"Irina? Are you awake?" She craned her head, and looked back at the queen who was holding a small bowl in her hand.

"It's a paste. I asked Madame Lillian to prepare it for you. It will soothe down the swelling and burning pain." Averinka coated her fingers with the green paste and lifted them up, silently asking Irina if 'this was alright?' and the girl nodded, pressing her cheek back into the pillow as Averinka's fingers touched her back again, applying paste on her welts and torn skin. 

A shiver ran down Irina's spine, as Averinka's fingers brushed against her sensitive spot near her lower back. She shuddered against the touch of her cold hand against her burning skin, and pressed herself further into the bed. 

"Aah! She slapped hand on her mouth, but it was too late. Averinka stopped in her movement and a silence fell in the room.

"I-It w-was a sore spot." She managed to speak between her frantic breaths, and raised herself to avoid friction between her sore breasts and sheets. "T-The pressure caught me off guard." Irina hoped that other woman could believe her like and let it pass, instead of saying anything.

"Here?" Averinka asked pressing her digits into her tailbone, and Irina arched her back letting out a throaty groan.

"D-Don't touch there...." Irina stammered, as another moan curled into the base of her throat and she hid her face in panic.

"Why?" Irina didn't answer fisting her hands into the pillow.

"If it's a sore spot, then paste will help." There's something in Averinka's voice, husky and low and Irina shuddered again when the queen brushed her fingers alongside her ribs before closing her arm around the girl's waist and pulled her up in her lap.

"M-Master..." She gasped as Averinka's brushed her hair aside from back and kissed between her shoulder blade. 

"There's no one in the world whom I trust the most with my life." Averinka's grip around the girl's waist tightened and then murmured into juncture of her shoulder, "Don't forget that."

Irina's breath shortened when Averinka lowered her hand to her thigh, and gave it a light squeeze before brushing her thumb against her skin.

"Are these sore too?" The queen asked.

"M-Master...please don't!" She spoke between her panting gasps, and squeezed her thighs together aware of the ache between her legs as she supported herself on her arms.

"No." Averinka spoke sternly.

"Please, master..."

"No!"

"Ava..." and then the hand was gone and she fretted the silence. She peered up from her curled position on the bed, propped herself on her arms and then looked back at the queen who was sitting still in surprise.

"What did you call me?"

"I-I am sorry master." She stammered in fear that she had upset the woman again. It was the least she could do for her, given the fact she was her master and had a right on her because of the blood bond.

"No, what did you call me?" The queen asked again, in her breathless voice and Irina sat up, back turned towards the queen, and answered hesitantly.

"A-Ava..." Her shoulder's tensed when there's no answer from the other woman, curled her hands into fists on her thighs waiting for her punishment, when a hand touched her shoulder and she looked over her shoulder towards the queen in surprise.

"Turn around." Irina turned around at her master's command, and looked at the Queen's face. The last flames from the waxing candles died down in the room, they sat in silence in the bluish silver glow of moonlight that was seeping in through the glass of closed windows at the balcony. Averinka noticed the pale skin of the girl in the moonlight, hallowing juncture of her shoulders and neck, curves of her waist and bend of her thighs. Her long hair looked blacker in the silver light, irises blown red in hunger and desire, and her eyes fell on her faint pale mouth urging to be kissed. She slid her hand down her throat, rubbing at her neck and gave it a light squeeze making the girl to close her eyes.

She held so much power over the girl, as she slid her hand down Irina's throat, and the girl shuddered when she rubbed her neck with her palm before giving it a light squeeze and in that moment, she realized that the girl held so much power over her that she could not deny her anything if she had asked her to.

"Feed." She said noticing how Irina's eyes darkened at her words and Irina scooted closer, coming breath to breath with Averinka and lifted her hands to undo the front knots of the Queen's white night dress. She lowered the Queen's dress off her shoulders and pushed it further down revealing swell of her breasts letting the dress pool around her waist.

"What..." Averinka stared at the girl in confusion who leaned forward, letting their bare torsos coming in contact with each other.

"You asked me to feed..."

"So,  I am feeding." She leaned forward to close her mouth around the pulse point, and sucked on the spot biting down onto her skin and trailed her wet tongue down her collarbone to her breast and closed her mouth around it, before pulling back to see the pure raw look on the Queen's face, who was biting into her fist. Irina trailed kisses around her chest, between her breastbone before cradling her left side of the breast and sank her fangs into the supple flesh drinking blood from her which elicited a shameful moan from the queen. 

The throbbing pain in her breast and pleasure was too much for her. Irina unlatched her red mouth, licking her blood dripping lips and pinned Averinka down on the bed by her wrists and climbed into her lap looking down at the flushed face and heaving chest of the queen. Her black hair fell around them curtaining their faces; dark red eyes stared down at her flushed form, and Irina nudged her legs open with her knee and slipped between them. She sank her teeth into her neck and suck on the blood. Averinka moaned louder, withering in pleasure under Irina's body. Irina pulled back hovering above the other woman's mouth. She slid her nose against hers, loosening her grip on Averinka's wrists before sealing their mouths in a kiss.

Suddenly, everything seemed to stop. The kiss was languid and slow that cooled the blood in Irina's veins, as if she's doused in water after a scorching heat of sun. The queen angled her face, and kissed her back.

It shouldn't have happened between them.

But then it did.