He walked in the door, and she was standing there, with an apprehensive look on her face. He instantly tensed.

"What's wrong?"

She swallowed, shifting for a moment, and he immediately closed the distance between them, reaching out to cup her face and turn her eyes, which had been nervously darting about the room, back toward him.

"Love, what is it?"

She swallowed again, then let out a sigh, dropping her eyes to nuzzle into his hand, rubbing her cheek against his roughened palm, savoring the strength in his fingers. He allowed her to delay, thumbing the small lines at the corner of her eye. A passing thought crossed his mind, how beautiful she will be, even when she is old and grey, how flawless she will be, even then.

When she takes a deep breath, his focus returns the face before him, and she shudders a moment as his clear blue eyes zero in on her own. For a moment she searches, and he lets her, keeping the doors to his soul open for her to step through, not trying to hide anything from her. She seems to find what she is looking for.

She nods to herself then slowly bring up her hand. His eyes shift as it comes into view, an eyebrow raising in question when he sees a black silk scarf in her palm. His scarf.

He feels in his palm, more than hears her, take another deep breath.

"Do you trust me?"

His eyes immediately flick back to her face, but his answer is just as quick, "Always love." But he doesn't say more, letting her get to what she wants to say, in her own time. As it is, he thinks he has an inkling as to what is running through her mind.

Her face flushes and again she drops her eyes to let them flick around the room again, still keeping her cheek pressed into his palm, like she was taking strength in the contact, a strength he was all too happy to provide. And still he waited, calmly letting her ask for what she wanted.

"I need- " she started, still not looking at him. She couldn't seem to get it out and as her color continued to rise, he saw her courage wavering.

"Love, look at me," he said quietly, and waited silently, until she did. Once she made weak eye contact with him, he continued. "Ask of me whatever you need, love. I trust you with all I am, but more than that," he dipped his face so their eyes were even, so he could see the truth in his words."But more than that, I trust you to ask for what you need. I know you, love, and I know that you wouldn't make a request of me unless you truly could not do without. And I would never deprive you, intentionally or not, of what you need."

She continued to look at him, pressing into his palm, and he started stroking her face again, while she took a few deep breathes. Finally, she took one more steadying breath and whispered, "I feel like I'm unraveling. I feel like everything is just in a haze. I just need-" she faded out again. But he understood.

"You need control," he finished quietly. She gave a shaky nod and her eyes pinched shut, and she hid her face in his palm, kissing the calluses. Her breathing started to speed up and he could feel her start to shake.

"Look at me," he commanded, and noticed her body settle slightly as she did. Her eyes showed so much pain and confusion, and in the back of his mind, he cursed himself for not seeing how far gone she was. How overwhelmed. How underappreciated. But he knew he could change that now. Now he could be there.

So he very carefully hooked the scarf off her hand and gently slid his thumb down the line of her jaw, "My love, you cannot take something that has already been given to you. My heart, body, and soul are already yours. Let me ease yours by letting you use mine. I trust you to know where the line is. And if, for some unforeseeable reason, the line is crossed, I'll tell you. I trust you implicitly. Now trust me to know what I am offering, and accept it for what it is."

The he stepped back from her, still with the scarf, and reached with his free hand to scoop up her fingers. He then bent low over her hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. He tried to put as much comfort and love into the action as he could, then he let it drop and stepped back completely, "I await you in the bedroom love."

The he brushed past her, thinking to himself. It was more than just a lack of control. It was anger, frustration, fear. All of them forced down again and again while she dealt with everybody else's problems, and they had finally come to a head. She needed an outlet, and he thought he knew exactly what is was she wanted but couldn't bring herself to ask.

In her heart, she wanted to return what fate had done to her. She wanted to abuse and use someone the way she was being used. To clean the darkness out of her blood. And he was only too happy to be the antidote. He knew darkness intimately. Understood how it turned into a an itch under the skin that if left unscratched could drive someone to madness. And that was where she was at. All it would take is one little push to get her to fall over the edge. And he felt his heart warm knowing that she instinctively knew that he would catch her, even if she was still afraid to take the jump.

Once he was in the room, he quickly shucked out of his outer clothes and made even swifter work of his shirt and trousers. Then he stood and, after a moment's pause to overcome his own insecurities, he unstrapped the brace on his left arm. He had taken it off in her presence before, but he knew that this time would be different. But he wanted her to have what she needed, and he trusted her, so his brace followed the rest of his clothes, keeping the scarf in his hand, leaving him naked and defenseless in the middle of the bedroom. Waiting for her.

"Get on the bed."

Her voice was low and controlled. But he knew what she wanted, so rather than obey her, he turned, and with as much cocky disdain as he could muster, he scoffed, "Or what?"

She was a lot closer than he was anticipating, so he was completely shocked when her hand came flying out from the right to slap him hard enough across the face to send him staggering.

"GET ON THE FUCKING BED!"

This time he complied, cheek still stinging from her hit. He crawled up until he was in the middle of the bed when her voice came again, "Stop there! Put your arms behind you." He could hear the strain in her tone, so this time he acted without argument or protest. The scarf was ripped from his hand and quickly tied almost brutally tight around his wrist before she tied the other end even more tightly mid way up his forearm above his stump. He could get out of it if he really tried, but the knots were really tight.

And then he heard the jungle of her taking off her belt, and her chosen course of action became clear. And he also knew that she would be hesitant to do what she needed, so he offered her what she wanted. Resistance and permission.

"A bloody belt? Is that all you got? I got worse punishments than that for spilling my tea at breakfast. Is that all you-"

The whistling alerted him a split second before that the hit was coming. Then a line of fire laced up from mid back to his shoulder.

"Shut up," she hissed. Her voice was shaking, and he knew it was time to push.

"What? you think I'm just gonna do what you ask because you the fuckin-" another whistle and crack as the belt landed.

"I said shut UP!"

"No I don't think I will love. I think that you actually like it when people don't-AGGGH," he bit back a scream. She had flipped the belt around so that the buckle was now making contact with his skin.

"SHUT" another vicious welt "THE" another swing, and line of fire "FUCK" another swing "UP!" a final swing. He could feel the bruises, but he noticed she had been careful enough to hit fleshy areas, so she didn't run the risk of damaging him more than that.

He panted for a moment, blinking back the tears that had gathered. She needed him to resist. To push back. So he did.

"NO," he growled, then chuckled. "Why would I listen to you? You can't even control your own life. How could you possibly-"

"SHUT UP!"

Her hand grabbed him and spun him on the bed, throwing him off balance and with his weight falling forward, he leaned straight into her next hit across his face. It stung. But now he could see her face. She was crying, but her eyes were wild. She was breathtaking.

Then she tackled him down, his arms pinned beneath him as she laid into his face. Back handing and front handing him, her weight across his hips, pressing his awakening arousal against her hot core.

"I can do this, I can! I am me!" She was screaming at him, punching him before she suddenly and forcefully kissed him. Pressing hard, he figured it was more a way to get him to shut up than to express her usual affection. So he struggled. And suddenly she was gone.

He gave himself a moment to stretch his shoulders out and closing his eyes, but was he was arching, the belt suddenly landed hard against his thigh, the sting just inches below his now half hard cock. A second blow to the opposite thigh a moment later had it jumping.

He grit his teeth and growled, and began to open his eyes. But he had barely gotten them completely open when the belt was suddenly wrapped around his neck and he was nose to nose with her.

"Keep them shut," she hissed, and they fluttered shut almost against his will. He felt her weight shift lower in the bed, but the belt remained tightly around his neck. Then he felt her hot breath on his thigh before she sank her teeth in hard into his skin.

"Aaaahhhh-," he jerked upward at the unexpected sensation and burn, only to have his groan cut off mid-breath as the belt tightened. A moment later, it loosened and he breathed in. Her fingers began to trace feather light patterns over the burning skin she had just bit, and the combination of her cool fingertips and the pain had him panting slightly and arching his hips up in search of friction he knew he wouldn't find.

Just as quickly, she bit into his other thigh, tightening the belt around his neck as she did so, so that the images behind his lids danced with stars and the blood rushed in his ears. He couldn't help the moan that slipped past his lips as the belt loosened enough for him to breath.

And when he felt a razor sharp tip pressed up against his upper thigh in response to the noise, he almost came right then, realizing that his favored weapon was now being used against him.

"I said quiet." He nodded, eyes still shut. For a few moments, she dragged the sharp tip over his thighs, just hard enough to make a mark. She came close to his groin and he felt the muscles in his thighs shake with the strain of not moving. Then the point glided higher, over his hips, up his sides, across his belly, leaving his muscles twitching. He knew where she was heading and the anticipation of the cold, sharp touch of metal on his nipples was driving him insane. And just as she reached one, the belt pulled tight and she pressed down hard, and his closed eyes rolled up into his head. Then she repeated the process with the other nipple, and he felt himself stagger close to the edge again. Suddenly the belt loosened and the she was gone.

He felt the tip reappear on his thigh. "You are mine," she hissed in his ear, sending shivers down his body. "All you are is mine. I control you. You don't speak, move, or even come until I give you permission."

And then she dug the sharp point hard into his thigh and he felt blood well up. She still wanted him to fight her. So he hissed, "I'll come when I damn well please. And I doubt that you could-" he cut off midsentence when he felt nearly his entire shaft slid down her throat. The warmth and the wet was glorious, and then it was gone. He managed to fight back the whimper, and instead laughed, "Is that the best you," the belt yanked tight as a hand gripped his cock had and mercilessly started to pump him. The combination of lack of air and the near excruciating grip had him arching off the bed with his mouth open in a silent scream of intense sensation.

And then both were gone, and his airways were free to gasp for air. For a moment the room was silent and then he heard a rustle and the sound of another belt buckle. He realized that she had gotten his from his pile of clothes, before she was back. And suddenly her mouth was around his rock hard cock again and the belt at his throat tightened up. Using her tongue and just a touch of her teeth, she worked him ruthlessly until he could feel the heat settling in his hips, and he was on the brink of satisfaction.

But right before he was about to reach the edge, she released him and while he was still distracted, managed to forcefully flip him onto his belly.

"Get on your knees, now!" He did, with his ass awkwardly in the air and his hands still tied.

"You are going to be whipped, and when I say so, you are going to come." And without further ado, she pulled the belt tight around his throat and delivered three vicious swings to the backs of his thighs. Before he could even completely comprehend the pain, her hand returned to his throbbing member and in a vice-like grip, gave him a few pumps with her hand, bringing him right up to the edge again, all with the belt still tight around his neck.

He almost felt like he was walking in a dream or hallucination, and as she continued the pattern, it grew ever worse. The tightening of the belt, the lashes followed by a few precious moments of her hand around his cock.

And then something broke in her, and she snarled, "See I can handle you. I-" lash, "am" lash, "in" lash, "control." He was going crazy with how badly he needed to come. Her strokes had landed on every possibly location on his back and thighs and his whole body was stinging with pleasure-pain. He knew just one more contact would have him over the edge.

"I am in control," she hissed again, and the belt at his throat suddenly constricted more tightly than ever before, "and you will come NOW!" As she screamed it, she lashed him hard. But unlike all the other blows she had delivered, this one went straight between his legs to his the underside of his cock and his balls. The pain was blinding. And it shoved him over the edge, with a scream that was trapped by the belt, and he felt his body seize up and writhe uncontrollably as he ascended to a height he had never reached before as the pain of the blow coupled with the strength of his release overwhelmed him. His whole mind went completely white and nothing existed except the sensation of his whole person being released in his orgasm.

One he came back to himself, panting hard and sore, he realized the belt had been taken off and his wrists had been freed and she was quietly calling his name, worry evident in her voice.

"Hello love," he whispered hoarsely as he cracked an eye open to look at her. There was still darkness there, but it was lighter than it had been.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered. "I'm so s-"

"Ssshhh love, it alright," he assured her quietly. "I knew what I was signing up for." He met her eye and could see there was still a lingering creature in her eyes that she needed to be rid of.

"But, love," he whispered quietly, voice still sounding abused, "its quid pro quo, and now" he shifted his arms under him to push himself up with a wince, trying to steady out his breathing, then reached out for the discarded scarf, "let me show you how much I love you."

She looked apprehensive for a moment, but then offered her wrists. He nodded, looking sweetly at her, "Alright love, undress yourself, then lay back and put your hands above your head."

She quickly stripped, something she hadn't bothered with during the first portion of their adventure. He watched her, feeling the sting of his body and the bruises he knew he would carry as her marks on him. To show, exactly, who he belonged to. His chaffed wrists and the sting of the raw skin on his neck told him the marks would last for a while.

Once she was completely bare, she looked back at him, her eyes falling down to his throat, and she let out a shaky breath, opening her mouth to say something.

He quickly interrupted, closing the distance to brush her cheek with the back of his hand, "I am alright love. Now up on the bed."

She paused for a moment, then turned, moving up onto the bed. He took a moment to appreciate her form, the graceful power in her movements. Once she had settled and put her hands up, he approached her slowly. He could see that she was breathing hard, and evidently was still apprehensive.

He came up to stand beside the bed, before tenderly dragging his fingers up her arms before he knotted the scarf around the head board.

"Just grab on here love," he said softly, guiding the fingers around the silk loop. She was free to let go at any moment. Free to take control. Then he moved down and leaned over so he was hovering over her head. Her green eyes looked up at him, still swirling with that last bit of darkness.

"This is the little game we are going to play, my love." He spoke quietly, letting his calm voice, slightly hoarse though it was, sooth her as he explained exactly what he wanted for her and from her. "You close your eyes, and then you tell me what you want and where. And you leave the rest to me."

He needed to show her that control wasn't necessarily having hands-on power, but the power to demand and be given, to trust and be rewarded for that. But more than that, especially after the abuse she had just delivered upon his skin, that the return investment on pain did not have to be paid in the same currency. That despite what life had decided to convince her to think, she was loved, precious, and powerful.

She was watching his face, looking at him with the same intense searching stare, and just as before, he did nothing to hide himself from her. Then she hesitantly nodded, and he saw her hands tighten around the scarf as she wiggled herself slightly to settle her form more deeply in the bed.

He felt another wave of pure adoration for this woman flow through him, and he was so overwhelmed that he just had to express it, and he bent the last little bit to kiss her. It was soft and slow, and he could taste the salt of her tears on her lips, so he did his best to banish that taste with the flavor of his love for her and warm her skin with the memory of his lips.

When he pulled back, she was breathing hard, but her eyes were closed and her face was smooth, free of the strain and the lines that had taken up residence there recently.

"Ask me love. Anything I can give, is yours," he whispered, and got a small silver of satisfaction when her whole body trembled at his words.

She licked her lips, and in a whisper that trembled, "Show me how much you love me. No words. Just-make me remember."

At her words, his heart ached, and he fell even more in love with her than ever. He bent to press a sweet kiss to her forehead, before straightening to quickly plan how best to express his devotion to her. Nothing less than pure worship would do.

So he made his way to her feet, sitting down at the edge of the bed, silently wincing as his abused skin stretched, to gently pull her foot up into his lap. He braced her leg on his thigh, then put his severed forearm behind her ankle to support it, then proceeded to kneed the balls of her feet and her arch, closely watching her face through his ministrations to pick up the slight flickers of pain and pleasure and adjust accordingly. He could feel, as he continued, the tendons in her leg relax.

Then he started to move up her leg to the indent behind her ankle and she gave a quiet little moan of satisfaction, and he couldn't help the grin of triumph that made its way onto his lips. He focused right behind her joint, pressing firmly. In response, he felt her whole leg tremble lightly. He felt his body heat up in response, but ignored it in favor of moving up her leg, kneading each piece of skin thoroughly until he got just to the inside of her thigh. Then, as his own marks tingled, he decided to mark her in kind, and carefully lowered his head to her skin, letting her feel his breath, the brush of his lips and the hardness of his teeth, silently asking her permission. He got a low moan in response, and he smiled before he pulled her skin between his teeth and slowly added more and more pressure continuing to knead her muscles as he did so. He could smell her arousal and feel her trembling until she let out a low keening sound and her hips shifted.

Satisfied, he released her to make his way down back to her feet and began the whole treatment again. By the time he had returned to worry a mark into her other thigh, she was panting hard, but her eyes were still shut and she held the scarf in a vice-like grip. Neither spoke a word.

After he had finished his careful ministrations of her legs, he sat back to just marvel at the view. Her body was flushed and her chest heaved with her pants. She was like a goddess in the throes of ecstasy. But he was nowhere near finished with her yet.

So once he had looked his fill, he came around the side of the bed and gently pulled one of her hands free, before carefully messaging each of her fingers, then her palm, and her wrist, pressing gentle kisses as he moved up her arm. When he got to her shoulder, he gave her a slow kiss against her collar bone, before he gently guided her hand back up to the scarf.

He could see he rapidly rising and falling chest, how her nipples were pulled tight. The flush that spread across her skin. He felt himself starting to get hard again, but disregarded his own need in favor of walking around the bed. He made sure to shuffle, so she could easily track his movements, even with her eyes closed. He then reached down and pulled her other hand free, giving her remaining arm the same treatment, ending with a kiss on her collarbone before returning her hand to the scarf.

As he hovered over her, he saw her face had scrunched up in what was probably an attempt to reign in her desire, but her disliked the lines that her frown put into her forehead. So next he carefully clambered up onto the bed and straddled her, being careful to not put any weight on her form. He could feel the various lashes and bruises smart a the strain and movement, and he took a moment to disregard the pain before settling his forearm next to her face and using his hand to slowly caress her face, trying to soothe out the lines.

After he began combing his fingers through her silken hair, she breathed out a light sigh and he felt the tension leave her body as her form settled more deeply into the bed. He felt a smile work its way onto his face again as he saw a mirrored one tip her lips upward as she began to nuzzle her head into each stroke of his hand through her hair.

Satisfied that she was relaxed again, he bent over to begin brush feather light kisses over her face, beginning at her hair line and working his way downward. He found her brows, temples, lids, cheeks, jaw, chin with his lips, never lingering. She opened her mouth and sighed when he began to move his lips down her neck, kissing behind her ears and down her throat before settling his lips happily against her collar.

Her breathing, which had settled when he had started to play with her hair had begun to speed up again. He started to drag his fingers over her torso, around her breasts and down the sides of her body, bringing out violent shivers. The he began to dance his fingers across her stomach and belly and she shifted, letting out a light moan again. Continuing to trace his nails and finger tips along her stomach and up her sides, he bent over and blew lightly on a nipple, before gently pulling it into his mouth to suckle. As his lips closed over the hardened flesh she arched up from the bed with a gasp and breathy moan, pushing herself into him.

He smiled around her skin, before letting her nipple go to sit back and trace more designs across her torso with his finger tips. She was shifting almost constantly now, and he could feel her legs moving behind him, trying to find some relief. He member gave a heart throb, reminding him of his own arousal. deciding that the other nipple had been neglected for far too long, he bent again and pulled into his mouth, lavishing it with the same affection its partner had received.

Finally satisfied that every inch of her skin had been properly loved, he shifted himself down the bed, settling himself above her on his knees, before gently reaching down to brush his fingers through her wet heat. Her hips jerked p and she let out a loud moan. He headed her wordless plea and returned his hand to press two fingers to her clit. Massaging it in a steady rhythm, he saw her hips start to undulate under his ministrations. Her legs couldn't decide if they wanted to be straight or bent, but when they suddenly snapped tight around his hand and her hips shifted upward, he pressed down a bit more forcefully and sped up his fingers.

A few passes later, her quick pants turned into a long continuous moan and he felt her wetness spread over her thighs as they settle and fell open. Her whole body seemed to melt into the bed as a satisfied sigh left her.

After watching her form for a moment, his member gave another painful throb and he concluded that it was time. So he moved himself above her, letting his member slide through her wet folds and he couldn't keep back the low hum of satisfaction that accompanied the sensation. He felt her tip her hips up in silent permission, and bracing himself on his forearm, he reached down to guide himself into her.

The slow slide into her was like ascending into heaven for him, and from the keen of appreciation she let out showed she felt the same as he finally settled completely inside her. He paused, and after a moment she whimpered and shifted, canting her hips upward to take him in just that little bit further. He let out another quiet groan before he slowly pulled back, almost removing himself from her completely before just as slowly pushing back in.

This time a full out moan escapes her lips and he finds himself grinning stupidly above her as the muscles of her arms twitch with restraint, trying desperately to hold onto the scarf, while her face screws up in pleasure. He continues to pull in and out of her slowly, bending over ot start brushing his lips along any it of skin he could reach, never changing pace or angle while she begins to moan and writhe more frequently beneath him. His skin and muscles burned from her lashing, but it just fueled the fire that building inside his body, while sweat started to gather on his body from the strain of not just driving into her.

But he maintained his control, creeping ever closer to his own release, while e felt her begin to tremble and shake under him. And after minutes of a slow and delightful torture, he finally felt her body begin to flutter around him and he knew she was close. So he leaned forward as close as he could get to her face and whispered, "You are my love."

Then he pressed his lips to hers as he felt her whole body snap tight. Her hands jerked from their grip on the scarf to wrap around his shoulders and bury in his hair, holding his lips to her as she shook from the force of her climax. He continued his slow movements, working her through it, until he felt his own wash over him, a release that was slow, powerful, and seemed to last forever, eliciting a long moan as he stilled.

Then he tried to pull away so he could settle beside her, but her hands stayed wrapped tightly around him, so he allowed his full weight to settle on top of her. He brought his hand back up to caress her hair again, and after a few moments he realized that she was crying again.

He pulled his head back slightly to look down at her more fully. She was looking up at him and he could see past the tears and the guilt that the demons in her eyes were finally gone.

"Sshh love, it's alright, it's alright."

She buried her face into his shoulder."I love you so much. I love you so much. I love you so much..." she whispered over and over again. In it he could hear her love and her apology, and smiled as he pressed his lips into her hair. The he carefully rolled them so he was on his side before more firmly pulling her to his body and throwing a leg over her. She curled up tightly and he did his best to engulf her in his form. If she was going to drown in something, it was going to be him.

He continued to caress her hair, and in a flash of a memory he thought he no longer thought he possessed, he remember his mother soothing him at night by blowing lightly in his ears, a precursor to the winds of the sea that would sooth him for all of his adult life. So he carefully pulled her hair from her ear, and continuing his gently caresses he slowly exhaled over her ear. She shivered hard once, but then her whole body seemed to suddenly release all the tension that remained. He smiled again and continued his wordless promises of his devotion until he heard her breathing settle and her tightly curled form went limp. Then he pressed another kiss to her hair before letting himself settle more comfortably into the mattress and closing his eyes. They would need to talk about this, say the words that needed to be said, but for now he was content to hold her and protect her from everything, including her own mind.

And his last thought as he drifted off was wondering how he convince her to try using his belt again. And he dropped into sleep with a smile on his face and the love of his life in his arms.