Ston set down a roughly drawn card on the ground between him and Merrie. “Seven of Wands.”

Merrie peered at it. She had to lift her body to see it clearly in the dim light. The lettering was faded from many hands the deck had passed over in the years. It was also expensive, judging from Ston's complaints. It took him almost two weeks of saving to get it and there was blood on the edges of half the cards.

Her tail wagged slowly before she looked up at him. Her breasts tickled against the ground, the nipples dragging as she had to arch her back. She smiled broadly and then nosed one of the cards face down on the ground in front of her.

He chuckled. “This is weird playing your cards too.”

“Not much easier for me. It's hard to memorize the cards without being able to look at them,” she whispered. Even though she had gotten more comfortable speaking, both feeling guilty for doing so and her throat growing more accustomed to the effort. “I don't think I never really played cards when I was younger. I'm… not sure though, I forgot a lot about being a child. Well, and a teenager, and most of my early twenties.”

“You're doing pretty well, you've won the last few hands.”

“I'm sure you're going to win this one.” She wasn't telling the truth though, he had already lost the game.

“I doubt it.” He groaned and stretched out his leg. He braced himself on the ground and picked up her card.

As he did, she looked at his leg. The village's makeshift healer—a disgraced cleric—had removed the bandages around his entire leg. The burn had mostly healed however there was a strip of dead skin that had to be removed with a knife. The much smaller bandages were dotted with blood. The rest of it was visible, deeply scarred and wasted away almost to the bone.

“Still hurts,” Ston said with a sigh. He put her card down on top of his. It was the eight of wands. He groaned. “Damn, you won the hand.”

She smiled and wagged her tail. “Sorry.”

“No, I like losing to you. It gives me a feeling of penance for what's going on here. I feel useless right now.”

Merrie nuzzled against his leg. “I'm sorry about your injury.”

“Not for long. I can walk again which means I'm back in the tunnels. That Rat can be a bitch about those damn chits and I'm tired of Mace, Slender, and Razor paying my way.”

“Thought about starting your own business? You're a merchant.”

“Rumor has it that Rat cuts the throat of anyone who tries to compete with her. That's a bit riskier than I'm willing to give at this point.” He stretched his toe. “No, the leg is good enough I can dig again so tomorrow I'll be in the dark.”

He stroked her ear, right along the sensitive ridge. “I kind of wish we were back at the wagon though. At least then I had a chance to….” His voice trailed off.

She knew what he wanted. “To fuck me?”

His fingers froze for a moment. “Yeah. There aren't a lot of women in the prison. The ones who are willing get snatched up by Rat and doled out for chits.”

“Except me?”

He chuckled. “Yes. I don't know why she hates you though. She's tripled the price on that collar of yours, three days of unlimited services.”

“That's a lot.”

Ston patted her. “Don't worry, I'd rather have your company than your collar.”

She crawled over and pressed her head against his side.

He slid an arm around her waist and cupped her breast. His breath was warm against her body as he rolled her nipple in his fingertips. “No, we both know a good thing when we see it. Horge has been keeping the thieves away from your collar. Despite having the manners of a goat, he's a good person for us to hang around until we got our bearings.”

“He's a bit rough.”

“That's how you like it, isn't it?” He squeezed her nipple.

Merrie moaned, a ripple of pleasure fluttering along her senses. “Y… yes. I like it rough and hard. But he's just one man, as much as he goes, he really isn't… a challenge?” She sighed. “He makes me cum and gets me soaked, but there isn't much change. Blowjob, slapping me around—”

Ston tensed.

“—and then a fuck. Same thing, every night.”

“He shouldn't slap you.”

She lifted her head to nuzzle at his chin. “I like it though. It makes me feel good.”

“At least he should feed you during the day. Or let you….” He closed his mouth.

Merrie grinned and kissed him. “Out into the sunlight? I'll pass, if you don't mind. Besides, I don't really need food or drink.”

“You had your magic sealed away, how can that happen?”

Merrie didn't have an answer for that. She had thought about it herself, but she couldn't tell if it was Parn protecting her or the geas somehow pretending to work. “I don't know… maybe it doesn't change inherent aspects? For me, ripping out my darkness would be the same as tearing out your heart and bones.”

He shuddered.

“I'm not going to argue, it saves me jumping up and down having to pee when Horge gets home. Or leaving little puddles on the ground.” She grinned and kissed him again.

He squeezed her nipple and rolled it around.

With a moan, she leaned against him. She was getting turned on, which made it difficult since both of them were honoring Horge's demand they didn't fuck. It was hard, she wanted to feel Ston's tongue against her ass as much as he wanted to drive his cock into her tight hole.

“I-I better go.”

She pulled back as he stood up. “Take care of yourself, I like having you around.”

Ston rubbed his head. He looked down at his bandaged leg and sighed. “I'm hoping Horge lets me visit even after tomorrow. I don't think I can do long hours down there for a while.”

Merrie nodded. She had no influence over Horge. He thought of her as less than a human, a hole to fuck and nothing more. The realization brought a longing for his massive cock that flooded her thoughts, tickling her pussy with desire.

Ston groaned. “Come on, help me up.”

Enjoying the thrill of being ordered, Merrie helped Ston get to his feet. He gathered up the cards and shoved them into a small bag he had tied to his waist. His belly was smaller than on the wagon, poor eating and not a lot of money had not done well for him, however she saw muscles beginning to form.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

They shared a kiss before she crawled to the bedding, crawling underneath the thick furs and blankets before he opened the door to let the sunlight flood in. She settled in, working her way into the opaque depths that protected her.

When she heard the scrape of the door, she felt a pang of loneliness and another of desire.

The door closed shut, not quite with the finality that Horge slammed the door.

She held her breath, listening. When he didn't return, she decided to remain under the blankets and deal with the maddening itch between her legs. With her cool temperature, the cramped blanket wouldn't overhead and the pressure felt good as she flattened herself against the firm ground. It almost felt like someone holding her down.

With a moan, she reached down to rub the side of her wrist against her seam. The folds parted easily, exposing the slick depths and her aching clitoris. The sake-scented smells of her pussy flooded the cramped space as she propped up the furs and rubbed herself faster. In her mind, she drew a detailed fantasy of him working his way up her body, his lips caressing her buttocks, then back, before moving up until his head was against hers. As the imagined cock pressed against the tight opening of her sphincter, she let out a louder moan and used both hands to rub her slick clitoris and slit.

Ston's visit always got her excited. Horge demanded that they didn't fuck and the thriban was known for brutal attacks against his perceived property, he had sent more than one person to the healer since they had arrived. His actions ended up with him getting banned from Rat's for a few day which meant even more brutal sex for Merrie. However she didn't want Ston to get hurt so she masturbated when he left instead of encouraging him to sliding his hard cock between her buttocks and drive into her neglected asshole.

The door creaked.

She froze.

No one should be entering Horge's home.

A sense of danger rose inside her and her building orgasm sputtered away.

The door opened further, scraping along the ground in slow, unsteady movements.

Ston never came back so late after he left.

She inched her way to the edge of the blanket but stopped when she felt the burn of light flooding inside the room. The door was still open and sunlight filled the space with a promise of agony if she crawled out. She froze, holding her breath until the door closed again.

“I know you're in here,” said a vaguely familiar sounding voice. It was a man, not unexpected since most of the prisoners were male. It was low but not the deep base tones of a thriban nor the higher pitch of a silfae; the speaker was probably human in his thirties.

A prickle of surprise and sudden fear raced along her skin. She slowly drew her outstretched limb away from the light. Tense, she cocked her head as she tried to identify the intruder.

He stepped further into the room. “Everyone heard you screaming when that thriban opened the door. Since then, you never go out. I'm betting you have trouble with sunlight and light so if I keep this door open, you won't do anything stupid.”

Her tail curled up between her legs to rest against her pussy. She wasn't sure, but it sounded like the intruder wanted something more than to rape her on Horge's bed and run away before the thriban returned. There was a calculating tone in his voice.

If was just sex, she would have played the willing victim. However, kidnapping posed a problem: Horge. The thriban was jealous and possessive and prone to lashing out. That meant that everyone would be in danger if she wasn't there when he returned home. The image of Ston rose up and she cringed, he would be Horge's first victim and the least skilled to defend himself.

Merrie couldn't let that happen. She had to fight back.

However the sun spearing into the room prevented her from just lashing out with power. If it wasn't for the brightness, he would be dead before he took another step.

Immediately, she felt a surge of humiliation. Parn wanted her to think about using magic, not reflexively use it. Her ears flattened against her head as she tried to come up with any other way of defending herself.

It only took a second to realized she was helpless. She couldn't handle the light and the intruder knew it. He had obviously planned this out which meant he may have the next steps already prepared to keep her unable to defend herself; it didn't matter if he was unaware of her magic, she couldn't use it.

A deep, pulsating heat flooded through her. It prickled along her skin as her pussy grew even wetter with anticipation. Somehow, her initial thoughts out of his intelligence and skill set off an overwhelming wave of lust, even if it was just a fantasy.

Cheeks and pussy burning, she knew she had to wait. He was probably going to fuck her. It was just what would follow after that left her concerned. However not everyone can plan for everything and he may not know the full extent of her powers. She could only hope that he would slip out and she would be ready to stop him.

He kicked the blankets. His boots drove into her hip, pushing her aside and flipping furs up briefly to let a spear of light sear a line across her pale skin. “I said answer me!”

The man wanted her to be afraid. She could do that. Inwardly preparing, she let the measure of fear already seeping through her thoughts surge forward. It quickened her breath and brought a whimper vibrating in her throat. She crawled deeper underneath the blankets.

“Yeah, try to run, you little cunt.”

Her pussy grew hot as she played the role he wanted. She squirmed for a moment and then curled up until her tail dragged across her face.

“You better answer when I ask or I'm going to start flipping up every blanket in that pile. I bet you can't run fast enough, it's really bright in here.” As if to prove his point, he kicked the furs and a small sliver of burning sunlight pierced Merrie's darkness to sear a black line across her wrist.

She bit down on her tongue and yanked back. A wisp of black smoke marked the air as she yanked her wrist back.

“Say, 'yes, sir!'”

“Y-Yes, sir!” she whispered.

He kicked her again, the toe of his boot digging into her belly. “The Gods Below, I'm going to enjoy this. You are such a soft, fucking cunt, wasted on that stupid gray. I'm going to break you properly, stuff every hole of your body.”

She moaned unwillingly as the promised dominance fluttered through her. He wanted to fuck, that meant more opportunities to save herself. Her pussy grew slick with anticipation of being raped.

“Now, you are going to do everything I say otherwise I'm going to roast your ass right here and now.” He flipped the edge of the bedding, it was away from her but the threat was clear. “Do you understand?”

“Y-Yes, sir,” she whimpered.

There was a flutter of heavy fabric and a whiff of rotted vegetables. “Now, I have this heavy bag. I'm putting it near the edge. I want you to crawl into it. You take longer than five seconds and I'm roasting your cunt.”

That is how he was going to make sure she didn't stall until Horge returned. She felt a thrill of a growing fear, he knew what he was doing.

With her pussy dripping, she obeyed and crawled into the sack. The smell of rotted food was choking but the fabric was thick. She couldn't see even a hint of light through the material as he shoved her deeper into it and tied off the opening.

Trembling with lust and need, she closed her eyes and concentrated on his actions as he worked the opening further, it felt like he was wrapping rope to ensure it wouldn't open.

As he picked her up and slung her sack over his shoulder, he grunted. Her body thumped against a hard back, the flex of muscles told her that he was strong. Not as strong as Horge but strong enough that she would have been terrified if she wasn't willingly going with him.

“Yeah, you like fatty, don't you? Don't want anything to happen to that fat fuck? Well, if you don't do exactly what I tell you to, I'm going to cut your head off and make sure your gray thinks fatty did it.” The voice grew louder. “Can you imagine what Horge is going when he finds out?”

Anger tempered her lust. Even though he phrased it as a question, she suspected that he was revealing his plans. Rat did make an offer for her collar which would mean that he would have to cut off her head. She didn't know if it was possible, but it would hurt to find out. He also threatened Ston's life. He was a friend and she couldn't take it.

She still couldn't do anything with the light. With tears of frustration fighting with the burning need between her legs, she knew she had to wait. It just meant that she would kill her kidnapper at the first opportunity instead of letting him rape her to grant her power.

He chuckled. “Yeah… that's what I thought. Just be quiet and still and the fat man lives. You scream once, you cry out, and I dump that bag right out in the sun and jerk off over your smoking corpse.”

Parn would understand if Merrie used her magic. Just this one time.

“You understand, cunt?” He shook the bag.

“Y-Yes,” she whispered.

“One peep and then roasted tit.” He started out of the house, slamming her body against the side of the door as he stepped out into the bright light. A few tiny specks of light got through the canvas to sting her but otherwise the bag held. She could feel the sunlight on the other side, a burning brilliant that would destroy her in seconds if he dumped her out.

She would behave until he made the mistake of leaving her in the darkness. Closing her eyes, she waited.