The Masters of Falcon's Fantasies [BDSM Menage Fantasies 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (26 page)

After what seemed an eternity, Decker stroked her hair and whispered to her. “Are you still in there?”

She mumbled an answer, lifting her head and forcing her eyes open. Both men were standing next to her, smiling proudly, as if they’d just completed a work of art.

Finn held out a hand to help her to her feet. When she moved, she became aware that things weren’t the same with her body. There was a rustling sound and a movement around her arms that wasn’t normal.

She looked down to see brown, gray
,
and black feathers sticking out along her arms from shoulder to elbow. She craned her neck to see that there were more on her back and legs. There even seemed to be some on her ass, sticking up like tail
feathers. They weren’t placed haphazardly, she noted, but instead flowed along the lines of her body as if she’d had them all along.

“Am I—a bird?” she asked groggily, trying to determine if this new situation was painful or erotic. Erotic, she decided, catching a glimpse of herself in a full-length mirror against the wall. Definitely erotic.

“Not yet.” Decker was opening a few small jars on the table. He handed Finn a brush and said, “You do the gray paint and I’ll do the brown. I’ll leave my sketches here so you can see what I had in mind. We only have about twenty minutes.”

They went to work, painting her front, legs
,
and back in wavy lines that suggested feathers and markings. She watched in wonder, flexing her shoulder blades, experimenting with the way it felt when the feathers moved. Every movement shifted the needles in her skin ever so slightly, but surprisingly it didn’t hurt. Instead there was a tidal wave of endorphins, especially when Decker would reach up and run a hand down the row of feathers attached to her arms. It was heavenly.

“Oh, I really like that.”

When they were done with their painting, Daphne had to admit the effect was striking. Decker took a couple of quick pictures, even though he said cameras were not usually allowed in the club for privacy purposes.

“Wait here for us for a minute, babe,” Decker said, opening the door and motioning for Finn to follow him. Daphne went to the mirror and twisted this way and that, admiring the way they’d painted her and the bizarrely beautiful wings they’d given her. The long feathers ran along her upper arms, over her shoulder blades, across her upper chest
,
and halfway down her back. Even longer ones rose from her ass and floated behind her when she turned. Every time she moved, the motion nudged her needles, sending delicious little ripples of endorphins through her system. She was still wearing high heels, and she practiced a few dance steps, testing the effect of the endorphins on her balance. Fortunately the dancing was such an integral part of her that it didn’t seem to be affected by the rush. The feathers were completely different than any other costume she’d ever worn, though, and she found herself thinking of the concert possibilities.

Then the door opened and Finn beckoned to her. She followed him silently to the side curtain where Decker was standing, and they joined him to watch what was happening on stage. Dave stood in the middle of the spotlight wearing a safari outfit, of all things. His boys were in full puppy gear, but had long fluffy things tied around their heads and long lion tails sticking out behind them. They circled Dave, growling menacingly, and he cracked a single tail in the air, simultaneously keeping them at bay and herding them so that they stayed together.

Daphne felt her eyes grow wide as she watched. Their costumes were ludicrous
,
and there was a definite comedic element to their act, but at the same time it was dramatic and exciting. The single tail was undoubtedly dangerous, but Dave threw it with an expertise that made her skin tingle even more than it was already.

He shouted something and the whip cracked louder than before, and the boys let out a simultaneous howl, turning and running to one side. One lion—she couldn’t think of him as Chuck the policeman, even though she was pretty sure it was—hopped up on a small stool and pawed toward his
M
aster.

The other batted an exercise ball into the middle of the stage and made a running jump onto it. It looked for a moment like he might be successful, and the audience began clapping. But then he overbalanced and went down face
-
first on the other side and the applause turned to gasps and groaning. Daphne almost raced out to see if he was hurt, but a hand reached out to steady her
,
and she heard Decker’s voice saying, “He’s okay. It’s mostly for show.”

The audience was clapping hysterically as the puppy/lion—Tony, was it?—got back to his hands and knees and shook his mane as if trying to clear his head. Dave cracked his whip, shouting “Up!” and Tony turned slowly to give him a reproachful look. You could almost hear him say, “Give me a fucking minute, would you? I just landed on my face!”

The audience roared with laughter as he turned back toward the ball and regarded it in silence for a moment. Then he took a more cautious approach, putting first one paw then the other on the top and rolling it from side to side, testing. The crowd giggled as he lifted one knee, his hands sliding down the sides of the ball until he was hugging it. He pushed off with his other foot, catching himself with his hand as the ball rolled forward, and he balanced, straddling it and making urgent little howling noises.

He stayed like that for a minute, letting the audience get the full comic effect of his position. Then he suddenly pulled himself up somehow and was perfectly balanced on the top, shaking a little as he kept the ball from rolling too far to one side or another.

The whole room burst out in applause
,
and Tony accepted it, lifting first one leg then the other then his arms in turn, looking at the room then at Dave. His face was hidden by the dog mask, but his triumph was visible nonetheless. Then suddenly Chuck let out a half bark, half growl and came down off his stool, raced across the stage
,
and flung himself full-force into Tony’s ball. They both went down in a heap
,
and the ball flew off into the audience.

The boys rolled around on the floor, growling ferociously, and Daphne’s breath caught. It was almost like a real dogfight. She shrank back involuntarily
, her feathers brushing
against Finn
.
He
gingerly put an arm around her and said, “Easy, Daph. Are you okay?”

Then there was a thunderous crack of the whip, making everyone in the room jump, and the boys were up, playing instead of fighting, and frisking around Dave. He cracked the whip in the air, far above their heads, and the boys faced each other on the stage, lifting up onto their back legs, one paw on the other’s shoulder and waving at the crowd with their free hands.

The audience cheered, whistled
,
and catcalled until Dave took his bow and ushered the puppies offstage.

In the drama of the puppy/lion scene, Daphne had almost forgotten that she was going on next. She was startled when the emcee came back onstage and smiled in their direction.

“Wasn’t that exciting! Thank you, Daddy Dave. Let’s give them all a big round of applause.” When the noise died down, he continued. “Now our last competitor is a blast from the past. Welcome back, Master Decker! It has been a few years
,
and some of you may not know Master Decker, but he used to visit pretty regularly. It’s great to see you again.”

Decker stepped out into the spotlight to acknowledge his introduction. He and the announcer made small talk while Daphne’s heart sped up and sweat popped out on her forehead. She was amazed at how smoothly he bantered with the emcee while she, the experienced performer, had a serious case of the nerves. It felt like the first time she’d gone out in front of an audience—when had that been, like third grade? She turned to Finn in a panic. “What are we doing?” she hissed.

He smiled and patted her hip, carefully avoiding the feathers that seemed to be shaking now. “Don’t worry. You’ll be great. Just let the endorphins take over and follow your gut. I’ve never known your instincts to let you down.”

Daphne turned back to the stage with the impulse of rushing out and pleading with Decker to stop whatever was happening. She had no idea why she was so terrified. True, usually she had her whole show planned out in advance. It couldn’t have been that she was almost naked in a roomful of strangers. Nudity didn’t bother her, and besides, the paint covered her up pretty effectively.

Then the emcee was saying, “So, what are you going to do for us tonight? Do you need to introduce any partners?”

Decker smiled at him and took the microphone out of his hand. “Thanks, Phoenix. As for my introduction, can I have the lights turned off except for a single spot?”

The lights dropped
,
and Finn took Daphne’s hand, leading her forward until she guessed they were at the center of the stage.

Finn gave her a final pat and vanished as Decker’s voice said, “Tonight you are in for a very special treat, my friends. As Phoenix mentioned, I am Master Decker. My partners in crime this evening are Sir Finn and our girl falcon.”

Daphne stared at him in his spotlight, wondering who “falcon” was and what she was supposed to do with her. Then Decker disappeared
,
and the room was pitch black for a moment. All thought shut off in Daphne’s mind as the spotlight came back on, centered perfectly on her. In a second, her panic fled and adrenaline kicked into her system, just like the moment at her concerts where she and the audience faced each other for the first time. She still had no idea what was happening, but instinctively her body shifted until one feathered arm covered her breasts and the other stretched out in a dramatic pose. Suddenly music was playing, and her head turned toward it in recognition. It was her new song, the one that had been giving her so much trouble. Panic coursed through her again.
I’m not ready to perform that!
It’s nowhere near finished or polished!

From the darkness Decker’s voice floated out to her. “Fly, falcon
,
and show our friends what a beautiful songbird you are.”

The movement of her head caused a fresh wave of endorphins to flood her system, and suddenly Daphne felt herself turning into a bird. It wasn’t like a drug trip or like the rush of a concert stage. It was, as Finn had suggested, her subconscious taking over. The ending notes of the introduction faded
,
and her mouth opened, although she couldn’t consciously remember the words that should be coming.

But then she was flying. It was as if part of herself had risen out of her body and was watching from above and to the left. Beautiful words that she didn’t remember writing or even thinking flowed out of her mouth
,
and her body responded by floating above the stage in a dance that had never been choreographed or even discussed by her and Finn.

It was the most beautiful experience of her life. The feathers lining her arms and chest seemed to be carrying her into another plane of consciousness, as if she was truly flying above the earth, above the ocean, on the wings of love and desire and the pure joy of being alive. Her legs moved by themselves, seemingly without any direction from her. She watched herself dance as if it was someone else, her movements exquisitely timed and beautifully graceful.

Time became blurred
,
and she wasn’t sure if it took forever or only a moment. There was a very small part of her mind that was frantically trying to memorize both the words she was singing and the dance so that she could write it all down later. But this experience was so much more than a performance. It was a declaration of her true self. She seemed to be breaking through all of the boundaries and limitations she’d ever put on herself. She knew that she didn’t need Blaze’s approval, or Allie’s, or even Finn’s or Decker’s. She was a falcon soaring into the wind
,
and she could do anything.

The last notes played, and regretfully the dance came to an end as well. Daphne slumped gracefully to the stage, wrapped up in herself, feathered arms covering her face. It wasn’t exactly a tragic ending, but it acknowledged that she was spent, that her performance, exhilarating as it had been, could not last forever. She became gradually aware of Finn and Decker at the side of the stage and the audience held in a state of suspended animation. No one moved for three or four seconds, being frozen with her in the bittersweet ending of her triumphant flight.

Then the audience exploded into applause louder than any had ever seemed to her before
,
and Finn and Decker were both there, helping her to her feet and hugging her. There were actual tears in Finn’s eyes
,
and he seemed to be shouting something, although everything was blurred together and coming in slowly, like an old television set. It took a minute for Daphne’s senses to return enough to hear that he was saying, “Genius! I’ve never heard anything so beautiful! This is going to be your masterpiece, Daph!”

Decker smiled at her. “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful, either. And I think the audience agrees.”

Daphne shook her head to clear it. “I should write that down,” she murmured, groggily looking for some paper and a pen.