Chapter 18: Reckoning of Desire

The warm sunlight streaming through the stable windows highlighted the gentle rise and fall of Regulus's chest as he lay in Sirius's arms, his body still recovering from the intense experience. Sirius's fingers absently stroked Regulus's hair, his mind wandering to the events that had transpired. As he pondered the sequence of events, a thought occurred to him. He had been so caught up in the moment, he hadn't actually counted how many times Regulus had been... serviced. A wry smile spread across his face as he began to recall the events. There was Marcus, of course. Regulus had taken one load from him. Then, there was the dog, who had managed to get two rounds in. Sirius's father had also contributed two loads to the tally. And then, there was Sirius himself. He had lost count, but he distinctly remembered taking Regulus four times. And, of course, there was the stallion, who had added one more to the count. Sirius's eyes widened as he did the math in his head. One from Marcus, two from the dog, two from his father, four from him, and one from the horse... That made a total of ten loads. He couldn't help but feel a twinge of pride and possessiveness at the thought. Regulus had certainly been... generous. Regulus stirred in his arms, his eyes fluttering open. "Sirius?" he whispered, his voice husky from disuse. "Yes, my love?" Sirius replied, his voice low and soothing. Regulus's gaze drifted over Sirius's face, his eyes searching for something. "What... what just happened?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. Sirius smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "I think you know exactly what happened, Regulus," he said, his voice teasing. Regulus's face flushed, and he looked away, his eyes dropping to the floor. Sirius chuckled, his arms tightening around Regulus's waist. "Don't be embarrassed, my love," he said. "You've been... quite the popular boy." Regulus's face grew redder, but Sirius could see a hint of a smile playing on his lips. "I suppose I have," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. Sirius leaned in, his lips brushing against Regulus's ear. "And I think it's only the beginning," he whispered, his voice sending shivers down Regulus's spine.