Chapter 10

10

I t was a full twenty minutes later when Tobias gestured for Nikki to come and fetch Phan. He was raw, still bleeding in a couple of places, and covered in come. Tobias thought Phan could probably have floated all the way to the corner where Nikki would tend to him, he was so relaxed and happy.

"Shall we take a short break?" Tobias asked Bradford, sympathetic to the number of men who were filling the room with heated intensity. "Or shall we carry on?" He'd avoided even looking at Noah until then, needing to focus on the skin he was marking.

Bradford stood. "Why don't we take a short break and allow everyone to get some water and see to their subs. That was a very intense display, hmm? Gentlemen, five minutes, please."

The room erupted in chatter, Doms talking to their subs and to each other, some of them getting water from the table of refreshments in the corner. Bradford left Noah kneeling just as he was and approached Tobias. Noah's eyes were still on Phan where Nikki tended to him.

"Impressive," he said, smiling at Tobias.

Tobias shook his head. "Just technique on a subject who knows exactly what to expect. Impressive will be guiding Noah through a taste of the same."

"Well, then, I look forward to it." Bradford leaned around Tobias and took a look at Nikki and Phan. "Nikki seems intrigued. I promised him we'd talk about it tonight after he's had a chance to digest things. He tends to idolize your boys, so I want to be sure he's making a good decision for himself."

Behind them, men began to take their seats again.

"He's more than welcome to talk to either of them at any point. They'll be honest with him -- Noah, especially." Tobias nodded once, slipping back into his role, though he hadn't entirely left it. "Thank you for having Nikki take care of Phan for me."

"My pleasure. And Nikki's, too, I'm sure." Bradford inclined his head and then headed back toward his seat and Noah.

Tobias looked around the room and silence fell almost instantly. It was rather impressive, and a little alarming. Perhaps he'd better start taking care to keep his notoriety in check a bit more effectively. "Thank you," he said quietly. "I hope that you all learned at least one thing you'd like to try or even merely discuss. And I'm sure Phantom appreciates your kind attention as well."

Again, there were smiles, but the room seemed almost eager to move on.

"Now I'd like to... well. You've all met Noah, I'm sure. Noah hasn't been marked this way before, so we'll just see how this goes, shall we? Sweetheart, come to me, please."

Noah stood up and went right to Tobias, likely not even noticing the supportive hand that Bradford had hovering beneath his elbow in case he was unsteady getting to his feet. Rather than kneeling again, he presented smartly, awaiting instruction.

Tobias put his hand under Noah's chin, cupping his jaw gently. "Are you ready?" he asked softly.

Noah nodded, and Tobias felt him lean slightly into the touch. "I'm ready, sir."

"Okay." Tobias leaned in and kissed his cheek. "Lie down, please. On your stomach. You can turn your head to look away from the others if you want."

"Yes, sir."

Tobias watched Noah move, watched him climb up on the table and lie face down. Noah took a few seconds to get comfortable and then let his arms rest down his sides. Tobias noted that Noah did choose to turn his head away from the watching audience, and his breathing seemed a little quicker than it ought to be, but there was no indication that the boy was about to panic.

"For the first time, we need something special," Tobias said quietly. He kept his voice low and soothing, just as if they were alone at home in the stables. It was a scene like any other, and the people in the room were filtered out like so much distracting white noise. Noah was all that mattered. "A quill would scratch like a cat. I'm going to use a blade on you, pet. It will be smooth, cold, and then warm. I won't tear your skin, and I won't go deep enough to scar. Not this time. Do you understand?"

"I understand, sir. Thank you, sir." Noah took a deep breath, and Tobias could tell he was working to stay in his headspace and to stay calm.

Tobias glanced to the corner to make sure Phantom was all right with Nikki, then he selected a new scalpel from his case. "Soon, Noah." He stayed where he was beside Noah and stroked one hand down Noah's back. "Not until you're calm. I'm right here. You're safe, pet. I won't ever damage you."

Eyes closed, Noah seemed to be concentrating hard. "I know, sir. I trust you, Master. I want to please you." Tobias knew that his boy's words were said as much for Noah's own benefit as Tobias', and they seemed to do the trick. Noah's breathing settled out and his shoulders visibly relaxed.

"That's it," Tobias whispered, petting him again. "Good boy. That's it." He rubbed his hand along Noah's shoulders from left to right, feeling the smoothness of his skin. "Just a little today. Just to mark you as mine; so you'll feel how proud I am." He touched the spot on the nearest shoulder blade where he was going to make his initials, then swabbed it with an alcohol pad. "Good boy, Noah."

Slowly, carefully, Tobias began to work. He listened only to Noah's breathing and felt only Noah's body under his hand as he rested the scalpel and watched the skin part under it. His blades were sharp; sharp enough for fine curves, though he wouldn't do any on Noah's back.

Not this time.

The down stroke of the T was done before the blood had even risen to the surface at the top of it. "Good," Tobias murmured again.

The only sound Tobias heard from Noah as he moved the blade was a soft hiss, and he noticed, with quick glance at the boy's face, that Noah's brow was creased. Otherwise, Noah was perfectly still.

His skin slowly beaded red where Tobias had made the cuts, and the flat area around Tobias' fingers felt warm and a little damp with sweat. "Thank you, sir," Noah replied steadily.

"You're welcome." Tobias examined the completed T critically and moved on to the V. "It won't even itch tomorrow." He etched the V into Noah's shoulder and watched it turn red. "Would you like more?"

Noah opened his eyes and blinked a few times. He was wearing that floaty expression that Tobias had seen many times before. "I'm fine, sir. If you'd like to do more, I... would like to try."

Tobias smiled and started cutting again, drawing a very small border around each initial, making them more than just thin lines. He added depth using straight lines and paid close attention to Noah's breathing and his temperature; endorphins could have him asking for more than his body was actually capable of, but they weren't really in danger of that. Often it would take an hour or more in a tattoo artist's chair to get to that point.

The real goal was to do only so much as the blade would allow, and to give Noah a taste. There was a real fear of knives in his boy, Tobias knew, and he had to approach that very carefully.

Finishing the last line, Tobias reached for another cotton pad and the sterile water. "Shhh. Cold now." He pressed the wet cotton to Noah's shoulder and glanced at Bradford, hoping that was enough of a signal that they needed a few minutes.

Bradford nodded once and stood, taking his cue. Years of friendship and shared interests had made them able to read each other well, and Tobias was particularly grateful for that right now.

"Gentlemen," he said smoothly. "It's time for another short break, let's say fifteen minutes? Feel free to leave the room and help yourselves to refreshments. Tobias will open the floor to questions shortly."

Bradford gave Tobias another nod as everyone began milling around again, and went to check on Nikki and Phan.

Under his fingers, Tobias could feel Noah's increased heart rate. He watched Noah closely as his boy took several deep breaths. "Very cold, sir," was all Noah said, and the emotion in his boy's voice seemed complicated and difficult to read.

"It'll warm." Tobias spoke soft and touched Noah's hair. He lifted the compress and changed it for a fresh one, taking away the worst of the blood. "How do you feel?"

Noah roused a little more, moving his shoulder slightly under the compress. "Strange, sir. Floaty, which is good I guess, and something else that's hard to describe. Relieved, but still... a little nervous. I feel like I need to see it. I'd really like to see, sir."

"Well, let's see if we can do that." Tobias left the compress on him and reached for his phone. "This'll have to do, sweetheart, until we can look at the recording." He lifted the cotton pad and took a photo, then passed the phone to Noah. "See? Small and innocuous."

Noah held the phone and looked at it for a long time before saying anything. He ran his thumb over the picture as if he could touch Tobias' handiwork. "Wow," he breathed. "It felt like so much more than that. Bigger. It's... neat." He smiled and handed the phone back to Tobias. "Thank you, sir."

"You're welcome, sweetheart." Tobias leaned down and kissed him gently. "I'm very proud of you. Are you ready to sit up?"

"I think so, sir." Noah let Tobias help him roll over and sit up, and while he seemed fine, Tobias allowed Noah to lean on him for a moment of comfort. Bradford joined them.

"I've checked on Phan. He's on cloud nine over there, as you might imagine. Nikki's got him all fixed up."

"Thank you, Bradford. We really appreciate it." Tobias petted Noah's hair and smiled at him. "Good boy. In a moment or two, I want you to go and curl up with Phan. I need to answer some questions, but I'll be right here, and then the three of us can go home for the evening."

Tobias felt Noah nod against his chest, and then the boy straightened up. "Yes, sir." Noah slid off the table to his feet and looked over at Phan before slowly moving away from Tobias. Slow, yes, but steady.

"That seemed to go well," Bradford offered.

"Did it?" Tobias smiled a little ruefully. "I admit I wasn't paying attention to anyone but Noah after he got up here. Did I bore anyone?"

Bradford snorted and shook his head. "Bore? You've got to be joking. Could hear a pin drop in here. No one moved. Everyone went on that journey with you, trust me."

Tobias looked over to watch Phan gather Noah up and start whispering to him. "That's good to know. I suppose we should give them all a chance to grill me, yes?"

"We should," Bradford said, waving for Nikki to join him. "Even I have a question or two. Brace yourself." Bradford winked at Tobias before calling the room to order. "Gentlemen, shall we finish up with your questions?"