Chapter 2: The Blacksmith
Calliope woke, her hand buried between her thighs as she writhed on the bed. Her body was flushed with desire, and she was panting, her fingers rocking over her clit before she fully became aware of her surroundings.
With a startled squeak she sat up, her nightgown falling back around her thighs when she pulled her hand free of her body. Slick pooled from her center and Calliope shifted, uncomfortable that she'd just been unconscious and touching herself. Had she no shame?
Her hair was stuck to the nape of her neck as she attempted to regulate her breathing and her fingers were sticky with her budding arousal. Even her nipples were sore, feeling as if they'd been pinched and tortured. Calliope blushed. That was exactly what she'd been feeling only moments before she'd woken up.
Calliope had been dreaming of him. The Bargainer. Dreaming that it was his hands tracing over her body, exploring her effortlessly while she moaned for him. Dreaming that it was his fingers that entered her, over and over until she'd been sick with want, flames of her desire stoking so high that Calliope couldn't see past the passion growing inside her.
In her dream he had ravished her virgin body, biting and sucking her breasts, pinching and pulling her nipples until the stiff peaks had been a deep shade of red. She had been so tender and achy, on the verge of the most intense pleasure she'd ever experienced. And then he'd settled between her legs, burying his face at the apex of her thighs and... Her legs snapped shut, the pressure doing little to decrease her desire.
Calliope could still feel his brazen tongue, sweeping through her slit and scooping her juices into his mouth. His eyes had been dark with desire and he had licked her again, finding her sensitive bundle of nerves and sucking hard enough that her back had bowed off the bed. She'd screamed his name, but now that she was awake she couldn't recall it, she simply new him by his trade.
Calliope shook, her thighs coated in arousal. She had wanted him more than she had ever wanted anything and for a few precious moments, Calliope had been his.
It was just a dream.
How could she dream of such a man? He'd been so real in her dream, but now that she was awake, Calliope couldn't remember any distinguishing features about the Bargainer. He was a blur in her mind, though she distinctly recalled hair as black as the night spilling across her creamy flesh. Eyes of a vivid gray staring into her very soul. Marking her. Owning her.
It felt so real.
Her legs were shaky as she eventually stood from the bed, creeping toward her mother's side of the room once she'd calmed down. Pulling back the curtain dividing them, Calliope nearly fell to her knees in relief.
Her mother looked fabulous. Her breathing was nice and even, her skin was restored to its natural color and the weight she'd lost was back on her bones, filling out her nightgown.
The potion Calliope had given her mother the night before had worked. Her mother was going to recover. She stood there, watching the steady rise and fall of her mother's chest as she slept, almost unbelieving that such a miracle had taken place. Calliope could have wept with joy.
Instead, she dressed quickly before she lost her nerve, leaving a brief note for her mother to explain her absence before Calliope fled their cottage. Anticipation dogged her heels as she retraced her steps from the night before, making her way from the village and toward the entrance of the thick woods.
A small buzz of excitement filled her as she passed various people beginning their morning. Calliope smiled politely, though many of the villagers barely met her gaze. She didn't care in the slightest. Not today. Her mother was well, and Calliope intended to fulfill her part of the bargain, though she was unsure how the Bargainer would know when she became pregnant.
Did having sex with a Fae once guarantee pregnancy? A ball of desire knotted low in her stomach as another question entered her mind. What if the Fae mated entirely like humans? Sometimes it took months for new wives to become pregnant. Did that mean she would mate with him however many times it took until his seed took root?
She didn't believe she would be opposed to the latter option at all. The thought made her skin heat and her breath catch as she continued walking to the edge of town.
Her village was quaint, with less than three hundred people, including children, that Calliope had grown up around. Some individuals she knew better than others, though her only true friend had been married off last year and had gone to live on the far side of the country.
Sometimes Calliope wished she could disappear from her own life and begin anew elsewhere, just as Penelope had. She wouldn't be the poor, unfortunate girl created from rape. She wouldn't be known as the cursed young woman that wasn't considered a suitable match because she was an unwanted bastard.
Horses tied to posts outside the small tavern shifted toward her as she passed by. Calliope gave them a quick pat, feeling a bit sad that she didn't stop to give them more affection. But she was on a mission and she would not be dissuaded.
"Calliope!" Thomas, one of the blacksmith apprentices, called her name as she stepped into the town center. The sound was distant and unwelcome, but not only because it drew several gazes in her direction. Some of the looks were downright judgmental, most likely due to the man attempting to gain her attention.
Calliope did not wish to entertain Thomas or his advances, having heard in detail the kind of man he was. She stiffened but refused to stop, the pulse of her anxiety encouraging her to find the Bargainer. To seal her fate and give him the child he sought instead of dallying with the village pervert.
After the way she'd woken just that morning, Calliope didn't have the strength to deal with anyone else but the Fae she'd met the night before, even if she'd wanted to.
Calliope had only traveled a few feet into the dense wood before Thomas called her name again. He was closer, his heavy footfalls echoing behind her as she picked up her pace.
"You shouldn't wander around alone," Thomas stated, eating up the distance between them until he was at her side. He was several inches taller than her and muscular from years of hard labor. A leather apron was strung along his body, partially concealing the greasy long-sleeved tunic and black breeches that covered his frame.
He was rather handsome, with a strong jaw and blonde hair tied back in a low ponytail, but Calliope had always felt his eyes were too cold and assessing, especially when he leered at young women like they were nothing more than objects to be used.
"I do not need a chaperone," Calliope stated. She certainly didn't need Thomas escorting her anywhere given his reputation of taking advantage of several young women in the village. The men in town lauded him as some type of rake, but the women thought less highly of him. Thomas seemed to be as much a predator as the wolves she'd heard in the woods the night before, only in a much different sense.
"You know how it looks when a young woman ventures from the village without a chaperone. You may be twenty but you're unmarried." Thomas grabbed her arm, the warmth of his palm nearly singeing her skin through her cheap, worn cloak. Calliope shied away from the touch, pulling on her arm in the hopes he would release her and leave her alone. Thomas did neither, though his eyes narrowed in warning despite the relaxed grin that spread across his face.
"I am only gathering herbs for mother's broth," Calliope lied, giving him the same excuse she'd left on the note in her cottage. "You know she's been unwell." And Calliope doubted very much that Thomas was worried about her reputation as a woman.
Calliope stopped walking when his fingers pressed harder, pinching her arm. She stared down at the hand holding her hostage, noting how pale his dirty knuckles looked as his grip firmed.
"Thomas, let go."
Thomas's grip tightened to the point of pain, and he leaned in, invading her personal space.
"I would very much like to escort you today, Calliope." Thomas's free hand skimmed over her cheek and instead of feeling anticipation burn in her core as she had last night, Calliope found herself sickened by his proximity. Whatever excitement she'd been feeling about meeting the Bargainer died and a prickle of fear skated up her spine. "A woman like you needs a man like me to stay close to her, otherwise all manner of unpleasantness could occur."
"The only thing unpleasant occuring is your presence." Calliope whimpered when Thomas's fingers pinched her face, an ache forming.
"Watch your words when you speak to me, wench. You might be a beauty but I'll show you your place if you dare talk down to me again." Thomas shoved her head back slightly, a darkness shining in his eyes that frightened her more than anything had before.
"Thomas, you're hurting me," Calliope hissed, pulling on her arm in the hopes of freeing herself. She didn't want to think about his words, feeling more threatened with a boy she'd grown up with than the Fae she'd met last night.
Just then Thomas's name was called loudly by his mentor, and he broke away from Calliope. Thomas stepped a good distance back, staring at her as if she were a bug beneath his boot. It was enough to make her shiver. The blacksmith called for Thomas again, his brash voice saving Calliope from a dire situation.
"Our conversation isn't over, Calliope. One day soon you'll realize how much you need me."
"I find that doubtful," Calliope bit out, her eyes widening when she realized what she'd said. Provoking Thomas was a terrible idea, especially as he just showed he had no qualms with putting his hands on her. His jaw clenched and he took a menacing step toward her before pausing, his brow furrowing.
Thomas cast a look toward the woods, his head tilting as if he'd caught sight of something he couldn't quite make sense of. Calliope followed his gaze, but she didn't see anything. Only trees that shifted from the harsh wind. He jerked his head back in her direction, his expression unreadable, but his eyes were wide with panic.
Clearing his throat, Thomas backed away from her, turning and rushing toward the shack he worked from in the center of the village. She watched him leave, her body stiff from nerves and the chill in the air.
Clouds hung overhead, blocking the sun and casting the morning in a muted light. It felt eerie, standing alone just on the outskirts of the wood, listening to ice breaking on the limbs of the trees that swayed. But wasn't she always on the outskirts no matter where she went? Calliope didn't belong anywhere, least of all in the village she called her home.
Calliope looked back toward the wood, hesitant to step past the tree line as she recalled the confusion and panic stamped on Thomas's face.
Had Thomas been trying to scare her? What had he seen?
In the end it didn't matter. Calliope was more than ready to find the Bargainer. Ready to see him. To complete her end of their deal. Her heart fluttered in renewed anticipation and her core ached with need.
She stepped into the woods and she didn't look back.
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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stone