Team Building
Not one to let the abuse he had been put through be ignored, after repairs and recovery, R'Vindr got to work on a plan to retaliate against Xerxes. Fortunately for him, Xerxes' current genital hardware had been subcontracted by another modder, one using R'Vindr's system. The outer work wasn't his personally but the firmware and neural interface was all R'Vindr's, giving him access to certain updates; and he could use that to his advantage. One firmware patch specifically for Xerxes' hardware and the mob boss would be compromised in an unexpected way. Once installed, the next time Xerxes tried to get off, his dick would cut off sensation just before the point of climax, leaving him unable to actually orgasm at all. To cause additional insult, R'Vindr left Xerxes' pussy as-is, he'd be able to climax with any internal stimuli, but any contact with his dick and he'd suffer a stolen orgasm once again.
The patch was easy to code, a simple fork of systems used for long-term chastity users, hardly took more than an hour. Once it was sent off all he had to do was wait until Xerxes got around to updating the firmware. But the moment he updated, R'Vindr would be notified and from there he would carefully calculate a confrontation. His contractor was told ahead of time to forward Xerxes' contact to him if there was a complaint about not being able to orgasm. He also made certain to warn the contractor and his staff they may need to hide afterward, to avoid Xerxes' potentially going after any of them first.
It was a little over a month by the time Xerxes downloaded the firmware update. It took two days before he sent the angry notice to his modder that it wasn't working right. R'Vindr responded to the forwarded complaint with instructions that if he wanted his dick to work again, he had to drop by R'Vindr's place. Not wanting to repeat the risk of another assault, R'Vindr ensured his own safety by urgently requesting Ketna also arrive at his location, before Xerxes. This involved her, after all, and if his reading of her was correct, she would take care of things once she found out. He had kept her in the dark about everything that had happened and planned to lay it all out in the safest manner possible.
Ketna arrived promptly, swiftness encouraged due to the urgency of R'Vindr's request. When she entered the empty living room, she was puzzled.
"R'Vindr?" She called out, knowing he had security of all kinds monitoring his home and would hear it easily enough.
"I'll be there in a moment." R'Vindr's voice could be heard over the intercom.
In addition to setting up the fix to Xerxes' junk, he had sealed himself in the room in the event Xerxes arrived before Ketna did. With her presence secured he could safely wait in the living room with her.
"You mentioned it was urgent but didn't give any details, is everything alright?" Ketna asked as she saw R'Vindr enter the living room.
"No, it isn't." R'Vindr answered flatly. "I'll explain soon but only after my other guest arrives."
R'Vindr walked in as far as the closest couch to the hall, but stood behind it, not sitting down. As though he was keeping a barrier between himself and the door.
"Who's the other guest?" Ketna asked cautiously.
"You'll see him when he gets here."
He was always one to be direct with her, so the evasiveness about the topic had her concerned.
"Are you in any danger of some kind?" She asked.
R'Vindr held his head in the direction of the front door for a second before he answered. "If not for your presence I likely would be."
The potential for R'Vindr to be in danger put Ketna into a state of alert. She straightened her posture, focusing her attention to the door and who might walk through. If someone was here to hurt R'Vindr, she wasn't going to allow it. Heavy steps could be heard by her outside the door, it opened before the guest had a chance to knock or ring the doorbell.
Ketna's heart sank when she saw who it was.
Xerxes looked especially pissed when he first walked through. But the moment he saw Ketna, he froze in a strange state of rage and panic.
"The fuck's she doin' here?" Was the first thing Xerxes said, motioning to Ketna.
"Because this involves her." R'Vindr responded tempered.
"You're in on this?!" Xerxes exclaimed.
"What the fuck are you taking about, 'in on' what?" Ketna asked
"No, she isn't," R'Vindr interrupted. "I am solely the reason why you are here, Xerxes, Ketna is here because I requested her presence, because there is something we need to all clear the air on."
A sinking feeling caught up with Ketna as she started to put the pieces together of what this altercation possibly meant. When she saw Xerxes move in R'Vindr's direction she put herself in front of him which stopped him in his place.
"Clear the air on what?" Ketna asked cautiously, staring at Xerxes a moment longer before turning her attention to R'Vindr.
"A month ago, Xerxes showed up at my place to discuss something rather delicate, or so I thought. Apparently, you had mentioned to him our discussion about his assets and because of that he saw fit to accuse me of breaking our agreement, an agreement to not speak to anyone about his pussy. And then proceeded to rip open my chest and fuck my innards, while attempting to asphyxiate me." R'Vindr explained clearly and perhaps a little quickly, keeping careful watch of Xerxes as he did so.
"You What?!" Ketna's voice was loud and sharp, as her head snapped in Xerxes' direction.
Xerxes snarled, glaring daggers at R'Vindr, barely holding himself back from retaliating. Instead he opted to shout just as aggressively to defend his actions, gesturing his own frustration.
"It shouldn't fuckin matter that it was you. One day it's you, next day it's some dickhead that just fuckin stumbles on the right words and next thing I know everyone's gonna be talking about it." Amidst the bravado there were hints of genuine distress that were difficult to pick up on.
"But that is not what fucking happened." Ketna got herself much closer. "You want to know how that conversation happened? I saw you leaving R'Vindr's place and I confronted him about why you were there. He tried to claim it was mod related but I knew something was off and I pressed him for more. I was the one that brought up you having a snatch." Ketna aggressively motioned to herself to emphasize her point.
Xerxes huffed and pulled back, looking off to the side as though he was being unfairly lectured.
"R'Vindr didn't want to talk and tried to deflect the subject multiple times. I practically cornered him about it and he only talked because he knew me well enough to trust my judgment. All of this you would have found out earlier if you had just fucking asked me the night I brought it up." Ketna took a step in closer. "It was the Whole. Fucking. Reason." Ketna jabbed at Xerxes' chest at the end of each word. "Why, I brought it up that night. I even fucking asked you if you were okay and you told me it was fine."
"Cus that was none'a your fuckin' buisness!" Xerxes finally spoke, shouting down at Ketna. "He and I had an agreement, he knew damn well what woulda happened if he crossed it." Xerxes gestured at R'Vindr as he spoke. "I don't make good on that, that sends the message he can say whatever the fuck he wants without consequence. It don't matter 'bout his judgment, I need to know that he won't fuckin' talk, under any fuckin circumstance. And if he can't keep his trap shut, I'll make him shut it." Xerxes raised his gaze to R'Vindr still standing some distance away.
"What you did was still entirely disproportionate to the outcome." Ketna continued. "It's been months since R'Vindr told me that, and nothing happened, no one else knows, no information was spread. I'm the only person he's discussed this with. Nevermind the fact that if R'Vindr and I had never had that conversation, I likely would've never started fucking you again in the first place."
"So I was right." R'Vindr interjected.
Xerxes sneered, glaring at R'Vindr but ignored the statement, turning his attention back to Ketna. "What, so I'm just supposed to let this go? Do nothin cus you said so? You want I should start doin' that for fuckin everyone? 'Hey I know I said I'd kill you if y'talked, but none a'that fuckin matters anymore. Say whatever th'fuck you want.'" Xerxes used a mockingly jovial tone of voice to accentuate the matter. "Yeah that'll go over real well for me."
"For fucks sake you're being- Aauughhh" Ketna took a deep breath to get back on track. "No, that's not what I fucking said! I'm saying there are other ways to reestablish expectations when it's clear the person you're dealing with isn't interested in sabotaging you-"
"He sabotaged my dick!"
"After you sexually assaulted him!!" The retwart came reflexively. Ketna still had no context for what it was R'Vindr had done, but whatever the sabotage was, it couldn't have been nearly as bad as what he did to R'Vindr.
Xerxes didn't respond right away, in the pause Ketna saw it important to get up to speed. She still didn't know what Xerxes was so upset about.
"What- was it you did, anyway?" Ketna turned to R'Vindr.
"Patched his firmware so that sensation would cut out before climax." R'Vindr answered calmly.
Ketna snorted a laugh.
"Yeah, Ha Ha. Real, fuckin' funny." Xerxes interrupted loudly, though it was hard to tell if he was offended by the patch or that they were talking between each other about him without involving him. "Hey, maybe you two are lucky enough to operate in your own little fantasy world, but I work in the real one." He looped the conversation back around to make sure he could prove the point he had attempted to earlier. "And you know what happens when someone doesn't make good on their threats? Word gets out they're soft, and then suddenly, everyone's out there takin' advantage of that. You make it sound like you know how things work in the world, but it's clear you don't know a fucking thing."
"Yeah, I know what world you operate in, and I also know it's bullshit." Ketna snapped back. "Believe it or not, not everyone operates on the same 'I got mine' motivation you and your associates do, not everyone is eager to throw another under the bus to save their own skin. All instances of trust and respect aren't earned by fear of retaliation alone. Sometimes respect is garnered by mutual understanding and showing some respect on their behalf, not because of what you get out of it. And I know from experience that type of trust is a lot more real and lasting than whatever binds you've made out of a cycle of threats and retaliation."
Xerxes gave a jeering 'Tch at the suggestion.
Ketna was about to continue when Xerxes interrupted her.
"Y'know it's real fuckin' funny you going on about trust when your whole fuckin' life is sneakin' around and obfuscating the truth to get your way. You can't even show your face when you fuck. If the world is so fucking full of people that you can just trust outta respect then why the fuck livin' like this." Xerxes' motioned to Ketna's concealing attire.
"That's completely irrelevant to-"
"Hey, have you seen her face?" Xerxes raised his voice toward R'Vindr, pointing to Ketna as he did.
"What? No, of course not." R'Vindr answered quickly.
Xerxes had a slight self-satisfied smirk when he heard R'Vindr's answer, turning his gaze back to Ketna. "So you don't trust him enough to show your face but you expect me to trust him-"
"Hold on," Ketna interrupted sharply. "The issue of my identity has nothing to do with the fact that I don't trust him. Hell I'd trust him with my identity sooner than I'd trust you with it."
Xerxes looked particularly offended at that insinuation.
Ketna continued before he could get a word in. "He of all people knows the importance of one's identity and past being treated with respect, not a bargaining chip to be held over people."
"But you still don't want him to know." Xerxes was intent on making his point.
"No, I don't."
"Cus you'd have to kill him if he did." Xerxes insisted for the sake of his intended goal.
"What??? No!" Ketna exclaimed, particularly exasperated.
"You're telling me you wouldn't kill someone that figured out who you are, to make sure they don't spread it around." Xerxes sounded as though he was certain of his assessment.
"That's highly contextual! Are they using my identity to blackmail me? Or did they just figure it out on their own and aren't a threat? Maybe the knowledge is more of a danger to themselves than it is to me. Absolute consistency for the sake of it doesn't keep my secret more safe, it also doesn't make others more inclined to- Wait hold on, back up." In the middle of her and thought she retraced the conversation. "If this is about consistency why didn't you assault me?"
The question was enough to catch Xerxes by surprise, in his brief silence Ketna continued.
"In order for R'Vindr and I to even have that conversation, I had to bring it up. And when I confessed to you that night you said nothing to me about breach of privacy and the consequences for it. I've also towed the line with divulging your privacy in public, twice, and the worst you did was threaten me. So you already operate differently with different people."
"Alright, alright, fine!" Xerxes held up his hands as if shielding himself from further prodding. "Maybe I overreacted-" His sentence trailed off into an indiscernible grumble and his hands dropped heavy to his side. "What the fuck am I supposed to do about it now, huh?" He motioned in R'Vindr's general direction.
"Apologize." Kenta answered sharply.
R'Vindr had no expression to be read, but his posture straightened.
Xerxes huffed, his head leaned back as his eyes rolled.
"You remember how to do that, right? Or do I need to-"
"No!" He bit back sharply, interrupting Ketna.
Xerxes groaned again, rubbing the corners of both sets of eyes one set at a time. He lifted his head to look at R'Vindr directly.
"I'm sorry for-" Xerxes shifted his weight. "Assaulting you, choking you."
"And?" Ketna urged.
"What-" Xerxes sighed, raising his hand in an offering gesture before heavily dropping it to his side. "Whadiyah want t'make up for it."
"Suck my dick." R'Vindr announced flatly.
Xerxes huffed and sneered, "I'm trying t'fuckin reconcile and you're just gonna blow me off?"
"No, you misunderstand, I want you to do exactly what I said. Suck. My. Dick." R'Vindr pointed down to his crotch to emphasize his point.
Xerxes scrowled.
"You could say I want you to blow me off." R'Vindr joked in a more brazen fashion.
Xerxes gave a low grumble, even less happy than he was previously.
"All things considered, that's a pretty generous accommodation to forgive you after everything you did." Ketna chimed in, emphasizing what it was Xerxes was supposed to be apologizing for in the first place.
" 'Forgive' " R'Vindr used quotation fingers when he stated the word. "Is not the term I would use. At best I'd say I'd put it behind me."
"Then what's the fuckin' point?!"
"To make amends." Ketna cut in before Xerxes could rant. "You correct something you wronged without expectation of reward because it shows that you are more than just empty platitude. Because this isn't about you, it's about the person you've hurt. And if you want to show you have any concern or respect for the person you're apologizing to at all, and that you actually mean it, you do it for their sake, not yours."
There was a tense silence as Xerxes mulled on what Ketna said. Ketna braced herself for the possibility that Xerxes would decide he would never bend to show anyone respect, let alone concern, and simply leave. to linger on that thought long.
"No, No!" Xerxes took a step back shaking his head, his head, his voice raising with each No. "Y'Know what. No! Fuck you. Fuck botha' you!" Xerxes spat out, gesturing to the two of them before he turned heel and walked out the door.
Ketna exhaled her shoulders dropping, disappointed but not surprised. R'Vindr's own tension left his body as well, and he turned to lean on the back of the couch he had been standing behind.
R'Vindr thumbed at the door Xerxes just left through, while facing Kenta. "Please don't tell me this is an 'I can fix him' thing. I can tell you're much more involved with him than you let on before."
"Oh god, no." There was an unmistakable offense in the tone of her voice. "This was- Has been- a 'he's awful but unfortunately in a way that pushes all my buttons' sort of thing. Thought I'd fuck him a few times and get it out of my system but.." Her voice trailed off "Never suspected it would go on for this long."
"You going to keep seeing him after this?" R'Vindr didn't do anything to hide the judgemental tone in his voice.
"After this?" Ketna paused, shaking her head. "It's funny, a couple weeks ago I was done with him, thought that was it. But then things happened and we hooked up again.. Things changed, kinda- But after this-" Ketna paid R'Vindr a glance, visor hiding the look of remorse on her face. "I'm not sure that I can."
"Good." R'Vindr shot back, not hiding his disdain at all.
The reaction stung Ketna but she appreciated the honesty, nor did she blame him. R'Vindr pushed himself off of the back of the couch. He looked up at nothing, observing something Ketna could not see, then turned to her.
"He's still in the driveway for some godforsaken reason." R'Vindr's voice was a mix of angry and tired. "I'd appreciate if you'd stay here until he was gone for good, but after that I'll need you to leave."
"Sure, I can do that." Ketna nodded.
R'Vindr remained in place, Ketna paced idly about the room, waiting for updates that she could not see herself. A few tense minutes passed before R'Vindr's posture changed to one of an alert stand. "He's coming back." He sounded as worried as he was perplexed.
Ketna braced herself, expecting him to beat down the door, but instead, all she heard was him shouting up at the camera that was stationed there when the door didn't open for him.
"Open up! I wanna- I wanna talk about this again!"
Ketna glanced back and forth between the door and R'Vindr. R'Vindr groaned heavily, leaning fully on the couch. With great effort he finally stated. "Alright, fine."
The door opened and Xerxes walked in stiffly. He smelled strongly of cigar smoke but his hands were empty. He huffed before he spoke.
"I suck your dick," Xerxes pointed to himself, then back to R'Vindr. "you fix my dick?" His question was flat, almost resigned, more statement than question.
R'Vindr studied Xerxes for some time before he finally answered.
"On her honor." R'Vindr pointed to Ketna.
Xerxes looked over to Ketna with an expression she couldn't quite read, but turned his head away before she could study it.
"So we doing this behind the couch or you gonna sit down?" Xerxes took a few steps closer, waiting for R'Vindr to settle in wherever he was planning on doing this.
"Yeah, I'll sit down." There was a sense of caution in R'Vindr's voice before he walked away from behind the couch. To his surprise, Xerxes didn't lunge at him, but was still cautious.
Xerxes said nothing but held his arms out in 'well?' gesture, ushering him to speed it up.
"Not here-" R'Vindr pointed toward the hall before he walked into it. "Need to get my dick first."
Ketna moved in to follow R'Vindr, ensuring she put herself between him and Xerxes in the line.
"You ask me to suck your dick and you don't even have it?" Xerxes raised his voice before following the two of them down the hall.
"I didn't exactly plan for this to happen- I was expecting you to throw a temper tantrum and for Ketna to beat the shit out of you."
Ketna and Xerxes exchanged glances; Ketna's remained hidden but Xerxes was briefly one of questioning irritation.
"Sure as hell didn't think you'd ever entertain any form of apology. I didn't have much reason to be prepared." R'Vindr added.
An awkward silence remained as the three followed R'Vindr, stopping at his dick closet at the end of the hall; the two remained outside when R'Vindr entered. While rummaging through the closet for a piece, R'Vindr began to speak, calling from the open closet.
"Before you start I want to hear you tell me again,-" R'Vindr emerged, supposedly with one of his dicks now attached but his pants covered what would have been there. "Why are you doing this? Tell me exactly what it is you believe you're reconciling with me."
Xerxes shifted here he stood and gave a low growl before he worked up the means to speak.
"I got-" He huffed. "Carried away in provin' a point." He snuck a glance in Ketna's direction as he searched for the words. "Shouldn't have assaulted you or choked you, or hurt you at all, it was-" He made a circular motion with his hand to nothing in particular. "Disproportionate to what happened. Should'a talked about it first, shouldn'ta, assumed the worst of you."
Ketna was surprised at how much more aware this apology was from the last one, she held out some hope that maybe he understood or absorbed something about what she said. But there was a chance he was just learning the lip service needed to get by. R'Vindr stood in silence, hardly moving and letting the silence hang before he spoke up.
"I'm going to be honest, I'm not sure I believe you."
"Then what's th-"
"I wasn't done." R'Vindr interrupted Xerxes, his voice was raised distinctly loud, unnaturally loud.
It was powerful enough to even make Xerxes shut up.
"But." R'Vindr emphasized, but at a slightly lower volume. "Whether or not you actually believe or even understand the words you're saying, the effort you're putting in at all is more than I expected you were even capable of. And that's the only reason why I'm entertaining this."
R'Vindr motioned over to a nearby room, one of the spare bedrooms Ketna was familiar with. The uncomfortable silence lingered as all three walked in, when they were all in, R'Vindr look at Xerxes and motioned to the foot of bed in the room.
"Kneel over there and let's get this over with."
Xerxes grumbled but moved without additional ushering, R'Vindr stood unmoving in his spot until Xerxes had completely sank into a kneeling position near the foot of the bed. Only then did he follow him over to take a seat at the edge. While the two of them settled, Ketna found herself feeling particularly awkward in her role as referee. She had no interest in watching even in the best of circumstances, but this was uniquely uncomfortable. Leaning against the wall close enough to jump in if something changed but not so close as to be mistaken as a voyeur, she pulled out her phone to give herself something to do that wasn't just awkwardly watching a blowjob. She was not looking forward to Munin's regard of the situation.
There was no further instruction needed from R'Vindr, as Xerxes already went to work at R'Vindr's fly and exposed his dick; Not so much out of eagerness, but a desire to get it over with. From what Ketna could see, R'Vindr had grabbed one of his regulars that she saw him with the most. It wasn't small by any means, as it was generous but proportional to his size, but Xerxes' large frame meant his hand practically engulfed it. He handled it momentarily, grasping it in his whole hand before releasing it and resorting to using just a thumb and two fingers to grasp it.
With dick firmly, but considerately held, Xerxes opened his mouth above it, permitting his tongue to descend atop it. Head exposed to his tongue, he wrapped it around the tip, artificial saliva trailed down his mouth coating his tongue making it smoother to slide against R'Vindr's dick. Xerxes spent some time lingering over the head, spreading wetness about, slowly traveling down the shaft to meet his fingers, coating the dick in it. As Xerxes' tongue worked on applying moisture, his fingers would slide up the shaft, coating the fingertips which he spread back down the base of the shaft, using firm pressure to tease R'Vindr's dick in the process.
At the start of it, R'Vindr remained mostly silent, to the point that Ketna had to glance up to see if anything was actually happening. She hoped that he hadn't turned off the sensation to his dick just to fuck with Xerxes, as deserved as such a petty action would be, she really didn't want this to escalate any further than it already had risked doing so. After the time spent building up slickness, Xerxes tightened his tongue's hold around the tip adding pressure to an upward tug made with it, and R'Vindr finally made a soft, strained grunt. The noise made Ketna glance up from her phone, and she caught the look of a faint smirk on Xerxes face as his eyes fixed upward on R'Vindr's.
With the reward of a sound from R'Vindr, Xerxes became more engrossed in stimulating R'Vindr and getting him off as fast as possible, but also doing it well. Fingers on the shaft began to slide up and down it in firm steady motions, while his tongue slid back down the head of the dick, circling around the head and the shaft as it descended further. Occasionally the dick would dip slightly between Xerxes' teeth into his open mouth when the tongue itself had reached full extended length. When tongue met his fingers, it spent a moment spreading more wet to them before tugging back up in the same spirals it had traveled down the shaft.
With a few repeated movements, R'Vindr's breathing was becoming more labored. Ketna could tell from the sound that whatever Xerxes' was doing, was working. The fingers at R'Vindr's shaft added more pressure to their grip, and slowly Xerxes began to shift his methods. As his fingers stroked higher and higher up the shaft with each pass, his tongue traveled down the shaft less. Until finally, the tongue remained with all its attention at the tip and his fingers caressed and worked the shaft. From here, Xerxes kept a steady, swift pace of jacking off R'Vindr's dick while his tongue kept its attention at the tip.
R'Vindr wasn't one to be very animated in his experiences with pleasure, but from a glance Ketna could tell by the tension in his back and the way he was putting weight on the arms that supported him leaning back on the bed, that he was likely close. Xerxes didn't cease from the rhythm he worked up. His tongue would shift from cupping the tip and enveloping it in broad strokes, to making swift flicks and back to broad again. After another alternation between tactics, with his tongue cupped firmly about the dick's tip, R'Vindr grunted a sound Ketna was familiar with, with a light shudder down his spine that was the result of Xerxes' finally bringing him to climax.
Xerxes caught this as well, even without any artificial semen he knew enough when R'Vindr had finished. Cheekily seeing this as an invitation to harass him, slowing the strokes against the shaft and resorting back to his earlier tactic of wrapping his tongue around the dick. Not that it amounted to anything, as R'Vindr had full control of his sensation, he didn't need to stop Xerxes to cease the stimulation. All the work Xerxes continued to do now would have no effect on him. R'Vindr relaxed his posture, no longer needing his arms to support him, he shoved Xerxes away from his crotch.
"You've made your point." R'Vindr announced tersely between deep breaths. "I'm surprised you managed to be half-way decent at that. Didn't think you knew how to pay attention to anyone else at all." R'Vindr made a point to keep even his compliment, derisive.
"'Course I can. I'm fuckin' good if I want to be. Just most nobody deserves it." He sounded smugly proud in spite of all the complaining he did before that point. "Ask Ketna, I know how to make her scream real good."
"He's.." Ketna's head snapped up from the phone, surprised to be brought into the conversation, "Not bad." She admitted awkwardly.
"Th'fuck you mean 'not bad'?" Xerxes stood from his kneeling position to face Ketna, appearing particularly slighted, offended by the lack of glowing praise.
"Let's not do this, here." Ketna said with exasperated strain.
"Yes, don't." R'Vindr added tersely. "Now undress and bend over." He ordered as he stood up, thumbing to the bed he stood from.
Xerxes froze in place, arms raised in a confused gesture. "The fuck I gotta bend over for?" He protested.
"Because I'm going to fuck you." R'Vindr answered flatly.
"You said sucking you off would get my dick fixed!" Xerxes angrily sputtered in protest.
"I did, and I will, but I want to fuck you first before then- your pussy still works, remember?"
Xerxes opened his mouth to speak but R'Vindr's hand snapped up to shove his lower jaw back up as though attempting to muzzle him. In that same time Ketna was on her feet, between the two of them, prepared to counter Xerxes if he tried anything.
"Need I remind you," R'Vindr started speaking again as Xerxes snapped his head back pulling himself easily from R'Vindr's grasp.
Xerxes shot Ketna a glare but didn't advance any further.
R'Vindr continued "The day you assaulted me, you decided you weren't going to just fuck my insides, you were going to impede my windpipe as well. You assaulted me, severely injured me, and toyed with my life in the process. All I'm doing, is fucking you before I fix you. And you like getting fucked, don't you? From my perspective, it seems almost like I'm rewarding you for repugnant behavior. It's better than what you deserve."
"Yeah? And if I don't fuckin' deserve it then why you expecting me to do it." Xerxes snapped back.
"Because right now I want to feel something other than terror and rage by the mere knowledge that you are here in my presence. Your mouth managed to get me off, but I need to fuck something. And I'm sure as hell not fucking Ketna, angry. And to make this about you since I know that's the only person you care about in this exchange, for your sake, you wouldn't want me working on your patch fix in this state, either."
Xerxes backed off but his irritation could be heard in low rumbles. "Fine- Only cus I've been backed up." Asserting some idea of control over the order he was given. With that he made quick, irritated work of his shirt, his pants to follow.
Ketna relaxed and retreated to her spot against the wall. R'Vindr fiddled with something on his forearm while waiting for Xerxes to finish up and get into position. Xerxes was quick to announce when this was.
"Well? You fucking me or not?" Xerxes called back when R'Vindr wasn't right behind him the moment his hands were on the bed.
Without a word, R'Vindr stepped over, grabbed Xerxes by the thighs, thrusting hard and fast the moment he got his dick lined up with Xerxes' entrance.
Xerxes suppressed a grunt and called back. "Y'Call that a thrust? Thought you were pissed."
"I know damn well you've gotten off to less than this." R'Vindr ended his sentence with another thrust. "You'll be doubled over in five minutes."
"Sure, if you weren't using some pity dick." Xerxes retorted with confidence, but there was a strain in his voice that gave away his posturing. "Was hoping I'd get a half-way decent fuck outta this." He negged while suppressing grunts.
Ketna couldn't help but recall how Xerxes acted similarly the night he had snapped.
"For fucks sake-" R'Vindr huffed angrily with another thrust. "Ketna!" he snapped quickly.
Ketna stood to attention at her feet, in between thrusts R'Vindr motioned her over which she complied with. When close enough, R'Vindr spoke up again.
"Keep his mouth busy for me."
"Wait- what?" Ketna had just processed what she was being ordered to do, when Xerxes reached out and grabbed her arm, yanking her down onto the bed.
She was not initially in the mood at all for sex with everything that had been revealed, which made for a shocking whiplash of sensation to go from rage to arousal at the mere suggestion of being eaten out. Xerxes' apparent eagerness to sink his tongue inside her also helped in making her receptive.
Through strained grunts Xerxes braced himself with one hand but made desperate grabs at the fabric at her legs, attempting to yank it down but making little progress as Ketna had been garbed in a full body suit.
"Hey! Hold on, don't tear it." Ketna protested at the aggressive way Xerxes pulled at her pant leg.
Ketna worked quickly to undo the fastens and side zipper. The moment her suit had slack Xerxes yanked at her pant legs, pulling her suit over her hips, taking the underwear with it. Ketna helped it along, pulling it off so nothing would get caught in the process. As soon as one leg was freed completely Xerxes yanked Ketna by the thigh into place for his open mouth.
He dragged his tongue between her lips, putting a deliberate pressure behind it, ensuring he dragged it over her clit as he swept upward. Ketna buckled under the feeling, permitting herself to fall onto her back. Thumbs clumsily pried Ketna open further as Xerxes' tongue aggressively explored between her folds.
Meanwhile R'Vindr kept a rough and steady pace thrusting into Xerxes. Due to Xerxes' density, the force of R'Vindr's thrusts didn't do much to make the mob boss budge. Even so, Xerxes kept his thighs apart and hips stiff, for fear of any stimulus to his dick robbing him of climax. While suppressing groans Xerxes escalated from mere teasing to forcing Ketna's lower lips apart with his tongue to shove it inside her. While burying his tongue deep inside her, Xerxes adjusted his hand placement, gripping both of Ketna's thighs firmly to keep them spread and keep her in place.
The tongue inside Ketna was fast at work applying unnatural pressure to the location Xerxes was more than familiar with by now. Ketna's breathing grew louder into vocalizations with each pass against her walls. From outside, Xerxes' hands were large enough that even with the full grip of her thighs he could use his thumbs to apply pressure above her clit. The two different forms of pressure did a lot to urge Ketna closer to her climax, a lot faster than she even considered possible given the circumstances. Occasionally Xerxes groaned against her but he kept the pressure of both his tongue and fingers steady, determined to set her off as soon as possible. It did not take long for Xerxes' work to pay off.
Whimpered whines followed by surges of twists that Xerxes prevented from pulling away from him and his ministrations. In the moment Ketna was too consumed by the sensations to feel the guilt she had been holding onto for putting R'Vindr in this position and actually getting off to what Xerxes was doing. Heat rose and drove away her thoughts for a time, a small moment of disconnect just before hitting that final peak. Xerxes kept her on that high for as long as he could manage, not ceasing the same motions that brought her there all while fighting her throes of overstimulation until R'Vindr broke his concentration.
As Ketna began to cry out and writhe beneath Xerxes, R'Vindr picked up the pace and force of his thrusts. He had been waiting for Ketna to be brought to completion before ensuring Xerxes would be next, even if it meant potentially delaying his own climax. His work done and his own climax pending, Xerxes' tongue slipped from between Ketna's folds back into his mouth so he could better moan with the ramping thrusts. He buried his face in between Ketna's legs just moments before he tensed and arch, letting out a loud, rough moan as he was finally brought to climax against R'Vindr's dick. R'Vindr in turn, adjusted his own sensitivity to get him to climax in time to make use of Xerxes' internal contractions against his dick. With a final thrust he held himself fast to Xerxes' hips and let him ride the pleasurable wave, far less vocally than either of his other two partners.
R'Vindr didn't linger in his position long, recovering his focus and sense of self faster than the other two. He pulled out shortly after he finished, and leaned over promptly, his fingers searching the plates along Xerxes' spine.
"Now, I'll fix your dick." R'Vindr announced as his fingertips brushed the edge of the service jack he was searching for.
From his forearm, R'Vindr produced a lead that plugged into the port he had just exposed. Breathing just reaching a more normal pace, Xerxes lifted his head and glanced back at R'Vindr while he jacked in.
"Better not be messing anything up while you're in there." There was a genuine wariness to Xerxes' voice, something he was attempting to hide by being cantankerous.
"I'm not going to fuck with the rest of your system. It's insulting to imply I'd be negligent with my work." R'Vindr said, exasperated. "I want this to be over with, I do not want you back on my doorstep after this."
Xerxes snorted but went back to shoving his head between Ketna's thighs without any other word. He was aggressive enough before, but something seemed even more insistent with how close he kept himself to her. Hands shifted from holding her thighs to sliding to her backside to ensure she was shoved in as close as possible while his tongue flicked between her lips.
Through the fog of pleasure, Ketna could feel Xerxes subtly pressing the side of his face into her thigh, enough that she could feel the patch of skin and outline of his closed eyes against it. His hands shifted again, still cupping her butt, but in a way that allowed the thumbs to rest over her lips so that he could tease her with more ease. Her legs now free from his hold meant there was nothing preventing her legs from squeezing against his head.
In this position, Xerxes used his tongue to directly glide against the clit that was now exposed to him by way of both of his thumbs. First gentle strokes followed by a swirling motion that picked up in pace and pressure. Already in a heightened state, this new direct stimulus caused her to whimper and lurch forward, her legs pressing tightly to the sides of Xerxes' head from the first lap on her clit. As the tension returned to her legs and her body began to shake, Xerxes alternated to flicking gently at her clit, resulting in a loud whimpered outcry from Ketna. Her hips made an involuntary attempt to get away but Xerxes' grip held her in place at the mercy of his intentions. Unable to do anything to suppress the feeling, Ketna's next orgasm was fast approaching. Everything went hot and white for a moment, desperate loud mewling accentuated what it was she was feeling. Ketna wasn't entirely aware of her surroundings or how tightly she was curled around Xerxes' head when she finally tipped over the edge, but it was enough to make Xerxes shift his grip to make some leverage against the force of her thighs.
Without warning Xerxes froze for half a second, R'Vindr's announcement followed.
"There, your dick should be working back to the way it used to."
Ketna still clung to Xerxes' head, but with the orgasm passed, it didn't take much for him to tip her backwards. Head freed, Xerxes dragged his teeth against Ketna's thigh before he pushed himself up from the bed, looking back at R'Vindr behind him. "You gonna reach around and give me a handy first to prove it's working?"
"I'm not jacking you off," R'Vindr sounded offended at the suggestion, then raised his head in Ketna's direction. "But she can."
Xerxes immediately reached out to grab for Ketna's leg. "You heard him." He announced almost jovially as he began to drag her in under him, only to be halted by R'Vindr grabbed him by the arm.
"No," R'Vindr practically snapped. "I am not sitting back and watching you two fuck. Roll over on your back, I'm going to keep using your pussy while she rides you."
Xerxes huffed in protest but seemed more perturbed about being ordered to do something than he was at the proposed setup itself. He let Ketna go, waiting for her to get out of the way so he could turn around and drop down on his back onto the back. He didn't wait for Ketna to move, reaching out for her arm to drag her over to him before he even fully hit the bed.
"Get on-"
"I was going to." Ketna balanced herself from the pull, pulling her arm back which Xerxes released when he felt her leg make its first contact with his torso.
From there, Ketna slid a leg over Xerxes' midsection, sliding herself back to position herself on his dick. She had only just eased herself onto the head of his dick when he grabbed her by the hips and shoved her down while thrusting his dick upward into her at the same time with a loud grunt. With the work he had put into her cunny earlier and the remnants of Xerxes' own cum, the dick slid in easily. Seconds after Xerxes hilted himself into Ketna, R'Vindr slid his own dick back into Xerxes. Ketna felt him twitch inside her along with the grunt he gave at the renewed penetration.
R'Vindr's subsequent thrusts after the first remained equally fast and aggressive as the first, between that and the force against Xerxes' thighs prevented him from continuing his upward thrusts into Ketna. Instead she had to provide her own friction. Mustering up her focus, Ketna's thighs and hips went to work finding a rhythm she liked, grinding Xerxes' dick inside herself to her desires. Xerxes squirmed underneath her a little more with each time she made flush contact with his pelvis, the dual sensation ramping him up quickly.
Ketna could feel Xerxes' body tense beneath her, he was edging closer to climax faster than he had before. She attempted to speed up to bring about her own climax faster but was stopped in her tracks by Xerxes' renewed hold on her hips holding her fast to him. Between his eagerness to use his dick again and the dual stimulation, he was already riding his first orgasm since his dick's recovered function.
"Fuuuccckkk!!" Xerxes shouted in time with him cumming into Ketna. There was a sense of relief mixed in with his exclamation.
R'Vindr followed not long after, cumming with far less vocalization than Xerxes. In that same time, one of R'Vindr's hands lifted off of Xerxes's thigh to slide against Ketna's hip and down to her mons. Ketna leaned back into R'Vindr's chest, knowing exactly what he was going for and she was desperate for it.
The pressure against her mons complemented the pressure inside her even if there was no friction to speak of. Xerxes rocked his hips below her, not quite thrusting but providing some additional internal stimulus to what was happening externally. R'Vindr's fingers massaged her mons for a while longer before slip between where she met Xerxes, using fluids to coat his fingertips before his brought them back and traced delicate circles directly against her clit. Ketna stiffened and R'Vindr's other arm reached out and held her to him so that she wouldn't squirm out of place. The combination of the stimulation and R'Vindr's aggressive hold on her helped usher Ketna into another climax, whining as she ground herself against Xerxes' dick in the process. Xerxes grunted and panted loudly with the new sensation against his dick, still sensitive from his climax.
R'Vindr didn't keep up his manual teasing, easing off Ketna as soon as she shuddered in climax, at the same time he pulled out of Xerxes but remained where he stood. Without a dick to keep him in place, Xerxes found himself with the freedom to move again the way he wanted. The hold on Ketna's hips tightened with renewed vigor as he worked up to thrusting aggressively inside her again. Ketna whimpred still on the high of her last orgasm, body ready and eager to succumb to being used, no longer requiring focus to do the work herself. She could feel the tension building up already, when R'Vindr put a hand back on Xerxes' thigh.
"Slow down, you've monopolized her cunt for long enough." R'Vindr announced.
"Not fuckin' done yet." Xerxes grunted between thrusts, unwilling to do as he was told.
"I didn't say leave, I said slow down." R'Vindr shoved down one of Xerxes' thighs with a heavy hand, it was enough to make him halt.
"The fuck you want?!" Xerxes' voice was strained, frustrated by being denied his next climax.
"Wait." R'Vindr answered.
Ketna felt R'Vindr's fingers at her lips, finding space between them and where Xerxes' dick parted them. Sensation of the digits pressing them into Ketna's entrance alongside Xerxes' length was enough to make Xerxes pause, giving more attention to what R'Vindr was about to do. He raised his head, straining to see what he could from his position.
"Thought you weren't gonna give me a handy." He joked, very certain of his cleverness at the moment.
"I'm not, you idiot, I'm spreading her to get my dick in next to yours." R'Vindr wasn't particularly amused.
Xerxes glanced from Ketna, back to R'Vindr. "You even sure you can get it in?" There was smugness mixed with curiosity in his question.
"I am intimately familiar with her limits, I've shared her cunt with another dick multiple times." R'Vindr announced.
Dazed as she was from the orgasm before, Ketna still had sense enough to feel uniquely vulnerable, as R'Vindr announced her experience with this kind of scenario to Xerxes. She had worked so hard to get Xerxes to respect her, or at least something that functioned like respect, even while being so submissive to him. There was a twinge of fear that it could very easily be lost if Xerxes was aware of the extent she enjoyed being 'used'.
R'Vindr had only just slid the tip of his dick in past the entrance when Xerxes' arm caught R'Vindr by the shoulder, halting him in the process.
"We're switching." Xerxes ordered before R'Vindr had a chance to ask why he did that.
"Switching? You got some nerve barking orders at me-"
"I just got my dick back, wanna use it the way I use it before I leave." Xerxes sounded more frustrated than angry, almost pleading.
"Fine." R'Vindr conceded after a quiet pause, and pulled back.
Xerxes sat himself up with one hand, wrapping the other around Ketna before she had the chance to move.
"Figured you for a size queen but two at once, don't know why I didn't think of that before." Xerxes taunted Ketna as he held her against him, flipping his position with R'Vindr who now sat at the end of the bed.
"Because you only think about yourself." Ketna muttered.
Xerxes gave a 'Tch but didn't respond much more beyond that, shoving Ketna into R'Vindr's arms.
"Hold her for me, will ya?"
R'Vindr grumbled his compliance but held Ketna to him with support and consideration. As Xerxes angled his dick to slide side by side R'Vindr's and grasped them both with one hand. His other free hand he used to pry apart Ketna's lips. While Xerxes' lined up their dicks, R'Vindr held back one of Ketna's legs to make it easier for Xerxes to maneuver their dual penetration.
Ketna groaned at the sensation of being slowly spread further than she had in a while. All the built up fluid by that time made the insertion of both dicks easy to slide in, her walls hugging them both the deeper they traveled. When the two dicks were safely deep enough, R'Vindr carefully eased his grip on Ketna, letting her weight pull her further down upon both of their lengths. The pressure on the new girth was something to adjust to but she had done it before, it was a lot but not unpleasant. Ketna whined softly as the ambient pressure specifically against the most sensitive section inside her grew more intense. Xerxes adjusted his hips to ensure he'd be able to control his thrusts in this position.
"Greedy fucking pussy of yours will take just about anything won't it?" Xerxes moved slightly, testing his position before he added another thought. "Sure you weren't meant to be a whore?"
Ketna glowered at him, not that her expression could be seen, for the use of the term. "Says the guy with a cunt twice the size of mine."
"I'm not the one taking two dicks at once." Xerxes shot back before Ketna could continue that thought.
"Could arrange that, you know." She taunted.
Ketna didn't quite get the chance to read the look on Xerxes' face as he thrust in aggressively right after. Any other words Ketna planned to say were taken from her at that moment. She whined at the rough change in pressure, and R'Vindr grunted at the friction behind her. Xerxes rocked back and began building into an aggressive pace, his hands having moved to hold her thighs. R'Vindr braced himself by an arm against the bed, to give himself leverage to thrust into her. His other arm wrapped around her upper torso to keep her in place.
The latent anxiety Ketna had for being in this kind of position with Xerxes at all, was being eroded away by just how overwhelming it was to be pistoned into by the two of them. Sensation dulled thoughts and all she could do was brace herself, her hands tense and grasping at the air, searching for something to hold on to, occasionally brushing against R'Vindr's forearm and losing grip with another thrust. Her voice filled the room more than any pant or moan from the men she was held between.
In between thrust Xerxes dipped his head down, drawing his tongue against any of Ketna's exposed skin in any way that wouldn't interrupt his Rhythm. Flicking down and teasing breasts, collar bone and neck. Every place he touched brought heat to her skin. R'Vindr slid the hand that was holding Ketna to him, down her torso, positioning it to keep her fast to him while fingers went searching for the same place it had before. Xerxes caught on to what R'Vindr was doing, letting go of one of the legs to be an alternate support against Ketna's chest to keep her in place. It was well needed as she bucked when R'Vindr's finger found its goal, using remaining fluids to tease her delicately.
Ketna arched at the touch but was held mostly in place by the combined efforts of the men she was sandwiched between. The pressure and friction of both dicks sliding inside her at alternating intervals had her body stiffen and shake, so close to the edge. Xerxes brought his head in close to Ketna's head, the side that wasn't directly next to R'Vindr's.
"C'mon milk our cocks like a good girl." Xerxes hissed in a strained voice.
The first words of praise the whole exchange, the first words aimed at her the whole night, was enough to tip Ketna over the edge again. Both men reacted to her strong buck, shifting holds to keep her in place while either of them shoved themselves inside her as deep as they could get in their positions. Xerxes roared in climax first, hands shifting to Ketna's hips to keep her in place. It wasn't as obvious but R'Vindr's climax followed soon after, the hand that had been between Ketna's legs lifted up to drape against her chest and keep her supported against him.
After his climax, R'Vindr slowed and pulled out of the woman in his arms. Xerxes saw it as an opportunity to tilt Ketna's hips in his direction and monopolize the free cunt when the arm R'Vindr had been using to support himself shot out to brace against Xerxes' chest.
"Hold it." R'Vindr was so strong in his voice it almost sounded like a shout.
"Whaat." Xerxes halted with loud protest but paused as requested.
"You've confirmed your dick is working now, right?" R'Vindr was terse in his inquiry.
Xerxes hesitated momentarily, as though he had forgotten why he was there. "Wh- Yeah."
"Good. Then we're done here." R'Vindr pushed Xerxes back and away to emphasize his point. "Get dressed and get ready to leave."
Xerxes sneered but backed off. "Yeah, yeah." He muttered before turning his attention to the floor in search of his clothes.
R'Vindr turned his attention to the woman in his arms. "Can you move?"
Ketna, still somewhat weak from the encounter mustered up her senses and nodded. She didn't even need to be instructed as she slid herself off R'Vindr's thigh and onto the bed after the confirmation. Quietly, R'Vindr sat up from the bed the moment he was free and walked out the door.
There was an awkward quiet between the two left in the room. Ketna leaned forward where she sat, resting her arms on her knees, head in her hands to breathe deeply and regain her equilibrium.
"Hey." Xerxes called out.
Ketna lifted her head to the direction of the sound. Her bodysuit she had shed earlier was tossed in her direction. She caught by way of lifting her arm enough to intercept it and get it wrapped around the forearm. Slowly she unwound it and began to redress.
Xerxes watched her for a quiet moment while fastening his pants, and began to speak while rotating his shirt around in his hands.
"'S'too bad I didn't get to see your face when we double teamed ya." Xerxes looked all too self-satisfied.
Ketna's mask hid the frustration and anguish she'd much rather him be aware of. But she was uncertain if it would have any impact on him.
"Do you even care?" Ketna said hopelessly, but still grasping at any chance there might be.
Xerxes paused after sliding an arm into his shirt.
"Do you even feel a little bit bad that you hurt someone so severely over something they didn't even do?" Ketna followed up when he didn't answer.
"Don't got time to winge over every little mistake." Xerxes finally answered solemnly, eyes fixed on the other side of the wall as he spoke.
"Course not." Ketna hissed bitterly.
The two continued to finish dressing in the awkward silence. Ketna made a point to hurry and finish before Xerxes, she didn't want to chance Xerxes would be out before she could mobilize.
"Why couldn't you have just talked to me." Ketna muttered with pained wistfulness as she stood from the bed.
With that, she walked out the room without as much as a glance to Xerxes.
Walking back through the halls to the main room, Ketna was surprised to find R'Vindr waiting there; she had assumed he would have retreated to his room.
"Stay here until he's gone, would you?" R'Vindr said shortly after Ketna walked past the threshold.
She nodded and stood off to the side. At least she didn't have to wait long, Xerxes emerged from the same hallway shortly after Ketna settled to wait. Xerxes paused, seeing the two waiting for him.
Xerxes held hands out to sides. "Thought we already did the intervention." It sounded like a jest but not a confident one.
"I am only here to see you off to make a final statement, because I need to make this absolutely clear that everything between us is done. After you walk out that door I want nothing to do with you. I do not want to see you again, I do not want to talk to you again, and I sure as hell am not fucking you again. In the event I get any orders or service updates related to your hardware from any of my subcontractors, I will work on them just as I work on anyone else's but you will talk to them, not to me. Is that understood?"
Xerxes grimaced but didn't fight it. "Yeah yeah, I got it."
"Good. Now-" R'Vindr pointed to the door. "Get the fuck out of my house."
Xerxes shifted his weight, he looked to R'Vindr, then to Ketna, then back to R'Vindr again. "Wouldn't'a come back anyway if I wanted to." He muttered as a parting word before walking out the door.
Both Ketna and R'Vindr watched Xerxes leave in relative silence as he made his way to the door, which opened and shut cleanly. There was no statement he could make on his departure. A few seconds after Xerxes had cleared the doorway, R'Vindr spoke up.
"I'm fully aware of how much this might make me sound like a hypocrite, but why the fuck have you been, from what it looks like by the way you were talking, so deeply involved with him." R'Vindr thumbed to the door to emphasize his point. "He's barely tolerable as a sub, I can't imagine how insufferable he is as a dom. The first chance he got to top and he insults you almost immediately. Why the fuck would you, of all people, subject yourself to that. Or have I just been completely wrong about you this whole time."
"There are-" Ketna huffed, thinking of the words to say while staring at nothing in particular. "A lot of layers to this that are difficult for me to describe. But I don't just let him insult me or treat me poorly, and I've retaliated both in word and action." Ketna turned her head back toward R'Vindr. "I know what I'm doing."
R'Vindr responded with a groan and shaking of his head.
"This is a shot in the dark but now it's eating at me-" R'Vindr raised his head to complete the question. "Did he have anything to do with the reason why you showed up one day at my place, absolutely wrecked?"
"It's- You know as far as injuries go I've been through so much worse. That was just the only time you've seen me injured." Ketna fumbled around her explanation.
"That's still not a No."
"I'm not avoiding a direct answer because you're right, I'm avoiding a direct answer because even an allusion to what happened is not information that I can safely provide you." Ketna thought a moment, and with a strained laugh, added. "Would you believe he's one of the safer Mystery Meat Amalgamations I've had sex with?"
There was a beat of silence as R'Vindr's head focused back between the door and Ketna. "What the hell do you even do to get involved with someone worse."
Ketna's head moved to speak but R'Vindr's voice cut in before hers did.
"That was a rhetorical question. I don't foresee knowing the answer to actually help in any meaningful way."
"Good, it's safer that you don't."
"I'm learning that very quickly." R'Vindr was slightly derisive in his response.
"How are you holding up, if you don't mind my asking?" Ketna inquired gently. "Do you- need anything?"
R'Vindr was quiet, his head made the subtlest of movements that Ketna could read as deliberating.
"Not well, but not.. worse. I don't want to say better, better doesn't feel right." There was a bitterness in his voice. "Different- I certainly feel different. The anger is there but it's shifted and I'm going to need time to reflect on what that means."
Ketna nodded quietly, unsure if R'Vindr was even looking at her.
R'Vindr continued. "What I need is time, and therapy. This is going to be- a hell of a thing to tell my therapist."
"Not worried you talking about it might get around to Xerxes somehow?"
"If I found out my therapist was divulging enough personal information for anyone, Xerxes or not, to pick up on it being from my experiences, I'd fucking kill them myself." Ire rose in R'Vindr's voice, if there was intended to be humor in his tone it was masked by the stronger emotion.
"I'll be honest with you," R'Vindr continued. "my opinion of you isn't exactly very high right now. I don't know how much of that is justified or circumstantial, but for that reason I think it would be best if you didn't contact me before I contact you."
Ketna sighed and nodded. "That's fair." She always appreciated R'Vindr's frank approach to communication, even when it wasn't easy to hear. As much as it stung he had a right to feel the way he did, and it was good she knew where he stood for certain.
"Thank you." R'Vindr sounded as though he attempted to lace his words with some kindness, but the lingering contempt was clear.
R'Vindr gave that subtle momentary pause that Ketna knew he was internally checking whatever HUD or internal information he had.
"You can leave, now." R'Vindr said flatly.
Ketna nodded, words running through her head for what to say. 'Take Care' felt patronizing, knowing how well he already did just that. Even something as simple as 'Goodbye' did not feel right. Reaching the door she ran out of time to say something that didn't feel like awkwardly reaching for the last word, resigned to leaving R'Vindr's home silently with no parting word, fully aware this could be the last time she had to say something to him.
Leaving R'Vindr's home, there was a heaviness that left, replaced by a different one. Xerxes was culpable for his own actions, but the conflict was a result of her insistence to instill relationships, even casual ones, with civilians. Even if Xerxes was never a factor, her extended presence in the lives of others that are not already embroiled in the type of peril she deals with daily, will start to bleed and endanger those she becomes close to. Even with the layers of obfuscation, the closer she gets the more they erode and the more at risk they become as a result. If even by some miracle R'Vindr did feel comfortable with her again, she should keep her distance for his own sake.