Page 27 of Sanctuary After Dark

Liam watched Elias again for a few moments longer. I knew he had a soft spot for people who had gone through abuse. He had grown up in an abusive household with a drunk father and a mother who was too high on pills to care, and after social services got him out, he had lived through the foster system and seen abuse there as well. It was one of the many reasons he had become a psychiatrist: so that he could help people.

"I'm glad that he's here and will see how amazing it can still be. I'll be sure to mention bondage that you can wear under clothes and that doesn't restrict you. He might like that more than the restrictive type so he can move freely but still get that feeling of compression on his nervous system."

"Thank you. That would be helpful for him to see that side of it and that it can still help him. I think it would be great for him on days when he is having heightened anxiety. To be able to wear something under his clothing." Sighing for a moment before turning back to Liam and clapping my hand on his shoulder, I nodded. "I'll let you start and take my seat. If you need anything, just ask and I'll get it for you."

Stepping off the stage, I made my way the short distance over to the couch. We had chosen this spot, so that Elias had an unobstructed but comfortable place to sit and observe everything that Liam was going to do to Elijah on stage.

Elias smiled when he saw me approaching and slid over so that there was room on the other side of him for me to sit.

"Hi, Sir! We saved you a seat."

"Hi, little bunny. Thank you. It's the perfect spot next to an adorable little boy." Grinning myself when I saw him blush and try to hide his face, I sat down next to him and put my arm along the back of the couch, squeezing the back of his neck softly for a moment. "Just remember, you can safeword at any time. If you need a break, just say yellow, but if you want to leave, tell us red. I think you'll really enjoy this. Liam is amazing at what he does."

"Yes, Sir. I will." Elias smiled softly and nodded, his mismatched eyes looking around at everyone and how excited they all seemed. "There's a lot of people here."

"Good boy." Grabbing the water bottle Lincoln had brought for me, I opened it and took a sip while I scanned the room as well. This was a great turnout, and I was glad that so many people had signed up to attend. "There are. We planned this a few months ago when Liam told me he was going to be in the area for a conference."

Elias nodded and pulled his legs up to tuck under him while he got comfortable on the couch. His eyes moved to the stage when Liam cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.

"Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Doctor Liam Ackhurst. I am a licensed psychiatrist and received my degrees at Columbia University. But don't worry, I won't bore you with the specifics of my degrees or residency programs. I will say, though, that I did minor in neurology. For anyone who is going into rope bondage I highly recommend looking for classes at your local community college or even online for anatomy and the nervous system because when dealing with rope and bondage you should know where all the major muscles, ligaments, and nerves intersect on the body so you can be as safe as possible. If you make one wrong move and damage a specific nerve, you can actually cause permanent damage." Liam paused in the middle of the stage to let that sink in.

Lincoln and I stressed safety as much as possible to our members, and we offered resources online as well as in the office for anyone who was looking for a specific class to help them stay safe. All of our dungeon monitors were CPR and first aid certified as well, just in case anything happened.

"Now, let's move on to the fun part. Tying my gorgeous boy up." Liam winked as a few chuckles sounded throughout the room before he motioned for Elijah to step forward, walking in a circle around his boy while he held a black silk rope in his hands.

"Compression therapy, or sometimes as it's known deep pressure therapy, can be an amazing tool in treating psychological trauma, PTSD, and anxiety. It provides deep pressure stimulation, which will then activate the parasympathetic nervous system. This, in turn, reduces stress, improves focus, and can induce a calm feeling. People have often described this as being wrapped in a hug and embraced." While Liam spoke, he started to measure out his rope while Elijah stood perfectly still with his arms behind his back.

"Deep pressure will help shift the body from fight or flight to rest and digest. It is a mindful exercise which provides a sense of being grounded or centered. It creates a feeling of being safe and secure when your body just wants to run and hide." Liam started wrapping the rope around Elijah to create a simple hishi harness that wrapped around the chest and made gorgeous diamonds.

"Once the rope settles around the body, there will be a shift. They will notice their body more so than they did before. Muscles will start to unclench, breaths will deepen, and the mind will quiet as somatic stillness sets in and they let go." He moved to the side so people could see what he was doing while he spoke. "My boy, Elijah here, lives with anxiety, and sometimes it gets so bad that I will tie a harness around his chest that he can wear under his clothing. It's a constant reminder to him and gives him that deep pressure therapy throughout the day. Almost like he's wearing one of those weighted sweatshirts or a weighted blanket."

Looking out at the crowd for a moment after he had finished the chest harness, he lifted Elijah's arms to show he still had a good range of movement. I could feel Elias sit forward a little next to me, and when I looked, I saw that the display enraptured him. I could see a bit of longing in his eyes as he watched Elijah move around a bit.

"Shibari doesn't have to be restrictive. You can tie rope around you and still have a full range of your extremities. I've even used a simple arm harness for him when he just wants a small reminder, and it is very fashionable as well. He's gotten a lot of comments on it before." Liam smirked a little and looked over at us. I nodded a thank you for him mentioning that.

I knew from what I had been told that Elias had experienced restraint with ropes and cuffs before, so I wanted to show him that rope bondage wasn't always about restraint. I wanted him to know that they could be worn just for the sake of wearing them.

Liam grabbed another bundle of rope and moved to put Elijah's arms behind his back with his forearms overlapping and his hands holding on to each. He started to wrap the rope around them.

"I have had people tell me that when they experience this for the first time, it's almost like going from the mindset of ‘you have to hold everything together yourself’ to ‘you can let go, because you're being held’. You transfer the weight you've been carrying and let the rope hold you together instead." Pulling some of the rope tight, I watched as Liam checked in with Elijah and ran his finger underneath a rope he had just placed.

"Shibari is about connection and consent as well. There is a clear negotiation and continuous communication with your sub. You may have noticed each time I tie something, I check in with Elijah to make sure it's not too tight for him or he isn't experiencing any tingling in his limbs. It builds trust between you and your sub. You trust them to speak up if something is wrong, and they trust you to take the weight from them and hold them. To make sure they are safe and not injured. It offers an intimacy with one another because you both feel seen and heard."

Elias chewed on his lip a little bit, and I could see the gears moving in his head as he took everything in. Good. I wanted him to think about this. Squeezing the back of his neck, he leaned into me more, and I pressed a kiss to his temple. I wanted him to know that if he trusted me with this, that I would keep him safe. I wouldn't let anything happen to him. That he could let go and it would be all right.

"Now, while I talk about all of this and the therapeutic aspects of this, I want to stress that this does not replace therapy. Combining this with therapy can make it an amazing tool to help you heal. But it should never replace that. You should still seek professional help."

I saw Alec nodding in agreement to what Liam was saying, and that was another thing we stressed here. That was why Alec offered his services and free therapy sessions to our members. We didn't want them to be replacing professional help with pleasure.

Relaxing on the couch more, I put my arm around Elias as he cuddled up to my side. His attention was fully on the stage while Liam continued on with the demo. He showed different harnesses and how placing knots intentionally at certain pressure points could act sort of like acupuncture.

I knew all of this already from my own studies and from talking to him and Alec at length about this subject. It was something important to me.

Since I didn't really need to pay attention to Liam, I made sure I paid attention to the boy in my arms right now. He pulled his feet up on the couch and pushed his toes under Lincoln's thigh, clenched his sleeves in his fists while holding one up by his mouth, and his blue and brown eyes widened as he took in everything Liam was doing and saying. Lincoln curled his fingers around his ankle and just held him while brushing his thumb across his skin. I could tell Elias was absorbing it all, and I was happy to not see any hint of fear over the subject. There was a bit of anxiety, but that was to be expected. What I saw, though, was longing and curiosity. Those were the things I wanted to feed.

Once the demo was over, Liam invited people up to ask questions while he made sure that Elijah was alright with some water, a snack, and a blanket wrapped around him. It wasn't a proper scene, so I knew Elijah would be fine with people coming up to him. I turned to look at Elias properly then. He was chewing on his bottom lip, and I couldn't stop myself as I reached forward and pulled it free from between his teeth.

"You're going to hurt yourself if you keep doing that, little bunny."