To Tame a Slave Ch. 03

Hi guys, I'm sorry this took so long, but I've been sick and kinda down, and I kinda lost my muse for a bit. Per request, I tried to make this one longer. Also, I'm sorry we're still a little low on the sexy bits, but I don't want to force it, I want it to come naturally. Please enjoy!

*****

Snippets of conversation slid through my haze. At first it was just general tone of voice. One man sounded very angry. He kept repeating words like 'damage' and 'money' and 'business'. It was all very confusing. The other voice was also male, but it was apologetic, and almost a little afraid. The only word that truly filtered in from him was 'sorry'.

My eyes blinked open slowly. The exchange was different from any other that had occurred around me over the past week, which caught my interest. The orc was there, wringing his hands, which probably meant he was the one apologizing. Good. I attempted to summon up a modicum of satisfaction that he was worried, but I didn't seem to have enough energy. Whatever.

I could only see the back of the other man, as he was facing away from me. Black hair. Dark leather armor. An intriguing air of danger.

My eyes slipped closed again. It really wasn't very interesting, which meant that I was going to go back to sleep. Sadly, that plan was brought to a halt, as I was quite rudely removed from my cage. To be honest, the culprit was incredibly gentle, but that didn't change the fact that I was trying to sleep, damn it. "Little human, are you alright?"

Little human. That sounded familiar. As did the voice, if I cared to think about it. There was a shift, and I could feel myself cradled against a man's chest. I presumed it was the dark haired man, but didn't bother to check.

"I asked you to humble her a little. Show her a little taste of what things could have been like for her." His voice rumbled deep in his chest, vibrating against my body in a comforting way. A little sigh slipped out, and I snuggled closer to him instinctively, though he didn't appear to notice. "Instead, you allowed her to be damaged, and succeeded in actually breaking her."

There were more apologies, and I chuckled inwardly. Serves the damn ogre right. Who was broken?

And then we were moving. The man had long legs, so we covered ground quickly, but his stride was even and fluid, and he seemed to be taking special care not to jostle me too much. We walked for what seemed like forever, the sounds of the marketplace slowly fading away. When I opened my eyes next, we were entering a cozy looking house. The man called out a greeting while I glanced around. The house was... odd to say the least. A lot of decorations and two chairs, but that was it as far as furniture. Most of the space was taken up with flowers and herbs, growing out of pots that sat on the floor, in windowsills, hung from the ceiling.

A woman appeared out of thin air in front of us. There was a warm smile on her transparent face, and as I looked her over, I realized that every part of her was transparent. She shimmered where the light hit her, acting as a prism and sending rainbows across the floor. Other than that, she almost looked normal. Her skin was pale, her eyes were green and laughing, her hair was a light brown and floated around her head like it was caught in a breeze.

"Drell, always a pleasure to see you," the woman said, arms held out in a welcoming gesture. Her voice was warm and soothing, putting me instantly at ease in her presence. I could even feel a smile tugging at my lips.

"And a pleasure to see you too, Sienna," the man holding me responded. There was obvious affection in his voice. "Unfortunately, this isn't a social visit. I have a patient for you."

The woman's eyes moved to me, widening when she saw what I assumed was the ugly bruise around my eye. "Oh dear! What happened?"

"Slave pens for a week. That damn orc let her get damaged. He was supposed to just scare her a little and instead this happened." The man's grip on my tightened slightly, squeezing some of the air out of my lungs. His arms loosened immediately, and he glanced down at me in concern. I stared up at him blankly, part of my mind connecting the dots and realizing that this was indeed the man who had captured me. A tiny spark of fire curled in my chest, making me shift uncomfortably, but it wasn't enough to push me out of my silence.

"You know how I feel about this slavery business, Drell. I still can't believe you dabble in that sort of thing." I could feel the man shrug nonchalantly. "Set her in that chair over there," Sienna said with a sigh. We were moving again, and I was being placed in one of the two chairs. Despite the gentleness I was being shown, and how insanely comfortable the chair was, I still winced at the pain in my ass. "Bruises all over you legs and behind, a black eye, a split lip, sun burned, dehydrated, and malnourished. I believe those bruises run deep too. You've had a rough week. Can you tell me your name?" Her voice was soft and soothing, inspiring the desire to tell her anything she wanted, but instead I stared at her, even as her hand reached towards my face. When she touched me, there was a soft tingling sensation, not at all unpleasant.

"She hasn't spoken a word since I picked her up," Drell informed her. "The orc said she hasn't uttered a word in days. When I first captured her, she was very..." He paused, seeming to be searching for an appropriate word. "Vocal. I'm afraid he may have broken her spirit."

Sienna's eyes peered into mind, her hand storking through my face, which was incredibly unsettling. Everywhere she touched felt warm, and the longer her hand stroked, the less my face hurt. "No," she finally said, glancing away from me. "There's still a fire in her. Her spirit isn't broken, only subdued, as if there is a blanket over it, smothering the flames. She only needs the proper stimuli to make the fire blaze again. There. Her face is healed." Green eyes, dancing with mischief, were turned back on me. "I can see why Drell is enchanted with you. You are remarkably beautiful."

Drell protested that he was only protecting merchandise, that he was not enchanted with a human, that the idea was preposterous. Sienna winked at me, grinning. "Alright, now to heal everything else." At this, she put both hands on my face, hovering just at the surface of my skin, and her eyes slipped shut.

"Drell, you may need to hold her," she said. I didn't have much time to wonder why before I felt a warmth flowing from her hands and into my body. A weight settled on my shoulders, but I was too lost in the pleasant sensation to care. It tingled down my spine and limbs, settling into every part of me, mildly arousing my body. I rubbed my thighs together, breath coming a little quicker.

The warmth intensified, especially around the areas that were bruised, soothing some of the pain. It continued to intensify, and I shifted uncomfortably. It grew hotter and hotter, sweat starting to gather on my skin. I tried to pull away from the woman, but the hands on my shoulders held me down firmly.

A whimper slipped out. I felt like I was combusting, like a fire was devouring my flesh. Finally, unable to stand it any longer, a scream was torn from my throat.

And then it was over. The heat fled from my body all at once, leaving me weak but comfortable. My eyes blinked open cautiously and I lifted a hand to my face, expecting to feel burned flesh, but everything was smooth and soft, and all of the pain was gone.

My eyes found Sienna, shocked and confused, but she only winked at me again.

"I get the feeling the two of you should have a conversation," she said to the man behind me. "I have errands to run. Feel free to stay as long as you need. Drell, she's going to be very hungry when the healing finishes setting in. And you may want to find her a dress."

"Thank you very much, Sienna," Drell replied, coming around the chair and into my line of sight. She smiled at him, brushing her hand across his face, and then she was gone just as suddenly as she had appeared.

Drell turned and knelt in front of me. We stared at each other for a long moment, neither talking, before he sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to get hurt like that. I only wanted to give you a small taste of what things could be like for you, so that you would be more appreciative of your situation. I've found a buyer who's interested in you. He's a good friend of mine, and I think the two of you will be well suited to each other."

When I didn't respond, he growled. "I didn't have to go through that trouble for you. I could have just sold you to the orc and been done with it, so a little gratitude would be appreciated."

"Thank you." The words slipped out quietly, but I could see they startled him.

"Did you actually just thank me?" He asked, voice incredulous.

"Wasn't that what you wanted?" I asked, folding my hands in my lap, idly noticing that I was in my jacket still and only in my jacket.

His dark eyes narrowed. "Are you being a smartass?" He responded, sounding almost hopeful.

I shook my head, and his expression darkened. "You wanted me to be thankful, so I am."

"Are you actually thankful?" He asked, following with, "And be honest."

I thought about it for a moment. Thankfulness would mean that I actually cared about what happened to me, but I couldn't dredge up that level of interest. "Not really," I finally answered. "I'm not sure I really care what happens to me."

He scowled, leaping to his feet and pacing across the floor. I watched him for a couple of minutes, disinterested, before he turned on me, hands slamming down on the arms of my chair.

"Where you're going, you'll be well taken care of. You'll be fed and given free time and even an allowance. You won't be abused. The orc told me about the man who tried to buy you. He's infamous for buying slaves and torturing them until they finally die, whether that be after weeks or years. Is that the kind of person you want to end up with?"

I shrugged. The action must have provoked him, because the next thing I knew, his hand was in my hair and I was on my feet. I cried out softly as he jerked me against his body.

"You don't fucking care anymore?" He growled, having finally lost his temper. "Fine. Then I guess you won't care if I throw you on the floor and fuck you right here." His face was so close to mine that if either of us moved, our lips would brush. He seemed to have the same thought, because his lips were then pressed to mine with a gentleness that belied the roughness of his grip.

I sighed into his mouth, letting him deepen the kiss, but not returning it. The hand in my hair loosened, moving to cup the back of my head and lift my face so he could kiss me better. Hesitating, my hands touched his arms and slid up, settling on his shoulders.

He moaned into my mouth and the kiss became rougher. Desire raced through me, flames tearing through my veins, and without thought, my hands were gripping his clothes, his shoulders, anything they could reach to pull him to me, harder, closer.

Our kiss grew fierce, each of us trying to outdo the other. My teeth sunk into his bottom lip, drawing a growl from his chest. His hand tightened in my hair again, yanking my head back so he could nip at my throat hard enough to leave teeth marks.

I moaned, the sound startling me out of the flames. My hands went from tugging to shoving. He went surprisingly easy, a cocky grin on his face, smile growing when I glared at him. His hand touched his lip lightly. "I'm bleeding," he remarked.

"Good!" I snapped. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"Many things," he replied. "To which issue are you referring?"

"All of it, you fucking bastard!" I yelled, hands curled into fists by my sides.

"You didn't enjoy that kiss? Could have fooled me." I snarled at him. "I was trying to wake you up," he admitted sighing, "bring back your spirit."

"Why?" I snapped. "Wasn't that what you wanted? I pretty little obedient slave?"

"No," he said, smile starting to turn into a glare. "I wanted a fiery, spirited woman who accepted that she no longer belonged to herself."

"I don't fucking believe you. Oh, I'm sorry, that's a little aggressive." In a sickly sweet voice, I said, "I'm sorry Master, I'll try to be better. I'll try not to curse so much, Master. I'll be good, I promise. Please don't punish me Master, unless that's your de- mmph!"

His hand was slapped across my mouth, cutting off the flow of words. "If you don't fucking stop, I will punish you. And worse, I'll make you enjoy it, so at the end, you'll be begging me to fuck you." His voice was rough and low, as if he was enjoying the thought of doing just that.

I shoved his hand away. "I doubt you could make me enjoy it, asshole. Especially after this fucking week. I hate your touch."

He laughed, yanking my body against his, one arm around my waist. "Now that I know is a lie. You certainly liked it when I was kissing you." I shook my head emphatically, trying not to tremble as his lips slid along my jaw to my ear.

"If I were to put my fingers between your legs, I bet you would be dripping for me, wouldn't you?" His free hand trailed down my back and across the sensitive skin of my ass, intent of actually finding out.

The worst thing was, I was pretty sure he was right, and I hated him for that. Before I could stop them, tears were rolling down my cheeks, everything that had happened crashing into me at once. I buried my face into his chest, trying not to let him see my weakness. He must have heard my faint sniffles, because his hand gently stroked my short hair.

"Hush little human. It will be alright, I promise," he murmured soothingly.

"Stop calling me that," I grumbled, my voice muffled by his armor. "My name is Alanna."

"Alanna then. Are you alright?"

I pulled away to glare at him, angrily brushing the tears from my face. "That's a dumb fucking question," I snapped, glaring at him. He grinned. "And can you decide if you're angry or amused? You're giving me whiplash with the damn mood swings."

The man had the gall to laugh. He shifted, and I was suddenly cradled in his arms again. "I can't wait to get to know you when you're not angry, Alanna."

I was saved from having to respond by the fuzziness blurring my vision, indicating that once again I was about to pass out around him.

Sigh.

--

I wasn't sure what woke me up, but it was probably the gnawing hunger pains. Groaning I sat up, clutching my stomach. Once the pain eased for a moment, I noticed a number of things had changed. Most pressing was the fact that I was now missing my jacket. Instead, a blanket was wrapped firmly around my body. Well that was a nice touch, but it didn't make up for the missing article of clothing. I looked around, rubbing my eyes with one hand stil clutching my stomach. I was sitting in a small clearing, relatively close to a cheerfully burning fire, and nearby was a horse, tethered to a tree and munching on some grass.

"Oh good, you're awake."

I nearly jumped out of my skin, rolling onto my knees and meeting the dark eyes of the man who was selling me into slavery. "Why am I always passing out around you?" I asked crossly, glaring at him.

"You've not even been awake five minutes and you're already glaring at me. You are a very disagreeable woman," he complained, dropping an armful of sticks by the fire. When I continued glaring at him, he sighed. "I'm a dark elf," he said, as if that would explain it.

"A... what?" I stared at him, eyes wide.

"You really are a changeling, aren't you?" I opened my mouth to repeat my question, but he shook my head and dropped down onto the ground beside me. Feeling strangely shy, I adjusted the blanket around me, making sure it covered everything. "A dark elf is..." He seemed to be trying to figure out how to explain things to me. "Well, it's type of elf."

"No shit. I couldn't have figured that out myself." Instead of responding vocally to my interruption, he pushed me over. From the ground, I stared at him in shock. "You pushed me!"

He ignored my indignation, the bastard. "We hold domain over the night, so that's what our magic is centered around. One of our abilities encompasses everything to do with sleep."

Jumping to me feet, I pointed at him and cried out, "You! You've been putting me to sleep!"

"You are surprisingly docile while you sleep. I expected you to be one of those people who kicked and thrashed about." He smiled pleasantly at me, so I kicked his leg. It didn't do much, considering I was still barefoot.

"So if you're a dark elf, what the fuck is a changeling?" I demanded to know, trying to cross my arms and keep myself covered at the same time. Seeing my struggle, he stood up and went to rifle through his saddle bags. He returned with a pale yellow dress that, while pretty, I couldn't see myself wearing. Ah well, beggars can't be choosers.

"Changelings are beings who were placed on Earth in the womb, disguised as humans. They have recently been stumbling back into our world, in their true form, and nobody is quite sure why." He had turned as round when he spoke, an unexpected but well received gesture, so I was able to pull the simple dress on. It felt rather pretty, but I very much disliked wearing dresses.

"So if I'm supposedly one of these changelings, why am I still human?" I asked as he turned back around. His eyes skimmed over me, making me blush slightly.

"You look very pretty in a dress. I'd be curious to see what you look like all cleaned up." I glared at him for not answering my question, receiving a grin. "To be honest, I don't know. I'm not sure you are entirely human. I've yet to meet a human who's eyes glow like yours."

"You were being serious about that?" I asked in shock.

"Completely. It's a little unnerving."

I sniffed and sat back on the ground near the fire, pulling the blanket around my shoulders. The sun was going down, and the air was quickly cooling off. "I'm glad I unnerve you. Also, I do believe my stomach is trying to eat itself, so unless you are planning on delivering a corpse, you should probably feed me."

He laughed, retrieving two bowls and leading some type of stew into them. One was offered to me, and the other he dug into after dropping down next to me. We ate in silence, as I tried to digest everything he told me. I took a deep breath. It was all too much at once so I decided to deal with what was happening in this moment, and go from there.

He cleaned up around the camp while I stared anxiously into the fire. As he pulled out what I assumed was a bedroll, he finally spoke up. "You're quiet."

"Put yourself in my shoes," I snapped without any real heat in the words. I squeaked in surprise as I was suddenly airborne. "I'm not a kitten, will you quit picking me up!"

"I don't know, you seem very much like a cat to me." He dropped me on his bedroll and dropped down beside me, yanking his boots off. I didn't dignify him with a response. "Time for sleep, little kitten." He wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me down with him and tucking the blanket around us.

"Is this entirely necessary?" I grumbled into his chest.

"Completely."

I lay quiet and stiff, but after a while I relaxed into his body heat. He may be the man who was selling me into slavery, but the last week had probably been the roughest of my life, and I could forgive myself for craving a little physical intimacy. Feeling me relax, his arm tightened slightly, and his free hand slid through my hair comfortingly. The tears started to fall again, slow at first, but growing into sobs that shook my whole body. He held me throughout it, slowly stroking my hair, until I finally passed out from exhaustion.

--

My dreams that night were strange, involving a man and a woman, her with pink hair that I was insanely jealous of, and they seemed to be discussing magic. It flipped then through various scenes I couldn't understand, a man and woman in armor, children who seemed way more powerful than they appeared, a pleasure house full of strange and fantastical creatures, and finally, a man. The scene started with him sitting at a table, reading a book that he held in his lap. His head was turned down and his silver hair fell around his face, further obscuring my view. As I watched, beautiful white and silver wings extended from his back, moving as if they had a mind of their own. His head slowly swung up, and I was pierced by the clearest blue eyes I had every seen.