Chereads / Chrysanthemum in the Concrete (pre-upload) / Chapter 5 - Prelude to reward

Chapter 5 - Prelude to reward

It wasn't until the next morning that Thana's ire truly showed itself. Luis got up when the rooster daemon abomination started screeching on his balcony railing, and busied himself with weaving his ridiculously long hair into a braid to keep it out of the way.

He pulled on fresh robes, and tied them tightly before tucking in the loose ends, not a wrinkle in place. He walked to the dining hall with a vague remembrance, only getting lost once this time. It was unexpected to see his husband by his usual seat, instead of running around who knows where to no doubt cause calamity.

Luis raised an eyebrow, but continued on as if the last five days of routine didn't just fly off the rails. He sat down and crossed one knee over the other, going about tying back his sleeves before digging into a dish of sticky rice porridge and chicken-smelling meat.

Thana cleared his throat, and was largely ignored. Luis glanced at him once, but other than that, unless Thana talked, he wouldn't give him any attention.

Thana gave up first, stabbing at purple colored greens, he grumbled out a "Good Morn." Luis hummed and sipped the milk and cinnamon tasting beverage in a black glass teacup. "Good morning husband, I trust you had a nice sleep?"

It was dreadfully petty, but humans were petty, so he thinks he's excused. Thana's hold on his silverware creaked as he squeezed.

"Must I remind my love once again that he is not human?" Oops, he was thinking too loud again. He closed his eyes in preparation for the yelling he was about to get.

"Yes, how can I forget, with my new white hair heavy enough to push the breath out of a man? Or my grey skin and pointed ears like a gargoyle come to life? Let's not forget my highly impossible purple eyes, or my sharp finger and toe nails, which I have stubbed on various corners this week and broke the wall instead."

His side glare could skin men at that moment, and Thana still met it head on, "Yes, but husband still seems to think himself human despite that, and I cannot help but wonder if husband does not love or want me if he has such a deplorable habit of referring himself as mortal at every turn of a sentence."

He blinked, facing his husband head on, "Love? I'm afraid we're still very fresh in our relationship for that, dearest. I regard you as a close friend, but we've only been married a week. You must understand that as a human with a short lifespan, I was taught not to love so easily, and value bonds made fiercely through months of companionship. A week is not a month's worth."

A scowl curled on his husband's face, and Luis resolutely turned back to his food, trying to will the argument away.

"Husband should not be afraid, we have the rest of forever together, so we should just start loving each other now." It seems Thana didn't want the argument to go away.

He could see where Thana was coming from, yes, but it wasn't as if he could just snap his fingers and make it all better. "Are we really having this argument so early in the dawn, all because I punished you last night for interrupting an important task?"

Luis figured he might as well nip this in the bud before it gets any worse. He was correct, of course, telling by Thana's worsening mood, and pointed ears twitching the frantic way that he's learned shows Thana's irritation.

"This one just thinks that husband was unnecessarily cruel for such a small matter. I would have left if you'd have asked." Luis looked at him incredulously, what bullshit! What complete, raving, nonsense!

"I didn't know Avatars of death could lie, can you sing too?" He was kicked for his sass, but he didn't regret it in the least. He pinched the bridge of his nose, praying for patience. "Alright, the book I read said it was important to follow punishment with reward, so tomorrow, if you are good, and do not bother me the entire day with mindless shenanigans vying for attention, I will service you that night."

Please have worked, please, he couldn't continue this conversation about feelings anymore, he just wanted to eat his damn food.

It did, predictably almost. He leaned to the side as Thana squirmed in place in excitement while holding his goblet, he watched the sloshing liquid warily, hoping it didn't spill, these robes were white and he didn't want to cause trouble for the servants.

"It is a deal, this one will be very well behaved, I won't bother you once until the moon peaks. You have my word."

An Ex human taming a pseudo death god in a week with sex, what a time to be alive.

Thana kept his word, he'd been given a full day, and made amazing progress. He copied court behavior and manners twenty times in the formal alphabet, dressed himself properly in the ten layer robe three times without having to look at the manual, and had successfully washed, brushed, and oiled his hair without any help from the servants or his nosy husband.

It had been a perfect, rewarding day. And then an hour until the moon greeted the sun on the horizon, he was tearing through every sex book he could get his hands on, looking for the best possible strategy to leave his lover sated for days to come, to try and repeat the perfect conditions blessed upon him.

He frowned, thumbing the page on kink play, most of these terms were familiar to him in passing, when the very religious family he stayed with made a list of 'banned topics and terms', and his fellow foster siblings did their best to find out what each and every one of them meant. Loudly, over the dinner table.

Somnophilia, the act of having sex when one's partner is asleep, Orgasm delay or denial, a more straightforward pleasure and pain play, that could aslo double as a kink for those who like to be used in bed, they even had more of the hardcore bdsm behaviors, like slapping, spankplay, whipping with a crop, tips on safety when whipping with an actual whip…

So many things, and he had a little under forty minutes now to get it all in place.

He looked consideringly at the one page he'd been staring at blankly while he'd run through various theoretical scenarios. Well, it was always worth a try, and if Thana didn't like it, he could alway give him a regular blowjob.

He did a few calming breaths, and called for a servant in the echoing halls. He told them what he needed and started about getting everything ready. He pulled off his nice robes, and in its place was a sheer under robe that he left un-tied, and let his hair loose, braiding the locks framing his face and tying them back so as not to get hair in his face.

He threw a thick black sheet on the bed so the underbedding wouldn't get dirty, and took off all the pillows except two and stored them in his linen closet near the balcony doors. Lastly, he covered his desk in half finished works and notes, a couple books here and there.

He'd read in 'behaviours of possessive and enthusiastic partners' that showing you disregarding something important in favor of them instead could be deeply pleasing and arousing to them. If Thana wasn't into it, it would just look like he'd been a bit messy in the last days, but if it did work, then he'd at least have a small bit of favor in forgiveness for yesterday's argument.

Luis glanced at one of his practice paintings, before flipping it over, it wasn't as if it was a lie anyway, he could have just continued on ignoring his husband instead, but put it all on hold for tonight as an apology, and the book said it was important to give reward after punishment to keep your lover's spirits high.

The servant came back, a silk ribbon, thick cords of softened leather, and a black cloth long enough to tie around the eyes twice.

Luis thanked them profusely, and tried not to blush at the objects. He grabbed one of the two pillows on the bed and screamed into it, before regaining composure, calm now.

Right as the moon peaked, a knock on the door, and he was in a familiar situation of face to chest. Only this time, he was prepared, he nodded in approval, "Husband is very punctual and well disciplined when it suits him it seems."

Luis let him in, and showed him the objects on the bed, "This is what I've prepared for tonight, if it pleases you." Thana looked confused, tracing at the edges of the silk ribbon. "What is all this for, husband?" Did he really not know? How long has he lived? He knew damn well he wasn't a virgin, but did he not read the very same incriminating books in his own library?!"

He steeled himself and went on to explain, his confidence taking a steep dive from 'shaky' to 'hanging on the threads of his own resolve'.

"The ribbon is to tie onto your cock, the cloth is a blindfold, and the cords are to act as rope." Thana looked vaguely horrified, "But husband, you said this was a reward!" "So you're not open to try it, I take it?"

Thana crossed his arms, challenged, "I never said that. Very well, I will try this." Luis nodded along, "Alright then, before we begin, you need to pick a safeword to say in case you want to stop. Pick something very random that you wouldn't normally say in usual lovemaking."

Thana put a hand to his chin in thought, "Congee. You seem to like it very much." Luis thinned his lips at the blatant ass-kissing, but moved on nonetheless, "Alright then, Congee." He pulled at Thana's robes, "You should undress now while I get the grapeseed oil." He turned to rifle through his bedside drawer for the small glass bottle he'd taken to keeping after the second nightly ambush that left his ass chaffed, spit could only do so much.

When he turned back around, his husband was stark naked, waist robe and hair ornaments tossed on the bed, he already held the blindfold in his hand.

"Alright, let's begin."