Editor's note: this story contains scenes of non-consensual or reluctant sexual situations.
*
The castle steps loomed before Steve, winding their twisty way up a tower that had not seen the passage of human footsteps in too long. A blackbird chirped angrily at the young man as he ascended the steps, ignoring the safety barrier that should have kept mere visitors to the historic site at bay from that which could be dangerous to them. Just what did that mean to him? There wasn't anything in an old castle that could really pose any danger to him as long as he was careful enough about where he was stepping, the curious voices of the others from that particular university lecture group falling away, leaving him but alone with his thoughts and the whispering of the wind.
He was not the smallest of gentlemen, it had to be said, and Steve huffed as he squeezed through a narrower gap, the worn steps not all that stable beneath his trainers. A cobweb or two was to be expected and he brushed them impatiently from his musty, blonde hair that never quite seemed to make up its mind what shade it wanted to be. His size made things a tad more difficult than they strictly had any right to be but it wasn't something that was going to overly throw him off or concern him as he worked his way through and up, stone crumbling away from the walls too as he brushed his way by impatiently.
He shouldn't have been there with the wind whistling by the ramparts, up higher and higher until he stepped into that little, round room that held so much promise. A young man like him did not know the power of the olden times, the castles and the artefacts held within that one could unleash on unsuspecting victims -- or lucky ones too -- at a moment's notice. The aged stones did not care nor did they judge what he was there to do or even understand that the passage of time had teased them away from the steadfastness of reality.
The ring had been intended to go downstairs to an exhibit at some point but it had never made it there, perhaps being seen as something that would not be all that interesting. There was no legend or history to it, just something that had been found when excavating and renovating the castle for the heritage site chain, and it would not have drawn many eyes. It was not even all that interesting, despite being gold, a rounded band that may have passed for a wedding band if not for its relative thickness. It was 'clunkier' than such a band and covered a chunk of his finger as he slipped it on, words appearing faintly as he rolled it around his finger, squinting to see what was there.
Outside, the wind howled but he paid it no mind.
"Control the minds of the fairer sex," he read out loud. "And..."
But the rest of the words blurred together, seemingly smudged but they didn't become any clearer, regardless of how much he rubbed with his thumb, pursing his lips in annoyance. What a silly thing indeed to find a ring and then not be able to read all of what came with it. And yet the inscription didn't seem to matter, one word standing out at him and stirring the need deep down in the recesses of his own mind. What word was that, indeed? Why, it was 'power' and the greed for said power went hand in hand just as a finger went in the ring.
Steve laughed and shook his head, glancing about briefly only out of habit as he pocketed the ring. Others would be looking for him soon and, well, there was no one there to see him take the ring. He could consider it a little memento of a dismal day out with his lecturer who hadn't even seemed all that interested in the history she was supposed to be teaching, although how that tied into the nature of his joint honours course he would never quite know. They tried to join things that didn't belong into the history of the country, preaching the importance, but there was only so much that could be done on that count when the topics did not line up just so.
Still... He would be missed and there was no harm in one little trinket. No one would miss it.
The power to control minds would have been interesting indeed but to believe it, hah -- now that was a jest! Steve smiled to himself as he re-joined his group, no one actually having noticed that he'd left despite him being rather hard to miss at the best of times. As if to compensate for his size, he was quieter than most and didn't reveal all that much to either friends or acquaintances. Truly, for him, there was not all that much difference between the two of them.
"What have you got there, Steve?"
His lecturer, Mrs Beckett who went by Julie for those more comfortable on a first name basis, leaned over, although she was respectful enough to not take his hand or touch him, eyes curious. She was middle-aged and just right for being a lecturer with enough dignity to her to be respected and youthful vitality to cope with an ever-changing university and course system that had to be kept up with even as her own research continued. Smiling, she pressed her red lips together, the coat of lipstick needing to be reapplied already, black hair hanging loose around her shoulders. It was lighter at the base as if she had dyed it, although Steve was not a man that would have ever have thought to ask whether it was dyed or not, the roots showing through. Maybe that's just how it was but hair was by far the least interesting thing for him about the human body.
"Just something...I brought with me."
It was not much of a lie and she must have seen through it for those perfect lips turned down in a frown even as he stared at them, transfixed. His stomach sank and churned and Steve knew that he was in trouble but the events that then transpired seemed to flow too quickly, all out of his control even as that very control neatly placed itself in his hands, ready to be utilised to the very best of his ability.
Sucking in a breath, Steve stared wide-eyed at the ring as it glowed blue, illuminated around the edges as if by an aura of light without any true source, the halo ringing it perfectly. What was that? What was happening? The wind picked up, a gale that drew the rest of the lecture group away from them, moving deeper still into the castle, the parts that were, of course, open for visitors, leaving them alone as the ring allowed itself to be used.
Yet gaping like a goldfish wasn't going to do him either very much good or get him anywhere as his eyes snapped back up to Mrs Beckett, the woman leaning forward with her lower jaw just as slack as his, although her eyes were unfocused. Fear crossed his heart and, for a moment, he worried that she had been struck by a sudden illness that he would then have to do something about, but it was nothing of the sort. Swaying like the walking dead, her gaze landed on nothing at all, even her tongue loose and pliable between her teeth, nearly sliding out slickly over her bottom lip. Despite her position, taking her weight forward, she did not appear to be in any danger of toppling over and he approached her cautiously, heart beating in his chest as frantically as any abruptly trapped and caged bird seeking that oh so elusive freedom.
"Mrs Beckett?"
He was not one of those that preferred to use her first name, as awkward with authority and, more accurately, women as he had been in his younger days. He'd never really grown up in that regard, seeing women as something...else. No, there was no way that he could understand that even to himself but not feeling the true touch of a woman other than his mother in her so-called 'care' of him in his childhood was most likely one reason behind it. He didn't want to explore that part of his life, however, gnawing anxiously at the inside of his cheek, staring at her as the ring continued to glow, the eerie essence of it pulsating lightly as if it was controlled by an otherworldly force.
