FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Note: see the Journal entry 'Sapphire Glossary' for help with the neologisms in the story.

Viscount Toroi took a deep breath as he stood before the lacquered doors of his fathers meeting room, his finger tapped distractedly against the sheathe of the shiversword at his hip as he prepared himself, today was a momentous day, one which he had been preparing for for much of his life, it was also a day he met with a mixture of excitement and dread. Soon he would no longer be a Viscount, his position elevated to Count at the very least and quite possibly to Marquess, the thought of the additional power and responsibility he would gain, as well as the concurrent wealth, was thrilling, but soon his life would also be turned upside-down for much of the foreseeable future.

He was the third son of the Galactic Imperial House of Ro'Xanshin and he had just passed his twentieth birthday a month ago, that meant that the inevitable day had been put off for quite some time already, it would wait no longer; he was going to have to marry.

Gathering his resolve, he sighed cathartically and flung open the doors. The chambers were large with decorative red-lacquered pillars holding up the ceiling, as befits a Major House, the screens on the far side was opened up onto the expansive gardens, seated on a cushion at a low table in the center of the room sat his father, Archduke Jashiid and the family Maestro, Rethan, the old grey fox's features obscured by his hood of yellow-trimmed red silk as the two of them took tea. Toroi was tall for a fox and towered over his diminutive father even when he was sitting down, standing now in his dress armour and with a shiversword at his side he looked more like a House Archduke than Jashiid ever did, sitting there in a loose robe of blue silk, but the red half-moons under his eyes like marks of tiredness still marked him as a Ro'Xanshin.

"Ah, my son, come come, there is much to discuss." said his father, beconing him to the third cushion at the table.

Toroi closed the doors behind him and bowed respectfully before approaching, setting his shiversword down on his right as he sat and sweeping the brush of his tail about his feet.

"Father, I know why you have asked me her-" he began before the Archduke waved silence.

"Time enough for that, for now; tea." he said, again Toroi winced at his fathers infuriatingly roundabout manner, not once did the fox-duke of the Ro'Xanshin ever approach a matter directly if he could possibly avoid it.

Still, it was easier to just give-in than try and force the matter, reluctantly he accepted a cup of white jade, polished to near-translucence, and waited patiently as Rethan filled it from the silver kettle. He took a sip of the bland stuff with concealed distaste, that he preferred harder drink was no acceptable reason to break decorum.

"So then, I suppose a list of possible eligible candidates has been compiled for my perusal?" he said, breaking the silence.

"What's that, son? 'eligible candidates'?"

Toroi gave a sigh of frustration "For my marriage, the list of suitable mates you have chosen."

"Oh no, that is quite unnecessary, I have already picked out your future spouse some time ago." replied the Duke, smiling over his cup.

"What!? That is...not how it is usually done, father." said Toroi, almost choking on a mouthful of tea.

"Of course it is, this union was pre-arranged since you were but months old, were you not informed?"

Toroi grit his teeth, he had no idea that he had an arranged marriage already in place and his damnable father knew that full well "Father, I think I would have remembered something like that if I had been." he said, levelly "Or perhaps you only saw fit to inform me when the deed was decided and when I was incapable of speech?"

From the corner of his eye he noticed the old Maestro Rethan covering his mouth with the sleeve of his robe in a poorly executed attempt to hide his laughter.

The old bastards. Thick as thieves, the pair of them. he thought.

"Come now, Toroi, do you not trust that I have already seen to it that you would get the best possible mate?" said his father, patting his wrist consolingly.

Toroi huffed his irritation but answered "Of course, father." to say anything else would have been profoundly dishonourable.

The Duke's smile suddenly looked far less innocent as he narrowed his eyes and leaned in conspiratorially "Good then, now, let us look at the terms of the marriage contract, shall we? Rethan, if you would be so good?"

With that the grey fox nodded to the Duke and placed his hand out before him, holding a Memori crystal in the center of his palm, a utility fog formed around him as the crystal burst into life and a holographic image appeared above it, a floating image of a parchment scroll.

"As you can see, the marriage is to a member of the Minor House of Yusho," started Rethan, indicating the six-petaled blue flower sigil of the House, Toroi nodded in response, he had expected to marry into a minor house, he was, after all, the third son with little chance of ever becoming Archduke, no major house would touch him as a candidate, it would be a waste of a scion better used elsewhere "House Yusho have long suffered from a feud with House Lashani, their military strength is almost exhausted, by alliance through marriage with us House Lashani will at least be hesitant about continuing outright warfare, fearing rightly that we might bring our superior military to bare in defence of Yusho, that should give Yusho sufficient time to regroup and recover their losses until they are able to defend themselves again."

"And if Lashani doesn't hesitate?" inquired Toroi.

"Then we crush them, of course." said the Archduke before Rethan had a chance to respond "House Ro'Xanshin will not tolerate an attack upon it allies, and we are more than capable of raising Lashani's holdings, if necessary."

"I see, risk to us is minimal in either case, clever." said Toroi, slightly impressed "But what do we, or more specifically 'I', get out of the deal?"

Rethan chuckled "The House will gain toll-free passage through the Yusho waygate system that will allow us to sell our foodstock surplus to the colony worlds in the Occularis sector without our starships having to pass through the rapids of Lathe, we won't have to sell through the merchant guilds anymore."

"And so our return profit on the stock will rise by nearly sixty percent." finished the Archduke with a gleam in his eye, Toroi could understand it, the amount of wealth that the house would gain from such an arrangement would be staggering.

"You will gain a promotion to Marquess, full dominion of the five agricultural worlds on the spinward rim of House Ro'Xanshin territory, with all associated satrapies, and a very generous dowry along with your new spouse."

Rethan indicated a number on the holo-scroll, six billion Imperial Scrip, and Toroi's heart began to race.

"Watchful Ancestors!" he blasphemed under his breath, much to his fathers and the Maestro's amusement "I'll be richer than Janai!" he said, Janai was First Son and his eldest brother, rightful heir to the House. That he, Third Son, should become wealthier was virtually unheard of, silently he thanked house Lashani for making the Yusho so desperate that they would be willing to turn over such a sum in a dowry to ensure the defence offered by aligning themselves with a militaristic House like his own.

"Wait..." he said, after he'd gotten over his initial astonishment "what's the catch?"

"Catch?" inquired the Archduke, innocently.

"There must be something or you wouldn't be grinning so widely, dear father." said Toroi, suspiciously "What is it? Is she ugly or unmannerly, is that it? Would no other House take her?"

"Oh goodness no, this was decided when you both were but babes, how could I possibly know such a thing? And to think that my own son would think so little of me, it breaks my heart." said his father, putting on a display of hurt feelings worthy of an award "Besides, I'm told that young master Wei is quite handsome and mild of temprament."

It took a moment for the words to sink in before Toroi finally realised what had been said "Wait one moment father," he said in a rising tone "did you just say 'master Wei'?"

"Yes, that's correct. Specifically Baronet Wei, Fourth Son of House Yusho." said the Archduke as Rethan refilled his teacup.

"I knew it! I knew you were up to something! Do you delight so much in tormenting me, father?" bellowed Toroi, throwing his hands up in exasperation.

"Whatever do you mean?"

"This Wei! He-he's...well...a man." he finished, lamely.

"More of a boy, really, but yes. Male, certainly." said his father, airily.

"You know I don't find men appealing in...that fashion." said Toroi, huffing in indignation.

"Oh, is that all?" said his father, setting aside his cup "Toroi, Toroi, this is only a political union, and we are House nobility, it's not as though you will have to be utterly beholden to young Wei," he reached across and refilled Toroi's cup "if you prefer female company then have an affair on the side, have two, keep a concubine even, as long as they are kept discreet then there is no dishonour upon either of you." he said, consolingly.

Mollified, Toroi nodded, monogamy was for commoners who could marry as they chose, it was the expected, even encouraged thing for Imperial nobles to keep mistresses. And that was a highly tempting dowry...grinning internally at the thought of the look on Janai's face when he discovered that Toroi would be living richer than First Son, he drained the cup in one mouthful.

"Besides, you'll only have to screw the boy once to make it official." said his father, picking a bit of lint off his cuff.

When Toroi had finally stopped coughing a few minutes later after his tea went down the wrong passage and Rethan was done patting him ineffectually on the back, he shot his father a dagger-edged glare.

"What? You didn't think you could get away without consummating the union did you?" said Rethan, gruffly "Tradition demands it, so stiffen up, lad." he said, chuckling at his own joke.

"Is there...any possibility that I might be able to renegotiate the terms of the marriage?" said Toroi, a small ring of quiet desperation eking into his voice.

The Archduke shook his head, his manner suddenly somber "Even if the marriage contract were not binding, this is still the union I would demand for you, the benefits to the House are simply too great to ignore. Noblesse oblige, my son, you don't have the right to live as you choose, the House comes first. Like it or not, Baronet Wei is soon to become Sapphire husband Wei and you Ruby husband."

Toroi bowed his head in thought for a moment, what his father said was right, it wasn't as if he ever expected to get an ideal spouse, in truth, were Wei a woman he'd be overjoyed with the terms of the marriage, considering how poor a mate he could have got as Third Son and the demands of noble station it was petulant to quibble over his mates gender, even if his own tastes had always found other males unappealing at best.

He shook his head in resignation and laughed aloud "Very well, father, well played. I will marry this Wei of the Yusho."

"Ah, wonderful!" exclaimed his father, clapping his hands together "The Yusho transport has already set sail, it will arrive in one week and then you can meet your suitor, I'm so glad there won't be any problems."

"Well, as you say, it's only one time. And for six billion scrip and five worlds added to my holdings I'd screw a Jägercat unarmed and twice!" he said with a laugh and raised a cup of tea in a one-man toast.

"Oh, even better, I'd hoped there wouldn't be any issues about that." said his father, smiling innocently.

"What do you mean?"

"Well..." began his father, trailing off.

"What his Grand Ducal Highness means to say is that Wei is much loved among the Yusho and as a result they have made certain additional stipulations within the marriage contract that have been agreed to by House Ro'Xanshin." continued Rethan.

"Additional stipulations? What exactly does that mean?" said Toroi, his former ebullience rapidly diminishing.

In response, Rethan scrolled down the holographic marriage contract and highlighted and expanded a section of the terms, Toroi leaned closer to peer at it and a few seconds later his eyes grew wider.

"What!?"

~~~@*@~~~

Captain Yaroi had been upbeat until he entered Wei's chambers aboard the Dragonfly, he had been expecting his young master to be tense or nervous about his engagement but he had not expected the look of sheer anguished worry upon the little mouse's face, he looked as though he might die of it as he sat unmoving, hands folded in his lap, before a mirror while dressed in his presentation robes as one of his handmaidens busily tied his headfur into a complex bun so that the outfit's tall courtly hat could be affixed to it with the jewelled hairpins that sat on the table beside the mirror.

Wei's delicate face turned to face him as he entered, showing the six-petalled blue flower nano-pigmented onto the pristine white fur of his left cheek, eyes of a shade of blue just as deep and glistening with worry regarded him.

"Your Honour? Whatever is troubling you?" Yaroi said, as gently as a grizzled ferret veteran could muster.

"Mara, will you fetch a chair so that captain Yaroi might sit with me?" said Wei, addressing the handmaiden who bowed and brought a chair from the corner for the captain who accepted it gratefully.

"So, young Master, I expect you are greatly excited by your upcoming union." said Captain Yaroi, trying to brighten the mood, as the handmaid resumed her work of Wei's headfur.

"I should be," said Wei, his eyes downcast "I know I should, the warring with House Lashani may very well be at an end because of this, but...I confess, I am scared."

The quivver of worry in the young Baronet's voice was heartwrenching "What worries you, Your Honour?"

"Ah, but that is exactly it, captain, my honour."

"I...do not understand."

A small, nervous sigh escaped the mouse's lips "I am to marry Viscount Toroi of House Ro'Xanshin, he is of higher rank than I and from a major House also while I come only from a minor House, that means once I am wedded I will be Sapphire Husband, I will have no more personal honour, all my honour will be the reflected light of my husband." he took a deep breath, almost biting back tears "I will have no more wealth or holdings to call my own and on his slightest whim I can be sent away into exile on some backwater planet with nothing but a yearly stipend of whatever he chooses to give me and two servants, all if I merely displease him."

Ah, that made things somewhat clearer, to go from being an independantly wealthy noble to merely the wife of one, possessing little security at all, must be harrowing. Even though he was low-born the Captain could at least empathise with the feelings of instability the young noble was wrestling with. The feeling that beneath you is a yawning chasm of infinite depth and you are walking a tightrope above it.

"I'm sure that could never happen, Your Honour, I doubt your husband would be so callous."

"No? House Ro'Xanshin is a millitary House, you know as well as any how war can make a man hard and cruel."

"Bah, it is irrelevant, Your Honour, how could he be displeased with such beauty?" said the Captain, gesturing to the mirror as the handmaiden placed Wei's tall black hat, decorated at the brow with the family crest, onto the bun she had crafted and put the four jade and silver pins in place, the bells at their tips jingled gently as Wei straightened up to observe the completed effect in the mirror. The effect of the outfit was impressive indeed, the collar of the rose-pink underrobe just showed at the neck, the collar of the main robe of turqouise silk, embroidered with swirling patterns picked out in silver, was precisely an inch looser and the Imperial-blue overrobe that cut off at the knee was an inch looser again, showing off the three layers of the outfit. The handmaiden, Mara, applied a light dusting of pink blusher to the fur of Wei's cheekbones to finish the outfit as it would look when he and his future husband met for the first time in a week.

"He'd have to have standards that would beggar the Emperor himself to ask for more, your fears are unfounded." said Yaroi, comfortingly.

"Thank you, Captain, your words are kind." said Wei, smiling faintly "But most men require more than merely a pretty face to be satisfied with a partner, and in that region I am underqualified."

Captain Yaroi frowned in confusion "I'm sorry, Your Honour, but I don't follow." he said, shaking his head.

"I mean that I am a virgin." replied Wei, simply "I have no experience in...carnal matters, I may not be able to please my husband-" he cut off abruptly.

"What?"

"Sexually. Sorry, but it is a hard thing to say."

"Oh..." said the Captain, suddenly treading unfamiliar ground "So why did you not seek, er, experience beforehand?" he said, awkwardly.

"By Imperial tradition the Sapphire husband must be virginal for the marriage to be legitimate."

"Ah." said the Captain, sagely. After a moments pause he took a deep breath and said "I wouldn't worry about it, Your Honour."

"But I do worry, Captain. I have never met this Viscout Toroi, what if he is a boor? What if he...hurts me in his anger?" said Wei, softly, his eyes downcast.

"Then I'll be there to teach the wretch a lesson." replied the ferret Captain, levelly.

"You mustn't!" squeaked Wei, darting to face Yaroi "Though you may be my guard, once I am married your allegiance will belong to my husband, to strike your own liege...such a thing merits a traitors execution. You would be denied even the right to fall upon your own sword."

"Bahhh, I am not a noble like you, an honourable death and a dishonourable one mean the same to me, but I won't stand to see any man lay hand upon you and not return it twice-over." said Yaroi, dismissively "I've served with your father in battle against the Lashani, I've known you since before you were old enough to walk, so don't think I'd let your bruises go unaccounted for, whether the man who put them upon you was my liege or a serf, the result would be the same."

Wei smiled, genuinely this time, affection shon in his eyes "Thank you, Yaroi. I appreciate the sentiment, truly I do, but please don't do as you say you would, I wouldn't see you die for the sake of a few bruises."

Captain Yaroi sighed dramatically "Aye, allright Your Honour. In any case, I doubt very strongly that he ever would strike you, in fact I'd bet my life on it that he wouldn't."

"Oh, have you met this Viscout Toroi?" inquired Wei.

"No," said Yaroi, and then cracked a smirk "But I've met Uelo, and I can guarantee that after he's finished your husband would sooner eat his own shiversword than so much as raise his hand to you in anger."

"Uelo? I do not understand, Captain, who is this Uelo?" squeaked Wei, now it was his turn to be confused.

"Ah, you know, Your Honour, just another piece of Imperial tradition."

~~~@*@~~~

"A Lotus Man!?" bellowed Toroi, virtually shaking the walls with his voice "What madness is this!?"

Rethan jimmied a finger around in his ear to stop the ringing before answering "As I stated, Wei is much loved, his parents, the Duke and Dutchess of Yusho, wish to ensure that his husband will be of marriagable quality."

"So they send a whore from the Lotus Temple!?" cried Toroi, incredulously.

"Toroi! You shall not speak of a member of the Lotus Order in that fashion." snapped his father, angrily "Wei's parents stipulated, and I agreed, that you should recieve lessons in the male pleasures prior to your marriage, they have quite generously hired a Lotus Man to initiate you into the third level."

Toroi was impressed despite himself, a third level initiation, wanted or not, was quite an exorbitant gift, the fees for such a thing would be enormous, apparently what the Yusho lacked in military might they made up for in economic fortitude.

He waved away the protestations "I do not care, it's insulting to send a Lotus Man to teach me as though I were some inexperienced youth, when he arrives you can send him away, I will not go through with this."

"It's rather late for that, he's already here and awaiting your presence." stated Rethan, matter-of-factly.

Toroi bristled "Then tell him to pack up his things and leave! This is not part of-" he began, he never got a chance to finish.

"It is." said his father, the words resounding over Toroi's diatribe like a gunshot "It is a very common stipulation with firm grounding in tradition, you have no leg to stand on, Toroi, back down and do as you are bound."

"But-"

"Back. Down." commanded his father in his firmest 'Archduke' tone.

At a loss for words, Toroi sat silently and at last bowed to his father and, he remembered, liege, who could command him in any way he pleased and deliver punishment if necessitated in similar fashion.

"I, as ruling Archduke of House Ro'Xanshin, command you to follow the letter of the contract with house Yusho."

"My allegiance is yours to command." muttered Toroi through gritted teeth and bowed low, almost but not quite pressing his forehead to the ground.

"Good, I told our guest from the Lotus Temple to set up in the chambers alloted to you." said his father, conspicuously not saying your chambers as a reminder that as a member of the House nobility everything he owned he did only at the behest of his Archduke...who could also take them away at will "Go, he should be ready to meet with you by now."

"Yes, father." said Toroi, very much not using his fathers title to show he recognised the slight.

He took hold of his shiversword and rose from the silk cushion, bowing stiffly at the waist and turning sharply to leave the room in silence.

"Oh, and one more thing..." said his father over his shoulder, his voice returning to it's usual cheery tones.

"Yes, father?"

"Have fun." said the Archduke with a wide grin and Toroi slammed the doors shut to be rid of the sight of it.

The sound of the two old gargoyles giggling to themselves assailed him as he stalked down the corridor, holding back the urge to simply draw his shiversword and cleave open the first living thing he saw. After a meeting with his father it would be satisfying, perhaps, but servants soon became hard to replace if you kept up that sort of behaviour.

It was infuriating! Insulting! To think that he needed some courtesan from the Lotus Order to instruct him in the functions of the male body, as though he didn't own one himself, how ridiculous. That he should be forced to take such instruction at the penalty of disownment was doubly galling.

Too furious to be nervous, he threw aside the screen door of his chambers without pausing for a moment, immediately his senses were assaulted by the scent of incense that snapped him from his enraged reverie. He looked about in confusion for a moment before his eyes adjusted to the dim light. Large throw cushions of pale pink silk had been scattered artistically about the floor of his chambers and on the windowsil there was a small engraved brass bowl of sand with three sticks of joss burning in it.

"Good afternoon, Viscount." came a voice that immediately caught his attention, it was the quality of the voice as much as the suprise of it, it was rich and velvety, like chocolate, and had a subtle tone of calm confidence.

Seated elegantly off to one side on one of the new cushions was a male ermine, he wore a knee-length robe of rose silk decorated with flower patterns, tied about the waist with a broad blue sash, his fur-pigmenters showed a five-petaled white lotus flower, the edges picked out in a pink the same colour as his robe, on his right cheek. Dimly, Toroi noted that the nails of his long-fingered hands were painted or nano-pigmented purple.

"Ah...good afternoon." he replied, his furor dampened by suprise and the politeness of the greeting.

"Will you not come an sit with me, my lord?" said the ermine, gesturing offhand to a cushion opposite him.

"Ah, erm, yes, of course, and you would be?" said Toroi, angry again, but now at himself for stuttering like a peasant before this stranger.

"Uelo, my lord."said the ermine, bowing smoothly.

"You are a Lotus Man?"

"I am an adept of the Lotus Order, yes, my lord." said Uelo, nodding, a subtle motion, little more than a slight incline of the head, artfully performed. That simple motion made Toroi, who was a master swordsman of great skill and grace, suddenly feel very clumsy indeed.

"Perhaps my lord would like a drink before we begin?" inquired Uelo.

"Ah, I've already had enough tea to fill a rowboat." replied Toroi, before realising that he really should be objecting to the 'before we begin' part.

"I was actually considering something somewhat more...sustaining than tea." said the ermine, smiling mischeviously as he presented a small bottle of powerful Va'se brandy and two tiny cups and set them down between them before pouring a measure of the firey, sweet drink into each cup and handed one gingerly to Toroi.

He took a tiny sip, just a few drops, and let it simmer on his tongue before swallowing, Va'Se boiled at body-temperature, releasing its aroma into the sinuses and leaving ones head feeling clear despite the inebriating effect of the potently alchoholic drink. He made an appreciative noise in the back of his throat, quite suprised that a Lotus Man would so freely offer Va'Se of such high quality.

"Now then, you have been told of why I am here?" said Uelo, buisnesslike but still in the same satin-soft tone.

"Yes...ah, yes. It's as some damn fool part of the marriage contract with House Yusho, they think I need education in male pleasures, ridiculous." he said, practically spitting the last word.

"Ridiculous, my lord? How so?" said Uelo in a disarming tone, raising one eyebrow.

"Well, I am a man, it's hardly likely you can teach me anything I don't already know."

"I see, you make a compelling case, my lord." said Uelo, seeming apparently to be completely sincere, placing one crooked finger on his lower lip and gazing off in thought "Might I inquire as to how many male lovers my lord has had?"

"Er, well, none really."

"None really?" repeated Uelo.

"Well, on occasion I would go into the city with my friend Veoni who enjoys visiting the smile-boys and once or twice, when I was drunk enough, I would join him."

"Ah, but my lord, how can you posibly judge your prowess from such encounters?" said Uelo, shaking his exquisitely formed head sadly "No, I think you will require my services."

"The smile-boys didn't seem to complain much." replied Toroi, starting to feel slightly giddy from the brandy.

"Whores wouldn't, they would simply endure and charge extra."

"Hah, I suppose you'd know." said Toroi with a chuckle.

Immediately a subtle change came over Uelo, the faint smile he carried instantly dropped from his face and though he sat unmoving it seemed to Toroi that something about the way he carried himself had suddenly become more dangerous somehow, in a way that made Toroi want to reach for his shiversword.

"Whatever do you mean, my lord?" he said, the sweetness utterly absent from his voice and the only velvet or satin in it was concealing the razor-edge of a knifeblade.

"Well I suppose it takes a whore to know a who-"

Toroi never saw the Lotus Man move, he seemed less to lunge as to flow like liquid, but before he could even complete the word Uelo had one hand around his throat and another at his crotch, twisting his testicles with just enough pressure to make his eyes go wide and his lips mouth soundless cries.

"I did not spend eleven years in training to be called a whore by the likes of you." whispered the ermine, adding a little more pressure to make Toroi gasp in pain "I realise this is difficult for you, and I have made every attempt to be accomodating and understanding, to make this as easy for you as I could, and in return you insult my order, the very markings upon my face!"

"Arrhhhg...look, I apologise, I'm sorry, truly!"

"Oh, you will be." said the ermine and removed his hand from Toroi's neck,though he did not move the one around his balls, to pick up a data tube that had been sitting beside his cushion, Toroi's heart sank when he saw that it was shiny black.

"Do you know what this is?"

"It's...gah...an onyx contract."

"And you know what that means?"

"It means you have...ah! You have...full right to use corporal punishment in your lessons." said Toroi, silently cursing his father for agreeing to such a contract.

"Indeed, this one in fact is binding for the period of one year, even after our lessons are concluded, do you know why?" said Uelo, like an interrogator.

"Nggghhh...no."

"It is because your mate is a virgin, and if he remembers his first time as only being an unwanted memory of pain and humiliation, as it certainly would be if I allowed you to go at the poor boy like a bull shelska in heat, I will personally ensure that you live to regret it. Now, I am a Lotus Man, and that means I am a teacher in the ways of pleasure, but mark my words; none but the Emperors own torturers know the ways of pain better. Am I clear?"

"Yes! Yes!" cried Toroi, desperately.

Uelo's smile immediately returned and Toroi breathed a sigh of relief as the hand was removed from his groin "Splendid, shall we begin then, my lord?" said the ermine, sweetly, as he rose from the cushion. Toroi flinched nervously when the Lotus Man walked behind his back but slowly relaxed when he felt the ermine's fingers toying with the catches and knots of his armour. In a matter of moments, frighteningly quickly in fact, his breastplate was unbuckled and Uelo lifted the ceramsteel plate over his head and set it reverently to one side, soon it was joined by his greaves, bracers and sandals.

"There now, my lord, let us begin with a little relaxation, just sit and let me work, drink a little more brandy if you like." crooned Uelo as he loosened Toroi's underrobe, letting it hang around his shoulders and slowly peeling it back as he began kneading his shoulders and back, despite their delicate appearance Uelo's fingers were strong, too strong, thought Toroi with a grimace, and they soon pushed any packets of tension in his back into retreat. When Uelo was done he gathered more cushions around he and Toroi and bade him lie down on his front, not wishing to tempt the Lotus Man's ire twice in one night, Toroi reluctantly obeyed. The underrobe was discarded to allow the ermine to work on the rest of Toroi's body

Uelo worked slowly, gradually, easing his way further down Toroi's back until he reached the base of his tail, Toroi let out a suprised moan of pleasure when the ermine massaged his tailbone, unexpecting it to be quite as sensitive as it was, before working down and kneading his buttocks, thighs and calves in turn.

"Turn over, my lord." bade Uelo and Toroi wordlessly complied, shifting his weight over on the silken cushions. He bristled when he found himself staring at his tented loincloth, his member straining within for release.

"Do not be embarrassed, my lord, it is expected that the body should react so." said Uelo and reached to remove Toroi's loincloth.

"H-hey, what are you doing!" he protested, weakly.

"Come now, my lord, you would be far more comfortable without this thing constraining you, it has to come off some time." Uelo moved in such a way that was mesmerising, even though his movements were slow enough that Toroi could have stopped them if he desired they were so assured that they seemed implacable and instead he merely sat mutely while the ermine Lotus Man stripped him of his last item of clothing, leaving his member standing erect like a flagpole. "There, see, you have nothing to be ashamed of, it is a perfectly respectable size, neither too small nor too large." said Uelo, wrapping his hand around it and giving it a few gentle strokes that still coaxed a small breathy moan from Toroi.

With that, Uelo rose to his feet and undid his sash, allowing the flower-patterned robe to slide off his body like oil over water to flutter gently to the floor. Uelo had the body and build of a swimmer, lithe and athletic, subtly muscular and his fur shone as though each strand had been individually polished. Toroi was more than slightly unnerved to find that the sight of Uelo's flawless body only aroused him more, never before had another male elicited quite so strong a response in him. Strangely though, Uelo's body was not even the slightest bit aroused, his own member was still hid away in its sheath. He bent and offered a hand up that Toroi accepted and beconed for the fox lord to follow him to the bathing chamber.

"Where are you going?" inquired Toroi, following after the ermine who walked with a liquid-smooth gait that defied explanation.

"To bathe, of course." answered Uelo, flashing Toroi a glimmer of wryness in his eyes.

A bath had already been drawn in Toroi's bathing chambers, his bath had always been a source of some slight pride to him, fashioned from river stones to give the appearance of a natural hot spring indoors, it was large enough to swim in, the water was milky with bath-salts when he arrived and it steamed like a volcanic lake. Uelo and he stepped into the waters, which were a comfortable temperature, and sat down on the rocky bench set into the side. Uelo straddled his lap and helped wash him with oil-soaps, at the same time continuing his massage down Toroi's front, he never allowed Toroi's arousal to fade, small strokes and caresses to sensitive areas kept him hard and aching as he worked. When he was done he politely informed Toroi that it was his turn and handed him the bottle of scented oil-soap, though unsure at first Toroi soon found running his hands, slick with the soap, over Uelo's fur to be engrossing, the roll and ripple of the ermines muscles became all the more defined when wet and oiled and exploring them was actually keeping him as aroused as Uelo's deliberate ministrations.

Later they got out and toweled eachother dry, on some instinctual level Toroi realised that the lesson had already begun and that this was not some prelude to it. He allowed himself to be led back into his chambers and seated on one of the largest of the cushions, so heavily stuffed that he could recline against it and still be almost sitting up, Uelo taking a similar cushion opposite him.

"There, now that we are fresh and relaxed we can start in earnest," said the ermine, placing a small satchel that had been resting in one corner on the floor beside him and removing from it a bottle of ribbed purple glass "lie back and place your hands behind your head, my lord, and pay attention, this is the most important thing I will teach you, not the most extraordinary, perhaps, but the most important by far."

"And that would be?" asked Toroi, doing as Uelo bid and settling back on the cushion.

"How to prepare a partner so as to minimise their discomfort, it is also a form of foreplay." said Uelo as he twisted off the cap of the bottle and dabbed a bit of the gelatinous stuff on his fingertip "This is especially important to you if you want to avoid seeing me again in the future under less pleasant circumstances." he continued, gesturing with a flick of his head to where the Onyx Contract sat, upright prominently displayed on a windowsill, Toroi hadn't even seen the Lotus Man place it there but it had clearly done as a warning.

Uelo gently eased Toroi's legs appart and kneeled on the floor before him "Now, to begin..." started the Lotus Man and Toroi felt the gel-covered pad of Uelo's fingertip press lightly against his pucker and begin moving in gentle circles, spreading the gel, he gasped at the unfamilliar sensation "...just contact at first, the more time you have to devote to this excercise the better, in my opinion, so I shall be taking it slowly." he continued as his fingertip tickled and laved Toroi's opening "When you think your partner is ready..." Toroi felt the pressure intensify gradually as the fingertip was slipped inside him, coaxing another half-moan "Just the first knuckle to begin with, are you comfortable?"

"Uh...yes." gasped Toroi, suddenly remembering to breathe.

Uelo smiled warmly "Good, remember to keep checking your partners comfort." he said and a moment later slipped his finger the rest of the way in, there was suprisingly little resistance, not only was Toroi exceedingly relaxed but the gel had some lubricating effect at which it was peerless. Uelo began pushing the digit in and out of Toroi's opening in time to some unheard rhythm, Toroi could scarcely believe that he was allowing such a thing to happen, much less begining to respond to the touch, but with the Lotus Man he felt none of the usual awkwardness he usually had when thinking of being intimate with a male, Uelo was so confidant and assured that he left no room for worry, Uelo was here to pleasure him and teach him how to give pleasure in turn, and that was all there was to it.

"Tell me if this pains you," said Uelo after a minute, maybe two, and a second digit joined the first in the rhythm.

"Nggg...ah, its fine, I'm fine."

"I see it is, there's no need to be brave for me, however, we'll go at your pace and no swifter, I wouldn't have it otherwise, remember that."

Another minute and another digit passed as Uelo continued to stretch Toroi's opening, no longer just thrusting slowly with his fingers but easing them gently appart, occasionally checking on Toroi's continued comfort and stroking his abs with his spare hand to divide his concentration. It seemed to go on for so long that when the ermine finally withdrew it came as a suprise to Toroi.

"And now, you are ready, physically at least." he said, beaming down on Toroi, approvingly.

"Mmmm? For what?" muttered Toroi, feeling a bit addled.

Uelo smirked and unexpectedly bent down to kiss Toroi's parted lips, in moments he was so enraptured by the hot moistness of the ermines mouth, still flavoured with Va'Se brandy, that he barely noticed Uelo's body sliding against his until the ermine's member was already within him, sliding in smoothly. Though he found the sensation of adjusting to the presence of the length odd at first, there was no pain, none whatsoever, just the pleasure of Uelo's shaft sliding past the sensitive ring of muscle and the strangest feeling of fullness that he wasn't sure he disliked, like how he felt after a heavy meal, though located in a different part of his anatomy. Steady, even strokes of Uelo's cock thrust into him welling up pleasures he'd never before experienced, he moaned involentarily around the edges of Uelo's mouth. Uelo withdrew a little and started making tiny strokes against some spot inside his body that made his whole being tremble, and eventually orgasm.

"There, my lord, did you take in how all that was done, or would you like me to repeat it?" said Uelo, breathily, withdrawing from Toroi and removing a pack of moist towels from his satchel which he used to clean himself and Toroi.

"Nn...no, I think I got it." said Toroi, groggily, putting one arm over his eyes and barking a short laugh to himself "Yes, I definately got it."

"Good, I can see you will be a swift learner," said the ermine "now I want you to practice what I showed you."

"Practice?"

"Of course, that is how all things are learned; instruction followed by practice."

"And how am I to..." Toroi trailed off.

"Ah, I see. On me, you will practice on me." replied Uelo, leaning back on his cushion in the same pose he had Toroi lie in "Begin when you are ready, I will tell you if you do anything wrong. Do not worry overmuch though, I have studied up to the fourth petal of the Lotus Path, you can do little that would actually cause me pain."

The lesson continued for several hours, each time the format was the same; Uelo would demonstrate some technique or position upon Toroi's body and then have Toroi repeat it upon Uelo's own, offering guidance and correction where necessary, on more than one occasion Toroi grew frustrated by the seeming demands for perfection that Uelo expected but whenever he would so much as think of voicing an objection that same dangerous hardness would form in the Lotus Man's eyes, silently warning him back to obedience. Only one thing remained different in the acts they performed upon eachother; Uelo could coax an orgasm from Toroi seemingly with ease but he himself had not come even once, despite Toroi's efforts and Uelo's assurances that he was performing adequately.

"Why don't you come?" he said at last, piping up the nerve to ask "We've had enough sex to bankrupt a Salurian brothel and still you haven't come, why is that?"

Uelo propped his head up on one hand and gave Toroi a wry smile "Do you think you are so skilled that you can conquer my Lotus conditioning? Do not flatter yourself, you are far from adept enough to make me come unless I will it so." he seemed to give this some thought "For now." he added after a moment.

Toroi had heard of this, that the Lotus People were able to exert control over their own bodily functions through nothing more than training and willpower, he hadn't thought that such control would extend to those areas though.

"Tell you what," said Uelo, a ring of humour in his voice "If you can do so, if you can bring me to orgasm against my will by the time the week is out, I'll give you a whole crate of Va'Se brandy I have stored away as a reward, what do you say to that?"

"A whole crate?" said Toroi, aghast "Such a thing would eclipse even the value of your fees on this contract."

"Oh?" said Uelo, amusedly "So you think I am in danger of losing this bet? How bold of you."

Toroi snorted a laugh "It's your brandy, Lotus Man, if you would give it away so freely then I'll gladly take it!" he bellowed, feeling the thrill of the challenge.

Inwardly, Uelo chuckled to himself, he was wealthy enough that one measly crate of Va'Se brandy, valuable though it was, meant little to him in the long run, and besides, this was a favour for House Yusho more than anything, he was happy to take a loss for Duke Yusho if it meant that it might stand a chance of making this brutish soldier into a lover fit for his son. But this was what the Viscount needed, no matter how much pleasure Uelo gave him he would never truly learn without the right motivation, but Uelo was a Lotus Man and he could read a persons manner as other men read books, this Toroi had a competitive streak a mile long, what he needed wasn't a scholarly tuition, he needed a game to teach him. And a game he would provide. Besides, though he was a quick learner it was unlikely that Toroi could break down the results of body-control excercises he had practiced every day since the age of eight, it would take at least a master or mistress of the fourth petal to do that, more likely the fifth given that Uelo had always been somewhat gifted. But still, there was always that chance, and sometimes you had to take a chance to ensure your clients satisfaction.

It was, after all, all part of the service.