Bought

A/N: for those who asked, yes the story will be finished....

Blair showed now, even wearing the full robes, his belly riding before him, his back-leaning posture a dead giveaway. Men and women would stop on the street and turn to watch him go past. He was happy to have Jim, Rafe, or better yet both with him when he noticed the stares. Breeding Guides were a rarity, the vast majority of them lived at breeding farms. The most intense stares came from men he knew were Sentinels. The look in those men's eyes....a bright hunger. He always looked away, even bound in all the layers of his veil and robes he felt naked. Exposed.

Jim and Brian were intimidating enough, and well known enough that Blair was never actually approached by any of the Sentinels who watched him. Everyone knew of and talked about the ruling family when they had the slightest chance. Even the caretakers held whispered gossip sessions in the Guide Care Center, right under James Ellison's nose at the Cascade PD. Blair, recognizing a valuable source of information, did not report any of the talk to his Sentinels.

Blair learned through judicious eavesdropping that the only Sentinel with enough clout to challenge Jim in the Cascade Territory would be his father, William. William Ellison had his own female dominant Guide, one he did not share. His Companion, as was expected by radical traditionalists unlike his older son's Companion, was piously celibate, dedicated to the indomitable will and need of his Senior. He was also thoroughly pitied by the gossips Blair heard, who held sex in high regard. The Companions own needs were put aside in traditional matches, until such time as his alpha died and he himself would become an alpha in his own right.

Blair absently wondered if the Companion the caretakers were talking about was a virgin to all sex. He knew that some wealthy Sentinel families arranged pairings for their sons and daughters. It was conceivable that the Companion might have been kept utterly pure in hopes of attracting a traditional mate like William Ellison. Unlike virginal Guides, a virginal Sentinel was prized. On equal footing with a pregnant Guide.

Blair later, listening to a one sided conversation at the loft, had picked up on the salient fact that the elder Ellison was coming to visit his son. And at that time would expect to inspect his son's new Guide. He would either render his approval, or his disapproval. With the implications therein. Blair was reduced to a bundle of nerves as the day of the visit approached.

William entered the loft without knocking, using his key. Blair startled horribly when the door burst open and a tall, craggy faced, very tanned man confronted him as he walked across the living room floor, his veil lifted just enough to show his eyes, and make it easier for him to negotiate the apartment in the dim lighting his sharp eyed Sentinels preferred. He was wishing he had the courage to ask Jim for glasses. The door flying open shocked the thought right out of Blair's mind. He "meeped" in alarm.

Their eyes met, stern, slate grey and wide, shocked, cobalt blue. Blair froze in his tracks, afraid to even reach up and lower his veil, or to turn away and hide his face. Behind the 'Ruler of Cascade's Sentinels' stood an even taller man, at least six and a half feet tall, pale blond, wide and muscular, extremely handsome, about thirty years old. Blair realized it was William Ellison's celibate Companion, and that he was also looking over William's shoulder at Blair's unveiled countenance, his hazel eyes almost falling out of their sockets despite his success in keeping the rest of his face expression free.

The draped Guide between the two visiting Sentinels was a silent lump of thickly piled pure white cloth, one that Blair hardly noticed, as she stood unmoving as a stone. He could not even differentiate a single bodily contour under the many layers. Which meant only one thing. The Guide was wearing a frame, a lightweight but strong metal structure that supported the layered robes. Underneath it the Guide walked naked, not a stitch of fabric actually touching her skin, only straps from the frame making contact with her body, and padded shoes. Only the most conservative of the traditionalists framed their Guides, intent on reducing all external stimuli through the thickness of the robes, sounds were muffled, scent and vision impossible, the frame preventing touch or an involuntary taste. Blair's knees began knocking together.

Rafe reached Blair in three leaping strides and jerked the veil down over his gawping, milk white face. Then he knelt to his Senior's father and made his obeisance. Blair spilled down at Rafe's side, Rafe's arms shielding him, cushioning his belly, face down on the flooring, curled in as tight a ball as his pregnant state would allow. Rafe's hand was shaking on the back of his neck, gentle but obviously alarmed at the turn of events.

William Ellison moved into the room, each step deliberately ringing as bootheels connected with the hardwood floor. His head was held high, he didn't look down, ignoring the two persons huddled near the floor. The sole of his boot crunched down on an edge of Blair's coral colored robe, and then he and his group were past, in the center of the living room. Jim was coming down the stairs to meet his father, irritated but not surprised that he hadn't heard them coming and that his father had deliberately used his key instead of announcing himself by knocking on the door.

"I am here to inspect your Guide." The tone was cool, with a note of strong disapproval already embedded. No greetings were exchanged. Blair's insides writhed. What would happen if Jim's father found him wanting? The advice of the ruler of Cascade had to have an impact.

"Certainly, Senior Sentinel." Jim replied, excessively formal. No niceties passed between the two men, no mention of the family ties they shared. "Guide." Jim didn't use his name specifically, of course he couldn't, not without agitating his father, but Blair felt the summons, Jim meant him not William's Guide.

Blair remembered very well what traditional Sentinel's expected without being told by Jim. He crawled towards the men standing in the middle of the loft's main room. His belly was heavy, ponderous, but he managed well enough, a rolling, swaying motion, he had no choice. He was immensely careful to keep his hands and feet covered by at least a foot of cloth, he wasn't going to risk showing even the tiniest flash of skin unbidden a second time. He made it at last to Jim's feet. He could feel the approval radiating off the older Sentinel, his next statement only confirming it.

"He moves beautifully, breathtaking. I will see the Guide upstairs," came the formal voice. "Our Companions will remain below." Blair knew without asking that William didn't want his Companion to see any more of a Guide unveiled. It was not framed as a suggestion. Blair waited for the order to crawl up the stairs, it would be hard, but he'd do his best. He was sure that his every move would be watched, especially given the statement of how William Ellison thought of Blair's crawl to Jim's feet.

Jim made a sound that Blair interpreted as unhappy, and suddenly he was swept up in powerful arms. Jim had picked him up and was even now striding towards the upstairs bedroom. Blair had no idea if William was in front of them or behind. He was placed carefully in the center of the huge bed, Jim's arms sliding out from under him. Blair didn't dare move a muscle.

His robes were taken up at the hem and knotted under his feet, making it impossible to raise the fabric from that direction. Blair didn't even twitch. Then both sleeves to his robes were also knotted. The sleeves couldn't be scooted up to expose him either. Then Jim took his veil and knotted it under Blair's chin, protecting his face from exposure, though Blair thought mournfully it was a little late for that. Then his Sentinel was gone from his side, Blair held off a whimper. He wanted Jim back.

The mattress next to his right hip dipped. He tensed, and unexpectedly the mattress on the other side dipped as well. Both Sentinels were on the bed.

Unerringly the new set of hands that came to his body came through the robes at his belly, finding the slit in the fabric without trouble, no fumbling. Blair shuddered, anticipating the dreaded contact, then the hands were on him. Not Jim's touch, he knew that feel, the safety of it. It wasn't Jim touching him now.

These hands were of a size with Jim's, but less roughened, just as warm, equally strong and authoritative. Blair had thought the touch would be like that of the Vet or worse, that his skin would want to crawl away from it. That was not how it felt. He stopped shaking, his teeth loosened from where they'd been ready to sink into his lip. These hands were safe hands.

They spread out over his swollen abdomen. Careful, sensitive hands. Large, encompassing most of his belly, even distended as it was. Fingertips pressed, shifted, pressed again. The sensation of a powerful Sentinel touching him flowed over Blair like warmed honey. All of his nipples tightened in a wave of sensual pleasure. His toes flexed.

Hands of a Sentinel who valued a Guide. His belly was stroked, petted, every stretch mark traced. Breath feathered over the exposed mound of his middle, and Blair hardly had time to do more than draw a surprised breath before a face made contact with his skin, William Ellison's ear pressing into his abdomen, listening with hyper acute senses to the infant moving inside him. Not even Jim had done this. Blair knew Jim's hands, usually through the veil, cupping his belly, or bathing him with a soapy washcloth, but not this.

Blair gasped. William's hand patted his stomach soothingly. Then one moved lower, touching him intimately, cradling Blair's genitals in the palm of his hand. Warm again, safe again. Blair was not uncomfortable nor was he afraid. He didn't understand it, but he knew this man wouldn't hurt him, would kill anyone who tried to hurt him, protect him just as his son would. William kept up the listening, not lifting his head. He spoke against Blair's body, a quiet, low voice.

"Ah. He is carrying two. Look at the expanse of his belly. Far too large for one. You should have agreed to an ultrasound, Jimmy. The health of a Guide should not be taken lightly. Doctor Miller will attend the birthing. Not that imbecile you've taken on. He's lost four pups in the last year. Unforgivable." William Ellison lifted his head at last, caressing Blair's stomach with unmistakable affection. He even forgave the man for calling his baby, his babies, he corrected himself, pups.

Jim grunted. Blair was more pleased. Did that mean he wouldn't have to see the Vet any longer? Would he have another Doctor? He automatically crossed his fingers.

"He came highly recommended..." Jim began to say, defensively. His father interrupted him, petting Blair softly, comfortingly, keeping his voice well modulated, not upsetting the Guide.

"Not highly enough. Doctor Miller will see your Guide tomorrow. I will call him this afternoon. You know next to nothing about caring for Guides properly. The traditional ways serve a purpose. Guides are not Sentinels. They cannot endure the same hardships."

"We have had this discussion. I will not frame my Guide. I will not force my Companion to become celibate. We agree to disagree." Jim's tone was granite, decided.

"A Guide's empathy is greatly enhanced by the reduction of physical stimuli. Their sensitivity climbs astronomically when sensory input is reduced. Framing won't reduce the closeness of your bond. It will be close, intense, son. Claiming need only occur once or twice a year to maintain the strongest of bonds."

"I am not interested in becoming chaste, father, nor having my Companion or my Guide remain untouched in order to make my bond more spiritual. I know you believe in it, but I don't." Jim's tone was steady as a rock.

"Yes, I saw. I saw you allow your Guide to traverse your home without a veil. Soon you will be worse than Stephen, his Guide wears only the thinnest of veils, any Sentinel can pick out her features as if she was entirely unveiled. It is an invitation to assault. Putting a Guide in harms way like that can not be countenanced." The way that William Ellison felt about that was abundantly clear. "I have seen the uncovered face of your Guide, for shame. A sight that is meant only for the eyes of one, for the eyes of the Sentinel who will Claim him, and rarely at that. A Guide is a blessing, and it should not be squandered or treated as cavalierly as you do. How is he to understand you value him if you share him out like that?"

Blair wasn't at all happy with how the conversation was progressing. Strangely, William Ellison was still touching him, and the contact was still pleasant, more than pleasant actually. Blair wondered if the older Sentinel was aware of the ongoing touch as he spoke so intently to his adult son. Now Jim was talking.

"My Guide is a breeding Guide. He will of necessity bear many children, he will have to have contact with them. I won't take them from him..." Blair's heart leaped at the statement, he would be permitted to keep his children near!

"You are not thinking of having him bred naturally?" The older Sentinel's disgust was apparent in every word. "Artificial insemination, is a simple, far more tolerable solution, rather than having stud after stud put to him until he catches."

It was Jim's turn to interrupt. "He has not delivered even one yet." Blair felt uneasy, again. "And you know how I feel about medical procedures. The natural way is best. My Guide will not be inseminated, nor will he be cut to make him breed faster. He will nurse his pups, not bottle feed them."

"It is never too soon to plan. And new ways are not always wrong. I agree on the cutting, a barbaric hold over from darker times." William Ellison stated.

"I will take care of his future when the time is right. But the time is not now, the place for it not here. He is panting. He is frightened again. Stress is the last thing he needs so near to his delivery." Jim said firmly.

"Very well, Jimmy. Later we will talk again. And I will send Dr. Miller tomorrow to check in on him. Your Guide is magnificent, a glorious creature, you should be thankful and very, very careful. There are so few like him. He should be well cared for, by the best practitioners available, not some idiotic boob who might cost him his pups." With that the warm hands were gone. The robes falling back into place, covering every inch of him. Blair was almost sorry to have the touch leave his skin, It had been nice to be touched....even if he wasn't so keen on the topics of conversation.

Blair heard the steps of the two men going down the stairs. He was uncertain how he felt about it all. He hated the idea of not being able to be touched, isolated from his senses, just to make his empathy stronger. He also hated the idea of being bred, but if it had to happen he preferred artificial insemination to being put to breed with male after male until he conceived. He didn't care which was more natural. And since when was his older Sentinel into all natural things? He brought home hamburgers and fries at least once a week, Blair smelled them even if he wasn't allowed to eat them. And pizza, too.

And how weird was it that he hadn't hated the feel of this man's hands on him? What did that mean? He was tickled pink over the Vet getting the boot....

Suddenly Blair heard the front door close crisply as presumably William, his Companion and his Guide, left the loft. Then he heard heated words start up in the living area below. He sat up, ready to roll to his feet, only to find he was still quite effectively tied. He worked at the knots, fingers made clumsy by the thick cloth he had to work through. He couldn't use his teeth to get a grip. Finally he freed his hands, then bent forward to undo his feet.

neichan