Lira slipped into Kio's room just before dawn, her bare feet whispering across the wooden floor, cool and worn beneath her soles.
She'd lingered in the rafters all night, wrestling with herself—anger flaring, thoughts pacing, thighs pressed tight until her body throbbed with unspent need.
His words haunted her, relentless: the silver tools, the ropes, the window left open like a challenge she couldn't refuse.
Moonlight poured through the open window, bathing the room in silver, glinting off the iron bedframe and the rough-hewn walls.
The air carried the faint scent of woodsmoke and leather, the tavern's quiet pulse a stark contrast to her racing heart.
Kio lay on his side, fully clothed, one hand tucked under his head, his breathing even but awake.
His dark eyes met hers in the dim, calm as a tide waiting to pull her under.
She hesitated, her silver hair falling loose, veiling her flushed cheeks.
"Couldn't sleep?" he murmured, his voice low, steady, cutting through the silence.
Lira flinched, her emerald eyes sparking with defiance, her snark a fragile shield.
"I didn't ask," she said, her voice sharp but trembling.
"Neither did I," he replied, his gaze unyielding, piercing through her defenses.
Her lips parted, but words faltered.
She knelt beside the bed, her knees sinking into the cool floor, her shortcloth riding up her thighs, exposing the pale curve of her skin.
"I want something," she whispered, her voice raw, barely a breath.
"Then say it," Kio said, his tone soft but firm, a command laced with quiet promise.
Lira swallowed, her throat tight, her heart pounding. "Rope."
His eyes swept over her, weighing her resolve, her vulnerability.
He sat up, reached beneath the bed, and drew out a coil of silk rope, midnight blue, smooth as river-worn stone, its fibers gleaming faintly in the moonlight.
He stood, circling behind her, his presence a silent storm.
His fingers tugged her arms behind her back, gentle but unyielding, the rope brushing her skin like a lover's breath.
"One knot for each truth," he said, his voice low, heavy with intent. "Honesty holds it steady. Lies tighten."
Lira's breath hitched, her chest band straining as she inhaled.
Kio began binding her wrists, his movements slow, precise, the silk biting just enough to anchor her to the moment.
The open window let in a faint breeze, carrying the distant rustle of trees, a reminder of eyes that might linger beyond the glass.
"What do you want?" he asked, his voice cutting through the quiet.
"To feel something," she said, her voice steady despite the tremble in her hands.
The knot held, secure, a silent affirmation.
"What are you afraid of?"
"Being alone," she whispered, her eyes dropping, her snark dissolving into raw truth.
The rope stayed still, its pressure a quiet comfort.
"What did the shard show you?"
Lira hesitated, the ruins' pulse flashing in her mind—a shadow of hands, a weight she couldn't name.
"Someone… holding me," she said, her voice barely audible, thick with vulnerability.
Kio looped the rope around her chest, just under her breasts, the silk grazing her skin as he tied it, pinning her to the moment.
The knot held steady, the breeze from the window teasing her exposed skin, amplifying her awareness of the world beyond.
"Do you want me to fuck you?"
She paused, her lips parting, her body tensing.
"No," she said, her voice faltering, a lie she couldn't sustain.
The rope tightened, a subtle bite that drew a soft gasp, her thighs clenching against the chair's edge.
"Try again," Kio said, his tone firm, unyielding.
"I—I don't want just that," she admitted, her cheeks burning, her eyes squeezing shut as the window's breeze brushed her flushed skin.
He adjusted the bind, loosening it slightly, a reward for her truth. Her breath eased, but her body burned under the rope's embrace, the open window a silent witness to her exposure.
"What do you want me to do to you?"
Silence stretched, heavy as the tavern's hush. Lira licked her lips, her voice trembling. "I want… to be ruined slowly."
Kio said nothing, his silence a weight that pressed against her confession.
He tied the final knot across her sternum, securing her completely—wrists, chest, soul.
Her breathing was shallow, her skin flushed, her body bound so tightly she could barely shift.
The breeze from the window grazed her, a faint tease that made her shiver, her arousal heightened by the thought of unseen eyes.
He knelt before her, his lips brushing her forehead, a fleeting kiss that grounded her in the storm of her need.
Then he stood and moved to the door, his footsteps soft but final.
Lira's eyes widened, her bound arms straining slightly.
"You're—leaving?" she stammered, her voice cracking, her body trembling with unspent desire.
"You didn't ask to be touched," he said, his voice calm, a faint smile in his tone, the open window amplifying the weight of his words.
"I—can't sleep like this," she said, her voice raw, her thighs pressing together, the breeze a cruel reminder of her exposure.
"You can," he murmured, his words a challenge and a promise.
The door closed with a soft thud, leaving Lira alone in the moonlight, bound in silk, her body burning, her heart laid bare.
The tavern's silence enveloped her, the open window a quiet taunt, her vulnerability a fire she couldn't quench.