Shadow Haven

by AJ Schippers

  “Hush. You are doing an awful lot of complaining today.”

  “I count one complaint and lots of non-complaining,” Julia retorted as her hands were placed firmly against the wall.

  “You are well on your way to strike three, you brat.”

  Julia gasped. “That’s a new one!”

  “Just you wait. I have a plethora of nicknames waiting for you. Depending on your behavior, I’m sure you’ll get to know all of them in due time.”

  “Hmm, will I like them?”

  “Probably not all of them,” Alexandra said.

  “So I just safe word the rest of ’em?”

  “I don’t think that’s how it works.”

  “Who made these rules, anyway?” She grunted when Alexandra pressed her body against hers. “Okay, never mind those rules,” she murmured. “You’re naked.”

  “I’m a good multitasker. And you are, I believe, completely at my mercy,” Alexandra ran her hands down Julia’s body.

  The nails gently scratching down her back made her shiver. The action became more intense with every stroke until Julia was sure that red welts had appeared on her pale skin. Her soft breathing became more rapid as her heartbeat joined the pace of her throbbing clit.

  “I hope you haven’t forgotten about that lesson I am going to teach you.” Alexandra brushed Julia’s hair away from her neck. “I have a surprise I would like for you to try out. If you don’t like it, all you have to do is tell me. Do you understand?”

  Julia nodded, and Alexandra turned her around. She moaned when what had to be a warm tongue drew circles around her nipple, hardening it immediately.

  “I have a feeling you will like it, though. You barely flinch when I do it with my fingers, but it’s not something we’ve discussed before. So, let’s make this a trial run. I won’t be disappointed if you don’t like it. I will be disappointed if you’re not honest with me, though.”

  “I’ll be honest,” Julia said as Alexandra played with her other nipple.

  “Good girl,” Alexandra gave her a quick kiss on the lips, and at the movement, there was the sound of jangling metal. Julia’s heart quickened. “So,” Alexandra said, “would you like me to tell you what it is, or would you like to feel it first?”

  “Feel it.”

  Alexandra’s fingers trailed down from Julia’s neck to her right breast. Julia hissed as something seemed to firmly grab hold of her nipple. It wasn’t nearly as gentle as Alexandra’s fingers, and yet it felt so incredibly good. The constant pressure made her ache for more.

  “We’ll adjust shortly.” Alexandra repeated the action on the other nipple and took a step back. “How does that feel?”

  “Different,” Julia gasped. “It feels good.”

  “How does it feel when I do this,” Alexandra asked as she lightly tugged on what must have been a chain connecting the clamps.

  Julia squirmed and pressed her legs together. “Good,” she said with a blush on her cheeks.

  “I’m proud of you, Julia,” Alexandra said. “We’ll keep them on there while we play. Tell me when they start to hurt, and we’ll adjust the intensity of the clamps, or we’ll take them off.”

  Julia smiled beneath the blindfold when Alexandra pressed into her, making the clamps hurt even more, but God—it felt good. She moaned when Alexandra rewarded her with a long kiss.

  “God,” Julia said, her voice hoarse when Alexandra finally pulled back. “You’re amazing.”

  “You flatter me. Ready for your lesson, Ms. Quinn?”

  “I wish I could scold you for calling me that, but for some reason, it’s making me wetter than I’ve ever been,” Julia said. “Ready.”

  Julia wanted to know what Alexandra was doing, how she was looking at Julia, but instead, all she could focus on was the slight shivering of her own body.

  “Cold or anticipation?” Alexandra asked.

  “A little bit of both.”

  “Scared?”

  “Never.”

  “Good girl.”

  Alexandra took Julia by the hand and led her out the door. Initially she had planned on staying inside the bedroom, but there was something about Julia’s willingness, playfulness, and eagerness that made her want to test her limits a bit. Nothing that she couldn’t object to, nothing that would harm her, just delicate touches that went beyond anything they had done in a long time. Julia had gotten a dose of it before during her orgasm denial week, but that was only a mere taste of what Alexandra could do to her. And since Julia seemed so eager to play, who was she to deny her that pleasure?

  She closed the door of the playroom behind her and took Julia over to the bondage bench that stood in the corner. This bench was a simple one: black framing with red padded leather covers. It would be more comfortable for Julia than the spanking horse. Besides, Alexandra wanted full access to her girl, and this would provide her with exactly that.

  Carefully, she guided Julia to kneel on the bench, and she smiled at the sight of her. “Ready for one more thing?”

  “Yes, Miss,” Julia softly said.

  “Very good.” She grabbed the handcuffs and placed Julia’s hands on either side of the bench. Tender fingertips ran over Julia’s smooth skin before she placed the cuffs on her wrists. She attached the cuffs to the rings on either side of the bench. “Just in case you were thinking about running away.”

  “I wouldn’t dare, but if I need to, I’m sure I can take you.” A smile spread over her face.

  “I’m glad you still have your sense of humor. Let’s see how long that lasts before you’re begging me for some release.”

  Julia moaned when Alexandra’s hands gently pushed her down, effectively placing her chest on the top side of the bench, her butt now up in the air.

  “You know what the first rule of a proper lesson is?” Alexandra asked as she let the flogger slide through her fingers.

  Julia shook her head.

  Alexandra was pleased that Julia already knew one rule when they were in the playroom: don’t speak unless you’re being spoken to. She ran her fingers through Julia’s hair.

  “A good lesson always has proper instruction. Now, I’m not really into the whole classroom-slash-slide-show thing, so I’m just going to demonstrate it…on you. Any famous last words you wish to speak?”

  Julia laughed loudly. “If I die tonight,” said Julia, “I want Caroline to know that I’ve completely forgiven her. Also, at my funeral…everyone needs to eat a mandatory bear claw.”

  Alexandra rolled her eyes. “Those are your famous last words?”

  Julia nodded. “On my gravestone you may put: Here lies Julia. She loved bear claws and was a good girl till the very end.”

  “We’ll see about that, little one.” She instructed Julia to take a deep breath, then started a soft rhythm with the flogger on Julia’s back. “Slide one, where we learn that rhythms are good.” The pattern continued until she settled into a comfortable pace, the soft moans coming from Julia pleasing her immensely.

  Alexandra’s gaze wandered over Julia’s body, taking in every muscle spasm and her skin’s every reaction to the leather straps of the flogger. When Julia’s right leg inched a little to the right, she stopped the rhythm, wondering if Julia would catch on. To her surprise, she did quite quickly and hesitantly put her knee back to the original position. Alexandra smiled as she fell back into the rhythm she had started earlier.

  “Slide two, where we learn that actions speak louder than words. For instance, if I stopped flogging you right this second, what would you do?” Alexandra put her words into action and let the flogger fly through the air instead of against Julia’s skin. Julia whined at the loss of contact.

  “Be creative, my bear claw,” Alexandra said when Julia still hadn’t moved after a couple of seconds. A grin spread over her face when Julia groaned loudly as she put her ass higher up in the air. She immediately brought the flogger down to Julia’s ass and continued in the same rhythm.

  “Slide three, where we learn t
he difference between being a good girl and a bad girl.” She let the flogger fall to the ground and leaned over to grab the riding crop instead. Alexandra slid it over the soles of her feet, up her calves, then her thighs, finally settling it between her legs. Close enough for Julia to feel its presence, but not close enough to touch. Julia was already dripping, and Alexandra wasn’t far behind her.

  “I noticed last night, when I was doing the dishes—that you were supposed to be doing—that the cupboard was slightly open. Naturally, I got curious, seeing as it was closed when I was cooking dinner. That means that someone opened it when they put the dishes in the sink.” Julia squirmed as the riding crop slid down her thighs once more. “So, I took it upon myself to do some further investigation. Imagine my surprise when I noticed that the chocolate bar looked a lot smaller than the last time I saw it.”

  Julia gasped softly.

  “Now, last time I checked it was just you and me on this island, and I am pretty confident that I didn’t eat any chocolate. I am also positive that my girl would never eat chocolate without me explicitly telling her that she can. So, Julia… Do you know where that chocolate went?”

  Julia shook her head.

  “You don’t? That’s curious, indeed. I think you’ve been a bad girl, and I think you’re being a bad girl right now.” With that and a quick flick of the wrist, the leather tip of the crop hit Julia’s bare mound without warning.

  “Holy Mother of God,” Julia said through gritted teeth.

  “Remember your safe word,” Alexandra said sternly and brought the crop up again. She knew exactly what she was doing: the tip would sting, but it wouldn’t be unbearable pain. Julia could take it. She brought the crop up once more. “Now, let me ask you again. Do you know what happened to the chocolate?”

  Julia nodded. “I ate it.”

  “Good girl,” Alexandra said as she leaned down and grabbed the flogger, starting her rhythm against Julia’s cheeks again. “Well, you’re not a good girl for eating chocolate without my permission. We shall count it as strike three. But I will give you a chance to redeem yourself, since you were so honest with me.” She suppressed a laugh when Julia sighed a breath of obvious relief.

  “Slide four,” Alexandra said. She guided Julia into a sitting position, legs spread and over the sides of the bench. With a swift movement, Alexandra took a seat in front of Julia, their legs touching and the flogger now resting on Julia’s back. “Where we learn how to ask for permission without using words.”

  She leaned forward and hooked a finger around the chain of the nipple clamps, pulling her in closer. Her lips brushed against Julia’s as she softly spoke. “I love you very much, Julia.”

  Alexandra let go of the chain and leaned back against the wall, bracing herself so she could place her feet on Julia’s thighs. She let the tip of the riding crop slide over the inside of her thighs, up to her stomach, and finally over the clamps that were still firmly in place. “Are these still good?”

  When Julia nodded and sat perfectly still, Alexandra watched her intently, wondering how long it would take for Julia to learn how to ask for permission without even using her words. Knowing Julia…she wouldn’t have to wait long.

  Julia frowned when, after what seemed like an eternity, Alexandra still hadn’t moved or spoken another word. How in the world was she supposed to ask for permission without using words, and more importantly…permission for what, exactly? She tried to imagine what Alexandra would look like, sitting atop of the bench, her legs spread—oh! She leaned further forward until she could literally smell Alexandra. She counted the seconds, then focused on the soft inhale and exhale of Alexandra’s breath and the loud thumping of her own heart.

  When the tip of the riding crop slid over her back, she took it as Alexandra’s permission and leaned in even closer until her nose bumped against Alexandra’s soft tummy. There she kissed the soft skin and slowly made her way down as the crop rested atop of her back. As she got ready to slide her tongue through Alexandra’s wetness, the tip of the crop hit her ass, hard. She growled and diverted course to Alexandra’s thighs, the crop once again stilling its movements. So that’s how you ask for permission, Julia thought as she coaxed the skin of Alexandra’s thighs into her mouth.

  Not being able to see made things considerably harder for her, but it also turned her on. She kissed a path down Alexandra’s thighs, moved to the other side, and when she was sure every last inch of skin had been covered, she cautiously made her way up to the holy grail. This was it, now or never. Very carefully, her tongue slid through the wetness, and when the crop lifted itself off her back, she held her breath.

  “Just kidding,” Alexandra said, then placed it down again.

  Julia wanted to make a sound; really, she did. But she couldn’t. All of her energy was directed toward Alexandra, and with the blindfold still covering her eyes, it heightened all of her other senses. God—Alexandra smelled amazing, and she tasted like the nectar of the gods themselves. She eagerly lapped at the wetness and placed her knees further apart to get better access. Tomorrow, she was going to be in so much pain, but today…today she couldn’t care less as she reacquainted herself with Alexandra’s scent.

  Another growl eventually came when she wanted to use her fingers to enter Alexandra—not that she couldn’t get the job done with her mouth, but there was something about the combination of her mouth and fingers that she much preferred.

  “Is there something you want, mine?” Alexandra asked.

  With a mischievous grin, Julia moved her mouth across Alexandra’s thigh, hoping that Alexandra would follow her line of sight, and gave a short wave with her left hand. She waited patiently until she heard the small click, and then her right hand came loose. Her eyes rolled. Alexandra had released the opposite hand that Julia had asked for.

  She was about to slide her finger through the wetness when the crop hit her ass. She winced. What had she forgot? She racked her brain until she remembered. With a smile, she sat up to the best of her abilities and brought her hand to Alexandra’s mouth. After the sensation of soft lips kissing the tips of her fingers, she brought them down again and entered Alexandra. She leaned down and sucked the hardened clit into her mouth, Alexandra’s panting moans music to her ears.

  Julia definitely considered herself a hard worker, and today was no different. She worked diligently to bring Alexandra pleasure, listened to every sharp intake of breath. And when Alexandra’s fingers burrowed themselves into her hair, she knew she had been granted her final request for permission. Her tongue flicked quickly against Alexandra’s clit as her fingers pumped faster. It was when an elaborate, loud moan fell from Alexandra’s lips that Julia knew she had done her job well.

  “Good girl,” Alexandra panted out as she let the riding crop and flogger fall to the floor. “Such a good girl.” She uncuffed Julia’s other hand and carefully guided Julia up with her. She kissed Julia fervently. “Let’s take these off, shall we?” Alexandra said as she kissed the swell of Julia’s breasts. “This is going to hurt,” she warned before taking off both clamps simultaneously.

  Julia groaned loudly, and Alexandra immediately soothed the pain by brushing over the nipples with her thumbs. She smiled when the blindfold finally came off, and her eyes watered as they adjusted to the light. “I’m not crying,” she whispered when she noticed the worried look on Alexandra’s face. “Adjusting to the light.”

  Alexandra nodded. “I’m proud of you. You did well. How are you feeling?”

  “Wet,” Julia said, “but satisfied.” She squinted and cocked her head to the side, hoping it would add some adorableness to what she was about to ask. “Have I redeemed myself?”

  When Alexandra grinned and Julia saw that white, bright smile, she knew she couldn’t be that lucky.

  “Oh no. You are in so much trouble for eating that chocolate. I do like how your brattiness dissipated like snow in the sun. So, while you’ve redeemed yourself for your first and second strike, I’m still hold
ing you accountable for the third one. Five hundred words per strike, which means you owe me a five-hundred-word essay.”

  Julia gasped. “Please tell me you’re kidding!”

  “Not even in the slightest bit,” Alexandra said sternly. “Be grateful you don’t owe me fifteen hundred words.”

  “But—”

  “I will add five hundred words, though, for every complaint that is about to fall from those luscious lips.”

  That shut Julia up real fast.

  “Don’t pout,” Alexandra said as she brought her lips to Julia’s for a quick kiss. “You’ve wondered what it would be like to write this essay, and now you will know. I expect a five-hundred-word essay in my hands in two hours.”

  “What’s the topic?” Julia asked, unable to stop pouting.

  “Why I should not eat chocolate without explicit consent from my Domme.”

  Julia sighed. “Can I use your computer?”

  Alexandra laughed. “Oh no. You’re writing this by hand. No spelling mistakes either. No scratching out words. I want it neat and clean.” She looked at Julia for a while before pulling her into a tight hug. “I am so very proud of you,” she whispered into her ear. “This is not really a punishment. See it as a mere reminder as to why you should follow the rules at all times. If you do a good job, I will reward you.”

  Julia smiled before boldly pressing her mouth against Alexandra’s. She immediately granted her access. Julia knew this was their downtime, or aftercare, as Alexandra called it. It was Julia’s moment to take what she needed as she unwound from their play session. The fact that Alexandra seemed to happily provide her with that, well…that made writing an essay almost worth it.

  Julia sighed heavily as she crumpled up the piece of paper and grabbed another one. So far, she had attempted to write this fucking essay six times now, and every time, she’d either run out of words or made a mistake, resulting in her having to start over. Her fifth essay had… Well, it had not been an essay. It had been a list of reasons why writing this essay was stupid and why she wasn’t going to do it just because she ate a freaking piece of chocolate. But she quickly realized that would get her into real trouble, and that was the last thing she wanted.