Do-Over

#######Author's Note#######

After reconciling some of the pressing concerns Ketna had over her brush with death, she has decided to permit Xerxes back into her sexual aspect of her life once more, but on her own terms. She has a lot of new ground rules to establish, and things take an unintended emotional turn. A little femdom, a little emotional distress, a little vulnerability, a lot of sex.

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After all the pain and anger that had built up over her recovery from the trap she escaped, it was strange to return to the more favorable category of thoughts regarding Xerxes as she had, before. As favorable as they could be for someone like him. The time it took to fully heal from her throat injury was plenty of time to determine if she was comfortable with Xerxes handling her, again. Her conclusion was that she was amicable, but only if she could establish it under the right conditions.

To go back as though nothing happened would give the impression she was easily won. But she also didn't want to 'reward' him for the bare minimum. It was a matter of walking the line between getting what she wanted while also keeping it clear he needed to work to keep her interest. Taking her time to compose her thoughts, and how to phrase her requirements for re-initiating contact, Ketna sent the time and date that they would 'reconnect'.

-

Back on his balcony again, a place that months ago Ketna never considered returning to with this specific intent. It was as though nothing had changed, save for one small detail- the cat that now occupied a little bed on a vantage point next to the sliding doors of the balcony. He didn't move from his spot but his posture changed, now alerted to her presence on the balcony, tail flicking in idle curiosity. Now no longer carrying an undercurrent of disdain, she could regard the changes Xerxes had made to the living room to accommodate the new roommate with favorable amusement.

Xerxes's large frame announced his presence by obstructing the light before she caught sight of him. He slid open the glass door.

"Y'coming in or what?"

Ketna had no words to describe this 'reunion' but it was oddly anticlimactic after everything that transpired between them. Possibly the most off-putting thing about it was that nothing told her she shouldn't be there. She took hold of the edges of her jacket, tugging at them to shrug off the fallen snow that had accumulated on the back and shoulders, nodding briefly before walking to the open door.

"Got your voice back?" Xerxes watched Ketna intently as she strode the threshold of the balcony.

Ketna didn't pay him much attention while she shook the snow off her boots and slipped them off. "Wouldn't be here if I hadn't." She answered casually, only glancing up at him when she was done. She couldn't be certain, but there seemed to be the briefest notion of relief in Xerxes' posture, the more she spoke.

"Good, fuckin' ya without hearin' ya scream just ain't the same."

In the middle of stripping off her pack and jacket, it was easy to catch the drop in Ketna's shoulders at the response she should have expected, though the mask obscured the rolling of her eyes. It wasn't the type of relief she had hoped for.

After resting the jacket near the shoes she had left, Ketna thumbed over to the cat, changing the subject. "You named him Capone?"

"Yeah," Xerxes slid the balcony door shut. "Shithead's made himself real comfortable here, real fast."

Ketna smirked behind her mask but made no sound of laughter. Removing her gloves, she presented bare fingers for the curious tabby to sniff. It only took a couple huffs for him to shove his head against her hand, which Ketna responded by scratching him wherever he leaned his head into.

"Didn't get to introduce myself properly, last time." Ketna spoke idly while providing the attention Capone wanted, using her free hand to slide the scarf off her neck.

"Y'here for me or the cat?" Xerxes sounded vaguely impatient, possibly even the slightest bit jealous at the attention Capone was receiving, but Ketna couldn't be certain.

"I don't know," Ketna's tone was mockingly wistful. "It's a tough call, you've got some strong competition." Capone leaned the full weight of his top half into Ketna's hands, purring loudly at the scratching against his cheek.

"Competition? Tch'," Xerxes loomed his frame over her, sliding his head beside Ketna's before he continued. "How's about I pet your pussy and make you purr."

Ketna was not prepared for how quickly she dropped at that single suggestion by Xerxes, especially at something so incredibly stupid. She was grateful for the mask that obscured her likely reddening face. But little good that did her when her momentary freeze would have been something he could easily pick up on. Or he would have, had his attention not been drawn by something else.

"Ain't a mark there..." Xerxes commented curiously, looking at the space on her exposed neck where she had been shot straight through.

Xerxes' hand reached out, seeking to confirm what he saw, but Ketna caught his fingers in her grasp the moment they moved toward her. Capone gave a soft protest at the loss of the hand that had been attending to him.

"I haven't given you permission to touch me." She announced just as quickly.

Xerxes huffed, almost sneering, at the denial of his advance but did nothing to contest it. When he pulled his hand back, Ketna released it without another word.

"So y'just heal like that?" His hand gestured at her without advancing.

"I'm not magic, I need surgery just like anyone else." Ketna blew off the question, retrieving her pack and making her way to the hall in an attempt to avoid the line of questioning.

Xerxes was fast on her heels, and not about to let it go right then. "Anyone else still gets scars, 'less they're synthetic."

Ketna paused in her response, mulling on how much to provide that would get him to let go of the subject.

"I have access to medical means most don't." She answered cautiously.

"Figured that much, but there's more to that, isn't there."

Again there was a marked silence as Ketna considered her words carefully. She didn't have to answer him, but knowing how he was, he was going to needle her again at some other point until he got an answer he was satisfied with. Entering the threshold of the bedroom, she attempted to bring the subject to a close as quickly as possible.

"I heal a bit more- completely than typical. As long as the pieces are close enough and aligned correctly, my body can fill in the blanks without too much issue." It was more information than she would have liked to provide, but it was likely something he would pick up on soon enough, especially if they were going to continue being 'intimately' involved.

"There a limit to that?"

"None you need to know." Ketna answered sharply.

"So that's a yes."

Ketna huffed but didn't answer the question, setting the bag on the nearest surface to sort through it.

"S'Like, if y'get an arm sliced off y'can just put it back on like nothing happened?" Xerxes gestured to his own arm when speaking, mimicking a slicing motion toward it to illustrate his question.

Ketna paused in her preparations and sighed heavily. "Yes." She answered darkly, suspecting it'd be something he'd find out eventually.

"So h-"

"Do you want me to fuck you or not?" She interrupted the next line of questioning before it got on any further.

"Shoulda just said that from the beginning."

Ketna sighed but was glad to have the conversation move beyond the discussion of her physical limits and what could kill her. She had sorted what she needed in her bag, but kept the contents hidden inside for now, the more important gear she needed to start was not in her possession. Glancing around the room, she found the harness resting outside the hardware cabinet. After slipping one item from her bag into a pocket, she sat the bag next to the cabinet, exchanging it for the harness that hung there. But that wasn't the only thing she needed.

Opening the cabinet she found it much less of a mess than before. It wasn't neatly organized but it had been very obviously sorted through. What remained appeared to only be the things that fit Xerxes and what he, hopefully, was interested in. The lack of collars in the cabinet was a good indication of that. She hoisted the additional straps she intended to use over her shoulder, and closed the cabinet back up.

"Get over here so I can strap you in." Ketna held up the harness to make her intent clear.

Xerxes was quietly compliant as Ketna slipped the harness over each arm, holding each one out as needed. She slipped it over around his front, circling around to his back to fasten it.

"Let me make this absolutely clear." Ketna marked the statement with the final tug of the buckle. "Things are not 'back to normal' between us. My being here is not proof of absolvement, this is your trial. The verdict depends entirely on how well you listen." She walked back around to Xerxes' front in time for him to address her.

"Trial huh? Should I call ya 'your honor'?"

"Heh, cute, but no." She tugged at the harness. "Now, kneel." She ordered.

Xerxes gave a nonchalant shrug but did as he was instructed, kneeling as he did the last time. As he complied, Ketna continued.

"Face forward, hands on your thighs, remain still until I instruct you otherwise." As she spoke, Ketna made slow strides circling around Xerxes, while resting a hand to linger on his shoulders, tracing across him with her steps.

"I'm not letting you at me all at once." As Ketna explained, she withdrew the object she had snuck into her pocket and unfurled it. "You will be restricted in what you can do," she slipped it around Xerxes' head, making it obvious it was a blindfold. "And what you can see." She emphasized as she secured it, when doing so, she caught the corners of his mouth tugging into a grimace. "The better you listen, the more freedom I'll permit you. Hands behind your back."

Xerxes gave a small laugh but did as he was told. One by one she strapped his arms to his harness. When finished she continued to pace around him once more, leaving a hand against his neck to ensure she never lost contact with him. Circling around to his front, the hand on him trailed up his neck, gliding under his jaw to firmly hold him by the chin, tilting his head upward.

"Is that clear?"

"Heh, crystal."

"Good. Now, wait here, don't move until I tell you."

Finally releasing him from her touch, she left Xerxes kneeling there on the floor.

She had intended to change earlier but between the cat and distracting conversation about her healing she never got around to it. All for the better in the end, making him wait patiently was something he could learn from.

She had no intention of dressing up for him, but she did want something easier to work with this specific kind of activity. A dress was more convenient than a pants and top set, and a full mask swapped with a half mask to keep her voice clear and instructions easy to hear. All the while, apart from some subtle muttering and shifting, Xerxes had remained in place and largely quiet.

Returning to Xerxes' placement on the floor, Ketna placed a hand on his shoulder as soon as she was in reach before she spoke.

"Off to a good start, but I'll see how well you keep this up."

With hand on his shoulder Ketna placed pressure in the direction she wanted to guide him to, turning him to face the edge of the bed. Xerxes now positioned as she wanted, she sat herself at the edge of the bed, hand drifting from shoulder to his chin as she moved and sat in place.

"You have a lot to answer for, I expect you to make it up to me." Ketna's hand pulled away from Xerxes, joined to rest in her lap with the other. "Which is why, before we go any further, you're going to apologize to me."

Xerxes' smirk dropped into a frown. "What?"

"You heard me. If you want anything between us to move forward, I expect you to apologize to me."

"That a metaphor, cus if you want me t-"

"I'm serious, a real apology." Ketna cut him off before he could steer the conversation in another direction.

"I apologized to you for actions I took that crossed the line, now you need to do the same. You want us to be square, this is how you do it."

"Th'fuck am I even apologizin' for. You admitted that was your fuckup. And I already told you I didn't claw you on purpose. What- am I supposed t'apologize for something that wasn't even my fault just cus you got hurt?"

Ketna sighed in exasperation, she wasn't surprised but now she was second guessing if this was more trouble than it was worth.

"Yes, I admitted where I fucked up, and I know I caused that outcome. But things wouldn't have escalated to that point in the first place had you just admitted not wanting the collar. And deflecting that discomfort with what I can only describe as insecure machismo, didn't help, either."

Xerxes sneered, straining on his binds. "We actually fucking or was this all so that you could fuckin' lecture me?"

"Yes, we're going to fuck," Ketna sighed, but was unsurprised at where he put his priorities. "All you have to do is apologize and we can continue."

Xerxes shifted again, on the cusp of another complaint but Ketna spoke before he could voice it.

"Since I'm certain you've hardly had any practice in this field, here's how an apology works. First, you identify where you did wrong. Second, you state your remorse for that wrongdoing, sincerely. Third, you endeavor to not repeat it and say as much. It is also helpful to apologize for things that weren't intentional, not because of culpability, but out of sympathy or remorse that it happened."

Xerxes groaned audibly, fidgeting in place, but finally settled.

"Yeah alright, fine." He took a breath before he spoke again. "I'm Sorry- I lied- about the collar." Xerxes spoke with great strain and theatrical inflection, emphasizing and exaggerating words as he spoke.

"And?"

"And?? What 'and'? You already know about the collar we covered that. What the fuck am I not supposed to repeat?" His voice raised, his flexing in agitation causing audible strain to the binds.

"Any other situation where you're not comfortable with something, you tell me. You don't deflect it or make a joke about it, you just say you don't want it."

"Yeah yeah fine okay, I'll tell you I don't want somethin' or 'deflect' or whateverthefuckitis." Xerxes huffed but the tension against his bonds seemed to wane.

Concerned about the potential spot of vulnerability Xerxes may be in, in all this, Ketna felt impulsed to make a pact she hadn't intended to when she started. She reached out, gently placing her fingers against the sides of his neck. Xerxes flinched at the touch, either because he wasn't expecting it or was tense from the course of conversation, or both, Ketna wasn't sure. But he didn't respond adversely beyond that. She traced her hands up his neck and began to speak when she felt some of the tension leave.

"I don't violate intimacy, Xerxes." Both of Ketna's hands rested against his jaw, cupping it from underneath, her voice weighted with earnest sincerity. "I don't use it as a tool or a lure. Whatever vulnerability I discover between us remains that way. If there is a boundary, I won't cross it, but in order to do that I need to know where it is."

"Y-yeah-" He shrugged, attempting to shake off whatever disorientation he was experiencing. "sure, whatever."

"Good. Now then-" One of Ketna's hands left Xerxes' jaw, leaving just one to tilt it up. "you mentioned a metaphorical apology. I think I like the sound of that."

Her last hand withdrew from his chin as she leaned herself back. With the appropriate leverage, she raised a leg over Xerxes' shoulder, pulling him into a leaning position toward the foot of the bed.

"I hope I don't need to explain what I expect of you n-ext-!?"

Ketna had hardly finished her sentence when Xerxes shoved his face hungrily between her legs, teeth and tongue no strangers to navigating the delicate flesh, despite the lack of help from his sight. Even after the first time he had responded this way, it never ceased to surprise her with how eager he was to get his face between her legs.

His tongue found its way between her lips brushing on the outside as a tease, then forcing its way between on the second lap. Ketna leaned herself back, resting her weight on an arm while tilting her hips up to potentially give Xerxes better access in the position he was in. He shifted quickly to the new posture, pressing the front of his teeth carefully to her lips while his tongue dove deeper inside. The pressure he could provide inside her was decently stimulating, his tongue was good enough at that. They had hardly begun and already, Ketna found herself being lulled closer into a state of sexual comfort.

He continued massaging her internally until he heard the first gentle sounds from her, withdrawing the tongue for what she knew would follow. As he had done before, teeth pressed to her lips, pressure enough to part what he needed to gain access to her most sensitive spot. As many times as it had happened, and just as before, Ketna jerked in place at the first contact of tongue against her clit. His careful buildup had made her appropriately sensitive, and the gentle swirling of his tongue was winding her up in quick order, warmth of what would soon follow reaching from her center through the rest of her body.

While he could not keep himself close to her on his own, Ketna's hand at the back of his head and legs against his back, kept him as close as he needed to be. Circular motions switched to quick, flicking laps, and her body responded immediately. Everything was getting sharp so fast, her back arched in some attempt to feel it more, her mind chanted for it to not stop but she could only whine in her state. He kept up the action for as long as he needed until she finally gave a small whimper and her body began to shudder. The subtle ripple of an orgasm took hold of her body for a moment, her back stiffening, legs tightening against his back and hand at the back of his head clenching in a fist but not gripping at him.

Despite his limited mobility, Xerxes did what he could to keep himself as close to her as possible, seeking to continue teasing her through her sensitivity, but it was an effort that had its limits. After the first wave of intensity washed over her, Ketna pulled herself away from him and there was little he could do to bridge the gap. Conceding his limits given the circumstances, he ceased straining against her hand, licking lightly against his teeth, grinning at her from his position.

"Good enough for ya?"

"Not bad," She admitted, Ketna's voice was almost melodious in her praise but still marked by deep breaths, riding the pleasant sensation of the orgasm she just had. "Now show me what you can do with your hands."

Reaching around Xerxes' side to his back, she undid the buckles of the straps that held his arms in place. It may have been too early to move to the next step, but she desperately wanted the additional stimulus that she knew his hands could provide.

His hands darted straight to her hips the moment they were free. He grasped and yanked her to nearly off the edge of the bed with a force that threw her off-balance. Hands clamored over her thighs, hips, and back with a ravenous urgency that caused him to grip all too tightly in places. The feel of claws against her skin, even if accidentally, caused Ketna to stiffen immediately.

"Hey! Watch the claws!" Her order was sharp and urgent, her mind recalling the last time Xerxes dug his claws into her.

Xerxes' grasps softened immediately upon hearing the exclamation, then tightened again with more caution than before. It took longer for Ketna's adrenaline to die back down despite her relief that he had listened and complied so quickly, as her mind was still coasting on the memory of before. But sure enough, Xerxes' diligent and attentive work in her sex had coaxed her into a tentative state of ease.