Page 113 of Reforging Onyx

“You said something about one of them stepping down?” Onyx asked. “Do they think you’re going to try to take that spot?”

Dominic hummed in agreement. “Marcus Thorne has become embroiled in quite the scandal. In order to save face for himself and his lineage, he will be gracefully taking an early retirement. So it's possible. At present, I don’t know if I’m going to try to take it. It was a consideration, though not a serious one. But that may be the best course of action that I have.”

If there was one thing that could be said for certain, it was that Dominic Bancroft did not shy away from power. Though whether he would follow that to the Council itself… the possibility had always factored into his plans. Not as a primary objective, but as something to consider if it ever became an option.

He would prefer to be the power behind the crown, so to speak, since that afforded him far more flexibility while effectively wielding the same level of power. But that might not remain an option.

“Do you think they’d try harder to get to you if you were on the Council?” Onyx asked, having crossed over to start eating, though now his appetite wasn’t the most robust. “Or do you think they’d be too afraid to risk going after you?”

“Were I on the Council, the Council at least could not move directly against me,” Dominic pointed out. “Whether that would prevent further clandestine action is hard to say at present. There are benefits to being perceived as too powerful to touch… and its own set of dangers.”

He had thought he was comfortably sitting in the category of too powerful to touch, while not being so powerful as to be perceived as an imminent threat. That had likely been true, until the situation between himself and Onyx shifted enough that Onyx becoming his weapon was a distinct possibility.

That had never been a purpose he’d been planning to use Onyx for. The idea of having such power leashed at his feet had been potent enough that he’d not felt the need for more. But of course that would not be how things were seen from the outside, something his hubris had prevented him from seeing more clearly.

It was something that he would have to put much more thought into now, and hope that he could recover stable footing from.

Onyx nodded. “It’s not like they’re going to think you’re gonna reform the rebellion,” he said slowly. “So what are they afraid of? That you’re going to wipe out the Council, and do… what?”

“They are afraid that with your power available at my command in addition to my own, then I would no longer feel the need to be beholden to the Council,” Dominic said grimly. “Not necessarily that I would, but that I could, and that they would lack the ability to keep me in line. Ascendency in witch families is a careful dance of family social position, individual social position, and power. That they would impugn my loyalty is an indication that they fear I may no longer keep within those established structures.” He chuckled. “But they do not know, which was the cause for this evening’s gathering.”

Onyx let out a harsh laugh. “You know, I thought that the Council seeing me as a threat would be a good thing, before,” he admitted. “I wanted those fuckers to be scared. What do you think they’ll think now?”

Dominic hummed thoughtfully. “They believe that I have you contained, but not that you are mine to command. Whether they will believe it best to act before you could finish becoming mine is something that I must consider a possibility. They do not at present have cause to remove you from my ownership, and trying to do so without cause is something that would be hazardous for them.

“Likewise, they have no cause to call for your termination, and attempting to do so without cause would be hazardous. But it is very possible that attacks against you may happen again.” He sighed. “Ambrose’s actions would not have been sanctioned by the Council, but it does not mean that the additional elements I believe are still in play do not lead back to the Council.”

Onyx breathed out slowly, then he finished eating and set his plate aside. “I don’t think I actually want to die. But since taking me away from you would be them saying that they want to use me somehow…” He bit his lip. “They won’t try that. Not unless it’s the Council?” His brows furrowed. “So yeah. Attacks.”

Dominic rose to his feet and held his hand out to assist Onyx from his chair. “They will not have you,” he said, the words quiet and absolute. “You are mine.” His hand lifted to cup Onyx’s face, thumb brushing over his cheek before Dominic’s hand slid back farther into his hair. Something dark flickered in his eyes. “Nothing will take you from me. Not them, not death.”

Onyx swallowed hard. “What happens if you get tired of me?” he asked softly.

It wasn’t the first time he’d asked the question.

A smile played at the corner of Dominic’s lips as his hand slowly tightened in Onyx’s hair. He used that handful to tip the younger witch’s head back to expose the curve of his throat. “Psychopaths,” he murmured, his other hand lifting to trace his fingertips lightly down the curve of exposed skin, “can get excessively… some might say obsessively… possessive of things that they own. These fascinations, when placed, are not easily shaken. If ever.”

Onyx’s breath caught, though from fear or arousal or something else entirely, Dominic couldn’t quite tell. “Do you think you’ll ever think of me as a person and not an object?” Onyx's throat worked as he swallowed hard.

Dominic hummed thoughtfully. “It’s possible,” he conceded. “Though the two need not be mutually exclusive.” He leaned down and brushed his lips against Onyx’s, barely making contact. “My ownership of you was challenged tonight, and I need to reassert my claim.”

He drew back, looking down at Onyx with one hand tangled in the young witch’s hair, holding his head back, the other resting lightly on his neck, his thumb resting over Onyx’s pulse.

“I won’t fuck you,” Dominic murmured. “But you will come on my fingers, perhaps on the plug.”

“I didn’t think he challenged your ownership,” Onyx protested weakly.

Dominic chuckled softly. “My demons disagree. And the pressure will grow, the need to reclaim will grow, until they are satiated.” He released Onyx’s hair, stepping back but bringing the younger witch with him until he could turn them so he was walking Onyx backwards toward the bed. “I would see you in my chains tonight.”

Onyx froze entirely, his body rigid against Dominic’s. “D-Dominic,” he said, his voice small and breathless. “I don’t… I don’t…”

“Shhh,” Dominic soothed. “The cuffs on the headboard, nothing more.” His hands continued to stroke Onyx’s skin. “Negotiate your terms.”

He was willing to grant allowances for getting what he wanted.

“I want to go outside,” Onyx replied. “I know it’s risky, and I know everything’s fucked right now, but I just want to watch the stars for a little while.”

Dominic leaned in to suck a mark on Onyx’s neck right over his pulse. “Agreed. We’ll have dinner in the garden tomorrow.”