Backfire
Ever since that evening after the meeting, Xerxes' behavior had shifted slightly. More insistent about her being close to him, hands grasping a bit more tightly, desire a bit more hungry. At first, Ketna was concerned it was her own bias that had shifted after Xerxes's uncharacteristic amount of attention that day, but when she looked back through her exchanges with him, it was unmistakable how frequently he was creating reasons for her to be in his presence. She received another such request, but this time, it was a bit different.
'Been thinking how the last time you had your way, you barely had control. Think you can do it again?'
Cryptic as the message was, she knew what he was trying to infer. Not as obtuse as last time, but he still seemed unwilling to explicitly ask her to dom him. She still wasn't sure how to feel about this specific kind of role reversal but if any of the behavior now was a result of the last session, it was a good trade-off.
Having had at least one dubiously successful session gave her an idea of how to proceed, but it also made her nervous about repeating herself. It was a good thing she had been making small notes to herself in the event this were to ever happen again.
----
She arrived in the evening as had been requested, on the balcony as she had many times before. Xerxes was visible from the large windows, fussing with some drinks at the bar. Hopefully it was a choice he made to pass the time, not the sign of a poor mood she'd have to wrangle with. Stray cats lingered on the balcony, Xerxes must have just fed them not long ago. Some of them rose to attention at her arrival, familiar with her presence as the possibility of more food or attention, but she didn't stop to entertain them.
Xerxes' head lifted when he heard the creak of the glass door leading to the balcony.
"Getcha anything?" He quickly downed the glass he had in his hand after making his offer.
"I appreciate the offer, but no thank you." Ketna barely made eye contact with Xerxes, walking briskly past down to the hall. "I need to do something before we start."
"Do what?" Xerxes' head watched Ketna first before he made the choice to abandon his drink and move toward her.
"I have something else to wear, didn't want it getting messed up on the way." Without elaborating further, Ketna made off to the closest room, slipped inside and closed the door behind her.
Xerxes followed quickly behind her, catching up to Ketna just as the door closed.
"Sneakin' off t'get changed, whaddi'yah, modest now?" Xerxes raised his voice at the door, as though Ketna somehow wouldn't have heard him through it, normally.
Ketna fully expected him to force his way in, anyway, she was pleasantly surprised when he didn't.
"Modesty isn't the point, it's about the presentation." Ketna answered from behind the door.
"Would be better if ya' presented that ass t'me." Xerxes chuckled a bit at himself, he sounded very pleased with his own play on words.
"I'm not doing a striptease for you, Xerxes." The exasperation in Ketna's voice revealed the real reason why she chose to change behind a door.
"Then what am I fuckin' yah for?"
"I could leave if you really feel that way."
Before Xerxes could answer, the door opened, revealing Ketna in a far more formal but very risque silvered dress. It was hooded with a plunging neckline, sleeveless straps and the open neck barely covered her breasts. Slits on the side of the dress allowed her thighs to be exposed while keeping the shape of the dress itself rather narrow. Xerxes expression morphed from being pleased at what he saw, to very disappointed once he caught the half-mask covering everything above the mouth.
"Why're y'keepin' the mask on, already seen yer face." Xerxes motioned to her face where the mask remained.
"Because, right now, I don't want you to see it. You want me to control the action, this is part of it." Ketna asserted, at the same time she raised a hand, catching Xerxes by the chin tilting it toward her just to ensure she had his attention. "Now, do you want this or not?"
There was the faintest flash of surprise in Xerxes' face just before he huffed in feigned annoyance. "Yeah, yeah." He turned, his chin leaving Ketna's hold and waved for her to follow him. "Same room as last time."
On their walk to the room Ketna brought up something that had concerned her since their first official femdomme session.
"Have you reconsidered the safe word or are you still insistent that you don't need it." Ketna doubted Xerxes' opinion had changed but she wanted to provide the opportunity just in case.
"Tch' " Xerxes uttered a smug laugh. "Doubt ya'd go hard enough to need it."
Ketna shook her head, not surprised. "Suit yourself."
By now they had passed through the frame of the door into the room that was familiar. Not much had changed since last they had used though Xerxes gained Ketna's attention to point out something new.
"Got some stuff, fig'ered y'might be able t'use it." Xerxes brought up in a tone that sounded like hesitation, or reluctance. Despite the hesitancy, he went ahead and opened a cabinet door built into the wall of the room.
While not new it wasn't an important feature until this moment. In it was a tangled, unorganized mess of straps and tools both hung up and piled on the shelving.
"You had a cabinet of bondage gear sitting around here the whole time?" Ketna stared at it in her own bewilderment, glancingxl between it and Xerxes.
"Ehh." Xerxes gave a shrug and loose wave of his hand. "Not here, 'xactly. Gathered some up from coupla' my warehouses, stuff that got left er whatever. S'not like I went outta my way t'get it, mostly." His voice trailed off and he looked away.
"So this is.." Ketna picked up straps of restraints of assorted size and make. "Whatever you had left over from restraining others."
"More r' less." Xerxes didn't see the need to elaborate.
"Huh... now I know why you claimed to have a harness my size.." Ketna mused, putting down the thinner strap she had been holding in her hand.
Rummaging through the gear, she wasn't even sure what she was looking for. There wasn't much in the way of toys, which would have been her first impulse to seek out. There were tools for impact play but that wasn't really her style. Technically, being a Dom at all wasn't her style but if she had to play one, she didn't like the idea of inflicting pain on him intentionally without him saying explicitly he wanted it, especially not without a safe word. And even then, she didn't want to hurt him, which was a personally revealing consideration to have.
Among the tangle of leather, vinyl, and metal, a far more simple piece caught her attention. At first she thought it was a large strap for a harness, but pulling it up proved it was no such thing and was instead, a simple but well-made collar. She pulled it out of the pile completely.
"Well this is cute." She mused out loud while examining the collar and paying Xerxes a glance, holding the collar up to estimate its size.
"What is?" Xerxes strode over to see what Ketna could have possibly found that would be considered 'cute' and paused when she turned to face him with collar in hand.
"A collar. I think it might even fit." Ketna held it aloft in Xerxes's direction.
Xerxes rested a heavy hand quickly on top of Kenta's holding the collar. "Why, harness I got not good enough?"
"The harness is more than good enough, I just think the collar would look nice on you." Ketna mused coyly. "Isn't that the whole reason you showed me this?" She motioned to the cabinet.
Another glance from her hand to Xerxes' to size him up again caught him staring at the collar, but his resting gaze appeared as though he was glaring at it, not regarding it with any form of anticipation.
"Does.. Wearing a collar bother you?" Kenta queried, wanting to make certain of his mindset.
"Tch, No" Xerxes was quick to retwort. "why th'fuck would a scrap'a leather 'round my neck bother me?"
Ketna was not at all comfortable with the behavior Xerxes exuded, it felt like a clear indication there was something deeply wrong with the use of a collar and she needed to diffuse that.
"Look, if you're not comfortable with the collar that's okay, it's not-"
Ketna's concerns were interrupted by Xerxes' hand yanking the collar from her, wrapping it around his own neck and fastening it in a swift but almost disordered huff.
"There, y'see, it's fine." He announced in a huff, just a little bit too loudly.
Everything about his body language in that single act indicated to Ketna that Xerxes was not at all 'fine' with the collar, but knowing Xerxes' pride she felt it best to not pry into that for now. It was for the best that the mask she wore helped hide the deep look of concern she regarded him with, as he'd likely take that for pity in the state he was currently in.
"Okay, if you insist, but only if you want to." Ketna gave one more gentle attempt to provide him an out, to remind him he had a choice in this.
"Put it on, didn't I?" He announced defensively.
"Just making sure." Ketna confirmed, opting to let the topic go from here-on-out.
In an effort to side-step the issue and get back on track, Ketna stepped in close enough to Xerxes to grab him by the chin again and guide his gaze where she wanted it, and to reinstate her authority.
"I'll allow your hands to be free this time, but you may only touch me when I permit it."
"Heh, whatever you say, princess." Xerxes grinned down at her.
Ketna grimaced at the use of the term and released Xerxes' chin. "Ugh, don't call me that."
"Y'got somethin' better'n mind?"
She had never given consideration to what she wanted to be called in a setting like this. She didn't like Mistress; it felt goofy. Ma'am is a thing strangers called her but at least that sounded better than Mistress. She ran through other titles in her head but none of them felt right.
"Address me by my name."
"Y'gonna tell me what it is, seein' as I saw yer face." Xerxes taunted, recounting the drunken claim Ketna made some months back.
"No, I'm not going to tell you what my real name is." Ketna responded with some exasperation. "I meant you may address me by the name you do know, Ketna"
"Heh, whatever you say, Ketna." Xerxes paused just before saying the name, annunciating it very deliberately when he spoke it.
Even though she just told him to use her name, she was not expecting to hear it when she did. It was the first time he had genuinely addressed her by name and it left an imprint that lingered. And it wasn't even her real name.
"Good, now then-" Ketna regained her composure, putting on the countenance of the domme she was expected to play. "Kneel on the floor for me."
Before Xerxes could interject, Ketna elaborated on the order.
"Back straight, head forward, hands resting on your thighs."
Whatever Xerxes had intended to say, he held for the moment, following the instructions as ordered, watching her with a certain sense of caution.
"Good boy." Ketna rewarded the action with genuine, gentle praise.
His kneeling barely reduced much of his height, especially with his straightened back and propped on his knees, his head was still at her chest.
"Unless y'can float, ain't gonna reach yer pussy like this." Xerxes remarked first at his current placement, staring at Ketna's sternum, glancing down then back up to her.
Ketna chuckled gently at the joke.
"That wasn't the goal." Her hand brushed under his chin, tilting it up just enough. "You are exactly where I want you to be at this moment."
Her hand drifted from his chin to the side of his face, the other following, mirroring the motion on the other side. Both hands now cradled the jaw and cheeks, thumbs traced the synthetic flesh present there. She wasn't pressing or testing, just touching, running her finger across him and watching his reaction, studying the small movement of his face and the subtle details that their chaotic interaction had not permitted her to observe. While she made note of his features, her mind wandered to what she was even going to be doing for this session. She still didn't know what she was doing and Xerxes was not forthcoming about what he wanted, but he seemed to enjoy the last time well enough so approaching it from that angle seemed as good as any. Maybe it was too intimate, too attentive for the type of strained affair they had, but care, affection, and intimacy were the only ways she knew how to navigate settings of control.
Slowly Xerxes' usual look of indignant smugness fell into bewilderment, eyes glancing back and forth between both her hands then up into where he knew Ketna's eyes were behind her mask. It was the quickest Ketna had ever seen him drop his usual act, an observation she made note of for later. It also made her question how often he had encountered affection or intimacy at all.
"You ah- plannin on doin' anything?" Xerxes filled the silence of the room with his voice, attempting to make it sound like he was needling her but his uncertainty lingered in his cadence.
"I'm doing it right now, it's like I said before." Ketna's hand drifted from the side of his face to under his chin, giving emphasis to her next statement. "You need to be patient. Unless," She tilted her head, watching where his eyes darted, knowing he couldn't see hers. "This bothers you, and you want me to stop."
"T'ch, naw-" Xerxes spat out attempting to bring back his usual demeanor. "I ain't bothered." Unlike with the collar, it sounded like he meant it.
Ketna straightened, moving her hand from his chin to the side of his head, again. "Good. Then be patient and do as I say."
Xerxes gave a strange wordless nod of his head, glancing to the hands that still cradled his face.
With the acknowledgement, Ketna returned her focus back to him, studying him. She was aware the only truly organic part of his body that was exposed were his eyes and the flesh around them. It was difficult to tell there was a difference between the flesh around his eyes and his mouth but up close and in quiet study it was very easy to tell what was organic and what was synthetic. She let her hands trace up the sides of his face, thumb following up the cheek, up what she could only consider to be a pronounced cheek bone and up around it's edge.
The closer her thumbs drew to his eyes, the more anxious their gaze seemed to become, but he didn't move or protest to their presence. Carefully, she traced the edge of the plating that lined his flesh and for a moment Xerxes' eyes darted up, looking up to her mask once more. There was a hint of worry in his look when her thumbs made contact with his flesh, but they eventually closed without protest as she made gentle strokes against it. There they remained, quiet while she touched him gently. Gathering from Xerxes' subtle nervousness, it was likely he had never been regarded with genuine affection or adoration, or if he had, it was rare. The prospect of such a possibility did not surprise her, she was sympathetic to it in her own way. She knew how important a connection it was to have, and how very vulnerable it could make a person become. However, with the shift in their relationship as it was, if he was willing to open himself to her, she was amicable with the prospect of doing the same for him.
In the midst of the simple touch, Ketna caught movement in his shoulders, following them to the hands she caught him grasping or tapping anxiously.
"Do you want to touch me?" She questioned softly.
"Yeah." Xerxes' answer was firm but distant.
Ketna placed a step between Xerxes' legs, closing the distance between them before she gave her approval. "You may."
With her approval, Xerxes wasted no time in lifting his hands from their place to take hold of Ketna's legs. Fingers at first were hesitant around the calves of her legs, but gained their confidence quickly enough. Ketna let her body lean into his, moving her hands from his face to the back of his head, Xerxes needed no more guidance than this, leaning his head into the sternum exposed by the low cut dress. Hands desperately felt up Ketna's legs, grasping and kneading over her thighs, up to her rear cupping and squeezing at it to pull her closer to him.
"I've let you touch me, now you're going to put your hands to good use." Ketna's fingers traced the back of Xerxes' neck, following the center crease but avoided drawing any attention to the collar around it.
Xerxes needed no other prompting, fingers that wrapped around her thighs just waiting for permission, quickly found space between her legs. Digits slid between her lips, careful and mindful of his claws. At first it was simply desperate groping, but it time it eased into a methodical attack against her sex. One hand wrapped around from behind, the other resting against the front of her pelvis. Deft fingers went to work spreading lips, using what wetness there was to glide between the folds.
Pads of his fingers teased her entrance as it found it, pressing against it while other digits searched toward the front, carefully pushing aside folds to find the hidden bundle of nerves. As a finger pad grazed over it, Ketna dropped a hand from the back of Xerxes' neck to his shoulder, supporting herself as he carried on.
Slumped over Xerxes' head as she was, Ketna's chest practically rested against his face, an opportunity he took advantage of. It was a test at first, easing his tongue out just enough to brush against her sternum. When Ketna didn't tell him to stop, he took that as permission to continue. Using the full flat of his tongue, he started from the bottom of her plunged neck line, dragging his tongue up her chest to her collar bone. While doing this, his fingers found their way inside her, carefully buried deep, creating firm friction inside. Along with the gentle strokes against her clit, Ketna was put at risk of falling over. In compensation for her weakening legs, Ketna placed more of her weight on her against Xerxes' shoulder, while her free hand wrapped around the back of his head, ensuring her chest remained against his forehead.
Xerxes' tongue returned to Ketna's chest, more than happy to make use of the closeness brought by her grip. His head shifted, using his forehead to push aside the closest strap of her dress, so he could maneuver his tongue over the barely hidden breast. Fingers continued their work, an unrelenting attack on both of her most sensitive points, ushering further shuddering from the woman he serviced.
Ketna did what she could to hold her voice, but in time she was softly whimpering and panting. Warmth grew from the points of contact outward, along with pleasure that threatened her cognition. Her support against Xerxes shoulder and head barely kept her on her feet, as each graze and stroke brought her closer to climax. It was not long before she softly cried out, and that crescendo racked her body, leaving her shaking in place.
Whatever trance Ketna had put Xerxes into, earlier seemed to have faded. His behavior grew more mischievous, intentionally teasing her past the point of required stimulation to throw her composure. Ketna wanted so badly to let him continue, to relinquish control and fall into submission herself, but that's not what she was here for. Mustering what will she had, she pulled herself away from his hands, willing her voice into existence enough to give an order.
"That's enough." Ketna spoke with as much clarity as she could in the moment. She adjusted her slightly off-kilter dress to give herself something else to turn her attention to.
Xerxes withdrew his hands back to their position on his thighs, his expression mostly regained his usual air of pride. "Y'sure 'bout that?"
"Yes." Ketna centered herself enough to deliver the answer with direct confidence. Straightened back on her feet, her hands returned to the sides of Xerxes' face before she continued. "Now then, since you've done so well, I think you've earned something in return."
"Yeah? And what's that gonna be?"
"I'll show you, rather than tell you." Ketna stepped back from Xerxes, releasing his face in the act. "Follow me."
"Not gonna lug me around like last time?" Xerxes taunted while he stood himself up from the floor.
"If I had to do that, I'd be reconsidering that reward." Ketna spoke over her shoulder while guiding Xerxes to the foot of the bed.
Now would have been a very good time for a leash. Or the harness that she had forgotten to get Xerxes into before all this, but she had driven this far into it without it, it felt like a disruption to the momentum for her to dig out the harness. She would work with what she had, instead.
"Seat yourself at the foot of the bed." Ketna motioned over when they were close enough.
"If you say so, Ketna." Again Xerxes spoke her name with a strong stress.
It was still so weird to hear him say it, but she wasn't sure if that's because it was him or the strange emphasis he put on it when he did. Other than that, he said nothing else and sat obediently at the foot of the bed.
"Good boy." Ketna provided gentle praise once more, and brought herself close to Xerxes, standing close to one side at the foot of the bed.
She let the back of her hand graze gently down the side of Xerxes neck.
"Keep your hands to your side, I will let you know when you are permitted to touch me." She instructed. "Lay back."
The hand at Xerxes' neck fell down to his collar bone from where she applied pressure to push him back onto the bed. As Xerxes eased back in compliance, Ketna leaned down with him, resting a knee on the corner of the bed, keeping her hand in contact with Xerxes' until his back thudded down against the bed. Ketna didn't say anything, but provided a soft, gentle smile before she withdrew.
Ketna let her hand trail down his chest, paying careful attention to details in his plates and synthetic skin just as she had done with his face. It was odd that Xerxes had been so quiet this whole time, as compared to the banter last session, but the quiet was needed and she was glad he could exhibit some patience. When her hands found their way to his pelvis, Ketna brought her other hand to join the one that had been connected to Xerxes this whole time. They both rested on either side of his pelvis, teasing the edges of where plate ended and synthetic tissue was exposed. As she walked herself back around Xerxes legs to place herself between them, she ensured at least one of her hands remained in contact with his body.
Xerxes' privacy panel was still in place, it covered the full length of his crotch, both dick and pussy were obscured from view. With both hands, Ketna teased the place where thigh met pelvis, pressing pads of fingers into the synthetic tissue, firm then delicate, paying attention to Xerxes response. She had no idea how sensitive the synthetic tissue was, but he squirmed enough under her touch to tell that if nothing else, he could feel the differences in pressure. She caught movement of his hands clasping and making frustrated grabs against the bed.
Carefully she disconnected the panel from his pelvis, revealing the semi-hard dick it barely was able to contain. Ketna heard a brief exhale of relief from Xerxes when she freed him. As one hand placed the panel to the side, the other placed a finger against his dick following it down along the underside, up its length to the tip. Xerxes grunted in response to the touch.
"You've been so patient and well behaved, I was just going to finger you, but I think let you have a little something more." Ketna mused.
Xerxes raised his head a little to look at Ketna. "Yeah? Like what?" He sounded slightly distant, but not as much as the last time.
"You'll see." Ketna smiled slyly, she walked her way around, out from between Xerxes' legs, and to the side of one at the foot of the bed as before.
Climbing back onto the bed, Ketna straddled herself over Xerxes hips. Xerxes watched intently, getting the idea of where she was going with this. Over his hips, she maneuvered herself down so that she could press his dick against his torso and grind her own lips against his dick a few times. Ensuring she had his full attention, she eased herself down onto his dick, sliding it inside easily from the slick created by her earlier climax. Xerxes gave a contented moan, his hands reaching out but turning into frustrated fists before touching her.
"Last time, I didn't let you come inside." She announced, bracing one hand against Xerxes' thigh, the other reaching behind her. "This time, I won't stop you."
Ketna's fingers teased the entrance to Xerxes's lips, inside her she could feel Xerxes' dick stiffen and twitch in time with the contact. Slowly she let the finger slide down into Xerxes' slit, and lifted her hips from off of Xerxes' own. He grunted with each change, first raising his own hips to meet her then holding in place, waiting and tense. Leaning back but easily holding her position, the tip of Xerxes' dick remained inside her while her fingers toyed at him from inside, from gentle teasing, to a slow increase of pressure. As Xerxes' breath grew more heavy, she eased herself back down on him while she pressed her fingers to grind against the right spot inside him.
"Fuuckk." Xerxes breathed out followed by a deep intake of breath to steady himself. The covers of the bed beneath him were balled up in his fists, tears starting to form under his claws.
Ketna chuckled. "Just the first thrust and you're already this desperate? Has waiting really made you that needy?" She raised her hips and repeated the same motion, slamming him back inside her while grinding him from the inside. "Or am I just that good."
"Shit!" Xerxes' back arched with that maneuver, hands clawing at the bed tearing the fabric where it was taught beneath his body.
"Maybe a bit of both?" Ketna mused, pausing for the moment to observe Xerxes breath and tense beneath her.
There wasn't much Ketna got out of this arrangement, sexually, but seeing Xerxes in a state of desperation provided a completely non-sexual sort of satisfaction, not unlike the same satisfaction she got from disrupting his business; that, and he was cute.
Ketna must have taken too long in her thoughts, as the lack of movement of hips caused Xerxes to rouse.
"Y-Gonna, keep goin or-"
"Shhh relax, sweetheart" Ketna interrupted, her voice carried a warmth in the way she delivered the same pet name Xerxes used as an insult. "I made you a promise, I won't let you down." Ketna's voice carried no sound of mockery, but a careful genuine sincerity.
To prove she meant what she said, Ketna raised her hips, then fell heavily back down against him not waiting like she had the last couple times. Inside him her fingers kept their steady pressure, grinding against where she knew he liked. Ketna gave no pause from the stimulation, keeping a steady rhythm of her legs and hips, even clenching against the thrusts to increase the pressure and coax him on more quickly.
Xerxes' head fell back heavy to the bed, squirming against the friction. Guttural moans accompanied the motion, both unintelligible sounds and barely muttered swears.
"When you come- you can grasp me." Ketna spoke with a breath. "But not until then."
The friction wasn't just ramping Xerxes up, but it was working Ketna up as well. As much as she tried to focus on making it good for her partner, she wanted to get something out of it herself. Driving that fine line between control and lacking one just long enough to keep focused. When she felt Xerxes' hips tense and jerk toward her, it seemed her struggle would not be for long.
"That's it, come for me." Ketna coaxed, strain in her own voice.
As though they had been waiting for a signal, hands that had been making a mess of the bed, shot up, grabbed Ketna by the hips and slammed her down fast to his own while also thrusting them up. The action and rough handling, to Ketna's surprise, had been enough to tip her over as well. It wasn't a strong climax but it was enough to clench against him involuntarily and enjoy the closeness shared between them as Xerxes spent inside her.
Unable to keep herself steady as she was, Ketna leaned forward, hand once used to brace herself against Xerxes legs shot forward to brace herself against his torso. The fingers she had buried in Xerxes' snatch could not remain there in this forward position and that hand joined to brace her as well. As the subtle waves subsided, she breathed in deep to bring clarity and hopefully control back to the position she was supposed to be in.
"Good boy." Ketna praised softly.
At the same time she clenched down voluntarily at the dick still buried inside her.
"Fuck." Xerxes arched and shuddered with the tease, at the same time, gripped a little tighter to his hold on Ketna's hips
Ketna chuckled at his response, he really was cute like this.
"Gotcha good too." Xerxes' smirked, staring down at Ketna, hands at her hips kneading fingers against her butt and thighs where they wrapped around.
"You helped." Ketna responded coyly. "But I was doing rather well for myself."
"Y'sure 'bout that?" Xerxes' expression grew more smug, clear that he did more than just 'help'.
"Yes, I'm sure." Ketna smiled, not wanting to let on just how much of a difference his aggression added to her own climax, not now at least. "Hands off, now." The order she gave was gentle but firm.
Xerxes complied, and Ketna pulled herself off from Xerxes' dick. He groaned at the loss of warmth around him. Sliding herself down Xerxes' torso, Ketna rested herself against his chest, taking hold of his face like she had not long ago.
"I know neither of us are satisfied with just one round. I bet you're aching for something more than just fingers, aren't you?" Her hand trailed from Xerxes' cheek area down to his jaw.
"Yeah? Y'Gonna do somethin' 'bout that?"
"I just might. Sit here for me until I return." She let her fingers linger against him just long enough as she slid off his chest and onto the floor.
There was no elegant way to get a strap harness on and set up in the middle of a session, not that she was aware. It was this awkward break in the middle of the action with no touching or lead up. She'd have to figure out some way to make the transition a bit less tacky or without breaking the flow. While Ketna retrieved the strap from her bag, a thought occurred to her, which she spoke out loud.
"It's too bad you didn't happen to have any toys mixed in with all the gear." She glanced at the cabinet then back to the harness in her hands as she slipped it on. "Though I suppose I could bring some of my own, next time."
"Next time?" Something about the phrase brought a strange amount of tension in Xerxes' voice.
"You know, next time you'd like me to dom you." Ketna sounded confused by the tone Xerxes had responded with, and glanced over his shoulder to follow up. "Provided you want that."
"Yeah- yeah, I mean if y'can, that is." Xerxes' response was oddly sharp and quick, but Ketna didn't read any more into it than his usual dismissiveness.
"Pretty sure I've shown well enough that I can." The mask hid the knowing glance she gave to Xerxes.
She was just about done adjusting the strap harness when a thought crossed her mind that she stated before thinking it through.
"I don't suppose you saved the vibe I left from that- altercation." She caught herself as she spoke, it might have been out of place to bring that up. "Though, I wouldn't blame you if you didn't. It was a difficult night for both of us." Her voice tapered off at the recollection. It was largely unspoken between the both of them, though if this thing between them were to continue it likely should be addressed.
"Waddiyah mean, difficult, wasn't a fuckin' problem fer me." Xerxes bristled, seemingly offended by the insinuation.
"Your hostility implies otherwise-" Ketna muttered, then attempted to diffuse the matter. "Look, it was complicated, I wouldn't blame you if you still harbored unpleasant feelings about it all."
Rather than diffusing that only seemed to ramp Xerxes up more.
"What- y'tryin' to insult me? Think I'd be hurt by a vibe and a hand-job?" Xerxes was sitting fully upright at the foot of the bed now.
"I'm not trying to insult you, I'm trying to be considerate." This was escalating much more quickly than she had anticipated and for reasons she was having difficulty wrapping her head around.
"Trying t'tell me I'm fuckin' fragile and wouldn't keep around something that wasn't any fuckin' problem." Now Xerxes had risen to his feet, shouting his disagreement. "That ain't considerate that's fuckin' insulting!"
"That's not what I said at all. What is with you?" Ketna leaned in, getting closer as being the only thing she could do in reaction to his height.
"I dunno, you tell me since y'seem so insistent at tellin' me how I'm supposta feel." Xerxes leaned further into Ketna's space to emphasize his claim.
"That's not-" Ketna held her mask where the bridge of her nose was, arguing with what she did or didn't say wasn't going to get anywhere like this. "Okay- I'm sorry I insulted you." She didn't have any pride to bruise in this argument.
Xerxes cocked his head, his face had the vaguest look of disgust.
"What, y'fold just like that? Thought y'were supposed to be th'Dom here, doin' a fuckn' piss poor job at it."
Ketna stood there a few seconds in silence, stunned. She couldn't make sense of the complete heel-face turn in tone and what his intent was in any of this.
"Oh my fucking god, what do you want?" She finally blurted out, her voice was raised as well.
"I want you t'fuck me." Xerxes shouted, arms wide out. "That's what I fuckin' called y'out here for."
"That's it, I should just fuck you?"
"What y'fuckin' dense now?" Xerxes used an out-stretched hand to mockingly hit his head with the palm of it. "Y'wanna control this, put in some fuckin' control. I get outta line, you put me back in place, that's what yer 'sposed. Not whateverthefuck that soft- touching shit was."
Ketna's mask hid the hurt and baffled confusion that crossed her face. Was he lying now or was he lying then? He seemed locked in when it started but now she couldn't tell what part was the bravado and what part was the truth. But if he was insistent on that being what he wanted, she'd give it to him, then she could leave and call this a wash.
"You want me to fuck you? Fine." Keta closed in. "Face down, on the bed, now." She gave the order as she closed in, grabbing the arm opposite of her position to forcefully rotate Xerxes in the direction of the bed then force him down onto it.
As her strap had already been prepped before the argument broke out, she wasted no time in shoving it in, hard.
Xerxes grunted at the friction, and glanced behind him. "About fuckin' time."
"Back down." Ketna ordered, using a hand to shove his torso aggressively back down onto the bed while she ramped up her thrusts.
Even upset and frustrated by what led up to this, Ketna tried to make this about pleasuring Xerxes, not about retaliation, explicitly. She didn't want this act to be an act of anger. Her free hand had hold of Xerxes' hips, using the grip on the hip as leverage and to help angle herself to grind down into where she needed to. Her actions were rewarded with muffled groans.
But even this was not enough to get him to settle, and his head lifted once more.
"Y'even fuckin' movin' back there?" Xerxes taunted but his own voice betrayed him, strained by the thrusts as they occurred.
"Not hard enough for you? Oh, I can ram it in harder."
Without the harness for a handle, the only thing in reach she had to provide leverage, was the collar on Xerxes' neck she had been avoiding that whole night. With the rise in emotions and the scrambled behavior, Ketna had shoved the footnote she had made earlier about the collar from her mind. She took hold and yanked back at it for a hard thrust without thinking, and the instant she did, she was all too aware of her folly.
One second she was buried inside Xerxes by a strap, the next she was being thrown across the room. The instant she had yanked back on the collar, Xerxes had snapped, hands whipped up instinctively to grasp the hand around the collar and wretch it from him. Ketna was back on her feet as soon as she hit the floor, and Xerxes lunged after her, disordered and unco-ordinated. He was tearing at his own neck just as much as he was clawing for the person that had yanked on it. She was familiar with this behavior, the distant look on his face, he was not himself, she was all too familiar with fugue states.
Without a doubt she had to get that collar off his neck. He had been cagey about it from the start, it was likely the culprit of all his odd behavior this night. She managed to evade another flailing lunge and used the opening to leap onto his back. Xerxes growled and made his best effort to throw her off, thrashing back and clawing behind him, but Ketna kept her hold. Deft hands made quick work of the buckle, and it dropped heavy to the floor the moment she let it go.
"It's off." She announced, though Xerxes' state didn't seem to change, but if he was far gone enough, it likely wouldn't have been enough.
In the same motion she yanked him back toward the floor then hoisted herself around from back to his front and brought him to the ground, straddling his chest in the process. She hardly had the mass to hold him down, but this would have to do. It just had to be long enough that she could snap him out of it.
Whipping her mask off and tossing it to the side, she took hold of Xerxes' head to look into his face, ensuring he could look her in the eyes as she did his, while her own held an expression of worry and concern. Despite everything that had happened before, she couldn't just leave him alone like that. Not only that, but she was partially at fault and she had too much integrity to not at least try to make it right.
"I don't know what's going on in your head, or what you think is going on but I swear, you're Oh Kay." Her hands held the sides of his face, letting a thumb bush up against the flesh that was available there, hoping the touch would ground him. "I'm so sorry, I promise, I'm not going to hurt you."
Xerxes' gaze shifted, focusing on her in a way that was very pointed, but distant, then they narrowed. Ketna thought maybe he was pulling out of whatever panic he was in, but the expression grew more callous and cold. It should have been a warning but she didn't leave his presence, finding herself concerned about his state, which was likely to her detriment.
Hefting his torso up, he snapped an arm around Ketna's midsection, keeping her held fast as he pushed himself off the ground. On his feet he shoved her rough against the wall and atop the dresser that was there. Ketna didn't fight him off, knowing sometimes re-asserting dominance was common after these sessions but there was something strange about the way he looked that wasn't typical, and he was much too quiet. One hand tore off the harness for the strap from her, then in a sudden movement, Xerxes gripped her abdomen all a little too tightly, before shoving his dick inside her without so much as a warning.
Without any word spoken from him, Ketna wasn't entirely sure what state he was in or how self-aware he was to her and his surroundings. She could handle some awkward, rough sex for the moment if it meant it may help him return to his senses. But when his claws dug into her midsection, it appeared he may have been worse off than she suspected.
"Hey," Ketna spoke, attempting to see if announcing what was happening would bring attention to it. "Your claws are digging in-"
Xerxes responded by practically crushing her left side in his right hand, claws pressing deep into her back muscles and abdomen. His thrusting became more fast and violent as he did so.
Ketna gritted her teeth but didn't make any sound. Any pleasure she might have had from the nature of the friction was dulled by the pain caused by the claws sinking into her.
"Xerxes-"
Ketna made another attempt to reason, hoping using his name might but he interrupted her before she had a chance to make an appeal.
"Shut. Up." His words were dark, marked with throaty growls.
Adrenaline from the pain kept Ketna sharp, so when she caught movement of his free hand snapping toward her neck she retaliated quickly, this was a fight more than it was sex. Catching his hand by the palm she fought it back, she let him dig his claws into her but she sure as hell wasn't about to let him choke her. His hand fought with her own, first attempting to wrestle out of her grip with poor coordination, then seeking to overpower her grip, pushing back, making whiplashes back and forth, but she managed to keep him at bay.
All the while, there was no look of fear or pleasure in her face, just glowering irritation. Truthfully she didn't feel like she was being sexually assaulted, she felt like she was being used like a chew toy. The sexual penetration had become barely noticeable background noise to the violence and pain inflicted on her.
The hand at her side shoved its digits deeper into her to tear at the skin, this time pulled back to tear the flesh away from its place on her body. The hand Ketna had used to brace the one that gripped her made some effort to prevent the upper most digits from causing too much damage. And while her strength could match, the leverage and angle were poor and she could only prevent so much. Though subtle changes in his breath seemed to indicate it wouldn't be for long.
Ketna had been long since familiar with Xerxes' tells before he came, even in the state now. Relieved to, hopefully, bring this to a close, she participated only in so much as to ensure he got off. Squeezing his waist with her legs and clenching at him inside and he responded favorably.
With a low, rumbling growl, Xerxes finally came. The hand that had wrestled with her own let go to brace himself against the dresser, while the one at Ketna's side remained where it was, using the grip to hold her close to him as he spent inside her. Both clawed deeply into the things they held on to.
For a few moments he just held himself there, leaning over Ketna and the dresser, panting heavily.
"Are you back?" Ketna asked, firm in her words.
Xerxes' eyes glanced in her direction, the hand at her waist loosened its grip but he said nothing, and continued to breathe heavily.
Ketna shoved Xerxes form off her with a foot which he didn't fight but only barely budged, though it gave her enough room to slide off the dresser top and set herself back onto her feet. Giving herself some distance between herself and Xerxes before she spoke to him again.
"What happened? Are you okay or do you-"
"Getout" Xerxes growled in a low voice, not looking up from his spot.
"I'm trying to h-"
"Get. Out." He enunciated the last two words in a loud, roaring voice, as he shot a glance at her from over his shoulder.
Ketna's shoulders dropped in defeat with an irritated, heavy sigh. "Fine." Was what she parted with, not lingering any longer than the time it took to gather her bag and walk out the room, leaving Xerxes alone to stew in whatever it was that plagued him.