The Empress makes a demand.
Based on the work of Robyn Bee, In 7 parts. Listen to the ► Podcast at Connected.
"Quit torturing the girl, 'Nina," the Empress finally cut in. "Put those away."
Theodora considered the young noblewoman for a time, weighing what she saw in her before speaking again.
"Although, Antonina is right, my dear. You need to make sex a greater priority." The young woman opened her mouth to speak, but shut it when the Empress held up a hand.
"Hush now, love. Listen for a moment. The world out there might belong to men; but the bedchamber is ours. Take charge of it. You lead him to your bed, instead of following him in. Make a fortress of your sheets, Irene; a place where you are queen."
The young woman's breath was still quick, and her face still burned. But she listened to the Empress with a focused intensity.
"Find what makes your body shiver," Theodora continued. "What drenches your lips and what makes you want to scream in pleasure. Making love is sport of two. Insist on your pleasure as much as his own and make your bodies sing. Then, when he is drained and warm and contentedly nestled in the pillow of your chest; that is when you start making suggestions."
"It’s almost too easy," Antonina said, pulling the neckline of her dress back up to cover herself. "Once you know the trick of it. Get him used to following you between the sheets, and pretty soon he'll follow you in everything else."
Theodora's eyes sparkled, leaning towards the young woman.
"Be gentle at first; as if whatever you say is just a passing thought. Don't press, but bring up the next time you lay together; and then do it again. If he's content, he'll start to listen despite himself. Your conversations will become longer, deeper; and that's when you'll know you have him."
Lady Irene's eyes were still a bit wild along the edges, though the flush had started to leech from her face.
"I don't,” She let out a ragged breath, shaking her head and pulling herself together. After another exhalation, she spoke again. "I'm not like you. I don't know how."
The Empress' smile was gentle. She nodded towards the woman's buttoned up frame. "With that, my dear. Your mind is sharp, but it is your body that you must use. That will change in time, if you use it well. But for now, while you are young, it is your greatest weapon."
The young noblewoman nodded uncertainly, gazing down at the many layered dress she wore.
"It is God's gift to you," the Empress continued. "Use it, take pride and revel in it. For it is yours, sweet Irene, and it is as beautiful as the soul it shelters."
"And remember what I said about your tits," Antonina added.
Theodora laughed softly, leaning back into her divan. I saw her gaze drift to the tightly bound swell of the other woman's chest. She sighed. "They really are spectacular, aren't they?"
Irene was gazing down at herself, her fingers bunched in her lap. She was silent for a moment, then I saw her loosen.
"I always have been rather proud of them," she said, hesitantly. "They're heavy but, are they really that nice?"
"That's right" Antonina said. "Be proud of what you've got. Now, loosen up that dress and push them out a bit. I want take a better look at them."
And then, slowly, as if she couldn't really believe what she was doing, Irene reached for the collar of her dress.
I shook my head, turning my back to them to face the door. This place, there was always something new. I smiled, hearing footsteps. It was Helena coming to stand beside me. She leaned against the wall.
"She's got them out now," Helena said. "Are you sure that you don't want to look?"
"Are they as nice as we thought?"
Helena laughed. "They're even better."
I let out a long, regretful sigh, but did not turn around.
"Ever the proper soldier," she teased. "Although, I can't help but remember how you didn't hesitate to stare at me this morning."
I winced. "Yeah, well, that was different."
"Oh, was it now?" Her cypress eyes alight. "I'm excited for this explanation."
I reddened. "You're going to do so many push-ups tomorrow morning."
I expected her to laugh again, but she didn't. I glanced over, and found a strange expression on her face.
"Tell me something," she said. "If you were the Lady Irene's husband, would you listen to her?"
I considered her question, answering after a few moments. "I would."
"Why?"
I blinked, resisting the urge to look back towards the young-woman. "Because she looks smart and serious. I'm sure that her suggestions are at least worth considering."
"But look at her," Helena said. "She's got her tits out in a room full of strangers."
I bristled, strangely defensive. "Yes, but that doesn't change anything."
"Of course, it does. It’s not proper. It’s not her place."
"What?" I said, leaning back. "Helena, what the hell is going on?"
"It’s not her place," she repeated.
"You sound like my mother."
"I'm sure you've had the same thought."
I was angry now. "What the fuck is this? The girl isn't stupid just because she's got her breasts out. It doesn't make her worse or somehow unworthy. Why the hell are you saying this horseshit?"
"Because it’s what you believe."
"Not anymore," I growled.
She smiled, and I was suddenly taken a back. I was still angry, but Helena had neatly slipped out from its focus. It whirled about me instead; directionless.
"Really?" She asked.
"Yes!" And as I said the word, I realized that it was completely and utterly true.
"Good," she said, her smile satisfied. "I'm happy to hear that."
"Why?" I demanded. "What the hell was this all about, Helena?"
"Nothing," she said, grinning into my narrow-eyed stare. "But how about I buy you a flagon of wine to make up for it?"
I stared at her for a few more moments, trying to hold on to some piece of my rightfully felt indignation. I was, however, powerless beneath that smile.
"Fine," I said. My own lips quirked upward. "But its two flagons."
"Deal," she said. "Then, it’s a date."
Helena's smile didn't fade. She shifted towards me, a little pink staining her cheeks. My stomach burst into a thousand little embers. Here she was, beside me, closer than we've been all day.
Then, like the sky seen through a leafy canopy, I saw the light dance in her cypress eyes. She leaned even closer; close enough that I was filled with the scent of her hair.
"And Leo," she breathed; the sound deep and full of hidden promise. "When I pull my tits out, you'd better not look away."
I shivered; staring at her, my eyes wide and mouth agape. I was unable to hear anything, save the thundering of my heart.
She laughed, that full, toe-tingling sound. She slid away, but not far; her eyes so merry. I let out my own breath, smiling and shaking my head at the wonder of this place. Because in that moment, Helena was beside me. And with the sound of these four laughing, gasping, joyful women all around me; I couldn't hear my mother's voice at all.
The Empress makes a demand.
"This was a disaster," the Emperor said. "This entire week; ever since those fools killed themselves on the track."
He sunk down into a thickly padded divan, rubbing at his eyes. The Empress lowered herself beside her husband, running her fingers through the hair on the back of his head.
"It's not been that bad, love," she said. "The race was only two days ago."
"Christ," Justinian groaned. "It's felt like a lifetime."
We were in the Empress' sumptuously decorated sitting room; the imperial couple having retreated here after a midday session within the senate hall. I was at my post by the door, fighting to keep myself straight.
It had been a long day.
"And Hypatius," the Emperor said. "You heard him today; like a wolf smelling blood. He spoke well, the bastard. I saw too many of those other old fools nodding their heads along with him."
"All he's got is fear," Theodora said, still stroking her husband's hair. "That will pass in time."
"Perhaps, but we may not have that time." The Emperor let out a long breath. "Maybe we are pushing things too hard, Theodora. Or going too fast. We've changed much in our five years on the throne."
"Change that has been for the better," the Empress said. "You remember how it was."
"Aye, well, traditions die hard."
Theodora snorted. "'Tradition' is just another word for fear. Our predecessors were weak. The Blues, the Greens, and those fools on the senate have long held the wealth and power. Of course, they don't want anything to change."
"Don't forget the men of the Empire," Justinian said, bitterly. "Whom we are apparently oppressing more than our slaves."
"I refuse to believe a law against a father selling his daughter into bondage qualifies as oppression," the Empress snapped. "Neither is the condemnation of rapists."
"How is it that Hypatius said it? 'Men are being run over roughshod by their wives, in full defiance of our traditions and those of Christ himself?"
"And those of 'God' Himself," Theodora corrected. She pressed her lips together. "As if women aren't themselves creatures of God. How is the greater sin not keeping womankind in this soft sort of slavery?"
Justinian let out another long breath, sagging against the divan. "I know that we're right in this, Theodora. I'm just tired. And with yesterday's botched executions,”
"I know," the Empress said.
She relaxed her body. She pulled her husband down into her lap, trailing her fingers over his jaw. "We don't meet the Sassanid delegates for another hour. Rest, my love."
Justinian protested, but had soon loosened into relaxation beneath his wife's gentle hands and murmuring voice.
I turned my attention from them, staring out through a nearby open balcony. The sky was bright, the sun just beginning to descend from its zenith. I couldn't hear any noise from the city. That was strange, as things had not exactly been quiet.
It had taken them a day to finish setting up the gallows. And since then, the Emperor had put them to work. A dozen and more men; both Blues and Greens had been hanged without much ceremony or fanfare. That had been yesterday, the day having proceeded smoothly from the morning onward.
This morning, however, Helena and I had returned from our training to find the Empress already waiting to leave. Two men had escaped justice, she'd told us on the way to the senate chambers. A Blue and Green. They were holed up in a church, surrounded by some of Belisarius' men.
And therein lay the problem.
As long as they stayed within the church's walls, they were safe from any sort of secular interference. And the longer they stayed there, an obvious spectacle of the Emperor's oppressive might; the more a people already on edge would seethe.
The Empress' voice pulled me from my reverie. She motioned me over to where Helena had already joined her by her divan.
Both women smiled when I approached; the Empress, bare-footed in a thin dress, and my shield mate in her stratiotai kit.
"Leontius," the Empress spoke softly. Her fingers still stroked her husband's hair and face; the man's breathing having deepened into sleep. "You look tired."
I forced a little stiffness into my spine, matching her tone of voice. "I am fit for duty, Augusta. "
She smiled. "As you always are, my soldier. Though, neither of you have had much rest, have you?"
I exchanged a glance with Helena. The Empress continued. "You train every morning, and attend me all day until I go to sleep. Even then, there are nights when one of you guards my door. You need rest."
Neither of us spoke, sensing that the Empress had more to say. She was looking down at her husband now, her smile, a little sad.
"Like my husband. He works so hard. There is always something that needs his attention. I'm happy he has these moments, but it is not enough. And so, I am imposing a night of relaxation. On all of us."
"Highness?" Helena said.
"Once the day's duties are done, I will retire to my husband's chambers. There, I will spend the hours making love to him and ensure that, for this night at least, he thinks no more of our Empire."
My face reddened. I averted my eyes, but not before I saw her smile tick a notch higher. "Perhaps I'll even invite 'Nina and Beli; and one or two others."
I squirmed. Luckily, Helena was there to speak. "They are trustworthy, but even so, highness. We should,”
"Not concern yourself with it," Theodora interrupted firmly. "The Excubitors are fully capable of guarding us on their own. Go down into the city, spend some of your wages. With the way things are going, it may be a while before you have another chance."
"Augusta," I started.
"No, Leontius, enough. I will hear none of it."
I shut my mouth and bowed. She was my Empress, and it was my place to obey; even if I didn't agree with the command.
Helena and I returned to our posts; she at her desk and I by the door. A night off, the thought electrified me. And as the Emperor woke up, and we started moving through the palace, I thought about all that I could do. Where might I go? Who might I see? I had a few friends in the city, a few places I'd found to relax.
We went first to his chambers; allowing him to change into something more regal before his meeting with the Persians. Theodora went with him, Helena and I, stationed outside the door.
As I pulled the door shut, I became sure of one thing; no matter how I spent these next few, precious hours of freedom, I wanted to spend them with Helena.
She was beside me in the suddenly quiet hallway, already looking up towards my face. I met her gaze, my heart starting to pound.
"Tonight, would you,” I coughed. Why in God's name was my throat so dry? I tried again. "Would you like to go down into the city? With me, I mean," I added hurriedly. "Together."
Heat crawled up my neck. Why the hell had I said it like that? What was wrong with me? I'd ruined it. No way she would ever,”
"Sure," she said.
A faint pink rose to color her cheeks. She smiled, reaching one hand up to brush at a lock of hair. I saw the warmth in her eyes, and I suddenly felt like I would float away.
"Let's go into the city," Helena said. "Together."
She said I stink.
Evening came, and I was in my room.
I'd stripped out of my armor, and the tunica beneath. I stood bare chested, in nothing but my loincloth in sandals; trying to decide which of my two remaining tunica's was the cleanest.
Knuckles rapped on my door, and my stomach lurched.
"One second," I called. "I'm not ready."
I threw on my darker tunica, deciding that the small wine stain on it couldn't really be seen, and pulled open the door.
Helena was there, her lip quirked into a small smile. She was naked, save for the training wraps she'd worn that morning.
"I, ahem, guess you're not ready either," I said.
The scent of her filled the hallway, making my heart quicken. Helena shook her head, a smile still pulling at the corners of her mouth.
"I suspected as much," she said. "We sweated together this morning. Were you really not planning on taking a bath first?"
I blinked. "I, uh, wanted to get there fast."
"Why? We have all night."
I didn't have an answer to that, staring at her stupidly until she laughed. She hooked an arm around mine, pulling me into the hallway.
"Come on," she said. "You stink."
She looked me up and down, peering back into my room. "And bring the white tunica instead. It looks better on you."
We were stepping through into the Empress' bath chamber before I could really wrap my head around what was happening.
The room was empty; though the tiled pool had already been filled with steaming water. Great clouds of humidity billowed through the room, moisture quickly beading onto our skin.
Helena and I had carried our clothes bundled within our arms, we left them and our sandals in a sheltered wooden cubby. We were in nothing but our training wraps now, and I hesitated to follow Helena as she drifted towards the water.
What the hell was I supposed to do? Bathe with her?
My heart was pounding now, heat rising through me. Is that why she had brought me here? No. Surely not. That wasn't possible. There had to be some other reason why,
"Leo," Helena said.
My gaze snapped back to her. She was standing within the clouds of steam, facing me from only a handful of paces away.
"Don't look away."
She reached a hand up to the cloth that bound her chest. Her fingers pulled on a single loop, slipping it free from the rest of the cloth. My heart beat against my chest, like a smith at his anvil, sending sparks of heat flashing through me.
I watched her, following the slow unraveling of the cloth around her chest.
Helena's eyes, deeper than ever before, never left my face. She shifted her body beneath the unwinding loops of cloth; drawing me further in. I glimpsed her nakedness through the tumbling lengths of fabric. And with every heartbeat, with every one of her breaths, more of her was revealed to me.
I saw the plunging valley between her breasts; deep enough lose myself in. The flesh rising above it was smooth, stained pink by heat and moisture. It curved gently outward, blooming into the full shape of her chest.
A nipple peeked out at me through the still falling curtain; shockingly pink next to the warm bronze of her flesh.
"Well?" Helena asked. She flexed the naked muscles of her stomach, shifting to let the last of the cloth tumble away.
The motion swung her naked breasts from side to side. Air was lodged in my throat, stopping whatever answer I might eventually find. I was mesmerized by the ripple of her chest; trapped within its sway.
There was more of her than the Empress. Her breasts were full, straining against the warm, softness of her skin. They were heavy, pert; the steam clinging deliciously to their rounded shape. Her nipples, round and stiff, were two rose petals lain upon a silken blanket.
"Do I still have to repeat myself?" She teased me with her smile, the light dancing in the depths of her cypress eyes. "I'm going to get tired of that."
The breath I released was ragged, frayed along the edges. "Get used to it. I don't think I'll ever be able to look away from you again."
Her smile softened, and I saw the heat rise to color her cheeks. Embers flew within me, making my stomach buzz.
God she was beautiful. Stomach-flutteringly, heart-poundingly, soul-shatteringly beautiful.
Helena moved towards me, her bare feet gliding over the tiled floor. I met her halfway, jerky where she was graceful. We stopped before each other, not quite touching.
I gazed into her. My heart pounded, my head a roiling storm of wants and doubts and needs. I heard my mother's voice, shrieking about the error I was about to commit.
This last sliver of space was all that remained between us. I thought back to when I'd first arrived; to all the shame and twisting doubt I'd felt. I'd fought to keep myself apart, then, focused on a path that I'd been so sure was the one for me.
But I'd found something new. Another trail, one shown to me by an Empress and those that surrounded her.
My life had forked; and I was stretched tight. The gulf between those two paths had grown too wide to bridge. I didn't know what to do, didn't know which path was right. Perhaps I never would. But what I did know was that Helena was here.
And right now, the thought of there being any space between us sickened me to my very core.
"Leo, I'm standing here with my tits out. If you don't kiss me in the next three seconds, I,”
My lips found hers; a shock of such gentle softness that I thought I might lose myself right there. We broke apart, the glory of her wide-open features all I saw before me.
"Finally," she breathed.
I laughed, my hands sliding along the cloth at her waist. I pulled her into me. Her body melded into mine. She was so warm; the slopes and valleys of her naked flesh slipping into place within my own.
I kissed her once more, that second touch made clumsy by the smiles we both wore.
"You're going to have to lose that idiotic grin," she told me.
"I can't help it," I said.
Her eyes sparkled, her cheeks flushed by steam and heat. I was raised my hand, slipping it past her steam-darkened locks of copper hair to cup her cheek.
"Finally," I said, leaning down towards her lips once more.
And it was this kiss; long and slow and without reservation, that made my spirit sing. I was breathless when we parted; my head filled with the taste of her. She laughed softly; an airy little sound.
I pressed my forehead against hers. We felt the beating of the other's hearts; holding still against each other. I closed my eyes, my every breath filled with her scent. Then, I felt her shift, her mouth reaching up towards mine. I met her eagerly, my lips already craving the velvety sweetness of hers.
I felt her move while we kissed. Her fingers trailed down my naked side. She traced the lines of my ridges and scars, leaving a tingle of gentle heat in her wake.
Her hand eventually slipped down to my navel; her fingers digging into the wrap at my waist.
I started, suddenly feeling raging fire between my legs. I was hard. God help me, I was so fucking hard. My manhood bulged painfully against my loincloth, pushing into the tightness of Helena's lower stomach.
Her kiss became hungrier, her fingers brushing my hardness, tugging more and more insistently at the cloth that caged me.
I was afire with her. Her scent, her touch and her taste and the glory of her body beneath my eyes; all of her making my blood sing. I ached with need for her; longed to bury myself into her deepest crevice and empty myself within her.
But not yet.
I wasn't ready, not when I could see the bruises and sweat that still stained her body. She stiffened when I accidentally brushed a bloom of discolored flesh; and I felt the tremble of her tired muscles against me. These were the results of our training. I'd caused her so much pain. It wasn't right for me to take from her now.
Not before I gave.
I pulled away, breaking our kiss and twisting so her hand fell away from my manhood. Surprise flashed across her features, hurt.
"Leo, what,”
Her question turned into a squeak as I scooped her up into my arms. She threw her own arms around my neck, shifting so that I felt the bare flesh of her legs and back against my limbs. I looked down in time to catch her glare.
"What are you doing?"
I smiled, starting to move. I felt her arms tighten.
"Leo!"
"You stink," I said.
She choked, and I grinned at the sight of the outrage in her reddening face. I squeezed her a little tighter against me, cradling her body against mine.
"But don't worry," I added. "That’s what we're here for, right?"
She glared at me for another heartbeat. She wanted to say more, but I suspected she already knew some of what I intended.
I was stepping into the pool a moment later. The water was hot, but not uncomfortably so. I was waist deep after a few more steps, lifting Helena a bit higher.
"I'm going to put you down," I said, reaching the long, lounge-shaped seat.
She nodded, letting out a small moan of pleasure as the hot water enveloped her. I made sure that she was comfortable, lowering her gently onto the sculpted seat. Her arms slipped from around my neck; and she leaned her head back against the rounded edge of the pool.
"Come join me," she said. "It’s nice."
"In a minute," I said. And then, on a whim, I bent down and kissed her forehead. "Relax."
She made that small sound again, her lips curling lazily up into a pleased smile. She settled herself lower into the water, closing her eyes and exhaling deeply.
Within a few heartbeats I was out, heading towards a nearby corner. There were two stone massage tables there, not far from the desk at which Helena normally sat.
The Empress came down here nearly every day. When she did, a pair of muscled body slaves usually waited for her by these tables. They weren't here tonight, thankfully; but the soaps, oils, perfumes and soft towels they used were at their place.
Soon I was stepping back into the pool, bearing a few strips of rough cloth and the softest, butteriest bar of soap I'd found. I lowered myself down into by Helena's feet, quickly soaking and then lathering up the first piece of cloth.
Helena's eyes were still shut, her breathing steady. She hadn't reacted to my presence, other than a slight tilt of her head in my direction. She was totally relaxed, luxuriating in the bath's simple pleasure.
"Helena," I said when I was ready, reaching beneath the water to touch her leg.
"Hmm?"
"Just lie still."
I ran my palm along the shape of her leg, moving from the tips of her feet to the swell of her thigh. I learned the shape of her, finding every cut, every bruise and every scrape.
Helena let out a pleased sigh, shifting her leg towards me. Her skin was so smooth, so tight over her muscles. I felt my manhood twitch beneath the water, but I ignored it, focusing my attention on her.
With the soap lathered cloth, I started scrubbing at her skin. I worked up from her foot, washing her. I was slow, thorough in my ministration. I was gentle around her scrapes and bruises, making sure I left nothing but clean, pink skin in my wake.
I bathed her as high as the loops of cloth that were still wound her waist, skipping up to her stomach once I'd finished both of her legs. The muscles there were taunt, rippling beneath my hands as she arched her back towards me, letting me slip the cloth beneath her.
"Don't forget my breasts," she murmured, not opening her eyes.
I chuckled, not missing the slight curl of her lips. I began with the underside of them, running along their rounded edges. God, but they were soft. The flesh silken and pillowy. And as I ran hands over them, my fingers couldn't help but to periodically squeeze and play.
I was as thorough here as I'd been with the rest of her; making sure that even the rosy stiffness of her nipples was clean.
Helena's smile didn't fade.
When all that was left was her hair, I slowed even further, beginning by wetting it with water from my cupped palms. I was careful not to let any trickle down her face. And when her hair was dark and saturated, I lathered by hands with soap and cleaned that too.
She shivered as my fingers massaged her scalp, shifting languidly where she lay.
"Alright," I said once I'd finished. "Are you ready for the next part?"
She cracked open an eye, peering at me through slitted lids. "What is it?"
"You'll see," I said, slipping my arms back beneath her back and legs. Then, ignoring her little mewl of protest, I lifted her out of the water. She snuggled into me, keeping her eyes closed until I'd walked us over to the massage tables.
"Oh, Leo," she purred, finally peeking at where I'd brought her. "I love this idea."
"I thought you might," I said, placing her down on the one I'd spread a few towels on earlier. "Lie on your stomach."
She obeyed, stretching cat-like over the toweled surface. Her eyes fluttered shut, resting her head in a pillow of her arms.
I hesitated a moment, standing there above her. My heart suddenly started to beat a little faster. Her body glowed with the soapy water that still clung to her; giving the bronze of her skin a deep, burnished look.
Embers spun faster, burning hotter, and I felt my body respond. She was a vision, stretched out before me as she was. The swell of her hips, and the arch of her near-naked buttocks. Her ass curved gracefully into the air, veiled only by the thin strip of cloth still buried within.
It was shaped so perfectly; a delicious fruit, ripe for digging into.
"Is looking all you're gonna do?" Helena asked, shifting her body so that her flesh quivered.
I coughed, managing to tear my gaze away from her bouncing cheeks. I quickly dried her with one of the soft towels, dribbling scented oil onto her back. I started rubbing it into her, as she melted into the table with a sigh.
Her flesh was warm beneath my touch, quickly heating the oil. It smelled of flowers, though of which, I did not know.
Again, I worked slowly. I started at her shoulders this time, moving down. I was no body slave to know just where to press and sculpt. But I was stratiotai; I knew the feel of knotted muscle and how to smooth it back into place. "Roll over," I said, when time had passed and I had finished.
Reluctantly, I pulled my hands from the warmth of her burnished body. "I'll do your front as well."
Helena made a small sound in her throat. She raised her head, glancing back at me through a curtain of darkened copper hair. Her eyelids were heavy.
"That does sound nice," she said.
And with another long blink of her pleasure hooded eyes, she pushed herself up. Her breasts came off the covered stone, swaying pendulum-like through the heated air. Instead of laying onto her back, however, Helena sat upright. She stretched, her feet touching back down onto the tiled floor.
"You don't want to?" I asked.
I took a step back, leaning against the edge of the second stone table.
"Oh, I do," Helena said. "More than anything. But,” She reached down, fingers plucking at the cloth that was still wrapped around her waist. "Wouldn't it be easier without this?"
My throat was suddenly drier than the Persian desert. Unbidden, my gaze slid down the naked curves of her body, coming to rest of the snuggly wrapped swell of her sex. She shifted her oil slickened thighs, opening herself up to me.
I tried to swallow, but couldn't. I felt the weight of her eyes on me; could picture the way her breath escaped through parted lips. But I couldn't look away.
My hardness was a bar of molten metal between my legs. I could see the veiled outline of her shape pressed tight against the wet layers of cloth. The barest shadow of the lush folds and silken flesh that awaited me within.
She laughed, the sound low, and from deep within her. "I guess that's a yes."
Her fingers slipped into the wrapped loops of cloth, emerging with now freed end of the long strip. She was on her feet a moment later, the wet cloth noticeably looser, though it still clung to her hips and navel. She swayed into the space between us, gliding towards me. Her loincloth hung in long loops now, only held in place by the loose grip of her fingers.
I sat back on the table, making space for her between my knees. I didn't speak, reaching out to grip her waist. I pulled her close, enough that her steam-moistened nipples brushed my naked chest. We stared into each other, and my heart ached at what I found there.
I saw that thing; that vast, unknowable, beautiful, wondrous thing that grew within her. It filled her now; pushing at the edge of her and there for all to see. I blinked gathering tears from my eyes. My throat closed up, blocked by a hundred, hundred embers of all-consuming tenderness that had been swirling up from the deepest parts of me.
She was so beautiful; so gentle, so warm and so strong. God, but she was everything; the answer to every question I'd been too afraid to ask. I,
", love the way you look at me, shield mate," she said.
Helena brought her free hand up, trailing her nails through the rough hair along my jawline. I smiled, relishing even this small connection between our bodies.
"Shield mate?" I said, teasing. "Is that what we are here?"
Her expression changed, the softness leaving her face. It was as if she'd suddenly been doused with ice-water. "Shield mates stand side by side. Together, Leo, that's what you told me. I believed you. I,”
Helena shook her head, taking a half step back. "If you can't do that here, then I,”
She trailed off, her eyes falling away from mine. And in that moment, as I caught a glimpse of that vastness retreating from her gaze, I understood.
Men and women were not created equal. It was a truth so central to most of our lives, that most of us looked right past it.
But not Helena.
She'd never married, had eschewed the life that so many of her gender fell into. She'd fought for her place; for the chance to do something different. She'd no doubt sacrificed for it, lost friends and family for it.
And despite everything, she was terrified of losing it. Because in the Byzantine Empire; a man stood before his woman.
Not beside her.
She took another step back, pulling away from me. My grip tightened around her waist. I didn't let her go. We were here, together, within this place we shared. Shield mates. And it was only now that I realized how much that word also meant to me.
Helena as my equal? It felt so right. Truly, unmistakably right. What a wonderful thing.
"Helena," I said.
She looked back up to me, so unsure. I let those embers within me swirl up until they danced behind my eyes, hoping she would see the fullness of my words.
"Do you swear yourself as my shield mate, vowing to stand beside me?"
She froze, eyes wide. She stared at me mutely; her expression one of such fragile vulnerability that I almost swallowed what I next spoke.
"Do you promise to stand together against the future; to face your enemies and mine with our shields locked?"
She blinked rapidly, her eyes shining with unshed tears. I could no longer speak past the lump that had returned to close my throat. I watched her, hoping that it would be enough.
Then, she leaned her chest into mine. Her arms rose to wrap themselves around my neck. I heard the wet strip of cloth she'd been holding tumble from her waist. But the sound was distant, easily ignored within this endless moment between our beating hearts.
"Do you, Leontius, swear yourself as my shield mate? Do you vow to stand beside me?" Her voice was so soft; that wondrous vastness there behind her eyes.
"And do you promise to believe in me; to trust that I'll hold that place beside you, and face what comes with your shield locked onto mine?"
I nodded; my voice rough. "I swear myself to you, shield mate."
"And I swear myself to you, shield mate," she said, a tear spilling down both cheeks.
Then, our lips found one another's. We kissed, falling so, so deeply into each other. I opened myself fully to her, and she to me. And together, we guided each other through every part of ourselves.
And when we finally parted, my head spun with the taste, and the knowing of her.
"A kiss to seal an oath," she breathed, her arms still around my neck.
I smiled. "We're bound together now, shield mate."
She nodded; eyes bright. "I have another for you."
"Oh?"
She leaned fully into me, her cheek sliding against my own so that she could whisper into my ear.
"Do you promise to make love to me?" Her breath, her body on my skin making me shiver. "And tonight, do you vow to hold me in your arms while I sleep?"
My heart hammered in my chest. "I swear it," I said, once again seeking her lips with my own.
"Ah," she said, dodging away. She put a finger to my lips, her eyes suddenly dancing. "That’s not the right kiss for this one."
I blinked, puzzled. I tried to speak, but she pressed her finger down harder.
"Shush," she said. Her other hand came to rest against my chest, pushing onto me with insistent strength. "Lie down."
I obeyed, liking the way her bottom lip had curled up between her teeth. I shifted to lay down lengthwise; the stone wet, and shockingly cool against my naked back. Helena drifted around towards my head, her fingers trailing up my chest. I shivered as her nails curled up my neck.
"Helena, what,”
Her hand slid back over my mouth, cutting me off. She was at the table's head now, and I had to crane backwards to see her.
"No talking," she said.
Her eyes were on mine; dark now, above her now parted lips. I could see her breath coming faster, a bloom of deeper scarlet spreading beneath her flesh. She leaned forward, coming down towards me, her hands on the stone beside my shoulders.
"Don't move," she breathed. "Not yet."
My chest ceased its rise and fall, my breath locked within me.
Her naked breasts hung there, just above my face. They brushed against each other, the space between, deep enough to smother me. Her nipples, those pink, perfect petals brushing past the tip of my nose.
"I don't want to hear your promise to me, Leo."
She stretched over top of me. Her breasts swung away, her nipples slipping over the flesh of my chest. Her hands shifted and I watched the tight ripples of her stomach slide past.
"I want to feel it."
Then, in a show of fluid grace, Helena was completely on the table. She'd brought her knees onto the stone. They started right beside my head, but as she kept moving lower, they shifted into place on either side of my shoulders.
The naked arch of her navel slid past my gaze. I saw a patch of dark hair; my first glimpse of the full, uncovered beauty of her.
"I want you to show me your sincerity," she said. "As I prove my own."
And then, with one more agonizingly slow shift of her body, she was over me. I beheld the wonder of her; the curling, silken folds of her center. Those embers swirled faster within me, gathering together. My heart slammed against my ribs like a battering ram.
She held herself a scant hands breadth from me; letting me feast on the sight of her. Her center was a lush seem of curling velvet; soft, where the rest of her was so tight. Her pubic hair, dark and gleaming with moisture, was verdant. A forest of curls that was as wild as the cypress green of her eyes.
Helena's knees shifted a fraction, and in some distant corner of my mind I felt her fingers pulling at the cloth wrapping my waist. But I was frozen, breathing in the heady scent of the sweat that still clung to her sex. That movement, that minute adjustment, had opened her. She was spread wide before me; her silken lips parting to reveal the gleaming, dew-drenched warmth within her.
My mouth flooded with saliva; my eyes watering as I refused to blink away the sight of the her. I felt a small sound escape me. A moan? A whimper? I wasn't sure. But in that moment, I thought of it as a prayer; an exhortation to God and this, the most perfect of His creations.
"You promised to make love to me," she said.
Her breasts pressed against my navel. I groaned, as suddenly, the tightness between my legs disappeared. Helena had pulled away my loincloth, I realized, freeing my phallus. She made a small sound of pleasure in her throat; the warmth of her palm wrapping around the shaft of my spear.
Her hand started to stroke me; working my still damp member up and down. I felt her inhale my scent; the dripping folds of her cuneus quivering with her airy sigh of anticipation.
"So, kiss me, my shield mate," she murmured, her breath tickling my tip. "Speak your oath into my body."
A groan rumbled out from me as, a moment later, Helena's tongue flicked out taste my phallus. Her hand continued to work, pulling my skin down from around my bulbous head. She spread her saliva over that too; wrapping her tongue around me in languid swirls.
The sensuous sensation freed me from my paralysis. The embers within me, coming together into a veritable flame.
My hands came up and I dug my fingers into the flesh her ass, spreading her even wider before plunging in.
Her luscious slit was a steaming jungle; a rolling ocean. Her soft, moisture beaded pubic hair tickled my face as I dove through her dewy folds. I closed my eyes, melting into her, into the taste that flowed from between her legs. I felt Helena pull me into the satiny dampness of her mouth, and I luxuriated in her liquid serenity.
Where the Empress and Antonina had scalded me with their heat; Helena soaked into me with a soothing coolness. She was the rain-drenched forest, the salty spray of the sea. She was more sour than sweet; tasting of the scent that drifted from her body when we trained. She was movement, sweat and the sun on tired muscles.
Helena's taste was rich; musky and wild. It was wonderfully hers. And it was utterly, intoxicatingly, head-swimmingly feminine.
I ran my tongue through to her depths; feeling her every little gasp and quiver. She settled herself more fully onto my face; her head bobbing slowly up and down on my phallus. I explored her fully, carefully. And, remembering my promise, I used my lips and tongue to speak to her of my devotion.
After a while, I felt her mouth come up from me. She let out a breathy moan; arching her body upward. Her weight pressed down on me, her ass slipping from my grasp and closing over my face. I was suddenly smothered in the dark of her; drowning in her taste and her scent.
God, she was so wet. Her moisture slickened folds sliding over me; coating my beard and face as her hips started to roll. I helped the motion of her hips, rocking her with my arms. I couldn't breathe, couldn't see; but I didn't care. I lost myself within the deepest parts of her.
And when it felt like my lungs would burst, she lifted herself off of me.
I let her go; my chest heaving. I pushed myself onto my elbows as Helena spun to face me. Her lips were parted, her breath as ragged as my own. She smiled, a curling, pleasure softened expression as she met my gaze.
I reached up, running my palm along her cheek. I pulled her smile down to my own, kissing her deeply. Her body slid into place against me; the falling curtain of her hair shielding us from the world beyond.
"There," I said once she had pulled away. "Now, it’s doubly official."
She laughed low in her throat, her eyes shining. "Make love to me then, my shield mate."
With that she lowered herself down onto me; sheathing my spit-gleaming phallus within her.
Her body swallowed me whole.
She moaned; the sound soft. I slid my hands down to grip her hips; leaning my head back as she began to move.
Helena rode me; her body a silken wave. Her hips rolled and swayed in a gentle rhythm. I fell into it, moving my body with hers.
She gasped and moaned, purring breathily into my ear. I murmured to her; running my hands up and down her body. I caressed her breasts, hips and curving buttocks; my arms rolling with the slow undulation of her hips.
I kissed her mouth, her breasts, her nipples, her cheek, her neck and then back to her lips. She was so soft. Her lips cool as falling snow. Her tongue was sweet; made more so by the tender warmth we breathed into each other.
Helena and I made love; the rest of the world fading away. There was only her; the feel of her body against mine, and the fire that was growing within me.
She felt it too, because together, our bodies soon quickened. The placid sea stirred; the silken wave of our rhythm churning faster and faster. We built upon each other; the fire roaring higher through me, while her body swayed and roiled like a storm.
Then, she stiffened. Something relaxed within her, and I felt myself slip free. She lifted herself up, and through the swinging curtain of her breasts I saw the storm of her body burst.
She squirted; the sea's spray pouring out from between her legs. Her wetness splashed onto my stomach; warmer than the air around us. I was transfixed, watching as her body clenched and trembled; her every motion sending more of her spattering onto me like rain.
Helena's face was suddenly scarlet, her expression twisting into something between horror and shame.
"God, Leo, I'm so sorry! This happens to me sometimes; I can't always control it." She was speaking quickly, shifting as if to push herself off of me. "God, why now! I'm so sorry, I know that this is so disgusting. Please, Leo, I'll clean it. Just don't,”
The flames became an inferno, searing away my every thought. My hands clamped tightly around her hips. Blood roared in my ears; a scalding heat searing the inside of my throat.
She was so fucking wet. And I burned to drown myself in the soothing fountain of her moisture drenched center.
I jerked into motion; half sliding myself, half lifting and pulling at her, until my face was once again beneath her silken lushness.
"Leo, what!? Don't,” Her voice became a breathy squeak, as I dove back into her.
I drank from her; lapping at the delicious sourness of her with long strokes of my tongue. My nose was crushed into the soft curls of her pubic hair; hardly able to breathe. But that didn't matter. My arms flexed; grinding her steaming, soaking folds harder against me.
"Leo! Stop it!" She panted. "What are you,”
Her voice trailed off into an airy moan. My tongue plumbed the depths of her with nothing of the careful exploration or calculated flicks of before. I drank from her like a man dying of thirst, feeling the fire burn hotter and hotter within me.
"Leo,”
I felt the muscles of her thighs clench around my skull. She tried to once again pull herself off of me, but my grip was iron.
"Let me go," she said. "This is so, so, ah,”
That last word became a deep, back arching, toe curling moan. I felt it thrum through her body. Her fingers wove themselves through my hair, griping me tightly. I loosened my own grip, letting her slide herself back and forth over my mouth and nose.
I took everything I could from her, desperate to ease the burning.
Helena whimpered. I felt a tremble wrack her body; her fingers tightening in my hair. She ground herself into my face, her breath ragged.
"Fuck, Leo. I can't. I,”
Her body stiffened. She cried out, throwing her head backwards. Within her, I felt something loosen. Helena was the storm once again, her scream like thunder.
And from between her legs, the clouds broke.
Her wetness flooded into me. A deluge that filled me with her sour-sweetness. I pulled my mouth from her, closing my eyes as her rain soaked my face and hair. I held my breath; letting her wetness flow around me, lest I drown in the taste of her.
The storm eased. I opened my eyes to find the soft jungle of her pubic hair a mere tongue flick away; moisture still dripping from the lush-ripeness of her steaming folds.
"My lion," Helena breathed. Her naked breasts heaved and her eyes were glazed with pleasure. "My hungry, hungry lion."
But I wasn't yet finished. A growl rumbled out of me; the dull roar of the inferno. My phallus twitched; afire with the same blazing heat. It was burning; a freshly forged sword.
And it was into Helena's soaking cunny that it needed to be quenched.
I surged upward, groaning with need. She gasped, letting herself be maneuvered until the tip of my phallus pressed against her moisture.
"Drench me," I panted, before I thrust into her.
I slid into her effortlessly. God, she was wet. She was so fucking wet.
She gasped, throatier this time. She arched her back over me, fingernails digging into my shoulders. Her tits hung low and heavy, swinging pendulum-like above me. I pulled her down, burying my face between them. I kissed and sucked, forcing myself fully into her pillowy softness.
I thrust into her again and again; faster and faster. She mewled, shuddered and moaned. Her body melded itself to mine; snaking an arm around the back of my head to hold me tightly to her chest.
Her ass rebounded against my hips; a rhythmic thunderclap that grew deafening as I plunged my phallus deeper and deeper into her. She shifted, dislodging me. My member slipped from her soaking center; a gush of her wetness spraying out after it.
She drenched me; once again coating my phallus and hips and stomach with her fragrant rain. My entire body shook with the growl that rumbled from me; my thoughts melting away.
I erupted from between her heavy tits with a gasp. I grabbed a fistful of her hair, yanking her lips down to mine. She mashed her mouth against my lips; our tongues fighting to wrap the other in its embrace.
Gone was the gentle sway, the tenderness. We were fire and storm; lion and shark. We raged against and into each other with elemental fury.
Her body writhed in my grip. Her hand slipped between our sweat and squirt slickened bodies, gripping my phallus and forcing it back into her.
I growled into her throat; stabbing deeply. She shuddered, slamming her hips down to meet me whenever I thrust back upwards. We kept our lips locked; hammering our bodies together again and again and again as we found a new, frantic rhythm.
And then, when there was only the heat and the sweat and the pounding of our bodies; I exploded.
I roared silently; my body clenching tight. I pumped all of myself into her; Helena's body riding wave after wave of billowing heat that wracked me.
Then, it was gone.
The heat had vanished. Helena had taken all of me, had quenched me in her silken coolness. I was spent, empty, suddenly feeling nothing but the soothing balm of her body on mine.
We collapsed, panting.
My chest rose and fell in great bellows, Helena's weight laid out on top of me.
The flesh between us was hot, sticky from our passion. Helena shifted, letting out a languid sort of sigh as my phallus slipped out of her. She slid into the crook of my arm, on her side, her cheek against my chest.
I let out a pleased rumble, pulling her close. I traced swirling patterns with my fingers along the naked small of her back, smiling when I felt her shiver.
"That tickles," she said.
"Do you want me to stop?" My voice was hoarse.
She let out a breath, tickling the hair on my chest. "No."
I laughed softly, folding my arm so that I could run my fingers along her ribs and shoulders. We lay in silence for a while, letting our bodies cool.
"Did you mean it?" She said, at last. "Everything you said."
"Hmm?" My eyes had been growing heavy. I rubbed at them, feeling the stiffness of my body as I shifted against the stone. "What?"
Helena didn't speak, curling and tugging at my chest hair. I blinked myself awake, forcing my mind into motion. I rested my head on one hand, speaking a few heartbeats later.
"Look at me."
She stiffened, not moving until I called her name. When she did raise her head, she moved slowly. Her face was carefully blank, the beginning of a flinch already forming at the corners of her eyes.
"Is this because you want my tongue in your cunny again?" I asked, flatly.
She blinked, her expression going slack.
"Well?" I demanded. "I'm getting pretty tired of always repeating myself you know."
Helena choked on her next breath. A flush crawled up her skin, and a giggle spilled out of her. She was laughing within the next heartbeat, my expression of mock severity fading into a wide smile.
I pulled her back down to me, kissing her laughing lips. She relaxed, her body curling back into mine.
"Side by side, shield mate," I told her. "Your shield locked to mine."
She nodded, her face just above mine. "You're right, I'm sorry. It’s just, no. Never mind."
"I don't swear oaths lightly," I said. I raised my hand, brushing a lock of hair back from her face. "And I don't think you do either."
"No," she said. I saw that vastness filling the green of her eyes. "I don't."
"Good," I said, and this time, it was her that leaned down to kiss me.
It was a while before we separated, though her face twisted when we did. "God. Your lips still taste like,”
She didn't finish. I grinned up at her, feeling the first flicker of those embers swirling back to life within me. "I'm not surprised. I nearly drowned."
Her face burned scarlet. She let her forehead drop to rest against my chin. "God, Leo, I know. I'm so sorry. I totally lost control there."
I laughed, pushing her head down into the crook of my neck. I massaged her scalp with my fingers, pleased when she let out another little sigh.
"I guess I should apologize too," I said. "I don't if that ending really counts as 'love making'."
She raised herself back up, propping herself on my chest to gaze into my face. "I don't care. Those last few minutes were,”
"Amazing," I finished.
She smiled, biting at the corner of her bottom lip. She ran her fingers through the hair on my jaw, scratching at the remaining dampness.
"It really didn't bother you, then? When I, you know."
"Soaked me?" I grinned.
She flicked my nose, "I'm serious."
My grin faded. I looked into her, hoping that she could see the embers gathering within me. "Helena, seeing that, and feeling how you,” I shivered, my flaccid phallus twitching. "It drove me completely wild."
"You're sure?" She said, "because it always happens. When I get close. I can hold it back sometimes, but tonight,”
"Don't," I told her. "Not ever, shield mate."
Her smile was like the sun on glittering waves. She kissed me, and when she pulled back, light danced within her eyes.
"What makes you think this will happen again?"
"Oh?" I said, shifting my body beneath hers. "Don't I still have a few promises to keep?"
"Hmm," the sound from somewhere within her. "You do. But that's not really my problem."
"Ah," I said. "Well, I was planning on going to really wash myself in that now, definitely cold bath. And then, taking you up to my bedchamber."
Helena shifted, her naked flesh sliding against mine. The first stir within the ocean's stillness. "I'm not tired."
Those embers at my center came together, a tongue of flame flickering to life. I let it burn behind my eyes, running my entire palm down the arch of her back.
"Me neither."
"My lion," she purred. "Always hungry."
She brought her lips down to mine, whispering two more words in the moment before they met.
"Devour me."
Out in the Empress' city.
My breathing slowed. I felt the darkness deepen, my thoughts drifting away and swirling into whatever stuff dreams were made of.
The soft warmth at my side shifted. The hairs along my side rose up, cool air sliding in to replace the kiss of Helena's naked flesh.
"Are you asleep?" She murmured.
I felt her breasts pillow against my chest, strands of falling hair tickling my shoulders. She ran her fingers through the hair on my jaw, gently scratching me with her nails. I leaned into her hand, and shivered when her fingers trailed down the curve of my neck.
I made a small sound of pleasure. "Not anymore."
"Good."
I could hear the smile in her voice. Her naked leg slid along mine; and a heartbeat later, she pressed her smile onto my lips. She kissed me; pulling me into the soothing coolness of her. She was the forest pool; welcoming me within her tranquil, crystalline depths.
My arms wrapped around her, drawing a breathy little laugh from her.
"My lion. Are you really still hungry?"
"Umm, maybe a little?"
"Ah," she purred, her voice, full of hidden promise. "Well, in that case,”
Suddenly, she was gone. She'd slipped from my arms, the bed creaking as she'd rolled off. Her absence was a bucket of cold water; my body already too used to the heat of hers. I sat up quickly, blinking in the candlelight.
"Helena," I said. "What the hell?"
She grinned at me from a few paces away, her fingers working a lock of her hair into a small braid.
"Come on," she said. "It’s still early. Let's go eat."
I stared at her flatly, her grin widening. Her cypress eyes were bright.
"You said that you were hungry, didn't you?"
"I did," I answered. "But you know what I, That was cruel."
Her grin melted into a laugh; her skin flushed. She swayed towards me, her still naked curves rolling like the waves beneath a ship. She sat in my lap, letting me loop my arms around her waist.
"You make it too easy, my shield mate."
I raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so, it’s my fault, then?"
"Obviously," she answered, eyes dancing. "You trained me to go after weakness when I see it."
It was my turn to laugh. I rose to my feet, lifting her up in my arms. She threw her arms around my neck, her laugh joining mine to fill my small sleeping quarters. I kissed her before setting her down.
"I am hungry, shield mate," I said. "And it just so happens that there's more training we can do tonight."
"Should I get my armor?" She asked, her own eyebrow climbing.
"No," I answered, my smile wolfish. "But make sure that your fists are ready. I'm choosing where we eat."
"A soldier's tavern?" Helena said, an hour or so later. "I've been in one of these before, you know."
"As a stratiotai?"
I expected her to glower. To snort and stride forward with her shoulders stiff. Instead, I saw something flash across her face.
"No," she said. "Not as a stratiotai."
I was an idiot. The Excubitors had never accepted her. Of course, they never would have invited her out for a drink.
"Helena, I,”
", don't like the look of this place," she cut me off. She gave me a teasing smile. "Are you sure it’s any good? It smells like puke and sour wine."
I hesitated a moment, before letting the matter drop.
"That's the smell of success," I told her. "Kostas runs the best Winehouse in the city. Well, the best that a few nummi a day can afford."
"The Empress pays us enough to go somewhere less, successful."
"You'll like it, trust me. The wine tastes like horse piss, but,” I let the tension build for a few heartbeats. "He's the only one in the city that makes decent pitaroudia. "
Her eyes widened, mouth popping open. I laughed, happy to see the reaction that I'd been hoping for.
"Pitaroudia?" She said. "He's Rhodian?"
"From around Alyki bay," I said, nodding my head. "On the western side of the island."
Her smile, as she followed me in, was one of honest excitement.
To be continued in part 5, Based on the works of Robyn Bee, for Literotica.