He'd known it was coming.
For the past few days he'd been able to hear some of Ilio's thoughts off and on. The guy was extremely focused, yet distracted easily. He loved to eat and was always hungry, but also constantly thought about offering him more blood.
You would think that your mind would at least be worried about your old pack or wolf things, he thought as their mouths finally separated.
"Elder Inkani is my mate and his crew are now my pack. The wolves I left behind will be fine, or they won't. Life will continue whether I am there or not," Ilio said, sounding much wiser than he normally did.
In fact...
Turning to face him a little more, Inkani reached up and poked the side of his face.
"What's with all that rubbish?" he grumbled as he nudged Ilio again, this time in the chest, then promptly got himself up and out of the cooled water.
Of course, his pup was quick to follow, and even hurried ahead and grabbed both towels that had been left for them.
Not really feeling much fight in himself, Inkani didn't protest when Ilio silently gestured that he wanted to dry him off... or grope him. Perhaps the translation had been mixed up between them, because Inkani eventually had to snap his teeth and bare his fangs to get the guy to stop squeezing him in certain places!
This brat needs to learn some manners.
Stalking out of the bathing room, he could sense Ilio hot on his heels but ignored him as they stepped into his bedroom.
He was dressed in minutes, much to his pup's disappointment, but when he finished pulling on one of the newer pairs of boots he'd previously left at his house, he noticed something that didn't quite sit well with him.
Straightening back up, he stared at Ilio for several moments, making the young man, who still had his darn wolf ears out, wiggle a little with excitement from the attention.
"Where is the rest of your clothing? They brought up several things that would fit you," he said as he pointed to the small stack of items on his bed.
Ilio followed the direction he was pointing, but didn't seem too thrilled with the prospect of more clothing.
Huffing, Inkani stepped forward and began sorting through the items. They weren't the greatest, since he hadn't gotten a chance to actually buy anything specifically for the man yet, but they all looked like they would fit well enough.
Eventually, he settled on a pair of black breeches and a plain white shirt. Once Ilio had tugged them on, however, Inkani immediately frowned.
Why does he look so funny?
The clothing was too short.
Most of the people his weight were smaller.
"Why are you so tall?" he grumbled as he ordered Ilio to remove his clothing to try on something else.
Instead of just stripping down to his undergarments, everything quickly found its way onto the floor, leaving him completely naked.
I...
Rubbing a hand down his face, Inkani heaved a stressed sigh, then peaked between two fingers to see Ilio's face light up at the attention of simply being looked at by him.
How did I get myself into this mess?
I wan to kiss him again! He looks so handsome and cute!
Inkani narrowed his eyes as he lowered his hand, not happy with Ilio's random thought having jumped into his mind.
"I am tall because I ate well and grew up," Ilio answered a bit late, clearly having gotten distracted by the attention he was getting.
Reaching over, Inka poked Ilio's forehead, then leaned closer.
"You're not getting another kiss until you're dressed properly and ready to go downstairs," he said sternly... then realized his mistake.
Ilio was dressed in a full set of clothing within two minutes flat! Not only had he put on the appropriate undergarments, but he also found a nice pair of tan pants in the pile of clothing, along with a button-down white shirt that went quite well with it.
Is he... is he even wearing socks?
"Am I dressed properly, elder Inkani?" Ilio asked abruptly, making Inka blinked out of his thoughts and give the guy another once-over.
"I suppose it will do."
He was reasonably presentable, especially with his shirt tucked in and a belt fastened at his waist.
Inkani was just starting to turn around in order to walk out the door when Ilio stepped forward and reached up, taking his face between his hands and pressing his lips against his for a second time.
This little brat!
He was about to shove him away, but managed to stop himself right before he was about to act.
I... did say that he could kiss me again once he was dressed and ready to go downstairs.
Sighing out the frustration he'd let build, he gave Ilio a full ten seconds before he nudged his chin with a finger.
"Alright, enough of that."
He was just nudging the guy away when he saw his face and fidgeted.
"What's with that look? You got your kiss, why do you look like I bit you instead?" he asked as he grabbed Ilio's hand and tugged him out the door.
I wouldn't mind if you bit me, too. It would have more feeling...
Inkani stopped in his tracks and turned his head to glare at his mutt.
"What did you just say?" he asked, slipping up and revealing that he was definitely hearing him.
Ilio seemed to take that information in stride, because he didn't even bother commenting on it and, instead, focused his attention on the actual subject.
"You should just bite me. You put a lot more effort into that than you do kissing me."
This brat! I let him kiss me twice without any kind of repercussion and now he's complaining?! He's not even good at kissing!
Fuming, he began walking faster, forcing Ilio to focus on keeping up. Unfortunately, much to his annoyance, the guy's legs were nearly as long as his own, making matching his stride easier than he'd wanted.
Darn brat...
He was just about to tell him to hurry up anyways, even though he wasn't falling behind, when he saw the guy blur past him, making him startle and stop abruptly.
When Ilio slowed to a stop it was all the way down the hall by the top of the stairs.
"What are you doing?" Inkani grumbled to himself as he began walking again, taking his time now that his frustrating partner was already at their destination.
Having clearly not heard his musings, Ilio simply grinned before hopping up onto the railing.
"H-hey! You better not slide down that! Be a decent dog and walk down like a real person!"
Of course, his stubborn mutt still wasn't listening and promptly slid down the railing and out of view.
What has gotten into him?
Hurrying forward, Inkani ran down the stairs and followed his nose until he came across the dining room. Ilio was seated at the table in front of a small spread of lunch items.
"You think this is for you?" he asked as he walked in, his narrowed gaze squarely settled on the werewolf at his table.
Ilio looked up as he spoke, but his mind was clearly on the food as his tongue licked at his lips almost nonstop. After a moment, he nodded, answering his question before returning his attention to the delicious food before him.
Inkani wanted to tell him that it was for everyone but him, but they both knew that would be a lie. He barely had any servants and most of them were vampires, anyways.
I've also eaten far too much human food recently, so none of that even looks appetizing right now.
Walking forward, it looked like he was going to take a seat at the other end of the table, but then he turned and walked over to the large floor-to-ceiling windows.
"Just eat what you want," he ended up saying on a sigh as he looked outside, then felt his mouth open in slight surprise.
Bin...
His heir was standing behind Karalius as the man sat on the old wooden swing fastened to the large tree out back.
What is he doing?
He considered sending him that very question but stopped himself as he realized what was going on.
Why... are you braiding his hair?
Now that he was actually focusing on them, he was also curious as to why Karalius was no longer wearing his coat or shirt.
Why is his chest bandaged, too?
He didn't think that the two would fight and he definitely didn't think that Bin could injure the demon. At least, not in his current state... or mindset.
He honestly didn't know all that much about his heir's past besides that it hadn't been the greatest. He'd known of his friend, Karalius, and eventually, he'd let him know about how the man had become a demon because of him, but that was about it.
They seemed to be managing well enough together now, at least. Of course, he knew that Karalius was only being gentle because of Bin's illness, but he had faith in his heir. The man was wise beyond his years, and very sweet. Hopefully he would be able to handle his old friend safely.
Of course, he would step in if he was needed, but he knew that Bin didn't want him to unless it was absolutely necessary.
I have my own thing to deal with, anyways, he thought as turned around to see Ilio tear a chicken leg apart with practiced ease.
Mine is a bit more of a glutton, unfortunately.
Said glutton was now grinning at him as he happily chewed his meal.
Inkani solemnly glanced back outside to Karalius, then returned his gaze to Ilio.
What a difference between our pursuers...
Inwardly sighing, he walked over and finally sat down next to Ilio. The brat immediately scooted closer to him and even tugged his overflowing plate along with him.
You know you can eat where you were, right?
Ilio finished off the drumstick he'd been working on, then set the clean bone down atop the pile he'd already compiled before promptly standing up, then stepping to the side a bit before sitting down in Inkani's lap!
He gave the guy an immediate warning growl in response, but it went ignored as Ilio got comfortable, then reached for another drumstick.
"What do you think you're doing?" Inkani finally asked as he unconsciously reached around Ilio's belly in order to keep him from falling.
He waited impatiently for the guy to finish the bite of food he'd just taken. then got an answer he wasn't expecting.
"It's not fair that I'm the only one eating," he said as he scooted back a bit more, then tilted his head just enough to give Inkani room to feed.
The sudden invitation had Inkani's heart humming with anticipation. He'd grown quite accustomed to his pup's blood, but at the same time...
"I have plenty of blood available to me. I don't need yours," he said as he looked away, needing to focus on anything else in order to keep his fangs from slipping into that warm flesh.
Ilio didn't respond for a moment, though he could feel him moving around in his lap and see a bit from the corner of his eye.
When he felt Ilio turn around completely and straddle him, Inkani's attention immediately snapped back to the younger man with a hiss.
"I'm not drinking from you again. Do you think I'm stupid? I know that you can control me if I suck your blood."
Ilio tilted his head, frowning slightly.
"I don't think you're stupid, but you've been drinking from me for a while now and I haven't tried to control you," Ilio said calmly as he tugged at a button on Inkani's shirt gently.
He looked a bit nervous now, but he managed to keep his gaze level with his... for the most part.
Hmm, he has a point, but at the same time, how would I know if he's even controlling me?
That thought had his mind churning with an idea.
"Hey Ilio? Can you control me right now if you wanted to?" he asked, curious.
Ilio pursed his lips but nodded after a moment.
"Yes, I can."
Nodding in return, Inkani settled back against his chair and licked his lower lip once, drawing Ilio's attention immediately down to it.
"Have me do something."
Ilio frowned as he looked up.
"Have you do something...?"
He didn't sound happy about his request.
"It can be anything. I just want to know how it feels when you're controlling me," Inkani explained.
Ilio looked away for a moment as he considered his request.
Is it really that big of a deal?
"It is! I don't want to control my Inka."
Yours?
Inwardly scowling at how stubborn his dog was, Inkani reached up and poked the man's nose.
"I just want to know how it feels so that I can know if it happens in the future."
Ilio still didn't look very happy, but after a moment he sighed, pouted a little, then spoke.
"Elder Inkani... please pat my head."
Inkani immediately felt his body react as if it was suddenly controlled by strings and tied to a marionette device. His hand lifted on its own accord and soon found its way to Ilio's soft, messy hair.
Once there, his fingers moved gently, sifting through that hair like one would a dog's log fur.
He waited with baited breath as the action finally finished and the spell of sorts wore off, returning full control to him. Inkani immediately yanked his hand away, then stared at it with wide eyes as his heart thrummed against his ribs.
It hadn't felt painful, or even numbing.
I just... couldn't control or fight against it in any way.
It was scary how easily he'd been forced to respond to Ilio's words. The thought to tell him to get away from him came soon after he'd calmed himself down, but he couldn't speak those words.
He'd told him to control him.
Finally meeting his gaze again, Inkani internally fidgeted as he saw the uncertainty and nervousness in his werewolf's soft brown eyes.
Dammit.
He was just about to tell him to turn back around and finish eating when he noticed the faint motion of Ilio's pulse just beneath the warm skin of his neck.
"How... much longer will you be able to control me?" he asked instead.
Ilio thought for a moment, then shrugged a little.
"I'm not really sure, since I've never actually used the ability and was only ever told about it, but it's pretty easy now, so I'd say at least another month."
A month...
He'd fed from him quite recently, too...
Fuck it!
Leaning forward, Inkani growled loudly as he quickly sank his fangs into Ilio's neck before he could try to talk himself out of it. If it would take a month to wear off, he might as well eat at least one more time.
He could feel Ilio's excitement at his acceptance to feed and wanted to to roll his eyes, but the gesture never happened. Instead, he simply adjusted his fangs a little to allow the man's blood to flow more freely into his mouth as his other arm wrapped around Ilio's waist.
It was just a simple gesture and response to him feeding, his instincts making him secure his prey, even though the blood was being given willingly.
He soon felt Ilio's hand gently sifting through his hair, but couldn't find the motivation to growl at him for touching him without permission.
I will take care of him.
Inkani internally rolled his eyes.
I'll keep him safe and stay with him, no matter what.
He bit down a little harder, but Ilio didn't even flinch as he hugged him close.
Who will you keep safe? That bloody captain Moral is going to come for us again, and now that he knows you're with me, he'll bring silver bullets. What will you do then? Inkani thought as his arms tightened around his werewolf.
"I'll still take care of you and keep you safe. I am not immune to silver, but I am an alpha. One shot, or two, or three, won't stop me," Ilio said, responding to his thoughts.
Inkani blinked a few times as he continued to feed, but he soon found that he had nothing more to say, or think. He didn't want Ilio to follow him back onto the ship when he left, but he also knew that the man would absolutely refuse to stay on land without him.
They were at an impasse, and there was nothing he could do about it.