Page 26 of The Pactbound Angel (The Soul Mirror Duet #1)

Hummingbird

We decided to take an extra day in Ghau to rest and recuperate.

Raewyn wanted to explore, and she dragged me along with her.

Probably because I had more money than she did.

I bought the waterskins and refilled dry food and rations, this time for the whole party, a pragmatic purchase that bored my sister until I asked if she found starvation or dehydration boring.

She, blessedly, shut up.

We went to various shops. She found a crimson silk cloak that I insisted she get, and I pushed the coin into the vendor’s hands. I remarked that the silk would help with the heat of the desert, but, really, I just thought it looked beautiful on her.

Ghau was not nearly as big as Puldoni was, but it had its charms. Besides the bright yellow paint covering the front of most homes and shops, there was a city square-wide fountain, feylights dancing under the waves and coloring them in brilliant hues.

It was a place of both relaxation and play.

Old and young alike ran about, chasing the cascading showers spraying in random spurts across the entire square.

I asked Georgina about it during supper, who informed me the water was cleansed and recycled in a special reservoir under the city .

“In fact, that’s where the city gets its name. Ghau in the old fey language means ‘water’,” she said in-between bites of some kind of spicy dish that had Raewyn going for said water. “The reservoir is really something. No rust. No mustiness. Nothing. It’s pristine.”

The rest of supper was restful and pleasant. Even Raewyn and Georgina got along. Ramiren threw me a smile that I had no problems translating, for once.

I raised an eyebrow. Lesson?

He nodded once.

I leaned back in alarm. Oh fuck, can he hear thoughts?

His smirk neither confirmed nor denied my suspicions.

Later that night, I found myself in the secret bedroom with Ramiren looking around to see if anything had changed but very little had.

There was a small chest on the table against the right wall.

Velvet cushions now occupied the chairs.

I touched the soft bed cover, ran my hand through a silken scarf hanging from the ceiling, and then finally turned to look at him to speak.

“Last time, we talked about permission. Is this session where you ask permission from me? Or are we extending my own lesson from last time?” Approaching him carefully, my bare feet sinking into plush rugs on the floor, I lifted my hand to touch him, but didn't. Instead, my gaze went to his, hoping he could hear the word in my mind. Please?

It looked like he understood. He smiled at me, appreciatively.

"I admire that you're putting in the practice on what we learned last time.

I'll be extending what we talked about in a specific direction, with a specific end.

One that may lead in short order to you giving instructions instead of taking them.

In fact, on this topic, it may help if I am more forceful in my responses.

I suggested last time that when you ask permission, you might try a plea. This time, that will be a requirement."

Requirement?

Wait.

My hand dropped. “You mean begging? I've never begged for anything in my entire life." Pride streaked through my body, but it faded and disappeared almost immediately. I gave my word to obey, and my word means everything.

Besides, he can certainly try .

"Hm." My eyes narrowed playfully, and I began to walk around Ramiren in a circle. “Begging entails desire. Desperate desire, along with depriving one of what they want. They are so frantic that they have no choice but to beg, which…” I stopped in front of him again, and looked up at his face, meeting his eyes. “…I’m not sure you’re capable of.”

There was no reaction to my taunt in his eyes or expression.

"Since we'll be working through removing some element of active consent from you with the receiving of orders, we need to revisit the idea of a word to use if you want or need to stop or pause any activity.” He stepped towards me suddenly, and I involuntarily took a step back.

My skin prickled in awareness. He wasn’t being threatening, but he was giving me a gentle reminder to not be a brat.

Noted.

His smile returned, though I couldn’t tell if it was from the subject matter, my reaction, or neither.

“For example, my word is orange , as it is unlikely to be said in a sexual context, and also not to be mistaken for another word.

The last time I used it was not because the act in question was more than I could handle, but due to an unexpected leg cramp.

You should have a word, just in case. You ready your shield whether or not you are sure it will be needed. "

I was admittedly impressed. Though my statement had been an honest one, as I truly doubted anyone could make me beg, even him, he handled it with grace and even diverted my attention to something else. He would do well at the Camlite court.

I replied softly, “My word is 'hummingbird'."

He looked pleased. "Excellent. Two notes about this lesson. I want you to hear this, because it is very important. On the outside, it might appear that I have control. That is not at all the case. It is you who has the control. If you say ‘hummingbird,’ we stop. No questions. Never be afraid to use that word. I will never be angry. Or upset. Or frustrated. And I will never ever ignore it. Your safety and wellbeing are my top priority.”

His reversal of my expectations surprised me. “Oh. I would have figured the control would be in your hands.”

“An unfortunately common misconception that can lead to a great deal of damage. You control the narrative here, Nathalia, not I.”

Accepting his clarification with a smile, trying to take in everything he was telling me, I nudged. “And the second note?”

He continued, “For this specific lesson, a no from me might mean not yet or convince me , hence a forcefulness that verges on domination. We practice this as a necessary step before you can proceed to giving the orders. It will be impossible for you to know for sure what some nameless future husband might prefer, so you must master both.”

He stopped to think about his next words.

“If you find the notion of begging distasteful, let this be your motivation.

It is not whether I succeed, or fail, in making you beg.

The question is do we move on to something new or do we repeat the lesson?

Again, as before, be explicit, even vulgar.

I will do the same. Specific names, what will be done to whom, using which parts.

I may stop you with a command to reduce the risk of repeating this lesson.

It will be: Silence. No, again. And unless I hear the word hummingbird , you will try again and do better. "

A thrill shivered through me at his words, and I swallowed hard. Lifting the dress off my shoulders, I stood nude in front of him. Dropping the dress to the floor, I said, my voice now husky, "I understand. I want permission to undress you."

Ramiren shook his head, giving me a hard look. "No. I will not be nude, not just yet. Remember, a key part of asking for something is accepting a no , and we'll get some practice with that, as well.”

I’ve already gotten a lot of practice with that.

“You will lay down on the bed, and you will spread your legs and rub your pussy with your fingers, especially where it feels best." He turned to the small chest on the table and opened it, taking out what appeared to be a pair of wands.

One had a pink hue, and the other a larger one with a white tip.

“These wands vibrate on command. You place it on your clit or inside you, depending on what brings you the most pleasure.”

That’s a new one. “Clit?”

The expression on his face immediately made me clarify, “I’m not being funny, I swear. I’ve never heard that word before.”

“Oh.” His smile returned. “It’s short for clitoris.

It’s a particularly sensitive area. Here.

” He gently took my hand, turned it, and pushed my fingers through curls and slick skin to the area he referred to.

When my fingertips brushed the firm bit of flesh I’d found before, a zap went up my spine.

I sucked in a breath and groaned, then he released my hand.

Oh.

He handed the wands over, and I peered at them. “How do you have these? I’ve never heard of them.”

He looked around with his eyes, then focused back onto me.

“This room provides everything I could want for the implementation and follow-through for a pact.

That is its purpose. You'll ask me to move from your fingers to using each of these wands, pink then white, a practice with begging.

You will not stop using what you are using until I have given permission.

Then, you will beg me to use my tongue on you.

You will convince me, or I will refuse. "

I went to lie on the bed and put the wands next to me before adjusting myself to get comfortable. After a deep breath, I cleared my throat and reached down to spread myself with searching fingers, again seeking out this clit he had mentioned.

There you are.

Intense tendrils of pleasure slithered through me at once. I allowed myself a moan as my fingers began to swirl around it. Don’t forget the wands. "May I use the pink wand, please?"

"Yes," Ramiren replied, as he sat on the edge of the bed at my feet. “You activate it by saying the command word. For that one, it is urdan. “

Hovering the wand over my mouth, as though to speak into it, I whispered, “Urdan.” Immediately, the wand began to gently vibrate in my hand.

I looked at him, uncertain, then did as instructed.

Putting it against my clit, I gasped with my toes immediately curling.

Stars burst in my eyes. My pussy rhythmically pulsed in time with my rapid heartbeat.

Not yet. I want this to last. Not yet. Not yet.