“Wine?” the Darleshan ambassador found himself echoing stupidly.
 
“Yes, wine.” Lord Bereshti remained seated in his chair and gestured with his free hand; the ambassador could not take his eyes from what the man was doing with his not-free hand, and so could only assume there was wine to be had in that direction. “A pleasant, [...]

“Silvian, my marvelous little plaything.” Bereshti licked at the sole of his concubine’s foot, savoring the sweet salty flavor. “Whatever should I do without you.”

With an impudent look over his shoulder–one that never failed to inflame Bereshti’s lusts higher–Silvian tossed his hair and said, “Earn less for your silk trade, my lord. Or get Avir [...]

Still gnawing his peach, Silvian arrived at the zenanem, wondering if Van and Avir would be copulating in his absence. If they were he wasn’t joining them, not tonight. He wanted a bath and dinner and nothing more strenuous.

Well. Maybe a bit of self-pleasure wouldn’t be unwelcome. After the bath. Or during.

His daily glass of [...]

Van needed no other urging; he rose, holding Avir’s wrists separately in each of his hands, and transferred them to Silvian’s, so Silvian could pin them at the small of Avir’s back.

Settling between Avir’s spread legs, Van pushed his index finger right into the ripe red of Avir’s ass with an appreciative noise. Avir’s response [...]

Tears.

Gods be cursed, this was all he needed.

Silvian almost hadn’t recognized it for tears, at first–the youth lying upon the common area’s central divan, face turned away and pressed into his shoulder, had looked only unnaturally frozen at first glance, no evidence of movement or breathing, as if he were stone someone had set there.

And [...]

“Comfy?”

They’d left him on the divan, not under it. Which should have told the new concubine something, but, green as he was, Silvian didn’t think he’d appreciate it. He would. Soon.

Now that he did have the upper hand, in a way that even this fool couldn’t miss, Silvian had the luxury to observe Jovari with [...]

Two fingers. Three. Whatever Jovari’s trainers had missed, they hadn’t neglected the basics.

Jovari gasped as Silvian twisted the three fingers. Well. Still underserved, if not quite as badly as he’d feared.

“Don’t tense like that,” Silvian said, trying not to make it a mutter. “If I’m hurting you, tell yourself to go limp instead.”

“Though you can [...]

Avir’s hand had reached down to thread through Jovari’s copper locks, hold him in place as Jovari’s mouth enveloped Avir’s prick all the way to the base in what looked like a plan to stay there and suck until Avir came. Avir didn’t appear unhappy about it, so Silvian watched, watched as Avir, anything but [...]

Silvian was in the web.
 
He rather liked the web. He enjoyed giving up control for a time, enjoyed the idea that Bereshti cared enough to display him in it.
 
He preferred it when Van was the one Bereshti chose to thread him into it. Avir always secured the knot at the scrotum’s base cruelly tight. It [...]

“How may I serve you, my lord?”
 
No tremors betrayed Jovari’s words; there was a quiet husk touching the sentence but that could have been credited to art, rather than nervousness. And his form so far had displayed nothing to criticize. He’d sunk to his knees and kissed the toe of his master’s slippered foot with [...]

Silvian stood, moved around the bed. Now Jovari had two sets of eyes scrutinizing him. Silvian knew well that a stare could be more difficult to endure than a touch, when one was expected to be still.
 
Lying in the center of the bed, Jovari was more at attention than relaxed, arms and legs spread as [...]

 
Except it wasn’t.
 
Pain bloomed on Silvian’s thigh; Avir had pinched him. The little shit liked to pretend he was choosing not to whisper, but they wouldn’t be overheard from here, not if they were reasonably quiet. Avir just liked the excuse.
 
Well, he wasn’t moving. Avir could wait his festering turn. Silvian kept his eye fixed [...]

“He’s not going to last,” said Avir.
 
Van was feeding Zilphi seeds on his palm and didn’t bother to look at Avir. “Probably not. I wouldn’t bet you.” The parakeet sat upon Van’s fingers, quirking its head this way and that, looking for more. It said nothing; it never had.
 
Silvian rose, turning an irritated back on [...]

Lovely, splendid thandrice tree. Silvian had always thought so. So useful.
 
Van hadn’t strayed from his theme of tying Jovari up. Not that Silvian had any objection. All of them were skilled at securing a body into any position desired, without leaving chafe marks on any limb and knowing where bone-ends required padding upon firmer surfaces. [...]

“Eat,” said Millamir, setting a small custard in front of him. “You’re getting thin.”
That couldn’t be true. Bedroom skills alone kept him in fighting trim; there couldn’t have been any change to be seen. Even if he hadn’t been as interested in sweets for a few days.
“You haven’t come to filch treats from me for [...]

Immersed in the bath to his chin, Silvian knew just how poorly he was hiding his feelings when Avir came from the common space, sat himself cross-legged at the edge of the marble behind the sunken bath and began to braid Silvian’s hair without a word. Just as significantly, Silvian let him, without a word. [...]

He hadn’t expected Jovari’s reaction. Silvian had thought Jovari might try to strong-arm him away, or sneer. Accuse Silvian of taking advantage of him one time too many on the pretense of training him. Which he never had said, to date, but that meant it was overdue.
 
He hadn’t expected the anger to flee, hadn’t expected [...]

“Honey drops, lovely one?”
 
Silvian shook his head reflexively, not even looking at the merchant. On another day the sweetseller’s display would have been his favorite stall at the market. He thought he even remembered the merchant’s name: Udaleth, something like that.
 
Fylor was by Silvian’s side, one respectful step behind where a proper escort should be [...]

The wine was of an excellent vintage. Bereshti drank more deeply from his goblet, let the hint of sweetness linger upon his tongue in sober appreciation before swallowing. Arbeth had done well to suggest purchasing the lot; the harvest in Yostamath had been sparse that year, but early frosts often made the best wines.
Today his [...]

“He won’t be the only one working you hard, infant,” Van grinned. “If you think you’ll escape our wrath for pushing yourself into position over us, think again.”
“I’d like to see you try,” Silvian said, knowing full well he’d let them, at least part of the time. Better to keep everyone happy. “You can stop [...]

Epilogue:
Another year, another trip to the cesspit that was Anqeret. The Darleshan ambassador had, perversely, been looking forward to this. A lesser man, he knew, could not have risen to a second visit. A lesser man could not have mustered his dignity and ignored the humiliation, the injustices visited upon him the previous year.
Injustices they [...]