As Glasses waltzed her perfect body over to the door, a black pit of despair swelled up in my gut. Fool! Jackass! I knew how bound Red was by blood to Jewel. I should’ve been more cautious. Demanded Glasses went first. Worded my promises to be dependent on hers. There’s a million and one things that I should’ve done differently!

Cackling like an evil overlord, Glasses stopped inches from the door. Flicking one hand through her long hair, she turned and smirked evilishly towards me. “Feeling betrayed?” She taunted, placing both hands on her hips. “Regretting your choices?”

“Well, it’s too late now.” Pushing her glasses back upon her nose, Glasses glared harshly at my outraged expression. “You have to fund me,” she taunted. “Provide for my life – even attempt to make me happy.” She couldn’t resist cackling like a madwoman.

“Aren’t you glad I’m not that person?” Smiling brightly, Glasses walked back over and laid down in the center of the silvery circle. Bending her knees as she spread her legs wide, she held her arms open invitingly towards me. “Come,” she offered, “break my blood. I need it so I can make my promises.”

“I merely wanted to show my lord what could happen if you’re always so trusting and naïve. I think you’ll be more cautious from now on.” Smiling brightly, Glasses beckoned for me to mount her.

Blinking repeatedly, I sat down beside Glasses and shook my head in confusion. I felt sorry for her. Then resolutely magnanimous. Then betrayed. Angered. Hurt. Now I was awash in relief. I just needed some time to sort out my feelings. One thing was absolutely certain, I wasn’t feeling any sort of desire to bounce her bones at the moment.

“Sorry, my lord.” Sitting up, Glasses crawled on her knees to straddle herself above my lap. Lowering herself down upon my member, she slowly starting rocking up and down. “There’s no time,” she explained, moaning slightly. “We only have until the last candle burns out to finish the ritual.”

“Fine.” Shoving her back onto the ground, I forcefully started to take her as hard as I could. My feelings might have to wait, but I certainly didn’t want her to get away without making her promises. If she needed a “blood-breaking” to complete the ritual, I’d give her a damn blood-breaking she’d never forget.

“By my blood that… UGGHHH… flows free,” Glasses grunted. “I sweaaaarrr toooooo OOOHHH… the great Keeper OOOOOOF Oaths… tooooo hooooold these pledges truuuue.”

As she moaned and groaned out her promises, I furiously pounded out my frustration on her body. First I bounced her front raw, then I flipped her over and pounded her ass into oblivion for good measure. Honestly, she’d completed her promises, and the candles had all burnt out long before I released my full frustration. Slumping exhausted, I pulled her limp body into my arms and tried to remember all her promises.

Frowning slightly to myself, I couldn’t help but think there was several truly odd oaths that she’d made. Most seemed to facilitate a bond similar to Red’s with Jewel. To obey and protect. To give her body, mind, and spirit in my service.

Some oaths just seemed like unnecessary repetition, or sub-oaths of the key points. I swear to allow my lord to use, alter, and enhance my body in any way he so desires. I swear to never refuse, nor resist, my lord’s passions or pleasures. Honestly, in many ways, it seemed to me as if she was simply promising a thousand different ways that I could bounce her anytime, anyway I wanted. There might’ve been subtle differences in the oaths, but they all seemed to boil down to the same thing to me.

And some of the oaths, made me frown thinking over them. I swear to only wear what my lord dresses me in. I swear to only eat that which my lord provides. I swear, I will only allow my lord to bathe me, unless necessity dictates otherwise. What type of damn oaths were those??

Only wear what I dress her in? Doesn’t that mean I have to dress her everyday? Bathe her? Isn’t it more a case of me having to take care of her, like her servant, rather than her taking care of me? Something just seems backwards, or sideways, or off, or something to me!

Playing with Glasses’ long hair, I nudged her several times. “Wake up, Flames.” I didn’t know her actual name, and I needed to think of her as something better than just ‘Glasses’. Her long, red hair, kind of reminds me of a crackling campfire, so I’ll just call her flames.

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Groaning with stiffness, Flames attempted to stretch her soreness out. “I’m awake,” she grunted, moaning in pain.

“We need to talk,” I told her. “We’ve got time now, and I want to know exactly what the hell you were trying to pull with that little stunt of yours earlier.”

“I was just hoping to help teach you,” Flame replied, rubbing her sore hips. “If you make a mistake in the future, it’ll affect me too,” she offered, before asking poutily, “Can you order me to heal, please?”

“Heal?”

She just nodded.

Taking a deep breath, I commanded in my strongest voice, “Heal!” I felt foolish as hell, but I was curious what stunt she was pulling now. Maybe she wanted my permission to use magic to…

Holy shit!

Her bruises were quickly fading away just as mine do. Is she a self-healer, who’s learned to turn her gift off? Can she teach me so I won’t stay stiff all the time? Just what the hell was I seeing here??

“Thank you.” Standing up, Flames stretched several times, showing no obvious signs of stiffness, bruising, or pain now.

“How?” It was all I could think to ask.

“I gave my body to you, my lord,” Flames explained, grinning widely. “Since you told me to heal, the magic of the blood oath compelled my body to fix itself. Try something else,” she suggested, eyes twinkling.

“Umm.. Nipples, get perky!” It was foolish, but it was something obvious which I could witness. Much to my amazement, both instant stood fully at attention.

“Get horny!” I commanded. Almost instantly, she started to squirm her hips back and forth, obviously feeling a strong itch between her legs. Looking up at her face, I expected Flames would look upset or disgusted. Instead, her eyes twinkled and she was smiling broadly.

“Interesting!” Laughing, she quickly sprawled out on the floor and began playing with herself. “There’s no relief,” she half-moaned, half-laughed. “I wonder what process the body is undergoing to remain so stimulated,” she pondered?

Just how big a research freak is this girl?! “Orgasm!” I commanded, and instantly her whole body spasmed as she groaned loudly and sprayed cream everywhere. “One more time,” I repeated, enjoying the show, before finally ordering, “Back to normal.”

With a final few rubs to her bottom, Flames finally sat up and beamed a smile towards me. “It worked,” she said, looking ecstatic.

“How the hell can you give someone that much control over your body??” I couldn’t believe it. My mind found the whole concept incredulous.

“For the benefits,” Flames laughed. “I told you before, I’m not like the other girls here,” Flames reminded me. “I don’t have the beauty, wealth, status, or extreme levels of magic like the ladies here. All I had was my brains – which aren’t very useful by themselves – until the lord Moonweaver made me his offer. Given the once in a lifetime chance, with someone else paying for it all, I altered myself in every way imaginable to improve my chances for the future.”

“And,” Flames actually blushed slightly, “I took advantage the same way with you.”

“You’re a self-healer,” Flames stated matter-of-factly. “I heard it from the lord, and listening to you with the other girl, then watching you remain erect, just confirmed it.”

“By truly giving my body to you through one of the ancient blood rituals, I’ve bound myself to you now.” Flames was grinning ecstatically. “I no longer have only sixty more years to live and learn,” she laughed, “but now I’ll stay young and healthy for as long as you’re living and wish it.”

“I’ve cheated Death,” she giggled, then corrected herself. “Well, I side-stepped Her at least. When you finally die, I’ll die with you.”

A blood ritual to give control of your body to another, so they can keep you from growing old… To be honest, I wasn’t certain how I felt about such magics. On one hand, there’d be no sickness. No old bones, alzheimers, or arthritis. No saying goodbye to a loved one like Julie, as you’d both go at the same time.

On the other hand, what if the one who had control of your body was an ass? An endless torment of suffering; of just being a play thing; could be the end result. Just how desperate do you need to be, or just how trusting, to give yourself to a complete stranger like that?

“How the hell? You don’t know me!” I was so flabbergasted, I couldn’t even get the question out straight.

“I gambled,” Flames admitted. “It was an informed gamble, but still a gamble. I researched the Lord Moonweaver. Read the history of his family. Studied who he was and what he believes in. In the end, I couldn’t believe that he would ask anyone to perform a bloodbond with someone evil or nasty.”

Just as I’d had faith in him not to pick out a bad person to be my servant, she believed he wouldn’t ask her to serve a bad person. The power of honor and reputation became drilled into my head at that moment.

“Just a few more quick questions,” I promised.

“Sure. You’re my lord now. Ask me anything,” Flames chirped cheerfully.

“What the hell is up with your clothes? You were moaning, and a little hard to understand, and I was slightly distracted, but it sounded as if you said you’d only wear what I put on you, or something equally crazy.”

“I’ll only wear what you dress me in,” Flames confirmed, laughing merrily. “All that stuff’s just a wasted distraction which takes time away from studying. It’s a pain to have to deal with it. Now I don’t have to,” she shrugged.

“So I have to deal with it?” I could feel my eyebrow starting to twitch.

“Not at all,” Flames laughed. “Now I can just do without and nobody can say a thing about it. No tickets. No fines. No warnings. No bother,” she smirked. “Nobody is going to be foolish enough to try and break a bloodbond. The Keeper of Oaths will step on them for it.”

Keeper of Oaths? Bloodbonds. Bloodpacts. Eternal control over another. Rubbing my temples, I was starting to get a headache.

Apparently, it’s impossible to self-heal from sheer mental exhaustion.

“Is it safe to leave now?” I might still have a billion questions, but they could all wait for now. All I wanted at this moment, was a chance to go sprawl out like the girls, to try and relax.

“Sure, my lord.” Flames confirmed, pushing her glasses back upon her nose. “The ritual was finished some time ago. We can leave anytime.”

Nodding, I walked out the door and back to the living room. Jewel had joined Victoria sitting on the couch, the two of them holding each other like old lovers, while Red had moved to stretch out across the second couch. “Lean up,” I ordered Red, as I slid myself underneath her head.

Gently stroking her hair as she rested it back down in my lap, I closed my eyes and tried to tune the world out.