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Xingqiu had stumbled onto the book by accident.
He had bought it from a merchant in Liyue Harbor who was moving out to the country. The man had no desire to trouble himself with the costs and inconveniences of shipping dozens of heavy books that far. Xingqiu had sifted through the box of discarded books idly until he found a gem—then another—and decided to purchase the entire thing, figuring he could sort out any duplicates or unwanted materials later.
After paying for a cart to bring the box home, he had started his pruning. At the bottom of the box was where he’d found it: a thin, hardly-touched book with a blank cover hidden within the cut pages of an inconspicuous dictionary.
Opening the book had made it immediately apparent why the book was hidden away. The first page was an illustration of a man, carefully bound in a lace-like network of ropes. Xingqiu swallowed, face growing hotter as he turned each page. Further in, there were instructions and diagrams of how to create the elaborate rope bindings and suspend someone by them.
Those images were the ones that stuck in Xingqiu’s mind. Over and over, he returned to the book, skimming through the illustrations, heart thumping fast against his ribcage as he read by lamplight at his desk.
He chewed his lip, dizzy with how badly he wanted to experience the bindings found in the book—what was the point of acquiring new knowledge without being able to utilize it?—but he could hardly tie himself up well enough to recreate them. He’d need help.
Who could do such a thing for him?
Xingqiu adjusted his collar outside the doorway of Albedo’s office in the Knights of Favonius headquarters. He was nervous, though there was no reason for it.
In his prior visits to Mondstadt to meet with Albedo, he’d heard knights speak about the alchemist and certain activities. His approach to sex was business-like—easy to imagine, with his demeanor—and he’d been with nearly every knight that had asked to have him. Xingqiu didn’t know what motivated that—curiosity, or perhaps his appetite was that large? Either one meant he was a good person to ask about this particularly strange request.
He entered the open door with his arms crossed, keeping the book he’d brought hidden against his chest. The man was hard at work, gaze fixed on his desk. He didn’t move, even when Xingqiu came to stand a foot across from him.
When Xingqiu cleared his throat, Albedo looked up from the parchment he’d been drawing on—diagrams, it looked like.
“Oh, Xingqiu. It’s been a while.”
Xingqiu nodded, trying to fight down his nerves. Asking wasn’t going to hurt. Albedo was the most level-headed person he knew. If he were uninterested, all he’d do was say no, and the topic would never come up again.
He glanced at Albedo’s papers. “Are you busy?”
“Not really. Do you need something? Another illustration for a book?”
“No. I wanted a different sort of favor,” Xingqiu said. When Albedo raised a brow, but said nothing, Xingqiu forced himself to continue. “I want to try something, but I’m unable to do it easily myself.”
“An experiment?”
“Not really.”
Albedo’s brow furrowed, both lost and curious. “What is it?”
Now, Xingqiu was out of words. He placed the book on the closest corner of Albedo’s desk and nudged it towards him.
“This.”
Albedo blinked at him once, then turned his attention to the book. His eyes widened only slightly at the first picture—a man, trapped on his back with his calves and thighs bound together—but his cheeks remained as pale as ever. As if it didn’t matter at all how obscene the images were.
“I see,” Albedo said, voice neutral as he flipped to another page. “You would like me to tie you up.”
Xingqiu flushed. Albedo’s coldness should have made it easier—that was part of why Xingqiu had come to him, rather than anyone else—but the indifference tied his stomach in knots. The pictures had taken over Xingqiu’s fantasies from the moment he’d found them. Rationalizing his fixation as mere curiosity was how he’d managed the courage to ask for this. But the contrast between his want and Albedo’s seeming detachment made it apparent to him how deep his own desperation was.
Still—it wasn’t as if he could snatch the book back and leave without looking completely foolish, and in some form, he'd still get what he wanted.
Albedo was staring at him, waiting for a response to his assessment. Xingqiu tugged at the hem of his coat.
“Yes. I want to try the suspensions, but...it would be safer, to have someone else there to help. And you have such attention to detail.”
That earned him a small smile. “Thank you.”
Albedo’s eyes returned to the book. He flipped through it, page by page, digesting the contents with no more emotion than Xingqiu had seen him consume his alchemy books. Xingqiu wrung his hands, uncertain what to make of the silence.
“You could draw me,” Xingqiu offered, suddenly embarrassed by the selfishness of his request. “I thought you might enjoy the poses.”
“Hm.” Albedo’s gloved thumb lingered at the corner of the page. “That’s true. These poses are not something I’ve gotten to observe before.”
When Xingqiu nodded, Albedo closed the book and leaned back. His eyes scanned over Xingqiu from head to toe with an intensity that made his skin prickle. Xingqiu didn’t know if he was being regarded, examined, or something else—but whatever Albedo found seemed to be enough.
Albedo smiled softly. “I assume you are flexible enough for most of these.”
Xingqiu’s face burned. “I should be, from my training...”
“Then I would be happy to help you try. Next week? Around this time?”
Xingqiu licked his lips. He’d thought so much about the process of asking that he hadn’t thought what he’d do if Albedo said yes.
“I’ll meet you then,” Xingqiu said. Albedo smiled against and held out the book for him, but Xingqiu held up a hand and stepped back. “You can keep it. I assume you’d want to read it thoroughly, since you’ll be doing the...” he trailed off, throat suddenly dry. “The tying.”
“Thank you.” Albedo slid the book back onto his desk. “I think my atelier should serve as a suitable place for this. The rafters are quite sturdy. We can meet there.”
Xingqiu nodded, any more words on the subject lost to him now. He managed his farewell and slipped out the door, intent on thinking about anything else but what he’d just arranged until the day to meet Albedo again arrived.
Xingqiu had been to Albedo’s atelier a few times before—back when he still thought of Albedo as the handsome, mysterious Mr. Kreideprinz and fidgeted under his unwavering stare. Positioned on the outer ring of Mondstadt, the building was small, with only two other tenets. After a few knocks, Albedo invited him inside with his small, polite smile and a soft “hello.” Once inside, Xingqiu’s eyes immediately rose to the rafters. Already, Albedo had secured a thick braid of rope around the wood that ended with a single metal ring.
Xingqiu stared. A part of him had thought he’d imagined Albedo’s agreement, but it had been real.
“I found more books like the one you gave me. There are quite a few interesting ones.”
Xingqiu nearly jumped at the sound of Albedo’s voice. He smoothed a hand over his outer coat, trying to regain his calm. Imagining the renowned alchemist entering a seedy shop in Mondstadt was difficult. Any image he could come up with was almost comical. But the thought that Albedo had done all that to prepare for this—for him—made his stomach flutter.
“Did you?”
“I can share them, if you like,” Albedo offered. He gestured to another side of the room, where a stack of books sat in shadow.
“I would like that,” Xingqiu agreed, never one to turn down access to a book.
“I also purchased rope, since I wasn’t sure if you planned on doing that yourself.” Albedo reached into a leather travel pack near him and pulled out a long bundle of red rope. “Is this to your liking?”
Xingqiu stepped forward, and after a moment of hesitation, ran a finger along one of the loops. The rope was softer to the touch than Xingqiu had expected.
He drew his hand back. “This looks expensive. I should pay you back for this.”
“It was, compared to the plain varieties, but I thought this color would look best against your skin.”
“Oh.” Xingqiu flushed, strangely touched. “Thank you.”
“Then we can begin?”
The moment Xingqiu nodded, Albedo reached for the first button of his shirt and popped it open. Xingqiu jolted back, lips parted in surprise. Though he knew Albedo would need to get close to do anything, they hadn’t touched yet, and the contact caught him off guard.
Albedo paused, fingers still loosely wrapped around Xingqiu’s collar. “I assumed you would want to be undressed. Like the pictures.”
Xingqiu’s face burned. Now that it was happening, even the sight of the rope in Albedo’s hand felt like too much. His whole body was warm with want, yet he still didn’t know how sexual this was to Albedo, if it was at all. He would expect anything like that to start with a kiss—that was how all his other experiences had gone. But then again, Albedo was...how he was. Did he even kiss the men he slept with?
“I want to keep some clothes on,” he said, figuring there was no point in undressing completely if Albedo meant to tie him and nothing else. “Just enough to cover some things.”
Albedo shrugged. To Xingqiu’s relief, he busied himself with reviewing the book and unbundling the rope as he removed his coat, undershirt, and jewelry. All that was left were his shorts. He shivered and wrapped his arms around himself, somehow both hot and cold.
“I’m ready,” he said. As much as he could be, considering the strangeness of the situation he’d created.
Albedo returned to him without a word. His hands slid across Xingqiu’s chest, pulling the rope taut and brushing across his nipple in one sure motion. Xingqiu went rigid, heart leaping into his throat when Albedo repeated the motion to loop the rope around him once again.
He turned his head, embarrassed, and tried not to wonder if Albedo had noticed how much his nipples had hardened after the first incidental touch. Perhaps he should have kept his shirt on.
But Albedo continued, saying nothing as he finished and secured the harness around Xingqiu’s chest, then began on the one around his hips.
“Do you enjoy being helpless?”
The rope around his thigh tightened. Albedo observed him with a blankness that made Xingqiu burn under his skin.
The tone of Albedo’s words always felt somewhat unreadable, but there was an intangible something to this question that made Xingqiu’s neck warm.
“I don’t know,” Xingqiu murmured.
Albedo tugged on the knot. Xingqiu swore he heard Albedo’s breath quicken.
“I suppose we’ll find out, then.”
Knot by knot, Xingqiu’s movement was restricted until he was belly flat against the bedroll Albedo had set out for him and all he could do was turn his head and flex his toes and fingers. The rope was smooth, but textured enough that Xingqiu could feel the braided fibers dig into his skin whenever Albedo tightened or tested his work. His thighs were fastened to his calves, keeping his legs bent, and his arms were tied securely behind his back. Despite the discomfort and awkwardness—or maybe because of it—he was already hard.
Albedo finished the final ties to fasten the suspension points to the pulley system he’d created, then crouched beside Xingqiu and met his eyes. To Xingqiu’s surprise, no question came—there was only a stare—and he had to wonder if the tension in Albedo’s jaw meant he was anticipating this just as much.
Xingqiu gave a small nod, too dizzy at the thought of what might come to care that being lifted would reveal how much he was already enjoying this. Albedo stepped away from him to grab the other end of the rope. The lean muscles of Albedo’s arm flexed as he pulled, slowly raising Xingqiu from the floor. He kept a hand on Xingqiu’s shoulder, keeping him steady as the ropes hauled him upwards, then stepped away to wrap the loose end of the rope several times around a wooden pillar and secured it.
Finally, everything was in place. Albedo faced him with a small smile.
“Does everything feel alright?”
“Yes. It all seems secure.”
“Good. Then you won’t mind if I draw you as we discussed?”
Xingqiu’s hand twitched, ready to move the bangs from his face, before he remembered his arms were bound and shook them away instead. “Not at all.”
“I promise I won’t be too long.”
Albedo sat at a small stool set next to his kit of art supplies—a setup Xingqiu had been too distracted by the rope and pulley to even notice, though it was only a few feet away. He watched as Albedo opened his sketchbook, attention fixed on the elegant mold of the black gloves around his wrist fingers. Had Albedo’s hands always been so precise? Or was it only now that Xingqiu was noticing it, because those hands had trussed him up with enough rope to leave him completely defenseless?
Though he wasn’t upside down, he certainly felt like it—his head was swimming, and everything felt like it was hidden behind a thin film of gauze. He glanced over, hoping for some sign that perhaps Albedo was affected as well—but all he could see was the crown of his head as he laid out his charcoal set.
Xingqiu closed his eyes and slowed his breathing, hoping to find some trance-like state where he could ignore how badly he ached for touch, but it was pointless—he couldn’t ignore the sensation of the ropes that bound him from chest to ankle, or the movement at the corner of his eye each time Albedo sketched a line or lifted his head to look at Xingqiu fully.
Why had Xingqiu ever thought this was a good idea? He’d known his interest in the rope work was sexual. Of course he was going to get turned on. But his curiosity and want had outweighed his sense, and now he was strung up for nothing more than being watched —though to his surprise, that was arousing in its own right.
He flexed his fingers. The scratch of charcoal against parchment was loud in the otherwise empty room, but its sudden absence felt louder.
“Are you uncomfortable?”
“No,” Xingqiu lied. He wasn’t the kind of uncomfortable Albedo meant.
“You keep turning your head away,” Albedo said. He set his sketch aside and walked towards Xingqiu. “I would like you to face me. Like this.”
Albedo’s fingers gripped his chin and steered it until their eyes met. Xingqiu held his breath, as bound by Albedo’s gaze as he was by the ropes around his limbs. A thumb rose up and pressed against his bottom lip, hooking in just enough to pull down and press against his teeth.
Xingqiu’s pulse thrummed, but he forced himself to remain still. It took all of his willpower not to tongue at the gloved digit.
When Albedo’s hand finally retreated, he remained in front of Xingqiu, eyes lingering on his lips. From the intensity of the stare, Xingqiu expected—hoped—Albedo would bend down and kiss him. But the moment never came. Instead, he stepped aside and reached under Xingqiu with his left hand, palm immediately pressing against the front of his shorts. Xingqiu jerked in his bonds.
“I assume you want this,” Albedo said. “And that’s part of why you asked me to do this with you.”
“Yes,” Xingqiu said, the word no more than a gasp of relief.
“Hm.” Albedo’s hand pressed harder against him. He curled his fingers to cup the outline of Xingqiu’s shaft through his shorts. “You do enjoy being helpless,” Albedo said, plainly pleased.
At this angle, Xingqiu doubted Albedo could see his face, but he still turned his head away. “M-more, please.”
Without the ability to rock his hips forward, begging was all he could do. Albedo massaged him slowly, drawing a low groan out of him, before circling a finger around where he had started to leak through the fabric of his shorts.
“Will I be able to do enough for you like this? There’s no way to undress you without untying you.”
Xingqiu’s head swam. It would be enough, he knew—he was that worked up from being tied, and was already throbbing from the few touches Albedo had deigned to give him—but he still wanted more, wanted Albedo to have access to him completely, and he wasn’t ready to leave his bindings yet.
“You can cut them off,” Xingqiu said. “My clothes.”
Albedo’s hand froze. “Cut them? Are you certain?”
“I wouldn’t have suggested it if I were against it.”
“I suppose not.” Albedo gave a small laugh and stepped away. “You are a wealthy heir, so I assume you’ll be able to afford new ones.”
He returned with a small knife—one he had brought for rope in case something went wrong, or part of his art kit, Xingqiu didn’t know. He flashed it at Xingqiu once, making his pulse race, then returned again to Xingqiu’s side.
“Stay still.”
He could turn just enough to watch as Albedo crouched beside him and reached for the waistband. He closed his eyes and held his breath, heart pounding, as he felt the point of the knife catch on the fabric before slipping through and then down, as he heard it tear. Every cut was careful. Precise, calculated, as Albedo always was. Two slashes down the front of his shorts and underclothes, freeing his cock, then a third and fourth down the back, freeing his rear.
Goosebumps rose on his skin. The soft sound of a single glove falling to the floor made him still. A second later, Albedo hooked two fingers in his mouth and curled them, pressing into the crease at the back of his mouth and gathering spit. “I assume you don’t want me leaving you here to retrieve lubricant. So this will have to do.”
Xingqiu moaned an assent as the pad of Albedo’s fingers continued to massage the juncture between his top and bottom gums, wetting his mouth further. By the time Albedo’s fingers retreated, he was nearly drooling—a reaction he was as helpless to stop as his own arousal.
When Albedo’s fingers circled against his hole, wetting the rim before he pressed one inside and reached under Xingqiu to stroke him at the same time.
Xingqiu hissed, jaw clenched as he tried to adjust to the stretch and the pleasure. As soon as he relaxed, Albedo started to push into him with a second finger. He gasped, arms flexing against the ropes as pleasure jolted through him.
“Are you going to fuck me?” He panted, wondering if Albedo had any intent behind opening him further.
“No.”
Xingqiu licked his lips and tried to look back. “But—”
Albedo’s fingers continued to slide in and out of him, rhythm unbroken by his words. “It would be difficult in this position. And I don’t want to free you until you come at least once.”
Xingqiu clenched his fists, pressing down the urge to beg. As much as he loathed being denied, it made the pleasure of Albedo’s fingers that much sharper. He gasped as Albedo fucked him faster, unable to help a whine when it began to teeter on the edge of too much . Each thrust was rougher, until the push was enough to rock him forward and slide his cock through Albedo’s fist without even a stroke.
“To think, I could do this as long as I like.”
Xingqiu shuddered—Albedo’s voice was so low he wasn’t even sure if he was meant to hear that—but to Xingqiu’s relief, his movements didn’t stop. Heat rushed through Xingqiu, warmth building with each shift of Albedo in him until his vision seemed to throb in time with his pulse.
As if sensing how close he was, Albedo drove in his fingers and held them deep, keeping Xingqiu stretched wide as he milked him through his orgasm with a rhythmic tightening and shift of his hand.
He groaned, hands twisting uselessly behind him as Albedo continued to touch him as if nothing had changed. It drove Xingqiu past pleasure and into discomfort. He writhed, but still took every stroke without protest, not ready to abandon the part of him that thrilled at the thought that he had to endure it.
Finally, once he was soft and spent, Albedo released him. Xingqiu hung his head and panted, suddenly aware of his own breathlessness.
Beneath him was the evidence of his relief, stark white against the dark cushion Albedo had set up for him. A flush of humiliation crept over his cheeks—he’d always been so careful not to make a mess when he pleasured himself or anyone else, and so it was strange seeing the evidence of his release so clearly.
He remained in a daze as Albedo lowered him and loosened his bonds. Once free, he rose onto his knees with shaking legs. Albedo reached down to help him stand, but Xingqiu ignored the extended hand.
“Should I help you into bed? We can continue there.”
Xingqiu shook his head. He rested his palms against Albedo’s thighs, fingers hooking in the gap between his shorts and the top of his boots. He didn’t want to stand, and he didn’t want Albedo to leave, not for a second. Xingqiu wanted to please him now.
“I want...”
He licked his lips, hesitating around the vulgar words now that he was not quite as lust-drunk. Albedo looked down at him, head tilted in thought, before his eyes seemed to light with understanding. He reached for Xingqiu’s hair, and with a firm grip, tilted Xingqiu’s head back as he unfastened his breeches with this other hand.
“Take care of me this way, then,” Albedo said, leaning forward to nudge his cock against Xingqiu’s lips.
Xingqiu mumbled an agreement, already mouthing at the fabric before Albedo could push his underclothes aside.
Albedo took a small step forward, but kept his hand still on the back of Xingqiu’s head, giving him no room to retreat as Albedo’s cock slipped across the back of his tongue and into his throat. Xingqiu’s eyes went wide. He gagged once, then pushed himself forward, not wanting Albedo to pull back. Clenching his fists against his thighs, he squeezed his eyes shut and breathed through his nose. He could take this.
With an impressed, almost affectionate hum, Albedo carded a hand through his hair before holding the back of Xingqiu’s head again and forcing him forward. Xingqiu relaxed his jaw, keeping his mouth open and his tongue flat even when Albedo drew back and began to fuck his mouth. Letting Albedo use his mouth was easier than trying to actively fight his instinct to pull away. His thrusts went deeper, then grew ragged, until Xingqiu was certain Albedo intended to come straight down his throat. He blinked back tears, preparing himself for the effort that would take, but just before Albedo could bottom out, Xingqiu’s throat seized. Albedo released his hair, allowing him to jerk back.
Albedo watched him swallow air, eyes dark. “It would have been easier to get down your throat if I’d kept you suspended and just lowered you slightly. I should have waited to free you.”
Xingqiu’s pulse raced at the image , at the reminder of the control Albedo had over his body moments ago. He closed his eyes, lashes now wet, and braced his hands on Albedo’s hips to take him back in as deep as he could on his own. Albedo’s breath hitched. He slipped a hand beneath the ropes that ran up across Xingqiu’s collar and held them tight, keeping Xinqiu from following when he stepped back. When his cock slipped from Xingqiu’s mouth with a wet pop, Albedo took himself in hand.
“May I?” Albedo asked, as if Xingqiu would refuse him after everything else.
Xingqiu nodded and closed his eyes. All he could hear was the wet sound of Albedo’s fist moving over his cock, steady and quick and slicked by his spit.
He jerked when the first rope of come hit his cheek, but held still through the rest, imagining how debauched he must look in Albedo’s eyes, with his face already wet and his lips swollen and not this . More hit his chest and collar, slipping down to catch against the red rope.
When he finally opened his eyes, Albedo tilted his head up again by the chin. Xingqiu kept his lips parted and remained still, thinking better of smearing or licking the come on his mouth away when Albedo seemed entranced.
For his part, Xingqiu was entranced, too—he’d never seen Albedo’s cheeks pink , and he’d certainly never seen him look tired , eyes half-lidded and crinkling at the corners with satisfaction.
“I was right about the red rope,” Albedo murmured. “You look pretty like this.”
Xingqiu flushed. He wouldn’t know how to react to such a compliment from Albedo normally, let alone when he still had come across his face. “Thank you?”
“I would like to do this again,” Albedo said. He drew a handkerchief from his jacket and crouched to wipe at Xingqiu’s face, cleaning him with a small smile. “Assuming you would like to as well.”
Xingqiu’s pulse sped. Only now that Albedo was face-to-face with him did he realize they hadn’t kissed even once . He brushed back the thick lock of hair that fell across the center of Albedo’s face and leaned in. Albedo’s eyes widened, shock plain, but he made no move to retreat—he leaned in, plush lips meeting Xingqiu’s, before pulling back and looking at Xingqiu with a new, softer curiosity.
“I would,” Xingqiu said. “There’s still so many things in the book left to try, after all.”
Albedo’s eyes lit. He finished wiping at Xingqiu’s chin, but kept hold of it to kiss him again. “And the other ones I found as well.”