Ivy moaned. She should be even more terrified now, but for some reason, all she felt was exhilarated. Then she got another pulse of borrowed emotion, just like she had when the pollen first showered over her:joy. It was so huge and bright she couldn’t help but laugh with glee, even as the borrowed emotion faded.
Vale’s tongue slid out of her again. Ivy gasped, jogging her hips fruitlessly. When nothing happened, she looked up.
Vale was staring down at her, his glowing green eyes unreadable. Ivy wished she could see under his skull mask. There was only so much she could read from the exposed part of his face.
Vale pressed a retracted claw to the vine tying her left ankle. Ivy twitched in response, wondering if he was picturing the same thing she was. This was the second time she had been tied up and presented to him.
Vale’s claws slid out, drawing the vine tight. Ivy waited, trembling with nerves and pollen-lust. Would he cut her free again, like he had done with the ropes her Circle had tied? Or would he continue like this, with Ivy bound and spread out for him to do whatever he wished?
Finally, Vale sighed and let the vine slip free from his claw.
“What a strange gift those mortals gave me,” he said, as if to himself.
Ivy started to reply. But the pollen sent another pulse of pain through her, and all that came out of her mouth was a whimper.
“Yes, yes,” growled Vale. “You have no patience.”
“Sorry,” Ivy managed.
“I was not speaking to you,” Vale said. He gave the vines around Ivy’s limbs one last glare. Then he lowered his head and plunged his tongue inside her, so thick and fast Ivy keened.
It was too much, again. But howwonderfulit felt to be given more than she could handle. And Ivy was stretching, her walls slowly giving way to Vale’s impossibly long tongue. Each thrust went deeper until he was pressing against her limit. And still he thrust, fast and pulsing, letting out a muffled growl as spit dripped down her thighs.
Ivy bucked mindlessly, lost in it. She tried to touch her breasts, but the vines held her back. Somehow, their constant pull only sent her closer to the edge. She had made herself come several times while he was gone, but this felt different. She could feel the pollen inside her: shifting, burning,expectant.
“Please,” Ivy begged, sobbing with it. “Please, I need— You have to touch me!”
She squirmed and twisted, but it was no use. She could do nothing but lie there while he plundered her, his grip tightening on her thighs and his growls getting louder. He was definitely affected, Ivy realized with the small part of her brain that wasn’t shaking apart. She still couldn’t tell if it was to fuck her or eat her.
She stared down at him, wishing she could see his cock. Was it big? It had to be; he was massive. She imagined him looming over her, his pretty little offering for him to do what he wished, and bringing out that big, inhuman cock?—
One of Vale’s not-quite-retracted claws touched her clit. It was sharp, more a graze than a press, but it was enough.
Ivy screamed. The pollen surged through her, molten and all-consuming. The vines pulsed with each wave of pleasure, and Ivy found herself wishing that Vale would cover them with his body, holding her down properly.
Gradually, the pleasure faded enough for Ivy to pry her teary eyes open.
Vale was sitting on his haunches like a dog. His mouth was open, his tongue hanging out as he panted. Then he caught her looking, and his jaw snapped shut, that gorgeous tongue vanishing inside it.
“The pollen,” Vale panted, more growl than voice. “Is it gone?”
Ivy pushed her dress down, considering. She was sweating, but it didn’t feel feverish like it had before. The desperation was gone. So was the pain. She was dazed and exhausted and still partly expecting to get eaten, but her mind was her own again. No pollen. No emotions that didn’t belong to her.
“‘S gone,” Ivy slurred. She cleared her throat, trying to sit up. The vines tugged on her wrists.
“Oh,” Ivy said. “Sorry.”
“Do not be,” Vale said, sounding annoyed. He stood, brushing off his robes. “It is not you.”
With that, the vines retreated. Ivy held up her hands to see a faint red mark around her wrists. Her ankles were also marked, and Ivy felt oddly sad knowing they would fade soon.
She rubbed her wrist cautiously. “That… wasn’t you?”
“No,” Vale said after a moment. “It was the void.”
“The void,” Ivy repeated, Vale’s words from before running through her head:the void is attempting to communicate.
Ivy gasped. “That’swhat’s talking to me? The void?”
