--It’s in Your Blood - Chapter 7--

*Content warning. Perhaps at worst, there’s BDSM. You could still consider it manipulation and questionably consensual. Still, a bit milder than most chapters. It’s in Your Blood, as a whole, contains themes of self-harm. If you have a history of self-harm, consider whether or not you’ll be triggered by its depiction. As always, you’ll be notified of the content at the start of each chapter.*

I wore a collar, and I liked it. There is a sick comfort in being under one’s power. The complexities of life are stripped away. Your purpose is clear. You seek no one’s approval, except that of your master’s.

I wouldn’t have considered it for myself. There was so much that I desired for myself, so much I was willing to work for. And yet, at that moment, I was strangely content.

It was some grand hall. Dimly lit. Large columns, a long carpet running through the center. We were not alone. People stood between the columns wearing layers of cloth. Guards maybe?

I sat next to a throne. Eyes fixed forward. I was on my knees, wearing a sheer, practically transparent clothes. Barely enough to cover my more sensitive areas, as if that mattered with how almost imperceptible they were.

On the throne, it was him. The demon. No, not quite. He was huge. Shrouded in shadow, like much of the room. His massive, clawed hand gripped my leash. Crimson eyes glowed in the gloom. They turned to look down at me, and I to look at them. They seemed fond. Gentle. The dark fur, the curled horns, the massive hooves; by appearance, this was what you’d expect when you think of the embodiment of evil, but those eyes…

It reached down, running the back of his hand over my long ear, then down my hair and back. A small tug of the leash was all the instruction I needed before I was on my feet. 

I presented in front of him, with a short bow. He placed a claw under my collar and drew me in closer. Closer until I had to climb into his lap. He locked me in a kiss, his tongue curling around mine. With a hand grasping the back of my knee, he moved me forward onto the throne, straddling his lap. It wasn’t long before he was inside me.

I didn’t feel that intense wave of pleasure, a fact that I did not realize until long after. Nonetheless, I eagerly raised and dropped my hips on his member. I wanted to pleasure him, not only because that was my role, but because it was paramount to me. I was chosen to do so, it was my company that he preferred.

It did not matter to me at that moment that we were not alone in that room. Allow the guards to watch, if they pleased. Whether it aroused them or gave them feelings of jealousy, either only heightened my enjoyment. My wish was to be desired so they could be envious of my king.

The demon gripped my hips and collar. He drove himself into me. I allowed a gasp and a plea, the way I knew he enjoyed it. The pace quickened, the ecstasy built until…

---

I awoke. Weak, confused, and unsatisfied. Initially, I was unable to move, and if my body was so reluctant, it could at least have been thoughtful enough to leave me in my fool’s paradise. Simultaneously, I couldn’t help my arousal, but nor my disgust at the obvious worms that were left on my brain. The demon had done a number on me. I felt no hatred for him, though my other thoughts on the situation were pure turmoil.

As my faculties returned, I felt an abrasive sting on my neck. I reached up, touching what felt like the cloth padding of a bandage. The events prior to my unconsciousness began revealing themself. He drank of my blood. Why was that a surprise? He was upfront about his need for it.

“Colin, she’s stirring.” Daisy’s voice. More conflict in my mind. Was she safety? Would she keep me from him?

I could hear movement in the room, but upon opening my eyes, I largely saw only a blur.

“Lianne?” Her voice came again, reassuring. “Lianne, you’re safe now.”

Was I? I suppose. Colin had laid hands on me, but I still doubted that he would ever strike me in anger. As he said, he wasn’t that sort of guy. At the same time, the bitterness of our last argument still lingered. Being in his presence wasn’t ideal, and I wasn’t certain if I preferred his over the company of the demon.

Colin’s voice followed the sound of clawed footsteps approaching. “Oh, Lee. What happened?”

As my vision cleared, I became aware of my surroundings. It was their apartment. I was laid on their couch, a blanket over me. At some point, they must have dressed me in a pair of Daisy’s pajamas. How kind of them to grant me some dignity.

I could only look at the ferret-shaped blur that was Colin. I was still processing how to respond. Where would I start, what should I withhold? What did he and Daisy already know? The events were so neatly sequenced, that they felt predetermined. The package, the… birth, my capture and subsequent…

“This isn’t a hospital,” I pointed out, my voice hoarse and quiet.

“They wouldn’t take you after they found out you’re a blood mage,” Daisy explained, a mix of pity and disgust in her voice. “They thought this might have been caused by your own experiments and insisted you wouldn’t accept practical treatment. Sounded like excuses to me.”

“It’s horrible what they can get away with,” Colin added. “Refusing care to an injured person simply because of old stigmas. I can’t believe it, especially after what you went through.”

What I went through. He wouldn’t understand. I didn’t understand.

I changed the subject. “How long have I been out?”

“Not long,” Daisy reassured.

“Just a day,” Colin clarified.

Not as long as I feared, but then, it wasn’t the demon’s intention to kill me. There was no poison, merely a loss of blood. A transfusion probably would have woken me up earlier but without a hospital’s assistance, that wasn’t an option.

“Lianne,” Colin said gently, moving to and crouching at my side. “What was that thing in your home?”

I swallowed hard, which wasn’t an easy task in a mouth as dry as mine.

“Can’t that wait, Colin? You could at least wait until she’s on her feet,” Daisy protested.

“Did you create tha…”

I didn’t wait for him to finish his sentence before I interrupted. “No,” I said flatly. “Not… No.”

Colin let out a sigh. Despite his direct questioning, there was a tenderness in his eyes. A concern that I had gone too far. “Do you know where it came from?”

I considered answering him directly. “Could I have a glass of water?” I asked. “Orange juice would be better.”

Daisy nodded, hurrying to the kitchen. Colin, he continued looking at me. I didn’t get the space I had hoped for.

“My throat is dry,” I told him, hoping the hoarseness of my voice would underline that statement. “It’s difficult to talk, and this is a long story.”

And it was. If you expect that I’d tell him all the details, however, you’d be mistaken. I recounted the vial of blood exploding in my hand, and told him something escaped from my body, but I was sure to leave out the means by which it did so. I told him about my next encounter with him, the recurring nightmares, what the demon had told me about our fate, but I… The way it made me its victim and my feelings on the demon, I left out. He had already seen me at the demon’s mercy. He didn’t need to know more.

When I had completed my story, the pair were left rather speechless. As was I. I wasn’t certain what my next steps would be. I had no idea what I was going to do. Run away? Run back into the arms of the demon? It was a conflict in my head. I understood the gravity of the situation, but no choice I had felt like it was clearly the right one. I wasn’t sure what I wanted.

“We chased that thing -- that demon -- off, but it will probably be back,” Colin said after some consideration. “Maybe we should talk to the police.”

“The police?” Daisy scoffed. “You saw how the staff at the hospital treated her, what makes you think the police wouldn’t lock her up on the spot?”

Colin’s eyes looked wearily at the other ferret. “We have to do something, she’s not safe with that thing still out there.”

I swallowed hard, not being able to object. While the demon certainly claimed possession of me, I no longer felt it intended harm. However, if I tried to defend it, would I be condemning myself?

“I can take care of myself,” I said quietly.

“Lianne, you were chained to a bed, bleeding profusely. I’m not sure what would have happened if we hadn’t gotten to you when we did,” Colin responded.

Again, I was stuck. “I’m not sure what to do,” I admitted.

“Nothing,” the ferret replied. “Leave it to us. You need to recover your strength, and once we’re sure that monster is gone, we’ll help you get back on your feet. For now, you’ll just stay here with us.”

“I guess I have no choice now but to take up your offer to move in,” I said, trying to add levity to the moment.

It didn’t have the effect I had intended. Both Colin and Daisy’s faces went stoney and serious. Immediately, they were avoiding eye contact.

“What?” was all I could manage to ask.

“We were hoping to avoid this discussion until we had this sorted out,” Colin began. Even without knowing exactly what was coming, my heart sank. It wasn’t ready for any sort of bad news. Daisy was already looking away, her expression of clear regret and discomfort. Colin seemed to be struggling too, unable to finish his thought.

“I accepted Colin’s proposal,” Daisy finally said. “We’re getting married.”

I didn’t think it was possible, but my heart sank deeper.

“Where does that leave me?” I asked, fearing the answer.

“We’re planning to continue on monogamously,” Colin told me.

“Oh, Lee, you’re still our best friend,” Daisy jumped in. “We’re just getting older, and we thought it might be time…”

I couldn’t hear it anymore. I jumped in, trying to control my wavering voice. “Getting older? I didn’t realize age was a factor here. I wasn’t aware that I had entered a relationship temporarily.”

“I…” was all Daisy could get out before she choked up.

“Things change, Lianne. We didn’t plan on this,” Colin stepped in.

“Clearly you didn’t plan on anything else.” It had become too difficult to hide how upset I was. “If you had an ounce of consideration, you would have factored me into your plans, but it’s pretty damned obvious I got left out.”

Daisy was in tears, at this point. More than ever, she was unable to face me.

“Flurry, please. We still care about you,” Colin reassured, but I was tired of listening to him. I had thrown the blankets off of me. Unsteadily, I got to my feet.

I wasn’t done yet, though, I was livid. I jabbed my finger out at that ferret, “Can you two even get married? I thought it was against the law for family to marry!”

The comment threw them both off guard. Daisy covered her mouth, her tear-filled eyes wide. Colin put his hands up defensively.

“H-hey,” he stammered, “I don’t.”

“Fuck you!” I shouted bitterly. “The next time you try to save me, don’t just drop me into a worse situation. At least the demon hasn’t broken my heart.”

With that, I made my way as forcefully as I could manage to the door, slamming it behind me. Alone, in the hallway, I was overcome with a vortex of emotion. It was a lot to process, heaped onto what I was already struggling with. 

My life was precarious to begin with, constantly teetering on the threshold of taboo. I didn’t realize how fragile my situation even was; the demon can’t even suffer blame for some of what had happened. A few days ago, I was directionless, just trying to hold my life together, and now it was in pieces. My home destroyed, my reputation facing ruin, my relationship at an end; at this point, my options had dwindled.

I had to start over, somehow. The opportunities ahead seemed rather bleak.