Daughter of Treason Ch. 02

It seemed to be a rather high-end place, which was unfortunate; Kei had been hoping for something distinctly middle-class, but 'choosers will be beggars' as the saying goes. The innkeeper eyed the unconscious elf disapprovingly, but schooled his features when he saw Kei had turned her attention to him. "How do you do?" he asked politely, mercifully in common Halastian.

"Well enough." she responded tersely. "How much for a room?"

"A mere gold piece per night, and they're fit for a merchant, they are." He straightened his already immaculate jacket proudly.

Kei considered for a moment; a gold piece was steep indeed, but she hadn't the time to argue. "I'll take it."

Fishing a gold and another two silver from her money pouch with her off hand, she handed the money to the innkeeper who smiled and said, "Thank you, good madam. I'll send some brew up for you and your elf husband." Kei smiled. Elf husband... That idea was strangely appealing. "Room 314; third floor, last door on the right."

Kei shook herself. Her friend was unwell, and she was standing there thinking about silly things like being wed? What's happening to me? Taking the key from him, she muttered something which could be taken as a 'thank you' and proceeded up the stairs. She had to pause a few times to keep her grip on the poor elf without running him into the walls of the narrow hall, but ultimately she reached the end of the hall, managed to fit the key into the lock and turned.

The door swung open and Kei was pleasantly surprised; she had expected the charge of a gold piece to be a rip-off, but the accommodations were quite nice; there was a sturdy-looking chair, a small table with a candle, and, most importantly, a large, comfortable-looking bed.

Kei laid Shino down on the bed, removed the sack he had roped around his shoulders as Kei had, pulled off his boots, and repositioned him in a configuration which looked almost comfy. Kei might have been inclined to join him had she not been so worried.

Closing the door behind her, she set her own sack down and thought on what to do. He was unconscious, but he seemed to be fine for the moment. Her mind began to wander, going over Shino's state and its cause. Was the potion misidentified? Could it have been a potion of sleep, rather than one of bloodline activation? This was certainly possible; although uncommon, rich nobles would occasionally commission potions of the traditionally offensive spell to combat insomnia and, more commonly, unsavory types would employ such potions in clandestine affairs. But even if Shino did mistakenly drink such a potion, he seemed disoriented, confused. So there must be something else.

This she puzzled over this for quite some time before she noticed something; Shino was beginning to toss and turn, but it wasn't the restlessness of being close to waking; the frown on his face combined with a few beads of sweat forming on his brow told a very different story. Quickly taking a seat in the bedside chair, she put her hand to his forehead and, sure enough, a fever was developing, and quickly. Kei was by no means familiar with fevers, less so than even most peasants, but she remembered Vera and every detail from when the poor departed chambermaid's succumbed to illness.

Be calm. Be calm. Closing her eyes to take a deep breath, she was startled into opening them again when she heard the creak of the door opening. She stood and quickly placed herself in the path of the door, blocking the innkeeper's view into the room. She accepted his drinks politely, tried and failed to present a convincing smile as she bid him farewell, and closed the door again. She would later tell herself that the reason she acted so quickly to keep him out of the room was fear of a contagion, rather than the simple desire of not wanting anyone to see Shino in such a weak and vulnerable state.

As she was setting the drinks tray down on the table, a thought struck her. Darting back to the door, she opened it and peeked out. Seeing the innkeeper's retreating back, she called out, "I don't suppose you could send up some rags and a bucket of cool water as well, could you?" He turned and shot her an inquisitive look, prompting her to add with as straight of a face as she could manage, "to freshen up."

It was only through sheer force of will that she kept the disgust from showing on her face at his coy grin. His face was easy to read; he obviously was convinced both that she and Shino were wed and, what's more, were going to be consummating such a relationship shortly. Had she dwelled on it, she might have found it odd that she was revolted by the innkeeper's reaction to such thoughts, but not by the idea of the act itself. But she was trying to ignore what she was feeling, to keep panic at bay so that she might help Shino in any way she could.

First thing was first. Fever victims, she had read, should be kept cool, particularly the head. The wet rags would help with that, but if the fever continued to rise, simply leaving him lying there on the bed would be insufficient. Although it wasn't too bad at the moment, it had come on so quickly that Kei wasn't going to wait for the fever to spike. For a moment, part of her wondered if what she was doing was really necessary.

"Shino?" Kei gently shook him, hoping for a response, but he didn't even stir. She sighed; he wasn't waking up any time soon. Propping him up against the headboard, she grabbed his shirt and began to wrestle it off him. She was frowning in concentration and using some of her sea-born cussing skills to note how much harder it is to take off an unconscious person's clothes than one's own when she heard a knock at the door. She rolled off the bed, eyes flashing in anger and cheeks flushed with embarrassment, and landed in a crouch only to find that the door was, in fact, still closed.

Standing and silently rejoicing that nobody was around to witness her defeat at the hands of a simple shirt, she cracked the door open. Rather than a leering face, she found only a bucket and a few small cloths. But the self-satisfied whistling of a retreating innkeeper told her that there was a leering face, it simply had the courtesy to take its leering self elsewhere. Grateful, at least, for this small blessing, she quickly grabbed the bucket and cloths, set them both down on the table, and closed the door. Returning to her struggle with the shirt with new found determination, she was rewarded with a quick victory; the first arm proved to be the hardest to free from the confines of the garment, but after that one hard-fought battle the rest came free easily.

Despite herself, she paused a moment to admire the fruits of her victory. While he would not be called 'muscular' by many, a lifetime of wandering had nonetheless been kind to him; his figure, while slim, was well-defined, the small volume only accentuating the presence of his strength in her eyes. Having ended up straddling him while working on his shirt, she was unable to keep herself from reaching out and placing one hand on his chest, feeling his heart beat. She closed her eyes and sighed, relishing the feel before tracing one pectoral up to a relaxed shoulder. She savored the feel of pure, albeit thin muscle under her hands before she moved on to the bicep; she was, while strong, well padded under her feminine curves. Shino, having gone through times of belt-tightening in his wanderings, was bone, brain and muscle, with little else. Unable to resist, both of Kei's hands returned to his chest, by far her favorite part of him. His arms were still distinctly those of a scholar, but his core still held the structure of a nomad.

Kei leaned forward, burying her face in that chest and loving every minute of it. His heart beat so strongly, so warm... So warm... So warm! As she came crashing back down into reality, she threw herself back; she was here to treat Shino's fever, to keep him cool, not add her body heat to his by cuddling up on top of him! She mentally kicked herself and asked herself once again, What's happening to me? She was never this distractible before. It must be Shino, with his bronze skin, subtly muscled chest, golden eyes that made her-

She gave a growl of frustration. Focus! I must focus on the task at hand! She seized one of the cloths from the table and, much more violently than was necessary, plunged it into the water then wrung it out with enough force to make it dry enough to necessitate another dunking. As she set about damping at his forehead, focus became easier; his fever was not only rising, but doing so very rapidly; she began to worry that she would have trouble keeping it down.

Within thirty minutes, she had pushed aside her discomfort and removed his pants in the hopes of allowing more heat to escape, and within two hours evaporation from the warmth had claimed all the water in the bucket. Throwing a thin blanket over his waist for modesty's sake, Kei grabbed the bucket and took it downstairs, handed it to the innkeeper along with another two silver and said wearily, "refill that, and bring it up to my room, please." before heading back up. Within five minutes there was a knock and the door and Kei, too busy checking on a spot of irritation on Shino's forehead, called for him to enter.

The middle-aged innkeeper's expression may have been one of combined disbelief, nervousness, and lust when he opened the door, but one look at the scene within and the idea of taking part in various carnal activities vanished from his mind. "Dear gods, man! What's happening?"

Shino's skin had, by now, gone from pale to a light red tint, but the color was off enough to leave no doubt in any observer's mind that the tint was not a healthy pink skin tone, but rather something much less common. The sheets were damp with sweat, and Kei was examining a pair of irritated welts which had formed right on his forehead. Irritated, Kei shot him a stern look. "If you can tell me, I'd be thankful. Otherwise, thank you for the water, but I must tend to him, and it's easiest when I can concentrate."

To his credit, the only emotion on his face was concern. "Do you want me to get a cleric?"

Her worry was evident in her tone when she shook her head and replied tersely, "No. I fear magic is what did this to him, so I imagine the cure lies not in the mystic." Her expression softened a bit and she even allowed herself something akin to a grateful smile. "Though I do thank you for the offer."

The innkeeper nodded and, after lingering a few more moments looking worried, accepted Kei's dismissal and left. For an hour, two, four, ten, fourteen Kei kept vigil over Shino, and though she was growing too tired to show it, she was grateful as the innkeeper stopped by every few to refill the bucket and, as night fell, bring her a tray with some soup. She had fished for some money in her pocket, but he had waved her away saying, "I only take money from folks who can give it. If you really want to pay me, pay me when he's well."

By the twentieth hour, Shino finally seemed to be stabilizing; his fever had broken, and he had stopped tossing and turning and instead slept soundly. For the first time in nearly a day, Kei allowed herself to breathe a sigh of relief. Standing and stretching, she noted that, though his face was relatively clean, the rest of his body was caked in sweat. Taking the cloth, she began to run it over his body, cleaning the grime away. In the absence of stress and worry, and in the presence of such a stimulus, the thoughts she had previously pushed away came back full-force. She lingered longer than strictly necessary on his chest, and as she worked her way down she found herself blushing.

She was no stranger to what a man looked like; when, ages ago, her ancestors had emigrated from Fractoria to Islandport, they had brought with them a key secret to maintaining a large population in a small area; bathing. Though it was unlikely anyone remembered it now, communal baths were first introduced in Islandport by the Feyuni Family, and the tradition was so practical that it had endured. In the bathhouse, a curious child learns what makes a man a man relatively quickly despite their mother telling them "don't look, it's rude." She had even seen a few excited men from a couple times in which she accidentally barged in on something, but she had never seen one this close.

At first she told herself she was only washing it, that she would move on to his thigh next, and from there the rest of his leg, but after she spent at least three times longer washing it than necessary, it began to grow and she began to grow curious. She continued washing it, now just to see how it would react, and was at once alarmed and delighted to find it rising up to stand tall and proud. As far as cocks went, it was no monster; at six inches, it was smaller than some, but to Kei it seemed massive. She ran the cloth up and down along its length, watching as the loose skin towards the tip peeled back to reveal a shiny helmet underneath. Fascinated, she reached out with her other hand and tentatively touched the tip. She jumped when it twitched, but quickly leaned back in, discarding the cloth entirely now, experimenting with how it felt.

It was, perhaps, one of the oddest things she had ever touched. It was hard and rigid, yet at the same time it had some give to it. Near the tip there was so much loose skin around it, yet the tip itself was completely solid, the skin stretched tight across the little helmet. The heady smell of sweat still hung in the air, threatening to make her dizzy, as she experimentally wrapped one hand around the shaft. Cautiously, she began to move her hand up and down, and was surprised to find that the skin of the shaft moved with it. So perhaps this is what all that extra skin is for, she thought distantly.

Shino groaned, and Kei froze; a dozen thoughts ran through her mind in an instant, from a horrified What if he wakes up!? to a strangely excited what if he wakes up!? She stayed still for a good thirty seconds, becoming very conscious of just how flushed she was all over, but Shino did not stir again. I should stop this. She thought, eying the cock in front of her. I really should stop this. But... just one taste. Just to see what it's like.

Her heart hammered in her chest as she leaned in again. Her nipples were painfully erect in her bodice, and her pants were applying pressure in a delightfully uncomfortable way right on the apex of her thights. Loosening them, she took one last glance up at Shino, leaned in and took the head in her mouth.

At first she was disappointed. Her thorough washing had, perhaps, taken most of the taste out! But as she kept it in, she began to notice a very subtle sensation making its way to her taste buds. There was definitely a hint of salt, likely residual sweat, but also something else, something a bit more... hot. Spicy. It was by no means strong, but there was just enough of a hint of it to make Kei wonder if she could taste more of it farther down.

Logically, she should take the head out of her mouth and just lick down, if all she wanted to investigate was taste. But in one of the two times she had interrupted something and seen an erect cock, she had seen something part of her really wanted to try. She didn't know the word for it, but it seemed simple enough when she saw it; one person takes their partner's cock in their mouths and begins bobbing their head up and down. This, too, was something she wanted to investigate.

Sure enough there was just a tiny bit more taste, and first few inches were easy enough. But after that, she ran into a problem; her mouth simply wasn't big enough. After experimenting with angles to no avail, she wondered what would happen if she just forced it down. Sliding the cock as far back as it would go, she felt a sudden heave in her stomach. Fighting it back, she swallowed to be sure that what she ate stayed down and was shocked at the result; more had gone in!

Surprised, she pulled back and gasped; that far down, it was impossible to breathe. But this was interesting, exciting! Almost unconsciously, a hand slipped into her pants and began to stroke her slit as she took Shino's cock into her mouth again. Moaning around it as her fingers found her clit, it was all she could do to hold still a moment and let the feelings pass before continuing. Back home, after one orgasm the edge would often wear off, and while she could keep going, she generally lost interest. But right now, on her knees beside a bed, she had the strongest desire she'd ever known to continue!

Rubbing he clit furiously, she tried swallowing again, this time managing to get almost all of it in before she pulled back for air. The subtle taste, the weird smooth-spongy texture, the smell of sweat, the thrill of trying something completely new, the knowledge that Shino might wake up, all this combined quickly put her on the brink of orgasm.

Shucking her pants entirely, she quickly brought her other hand to one of her clothed breasts while the other began working a finger into her slit. She squeezed one breast, pinching her nipple much harder than usual in an effort to get through the fabric, and felt every sensation impulse go straight to her pussy. The index finger of her other hand circled around her pussy lips, gather some of the moisture which had accumulated there before dipping into her.

Moaning, Kei redoubled her efforts to fit it all in. The room was silent save for the quiet squelching of her fingers at her sex, and the little gulping noises which escaped her each time she pushed more in. Up and down she bobbed her head, up and down, gathering courage and momentum until finally she forced her head down, swallowing all the while, fighting back the urge to gag until finally she felt the tiny hairs of his pubis tickling her nose. Drawing back just far enough to allow her to breathe through her nose, she moaned around the shaft with its barest hint of spice, and then something unexpected happened.

She felt it first as a pulse through the cock still butting against the back of her throat. First one, then another, so quick that she wondered if it wasn't just a twitch. Then she felt a warm liquid splashing down her throat. Surprised, she pulled back, letting it flop back down onto Shino's belly, but not before shooting another squirt into her mouth. Shocked yet aroused beyond belief, she stared as it continued to spurt an thick, milky substance on to his belly in two more distinct bursts before it began to dribble out the tip of the cock slowly. Kei was so confused yet fascinated by this salty but slightly sweet taste in her mouth that her next orgasm caught her completely by surprise.

She rocked back on her heels and her neck snapped back as her orgasm crashed through her. Pinching one nipple as had as she could, her other hand began thrusting her middle and index fingers in and out of her pussy as fast as she was able, making a wet squelching noise with each thrust. She couldn't speak, she couldn't moan, she couldn't even breathe; the only thing she seemed to be able to do was fuck herself silly with one hand, and for what felt like an eternity, there was nothing else she would rather bong doing.

Finally, when it almost felt like she could take no more, breath returned, and her hand slowed. Giving a quiet moan of satisfaction, she noticed for the first time that Shino was moaning and babbling incoherently. Mortified yet at the same time somewhat hopeful that he had been conscious for the whole thing, she called out softly, "Shino?"

When he didn't respond, she moved back up the bed and saw that his eyes were closed; he was dreaming. Not sure whether to be relieved or disappointed, Kei sighed and gave her pussy one last rub before retrieving the wet cloth to clean herself off with. She took her time, of course, but though she was most certainly in the mood to do more, now that she was herself once more she felt uncomfortable doing that in the same room as Shino. Especially when he's sick! she scolded herself. Pulling her pants back on, she resumed cleaning Shino and finished as quickly as she could before even going so far as to put a thin sheet over his lower body. Plopping down in the chair exhausted yet yearning for more, she buried her face in her hands and asked herself for the umpteenth time, What's happening to me?