Following his first mutual feeding with Jon, Erik returns to their shared apartment with flush cheeks, rosy still with the lingering effects of his meal. Yet, despite the flush, his expression is draw-in tight. He does not regret this choice he has made, but he is determined to put some safety nets in place for himself. And first of all, he needs to make Yen aware of, well, the general shape of things.
"I have news," he announces. Telling, that he doesn't call it good news. "Do you have a moment? I know it's getting late."
It is late, though Yennefer is less likely to be concerned with the hour itself and slightly more interested in why he appears so flushed; she’s dressed merely for lounging about the apartment in a long robe belted at the waist and little else, the bare length of a leg visible in her half-recline as she glances up from where she’s seated on the living room sofa, fiddling with her own device.
“I’ve nothing that demands my attention,” she replies, tucking the device between a couple of pillows and then regarding him with a quiet steadiness. “Except whatever you’re feeling particularly driven to inform me of.” Whatever it is, he hasn’t even decided to wait until morning, which indicates some urgency, but her gaze doesn’t reveal anything beyond casual interest.
He's not blind now so, of course, his gaze lingers up her leg bared from under her tempting robe. But, no. He mustn't let himself be distracted. With a weary kind of sigh, he settles down next to her on the lounge.
"I've arranged a standing agreement with someone here in the city for weekly feedings. It's of a mutual benefit to us both." That really should be good news, yet his tone of voice doesn't match.
"There is a catch. The details are private and not necessary for you to know, but for one thing. It is imperative that I never dream."
Given the state by which she greets him, she clearly has no reservations about letting him see her in a certain manner of dress — or undress, depending on the perspective. He's already glimpsed her more naked than this, but she makes no move to cover herself up or adjust the fall of her robe so that what skin peeks out from the low wrap or open slit is sufficiently covered.
Even though he may have found himself a willing party to feed on in regular intervals, he doesn't seem obviously thrilled about the thought, and that in and of itself nags at her awareness, makes her rise up more fully on the chaise and lean forward with her arm braced against the curve of her hip.
"What does dreaming, or not, have to do with this new arrangement of yours?"
"It is the nature of the deal," he says, evasively, not looking her in the eyes. "That if I dream, I will be visited with nightmares of such great intensity that it will be truly an unwaking hell."
That is close enough to the truth, without needing to out Jon and his part in it. Finally, he does lift his eyes to her.
"Now, normally a vampire does not dream. Even when I do choose to sleep, under normal circumstances I will not be affected by this... curse, shall we say. But the worry is that sometimes here in this city circumstances are not normal."
“I take it most of the individuals you’ve fed on since you arrived here don’t come paired with such severe consequences,” she replies, looking at him steadily — especially since he doesn’t seem inclined to meet her gaze at first. “Which leaves me wondering what’s so special about this one that you would be willing to take the risk.”
There’s something nagging at her awareness too — as if she remembers a conversation about terrible effects before but can’t recall who she’d spoken to about them, but she’s too drawn in by the present moment to wrack her memories for the right answer.
“So you’d need something that could ensure a dreamless sleep,” she replies, filling in the remaining detail for herself. “I might have a possible solution, but I’ve never tested it on a vampire before. It may not be potent enough the first time around to be entirely effective unless I change some things.”
"No, they don't," his glance sinks down to the floor.
Yes, he knows what he's agreed to is foolish. He'd become so quickly invested in poor Jon's predicament because of how it reminded him of his younger self. Now, having to explain it like this makes it clear what a rash decision he might have made. Too late to turn back now.
He clears his throat and answers cautiously, "You could say this is the result of a charitable act. Seems my heart is not as dead as it appears." A wry smile twists his lips.
"Yes, that is precisely what I need. I had a feeling you would be the right person to ask for such a thing. But I do not know how we would effectively test it on me when dreaming is not my natural state. I expect I will have to inevitably experience at least one night of terror at the outset to even know to use whatever solution you may have for me."
She can see she doesn't need to inform him of the recklessness of this decision — especially one that would prove so costly to his own state-of-mind — when his awareness is written plain all over his face, but his remark does earn something of a scoff from her, even if she manages to restrain herself from rolling her eyes at the notion of generosity.
"If it continually takes from you in the offering, it could very well step right past the point of charity and into something that exists closer to seizing advantage."
At the same time, she knows she cannot simply leave him to whatever fate he's gotten himself into — especially when seeing to his well-being is literally a part of their contract. The fact remains that there might need to be a night where they discover firsthand just how terrible these consequences might be before she can craft anything strong enough to counter it, and she studies him for a long beat.
"We'd likely have to restrain you to the bed, if it becomes bad enough."
"I'm well-aware of that. As lord and ruler of a vast territory, I walk through a veritable pit of vipers every day. But there is opportunity for me in this too. I have my own advantages to seize."
Just this evening, he had learned a previously unknowable fact about his own history. That entity inside Jon reached back through time and plucked up the name of his very first victim for him. He's never known it before. Confronting that was painful, horribly painful, but valuable nonetheless.
"You'll find my strength is more than most shackles or restraints can subdue. I could rip iron in half like tissue paper."
"If you say so." Yennefer can be skeptical by contrast — and she is in a more advantageous position to remain so, but what she isn't eager for this to become is a scenario in which she will be required to rescue him from whatever trouble he could potentially get himself into solely because their contract demands it. If that happens, she'll relent because she can't afford to deal with the consequences on top of everything else, but that doesn't mean she has to be pleased about it in the slightest.
Her brow furrows, at that reminder; his strength can't be underestimated, and she of all people has seen how effortlessly he can equip it when he chooses to, but she also doesn't want to face the possibility that he could unleash even more than he has while in the throes of a nightmare, especially if he cannot distinguish dreams from his waking reality.
"What if they were fortified, somehow? Magicked, to make them more difficult to break free from?" She's mostly thinking out loud rather than voicing any countering suggestion, drawing an index finger across the space beneath her lower lip as she gazes off to a distant point in the room. "That would be easier to test first, perhaps, before you'd be in a situation that would result in dreaming."
In other words: yes, she's suggesting tying him down purely for experimentation purposes.
Much as it stings his pride, it is probably safer for her to keep her skepticism. If things do go terribly wrong, she'll have plenty of opportunity to tell him "I told you so" hopefully after she's pulled him from the fire. What is having a dom for otherwise?
"I have no natural defense against magic. If the spell is strong enough, that just might work."
His lips turn up in a wicked grin and there's a playful twinkle in his eyes. "If you wanted to tie me down, Yennefer, all you had to do was say so."
While she's fully cognizant of whatever reasons he may have that are his own, Yennefer is much more reluctant to grant anyone the ability to influence her mind — and as far as she's concerned, dreams are an extension of that, especially ones that pass through the unconscious and are beyond her natural power to control them. Her skepticism, therefore, is rooted in her own feeling, but she cannot repress the instinct that he may come to regret even letting it get this far with whomever he's made this arrangement with.
Still, the expression on his face prompts her to snap out of her self-induced reverie with a subtle pursing of her lips, one that belies her amusement even if she makes an attempt to subdue it.
"Contrary to what you might think, I wouldn't solely be doing it for my own enjoyment." She can't claim that the thought, however fleeting it may have been, hasn't crossed her mind at least once already.
"I'd simply prefer not to wake up with your fangs already at my throat. Unless it's a scene we'd previously agreed upon, of course."
He has to tease on this subject or else it will leave him feeling entirely too vulnerable. It's no easy task for him to think of giving up his bodily autonomy to the degree he will have to for this to work. He is already marveling at the fact that he's willing to go so far with her at all.
"I'll keep that idea for a scene in mind for later. But, jokes aside, I would be just as distraught to find myself so beyond my own control as to attack you in your sleep. Such a scenario would be as much if not more of a nightmare for me."
"That's — somewhat beside the point, but yes." She can meet his gaze unflinchingly, though the soft quirking at the corners of her mouth might belie any attempts she makes to maintain more neutrality about this subject in particular. "I would."
It does mollify her somewhat to hear that he would be thoroughly disturbed by even so much as the thought of causing harm to her — but she also cannot necessarily guarantee that whoever he's agreed to let into his subconscious won't have inadvertently probed into the parts of his mind that won't have any control over his dreaming state.
"It would hardly be ideal from my perspective either," she replies, "but the sooner we can verify some solutions to circumvent any negative effects on your unconscious mind, the sooner we won't be plagued by any notion of worst-case scenarios."
"And I enjoy a good challenge, so I see no reason not to lean into the thrill of it, if we are going to be doing this experiment regardless." A little bit of play while they work seems rather in keeping with the desires of this city. They may as well get some quota sorted for themselves while they are at it.
"She sooner we can rest safely," he agrees, "The better. Though, it has gotten fairly late tonight so I understand if you wish to postpone starting until the morning. I can sit awake for the rest of this evening."
She very nearly asks him whether or not he is certain he wants to be languishing awake that long, but then she quickly remembers that requires very little sleep if any at all — it will be a greater test of whatever restraints she can enchant for him once he is starting to reach the limits of his endurance and finds himself actually requiring that rest. More than that, she will not be at her most effective unless she has gotten a sufficient amount of sleep tonight, so his suggestion to her doesn't go unacknowledged.
"Then we'll begin tomorrow," she replies, settling on the decision with an agreeing nod, and gently rises from her seat on the sofa with the hem of her robe dropping to swirl around her ankles in the process of movement.
"In your bedchamber might be best. I'll need to determine whether I need to strengthen the headboard as well as the potential bindings that will be in use."
"Good." He's thankful she didn't argue with him. But she's intelligent and practical. That, really, is part of the reason why he will even trust to go this far with her. He'd never let some half-wit attempt this.
He'd thought to stand with her, but he's a little taken aback at watching her robe drop to the floor. Not at all displeased, just surprised. He recovers from it with a quick glance over her, and then stands to lead the way to his bedchamber. If he turns a little quicker than normal, it's definitely not because, freshly fed as he is, he finds himself capable of blushing. (Yes it is.)
"Yes. I think that will be best. Thankfully, someone thought to make the headboard out of wrought iron, but even that is not going to stop me at my most violent. It will need shoring up."
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Action/prose
"I have news," he announces. Telling, that he doesn't call it good news. "Do you have a moment? I know it's getting late."
no subject
“I’ve nothing that demands my attention,” she replies, tucking the device between a couple of pillows and then regarding him with a quiet steadiness. “Except whatever you’re feeling particularly driven to inform me of.” Whatever it is, he hasn’t even decided to wait until morning, which indicates some urgency, but her gaze doesn’t reveal anything beyond casual interest.
no subject
"I've arranged a standing agreement with someone here in the city for weekly feedings. It's of a mutual benefit to us both." That really should be good news, yet his tone of voice doesn't match.
"There is a catch. The details are private and not necessary for you to know, but for one thing. It is imperative that I never dream."
no subject
Even though he may have found himself a willing party to feed on in regular intervals, he doesn't seem obviously thrilled about the thought, and that in and of itself nags at her awareness, makes her rise up more fully on the chaise and lean forward with her arm braced against the curve of her hip.
"What does dreaming, or not, have to do with this new arrangement of yours?"
no subject
That is close enough to the truth, without needing to out Jon and his part in it. Finally, he does lift his eyes to her.
"Now, normally a vampire does not dream. Even when I do choose to sleep, under normal circumstances I will not be affected by this... curse, shall we say. But the worry is that sometimes here in this city circumstances are not normal."
no subject
There’s something nagging at her awareness too — as if she remembers a conversation about terrible effects before but can’t recall who she’d spoken to about them, but she’s too drawn in by the present moment to wrack her memories for the right answer.
“So you’d need something that could ensure a dreamless sleep,” she replies, filling in the remaining detail for herself. “I might have a possible solution, but I’ve never tested it on a vampire before. It may not be potent enough the first time around to be entirely effective unless I change some things.”
no subject
Yes, he knows what he's agreed to is foolish. He'd become so quickly invested in poor Jon's predicament because of how it reminded him of his younger self. Now, having to explain it like this makes it clear what a rash decision he might have made. Too late to turn back now.
He clears his throat and answers cautiously, "You could say this is the result of a charitable act. Seems my heart is not as dead as it appears." A wry smile twists his lips.
"Yes, that is precisely what I need. I had a feeling you would be the right person to ask for such a thing. But I do not know how we would effectively test it on me when dreaming is not my natural state. I expect I will have to inevitably experience at least one night of terror at the outset to even know to use whatever solution you may have for me."
no subject
"If it continually takes from you in the offering, it could very well step right past the point of charity and into something that exists closer to seizing advantage."
At the same time, she knows she cannot simply leave him to whatever fate he's gotten himself into — especially when seeing to his well-being is literally a part of their contract. The fact remains that there might need to be a night where they discover firsthand just how terrible these consequences might be before she can craft anything strong enough to counter it, and she studies him for a long beat.
"We'd likely have to restrain you to the bed, if it becomes bad enough."
no subject
Just this evening, he had learned a previously unknowable fact about his own history. That entity inside Jon reached back through time and plucked up the name of his very first victim for him. He's never known it before. Confronting that was painful, horribly painful, but valuable nonetheless.
"You'll find my strength is more than most shackles or restraints can subdue. I could rip iron in half like tissue paper."
no subject
Her brow furrows, at that reminder; his strength can't be underestimated, and she of all people has seen how effortlessly he can equip it when he chooses to, but she also doesn't want to face the possibility that he could unleash even more than he has while in the throes of a nightmare, especially if he cannot distinguish dreams from his waking reality.
"What if they were fortified, somehow? Magicked, to make them more difficult to break free from?" She's mostly thinking out loud rather than voicing any countering suggestion, drawing an index finger across the space beneath her lower lip as she gazes off to a distant point in the room. "That would be easier to test first, perhaps, before you'd be in a situation that would result in dreaming."
In other words: yes, she's suggesting tying him down purely for experimentation purposes.
no subject
"I have no natural defense against magic. If the spell is strong enough, that just might work."
His lips turn up in a wicked grin and there's a playful twinkle in his eyes. "If you wanted to tie me down, Yennefer, all you had to do was say so."
no subject
Still, the expression on his face prompts her to snap out of her self-induced reverie with a subtle pursing of her lips, one that belies her amusement even if she makes an attempt to subdue it.
"Contrary to what you might think, I wouldn't solely be doing it for my own enjoyment." She can't claim that the thought, however fleeting it may have been, hasn't crossed her mind at least once already.
"I'd simply prefer not to wake up with your fangs already at my throat. Unless it's a scene we'd previously agreed upon, of course."
no subject
He has to tease on this subject or else it will leave him feeling entirely too vulnerable. It's no easy task for him to think of giving up his bodily autonomy to the degree he will have to for this to work. He is already marveling at the fact that he's willing to go so far with her at all.
"I'll keep that idea for a scene in mind for later. But, jokes aside, I would be just as distraught to find myself so beyond my own control as to attack you in your sleep. Such a scenario would be as much if not more of a nightmare for me."
no subject
It does mollify her somewhat to hear that he would be thoroughly disturbed by even so much as the thought of causing harm to her — but she also cannot necessarily guarantee that whoever he's agreed to let into his subconscious won't have inadvertently probed into the parts of his mind that won't have any control over his dreaming state.
"It would hardly be ideal from my perspective either," she replies, "but the sooner we can verify some solutions to circumvent any negative effects on your unconscious mind, the sooner we won't be plagued by any notion of worst-case scenarios."
no subject
"She sooner we can rest safely," he agrees, "The better. Though, it has gotten fairly late tonight so I understand if you wish to postpone starting until the morning. I can sit awake for the rest of this evening."
no subject
"Then we'll begin tomorrow," she replies, settling on the decision with an agreeing nod, and gently rises from her seat on the sofa with the hem of her robe dropping to swirl around her ankles in the process of movement.
"In your bedchamber might be best. I'll need to determine whether I need to strengthen the headboard as well as the potential bindings that will be in use."
no subject
He'd thought to stand with her, but he's a little taken aback at watching her robe drop to the floor. Not at all displeased, just surprised. He recovers from it with a quick glance over her, and then stands to lead the way to his bedchamber. If he turns a little quicker than normal, it's definitely not because, freshly fed as he is, he finds himself capable of blushing. (Yes it is.)
"Yes. I think that will be best. Thankfully, someone thought to make the headboard out of wrought iron, but even that is not going to stop me at my most violent. It will need shoring up."