody enticed, added politely, to the sounds of sucking, whipping, and moaning as the people bent over the lake's edge and partnered each other. Sounds of flesh slapping flesh, switches when they whipped through the air, men and woman who begged beneath their partners made her want to join them. But Knight asked her to stay in her rooms and she couldn't disrespect his wishes when he kindly placed her in the best suite in the house. Clementine swayed to the melody, as their inhibitions left and they publicly shared their ways with each other. They didn't share their ways in the valley. Cole's was a special place.
On the large stone platform under the waterfalls, Knight relaxed with the woman in charge. One leg extended, the other knee up, he rested his elbow on it and watched. His hair was wet from swimming after dinner, droplets trailed down his honed chest and his green eyes shone brighter with the coming night, all wolf by now.
Yellow bald-man menu appeared behind them. Clementine strained her neck then sat on the roof's edge; her feet dangled over. Cole tapped Knight on the shoulder and said something. He shook his head. She shrugged and stood, her frame extending into a voluptuous, tall brunette with tree long legs. She snapped her fingers. A group of two men and three women gathered behind Knight. Cole pointed to the waterfall and flicked her finger. A pair of chains sprung forth, unrolled, ends clashed against the rock behind Knight.
A woman approached one chain, extended her hands and interlocked her fingers above her head. The chain wound around her wrists and lifted until her toes barely touched the stone. A long, green, healthy switch appeared in Cole's hand. She hit her leg, testing. She swung at the girl's front thighs and when the girl yelped Cole placed her finger over her mouth telling the girl to be quiet.
From the rooftop, Clementine held the voyeur-star pass for events of wickedness as Cole switched the girl red. Welts rose over her thighs, her breasts, and bottoms of her soles when she turned. As the Mistress of the house worked far into the night, instead of retreating to their rooms for rest, the folk picked up whips, crops, some sort of fish hooks but not sharp, phalluses and adult toys Clementine couldn't even name and exchanged partners, all the while Knight watched with an erection that could topple the mountain. Perhaps he couldn't join, he fretted too much, he liked to enjoy his people enjoying themselves.
Excitement and sex mixed with the scents of red meadow, fresh water lake, niler, and wild flowers when Knight stood and leapt from the stone onto the edge of the lake. He was hard and ready. Clementine rose and clamped her legs, squeezing her inner muscles. A whisper of a moan escaped her lips. He must be a glorious lover, and with his big hands, the things he could do… When he placed his hand over himself and stroked up and down his length, she turned and ran down the length of the roof and a flight of stairs to her rooms.
Closing the door behind her, her chest heaving, she leaned back against the door.
Her eyes found the pond on her right as her hand made way passed her belly and down where she was wet. She walked to the pond and touched the water.
"May I help you?" Yellow menu-head voiced with a smile.
"May I order in?" she said.
"Last call. Rope?"
"Yes."
"Switch?"
"Yes."
“Eye cloth?"
"No."
"Sex?"
"Oral."
"Tell me what you want girl, I've had a long ass night." The menu expanded as big as the wall with items to check off. She ordered what she understood and wanted to try then tapped her limits. Who knew what would happen with her tomorrow?
"How long?" she said.
"Coming up."
Clementine padded softly to the green door joining their rooms and turned the key with a soft click. She unbraided her hair and it tickled the small of her back. She cupped her breasts; they filled her small hands. Nothing to be done about the size, so she flicked her nipples and groaned. One foot over the pond's edge then the other, she climbed into the bath and turned to lean against the wall. She extended her hands above her like the girl at the waterfall. Thick rope wound around her joined wrists and lifted up, her feet dangled. She heaved breaths, excited and nervous about the unknown male who'd walk into her room.
Moments passed, Clementine hung from the rope, counted the nicks on the opposite wall.
The door to the room opened. A naked tall, tanned man with long brown hair and green eyes entered. His muscular legs hopped on the pond's edge. Eyebrows rose as he took in her pink eyes, and white hair below the waist.
She raised hers, too. "You look like...like..."
"Our Alpha," he said. "I'm a professional at service for the girls he brings here and my hand is heavier then his."
Clementine gaped.
He reached between her legs and swiped his finger over her wetness.
Too stunned to respond, she let him.
He licked his finger and closed his eyes. When they opened, his wolf steered. "Your pussy taste like night."
"It's enchanted."
"It's a virgin's pussy is what it is."
"You can't know that."
He barked a laughter. "I eat pussy for a living girl, don't tell me I can’t."
Okay then. This wasn’t going as it should. "I didn't order his double, I just wanted some fun and maybe..." She wasn't sure anymore. "Are you related?"
He traced a long, thin, green switch on the edge of the pond. "
Cousin, not that close, but close enough."
She blinked. Oh, but she was a brave bird before and now she didn't know what to do. Instead of making her comfortable, this wolf made her uneasy. And maybe he caught her unease, because he stepped into the pond and pressed his warm body against hers. When he leaned to whisper in her ear, heat pulled in her belly. "Knight won't touch you unless you've been fucked. You sure you don't want more?"
He dropped to his knees and spread her legs.
"Okay, this is a bit out of my league," she said. Doppler was so forward, like a business transaction.
He swiped his tongue over the length of her entrance, tickled her piercing with the tip of his tongue while raising an eyebrow in question.
She was a good businesswoman right? "Um, continue."
Doppler sucked her small folds, flicked his tongue over her clit and the little hood that budded under the piercing. Clementine, moist and ready, moaned softly as his head bobbed up and down, and listened to the sucking of his expert mouth. She protested when he kissed his way up her body and neck then nipped there slightly, his wolf quiet. His lips trailed over her jaw and she closed her eyes when his hair tickled her shoulder only to remember the color of his eyes that were, unfortunately similar. Doomed, she wished for the wolf's Alpha.
"Do you want to touch me?" He reached up and fiddled with the rope. "Go ahead."
Knock, Knock.
"Shhh," she said, "like a pair of mice."
"Healer's oils," came from the other room.
"Tomorrow early, I'm tired now."
The door handle turned.
Doppler backed off, heading for the door. "Don't tell me you didn't ask him for permission."
"I don't need his permission."
"Clementine!" Knight bellowed. "This door is locked. Is there..." He pounded the door. "Roy, if you’re inside when I open this door, I will snap your neck."
Doppler dropped his long green switch and stomped to the exit.
The door slammed shut.
The green door hit the wall. It wobbled on its hinges and fell on the carpeted floor. One handed, Knight picked up the door and leaned it against the wall then surveyed the room. He swung his eyes her way.
