“This is stupid.”

“You- mmm- say that about everything. I’m not even sure you know what stupid really- ah!- means anymore…”

“It’s still stupid.”

Eyes rolling, Zurahe extended a leg, hooked it around his middle, and presented her wrists with arched eyebrows, the pale yellow on her cheeks getting brighter by the moment.

“Shut up and cuff me already.”

For all that she was trying to sound commanding, there was still shyness and hesitation in her voice, and her breath hitched softly when he tugged her arms up to secure them against the wall- anything else and she might just break it once they really got going. It was a little scary, sometimes, just how strong she could be- but then, he knew better than to worry too much about her using it against him. Especially not like this, when she was more concentrated on other things- namely the blindfold he’d picked up with one hand. Her breath hitched again and then sped up a little as he tied it carefully in place, fingers trailing along the underside of her horns and earning a quietly breathless noise for his trouble. She tensed then, no longer able to see where he was, and not for the first time, he marveled at her ability to let him do this, to trust him so implicitly when he still had so much trouble calling her what she was. He sighed and leaned close to her, forehead leaning against hers, and trailed his fingertips down her sides, breath even and steady in comparison to hers. The reaction was immediate- the flutter of her lungs, the sharp intake of breath, a slight jerk at the sensation of his fingers on her skin- and she settled again, teeth worrying her lower lip in a way that was entirely too cute.

“Jesus…”

He let the word out in a huff against her cheek, tilting his head so that his was pressed lightly to hers as his fingers settled at the top of her ribcage. Again, the catch of her breath, and he let her get used to his fingers there before he began trailing them over the lines of her torso in idle patterns. Loops and circles at first, trailing down to the flat expanse of her belly for the briefest of moments, and then back up to trace letters in an arc along the very bottom of her ribs. She sighed, heels digging lightly into the bed, and her back arched the barest bit, trying to press up into his touch. He pulled his hands away entirely at that, and she whimpered at the loss of contact, murmuring his name urgently.

“You know the rules, honeybee,” he chided quietly, enjoying the quiet whine when he traced a claw along the waistband of her underwear. “Right?”

Silence, and he was about to ask again—

“R-right,” she stuttered quietly, sheepishly, and squirmed a little. He watched her slide against the fabric, shifting to get more comfortable and making the urge to touch her all over that much harder to resist.

“Then stop moving.”

Almost immediately, she halted, head canted toward the sound of his voice, and he bent down, pressing a kiss against her hip while his fingers settled at her thigh, hooking under the fabric of a stocking. She shuddered in another breath, and he started tugging it down, watching appreciatively as the muscles in her thighs tensed and relaxed at his touch as it drifted downward. He stopped at the back of a knee, bending it up a bit to press his lips to the side, and then continued downward. Claws raking light lines down the back of her calves, he heard her swear near-inaudibly and her whole leg tensed. A kiss to her ankle and she relaxed again- at least, until his mouth found her other hip, his fingers beneath the top of her other stocking. He repeated the process just as slowly with that one, watching her relax-tense-relax all over again. He pressed his mouth along the top of her underwear when he came back up, feeling her beginning to shudder beneath him.

“Alright?”

“Y-yeah, just…”

A squirm, and he cracked a smirk against her skin, one hand leaving her to reach for the only other thing at his disposal- a feather, carefully cut and pristine- and traced it along the outside of her thigh. She whimpered outright at that, and his smirk widened as he pulled entirely away, wondering where to start first. He settled for her throat, watching her swallow reflexively, head tilting back, baring more of the vulnerable area to him. He pulled the feather away, waited a few moments for her brows to furrow in confusion (and a little annoyance, he could tell) and then stroked a path along her stomach, slow and idle. That made another shudder go through her, the muscles in her belly contracting sharply, and he laughed quietly, watching her cheeks flare brighter momentarily. He continued his teasing, going from her stomach to the side of a hip, to trailing across and around her ankle. Partway up the back of a calf, she started making soft, illegible noises, and he looked up to see her biting her lip again, thighs beginning to press together. He held back a satisfied chuckle and finally moved for her underwear, sliding them down just as carefully as he had her stockings. He didn’t touch her though, just slid upward again to press his forehead against hers, hands drifting close to her sides but not quite touching.

He kissed her then, and she kissed back desperately, leaning into the kiss, trying to get more contact. He denied it to her until he traced the feather along the inside of a thigh, feeling her kiss become needier. Up along the inside of the other and her tongue slid forth, sliding almost imploringly along the seam of his lips. Up the center of her body, and stopping at the hollow of her collarbone and she strained against the cuffs, thighs pressed tight together.

“Spread,” he murmured into the kiss, and she complied instantly, knowing what was coming.

He slid his hand over her, warm and careful, and pressed his thumb against her, pulling back to watch her throw her head back and moan wordlessly as she came. He was careful, watching to make sure she finished properly, and then tugged the blindfold off so she could watch him lower his head between her legs to clean her up. She squirmed impatiently, gasping and moaning until he finally came up again, reaching to untie her and licking his lips. She pounced immediately, nipping at his neck and making her way up to his mouth. She had him pinned before he knew what was going on, handcuffs dangling dangerously from one finger.

“Want to try?”

He swallowed thickly, knowing the kind of trust allowing her to continue would imply. Then wordlessly, he held out his wrists, and watched her light up as she slid the cuffs around them. She left the blindfold to one side though, and ran her hands down his chest with a thoughtful hum. When she pulled away and made sure to tug her underwear and stockings back on before reaching for the feather, he wondered if maybe he shouldn’t have given her a time limit.