The Claiming of Lynn

The warmth of the mid-morning sun cleared the deep fog of sleep from his mind while he stretched to bask in the warmth. Taking a deep breath, he caught the scent of musk and sandalwood. With a smile, he rolled over to grasp Lynn. "Good morning, woman."

Opening his eyes in alarm when she was not there, he rolled quickly to his other side, reaching for his dagger, but stopped when he saw Lynn kneeling quietly at the bedside in a green chemise.

"Did you sleep well?" she asked with a modest, yet impish grin as her eyes admired his handsome body.

"Yes I did," he rumbled. "Did you?"

"Yes, Sir, the best I have since your last visit."

He noticed a touch of pink in her cheeks. "Are you blushing?" he teased.

The color deepened, spread. "Sir, you know that a simple pleasure slut does not blush," she mumbled.

"Well maybe this morning you do not feel like a pleasure slut?"

"You are correct," she stammered, the blush spreading over her breasts and thighs.

Reaching out to gently stroke her cheek, he asked, "Do you still wish to be my consort?" He lifted her chin so he could look into her eyes.

"I would carry your yoke anywhere in this world," she said earnestly.

"Last night it was naked also," he smiled.

"I would carry it however you wanted me to carry it," she whispered, lowering her head.

He was silent while the back of his hand stroked and caressed her cheek and her throat. When his fingers came away damp, he stopped. "Are you crying?"

"No." she replied, through the tears that coursed down her cheeks.

"Really?" he asked boldly.

She sniffled. "My tears are of joy."

"Why do you have tears of joy?"

"I must profess my love for you master. You were kind and gentle and did not take me like I was just another pleasure slave last night."

"I see, and now you are confused for you were not used harshly as if you were a common pleasure slut?"

"Yes. I mean no, Sir. It is not good for a slave to love a Master."

"Well, we will not worry about that now," he said, content with her statement. "I am hungry and very thirsty. What have you prepared for me this morning, Lynn?"

She beamed at him, pleased to have anticipated his need. "I am glad, for I brought you a large morning meal and a kettle of warm tea."

"Well done my pleasing thrall," he praised her, laughing as she blushed lightly once more.

She rose to her feet and handed him his pants and shirt, then made the last little preparations on the table so his meal would be ready.

"You did well Lynn. It looks and smells wonderful," he commented.

Her eyes shone. "Thank you," she grinned. "I remember you like a different type of morning meal than the rest of the men I have... cooked for."

He moved to the table and seated himself. "You remembered well, I am going to enjoy this greatly."

She smiled and blushed again as she stood by his side, waiting to serve him if he needed anything. As he finished his meal, she broke the silence with a soft statement. "Sir, I know my Master sent me to you last night without the coin sack on my hip, but this is a new day, and there is a..." her voice trailed off.

"You are right. I will reward your Master for your talents." Sebastian assured her.

Reaching into his money pouch, he pulled out a handful of coins. Spreading out a clean cloth napkin, he placed the coins on top. Holding up a gold coin he smiled and told her, "Make sure you tell Master Robert that this is for you company last night."

Lynn smiled like a young girl. "Thank you Sir, my Master will be greatly pleased."

Tying up the napkin, he handed it to her, and then waved her toward the door. "Go and show your Master my pleasure. I need to finish my meal in mediation."

"As you wish, Sir," she replied as she scampered out of the alcove to show her Master.

Sebastian ate in silence, drinking the full mug of warm tea before praying, dressing and leaving the alcove. When he arrived in the main room, he saw Robert sitting at a table, counting his money from the night before. Getting a second mug of tea, he joined Robert at the table.

"Did you sleep well?" Robert asked, a knowing grin spreading across his face.

Returning the smile, Sebastian replied. "Yes, the honey-sweet tart you sent me was very pleasing."

"I am glad, and I am sure your God is pleased too." He nodded.

Sebastian laughed. "Why do you say that?" he questioned.

"Is not your God a man?"

"I do not know."

"Well I am sure this God of yours is a man, and what manly God would deny the pleasurable company of a woman?"

Sebastian chuckled appreciatively. "Well, he did do a wonderful job creating them."

With hearty laughter and a call for more tea, Sebastian changed the topic. "Now my friend, let us talk of more serious matters. I want to hear what news you have."

Robert frowned. "Alas, all I have is rumor and drunken talk."

"Well, walk with me as I have the stable boy exercise my horse, and maybe you can speak of more than just rumor and hearsay."

The two men left the roadhouse and walked across the compound to where the stable boy had already brushed Riley for him.

Sebastian looked over at the boy. "Are you ready to take him for a ride?"

"Y...yes Sir!" the boy exclaimed, a wide smile spreading across his face.

"Well then, get just the bridle for bareback riding and meet me at the gate of the compound." Sebastian instructed. While the boy readied the horse, the two men continued across the yard, talking of wives, food, the cost of running a business, and the weather. At the gate, they paused as the boy quickly brought the horse out to them.

"Riley needs to be galloped at a light and easy pace, so take him out- but stay on this side of the crest of the hills. He is used to the weight of a full-grown man and all of my tack, but he has a need to feel the wind in his mane. Can you do that for me?" Sebastian asked.

"Yes Sir and thanks!" shouted the boy, who was already hopping onto the horse's back.

As the boy cantered off with the horse, the two men stood there and looked after him. "So now my trusted innkeeper, while it looks like we are watching your friend's son riding, tell me what news you hear from your guests."

"Do you ask as an Exemplar?"

"I ask as a friend of twelve full years."

Robert paused and took a deep breath. "There is trouble in the region. The larger cities are no longer places for diplomats and commerce. They have become a place for hustlers, entrepreneurs, wanders, smugglers and troublemakers- most come to gather and talk treachery and spread lies."

"I have heard such rumors before, what makes this time any different?" Sebastian asked softly.

Robert pulled a bundle out from under his cloak and handed it to Sebastian. "Have you ever seen this before?"

Unwrapping the bundle, Sebastian stopped and spat in a low, disgusted tone, "Relpaxens!"

"I only saw that symbol once many years ago, before I was allowed to bring my active duties to a close." Robert explained.

"They usually don't venture to this side of the sulfur swamps." Sebastian mused, turning the symbol in his hands.

"Well these did," Robert added, "and they are dangerous too!"

"Why do you say that?"

"At least one, if not two, of this group wore metal armor under their cloaks."

"The Celebrants will want them destroyed," Sebastian stated, his voice grim.

"I know," Robert agreed. "That task will fall to you, but you must catch them first."

Pounding hooves drew their attention as the boy returned to them, trailing a small cloud of dust and sporting a wide grin on his face.

"You did well lad!" Sebastian called heartily, summoning a smile. "Ride him around the outside of the palisades a couple of times, mindful of my guidance, then give him some oats, a piece of fruit, and a good brushing. After that, let him loose in the corral, for I will not be traveling today." The boy smiled and nodded as he led Riley away.

"Has my news caused you to change your plans?"

"It may have," Sebastian replied. "I just need some time to reflect upon your information. Besides," he grinned, "I want Lynn to dance again for me. However, this time I want her to dance the dance of veils on the roadhouse floor."

Robert stopped and held Sebastian's arm. "Are you free to claim her?"

Sebastian shook his head. "No, but after twenty-five winters, I will not spend another one alone."

"They will send others after you. Plus, you need to stop the Relpaxens. Will she not be in the way?"

"I know. But to be honest, she is worth the risk," Sebastian replied.

"I had served thirty winters before I could claim Marie."

"I know my friend, but is there not one thing in your life worth risking it all for?"

Robert laughed heartily and slapped Sebastian on the arm. "She must have smitten you last night. She can be a very spirited woman, I am sure she will make you a worthy companion! But alas, I fear she will not get much applause."

"Maybe this will help loosen the hands of your guests." Sebastian said as he handed Robert a pouch of coins.

"Seems I will be losing my head wine slave tonight. Marie looks upon her as a younger sister," Robert mused.

"She will always be used right well by me!" Sebastian smiled.

Robert chuckled approvingly. "I will have everything ready just after the sun sets."

For the rest of the day, Sebastian walked about in the warm sunshine, or sat for a while and drank warm tea while he pondered his options and debated the best course of action to follow. The cold confusion of his uncertainty was chilling him as much as the cold air of a northern rainstorm.

The chiming of the evening bell summoned everyone in from the fields and announced the closing of the gates for the evening. The sound broke into Sebastian's thoughts, and he wandered back toward the roadhouse.

Robert greeted Sebastian once again, and led him to the dais of honor at the end of the dance floor. There he found a simple table and chair, with a lamp and a carafe of passion wine waiting for him. Robert made sure Sebastian was comfortable, and then turned to address the crowd.

"Friends and guests, tonight I have a special treat for you. At the request of a long time friend, tonight my head wine server will perform for you the dance of the veils. Drink fully and enjoy the lusty passion of a mature and beautiful woman." Cheers greeted the announcement, and the room filled with the sound of men slapping the tables in expectation of the dance.

Lynn was nervously waiting her time to enter and dance. She was confused and hurt, yet strangely filled with joy. It has been several years since she had danced on the floor of the roadhouse. She knew that Robert and the other men considered her too old, too plush to draw much of a crowd. But now Sebastian summoned her to dance. She had thought that he cared for her, but to humiliate her like this after last night... She felt cold and betrayed.

"You think he is humiliating you for something do you not?" the tender voice of Robert's companion, Marie, startled Lynn.

"Yes," she mumbled as the woman approached.

"He is doing no such thing," Marie scolded. She patted Lynn's arm soothingly and softened her tone. "He is giving you a chance to show the rest of the girls that you are a lusty woman desired by men, especially by one man in particular. I danced like this once before Robert, and that night he took me as his companion."

"Do you think he feels that way?" Lynn asked, hope rising in her breast.

Marie nodded. "Has he not stopped by here twice a year for the past twelve years to see you and only you?"

Lynn paused, considering. "Yes, that is true," she whispered with a small smile.

"So, go! Dance! Show the world your desire for him, and when he claims you at the end, rejoice in your... dare I say... love." Marie kissed her on the cheek, "Now go dance!" She shooed Lynn out the door.

The room fell silent as the musicians entered and took their places. All the women of the roadhouse, including Marie, stood in the doorways. Sebastian eyed the crowd, but it did not matter to him if the house was full or empty, for Lynn would be dancing, and that was all that he wanted.

Lynn entered the sunken dance floor. The smooth stone felt cool on her feet. Covered from head to toe in shimmering dancing veils of blue and purple, they outlined her form, gliding over her curves as they revealed and concealed. She lifted her arms in a graceful motion and held the pose, awaiting her cue within the music.

The music began. Lynn smiled beneath the blue veil that hid her face. She swayed to the music, hips drawing his eyes to her with her lithe motion. The veils fluttered and flared out as she turned. Her right hip peeked through the veil wrapped about her waist. With a pointed toe and motion of her right leg, she suddenly bared her right hip and thigh, a startling revelation of flesh among the swirling silk. The room filled with the sound of hands pounding the tabletops. Lynn looked to Sebastian, and saw he was drinking deeply from a goblet, his chest heaving.

Lynn smiled as the soft silk flowed again to conceal her skin. She whirled in the fluttering waves of color, hips swaying as her hands traveled her body, feeling for the flesh beneath the concealing veils. Her hand came down to her left hip, where she tugged the purple veil free, revealing her hip and thigh for all to see. Grunts and groans of lust filled the room, and rude remarks about what men would do with her tonight filled the background.

Lynn bent forward, her naked hips free to dance among the veils. Around and around the dance floor she weaved, her feet dancing fast with tiny steps, arms lifted up with grace and poise. She turned and glanced about as she shimmied her shoulders back and forth. Then she lifted her hands to the blue veil concealing her hair, pulling it away as she tossed her head, her shoulder length auburn hair free and wild about her face.

She heard goblets slam onto the tabletops, and yells of men requesting that she be their slut for the night, but still she danced. She continued to dance, moving about the floor, her body rocking beautifully in a seductive belly dance. Her chest lifted as her hips rolled to the music. Occasionally her hand slapped her bare thigh, punctuating the beat as she lost herself in the music. The veils still covered her upper body and face, an odd contrast next to her bare legs, and created an alluring image of a demure but tantalizing female.

Lynn looked at Sebastian, her hazel eyes dancing over the blue veil. He could almost see her seductive smile as she slowed her dance until only her hips moved, her body rolling in place. Slowly, teasingly, she brought her hands to the veil at her face and held it for a moment before stripping it away to reveal her features. She tossed the silk toward Sebastian as she flung her head back, making her auburn fly about as she began her dance anew.

"Five silver coins!" a drunken voice yelled.

"Ten," another harsh voice countered.

Lynn's dance took on a different tone. Gone was the teasing, flirting revelation of flesh. She swayed upon the sand, whirling quickly. She tugged at the veil about her neck, impatient to strip it from her half-naked body. She let the blue veil flutter behind and around her swaying body as she moved, spinning upon her toes. Then she paused, letting go of the veil, and watched it slither down her form to puddle at her feet.

"A gold coin," came a shouted offer.

Lynn looked about and saw that the men were all leaning forward in their chairs with lust in their eyes. She saw Sebastian was at the edge of his own seat, his eyes blazing with desire, his hand seeming to shake his wine goblet.

Lynn whirled wildly. Faster and faster, her feet touched the sand, almost seeming not to touch it at all, hips swinging in a blur as the music built its primal beat. She smiled widely as she ripped the veil concealing her breasts from her body and brazenly danced, offering up her body to those who watched. She wore only one veil now, the dark purple silk wrapped around her waist. Her lush breasts swayed with the motion of her body, portraying her as a sexual, wanton creature.

Rude desires and pleas were yelled forth as she danced with swaying hips and shuddering shoulders toward Sebastian.

Lynn danced near to Sebastian and offered him the end of the veil about her waist with a flick of her hand and hip. She smiled, winking to him as he grasped it, then she spun away from him. The veil unwound from her waist, slithered free of her body to fall fluttering to the sand at his feet. She danced away, hair flaring out behind her in waves of auburn fire.

"Ten gold coins!" yelled a drunken voice.

Lynn tossed her head, dancing now in wild freedom. Silent moans escaped her red lips in sheer joy of the music as her feet pounded out the beat. Her naked body glowed with her exertions, hips brazenly inviting to all. Then suddenly, she and the music stopped as one, jarring in the silence. She held her pose, hips cocked, arms up, head thrown back as she panted, her chest heaving. The veils were gone, the luminous slave revealed.

The room exploded with applause. Voices clamored and cried out, demanding to know where this woman had been hidden.

Lynn smiled, breaking her pose to slip silently to her knees. She lifted her chin high to show off her collar, her carriage tall with her back slightly arched to offer up her body. Her thighs were parted wide to reveal her passionate heat to only Sebastian, her body on display for the pleasure of those watching. She bowed her head to Sebastian, her dance concluded.

Sebastian rose and left the dais, his drawn sword in hand. He stood before the still bowed Lynn.

"I claim this woman ever more as my consort and companion. Any man who wishes to challenge me, do so now!" he growled.

The room echoed with pounding feet and rude jests. A voice called out above the din, "You're too old for a woman like her, but it is as honorable to die trying to please a lusty slut as it is to die in combat!" Raucous laughter followed.

Looking down at her bent form, Sebastian demanded, "Lynn, do you accept my claim?"

Lynn slowly sat back onto her parted thighs and, with her head still bowed, raised her hands up above her head and crossed her wrists.

Sebastian took a deep breath, sheathed his sword and removed a gold and silver cord from his tunic. He looped the cord and bound her wrists together, then tied the other end to his left wrist.

"Then stand at my side as my companion."

Lynn rose quickly and stood beside Sebastian, crossing her ankles and holding her bound wrists down in front of her maidenhood. With his right hand, Sebastian retrieved his sword. "This woman is my woman, my companion, ever more. Only by the might of steel will she leave my side!"

The room filled with cheers and yells from the men and cries from the women as Robert clapped his hands, and told the servers to pour wine freely to all the guests.

With his left hand Sebastian lifted her chin so he could see her hazel eyes, and saw that she was crying.

"Are you sad?"

"No! I am filled with joy and... love," she whispered with a smile.

"I am happy... so very happy to hear you say that," he grinned. Lynn gasped and laughed as Sebastian lifted her into his arms and tossed her over his left shoulder. Giving her bottom a tender slap, he quickly carried her from the room as laughter and rude suggestions followed them out.