Blood Bath

“Honey, I’m home!” Angela called as she shuffled her suitcase through the heavy double doors and onto the floorboards beyond.

 

She never got tired of having the excuse to say that. It almost made the long journey back to the castle worth it. It had felt especially long this evening. Most of the time she as only gone for a day or two, but she had had to sit mid term exams for the last week, which had meant early mornings, long days, and evenings spent pouring over her textbooks. None of which was really ideal for a newly turned vampire.

 

Still, she was finished for the time being, with three weeks to herself before she next had to trek back to Bucharest. Three long, glorious weeks where she didn’t have to pretend to be normal, get up in the day time slathered in sunscreen, and study until her head ached. And that meant eighteen nights with the man she loved, the man she was going to marry.

 

Now where was he?

 

The castle was eerily quiet, but that wasn’t exactly unusual. The lights being off save for a trail of candles leading up the main staircase and along the balcony of the mezzanine, now that was unusual. There was a thin scattering of something red making a path between the candles.

 

Her imagination immediately jumped to panic. Last time she came home to stray red specks leading ominously up the steps it wasn’t a good sign. But on closer inspection it wasn’t blood this time, it appeared to be flower petals.

 

“Vlad?” she called out again, starting to follow the mysterious trail, “Vlad, where are you? You’re not having one of your… episodes… are you?”

 

She heard a startled little “oh” and he appeared in one of the doorways, grinning sheepishly. The sleeves of his ruffled shirt, too loose for him as always, were rolled up to the elbow, bony forearms and skeletal hands glossy as though wet. Bare feet padded against the carpet, trousers scuffed at the knees. He swept a few stray strands of hair away from his face and those bright mismatched eyes, one emerald green, the other opalescent with scarring, danced over her.

 

“Ah sorry, I was trying to be romanti... uh… No, it’s nothing like that, no need for concern,” the grin widened as he slipped closer to her, hand caressing the balustrade. “I have a surprise for you.”

 

“Mmmm... a surprise, huh? How exciting. But first,” she draped her arms across his slender shoulders and drew him close. “Come ‘ere.”

 

He opened his mouth as if to speak but she didn’t give him the chance, sealing her hungry lips over his and swallowing down the little startled whimper that escaped him. She had missed the taste of him, sweet and earthy with the metallic hint of his last meal lingering on his tongue. His hands scuttled lightly across her back and he moaned softly.

 

“Now,” she murmured, “what’re you up to?”

 

His grin was wide and devious. “Ah, no that would spoil the surprise. Close your eyes. Good. Now, come with me…”

 

Cool fingers latticed between her own and tugged gently but firmly forward. She let him lead her down the corridor along the old, familiar route that led to one of the guest bedrooms, the one she had slept in when she was still human, the one that she still half thought of as hers.

 

“Nearly there,” his tone was almost a song, she could hear the smile in it, “oh watch for the bedpost, there we are. Stand there. Just a moment. Alright… now… open your eyes!”

 

She was standing in the doorway to the bathroom. Candles and rose petals were strewn about, casting warm flickering shadows across the porcelain and marble of the room and dancing reflections in the surface of the dark liquid that filled the vast bathtub. Oh no...

 

“Is that… Vlad, how much blood is that? Did you kill someone? Did you kill… several someones?”

 

“Oh! No! No, nothing like that!” He stepped over to the tub and traced a finger through it. “It’s synthetic. Todd told me about it. Some experiment the humans are trying for… medical purposes, I’d wager. It doesn’t taste quite right,” he brought the finger to his lips, tongue darting out to meet it, “but it’s drinkable. And more importantly, it isn’t running water. So…” The finger returned to skim the surface again. “we can touch it, even submerge in it. I… I know how much you miss the mortal way of bathing, I thought perhaps you might enjoy a… bath.”

​

“Oh Vlad…”

 

The smile slipped from his eyes, replaced by widened wariness, but his mouth was still valiantly stretched. “If you don’t like it, I can…”

 

“No, I love it!” she exclaimed, grabbing his hand in an effort to reassure him, “I can’t believe you went to this much effort to give me a bath. This must have cost you a fortune.”

 

“The barrels were surprisingly affordable, honestly, the most difficult part was heating it all to the right temperature,” he explained, tapping at the pair of sturdy metal kegs propped next to the sink. “I started off trying to do it on the stove in one of the bigger saucepans but I realised that by the time I’d warmed one saucepan full the previous one was cold again, so I ended up putting the barrels themselves over the fire and turning them.” He turned back towards her. “And then… oh…”

 

She had started undressing while he had been talking, her jacket and dress now piled on the floor by her feet, and he had turned back to see her toeing off her shoes and unclasping her stockings from her suspenders. He had a real thing about her stockings.

 

He cleared his throat and turned away quickly, eyes cast to the floor. It was cute, really, how shy he still was. It had been more than six months since they had first made love, when he had finally confessed the truth about his trauma, his feelings of guilt and shame, and then timidly, awkwardly asked her to take his virginity. The trauma was still there, of course, but they had found ways to manage the phobia that it had caused. Yet even now he was embarrassed to look at her unless given express permission to do so, he was always so afraid of hurting her.

​

“Ahem, uh, yes of course you want to undress, erm, I’ll leave you to… uh…”

​

“No, you can stay,” she said softly, catching his hand. “I want you to stay.”

​

His gaze stayed resolutely fixed on the floor but he nodded and stood still. She let go of his hand and slunk over to the tub, letting her fingertips skim over the steaming surface before climbing in. She sighed in spite of herself as her toes dipped. Warm, thick liquid rushed around her like an embrace, heat seeping through her tired muscles. Oh, she had missed this. When she had read about the idea that vampires couldn’t cross running water, back when she was human, it hadn’t occurred to her that that would mean vampires couldn’t shower or bathe like mortals can. It was one of the most mundane yet uncomfortable parts of her transformation, learning to use oils, alcohol or wet wipes to clean herself rather than just running the tap. They could tolerate water if it had been left to stagnate but anything heavier than rain water would all but strip their flesh, leaving it raw and blistered. To be able to submerge in hot liquid again after all this time was bliss. She heard herself moan slightly.

 

“Is it… good?” Vlad asked.

 

Now that she was mostly covered by the dark liquid, he was watching her curiously, head tilted to one side like a bird. She smiled back at him, one hand resting on the side of the bathtub and the other stirring the warm surface. She had to mentally stop herself from thinking of it as water.

​

“Mmmm, it’s lovely, why don’t you come join me?”

​

He stayed still for a moment, head still askew. “I’ve… never been… submersed before…” he said slowly. “I thought that one usually bathed… alone?”

 

“Usually, sure, but not always. Especially not if the tub is big enough and if the bath is a grand romantic gesture from someone for his girlfriend who hasn’t seen him in a week,” she ran a dripping finger along her arm pointedly. “Especially especially if his girlfriend is trying to ask nicely if he wants to get naked with her.”

​

“Ah.” He smiled that lop-sided smile and blushed to a peach-grey colour that almost looked human. “Miss Batty, are you trying to seduce me?”

​

She laughed. “Vlad de Lupina, I have been trying to seduce you since I walked through the front door. Now, are you going to be seduced or what?”

​

“I had rather planned to be the one seducing you, I’m still not very good at this, am I?” he chuckled, pacing forward and unbuttoning his shirt, “I take it I am supposed to disrobe?”

​

She nodded, resting her head on her arm as she watched him shrug off his shirt and unbuckle his belt. She was sure there would never come a night when she wasn’t fascinated by his body. Without any of the glamours and tricks he used to disguise himself as human, he looked so strikingly alien with his pallid, scared skin like cracked marble stretching over elongated, skeletal limbs. The dancing candlelight did little to soften his features, angular cheekbones throwing long shadows up to those glittering, mismatched eyes. Thin lips spread into a shy smile, light glinting off one of the ivory daggers that hid behind them. He was all angle and sinew and scar and bone but to her, every inch of him was beautiful.

 

He crept over to the edge of the bathtub and tentatively skimmed a fingernail over the surface of the liquid. “Is there a particular way to… enter?”

 

“You don’t need an invitation if that’s what you mean,” she smirked. “It’s a bit like getting into a coffin. Just wetter.”

 

He hummed a soft note of amused consideration before hooking one leg over the edge, cautiously clambering in and slowly sinking to his knees. She smiled, watching his expression. His brows furrowed and his lips pursed shut in puzzlement, before his eyes flickered shut and he tilted his head again, as though trying to make sense of the sensations.

 

She brushed her foot against his knee. “You okay?”

 

The eyelids fluttered open again. “I’m sorry, it’s just a little… strange. The buoyancy, the resistance against movement… and it’s so warm. Penetratingly warm. Like… having just fed.”

 

“Nice, right?” she grinned, sitting forward to slip a dripping hand around his shoulder.

 

Fluid dribbled over his collarbone, scarlet against his porcelain flesh. Gently but firmly, she pulled him down as she leant upward to meet him and seal a swift kiss over parted lips.

 

“Thank you, this is perfect.” She lay back, resting her cheek against the bony forearm braced against the tub. “I can’t believe you planned all this and you were just going to leave the room!”

 

He chuckled again. “Well, my plans are always subject to change if you so wish. My ideas for the rest of the evening, for instance, can be moved forward…”

 

“Oh? And what ideas are those?”

​

That flush of grey-beige was creeping up again under the splashes of crimson. “Ah, uh, I was going to ask if, uh, if you’d permit me to… um… kiss… uh… your... uh… kiss…”

 

“We can kiss whenever you like.”

 

“No, uh… I mean… below… the belt?” His eyes flickered up and down nervously.

 

She followed his gaze for a moment. “Oh! You want to go down on me?” When she met his eyes again, his expression was the same but he tilted his head on one side and said nothing, so she added, “that’s slang for cunnilingus. Oral sex.”

 

“Ah!” he grinned bashfully. “Yes, I would like to… do that.”

 

Angela tried her hardest to contain the excitement that was slithering through her belly. “I would love that! You never… I thought it wasn’t something vampires did?”

 

He rubbed at the back of his neck with his free hand, leaving a ruddy smear, and cleared his throat. “Aha, yes well… as you know I am not well versed in these things and uh… if I were to be honest it had not occurred to me that it was something one could do. I… apologise, I am told that it is considered neglectful to not… satisfy that need…”

​

“Told…? Oh,” she sniggered in spite of herself. “You asked Todd for sex advice, didn’t you?”

 

“I... uh… Yes.”

 

She couldn’t help but laugh at that. To say Todd had more experience than Vlad wasn’t saying much, Angela was pretty sure that there were mayflies with more romantic experience than Vlad, but there wouldn’t be any else he dared ask. Not that it was his fault, of course, she didn’t blame him for the miserable cocktail of trauma, neurosis and loneliness that had filled his long life before she met him, but it didn’t stop it from being, frankly, adorable. She could just picture it, Vlad blushing with embarrassment as he asked, through a series of stuttering euphemisms and floral flourishes, how to please her. Poor Vlad, he probably got a lot of teasing for that. Best friends though they were, Todd loved any excuse to take the piss out of him.

​

“You’re so sweet. You don’t have to do something just because you think I expect it, you know. If you’re uncomfortable we don’t-”

 

“No! No, it’s not like that. I uh,” the lop-sided smile widened, “I want to. I must admit, I haven’t been able to get the thought from my mind since Todd mentioned it.” He leaned down, the arm supporting himself sliding behind her head, his ribs brushing against her breast, and murmured into her ear, “I long to taste you, Angela, all of you…”

 

Fuck, Angela thought, chewing at her bottom lip, and then out loud, “you’re sure? You remember your safeword?”

 

“Yes. Winters,” he breathed, kissing along her jaw and down her neck.

 

“Oh god… wait, now? We’re in the water, I mean, the… bath…”

 

A snort of laughter tickled against her skin. “I don’t need to breathe, remember? Just relax, my love, let me please you…”

 

It was true, of course. Vampires only breathe while conscious to maintain the illusion of life. While awake, they would breathe in and out reflexively, but if they focused they could ignore the urge. While asleep, they didn’t breathe at all. Angela still found it unnerving to see Vlad sleep, his body still and cold as a corpse in the dark velvet of his coffin.

 

His head ducked under the surface, leaving a hand to trail down her side before he disappeared beneath altogether. She felt long fingers curl around her thighs, gently positioning them, and the soft swirl of the bathwater. Satin-soft lips ghosted over her inner thigh, creeping higher, closer. She leaned her head back and exhaled long and slow.

 

“You’ll have to tell me if I’m doing this correctly,” she heard him say.

 

His voice bypassed her ears and welled straight into her head, flowing like water. She had never gotten the hang of telepathy herself, never managed to push her thoughts into another person’s mind, but she had grown used to feeling his voice slip inside.

 

“I think I can manage that,” she said aloud with a smirk. “Can you even see what you’re doing down there?”

 

“A little. I’ll just have to orient myself in other ways.” The hands slid closer together and settled in the creases at the top of her thighs. She felt the smooth hollow of his cheek brush towards them. “I hadn’t anticipated trying this in such a… murky setting, though. I’ll endeavour to keep my nails and my teeth away from you, but should I fail you must tell me immediately. I don’t want to hurt you.”

​

She smiled. He was always so gentle, so fearful of her safety. It thrilled her, the idea of this powerful ancient creature, centuries old and strong enough to lift a man with one hand, being so attentive, so tender. Not that he could harm her now, not seriously. Her body would heal almost instantly. But there was something about the way he always angled his fingertips so that his talons wouldn’t scratch her that made her heart flutter.

 

The lips at her thigh moved. She felt the smooth hollow of his cheek slide up to meet his hands and then the gentlest nuzzle of his nose against her groin, so soft it was almost infuriating. She groaned and let her knees fall wider, granting him access, inviting him in. She felt the slightest stir of movement, a chaste little peck of the lips and then the first light touch of his tongue. Just the tip of it, slick and cool, a tentative kitten-lick running up her seam. She gasped.

 

“So keen,” the voice in her head purred. “I thought it was just the bath but,” another teasing lick, “you’re so excited…”

​

“Well,” she breathed, “you said you wanted a taste.”

 

He chuckled, sending a few bubbles of air rolling against her flesh. “And you’re delicious. May I have some more?”

​

“Be my guest.”

 

The tongue was back, firmer now, weaving between her folds. She shut her eyes and lost herself in the sensation. She felt him settle, hands finding a spot where he could both support himself and hold her steady, and his lips sneaked forward to caress her, letting that wicked tongue explore further.

 

“If I remember correctly,” his voice mused, “you always guide my fingers towards here…”

​

“Oh!” Angela moaned as the flat of his tongue dragged across her. “Yes, it’s called a clitoris and, mmm, it’s very sensitive… God, keep doing that!”

 

She felt the ripple of a suppressed giggle again, bubbles ticking against her most delicate spots. She had definitely told him the actual names for things in the past more than once, not that it mattered. He would immediately revert back to florid euphemisms each time.

​

“I always think of it as a pearl,” even telepathically, his voice was languid, taking his time as his tongue circled the spot he was describing. “A rare and precious treasure you keep tucked away in furs and velvet… A delicate jewel that you graciously allow me to handle…” Of course he did, ridiculous man. “You’re making such exquisite noises, are you happy? Tell me what you like. Teach me how to give you pleasure…”

​

“Fuck! Yes it’s good. It’s really good.” One of her hands made its way to the top of his head, tangling in the slick silken strands of hair. “You keep playing with my clit like that and you can call it whatever you like. Maybe a bit harder? Or… mmm… oh god… can you suck on it?”

 

The lips sealed around her, flat of the tongue pressed hard against her labia, and then suction started, maddeningly gentle at first but growing firmer. Her fingers tightened in his hair. He moaned slightly, and the sound vibrated through her.

 

“Yes! God! Like that! Just like that!” she gasped. “Keep making noises too. Please! I can feel them. It’s amazing!”

 

There was another little chuckle and he started making little humming sounds, moans and soft little notes as though he were tucking into a particularly succulent steak. The tongue pushed a little harder against her.

 

“You’re delectable, my love,” the voice crooned. “Can I try something? Tell me if it’s satisfactory.”

 

She felt the tongue shift positions so the tip was pressing against her. The lower lip sealed below it, and, still suckling hungrily, he started to push his tongue into her. She could feel it, absurdly long and muscular and slippery, tasting and exploring and delving deeper. She moaned loudly.

 

“Yes?” the voice queried, pausing his ministrations for a moment for fear of having upset her.

 

“Yes! Fuck! Don’t stop!” she yelped breathlessly. “Don’t you dare stop!”

​

This time the little laugh broke the suction for a moment, as the bubbles rolled over her tender clit, before he clamped down on her again, gulping and licking as hard as he could manage. Both of her hands were on his scalp now, holding him firmly in place, tugging at his hair and clawing at him desperately.

 

“Yes, my love,” the voice was coaxing her, “let me bring you there. You’re so beautiful. So generous, letting me do this for you. Ride my kisses to your release, my Countess, let me taste your pleasure…”

 

One last vicious suck, and Angela was over the edge. Orgasm crashed over her. She couldn’t hear his voice in her head over the rush of blood in her ears and the shrieks he was wringing from her throat. For a few moments every sense was lost, flooded with blissful ecstasy, and then she was back, collapsing against the bathtub, hands clumsily untangling from his hair and flopping to her sides. She was faintly aware of his voice murmuring sweet nothings from inside her skull, and the soft press of his lips against her trembling vulva. A cautious tongue flickered out, lapping at her, and she all but yelped.

 

“No, no, no, not any more! I’m too sensitive!” she whimpered, making a half hearted attempt to pull at his hands. “Come up here, let me rest a second!”

 

He surfaced, coated in slick scarlet, smiling crookedly and chewing at his own lip as though desperately trying to get the last morsel of flavour from them, and crawled up into her arms. His eyes were dark, pupils blown wide, like emeralds set in a red-lacquered statue.

​

“Thank you,” he murmured, “that was everything I had imagined…”

 

It was her turn to chuckle. “No, thank you,” she said, pulling him close for a quick, messy, kiss, “though next time we’re doing that out of the bath. I want to see you face… I want to look down into your eyes while you eat me out...”

 

The emerald eyes danced. “What an enticing suggestion… It’s a pity you’re over sensitised or I’d be ending this bath prematurely…”

​

“Mmm, later.” She slunk an arm around his waist. “How about for now, I return the favour?”

​

“Not with your mouth,” he said quickly, eyes widening, “I don’t… I can’t… It just…”

​

“Brings up thoughts you’d rather not have, I know. Don’t worry.” She caressed his jaw in a way she hoped was soothing, while the hand at his waist slithered lower. “What if I use my hand? Is that okay?”

​

He glanced down to where her hand disappeared under the surface of the bath and swallowed uncertainly. “I… I had planned to make tonight… uh… about you. About your pleasure.”

​

“But it gives me pleasure to touch you.”

​

“It does?”

 

“Mmmhmm. Especially now, when you’re all slick and smooth and…” her hand cupped over his crotch, “...excited from exertion. Fuck, you enjoyed going down on me, didn’t you? So hard, just from getting me off… That’s hot…”

 

He whimpered and settled down beside her, resting his head against her shoulder. “Nothing pleases me more… ah… than pleasing you…”

​

“Then can I play with this lovely thing?” she asked deviously, closing her hand and giving a slow stroke. “You always try to focus on me and, don’t get me wrong, I love that. But I want to take a moment to enjoy you. Mmm... I missed you. I want to run my hands over your skin, I want to watch your expressions while I stroke your cock. I want to watch you cum…”

 

He shuddered. “You’re obscene, my love, the things you do to me…”

 

She stilled her hand. “Are you okay? Do you need me to stop, or…?”

 

“No! No, please, my body is yours,” he licked his lips, “use it.”

 

She exhaled slowly. “Okay, but if you need to use your word…”
 

“I can assure you, we have gone straight from autumn into spring,” he beamed, fingers coiling around her arm to keep her hand in place. “Tell me what you want to do with me, Angela. You want to… toy with me here? And then later you wish me to, what was the word, devour you again?”

 

She resumed the lazy movement of her hand and thought for a breath. He always insisted he wasn’t very good at dirty talk, but she was increasingly certain he knew he was lying. In his strange, halting and archaic manner, he had a way of saying things that leapt straight to her loins. But if he wanted her to tell him what to do again, well, that was a game they were both getting good at.

​

“Mmm… well, for now I’m just going to watch you squirm. I’m going to take my time, listen to you moaning, while I play with every throbbing inch of this beautiful cock…”

 

“I don’t… ah… I don’t think it’s particularly beautiful…”

 

“No, but I do. I haven’t seen other vampires’ junk, but it’s much more fun to play with than a human’s is…”

 

“Oh?”

​

“Humans don’t have these lovely little ridges,” she let her fingers catch on them as she dragged her hand down. “And they have a lot more hair in the way…”

 

“Like that lovely little thicket of hair you have,” he mused. “Why do humans have hair there?”

 

She shrugged. “I suppose it’s something to do with the way we evolved. It might be protective. Or to keep warm. Or to trap pheromones or something.”

​

“And human men have more… patches of it, I’ve noticed. Does it…ah...bother you that I do not?”

 

“I like you the way you are,” she murmured, fingertips circling a nipple. “So smooth, I can see every muscle in your body move, it’s so sexy. Plus, it’ll make it a lot easier to clean this synthetic blood off you later too…”

 

“I can… ohh… I can do that myself.”

 

“Hmmm then I’ll have to watch you,” she said, inclining her head closer to his ear. “I’d like that. Watch you spread oil all over yourself, work it into your skin and scrape away the mess so I can see that gorgeous marble flesh underneath. Of course, I might have to get you to help me with mine, I haven’t had much practice with this… But you’d like that too, wouldn’t you? Running your oiled hands over me, coating my skin…”

 

His breath hitched.

 

“And then once we’re clean and dry, I think I’ll slip into some lingerie. I know how you like it when I wear stockings… I think I’ll keep them on, too. You’d look so nice with lace framing your cheekbones, don’t you think?”

 

He groaned, his head lolling back against her shoulder. “...Yesssss….”

 

“I’ll take you to the bedroom, have you down on your knees, and you can… how would you put it?… Devour my pearl?”

 

His hips juddered and he twitched in her grasp. “Oh… oh yes… Angela please…”

 

She shifted just a little so that she could watch his expressions more closely. “I want to see those pretty eyes looking up at me, pleading for more. I want to watch you drinking me in. Or maybe I’ll have you on your back, so I can ride your face. Your mouth would make a lovely seat. It’d be perfect, my thighs slotted up against your cheeks here…” she ran a finger along his cheekbone, letting her fingernail catch just a little.

 

“Oh… nnngh… Angela… please?”

​

“Please what?”

 

“Bite me?” It was almost a whine.

 

She laughed, quiet and tender. “Not yet, love. I know you like it, but if I bite you, I can’t see you making these lovely erotic faces for me. No, we’ll save that for later.”

 

He let out a noise that was close to a sob.

 

“For now, you’ll just have my hands,” she said soothingly, but she raked her nails down his ribs and heard him moan. “And then once I’ve had your mouth on me for long enough, and I can’t take it any more, then I’ll climb on top of you and take every… quivering… inch…” she punctuated her words with swift sharp strokes, “into me… Mmm… And it’ll be wonderful. It feels amazing when you’re inside, you know, these ridges are so fucking good…mmmmm… I’ll ride it for a while. Then maybe I’ll roll you over, make you do the work for a change. I’d like that, watching you work for me, feeling your sweat drip onto me, feeling all this… hard, wiry muscle,” she clawed across his pectorals and back down his side, “moving on top of me… And then, only then, can you have my teeth…”

​

“Yesss…” he hissed, “yesssssss... and where would you… ah… sssheath those pretty teeth?”

 

He was writhing now, hips grinding against her. She could even feel his vestigial wings stirring under the skin of his back. And his expression? It was perfect. Lips parted hungrily; brows upturned; forehead furrowed from exertion; eyes half-lidded, dark with lust, and fixed pleadingly on her. Oh, this was fun.

 

“Hmmm,” she paused in mock consideration, her other hand moving steadily faster, “that depends how good you are for me. I’ll start with your fingers, nibble at them, suck on them. If you’re a good boy then I’ll keep going, but if you misbehave, I might stop there…”

 

“Oh Angela… ah… Angela, let me be good for you…” He sounded breathless, desperate. “Ohhh…”

 

“Well then, if you’re going to be good, I might move here,” she scratched down his forearm to his wrist and let her claws eat into the thin flesh there. “You always like that, don’t you? And you taste so sweet… Then maybe here,” a pinch at his nipple, which made him yelp, “just so you make that noise again. Mmm… And then, when we’re both close, and if you’ve been very very good, then I’ll kiss you just here,” her hand slid along his shoulder to the point when it met his neck and rested teasingly light there.

 

His eyes fluttered closed again and nodded rapidly. “Oh… yessss… Angela… please… yes… I’m so… I’m going to… if you just… Please? I need to bleed...”

 

“Look at me,” she commanded.

​

He forced his eyes open and shakily met her gaze.

​

“Good boy.” The hand at his crotch was now moving furiously. The hand at his throat shifted so that her fingernails were ready to slide in. She had an idea. “Keep looking at me. Good. God you’re so hot like this. I’m going to give you what you need in a moment, but you’re not going to cum until I tell you. Can you do that?”

​

He was trembling all over. “Y-yes my Countess…”

​

“Good… now, what do you need?”

​

“Your… oh… your nails… to make… me… ah… bleed…”

​

She smiled. “Good boy.”

​

She crooked her fingers and her talons clawed into his flesh. She could feel his cool viscous blood welling up around her fingertips. His eyes rolled heavenwards for a few heartbeats, before he forced his gaze back to her, teeth gritted together as he desperately tried to keep his body from breaking his promise to wait for permission.

 

“...can I…?”

 

“Just a few moments more, baby, you’re doing so well…”

 

There was something profoundly erotic about the way he would submit to her. The way he looked at her as though she owned his soul, his very being. The way he trusted her, the way he would do anything just to do what she told him. This ancient preternatural creature, quivering in her hand, murmuring wordless prayers to her, staring at her as though she were his master, his god. It made her feel so deliciously powerful.

 

She flexed her fingertips again, fingernails eating into his throat.

 

“Okay,” she said, deliberately slowly as she wrung out a few more vicious jerks of her wrist. “Cum for me, baby.”

 

The words had barely left her lips. His eyes rolled back and, with a cry, every muscle in his body went into spasms. She felt his dick convulse in her hand, as streaks of white splashed to the surface. His back arced upwards away from her, the thin membranes of his wings tearing at his back. She slowed the movement her wrist but kept her hand there for a little longer, letting him thrust against her and ride out his high, before he crumpled exhausted against her, head lolling against hers. She extracted her nails from his shoulder smoothed his hair back from his face, her other hand lifting from his groin to wrap comfortingly around his waist.

 

“...so good, you were so good for me,” she breathed, repeating it like a mantra until he opened his eyes again.

 

“Bathory’s Ghost! How…” he paused, as he tried to catch his breath. “How are you so talented… with these spontaneous… uh….escapades?”

 

“I have a very inspiring muse,”she laughed lifting her fingertips to her mouth and idly lap his blood from her nails. “You okay?”

 

“Oh yes,” he beamed. “That was sublime. Could you… perhaps… do that again sometimes? The, uh, the commands to… to wait until given permission? When you’re… uh… being authoritative. That is, if you… enjoyed...”

​

Her hand snaked down his neck. “Oh I loved it. You’re so sexy when you’re fighting to control yourself. Fuck, that was hot. And honestly?” Her hand slunk further still. “You got me so wet I nearly gave up on teasing you altogether…”

 

His spine undulated to meet her touch. “Oh… I’m glad you appreciated...playing with your toy. Can we rest here just a little longer? Then we can get to, what was it, running my oiled hands over you?”

​

She giggled. “You like that plan, huh?”

 

“Every wanton, depraved word of it,” he nipped a kiss at her jaw, “you can’t promise such divine filth and then deny it, my love. Not without letting me see what other twisted notions you come up with as we go along. You’re so delightfully profane. The fact that such a delicate face can hide such… salacious filth never ceases to amaze me.”

 

“See, you say that but then you are also the guy who was waxing lyrical about my clitoris,” she teased.

 

“It’s a very lovely clitoris,” he said, struggling to keep a straight face.

 

“Uhuh. And how many have you seen to compare it with?”

 

“Well, admittedly I am only acquainted with yours, but I am quite intimately acquainted with yours,” his expression started to crack, “and if it weren’t lovely, I wouldn’t have kissed it. Besides, you said yourself that you were unfamiliar with other vampires’ genitalia and yet you are quite enamoured with mine.”

 

“True. Yours is rather nice, though maybe I should try some more,” she snickered. “get a wider sample size.”

 

He snorted. “I could probably make mine wider if you really want.”

​

She broke into hysterics and he started laughing too, the sound reverberating through his chest. She cackled until her eyes watered and her cheeks hurt.

 

“Ohhh god,” she wheezed at last, “you’re so silly…” She paused. “You can’t actually do that, can you?”

 

“I’ve never tried shifting the form of just that. I probably could. I suppose I change it when when I shift into a wolf…”

 

“Oh shit no,” she said very definitely. “Do not, under any circumstances turn your penis into an animal penis if the rest of you is still...you-shape. That’s too weird even for me.”

 

He raised an eyebrow. “But you’re happy for me to shift the whole of myself into an animal? In bed?”

 

She chuckled but thought it over. “I mean, if I’m still sure it’s definitely you…maybe…”

 

He shook his head affectionately “You are the most singular and peculiar creature.”

 

“Well, if we’re gonna live forever, I’ll keep my options open,” she said, grinning toothily.

 

“I’m told I’m a very attractive wolf.”

​

“Uh-huh? By other wolves, I assume?”

​

“Well, no… that was a lie. I think they’re just scared of me.”

 

“I’m sure. You’re very intimidating.” She laughed again. “You’re also ridiculous. And I love you.”

 

He swept his arms around her and kissed her hair lightly. “I’m glad. It would be rather tragic if I loved you but you didn’t reciprocate. And I am quite thoroughly besotted…”

 

He ducked lower to capture her mouth, kissing deep and tender as his body melted into her, long limbs tangling with hers. He tasted of salt and the faux-metallic tang of the synthetic blood, with the lingering sour-sweet dregs of her own fluids. Her tongue clashed against his, knotting together in her mouth. He must have snagged on her teeth, because suddenly there was another flavour, thick, rich iron oozing down her throat. She pulled back, letting her fangs scrape against his lower lip.

 

“Didn’t I say you couldn’t have my teeth until later?”

 

He grinned, lop-sided and wicked. “Are you going to… punish my transgressions?”

​

She clicked her tongue and tried not to mirror his smile. “What am I going to do with you?”

 

A hand slid down her side to her hip, fingertips tracing circles there. “You had plenty of ideas earlier…”

 

She attempted a put-upon sigh but it came out as more of a giggle. “Well in that case, let’s get out and you can start by cleaning us both up. And mopping up the splashes. We don’t want stains in here, now do we?”

 

He pushed himself up onto his knees and bowed his head theatrically. “I am at your service, my Countess.”