Rabbit Blood

Chapter 36 - Voicing Concerns

Somehow, Leslie thought Alastor would sense their secret was out. Even if it was only Angel who knew, even if she was circumventing the terms of the contract, calling him by another name... wouldn't Alastor be able to tell?

Well, he didn't bring it up, and it was the kind of thing he would mention. In fact, Alastor seemed more cheerful since Leslie opened the door to harder biting. Along with the usual, surreptitious winks in public, there were subtle gnashes of the teeth, lest she forget what his mouth could do to her. It was hard to imagine him flirting like this if he suspected betrayal.

Still, she felt the constant simmer of unease in her belly, and Angel wasn't helping. He began to bombard her with text messages; given Alastor's technophobia, it was the safest way to communicate. Either we text, or u join me @ the Studio to talk, Angel told her. Bambi won't ever go there; trust me.

It was good to know her friend was treating this thing with due seriousness. To get him up to speed, Leslie gave Angel an abridged version of the deal (choosing to leave out the finer details, or anything that made her look like an idiot.) Still, Angel showered her with questions and strange sexual terms she'd never heard of.

Can I see a copy of the contract?

Does B ever hurt u?

Does he force u in2 stuff?

Do u agree 2 do stuff even if u don't want 2?

Is it chastity play?

R u a brat? What the duck is going on?

...*fuck

He then sent links to BDSM sites, with an emphasis on safe practices for new doms and subs: link after link. Her head reeling, Leslie flung her phone on the bed. Why did he need to know these things? Why did he even ask? Obviously she wasn't going to tell the truth; it would only worry him more.

Angel, stop! I don't need this stuff, we're fine! she finally replied, then, feeling bad, How are you anyway? How's Fat Nuggets?

A cool breeze blew in from the open window; the fall season was well on its way. Leslie knew that opening the window meant inviting in the late-night screams of the damned, but by now she was used to it, and she needed the fresh air.

He's good, Angel texted her. Dragged his food under the bed & demolished it, no wonder u couldn't find the fucking thing. Lol.

So Fat Nuggets had already eaten his fill on that fateful day. She might as well have left that pig at the hotel, and her secret would have stayed a secret. Just her stupid luck.

o - o - o - o - o

Leslie took a walk to the library and stayed awake to pore over the resources Angel sent. The first thing was an agree/disagree-style kink test, with an over-reliance on archetypal labels. It called her a 'switch', which made sense, and a 'rope bunny', which she hated. Any reminder of her rabbity form pissed her off.

It was strange how being damned to Hell changed her approach to the statements. With Karlton, maybe she could imagine acting cute with him, like a little kitten, to make him pet her on the head; but down here, with the dysphoria that accompanied her demon form, the thought made her queasy.

Then, 'for fun', she ran through the test again, answering as Alastor would. This alone revealed some surprising things. Yes, he was dominating, but more than that (she had to admit), there were times in their encounters when Alastor behaved like an animal - the way he breathed, growling and scraping his fangs against her. Then again, he could be kind and give her patient guidance, like a mentor. The contrast was staggering.