Lucrezia thought she had heard wrong, however, he didn't need to speak twice before she understood what he meant. T-The consummation part.
It ranked among the top three things she feared most about this union. Feeding was the second, consummation the third—but the first was something no amount of time could ever prepare her for, not even years from now. They called it mating.
Lucrezia understood perfectly well that every role needed to be carried out effectively as his wife—the punishment rather—but they were some things that were too difficult for her to process.
She'd been told it was her duty that a wife must give herself to her husband, and even read about it. And for a creature not of flesh and blood but a Sin, it was another main motive to gain his trust, as so she'd been told.
Lady Martha, the royal governess, mentioned things that a husband and wife do, very mannerless things, but Lucrezia failed to ask or understand the broader meaning of the word 'consummate'. The knowledge she retained was the pain derived from it.
And now she thought of it, he would most likely consummate the marriage in the ways of man? Despite Lady Martha mentioning things that could likely happen to man and wife; things like sharing a cup at breakfast so that they might "grow accustomed to each other's breath" or learning the art of undressing in compatible silence, Lucrezia hadn't quite understood its broader meaning, or why any of it required dim lightning or an oath of secrecy.
As to what she knew, many ladies do talk about them in hushed whispers. Sometimes, she overheard a few, including Lady Martha, discussing it all in such poise, as though it was a polite duty. She had said it like one performed between tea and embroidery, making it seem like a servant's duty to their master and a ticket to an early reprieve.
She even mentioned that "a well-timid sigh can do wonders for a husband's affection" which Lucrezia assumed was something to do with household harmony. After all, she overheard something like that coming from the Princess Sophia's chamber.
They had called it consummation, a word Lady Martha spoke as though it were a recipe to be followed once and done with for a perfect delicacy. In her naïveté, Lucrezia only gathered that it was one of the quicker ways to earn a man's trust before one's inevitable betrayal. What she didn't realize was that it was, in truth, the quickest way to the grave.
All she gathered about marriage and consummation in general, was the ability to shower affection, trust, care, and… pleasure, which if she played well regarding those aspects, perhaps he wouldn't find a reason to suspect or kill her before she gathered enough information and she could last long enough to save her mother.
Unknown to Lucrezia, that knowledge was to test her ability to survive.
She's been bare before, when her step-sisters had shown her "her place", after falsely accusing her of theft, lying to their father who hadn't shown mercy sending her unclothed to walk from the capital back to the Red Keep. Lucrezia swallowed the lump down her throat and blinked back the tears that burned the back of her eyes to avoid that memory.
It did traumatize her. Her past, her present, and her future—everything— but the only light in the dark of the tunnel was her mother. To save her, she must prove to the werewolf kind that she can protect them, and that was only by pretending she was her step-sister, Anastasia.
Lucrezia thought it would be easy for her to be naked again, but it only seemed to reopen that trauma when her hand went to the left side of her dress. Her breath hitched, and she drew in a deep, steady inhale, trying to calm the pulse hammering in her chest. With painstaking slowness, she let one strap of her nightdress slip from her shoulder in each movement indicating quiet torment.
She did so until everything came undone, standing bare with her hands clamped over her breasts before the very creature who hadn't taken his eyes off her for a second.
Lucrezia could feel the midnight air sink deep into her skin making her shiver, but his stare alone caused her to burn in an uncomfortable heat. It was as though his eyes marked every inch in her body, leaving no length and breath untouched.
Finally, he moved, the sharp click of his boots causing her heart to thump widely, and the light instantly diminished, turning the room entirely dark. Lucrezia couldn't process what exactly had just happened, until air moved past her skin indicating a presence, and a gasp tore her throat.
Before she could move back out of reflex, his hand caught her by her waist, grounding her in place. Another gasp tore her throat at the skin contact, "Don't shy yourself away," his voice didn't sound displeased, but another level of darkness was sending her pulse thundering, and she trembled.
By the Seven… she cursed internally. He looked even scarier in the dark, and when his lips touched her neck, Lucrezia realized his mask was also gone.
It was warm, unexpectedly warm, and soft against her skin and an inaudible sigh escaped her lips before she could even prevent it. For a fleeting moment, her mind went blank, only attentive to the places his lips rovered around her neck and how they touched places that had her breath skittering.
"You smell divine," Lucrezia could barely process anything he said with what he was doing to her. She unknowingly let loose of her hands, granting the creature access to those full rounded breast.
When his finger caressed her nipple, Lucrezia's eyes shot open and she gasped, sending heat crisscrossing her entire body. "N-No…"
"No, what, little wolf?" He asked, still stroking her peak, and her mind went completely blank, only prudent to the sensation he caused. "Should I stop?"
Lucrezia didn't know what to say. Or rather, didn't acknowledge anything else apart from the precise and practical movement of his hands.
His lips still lingered at her neck, sending another deeper sensation when he spoke against her skin. "Tell me, should I stop?"
She couldn't think… gods, she couldn't, not when this new sensation had somewhere below her abdomen aching in such a way she'd never felt before. "P-Please…"
It was becoming too much… way too much to handle, and worse, Lucrezia didn't know what exactly was happening to her.
As if that wasn't enough, his finger stroked her nipple, before pinching it, and a cry tore her throat.
"Shh," he cut her off softly, but Lucrezia's thoughts were a disordered blur. "How would people react when they find their Lady moaning all high and proud at this hour, hmm?" He teased, and Lucrezia's senses slowly returned at his words.
Her cheeks burned with shame and embarrassment, and she was grateful for the darkness that hid how flustered she'd become. He moved from the right to the left, taking them as if it was his.
A cry tore her throat but she bit down her lips to prevent it from slipping.
Lord Vaeron on the other hand, didn't seem to care whether she moaned, cried out, or let any sound slip. He was only toying with her, yet the little wolf Princess took his teasing to heart when her teeth worried her lower lip as she fought to stay silent.
He assumed her restraint would amuse him but it didn't. He never enjoyed listening to the sound from women he fucked—instead would bind their mouths to prove this point. It irritated him as much as their touch did, but his little wolf suddenly felt different.
He preferred hearing every reaction he drew from her and didn't give two fucks if it brought down the manor or woke every living soul within it. He would rip off their ears the easy way, or force them to slumber the hard way. Moreover, a creature of his type always preferred things of the latter.
"Let me hear that sound, little wolf," He demanded, but Lucrezia bit her lips harder when he caressed them again to avoid any sound slipping.
Sensing her restraint, he pinched it, drawing a sharp cry from her. "Good girl," he praised.
Gods…
Lucrezia felt her whole body ignite the more his hands caressed places that had never been touched in her entire life. To him, it felt like a simple gesture, but to her, it was much more than that.
She wanted him to stop, but at the same time… feared she didn't. Her earlier terror was replaced by something far worse than it had been before. As much as she yearned to understand what this feeling was, it frightened her.
"Did he touch you?" Lucrezia could barely find her breath, her thoughts scattering as his hand drifted across her right side, then to her left, tracing slow, deliberate lines over her chest. Every movement stole another sound from her in a soft and helpless tone.
"Tell me," he murmured, his voice low against her ear. "Did he ever touch you in a way that made you tremble like this, little wolf?"
She cried again when he pinched her nipple—not painful but sharp enough to steal sense from her—sending a rush of pain and… something she couldn't name yet. She didn't even register the unforgiving weight in that question.
Thankfully, his hand still anchored her waist as her knees weakened, failing woefully to hold her weight.
"Answer me,"
Lucrezia's breath came out ragged, and slowly, the realization dawned on her to whom he was referring.
It had only been one person she thought about once on their way to Dreadwyn. Lucrezia doubted he knew him or even caught her staring when he had been ahead of her the entire time.
And even if he did, nothing was going on between her and Crown Prince Arthur—and if they were, the feeling had always been one-sided.
She knew he awaited her response but she was drawn between answering or not. Lucrezia couldn't believe she considered responding, yet at the same time, she didn't want this to stop.
Her face heated at that thought.
"Little wolf," he called in warning.
Lucrezia opened her mouth, only to stutter an answer instead of ignorance, "N-No…" She breathed against his touch. The truth tasted bitter in her tongue, and for a fleeting moment, she thought about how disastrous it would be if she lied.
Before her thought wandered further, his lips replaced his finger, settling on the swell of her breast. Lucrezia sighed, unconsciously throwing her head back, and that action seemed to throw the creature overboard when he sank his fangs into her flesh.
A sharp cry tore her throat as pain rushed into her, but was interrupted when his finger kneaded her other breast, leaving both occupied by his fingers and mouth.
At that moment, Lucrezia couldn't put her feelings into words, but whatever he was doing to her… she was certain she didn't want it to end.