The Copper Horse #2 Pride (26 page)

“I don’t
know... but John seems to know a lot. I’ll let him choose.” He
looked at John with a broad smile, but it wasn’t met with anything
but indifference.

“Oh, darling,
John’s just a footman. How would he know whether something suited
our tastes?”

“I don’t know,
Master,” Reuben said finally. He just wanted something that would
make him stand out in Erik’s eyes.

Erik sighed,
but eventually he pulled Reuben’s head into his lap and looked at
John. “Go tomorrow, and get him an earring with sapphires and
gold.”

Reuben smiled
and kissed Erik’s crotch through the pants. He loved how his master
always knew what to do.

“Yes sir, thank
you, I will.”

Erik kept
petting Reuben. “Come to me tomorrow at ten, and I will give you
the funds you need.”

“Yes, sir. Is
there anything else I can help with now?” John’s voice seemed that
little bit more uplifted than usual.

“No, John,
you’re dismissed.” Erik lifted Reuben’s face and stroked it with
his knuckles. He always smelled so good, so expensive.

John bowed and
left without another word.

Reuben looked
into his eyes. “Was your brother very angry, Master?”

Erik kissed his
temple. “Couldn’t you tell?” He nudged Reuben aside and got to his
feet.

“Yes, I could
of course, but did you manage to calm him down? Come up with a
plan?” Reuben followed him with his gaze.

Erik scratched
the back of his own head and walked over to his desk. “No. It’s
hard for me to do anything about a man breaking out of Bedlam.”

“I hope it
works out,” Reuben said, as there was nothing else he could do
either.

Erik rummaged
through his drawers, and for once he didn’t look at Reuben. “Me
too.”

“Is it
dangerous for your brother?”

“I don’t
care.”

Reuben paused
for a moment. It was Erik’s brother after all, but then he realized
that he wouldn’t care if his father lived or died either. Maybe
blood wasn’t so important after all. “I understand.”

Erik gave him a
smile. “I asked you about something back in the garden.” He put a
vial of black ink on top of the desk.

“Did you?”

“If you want to
be marked with my name.”

Reuben wasn’t
sure what that would entail, but he smiled. “Yes.”

Erik nodded and
walked back to the sofa with the bottle and a metal apparatus that
resembled a gun. “All right, darling. Sit down.”

Reuben joined
Erik on the sofa, but his heart started rushing. His pulse was
rising with every moment, as he could see that Erik wasn’t
completely confident either. The way his eyes roamed all over
Reuben’s body, missing his face, was very unsettling. “I am going
to tell you what this would involve, and then you
can
tell
me if you don’t want to do this anymore. How does that sound?” Erik
finally looked up and managed to give Reuben a pale smile.

“That sounds...
generous, Master.”

Erik slipped
his hand under the poncho Reuben was still wearing and stroked his
forearm. His face was so calm, so gentle. Reuben would do anything
to make him happy. “First of all, it would be in a hidden place on
your body, one only you and I know.”

Reuben liked
how intimate that was and leaned over to nuzzle Erik’s chest. “That
sounds good.”

“You want to
know where?” Erik tangled his fingers into Reuben’s mane, massaging
his scalp.

“Yes, Master.”
Please don’t let it be on the prick.

“Right...
here.” Erik leaned in and slipped his tongue into Reuben’s
mouth.

Reuben blinked
in surprise. Inside his mouth? Was that even possible?

Erik broke the
kiss and traced Reuben’s upper lip with his thumb. “And it would
hurt a bit.”

Reuben kissed
the tip of his finger and glanced into Erik’s eyes. “I’m not
afraid.”

Something
changed in the way Erik looked at Reuben, but his voice remained as
steady as usual. “I will use ink and a needle.”

A shiver went
down Reuben’s spine at the thought of being marked by Erik forever,
and when Erik left the sofa, Reuben almost followed before he was
stopped with a gesture. “Lie down on your back.”

Reuben smiled
at him. “You need to take off my tail, master.”

The laugh that
left Erik’s lips sounded forced and shaky, and even the light from
the fireplace couldn’t soften the worry on his face. “All right,
show me your rump.”

Reuben turned
around, but he didn’t understand why Erik was so nervous. After the
tail was gone, Erik helped him get comfortable with his neck on the
armrest.

“I will try to
be quick,” Erik assured Reuben, who watched him upside down.

Reuben’s
stomach clenched with anticipation, but most of all, the
realization that he would have Erik’s name carved into his body was
slowly sinking in. Sometimes when he looked at Erik’s elegant form,
his pale blonde hair, even his strange eyes, Reuben wished they
could melt together. Maybe this was a way to do it, since there was
no way for them to have a foal.

Erik’s behavior
was a bit erratic, but he managed to fill the strange pistol with
ink. He sat down on a chair and leaned over Reuben, only to draw
back with a moan. “Aren’t you hot, darling?”

“It is warm in
your office,” Reuben admitted, but his gaze focused on the needle,
sharp and menacing enough to give his stomach cramps.

Erik sighed and
started unbuttoning his shirt. “Do you want to get your poncho
off?”

“That‘s a good
idea.” Reuben looked over the tiny dark moles on Erik’s pale chest.
He was like sweetened cream, but Reuben knew he wouldn’t get a
taste now. Eventually, they were both topless, and Erik bowed over
him with the marking device. He was very careful as he folded
Reuben’s upper lip to have access to its sensitive underside.
Reuben was fascinated by the way Erik’s face became the picture of
focus. He looked just like this when he was working, and Reuben
didn’t dare disturb him.

With the first
pricks of the needle, he understood what level of pain he would
have to deal with, and he tried to relax. His mind drifted off to
ogling Erik’s chest, pink nipples, and slim but tight stomach.
Carnal desires dissolved as the process progressed. His eyes teared
up at the most unexpected moments, but he did his best to stay calm
and immobile so that Erik wouldn’t make a mistake.

There was
something primal about the process, and it made Reuben imagine that
he was now truly becoming Erik’s possession. He knew damn well he
shouldn’t be happy about it. It was slavery after all, but he
couldn’t help the yearning to belong. That longing clung to him
like a shirt soaked in tar, but it was lovely, and warm, and
beautiful.

When Erik put
the pistol away and brushed Reuben’s dried out lip with clean
cotton, Reuben was overwhelmed by the wave of emotion rolling
through him. Erik dropped to his knees by the sofa and gathered him
into his arms without a word.

“I’m yours
now,” Reuben lisped, closing his eyes and falling into the hug. His
heart was beating so fast he was starting to get worried. He’d felt
this way when he was being led into the Pit of the Dead, but the
implications were so different, so much more appealing.

Erik held him
in a steady embrace, smelling Reuben’s skin in complete silence.
Nothing could have ruined the beauty of the moment.

Reuben couldn’t
believe this was happening. His black leather outfit was tighter
than ever before, and he was more aware of every muscle in his
body. The leather smell mixed with the wooden aroma of the
carriage, Erik’s sandy cologne, and Reuben’s own excitement. He had
to be high.

They would be
seeing Percy Preston tonight. This had to be the most fantastic
thing that had ever happened to Reuben. He would not only get to
see Percy Preston perform, but Erik also had gotten him an
extravagant outfit so he could ‘shine like the ruby he was’, as
Erik put it.

His blanket was
made of thick velvet, embroidered with tiny red glass beads at its
high collar, and finished with thick tassels. It was long enough to
cover Reuben’s ass, and as much as he didn’t mind exposing his rear
in pants, tonight was a different story. He wore a tail that
reached inside him through a discreet hole in the outfit. The
penetration was shallow but kept Reuben hyper-aware. Especially
since he was to wear it in public. The front of his mantle was
shorter, ending around his navel, and Reuben couldn’t help but
think that its purpose was to show off his erection.

Every now and
again, Erik reached out to pet him with his bare foot, as Reuben
kneeled in the carriage in front of his master. After almost four
months as Erik’s pet, he’d learned that satisfaction would come
eventually and didn’t rush to spill as fast as possible. The days
of putting himself in danger on the streets just to have a taste of
cock seemed like a lifetime away.

Erik let him
choose the flowers that they would give Mister Preston, but after
being overwhelmed with an intimidating amount of choices, Reuben
decided on roses. White ones, as flawless as Mister Preston’s
skin.

Reuben looked
at his master and rubbed against Erik’s knee with his muzzle.
Tonight was pure ‘horse time’, and Reuben wanted to make Erik proud
of his performance. He had a bit in his mouth, and a thick leather
muzzle covered the whole bottom half of his face. It felt like
being doubly silenced, but Reuben didn’t mind. Tonight he was an
animal, the most pampered pet, and it was his time to be shown off.
All afternoon had been spent getting him ready for the outing:
Jack’s ministrations weren’t good enough anymore, and Erik had
gotten a fancy barber to tend to Reuben’s mane. The man freshly
trimmed the hair on the sides of Reuben’s scalp and arranged the
middle section into a row of ponytails that stuck up from a set of
intricate braids. To top it all off, Erik attached a plume of black
ostrich feathers above Reuben’s forehead. The headpiece made him
seem even taller than he actually was, and with the new sapphire
earring next to his ruby stud, he felt like a work of art. He was
living in Erik’s delusional dream, and he never wanted to wake
up.

When the
carriage eventually stopped, Reuben knew they were at the theater.
His temples began pulsing, but he calmed down as soon as Erik put
his shoes back on and adjusted his own outfit. It was very sleek,
with a tight leather collar that forced his head into an upright
position. Only this time, Erik chose to wear white. Instead of a
full-face cover, he had hidden only his eyes with a simple, yet
elegant mask made with artistically folded leather. Reuben wished
he could hump him and come in the leather pants. Right now.

His eyes
focused on the small window in the carriage door, which was now
obscured by a velvet curtain, but then they heard a knock and Hans
opened the door, flooding the carriage with chaotic noise of many
people talking over an orchestra. Hit by all that clamor, Reuben
felt himself stiffen, but he wouldn’t disobey Erik’s command to
follow him outside.

This was the
first time Reuben wore his hooves during a public outing, and he
was scared that he would bring Erik shame by tripping, so he
focused all of his energy on leaving the carriage with dignity. As
much as he hated Hans’s touch, he appreciated the way the bodyguard
helped him out onto the red carpet. Framed by two shallow troughs
with tiny red fish, the carpet led straight into the mouth of a
monumental edifice, which looked like something only the
Bylondoners could have created.

At the center
was a church built of grey stone, but the original structure
expanded to the sides and up, creating an egg-like shape supported
by numerous buttresses and scaffolds. Reuben’s eyes followed
colorful beams of light thrown on the walls of the theater, and was
amazed by the huge, dark silhouette of a man in a top hat
repeatedly bowing toward the entrance. Its edges weren’t completely
sharp, but the puppeteer was skilled enough to fool Reuben into
thinking that he saw the shadow of a man of flesh and blood.

A loud whinny
made Reuben turn his head only to see a mass of ordinary
Bylondoners trying to get through a metal fence and a group of
armed guards. Many of them seemed drunk. He spotted a kissing
couple, but the crowd was mostly screaming their lungs out and
making obscene gestures. It made his skin crawl to think what would
happen if they got through, but Erik looked as sure of himself as
ever, and he tugged Reuben along into the building.

Reuben held his
head up high, as he had practiced countless times, and with the way
his arms were bound tightly behind his back, he was as straight as
an arrow. He let go of fear or shame, completely focused on being
Copper, a beautiful stallion Erik brought to the theater for his
own pleasure. He towered over all the guests, and he felt a sense
of power, even if he was in fact bound and helpless. Erik was
enough of a shield against any unpleasantness. Or Hans for that
matter. For an event like this, Reuben could imagine Erik had even
more people taking care of his safety in secret.

Reuben was hit
by an intense floral aroma, and he soon realized it was coming from
small pots high upon the walls. The hall they entered indeed had
the structure of a church, with three naves and two rows of booths
on both sides where the choir used to be. It looked more
conventional than the facade, but despite spending so much time in
Erik’s home, the sheer amount of expensive fabrics and polished
metal was staggering.

Small groups of
people in expensive garments drank something from slim glasses and
nibbled on small pieces of food that Reuben couldn’t identify. He
was surprised to see many gentlemen and ladies in garments that
he’d never seen outside of London, which could only mean that
numerous enthusiasts of Percy Preston’s art followed him into the
outer city. He smiled in appreciation as wide as the bit would
allow him and whinnied his happiness.