Sufferance Ch. 12

I had pushed her already-fragile composure past a breaking point with that one. She tried to jerk away and I only just caught her back. She cursed at me and tried again to escape. Her struggles were much more challenging than Shyntre's, and I had Jaunda and her one-on-one tutoring to thank for managing to hold Jael now. Eventually, I had to turn the new Sister onto her belly, force her to hold still and climb on top. It wasn't a hardship for me—the wriggling and flexing of her buttocks against my groin made me groan low in my throat as I held on to both her wrists above her head and held her down with my weight.

The side of her face was pressed to the mattress and now she looked up at me with one eye through her hair. Her teeth were still clenched. "Now you're going to do it? Fuck hard as you want to, you won't impress me."

I smiled and kissed her ear. She was assuming, just as I had, that every Red Sister had her own Feldeu. Not always. "Mmm. Tempting. You do smell good. But first... tell me whether you knew there are Abyssal commands that can be used on a Draegloth that stops him cold or sends him away?"

She blinked, needing to focus to expand her lungs enough to talk. "No. Are there...?"

"Yes. Qivni knows some, and I know she watched you against the Draegloth. She's only impressed with self-discipline, however, so you may have some trouble with her on that account."

Jael was quiet but I could almost hear her thoughts racing; some of the frustration on her face melted away, along with some of the tension in her body. It was abrupt enough to make me wonder whether I could be wrong about something I'd just said.

"How was Qivni, anyway? Satisfying?" I teased.

I didn't see how she could be. I'd found Rausery's Lead to be anything but satisfying. However, Jael's reaction did intrigue me; she turned her face into the mattress so I couldn't see it, muffling any possible reply as well. Perhaps her relationship to Qivni was somehow a little warmer than was my own? She would have had some time under her by now; if they'd found anything in common...

"Ah...does she like you? Why would that be?"

Her hips moved under me again as if she was trying to wriggle out...or trying to tease me. It had been brief.

"Jael?"

"Shut up," she mumbled. "She warned me not to talk to you about her."

Darling. As if I could resist that challenge.

I pulled her arms down to cross her wrists at her lower back so that I could keep her in submission but have one hand free. She made an enticing sound, wordless but protesting, as I slid my fingers down her side and in between us, along the crease of her butt and thigh, reaching to touch her sex. She squealed softly as I felt her netherlips and probed at her hole with a finger. She was a little moist, but only to have felt some kind of arousal very recently: as we struggled, but not before. She'd have been very dry before, and I knew her soreness would have been the cause.

I thought she wasn't fighting me as hard as she might.

"As you wish," I said and released her, lifting my weight and moving to one side, keeping her between the wall and me.

She rolled and scooted to gain a little space between us then she looked at me with high suspicion and incredulity.

"You're either playing with me or you're frigid and can't fuck. Which is it?" she demanded.

I burst out laughing and took her hand, leading it between my thighs. "If that feels frigid to you, let me know."

I was far wetter than she was, and her fingers played around with my sex in a more automatic motion, I thought, because she seemed to realize what she was doing. She snatched her hand back as soon as I moaned aloud.

"Little tease," I chuckled.

"So you're just playing. Qivni told me you were like that."

I propped my head with my elbow and smiled, studying her face. "I think I know what it is. You both have that serious streak with a lower threshold for play. Am I not dour enough to arouse you?"

Jael frowned but looked more confused. Finally she seemed to be catching up with me. "So... what's Qivni to you?"

"Nothing much. Someone who'd like to whip my ass until it's raw, I'm sure, because I tend to laugh at her." I paused, screwing up my face in thought. "Oh wait, she has."

"Nothing much? She's as high in rank as Jaunda is."

"And Jaunda laughs while she fucks me. I know which I prefer."

"Which might explain the general lack of forethought Qivni gives you."

"So good humor equals brainlessness, does it? Goddess, you *have* had some good conversation with Qivni, haven't you?" I grinned. "I'm impressed. She barely said anything to me. I think it annoyed her that I was climaxing and she wasn't. So why hasn't she told you about her familiarity with Draegloth?"

Jael shrugged, still frowning. "I'm new...not yet time, maybe..."

"I've had the same thought. You'll find that thinking is pervasive in all levels of rank regarding information and who should know what—whether or not anyone laughs about it."

"But...couldn't the Sisterhood could be stronger if the Leads knew more...?"

"Or they'd use that extra information to do more harm to us out of ignorance. You've probably heard the phrase, 'Knows just enough to be dangerous.'"

Jael smirked. "Strange. That's what she said to watch out for in you. That you are unpredictable, ignorant, and do not keep the good of the Sisterhood in mind at all times."

"Aww. I'm hurt."

I also couldn't believe what I was hearing. Not the exact words, they didn't surprise me in the least, but the fact that in gossiping about me this way, Qivni was already planning for Jael to stay and had been grooming her to her own way of thought while I was away.

"I'd really like to know how you moved your tongue to get her to move hers that way, Jael. A bit hypocritical of her, though, as she has me and my 'unpredictability' to thank for you even being in her bed."

Jael gave me a look and withdrew from the discussion then. Perhaps she realized that she didn't know more, or didn't know what to do with what she did know. I think she also realized she'd been talking too much about her Lead. I, for one, was very grateful it had taken her that long to realize it—and I had been trading information with her, whether she knew it now or not.

I added, "I suppose she's just training you early. She likes you. That counts for a lot. Don't do anything stupid like try to kill another Sister through your tests and you'll stay with us. Give it time and forge some successes, and those others will forget how you came to be here."

"But you're still new as well," she said. "How do you know they'll forget?"

"Most Sisters live in this moment of time. Only a few are required to live in perpetual forethought. Wasn't it the same at your former House? We're still Drow, aren't we?"

Hesitantly, Jael nodded once. She seemed to be thinking of Qivni as her tutor, but I could see on her face... she was comparing and weighing me as a contrast. That was good; knowing the value on both sides had more options than willful blindness toward one side or the other.

"You lived in your present at your former House, Jael. Whose task or burden was it to live in the future?"

"The Matron's."

"And in this cloister...whom would you say has that burden?"

"The Prime...and the Elders, Rausery and D'Shea."

I nodded. "Like I said, do what you do best and as their show of appreciation the others will forget what I did to bring you here."

I saw a wry smile touch her mouth as she looked at me. "And you mean to be one of those perpetual forethinkers, don't you? Given enough time."

I smiled back. "Maybe."

"You can have it," she said. "Always hated the Court."

"I could tell." I reached out now to nudge her shoulder. "On your back."

She blinked, surprised and tensing up again before she regained control of herself and slowly rolled herself in place to recline. I liked that I was keeping her off guard. I moved closer, remaining on my side, and smoothed my hand along her inner thigh. I could smell her fragrance, subtle as it may be without the hair. I wanted to taste it and make that fragrance stronger.

Jael's protest was incomplete as I pulled her leg open and crawled between her thighs on my elbows and knees. Her mound had been shaven clean recently, and it made me wonder which Red Sister had opted for that? I'd kept my adornment through my tests—even though Jaunda liked to cut it short—and Jael had still had the white, curling fur crowning her thighs when I'd seen her in the wilderness.

I kissed the bare mound. It was incredibly smooth as if the shave had just happened, and Jael again made a sound like she didn't want me to continue but knew she had no choice. I ran both hands along her inner thighs and ended by rubbing both thumbs slowly along her netherlips. Her hands were gripping the blanket and I had to wonder what she expected, or dreaded, from me?

Then again, I supposed I'd had one blessing last year that she didn't: for the first few days of the continuous rapes at the hands of my Sisters, I'd still felt the effects of the fertility ritual. The pleasure had been ever-present, even with the pain. By the time it faded and my responses were more normal, I had already been well-trained on how to glean pleasure from the rough treatment. With myself, Gaelan, and Jaunda as my prime examples, it hadn't occurred to me until now that perhaps it took other Red Sisters longer to learn to take pleasure from the tests.

Jael was showing avoidance responses still after six cycles...and I could lay the blame for that right at Panagan's feet for her short-sightedness. I sighed.

I admired the novice's naked slit, noticed the hot pink, raw look inside her dark lips, and on closer inspection I saw tiny, swollen bumps where the individual hairs would have been. I touched and peered closely, and realized that no blade—no matter how thin—could have removed not only the hairs but the roots as well...

"Did a Sister pluck every hair out of your sex, Jael?" I asked, letting the surprise come through in my voice.

She shook her head but didn't elaborate.

"No? This wasn't done with a blade. How was it done?"

"Wax," she said shortly, staring up at the ceiling. "Thena used wax and strips of cloth to rip it all out."

I took a moment to imagine that and grimaced. That had to hurt intensely for several moments. "Well, that might be preferable to plucking out one at a time."

She tried to shrug it off but she was anxious. "Perhaps. It was still blinding. She said now I was officially the 'baby' of the group and that I'd be like this for weeks. She said she'd remove the hair the same way anytime I grew more."

Symbolic pre-pubescence? That could have been one of the responses to Jael's questionable "validity" on her wilderness test... I could see it. At least it had been done with some skill; I didn't see any torn skin. Just bare, slightly pebbled dark skin. Fairly rare amongst females, from what I knew, even if trimming and sculpting was quite common. It wasn't discouraging for me, though; I could still admire the full, mature lips and the lovely symmetry with which Lolth had blessed her.

All the same...it would seem Thena was making a play for Jael as well, not just Qivni and me. I'd have to do something about that eventually.

For now, I lowered my mouth onto that naked sex, offering sucking kisses and flicking my tongue gently over the smooth flesh. She drew in her breath. I tasted a mild soap and felt the heat of her slit was greater than my tongue as I tested the spongy, swollen flesh. She was indeed sore; forceful penetration at this point would just make her draw away from me. Her body language told me she was waiting for it, expecting it, ready.

I opted to see how long she could anticipate pain that might never come. I could mouth another female for ages and not lose patience; it was one skill, though forced on me while young, had since been transformed into a kind of quiet contemplation. I did not have to think about anything much except for the scent below my nose, the give of tender flesh against my tongue and lips, and the moist heat that reminded me of an underground hot spring.

Sometimes I'd withdraw and let her feel the chill of the air as I blew soft breath onto her, then I'd lick lightly, suck with pure enjoyment, and always keep her wondering when I'd turn from lavishing to punishing as my hands explored her thighs and buttocks.

I heard her arms move at one point and I looked up; her eyes had closed and her left hand was gently twisting one of her nipples. She opened her eyes almost instantly and stopped, either sensing my gaze... or else she had felt my lips smile against her.

"Mmm," I hummed, encouraging, and I saw her mouth open at the sensation. Her hand fell back to her side just before I closed my eyes again, continuing to service her.

Her reluctance made for a very slow climb, but at least the climb was there. Her tension through it changed at last from the anticipation of pain to the acknowledgement of pleasure.

When Jael started closing her legs involuntarily, a little bit at a time, and when those smooth, strong thighs finally began to squeeze my ears, I wrapped my arms more tightly around her thighs, forcing them to remain open, choosing my preference over hers. She gasped at the first show of force and I mouthed her with more enthusiasm, finally pushing her toward that steeper part of her climb. It was time she be pushed.

"Ah! Lolth..." she moaned, and for a moment she sounded afraid as she gripped the blanket in both hands. "S-stop—"

She felt she was losing control of her responses, and maybe it hurt just a little. Good. No dominant in her right mind would stop at this point.

I pierced her with a spear-shaped, stiff tongue, over and over, alternating with harder strokes against her clitoris. She yelped and shifted her legs, then I felt her heels digging into my back. She gave me an aborted scream when I released one thigh to push a single finger inside her, rubbing hard a few times at the firm ridge at the roof of her cunt.

*That's it, little scrapper...let it go.*

Jael moved her hips of her own accord and made more and more frequent sounds—chirps and calls and groans—such a contrast from her earlier silence that it drove my excitement higher. I wanted to push her farther, to see how far she could go. I was so aroused at this point, aching, I wished I did have a Feldeu ready to penetrate her, to feel her slick body clutching around me as I felt our breasts pressed together, her legs wrapped around my hips...

I was using two fingers, thrusting into her, hearing those delicious, sloppy noises that told me she might be staining the blanket below us very soon...

At that worst possible moment, the door opened.

Someone gloated, "Ha! Found you."

Jael jerked away from me, her gasp one of utter horror as her climb came to an abrupt halt.

I was moving before I had thought beyond a venomous, *Fuck you.*

The intruding Sister was ready for a response as I charged the tiny room, but she still fell for a feint. Her eyes were focused on my arm and my fist as I wound up for a solid right hook and at the last moment, I side-kicked her knee instead.

Oh yes, the knee again; one place where it didn't matter that she wore armor and I was bare naked. If this cunt thought she was going to interrupt me and reclaim Jael at this point, she was sadly mistaken!

I followed up with that strike to her face with the heel of my hand and she stumbled and fell to all fours. I had the metal wash bowl in hand as she reached for something on her belt, and I discovered that whatever she'd selected wasn't an area effect as I smashed the bowl into her hand. She cried out, dropped it, and I had barely enough time to fall on her and seize her in one of Jaunda's holds. I wrapped my legs around her from the back and hooked my heels at her knees, slipping my arms beneath hers and clasping my hands together at the base of her neck.

She cursed at me, infuriated and unable to reach any more tools. We rocked and thrashed for good long time, the jutting points of her armor and weapons bruising and scraping my nude body. Jael remained on the bed at first, watching but not interfering.

"LET ME GO!!" Thena screamed. "Fuck you, Sirana! I'm going to split your ass for this!"

I felt my mind fill immediately with gleefully sadistic thoughts. "Hey, Jael? Come over here and start stripping Thena naked, would you?"

I saw Jael think about it, smile, and she started moving toward us.

My captive who'd denuded Jael's crotch struggled even harder. "No! Jael..." she warned intensely. "I'll make it *much* worse for you later if you do."

I saw Jael's more wary expression as she slowed up, and agreed. Yes, Thena was probably right. Neither of us had a working Feldeu or any other sexual equipment, so breaking Thena would be difficult. The novice would pay a high price later, and I wouldn't have discouraged Thena one whit from training Jael more to her liking than mine....

What I needed were witnesses, not simple torture.

"Okay, then. Jael, take off her belt and weapons instead, and step back."

I accepted quite a lot of pain to hold Thena as her struggles intensified. I managed long enough for Jael follow my instructions and it wasn't lost on me that Jaunda's skill and Kain's stubbornness, I would have lost my hold.

Nonetheless, I enjoyed the sight of Jael smiling again, her naked thighs still glazed with her own lubricant as she stood over us with Thena's belt in hand.

I said, "Now pull off that third pouch on the right side, the one with two knots side by side."

"Sirana!" Thena yelled, gasping from her efforts to break free and I gained another bruise as she snapped her head backward and struck me in the ear. I'd turned my head just enough that she didn't get my nose.

"Agh, ow...okay, yes, that one, Jael. Open it and sprinkle a pinch of the powder over her face."

"I'm going to kill you," Thena seethed.

I kissed my captive's ear. "Oh, come now, sometimes we're just in the wrong place at the wrong time. This is one of your times. Make sure she breathes it in, Jael."

I held my breath and closed my eyes as Jael followed through; Thena tried to do the same, but the youngest Sister punched her straight in the stomach, forcing her breath to explode and draw in air again immediately. The elder coughed and moaned and cursed us both as the powder covered her face.

Given enough time, Thena fell unconscious, going lax in my grip. I kept hold of her, breathing out very slowly with my mouth and nose pressed as low on her spine as I could reac, then breathed in again as slowly. My lungs were burning for more air than I was getting for several long moments as I waited to see if Thena was acting.

Jael saved me some time by slapping the older Sister's face. A good thought on her part; I couldn't have given her instruction at that time without breathing in the lingering sleep powder. When there was no response at all to the slap, I let go and got to my feet.

The newest Red Sister laughed softly, looking from Thena to me.

"Now what?" she asked.

"Now we dump her and her equipment outside where Rausery's Sisters will find her, then we come back here and pick up where we left off."

"Naked?"

"Absolutely. That's even better. Although keep one dagger just in case; that one, the one made with obsidian. Be ready to pass it to me."

With Jael's help, I managed to get the dead weight of our unconscious Sister face down over my shoulder, and the novice got the door for me as I carried Thena out farther into the cloister. It tested my endurance at this point, but we managed to find a few members of Rausery's Team Five.

I kneeled in front of them to lay Thena down on the stone ground, managing not to crack her head. It was a good idea not to be *too* aggressive unless I was looking for another fight. I would much rather have a fuck.